Chapter 1: The Beginning of the End
Chapter Text
Things in Westchester had been incredibly busy, and not just because Kurt and Ororo had just seen their little girl through her first birthday.
Mia was by far the most distinctive of the little ones in the mansion, with her mother's shock white hair but her father's blue fur and tail — which she loved to use to curl around whoever was closest, including K and Logan's little boy as well as both Rachel and Nate Summers. Rachel was old enough to be a good, careful big sister, though Nate and James, at two and three years old respectively, were just as likely to roughhouse as be gentle, to Logan's amusement and Scott's consternation.
It had been a little over six years since Jean and Scott had kicked off the parade of kids, so things had been busy for at least that long when it came to nurturing their growing families.
But now? Now, on top of the kind of busyness that the X-Men actually enjoyed, the Friends of Humanity had gained serious followers under their newest leader — Graydon Creed, surprising absolutely no one who knew that family name and knew it meant trouble. So the X-Men were swamped with more than skinned knees and first steps.
In the past few weeks, the rallies the X-Men had been called to had been increasingly violent and extreme. They were obviously taking cues from the genetic predisposition for the worst kinds of revenge that Graydon Creed exemplified. It wasn't terribly new, honestly. The calls for extermination, the "threat to humankind," all of it was the same old same old, at least in terms of the rhetoric used. But it wasn't just words at this point. Now, the X-Men were lucky if the only violence was counter protest clashes. More often than not, the Friends of Humanity would round up some mutants and put action to their words.
The mansion was busy, filling quickly with rescues.
This latest rally was no exception. The Friends of Humanity had gotten their hands on a pair of sisters. And really, as soon as Logan and K had seen how hurt, scared, and young those girls were, the rest of the team was practically superfluous. It didn't matter what Scott said at that point. The ferals were going to go after those girls, and they were going to destroy anything and anyone in between them and the girls.
Kurt shook his head and put a hand on Scott's shoulder even as the ferals did their work. "Really, they are only reaping what they sowed."
Scott narrowed his eyes at that. It wasn't that he didn't know exactly how Logan and K reacted to kids in danger. But he knew Creed knew it, and so did his son. And like father, like son — Scott knew either one of them wouldn't hesitate to play up that angle.
It had already happened a few times: some reporter would catch only the snarls and not the small kids in danger, and it would only add more fuel to the fire for people calling them dangerous animals and uncontrolled terrorists. But this was different. No gloating Creed. No reporters. Something was off.
Whatever it was, it wasn't immediately obvious, though that just had Scott frowning to himself. The crowd had dispersed almost too easily once Logan and K were through… though for as badly hurt as the girls were, the priority was on getting back to Westchester, not unraveling whatever Graydon Creed was up to this time. Hank was already triaging the sisters, who were hanging on tightly to Logan and K, almost buried in them, as all kids under a certain age tended to do in situations like this.
You're worried, Jean projected to Scott.
Of course I am. These rallies have been getting worse every time. There's got to be something else going on under the surface. This was too easy.
I bet we'll find out when the news picks it up when we get home.
Scott let out a long sigh. I'm sure.
Scott. Jean reached over to take his hand. We'll deal with it. After we get home and spend some time with the kids.
As the group settled in for their admittedly short flight, Logan and K were carefully cataloguing every single injury the two little girls had sustained, quietly sharing looks and assisting Hank any way they could to get the kids comfortable and more prepared for a real examination. But it was clear to the rest of their teammates that the two of them were simply simmering over all of it.
"We can't keep playing defensively," Kurt muttered, his arms crossed as he watched Logan and K.
"We still don't know where Creed has his headquarters set up," Scott said, the frustration obvious in his tone.
"There has to be a way to find it," Kurt replied quietly, though he knew he wasn't going to be able to keep the conversation from the Howletts. Not that he was trying to. For as truly evil as the Friends of Humanity had become under Graydon Creed, he wouldn't stop his best friend or his wife from doing what they did best and solving the problem. "He is escalating. With children. I know you're nowhere near as calm as you're trying to appear."
Scott let out a slow and measured breath before he rubbed a spot on his forehead. "I know the professor is looking," he said. "He's careful about telepathic shielding. And he's careful about his patterns."
"Then perhaps we ask K nicely to look down the more … hidden paths," Kurt said with a wicked little smirk. "Give her whatever weapons she wants and just …" Kurt shrugged. "Let nature take its course."
"That's not a good idea," Scott said. "They're trying to bait us into something. You know they are. This was too easy." He gestured to the two ferals. "They're escalating, like you said. But this time? They backed off."
"Then I hate to see what it is they do to the next child that crosses their path."
"That's not what I meant."
"I know," Kurt said, sounding weary and more than a little frustrated himself. "I'm just tired of seeing it happen. It's not a criticism, really. I just … think that perhaps they'd regret their life choices if Logan and K were to actually start hunting them properly."
"We have to draw lines somewhere, Kurt," Scott said.
"I know, and you and the Avengers have it all worked out on where those lines are," Kurt said almost in a breath. "Easy for them to choose the lines when they aren't fighting this fight."
Scott narrowed his eyes, but it wasn't obvious behind the visor. "You know I've already tried to talk to them. Many times." In fact, he and the Avengers were no longer on speaking terms after he told them flat out that they were turning their backs to a genocide — and he wasn't going to retract a word of what he'd said, either.
"I know," Kurt agreed. "They only want to set the rules, not help." He held up both hands. "But I'm not trying to pick a fight, Scott."
"Good. Because I've already tried to fight that fight. We can't wear ourselves out." Scott leaned back and let out a breath. "If we can't find Creed… if this keeps up…"
"We'll find him," Kurt said.
"One way or another," Scott said.
"In the meantime … these two … I'm torn on if they should have family or not," Kurt said with the first whisper of a smirk. "If not, we may need to make arrangements to expand Logan and K's suite…"
Scott gave Kurt a dry look. "Oh come on," he said. "You're just hoping for another one because I got the godfather title for James. Admit it."
"Ah, but for that, I'm hoping for a newborn," Kurt countered. "This … I am hoping he continues his streak of adopting lost little girls. Even if it's not official."
"Like any of us can stop him."
"Yes, well … that was sort of my opening argument without trying to say as much. I should have been more blunt."
Jean finally leaned over Scott with a smile. "After a mission like that?" she asked. "Always be blunt. I think all of us are too tired for subtlety."
"Except, of course, for the three very quiet adults in the back," Kurt said. "The ones whispering to the little girls."
Ororo smirked and took Kurt's hand in hers. "You're always finding a way to be caught up in future happiness," she teased.
"It's a tough job …" Kurt said in a sigh, smiling crookedly.
"But you'll do it in style," she said, smiling even wider.
"Speaking of future happiness…" Jean said, smirking between the two of them.
"If you're not telling me about a future niece or nephew, I do not want to hear it," Kurt said with his chin tipped up just to irritate her.
Jean rolled her eyes and nudged him telekinetically just to do it. "Oh, do we have to do all the work?" she teased.
"Not that we'd complain," Scott muttered, though that got Jean to hit him with the back of her hand.
"Not who I was pointing at," Kurt said before he reached over to 'adjust' one of the levers just out of Scott's reach with his tail. "But please, carry on."
"I think we will," Jean said before Scott could say anything. "After a mission like that… we need something to unwind…"
"She's not wrong," Ororo teased Kurt, just because it was too good of an opportunity to pass up.
The flirting definitely helped to lessen a lot of the anger the team still had over the way the rally had gone. Of course, they knew they were going to have to go after Creed when they got home, but at least some of the harsh tones had left the conversation. The girls had even managed to fall asleep with Logan and K before they came anywhere near the approach to land, not that it helped the two ferals to express what they were actually thinking of doing once they got back.
Whatever their thoughts were, though, that went out the window when they got close enough to Westchester to see evidence of a fight. There was a trail of icy destruction leading out into the forest, not to mention plenty of evidence of weaponry. But Jubilee had left the biggest imprint, with half a wing blown out, obviously from the inside, where she'd fought back.
And considering she was the one watching the kids while the rest of the team was out...
"Kurt," Logan said softly. "Get us down there now."
Kurt nodded quickly, teleporting down with Logan and K, while Jean reached out telepathically to see where the others were. I can't contact the professor, she warned.
We'll find him anyhow, Kurt projected back before he teleported away from where K and Logan were to search for Charles.
What about everyone else? Scott projected to Jean, clutching the controls a little tighter as he landed the blackbird.
Nothing so far, she replied, frowning deeply. But … you know they might just be unconscious ...
Scott only narrowed his eyes further at that, his jaw tightly locked. He didn't say it out loud or project it, but he was sure this was the escalation he'd been worried about.
On the ground, while Kurt was teleporting from one room to the next, getting more and more concerned with what he found, Logan and K were climbing through the wreckage looking for any sign of Jubilee or the kids … though that search split fast when they moved a section of wall to find Jubilee. She wasn't moving at all, and the list of injuries on her that were clearly not connected to the explosion she'd created …
Logan barely took a breath to swear to himself before he started frantically working to revive her, the rest of the search momentarily at a standstill while she so clearly needed help — so it was K that hit the comm.
"We need Hank, right now," K said, her voice constricted as she tried to help where she could. "Jubilee …" And the fact that K didn't finish what she was going to say was proof enough of how rough it was down there. "I don't see the kids anywhere …"
"We'll find them," Scott promised over the comm. "We're here. We'll look for the kids; Hank is coming your way."
Hank was, in fact, already bounding over as fast as he could, but before he got there, Jean very nearly felt all of her breath leave her when she felt the wave of shock hit Logan as he finally accepted that Jubilee was honestly beyond his help.
"Jean?" Scott stepped forward to catch her when it looked like she might falter.
Jean glanced up at Scott and opened her mind just enough for him to hear what she knew — though when he heard it, Scott's reaction was more anger than anything else, an almost blind fury that Jean hadn't heard from him before as they both rushed to catch up to the others.
When they caught up, Hank had done his best to try and reverse the situation, but Logan was clearly just lost as he watched Hank work, and K had gone the other direction entirely and was pushing harder to find a scent or something that would give her a trail to follow to find the kids. But that was hard to suss out when the air was thick with ozone from the massive plasmoid that had taken out that section of the school. Hank looked up at Scott and Jean as they arrived and minutely shook his head.
Jean had one hand over her mouth, but that didn't muffle the noise that escaped her all the same. And Scott crossed the space to where Logan was to put a hand on his shoulder. "We'll stop him," he said, "whatever it takes."
Logan didn't respond at all, and for the first time, Hank had to wonder if Logan had even heard what Scott had said.
Honestly, none of them were thinking clearly, all of them in obvious shock. So none of them were paying enough attention until a few of the intruders — several Friends of Humanity members — were practically on top of them. And Graydon Creed was at the head of the group, with Mia Wagner asleep in his arms and curled up with her tail around his wrist.
K was the first to start growling — not exactly with it but absolutely ready to fight anyhow. Partly in the kids defense but also automatically trying to cover whatever Logan wasn't quite up to yet.
Creed smirked, his expression carrying all the malice his father had. "That won't help them," he said.
"Even your dad wasn't low enough to threaten kids, you slimy, lowdown bottom feeder," K managed through the growl. "What a time to prove you're like your mother."
Creed narrowed his eyes at that before he let out a frustrated noise. "I'm better than either of them," he snapped. "Because I have defeated the X-Men." He tipped his chin. "The other three children are already gone. This one is only proof and insurance. Give yourselves up and they live. Anything less than a full surrender, any attempt to fight back, and they all die."
By that time, Kurt and Storm had arrived as well, and it was clear that they were both locked onto Mia. They hadn't found any survivors of the assault, though they hadn't found Kitty, Bobby, or Charles' bodies, either. Seeing Mia alive was heartening, but seeing her in danger had both of them on the edge of the worst kind of panic. And close by, Jean had fire in her gaze, one hand on Scott's arm as she tried to hold back what could too easily be destruction of the kind that would endanger Mia, too, considering how little control she had over her own emotions at the moment. And K and Logan shared a look in stark silence. Those that knew them best were pretty sure they'd already had a plan in place for just such an occasion — but no one knew what it was. Or if it was even feasible.
Creed tipped his head toward his men, who spread out to surround the X-Men. "Now or never."
For a long moment, there was only silence before, finally, Scott bit out a "fine" that he barely got through gritted teeth.
When the soldiers came closer, they were understandably wary of the group — though they had measures for each of them to keep them from causing too much trouble. For Kurt and Storm, they brought collars, and once they had them subdued, they were dragged over and tossed into a small, dark compartment in the transportation the Friends of Humanity had brought. At least they were together.
For Jean and Scott, there were collars as well, though they weren't placed in the same cell as Kurt and Ororo. They were both tightly bound and blindfolded before they were thrown in together in a different transport. With the collars on, they couldn't reach out like they usually did through their connection, but neither one of them had anything to say when they were both furious.
And for the ferals, as expected, even though they weren't fighting back, there was an obvious level of force in play. Several soldiers to each of them, a set of gloves on both that would keep them from using their claws — and just for extra insurance, their hands were bound behind their backs before they were pushed into separate travelling cells from the others with bags over their heads as well.
Not one of the X-Men knew where they were headed or even where the others were. They still didn't know what had happened to Bobby, Kitty, or Charles, either — and all things considered, they didn't have much reason to be optimistic.
Chapter 2: Malicious Compliance
Chapter Text
When the X-Men were finally done travelling and dragged to their separate cells, it was clear at least to Logan and K that it was only going to get worse. The setup was familiar in that each cell was just close enough to the others that they'd be able to see what was happening while still being far enough away from them to be unable to offer any kind of reassurance. But … when it was clear that Ororo was up to something, that was when the real trouble started.
As always, she had her lockpicks hidden in different parts of her jewelry - she was rarely without something that she could use, after all. She was quiet, quick, and could manage a complicated pick without looking like she was doing anything with her hands at all, so when the guard pushing her around tried to shove her into her cell, she took the shot and hooked one of his feet with hers - yanking him off balance hard enough that when he hit the floor it was with a resonating crack.
Kurt grinned impishly at her. "Wunderbar," he said. "Now, let's find Mia."
Ororo smirked at him and got to work - to remove his collar first, though she'd handed him a spare pick so he could start on the cuffs. "The second tumbler in these is a bit sticky," she told him with a smirk just before she'd managed to un-do the first part of the latch in his collar.
Kurt was nodding and smiling her way, but anyone who watched his tail could see that it was still entirely, so it was clear he was only flirting as a means of trying to keep himself and Ororo calm. He couldn't possibly be serious about it. Not when his mind was clearly on getting to Mia.
"You're next," Ororo warned, looking over Kurt's shoulder to Jean.
"Good. The sooner I can find the kids, the sooner we can burn this place to the ground," Jean said, and even with the collar on, the fire was burning just at the centers of her eyes.
"The sooner you're freed, the sooner you can disassemble these idiotic collars," Ororo said, the wicked, troublemaking smirk in place.
"Sure, let me do all the work," Jean shot back with a little smirk.
"And let us do the dashing rescue," Kurt said, smiling a little wider when the collar came off a moment before the cuffs did as well. He grinned and stole a quick kiss from Storm before he went to teleport off in search of the kids - but instead of teleporting, Kurt found himself still standing in front of Storm… and with an alarm blaring in his ears.
"Get out of here," Scott snarled out over the sound of the alarm.
Logan and K were both almost writhing on the floor, still with their hands bound behind their backs so they couldn't stop the sound of the screaming alarms from reaching their ears. Which was when the rest of the X-Men realized that those two hadn't been collared and that there was something the rest of the X-Men couldn't hear hidden in those alarms for as much pain as the Howletts were in.
Kurt stared at Logan and K for a moment before the sound of the door at the end of the hallway bursting open reached their ears over the alarms, and both Ororo and Kurt glanced at each other before they burst forward to fight back.
It was a solid fight - even without all of their skills to aid them, but the sheer number of soldiers was more than the two of them were used to handling. Try as they might - and for as hard as they fought, they were first separated from each other … and then it was clear that punishment was going to be swift.
The guards didn't even try to search Ororo for more lockpicks before one of the guards made the call to pull out what amounted to a rather small - and very dark looking box. There were small gaps in odd places, but for the most part, the box looked solid. "Keep your lockpicks," the soldier said. "You can't reach out to the locks anyhow."
"Lass sie sein," Kurt hissed out, though that only had the guard holding him slamming a fist in his stomach to double him over.
"We'll get to you in a minute," the soldier said with an almost lazy wave. It took four of them to force Ororo into the box and get it closed, but Jean looked ready to murder every one of them with her bare hands if need be. Even without telepathy, every one of the X-Men there knew how terrified Ororo was of tight, dark spaces.
And of course, once Ororo was contained, the guards manhandled Kurt back into the collar and cuffs, though not before they left him badly battered and bruised, so even if he had been able to slip out again, he wouldn't have been able to fight his way out.
Before the guards left, they took the time to look over to the others and a pair of them made their way over to at least get the bags off of Logan and K, though as the guy in charge started out his warning to the others about 'waiting their turn' the one nearest K took a hold of her foot to start dragging her out of the cell, which she took offense to, of course.
There was a wicked kicking session that more or less ended when the soldiers got her boots pulled off and then teamed up to beat on her before they dragged her out, still trying to kick at them, still growling and spitting out curses in Swedish between her still clenched teeth. And for the first time since the nightmare had really started, Logan was growling low.
"This isn't about keeping humanity safe," Scott shouted at the retreating guards. "This is sick! Sadistic. And you know it!" But of course, none of them were listening, and the door slammed shut with a sickening finality. He let out a frustrated noise and sat back against the back of his cell, though it wasn't helping anyone's mood when the silence was only broken by Kurt very softly telling Ororo in both German and English that she was safe - not that it was doing much good when she was clearly panicked.
It took some time, but finally, Ororo seemed to begin to get herself settled out … so naturally, once she was exhausted from the sheer terror - that was when they could hear what was going on one floor up. It was very distant, but it quite obviously screaming. For a moment or two, they were all hoping it wasn't K, but a gasped out curse in Swedish wrecked that hope neatly.
The screams went on for a little while before Logan spoke up. "Don't react."
"What are you talking about?" Jean asked through her teeth.
"That's what they want. Don't react. Whatever they did, don't … acknowledge it."
"Logan, they took my - they took all of our kids, they're torturing your wife, they-"
"That's just the start," Logan growled out.
"And what the hell makes you think we're not going to react?" Scott shot back angrily. "That's our family on the line! We still don't know where the kids are - or the professor or anyone that was at the school!"
"I know," Logan said quietly, though at that, he was already clearly retreating into his own thoughts with a tentative expression.
"Logan," Kurt said softly. "What now?"
"They break everyone down," Logan replied after a long pause, gesturing toward the ceiling, wordlessly pointing out that they had K up there, and from the sounds of it, might even be making headway with her. "And then they'll get what they want."
"Which is what - beyond their own sadistic pleasure?" Kurt asked.
"I don't know," Logan said. "But this is basic torture and manipulation. It's intense, but it's still simple, far as I can tell."
"If they wanted us dead, we'd be dead," Scott said, tipping his head Logan's way. "So this isn't extermination. This is about weapons."
Logan clearly wasn't focused on anything as he slowly shrugged. "Maybe."
"What else can it be?" Kurt asked. "That's always the case - it's either death or slavery for mutants in the minds of people like this."
"This isn't just used on mutants," Logan muttered.
The group of them fell silent, though it was obvious none of them were able to quite push down the honest hurt, anger, and worry running through the whole cell block. Especially after the screaming from upstairs stopped and silence rang out instead. That was somehow worse.
So when, an hour later, the guards came and went straight to Logan's cell, the "don't react" rule went right out the window. Kurt swore in an almost demonic sounding German as his growls and snarls accented the already angry words, but Scott was louder and in a language the guards actually spoke.
"Keep your hands off him or not one of you is getting out the other side of this in one piece," Scott snapped at the guard leading the charge into the cell.
Logan couldn't help but frown Scott's way for that, though it was clear Scott didn't have any means to back it up, which only made the statement that much more confusing to Logan as the guards jostled him and dragged him out of the cell.
Whatever Logan had been expecting, though, it absolutely wasn't to find himself taken to a room where Bobby was tied up and suspended between two very large and obvious heat lamps on either side of him. He was dehydrated, sweaty and exhausted, though he looked surprised to see Logan there too.
"Here's the deal," one of the guards said, holding onto Logan's shoulder as he said it. "You want him to live through what we're dishing out? Then you dish it."
"What." Logan turned toward the guard with a clear glare. "No."
"Fine," the guard said. "We'll just turn up the heat, then."
"What the hell's wrong with you," Logan growled, jerking his shoulder away from the guard that still had his hand on him. "You don't need to do this to him. You got a question, he'll probably just answer it."
"That's not the point," the guard said. "But if you're volunteering for the interrogation, we'll get to that, too."
"No, that's … what the hell do you want from the kid?"
"Absolutely nothing," the guard told him with a sneer. "Which is why it doesn't matter if he lives or dies."
Logan shook his head at that. "If that was the case, you sure as hell wouldn't be askin' me to beat on him. What'd stop you from just killin' him anyhow?"
"Too cool to die," Bobby said, whisper-quiet.
The guard spared Bobby a look and then turned back to Logan. "No one on my detail wants to wipe noses and deal with screaming toddlers. That's his only use."
Logan turned his way with an honest growl. "Izzat some kinda crack on my wife?"
"You asked what's stopping us killing your teammate? We need a babysitter for the brats until the mini-muties are old enough to be useful."
"What." The word was far more growl than anything else, and Logan didn't even think before he had turned on the guard and laid into him hard. He might have brought Logan there to beat on Bobby, but that had backfired spectacularly.
Of course, the guard wound up on the ground and hurting pretty fast, but there were enough guards in the detail that it was really just a numbers game for Logan before they'd pulled him off their leader and gotten him more or less restrained - though for what it was worth, Logan could hear Bobby whispering just under the guards' hearing range, "Asked for it."
Logan almost managed a grim sort of smirk as the guards kept him pressed into the floor. Their leader needed medical intervention and the lesser guards really didn't know what to do with Logan at that point.
At least until Graydon Creed showed up and walked past where Logan was being pressed down to glare at Bobby and crank up the heat to full blast. He wasn't looking at Logan, but it was clear that's who he was addressing as he spoke. "I know it's hard to get anything through that thick skull of yours," he said. "So let me explain in small terms. I tell you to do something, you do it. I don't care how many of your little friends we go through before you follow instructions; I've got plenty to pick from."
"Is that your deal with everyone?" Logan growled out.
"The ones I can use."
"Where's my wife?" Logan asked in a lower growl.
"Not here."
"No kidding. Where is she?"
Graydon simply smirked before he lashed out and kicked Bobby in the stomach, knocking the wind out of him. "Not here. You're not in control here, Weapon X," Graydon told Logan before he kicked Bobby again. "What do you think will be worse - dehydration or internal bleeding? Both will take a while."
Logan couldn't come up with anything snarky when he was honestly concerned about the kids and K and their missing members, and though he had plenty of threats, he honestly didn't want to give Graydon any ideas, so the only thing he could do was to clench his jaw and … growl.
"Typical," Graydon said in a sigh before his next blow sent Bobby reeling again.
"Logan, c'mon," Bobby ground out. "Just… get it over with."
Logan's growl stopped almost instantly on hearing it, though it still took a moment for him to get a handle on himself - eyes shut tight as he shook his head. "Popsicle …"
"S'okay," Bobby promised. "Only way you could beat me."
"Fine," Logan finally breathed out. When the men holding him down finally let him up - after Graydon was safely out of the way - Logan shook his head lightly to himself and drew in a deep breath before he started working Bobby over, even if he may have broken a few of Graydon's unspoken rules. Like by cutting him down first so Bobby wasn't a punching bag. Or by making sure that the hits he was taking would look absolutely horrible in the next quarter hour, but weren't actually bad blows that would cause deeper, lasting damage. But even at that, it was clear that when Bobby was on the floor in a lump that Logan felt like total trash.
Eventually, a few more guards arrived - reinforcements not just to move Logan but to move Bobby too, which was at least enough for Logan to see they weren't just going to finish Bobby off if they were moving him. But it wasn't doing much for his mood when he got back to where the others were - sans Hank, and with K still missing.
"Logan?" Kurt breathed out once Logan was locked back in.
But of course, Logan turned away from the group as a whole and kept quiet as he folded in on himself.
It didn't take long for the rest of the X-Men to learn the score. Not that any of them were really in a state to say anything even when they were around each other. The tight, familial connections they had all enjoyed were being strained, and they hadn't been prepared for it.
Kurt was surprised, then, when he was escorted to just outside a room where he could see, on the other side of the glass, that Nate was snuggling a very black and blue Bobby (who was being attended to by another of their missing members in Hank) while Kitty looked to be at her wits end trying to console kids that hadn't seen their parents for far too long.
He was staring at Mia in particular, who had a look of fury so much like her mother's that Kurt very nearly smiled simply because of the similarities. But that went out the window when one of the guards snapped something around his wrist.
"GPS," the guard explained. "Any unauthorized teleportation and the computer sends out a subsonic burst. Ought to fry the brains of anyone in a twenty yard radius."
Kurt narrowed his eyes and bared his teeth, unconsciously moving his hand with the GPS further from the kids. The guard didn't have to spell out the rest of it: if he tried to teleport to the kids, he would kill them.
And it didn't escape his notice that Rachel, the oldest, had a similar clunky bracelet on, but the guards didn't share the details on that one just yet.
Instead, they took Kurt to a staging area, and he was both surprised and relieved to see K there, even if she looked like she was just waiting for an opportunity to figure out how to make these guys pay for every single insult.
As usual, Graydon himself was keeping distance, so it was one of his lieutenants that explained the mission: "Magneto sent some of his group to Westchester to investigate the institute. Kill as many as you can, but leave one to tell Magneto who sent you - and tag them. We'll pick up whoever you miss and the one you tag later."
Kurt looked toward K, but when she had nothing to add, he simply nodded. He waited until the smoke had cleared from the teleport before he turned her way. "I know where the little ones are, but I can't 'port to them," he told her, his tone ringing with anger and frustration.
"I know," K said through gritted teeth.
"Then do you know what Rachel is wearing?" Kurt asked.
K gestured to Kurt's wrist. "Same thing you are, only they hit the button if I don't do what I'm told."
Kurt let out a growl from the back of his throat. "I'm going to kill him as soon as we get out of this," he swore.
"Okay," she said half under her breath. "You do that."
Kurt let out a breath when he heard it. "We are getting out of this," he said. "I don't know how yet, but he will make a mistake, and then we end him. That is the only way this can end for him."
K turned his way for a moment and simply watched him for a long moment. "I don't know if they have you with me now for ease of transport or to wreck your hope."
"It will take more than this to wreck that," Kurt said.
"I doubt we'll all get out of this, Kurt. But I wish you luck."
Kurt frowned at her tone. "Nein, mein Freund," he said gently as he rested his hand on her shoulder. "If we do not all make it out, then none of us will truly survive. Thus, I choose to believe we will escape."
"Right. Well, in the meantime, this is my downtime. Waiting for Magneto's guys to show their faces."
"At least you have good company," Kurt said in a soft attempt to tease.
"In who?" K asked with a frown as they started to work their way around the edge of the forest.
"The best looking X-Man, of course."
K shook her head at that though, clearly not herself at all. "I'm alone except for the creeps that keep tapping out."
Kurt let out a breath. "Back there, ja, but not now. Focus on that. None of us have seen you in some time, and it is a relief to find you alive." He gave her a tight smile. "See? Hope."
K was still for a long while - much longer than Kurt had seen her take to reply to such a simple, open statement of fact. He was starting to wonder if she was going to respond at all when she finally did - very quietly. "I've dealt with a lot of manipulation and torture rackets, fuzzy Elf. I've never found one until now that didn't bother taking breaks. This … I can't even think."
Kurt let his shoulders fall and then pulled her into a hug. "K…" He let the sentence fall. "I will kill them. I promise."
For a moment, K leaned into the hug, but only for a moment. "We have a job to do," she said in a flat tone.
Kurt frowned at her tone but decided not to press her - all threats considered - and simply followed her once she had picked up the scent for a few of the Brotherhood flunkies. And they somehow weren't surprised to find the usual suspects of Toad and the Blob, plus Pyro and Quicksilver all looking over the rubble and speculating on the X-Men's sticky end.
Kurt glanced to K. "Well then…"
"I've got the speedster," K said before she started to limp obviously. "Leave the most worthless one alive."
"So I will need to have a long chat with Toad. Lovely," Kurt said, though he didn't have any of his usual light tone, and he teleported off to catch the Bob's attention.
K's little act seemed to work wonders. She limped partway out of the forest, and when she thought she was far enough away that the others wouldn't try to follow Quicksilver, she made sure to call out for help before she stumbled a little. If that didn't draw him in fast, she wasn't sure what would. He had been an Avenger, after all; he was still a hero somewhere inside him.
Sure enough, Quicksilver caught up to her in a flash, one hand under her arm before she could slip the rest of the way to the ground. "What's going on?" He asked over her shoulder. "This doesn't look like Boom Boom got carried away."
"No," K replied, though before he knew what hit him, she sent a fist full of claws through his chest. "And I'm sorry for this."
Quicksilver looked honestly shocked, instinctively holding onto her hand as his knees buckled. But he didn't get the chance to do more than that before she pulled her hand back, the claws retracted, and he fell to the ground.
"I'm so sorry, Pietro," K said as she tried to make him more comfortable, clearly shaken up and trying to keep her composure. "But if you'd have lived, you'd be stuck working for them. And I can't let them do that to you. I can't give them a path to Genosha."
But that just had Pietro frowning hard until he couldn't anymore and let his head fall - just as K could hear Kurt further out in the trees baiting the Blob into a blow that crushed Pyro and not Kurt, which only had Fred more determined to destroy the too-quick Nightcrawler.
As Kurt worked, K took a moment to search Pietro for his phone … and then took the chance to put a note into a text, just asking that if whoever found the note could please try to take care of Jubilee … and then trusting that Kurt's message would make it with Toad. The message wasn't strictly her job anyhow.
Eventually, Kurt made his way over, slightly bent over and singed from a few good shots, and slipped down to sit next to K. "Toad is running with his tail between his legs," he said softly. "He knows to warn Magneto about Graydon Creed." He paused and looked toward Pietro. "K … this is suicide. Magneto will destroy everything when he sees this."
"I know." K had been sure to arrange Pietro so he looked almost like he'd simply laid down, and she'd taken care to close his eyes, too. "I'm counting on it."
Which was right about when Kurt realized exactly how far off Logan's wife was right then if suicide by Magneto was the best option she could think of.
Chapter 3: Leverage
Chapter Text
While Kurt and K had been out, the guards had come again and left with Scott, though as always, they weren't exactly chatty and simply dragged him wordlessly out. The others who were left shouted the usual abuse at the guards, of course — ignoring the "don't react" rule Logan had tried to get them to listen to in favor of letting off steam.
But they hadn't really been expecting it when, after a long stretch of silence, what they heard wasn't screaming. Not really.
"Wait, no — stop!" The tone was one they just weren't used to hearing from Scott, and it was desperate in a way that instantly had Jean on her feet and terrified that their kids were in trouble.
Especially when a beat later, Scott let out a sound that Jean had never heard — but Logan and Ororo had. When Jean had died, that had been Scott's reaction too.
But it was silent for far too long before the guards came back — without Scott — and went to Logan's cell, flat out ignoring Jean as she demanded to know what they had done with her husband, fire barely restrained in her eyes because she didn't know where her children were and couldn't risk the Phoenix with them.
Logan was taking up the defensive right away, even before they guards had put the key into the adamantium-encased lock on his cell. "What the hell did you do?" he snarled out, his claws pricking at the backs of his hands, just itching to tear into them.
"That's not really your concern."
"Like hell it's not," Logan countered, though as soon as he put up the least bit of actual resistance, the guards took advantage of at least one of their tricks.
"Come along quietly or one of them dies. We really don't care which one … we can make it random. One of the kids … one of your missing friends … maybe you can guess which it'll be." The guard smirked. "We've had a lot of practice figuring out how to kill one of you healers, you know. Pretty sure we got a sure-fire method now."
For a moment, Logan couldn't really react like he'd wanted to. He had it plotted out in his head - the best way to take this little group out … wouldn't take any time at all, and he knew he could be fast enough …
"One more thing," the guard said. "If we don't show up in the next five minutes, someone is going to die."
Logan was more frustrated still at that,and knowing he had no way to get out of it without costing them someone, he grudgingly went along with them.
But when Logan got there, all he could focus on was the look on Scott's face where he was tied up and just… still. Looking at absolutely nothing. For a moment, Logan didn't move, staring at Scott and not really wanting to show his cards, if he even had any at that point. He just couldn't figure out what could have made Scott lose that much that fast.
"We need intel," the guard said to Logan.
"He doesn't know anything that I can't tell you," Logan said.
"He ran the team."
"And was open about it, too."
The guard narrowed his eyes and then simply shoved a list at Logan, all the things they wanted, from the code to get into the room where Cerebro was housed to the names and locations of students that hadn't been there when they made their play.
All were things Logan was more than willing to lie about. And unlike Scott, Logan knew he could at least sell it. "Charlie's the only ones with the codes," Logan said in an almost conversational tone. "Auto resets every few days. His list. He shares it if he needs to, and only then."
"Then there's no point in not destroying the rest of the school," the guard said.
Logan tossed the list on the table in front of him. "Nope."
"Fine. But the rest of it—" The guard gestured to the list.
"I know he's a little Type-A, but he sure as hell hasn't memorized where all the kids are," Logan said dryly. "That's just stupid."
"Ask anyway."
Logan did his best to bite back a growl. "You know where the kids are, Slim?" Logan asked, his irritation perfectly clear in his tone of voice. "I think this guy wants to pick up that one that couldn't control the poison he emitted … constantly. Or maybe that vampire kid would be a good fit." It was Logan's only attempt to pull Scott into the here and now, and even as he said it, he knew it wasn't going to really work.
When it was clear Scott couldn't talk, Logan turned to the guard. "I don't know what you learned about interrogation, but you can't interrogate someone that's this far out of it. Even if he knew, he sure as hell couldn't put it together right now. Whatever you did — you went too far."
"Wasn't me," the guard said.
"Whoever it was was an idiot," Logan said before he closed the distance to sit down across from Scott. "I can't do anything here."
"That's not what's in the orders," the guard said. "Look, you don't want to run it, fine. But-"
"You don't get it," Logan growled out. "I've done this kind of work for half my life. If there was a way to do it, I could, but once you've taken 'em this far — you can't do a damn thing."
"And I told you: it wasn't us."
"Bullshit."
"Not our fault the guy couldn't play the game," the guard insisted. "You know the rules."
At that, Logan got up again and made his way toward the guard with a growl starting up. "What the hell did you do?"
"Ran exactly this with Xavier," the guard said, though he took an unconscious step back. "He refused, so we killed the old man. That's how this works."
Logan blinked at him a few times. "You did what?"
"Told you - it wasn't us. That was his call."
"And you can't figure out why the hell he's unresponsive?" Logan almost bellowed. "Your whole damn group is a buncha chimps with screwdrivers!"
"You gonna run this or not?" the guard shouted back.
"There's nothing to run," Logan snarled out. "He can't answer anything like this! Don't you get that? Even with those two brain cells firing on high, you should be able to figure that much out."
"Maybe you both need a better incentive," came the response crackled on the radio, obviously from Graydon Creed in the next room over.
"It's not a matter of incentive," Logan defended, whirling in place to where the one-way glass was. "He can't access anything when he's been pushed that far. No one can. That's why they call it a shut down."
"I don't care," Graydon replied. "He's worthless to me if I can't use him." There was a short pause before a different voice joined Graydon with an enthusiastic, "Hi, Daddy! Hi, Scoot!"
It was the first thing that Scott had actually responded to, and he was almost holding his breath. "Logan."
Logan looked up at Scott, but was stuck right on the verge of either snarling and snapping entirely or just … freezing.
"Logan, it's fine," Scott said.
"No, it's not," Logan whispered back.
"It's James."
It was clear how angry Logan was with all of it. If he could see where behind the glass they were, he could make a break for it, clear the room, and get James out. But Graydon never changed the light in the room he was in, so they were still stuck. "List is in front of you," Logan said, his tone entirely constricted. With the hand that was away from the one way glass, Logan was tapping out Morse code: war zones.
Scott nodded and closed his eyes. It was obvious he was trying to think, and he very slowly started to tell the guards a list of coordinates he knew would put them at least in the path of the Avengers or the Brotherhood. "That's it," he said, more to Graydon than Logan. "Let James go."
There was a beat of silence before they knew James was leaving — if only for the yelling from the little boy as he demanded his dad or his Scooter over and over.
Both Logan and Scott had the wind out of their sails. So it was deadly quiet as Graydon added, "One more thing."
Logan closed his eyes, just waiting for the shoe to drop and guessing at least that James was the leverage.
"Before you go, take his eyes," Graydon said as casually as if he had been leaving a lunch order.
"Why?" Logan asked, sounding every bit as angry as one would expect, though Scott had almost the opposite reaction, looking at the floor and bracing himself.
"Simple," Graydon said. "Make an example. Use your powers for me or you will lose them or your lives. No exceptions."
"Yeah? This your way of not givin' him a choice in it?" Logan challenged.
"This isn't a request, Weapon X. It's an order."
"And if I refuse?" Logan asked with a definite growl.
"Then little James never makes it to his nursemaid alive."
It was clear there was no decision to be made, but Logan had a hell of a time not attacking the guards that were at the edge of the room, and he still was searching for some way out of it.
"It's fine," Scott said at last, just barely at a whisper.
"Stop saying that," Logan replied just as low.
"Hey. We both know what's going to happen here. Better you than them," Scott said. He let out a breath. "It's fine. It's James. No choice in it."
Logan's hands were shaking from how tight his fists were clenched, and he curled up his lip slightly as he drew a quick breath — an instant before he lashed out. Careful, quick, and as efficiently as he knew how. It even took a moment for Scott to register what had happened.
And then, as Scott did his best impression of alright, biting nearly through his lip as he refused to give Graydon Creed the satisfaction of more screams to torture the others who would hear it, one of the guards handed Logan the supplies to clean up. "Take him back with you," the guy said. "You're done today."
Logan didn't say a word until he'd managed to get a little better control over himself, and then he quietly warned Scott of what he was doing as he started cleaning up the mess - and after a moment, whisper-quiet apologizing over and over. He knew he couldn't fix this, but he did cut through the collar on Scott to wrench it off — it wasn't necessary anyway — and to cut through the ropes holding him bound.
"Stop. It's fine," Scott said through his teeth.
"It's not," Logan replied.
"Sure as hell isn't your fault either," Scott shot back.
"Could've done something different," Logan muttered, though he had moved on from clean up to dressing the wounds. There was a pause before he had to clear his conscience. "I beat up Bobby. It was me."
"Same setup?"
"No," Logan admitted. "They had him under heat. He was gonna fry him or kick him to death."
"Then you saved him," Scott said. He paused. "I couldn't… the professor…" It was obvious he was struggling to put words to what had happened. "I couldn't."
"I'm sorry for that, too," Logan said in a low rumble.
"It was me."
"Just like Bobby and this was me."
Scott shook his head. "You saved him from dying. And James." He let out a long breath. "This was me. All of it."
"I just can't buy that, Scott."
"You weren't there," Scott said. "I know what happened. It's my fault."
"So tell me what happened when we're away from the guards," Logan said quietly, entirely sure that he'd need to tell Jean and Kurt, which was all he thought he'd be able to do for Scott before Logan himself would simply draw back more from them if he could. "You don't need to say it twice."
"Same setup," Scott said in an almost dull tone. "But I wouldn't — I couldn't hurt him. I couldn't do it, and they killed him instead." By that point, Scott was almost shaking trying to hold in his pain and grief. "You're here because they know I can't do it. So I'm useless to them except to hurt the rest of — God, I'm sorry, Logan."
"I'm here because they already know all they need to do is remind me of what I'm supposed to be," Logan said dully. "Just had to get the right choke chain. That's all." He finished wrapping Scott up and handed him the rest of the bandages.
"I'm sorry," Scott said again as Logan helped him upright.
"You didn't do anything wrong, Slim," Logan said. "Outside of trusting me, that is. That … Just … keep your hand on my shoulder, and I'll get you to Jeannie."
"Alright." It was clear Scott was barely holding himself together, but neither man was able to say more than that. Not when they both felt like they were at fault.
The guards flanked them all the way there, and when they got to the cells, Logan honestly couldn't look either Jean or Ororo in the eyes — Kurt wasn't there, but their captors had apparently decided to let Ororo breathe outside of the small box or risk causing a shutdown like they'd down with Scott — as he helped Scott get to Jean's cell before the guard took a hold of Logan's arm and pulled him back.
"What happened?" Jean breathed out, staring at Scott openly as she guided him to sit down. The guards weren't stopping Jean and Scott from sharing a cell, but anyone could see it was because they wanted Jean to see what they were willing to do — and because Scott wasn't a threat anymore.
"They didn't give me a choice," Logan said quietly before the guard opened his cell and waited for him to step in. The moment he did, Logan made his way directly to the furthest corner and did his best to curl up into a ball there. "Sorry, Jeannie."
"It was me or James," Scott said in a breath, not about to let Logan take the blame.
Jean stared at him, both hands on either side of his face. "They… no." She shook her head slowly. "They can't — they won't get away with this." But it was clear she didn't have it in her to do anything more than watch over Scott at the moment, especially when both he and Logan seemed so… spent. She was too worried to risk leaving either of them.
The whole cell block was locked in a sort of stunned silence for a long time after Logan and Scott's return, with Logan doing his best to keep to the far side of his cell and Jean quietly running her hands in Scott's hair. No one knew what to say, so the spell of silence only broke when the door opened and the guards brought K and Kurt in as well.
Kurt was obviously furious, his tail in constant motion and his teeth bared, which had the guards giving him a wide berth. But K was simply unresponsive. She was awake, but she wasn't reacting to anything — and apparently, this was the norm, since the two guards that brought her there didn't seem to think that the little feral was any kind of a threat to them like that, even when they unceremoniously shoved her in the cell across from Logan by herself before they left.
"Where have you been?" Ororo asked, looking both relieved and concerned as she watched Kurt pace his cell.
"They've had her working for them," Kurt said. "And when they're done making her do unspeakable things, they've been torturing her non-stop." He ran both hands through his hair. "She can't think properly to form a plan that won't get all of us killed."
"What are you talking about?" Jean asked, finally looking over to watch Kurt as she did her level best to keep Scott's head on her shoulder.
Kurt let out a sigh of frustration. "They put a device on me for the mission they made us run. I was to ensure that K got to Westchester and back out again after killing most of the Brotherhood."
"How does that get all of us killed?" Ororo asked.
Kurt let his shoulders drop as he turned toward her. "She killed Pietro first."
"Magneto is going to crush this entire compound," Scott said, sounding almost resigned. After everything else, it was just… one more misery to pile on.
"We have to find a way to alert him — at least to get the kids out of the way of his attack," Jean said in a breath.
"K … may have done something like that," Kurt said slowly and very quietly. "I didn't see what she wrote, but she had Pietro's phone."
Jean nodded as Ororo said, "Then it's only a matter of time."
"Yeah. We know better than anyone what he's capable of on the warpath," Jean said, trying hard to find a grain of optimism when the rest of the group was obviously spent.
"Let's just see what happens when he arrives," Kurt said tiredly. He leaned back and then frowned at Scott. "What…"
"They want me to take them apart," Jean bit out, her hand on Scott's knee and the other in his hair as he leaned against her.
"Then he's using all of us," Kurt said softly, tipping his head back as he looked toward Ororo. "I can only hope he wishes you to use some lighting. A lot of it."
"If that is the case, I will oblige," Ororo said. "With pleasure."
"What … has happened while I was gone?" Kurt asked, watching Scott and Jean.
"Creed doesn't know when to stop," Scott said, though Kurt was concerned by the fact that his tone was worn and had none of the usual bite to it.
"Yes, but what happened, Scott? I'm sure you are fine, but to what degree?"
"It's fine, Kurt," Scott said. "I'm fine. I'm not—" He cut himself off and then let his voice drop. "The professor — I — he's—"
"We'll find him," Kurt promised.
"No, Kurt," Scott said softly. "No we won't."
"Scott, you can't give up hope, not now," Kurt replied almost sternly.
"There's nothing to hold onto, Kurt," Scott shot back. "He's — he's dead." It was obvious the admission cost him, and he had nothing to give when it was done, leaning against Jean almost limply while she tried to reassure him with her presence alone.
Kurt looked as if Scott had thrown water in his face. "Then … we have to focus on the little ones," he decided finally.
"That's all that matters," Scott breathed out. "He's been using them as leverage, but he knows that can't last."
"Yes, I've seen the leverage," Kurt said in a more serious tone.
"I've only heard James — are they okay?" Scott asked, a bit more openly.
"No, they most certainly are not," Kurt replied. "Bobby and Kitty are watching over them, but the devices they are using …" He let out a growl of frustration before he explained how they worked — and how little Rachel was wearing one.
"That has to go before we can get them out," Jean said. "If you can tell me where they are, if I let out a little fire…"
"I can tell you where they are, but I don't know where the men holding their fingers over the buttons are. They took my bracelet off before putting me in here again," Kurt said. "Probably to protect their assets. The one on Rachel was to keep K in line, by the way."
Ororo narrowed her eyes and looked toward K, who was the mirror image of Logan curled up in her cell. "As soon as that comes off, we destroy them," she said.
"Does Rachel know what it is?" Jean asked, not even bothering to hide her concern.
"I don't know," Kurt said. "I wasn't allowed to speak to them."
"At least they have someone they know with them," Jean said, though her eyes were flashing the more she thought about it.
"Then for now, we wait," Ororo said in a breath.
Chapter 4: Like Father, Like Son
Notes:
Word of warning : This chapter contains a MAJOR Character Death. No takesie backsies. Suicide Warning.
Chapter Text
The day after the Brotherhood was slaughtered, the guards returned to the cells where the X-Men were held. Again, they picked out Kurt and K and hauled them off without a word spoken to the others on the way. The persuasion was the same as it was before, though this time, K was more than a little confused when she was told to change into something clearly less … uniformed. In fact, it looked like one of the newest off-the-line sundresses that Jean had been considering before this fiasco started up.
Kurt had no special outfit to wear - just his uniform, as always. And it was pretty clear that he had his own set of orders by the extremely unhappy expression he was wearing.
"This will be a two-part mission for you, Nightcrawler," Graydon said with a smug sort of look on his face. "You need to drop your partner off at the first location and then move on to the second, where I expect you to kill or capture our dear mother." He turned toward K. "Don't worry; I'm not leaving you out of the fun." He slid a device toward K and waited for her to pick it up. The moment her fingers touched the box, the guard directly behind her stepped forward and hit her with an autoinjector in the side of her neck. "The device is how you'll capture Sabretooth. The tracker in your neck is my insurance that you'll be returning. Just in case you think you have a clever way around the device with the children." K was rubbing the side of her neck as Graydon continued.
"Nightcrawler … you'll have one hour to deal with Mystique, and then, you'll need to go back to get K and my father," Graydon said. He turned toward K. "I expect that should be more than enough time for you to capture and sedate him using any means necessary to do so." Graydon paused at the door. "Your time starts when you teleport out of here. Do not go outside of those parameters." He made sure to give K one last, hard glare before he stepped out.
As the door closed heavily, K glanced down at the dress in front of her. "Do you know where we're headed?" she asked before she simply started to change. "I guess I have to blend in with the crowd and just … play bait."
"Yes," Kurt said, though he was obviously still upset as he considered his own mission. "I know enough to get us there. Not much more."
"Then I guess we better get it over with." K finished pulling on her shoes. then gave Kurt a tight sort of smile, though there was a slight tremor to her voice when she spoke. "You'll take care of Logan and James for me if this goes south, right?"
Kurt knew better than to argue, considering who they were going after. "Of course," he said automatically. "And you will do the same for Mia should my mother prove… as difficult as usual."
K nodded at that. "You've got some honest rage on your side," she said. "You'll get her."
"I know. That does not make me feel much better."
"You're too dashing to die from her treachery," K replied as she took Kurt's arm and frowned at the little device in her hand.
"Do you know what it is?" Kurt asked.
"It's one of Stark's designs," K told him. "I don't know how he got it. Tony shelved it because it was too hard to make work unless you were far too close." She met his gaze. "I do not like this little thing. It will knock him out, but I'll have to hold down the buttons while pressing it to the skin to make it work."
Kurt winced in sympathy. "Then I will be fast," he promised. "Lest he wake up first and you find yourself in an even worse position."
"Work smart, not hard," K agreed. "For both of us, right?"
Kurt nodded his quick agreement before he took her covered her hand with his and teleported them both to Graydon's coordinates. He made sure to kiss K's cheek before he took a step back. "Good luck," he said before he disappeared.
"Same to you," K muttered to herself before she started looking around the little plaza. This was definitely Victor's kind of place, but with no sign of him immediately visible, she'd have to do a little looking around. She started to walk through the sparse crowd. There wasn't anything that screamed out 'this is the spot,' though, and considering that she knew she had Kurt's brimstone clinging to her, she thought it might just be best to be the good little bait she was supposed to be. Which is why she headed to the nearest bar and took a seat in a booth where she could watch the door.
Kurt, meanwhile, had gone to the villa where Mystique had been staying after an assassination run, unwinding and spending all of a freshly dead duchess' money.
She saw him coming, of course, but she didn't get up from her balcony seat. "I'm busy, darling."
"You look it," Kurt said, stalking steadily toward her. He was thinking of Mia and the others in that little room as he played with the sword in his hand with a flourish that was more habit than anything else.
Raven let out a long sigh and got to her feet, setting down her drink to face him. "What's wrong? You wouldn't come here with your swords drawn just to get in a little mother-son time…"
"Unlike some, there is nothing I wouldn't do for my children," Kurt said in almost a growl. He didn't explain more than that before he burst forward, not at all surprised when his steel met her daggers.
But as K had said, Kurt had the advantage of rage and desperation. Not to mention Raven had never fought him when he was trying to do anything but stop her. Every thought of Mia or little Rachel with that thing on her arm only gave him more power behind his blows until he had disarmed her with a complicated move that used both hands and run her through with the dagger he caught with his tail.
She let out a horrible squelching gasp and stared at him in shock. "Kurt…"
"Believe me," Kurt said as he tore the dagger free and then stabbed her again, "this is more merciful than your other son would be."
Raven blinked at him as she sank to her knees. "This isn't like you," she breathed out.
"No," he agreed. "But needs must." He took a step back, watching his mother, knowing he couldn't simply leave until he knew for sure that she was dead.
And even if she had never truly been a mother to him, Kurt couldn't stop himself from sitting with her until she was gone - or from arranging her hands to rest on her stomach. Though that was also a means to check her pulse.
He stayed as long as he dared, balancing his need to be there and his worry for K, before he finally teleported off.
K had waited at the bar and gone through several martinis before she finally paid her tab and got moving. She was sure Victor would be where there was alcohol, but for the first time on one of these missions, she was wrong. It was almost a relief as she stepped out of the bar, if not for the fact that it only left the rest of the world wide open, and she wasn't sure if he'd been watching her anyhow.
With a sigh that she'd hoped would loosen her shoulders, K started down the street, her head turned and her sunglasses pushed up her nose as she did her best to look like she was window shopping. She almost swore when she caught a whiff of him when the wind shifted slightly. Of course he'd been following her. The using bait thing was much easier when you weren't the center of the bait.
She paused and turned toward the scent on the wind. If she tried to act too clueless, he'd know something was up, after all. That was the real problem with hunting someone like Victor - he wasn't simple prey. For a long moment, K looked out over the crowd, openly looking for Victor and even allowing herself to slip up onto her tip toes and tip her chin up to catch his scent better, but naturally, the wind wasn't in her favor after the tiny momentary shift. K bit her lip and gave the square one last long look before she readjusted the fabric over her stomach and started walking again.
K made it almost to the parking area before Victor spoke up. "Kinda far away to be all alone, aren'tcha?"
"What do you want, Victor?" K asked in her usual almost bored tone that came into play when he crossed her path, even if they both knew it was a bluff.
Victor smiled crookedly. "Where's the blue rat?"
"If you want to talk to him, you should probably wait," K said before she made to step around him and was, of course, blocked. "I'm sure he'll be along any time."
Victor took a step forward, and K took one back, though she didn't have to fake the nerves at him being in her space like that. "Guess I'll just keep you company until then. Though … it'd be a shame if you weren't here when he came back for you."
K did her best to look off her guard, even if this was exactly what she knew he needed to do for her to catch him. "How about no?" As she started to walk backward, Victor reached out and grabbed a hold of her wrist.
"Don't make a scene now," he growled out low, a smile painted on as he watched a little group of preschoolers walk by in a single file line. "Don't want anything to get out of control, do you?"
"Why are you even here?" K asked, pulling steadily to get her arm back from him. It wasn't the one with the device, but there was no reason to jump the gun when she knew she could get in closer. And she'd need to.
"Lil' mini-vacation," Victor replied in a purr. "What about you? I don't catch a whiff of the Runt or your little brat …" But that was just a step over the line for K, and before she could school it, she was growling. "Easy now, girlie. Lots of tiny witnesses might could get in the way. You wanna try an' throw down, we can take it somewhere more private."
"I'm not going anywhere with you," K hissed.
"Yeah? How ya plannin' ta stop me from makin' ya? Where's your sweetheart, eh? Ain't like him to let the girl that owns his lil' battered heart run around without back up. Not knowin' full well that there's a price to be paid for carryin on in the open like you two have been … an' it's long past time you paid up."
"Not here," K replied between her teeth, though she didn't drop his gaze one bit. Half of it was the challenge he as looking for - and the other half was honest fear.
"Then you better start walkin' nice and easy," Victor countered with a growl of his own, looming over her before he pulled her closer to his side - nearly knocking her off her feet as he kept an iron grip on her arm. The two of them walked down several blocks from where he'd first approached without a word between them, though Victor kept yanking on her now and again just as a show of dominance. When they got far enough away from the little square, he dragged her into an alley, and a moment later, he'd pinned her against one of the brick walls. Which … worked to her advantage.
He still had a hold of her wrist and he took his free hand to wrap around her throat in warning. "Stab me and I'll tear your throat out," he growled out, which had her growling in response and narrowing her eyes as he started roughly searching her for bugs. She began to push on his shoulder with her loose hand, and when he let her slip down the wall to barely let her toes touch the ground, she was quick to reach up with the device - pressing it to the back of his neck before she managed the buttons.
With a little sound of irritation, Victor had his hand wrapped around her throat as promised and pulled her away from the wall only to slam her back into it a few times. She was seeing double as he growled low a few inches from her face and K held up her hand with the now-spent device - showing it to him before she let it fall to the ground. Which was when he started to visibly slow down. "What the hell is this?" he asked thickly as his grip started to slip on her, but that had him pulling her tighter to himself.
"Pretty sure it's karma," K replied, but she couldn't get out of his grasp as he went to the ground, collapsing almost entirely on top of her as the drugs kicked in. He was too big to push away when he had her pinned so awkwardly, and it wasn't until the first onlooker passed them by that she realized how it probably looked to someone from the street. Of course, when she got a look at his watch, she couldn't help but let out a sound of pure frustration. Fifteen minutes to be stuck under Victor Creed.
Eventually, she heard the sound of a teleport before Kurt put his shoulder to Creed to move him. "Well. This is a predicament."
"He drooled on me," K said in a flat tone that surprisingly didn't hide how relieved she was to be rid of him.
"That is certainly offensive." He held out a hand to help her to her feet. "Mystique is dead."
"Oh, what a shame. If I'd had better leverage …" She let the statement fall and started to restrain Victor. "And that strict warning not to kill him."
"I didn't have that warning."
"No, you did not," she said. "Lucky boy." She made quick work of being sure Victor was secured before she looked up at Kurt. "I guess … ready when you are."
Kurt nodded and then teleported all three of them back to where Graydon was waiting.
"Just the one?" Graydon asked.
"Mystique is dead," Kurt said flatly.
"I'd be happy to finish this one off right now," K said, doing a fine job of keeping her smirk under control, even if she would have loved to do just that.
"Not just now," Graydon said, waving her off. "I'll tell you when I need you next."
As soon as the two of them were out of the room, K stopped and gave Kurt a significant look. "You catch that?"
"What? That he has our mother's sense of sadism?"
"That he needs us," K replied. "It's not pure sadism."
Kurt couldn't help but smirk. "Well. He isn't as stupid as he looks."
"I wouldn't go that far," K said dryly as they met up with the soldiers that would take them back to their cells. "I'm getting tired, sweet fuzzy blueberry."
Kurt took her hand and gave it a squeeze. "Then you can sit the next one out," he said. "I'm sure my best friend and I can handle matters from here."
K gave him a tight smile as the two of them were led down to the cells to join the others.
Logan relaxed visibly when the two of them showed up, though he was frowning at the scents he was catching. But as usual, they were put in their separate cells, leaving the two ferals across the little hall from each other. And again, after a moment of what was clear longing, the two of them retreated to their usual spots to curl up and watch each other while the rest of their team discussed what they could.
"Nothing good can come out of Graydon Creed asking for Sabretooth alive," Scott muttered. "We're lucky he still wants K alive, or I doubt there would have been an equalizer."
"Which one wants her alive?" Kurt said. "It sounded like Victor had plans too. There was no blood shed today with them."
"What kind of- I don't want to know," Scott said.
"I can tell you firsthand it's best not to try to figure him out," Jean said in a dark tone.
Scott nodded and leaned into her. "Either of them," he whispered.
"One thing we do know: neither Creed is going to give the other an inch," Jean whispered to him.
Scott let out a breath. "So long as we don't get caught in the middle…"
Jean kissed his forehead. "Something is due to go right."
"We'll see."
"So this is where the boy has you X-geeks stashed." Victor Creed's voice echoed off the walls as he stepped into the cell block where most of the X-Men were being kept. It had been a little over a week since Sabretooth had been captured and the torture on the two ferals had ramped up as well, but now? They were trapped, and Creed was free. He was already splattered with blood, and the emergency lights down the hall were flashing, if the red, pulsating light coming through the small window on the main door was any indicator. And yet … here was Victor Creed looking perfectly livid as he slowly walked through the cell block.
"Boy took his homework to heart, didn't he?" Victor said, though he certainly wasn't looking happy at all. He stopped in front of Storm's cell and stretched his hands out - letting his claws out when he flexed his fingers. He turned her way and let his sneer turn into a snarl. "I'll get back to you. I got business first."
He kept walking until he got to the end of the cell block where Logan and K were - on opposite sides of the hall, still - and for a moment, Victor simply looked between the two of them with a growing smile. "Where to start, where to start …"
Logan began to growl low, more than ready to dive in after him, but that only had Victor turning his whole body slowly, showing Logan his back as he took the handful of steps toward K's cell while she got to her feet. "No drugs for you to cheat with this time, frail," Victor said, looking entirely livid with her as he unlocked the door. He let it swing wide open and left it that way, though he stood in the doorway - daring her to try to get by him. Not that it would have done her much good when he was blocking her path so clearly and itching to get a hold of her. For a moment, she forgot that she was barefoot and in a dress after another little mission Graydon had sent her on. She had nothing to her advantage in this fight.
But still … K was more than willing to bring the fight to him. She was back to a fractured means of thinking with all the torture that had been handed down to her with no time to rest or to heal unless it was to go on an errand. Before anyone could say anything to her, she dove in, all snarls and claws. To start with, it was bloody and every bit the fight that K knew she had to put forth to keep her head above water against him. Victor was getting hits in; of course he was. The man's arms could reach from one side of the cell to the other if he only held them out - and K was fighting to keep a little distance, slashing at him when he'd get too close.
They were halfway into the fight when Logan realized he was on his feet as he watched them and almost holding his breath. Victor had been spewing all sorts of vitriol her way from the moment she'd rushed him. Not only calling her every filthy name under the sun but outlining in vivid detail all the things he wanted to do to her. Only … the monologue was different from his usual torture diatribe in that he wasn't speaking as if that was what his plan was now. Only what it had been. K managed to ignore most of what Victor said … until he had bashed her backward and then looked over his shoulder at Logan with a crooked smile stretching across his lips.
"You know that boy of yours was askin' for you just before they killed him," Creed said casually, and like he'd hoped, Logan froze. But more importantly, K did too.
Creed didn't snarl as he turned to snatch her up, lightning quick. Instead, he saved the growl for after he had a solid grip on her. His growl mixed with Logan's snarl and Kurt's as he quickly restrained K by knocking her strong arm out of socket, only to readjust how he had a grip on her. As he liked to do, one hand was curled tightly around her entire neck - the claw on his thumb digging into the hollow where her jaw met her ear as his index finger did the same on the other side of her skull. He had her pulled in tightly to him so both of them were facing Logan, and on seeing the look of pure venom and outrage from Logan, Creed smiled slowly. He leaned in close over K's shoulder, moving her hair out of his way with his nose so his lips were brushing her ear when he spoke.
K was trembling - though not from Creed. Not at first. Not when she had just been told that her son was dead. The tears streaming down her cheeks had nothing to do with her current predicament. Not yet.
"This isn't how I wanted this to go, frail." He let the fingers in his free hand sink into her stomach - right below her ribs, though shocking those closest to her, K didn't let out a sound. "We were gonna have a good time, girly, but you went and got yourself caught up with little Graydon - and now I don't have the luxury of doin' this the way you deserve."
Victor shifted so that he was speaking over her opposite shoulder, though he was clearly watching Logan. "You're lucky I'm feelin' generous. For old time's sake. So how about you give me a good scream. Just one ...and I'll make it go quicker." To accentuate his point, he dug his fingers into her belly more, articulating the lion's claws to make the cuts deeper and nastier.
K's face twisted in agony as she tried to squirm away from him - really only succeeding in pressing into him deeper and earning a dark chuckle from him.
"Come on now; be nice for your Uncle Victor," he half purred, shifting his cuts and moving the hand around her neck so he could at least threaten to bite her throat out - though his close proximity and his breath on her neck as he leaned closer paired with how badly he was hurting her was enough to get K to let out the tiniest, strangled little sound that wasn't quite identifiable as she tried to keep her composure in check.
It was all made that much worse when Victor grinned on hearing it and actually started shushing her gently as he ran a hand over her hair and retracted his claws. "I wish I could say this was for Logan," Victor said softly, though even Kurt and Scott could hear it over Logan's growl. K had closed her eyes and was steadfastly refusing to look toward Logan even if it was painfully clear to everyone where it was going as Victor continued to quietly whisper things to her that K only answered by minutely shaking her head, not trusting herself to allow a noise to slip by her lips.
Victor glanced at the door when he heard soldiers boots well down the hall, then leaned forward enough to gently kiss her cheek. His fingers wrapped around her neck again, squeezing hard this time as his other hand removed something from his back pocket. She was choking for how tightly Victor was squeezing - and when K tried to wriggle out of his grasp, his other arm went up toward the back of her head, lighting fast. There was an odd metallic scraping sound and two almost hollow snaps before Victor dropped first the broken dagger handle - and then K's lifeless body.
There was a full second of silence before every one of the X-Men was spewing invectives and threats, well beyond furious, though Logan was too shocked to join them.
"Thought you people knew not to get attached by now," Victor almost purred out at the outrage around him.
"Something you taught your son perfectly," Scott snapped at him.
"Never had a thing to do with him," Victor said easily as he started back down the cell block.
"Exactly."
But Victor smirked quietly to himself as he passed them. Which only had the rest of the group that much more furious.
But, surprising the X-Men anyhow, when the group of soldiers came into the cell block armed to the teeth with Graydon along with them, the younger Creed positively blew up when he saw that K was dead. "What did you do, you imbecile!" Graydon shouted - as close to a snarl as any of them had heard. "She wasn't supposed to die."
"Hell of a way to keep her alive," Scott shouted back.
"Stay out of this," Graydon snapped.
With a roar, Victor bounded forward and most of the X-Men found themselves hitting the deck as he tore through the soldiers between himself and Graydon. They were trying to fire off rounds, but of course, Victor was making the shots go wild as he ripped into them, not bothering to stop until he got a hold of Graydon, too. And shocking every single one of them, for once, Victor didn't try to talk until after he'd broken Graydon's neck. "Made me waste a perfectly good weekend for a quick kill instead," he muttered to himself before he turned back around to look through the cells. Every one of the X-Men was beyond angry, but when he got to Logan - Logan was shaking in rage and hoping like hell Victor would open the damn door.
"Look at you," Victor said, tipping his chin up as he looked down his nose at Logan. "Still want to pretend like you're the same as these little heroes?" He leaned closer, his sneer twisting up his features. "Even your friends know that's a load of crap. And it's high freakin' time you just admitted it." Logan hadn't moved a muscle, even as Victor got closer still to the bars, smugly talking down to him.
The two of them stared at each other for far too long. "You're right," Logan said quietly, which was just enough to get a broad grin out of Victor and horrified looks from his teammates - just before Logan darted forward and reached through the bars to grab a hold of Victor around his neck. When he yanked him closer, he pulled to spin him so he could face the mess he'd made of K. Though that only seemed to fuel Logan's rage more.
Logan's arm was over Victor's windpipe, and he was pulling back with everything he had - to the point that his feet were on the bars too as Logan threw his weight back, pushing with his legs to get every ounce of leverage he could as Victor tried to pry his arm off.
Victor pulled hard enough to dislocate Logan's shoulder, but it didn't slow Logan down from reefing that much harder on his own arm to finish the job, choking him out - and pulling back harder every time Victor tried to loosen up his hold. And as Victor was turning shades of purple people were never meant to turn, he made a last ditch effort to slice through Logan's arm - and Logan readjusted his grip slightly, popped his claws ,and simply took Victor's head clean off.
When Victor hit the floor, Logan did too, and after a moment to catch his breath, all Logan could do was stare across the hall at where K was still and lifeless with Victor's last taunts still ricocheting around in his head. The crash was a hard one, and the stunned silence from his teammates only fed the ringing in his ears as Logan started to come apart on himself. He'd tried so hard. Again. And again, he had nothing.
"Logan," Kurt said in an almost-whisper. "Logan, listen to me. We need to get out of here."
It took a few tries before Kurt seemed to cut through the haze, at least a little, and after Logan caught his breath, he reached through the bars to find the keys that Victor had used to open K's cell. When he found them, he got his door opened and then headed for Kurt to free him - and then simply handed him the keys as he made a beeline for where K was still laid out. He didn't make a show out of it at all as he slid to the ground, gathered her up, and clutched her to his chest, wrapping himself around her as much as he was able.
Kurt unlocked Ororo's cell and had given her the keys before he went right to Logan, one hand on his shoulder as he crouched beside him. "I'm so sorry, mein Freund," he whispered, his own voice shaking, though he couldn't think of anything else to say as he sat beside Logan - while Ororo worked as quickly as she could to get the collars off the rest of them.
As the group was trying to lay out a plan - with Scott doing his best to come up with a strategy based on what Kurt could tell him about the layout beyond the basics that Scott had seen, Logan very quietly picked up one of the discarded collars that had slid close to him and held it for a long moment as he stared at K's unseeing eyes. Victor hadn't lied about his son. That much was clear. Logan would have caught a blatant lie like that. And on seeing that the little dagger he'd broken off in K was carbonadium, he knew that Victor had thought it through before he went after K. He still took a moment to try and revive her. But Victor had done a good job of making it stick, and Logan had no way to get the dagger out. Which meant even if there had been a window … he had no way of using it to bring her back.
Ideas were flying back and forth with the team as they came up with a game plan, and the group was sure they had a few solid options, though all of their forward progress came to a screeching halt when a sharp, echoing snikt superseded all other sounds in the room.
All at once, it was a different kind of chaos as Kurt teleported to Logan before he'd fully crumpled over, swearing at him in every language he knew plus a few that he only knew how to swear in from traveling with Logan and K. The blood was more than Kurt could stop, and the injury was instantly fatal anyhow. Especially since everyone had missed the fact that Logan had put a discarded collar on before he'd sent his claws up into his own head from under his chin.
Kurt panicked, trying to get the collar off of his best friend, hampered not only by the blood but by the fact that the collar had locked again. Kurt couldn't hold back the sheer despair that his brother wasn't going to heal from this because of something this barbaric and simple.
Chapter 5: Too Far
Notes:
*** We're not done with the horrible things yet. More MAJOR Character deaths. Psychological trauma. PTSD. ***
Chapter Text
While Kurt was loudly losing his cool, begging God and luck and anything he could think of to help him, the rest of the cells were nearly still and silent. Ororo had a hand over her mouth as she tried to hold in a sob, her other hand braced against the wall just to stay upright. Scott was frozen in stunned horror as the blood drained from his face and Kurt's voice got less angry and more desperate- and Jean… Jean had gone somewhere beyond the horror that Scott was feeling to something else entirely.
It was too much at once. Not just the captivity and torture but losing the professor, watching her husband hurt, worrying about their kids, hearing Victor's promises as he tortured a woman that had become a good friend that had helped balance their team out… then in the matter of minutes to lose James and K - and Logan, too. The fire started before she'd even thought about it, and once it did, there was no need to plan an exit strategy. The Phoenix was going to burn its way out of the compound; the X-Men simply had to stay ahead of it.
"Jean," Scott started to say, but when a deafening, heartbroken, rage-filled cry from the Phoenix was the answer, Ororo grabbed him by the arm to pull him toward the exit.
"We need to find the others," Ororo told him, making sure to keep her grip on him, since he couldn't see the destruction of the compound around them. "Anyone that's left."
Scott would have argued, but Kurt teleported to the two of them and then teleported once more, getting them both out of the way of what would have been part of the wall collapsing. "I know where they are," he said, his voice rough with emotion and barely controlled before he teleported them both to the room he'd been to before to observe the kids- and then disappeared again, though he didn't exactly say what he was up to.
Ororo let out a soft "Oh, Goddess," before she handed one of the kids to Scott, though she didn't say who it was, and he didn't know.
Not until the little guy wrapped his arms around Scott's neck and quietly said, "Want my Daddy."
Scott froze and took a step back just to keep himself upright. But after a beat, he wrapped James up and held him tight. "I know, buddy," he breathed out. "Right now, we need to get out of here, okay? You hang on tight."
James tightened his grip a little, though it was clear he was still upset at seeing everyone but who he was looking for, especially when even as he was holding tight to Scott, he started calling for his Mom and Dad.
"James misses his Dad and Mom," Rachel said helpfully. She was holding Kitty's hand, and Ororo had Mia clutched tightly as the little girl happily babbled to her mom and snuggled into her shoulder. With Bobby - still stiff and sore - behind Hank, who was carrying Nate, that was everyone accounted for, though Ororo at least had the wherewithal to keep a hand on Scott's arm to steer him so it wasn't blatantly obvious to the kids that this was more than just an issue with no visor.
Their timing couldn't have been better, either. They had just spilled out onto the main floor when two destructive forces seemed to collide - a magnetic force that was ripping through the compound's aboveground levels and the Phoenix force as it burned its way to the surface.
"What has happened to all of you?" Erik demanded. "Where's Charles?"
"I'm afraid we're all that's left," Ororo said when it was clear Bobby and Kitty didn't know and Scott was barely keeping it together as it was. "Kurt is… somewhere, and Jean…" She gestured toward the flames steadily growing beyond them.
But before Erik could even process that much, Kurt teleported up - with both Logan and K. He was determined not to leave them behind, though the singed fur was an indication of how close a call it had been.
"Gather closer," Erik said. "I'll … take you all away from this place."
"All of us," Kurt said, a sharp light in his gaze that none of them had ever seen before. "If I knew what they had done with Charles, I would bring him too. And I will find Ja-" He froze when he turned and saw the little boy in Scott's arms. James looked back at him with wide, teary eyes. Kurt teleported over to rest his hand on James' head, needing to touch him to see that he was really there. When Kurt spoke, the unfairness and sorrow was palpable in his voice. "Was is… nein, kleine junge…."
"They're all alive," Ororo told him.
Kurt looked between the kids and then down at Logan and K before he swore all over again, closed his eyes, and then teleported to Ororo to steal a long kiss and to kiss Mia's forehead tenderly and run his hand gently over her hair. "Then we will ensure that nothing will threaten them again," he said soft enough that Ororo was the only one to hear it before Kurt teleported off again - this time close enough to Jean to catch her attention before he got closer still and then, all at once, the firebird and Kurt were both gone in a poof of swirling pink and purple.
Erik took in the scene for a moment before he looked down at Logan and K, frowning to himself when he saw the damage on both of them. And simply because it offended him, he removed the collar Logan was wearing and turned to Ororo and Scott. "The children shouldn't stay here while they … continue." He turned toward the downed ferals again with a barely restrained look of distaste. "And they should not see that."
"We're not leaving them," Kitty said, her gaze positively locked onto Logan. There were tear tracks down her face, and it was blatantly obvious that the only thing keeping her from breaking down into a puddle right there was the fact that Rachel had a death grip on her hand and was starting to cry as well - even if she didn't quite understand all that she'd seen. Kitty had tried, of course to block her view of the worst of it … but with death and misery all around them, it was inevitable that she'd have seen some of it.
"I'll stick with them," Bobby offered quietly, his tone one no one had heard from him before. "You guys take the kids… I'll wait with them, and you can come back."
"Bobby," Scott started to say.
"Hey, I owe him," Bobby said. "I got it. Besides … the kids have been missing you. Probably had more than enough of me."
"We can put those two near Jubilation," Erik said, gesturing to Logan and K. "Once we get the children somewhere safe and Jean and Kurt return."
"They should be near one of the cabins," Kitty said, shaking her head. "But not … not right now."
"Later," Scott agreed, still holding onto James tight and unsuccessfully trying to keep the little guy from getting upset - since he didn't quite know how to angle him to keep him from seeing anything he wasn't supposed to. And for how still James had been since Kurt had teleported off, Scott suspected that he'd seen much more than he should have.
"Yes. It's long past time you all left this place," Erik said quietly before he raised his arms and picked up a considerably large section of sheet metal that all of them were standing on. In a moment, he'd curled up the edges, and they were on their way to Genosha.
As soon as they were in the air, the rescued X-Men lapsed into near-silence, though not everyone was old enough to fully understand what was going on. Which was how a two-year-old Nate wound up peeking over the edge of the metal and smiling up at Erik. "Fast," he giggled.
Erik couldn't help but to spare the little boy a muted smile, though he didn't slow their progress down one iota. "Stay back from the edge, young man," Erik told him gently.
"Okay," Nate said, though he was still peeking anyway - at least until Kitty managed to pull him back and he was distracted by trying to join into the snuggle Scott had almost enforced with James. On seeing the two boys curled up with her father, Rachel immediately wanted to join as well, leaving Scott with a little boy in each arm and his daughter attached to his side where he was sitting toward the center of the metal - while the rest of the X-Men sat in silence around him, warily watching their blinded leader. Kitty had her knees drawn up to her chest with her arms around her shins, shoulders shaking as she tried to keep her grief as silent as possible. Hank was simply shell-shocked - as were most of them - and Ororo kept her full focus on her little girl, quietly humming one of Kurt's lullabies as she rocked Mia.
When it got a little too crowded with Scott when Nate fell asleep, James tried to wriggle away from the pile of Summerses. "Wait," Scott said. "Wait until we get to the ground, okay, buddy?"
James squirmed a little but settled back down with little more than a soft sigh that Scott could feel spoke volumes of how scared and out of sorts the little boy was. "I'm sorry. I promise you can run around when we get settled," Scott said.
James frowned at that, though Scott obviously didn't see it, and he was too tired and lost to fight with him, so instead, he just rested his head on Scott's shoulder and went limp, which was evidence enough to anyone that knew him that he really didn't want to run around.
Meanwhile, Bobby was still keeping up his vigil over the two Howletts when he heard the whine of an engine outside the wreckage and narrowed his eyes, getting stiffly to his feet before he iced up and stood guard in front of Logan and K. He didn't know who these newcomers were, but all things considered, he was sure this was more bad news.
"Looking for a fight, Drake?" Tony Stark's voice echoed out before he appeared a few moments later - fully armored up and looking like at least he was ready for a fight.
Bobby relaxed slightly when he saw it, but he stayed iced up - and in front of Logan and K. "You're so late it's not even funny," he said.
"Giant firebird left, huh?" Tony asked as he touched down - and made his way closer.
"Yeah. That's… still a problem. But that's not what I'm talking about," Bobby said before he stepped slightly aside - at least enough for Tony to see just who he was watching out for. And why.
"What the hell," Tony breathed out as the faceplate shifted out of his way. "What happened?"
"Short version?" Bobby crossed his arms. "The Friends of Humanity ambushed us."
"They're not smart enough to off these two," Tony pointed out, staring in shock at the two dead ferals.
"Yeah?" Bobby gestured to Logan and K. "Well, give them weeks of nonstop torture, bring in Victor Creed, and tell them their son is dead? I mean, I wasn't there, but even I know how that was going to end."
Tony looked more wide-eyed. "The kid too?" he asked quietly.
Bobby shook his head quickly. "No. That was a lie to screw with them, I guess. James, Rachel, Nate, Mia - they're on their way with the survivors to Genosha." He let out a long breath that showed how tired he was. "You're late. So damn late."
"No kidding," Tony agreed softly as he made his way over to kneel down next to them, still not believing that they were both just … gone.
"I don't suppose you know where the Phoenix went after it left here," Bobby asked as he de-iced and sat down heavily.
"I've got satellites tracking," Tony said distractedly as Steve rounded the corner and outright stopped.
"Gonna be hard to follow. Nightcrawler is with her," Bobby said.
"Yeah, that would explain the sudden bursts of fire," Tony said, then turned to look up at Steve. "We screwed up. So bad."
"What…" Steve was just staring at Logan and K, still stopped at the corner. And when he did look up to see a de-iced Bobby who was still not back to normal human colors after the beating Logan had given him, he looked furious. "What happened? I thought this was a Phoenix issue."
"No," Bobby said tiredly. "But I'm sure that's the only problem the guy screening your calls would find even though we're in the middle of a building full of nothing but genocide. The Phoenix didn't even come into play until Jean lost it when Logan…" He gestured with one hand. "Where are they hitting? That's a very special combination of fury and hurt that I only wish on my worst enemies…"
Tony drew his attention away from K and Logan and consulted his on-board computer even as his suit started a scan on both of the bodies. "Looks like all the known FoH and MRD facilities right now … at least … that's what the dozen or so that are already leveled were."
"Yeah. Well. I'm too tired to act like that's a bad thing," Bobby said, leaning forward to rest his head in his hands. With the Avengers there, he was really starting to crash.
"You wanna head to the Quinjet, take a load off?" Tony offered. "We'll bring them with."
"I promised not to leave 'em," Bobby said.
"Then let's get them out of here before someone that's actual trouble comes pokin' around," Tony said before he looked up at Steve. "C'mon, Cap. We gotta take 'em home."
Steve nodded slowly at that, finally kicking away from the corner he'd been leaning on to keep himself upright in favor of going to Logan, while Tony was sure to pull K into his arms as they headed to the Quinjet. It had just been the two of them, since the other Avengers were spread out trying to put out literal and figurative fires in the wake of the Phoenix attacks, so there wasn't anyone else in the jet to see the mess the Howletts were as the Avengers set them down and Bobby sat down close to them, his hands shaking as he watched the whole thing.
Steve was frowning hard but didn't say anything until he was sitting up front with Tony. And even then, it was just a quiet, "Tony…"
"Yeah," Tony breathed out. "Looks like a regular Romeo and Juliet thing, doesn't it?"
"How did it get that bad that fast?" Steve asked in a breath.
"I think … it's been worse than we thought for a long time," Tony said. "Obviously."
"Obviously."
A few moments passed between them before it was clear how angry Tony was. "Damnit, this is exactly the kind of thing we made the Avengers to stop. Why is it that our calls so rarely go to help mutants? Who's in charge of that?"
"I don't know, Tony," Steve said warily. "We handed that side of things over to SHIELD years ago."
Tony was agitated as he thought it over and glanced back at the bloodied couple only long enough to let out a bitter sound from the back of his throat. "This never should have happened. They never should have gotten anywhere close to them - we should have paid more attention when they told us how bad it was." He was barely keeping his temper in check - and only because he could see how traumatized Bobby was. "I'm gonna get to the bottom of this, Cap."
"We both will." Steve glanced back at the three mutants in their hold. "I didn't catch where we're headed."
"Magneto picked them up, so … "
Steve frowned at that. "Are we running a rescue from Genosha? We've already got the Phoenix to deal with…"
"I don't think this is a rescue, Cap," Tony said. "Sounds more like Magneto was the one to get them out of danger. If it makes you feel better - which I'm sure it won't- he was late too."
"Really doesn't," Steve muttered and glanced back again, though he didn't actually voice any further opinion on the matter.
"Scanners show that she got a carbonadium blade in the back of the head along with a dislocated neck," Tony said quietly. "Half a dozen other more minor to her injuries …"
"And him?"
Tony drew in a deep breath and clearly didn't want to respond right away, though when it was clear Steve was still waiting … "Self-inflicted."
All of the wind left Steve's sails, and he glared out the window. "How did we miss this, Tony," he said after a long, long silence.
"I don't know," Tony replied. "Not like we can fix it at this point. All we can do is stop it from happening anymore."
"Yeah," Steve said, though he didn't say anything further until they were nearly to Genosha, at which point he surprised Tony by taking over on the message declaring their business and requesting permission to land. "We've got Iceman, Wolverine, and K," he said in a businesslike tone. "We're just bringing them home - and want to make sure the rest of their group is in one piece."
A few moments later, they were granted permission to land, though Tony was nervous going in. It was more than a little disconcerting to have Magneto meet them there himself - though they had been expecting someone a little higher up the chain of command in the X-Men than Kitty to be there when they landed.
"We'll take care of them," Kitty said, though her eyes were red and puffy and her voice was hoarse.
"I can help," Steve offered.
Kitty blinked at him before she nodded, though Erik was already shaking his head. "We have a place prepared for them until we can find a suitable burial site," he said. "I can manage. Katherine, please show Robert where he'll be staying." With that, he turned his wrists in a graceful gesture, and both Logan and K rose up from where they'd been laid out. A moment later, the bodies floated past the Avengers - and Erik left with the Howletts in tow.
Kitty gave Tony and Steve a tight smile before she turned to Bobby. "Okay. Well. I guess I'll just…"
"Miss Pryde, I'm so sorry about all of this. Please, let us know when the service is," Steve said, sounding a lot more like himself with all the bluster gone.
Kitty paused and looked Steve's way before she nodded. "There's… a lot," she admitted. "I don't know how soon it will be when Jean and Kurt are still, you know…"
"Can't really blame them," Tony said before he managed to hand her a card. "Give a call either way. We'll make time."
"Right. He was on your team too." Kitty gave him a small ghost of a smirk. "Sometimes."
"Goes back a little more than that," Steve said quietly. "But yeah. That too."
Kitty paused and looked Steve over more carefully. "Do you want to stick around, or are you just dropping Bobby off? Everyone's in the living room - Magneto gave us a house to stay in…"
"I … doubt we're welcome," Steve said.
"Just don't start anything. The way Scott's going, you'll stress him into a heart attack," Kitty warned.
"I really do want to see how everyone is doing," Steve said. "Offer my support. So if it's alright … we'll come along."
Kitty nodded. "Just a warning," she said over her shoulder as she led the way, "you bring up Professor Xavier and I'll phase you into a loading dock."
"What … what's the deal with him?" Tony asked, unable to leave it alone.
"He died," Kitty said flatly.
"Did you lose anyone else?" Tony asked.
"Yes." Kitty looked over her shoulder. "We're not talking about it. Especially not when Jean is playing Phoenix. That has historically not ended well."
"Got it. Just trying to keep a running list of who not to talk about," Tony said.
"If you don't see them, assume they're dead or in danger of dying," Bobby said dryly. "It's been that kind of a week."
"Fair enough," Steve agreed with his eyebrows high in surprise before he shot Tony a look and they fell into step behind Bobby and Kitty.
Eventually, they did reach the house - which was within sight of Magneto's looming tower. And as Kitty had said, most of the people on the team were in the living room, unable to relax while they watched the spotty news coverage of the Phoenix attacks and took stock of themselves. Mia was asleep on Ororo, who was green as she watched the footage. Hank had managed to get Nate to let go of his fur long enough to set him back on his shoulders, though Rachel was tucked into Scott's side and James was leaning on his shoulder. It didn't escape the Avengers' notice that all the X-Men looked … spent in addition to the more obvious physical signs of their ordeal, not least of which were the wraps on Scott's eyes and head.
Tony and Steve shared a look and made their way over to Scott, taking the closest available seats. "Scott. How are you hanging in there?" Steve asked. "Looks like you've got good support with the little ones, anyhow."
Scott frowned at the new voice and visibly straightened. "We're fine," he said shortly, unconsciously tightening the arm that was draped around James. "He's my godson. He'll be fine."
"He looks fine where he's at," Steve agreed, even as he gave James a little wave and tried to look friendly. James watched him for a long moment, and instead of being his usual playful self, he simply turned away from Steve and seemed to melt into Scott's side.
And while Steve was trying and failing to navigate the rough waters of small talk with Scott, Tony had flat out ignored that any such thing existed and dove right to scanning Scott quietly to himself … which … was more than enough to keep him quiet when the results came in with undeniably distinctive treble slashes that were still freshly healed.
Finally, Scott leaned forward. "I know you're here about Jean," he said bluntly.
"Actually, we were there for Jean," Steve said. "We're here for … well. We gave Bobby a ride, among other things."
"Alright. Then I'll ride back with you," Scott said. "She just…she needs something to hang onto to get it back under control. If I can get there-"
"To be frank, the places she's wrecking? No one on our side is going to stop her," Tony said.
"They're not the ones I'm concerned about."
"I understand," Tony agreed. "I'm just saying: we know this isn't in our skill set, and we're not stupid enough to piss off the giant firebird any more."
"First time for everything," Scott said dryly. He got to his feet. "Like I said: I'll talk her down. Someone has to."
"Alright," Steve agreed, though when Scott tried to get James to let go, it was clear the little guy wasn't having it. At all.
"James, you can't come," Scott said quietly. "This is too dangerous for you."
"No," James replied stubbornly, holding on that much tighter.
Scott let out a breath and then turned to Tony. "If this goes badly, put him in a suit and get him out and don't let him see it," he said without any room for argument. "He's been through too much already."
"I'll make sure he gets out safe," Tony said, though he looked more than a little confused at how the little guy was running a racket on Scott like that.
"Fine." Scott took a second to give Rachel and Nate both a kiss before, with James still attached to his neck, he gestured for the two Avengers to lead him out. "Let's go get my wife."
It took a longer than Steve and Tony had anticipated to get caught up to the Phoenix, if only because just as they were about to catch up, Kurt teleported them again, and they had to find out where those two were headed before they could catch up again. This time, the two of them had managed to find more trouble than before, upending a government facility - though it was on top of a Sentinel factory, so neither was going to survive the Phoenix fire.
Of course, even without seeing it, Scott could feel the extreme heat of the Phoenix fire and could hear in their connection that there was only hurt. There was very little of Jean in the fire. The rage of the Phoenix was getting stronger with every act of destruction.
Even Kurt had burned through enough of his rage to see it, if the pleading the Avengers could hear was any indication. "I can't even get close to you, Jean," Kurt was saying as they arrived. "I can keep going, but I can't help if you don't rein it in!"
Scott shook his head when he heard it and didn't bother to shout, instead reaching through their connection. Jean, I need you back. Please.
But that seemed to be the wrong avenue to take, because, when Jean paused for a second to look his way, the fact that he was tired and hurt and holding James hit all the wrong buttons. James being there was proof of how pointless it had been for Logan to give up, and Scott was a reminder of everything else that had been done to them. She looked them both over… and the flames got that much hotter.
"Stark, get James out of here," Scott said, though he didn't move from where he was, either, too focused on trying to get through to Jean.
Tony moved to get a hold of James, and as he picked him up from Scott, the little guy started to put up a fight, staring up at the firebird in the sky with tear streaks easy to see on his cheeks. "No! Want Scoot an' Eeenie!"
"James, let go," Scott said as James struggled. "You need to be safe."
By that time, James was flat out crying for Jean, but he was also far too little to argue with them. For just a moment, Jean turned in time to see it as James was holding his hands up to her, his little voice hitching as he called out quieter and quieter for her. And for a moment, the flames drew back - just a bit. Jean was in control - just long enough to really feel the injustice of it all. And just long enough to feel the pure heartbreak that the Phoenix needed to really start sinking its talons into her.
Tony took James and held him tight until James gave up and buried his face in Tony's shoulder - just before Tony got him out of there, leaving Scott and Steve to deal with the rest of the mess.
Jean, come on. We need to get home. The kids … we need to be there. James needs us too. You know it.
Even if the fires were burning bright, Steve could see the difference as Jean looked toward Scott. It wasn't the same fury as the Phoenix had alone, and Steve could see that she was struggling for control, her face contorted with the effort.
Kurt teleported to where Scott and Steve were, frowning over the familiar scene. "They share a telepathic connection," he explained to Steve, since he had no idea what the Avengers did and didn't know.
"That certainly explains a lot," Steve said quietly, though he kept his focus on watching Jean. "Tony just got James out of here. I don't think him tagging along helped at all."
"She's fighting it," Kurt argued. "She needs something good. The Phoenix feeds on anger, destruction, all the worst things…" He let his shoulders drop. "I'm sorry. I have only been feeding that… My best friend…he ..."
"I know," Steve said. "We saw what happened to them. I'm sorry, Kurt."
"Yes." Kurt looked toward Jean, who had her gaze locked on Scott as she tried to fight the Phoenix. "So much has happened, Captain. So much that can never be undone."
"I just don't understand how it happened so fast," Steve said in a breath.
Kurt frowned and turned his way fully. "Captain, I wouldn't call this fast. 'Fast' is a mob whipped up in a frenzy at a whim to kill a blue demon or turn against a goddess of the weather. This was planned, careful murder and torture. There was nothing 'fast' about it."
Steve let his shoulders drop at that. "I know. It's not .. I'm not being clear. We couldn't find where you all had gone, and honestly - we thought you were hitting them back." He turned toward Kurt. "I don't mean anything cold by it, I don't. But a couple weeks to those two … even in the worst circumstances ... "
"Do you know how Logan died?" Kurt asked, his tone almost as deep as a low growl.
"Only that he did it to himself," Steve replied. "I still don't understand how-"
"Until today, he was only on the edge," Kurt said, though he had turned his gaze from Steve to the fire. "He … he was close already. They killed Jubilee. They held our children over our heads and ordered him to torture and mutilate our teammates or the children would pay for it. And when Victor Creed told him his son was dead then tortured and killed his wife in front of him - in front of all of us - what on Earth would keep him here?" He asked, though Steve could hear the bitterness ringing in his tone as Kurt's composure cracked.
What little was left for Steve to hold onto his own composure with was clearly gone and he stared back at Kurt as if he'd been slapped. "I didn't know it happened like that."
"There is a lot you never knew." When Steve looked like he was reeling and had no response, Kurt simply turned his attention back to the Phoenix, his eyes narrowed as he abruptly changed the subject. "She should have gotten control by now."
The Phoenix had taken Jean higher into the air than before, and the firebird in the sky was far bigger than before - despite Scott's best efforts. It was clear he was trying everything, even on his knees and begging Jean to pull it back. And she was trying with everything she had. She was. But she was losing.
The last time this had happened, Logan had been the one to stop it. And even when Jean had come back, Kurt knew Logan had always considered it his job to step in if things ever got that bad again. But Logan wasn't there to stop it when Jean's face contorted in agony as she fought with tears in her eyes against the cosmic firebird whispering lies and promises in her ear. All that she could ever want could be hers … if only she'd give in and let go.
But Jean was still psychically linked to Scott. And even if no one else could hear it…. Scott heard every lie. Every empty promise. He saw the world the Phoenix promised it could give her - with all of their friends and the professor back to life, alive and whole … and God help him, the idea of it all being undone was enough to make Scott's heart ache even though he, too, knew it was a hollow lie. It was so strong a picture, though. Such a deep temptation... and it was more than Jean could fight when all she wanted was her life back - and the lives of those she loved who had been discarded like simple garbage.
And it wasn't just the team. Jean could see her parents and her sister, Sara, who had died a few years earlier, smiling and laughing as she tossed Nate in the air, only to let him down gently so he could rush off and play with a grinning and laughing James - both of whom looked to be a couple years older than they were right now. It was a glimpse of a future that Jean desperately wanted deep down in her bones. The knowledge that it was ultimately a lie … and that if given the chance, the Phoenix would destroy everything and everyone that Jean held dear … No.
But she couldn't stop it. She wanted to, she wanted to so badly, but there wasn't enough strength left in her to fight it back. Even as she tried to reach through the psychic connection with Scott in a last-ditch effort to have him help build her up stronger - she could feel the fire taking a deeper hold on her mind. All she wanted in that moment was her husband. But it wasn't enough. Her face contorted, and she drew in a sobbing breath even as the breath was knocked out of Scott for how deeply in despair she was.
As Kurt watched, Jean closed her eyes and tipped her head back, and a screech rent the air. When she looked their way again, there was no recognition in her gaze, and that was what decided it for Kurt.
"Get Scott out of here," he told Steve over his shoulder as he unsheathed both swords.
"What? Why? What can you even do against the Phoenix?" Steve asked, pulling himself together. "Kurt -" He shook his head as he watched Jean and the fires growing faster than before - hotter and wilder. "There can't be much that can be done."
"No," Kurt agreed. "We have very limited options." He took a deep breath and gave Steve a tight smile. "Please, when you talk to Ororo, don't tell her how much I regretted egging Jean on." With that, before Steve could object, Kurt stepped back and teleported away, leaving Steve in the quickly-dissipating brimstone.
He reappeared exactly where he meant to be, both swords thrust out so that even if the fires around him and Jean were too hot, both of his swords were through her chest before the metal could melt.
For just a moment, the whole world seemed to stand still. Kurt and Jean were both suspended in the air, and even the fire around them paused as the Phoenix flickered from Jean's eyes, giving her one last private moment in her connection with Scott before the fire went out. All at once, the world began to move again, and Jean and Kurt simply dropped from the sky.
Chapter 6: Don't Shoot The Messenger
Chapter Text
Without even thinking about it, Steve just started running to where Jean and Kurt had fallen, one hand at his comm, shouting for someone to get there and help, but of course, only the little group that had come was left. And while Steve was panicking, Tony made his way back with James.
"I know this is a bad time, but I need to go help Cap, and you said to keep James from seeing anything else, so …" Tony very gently handed James back to Scott with whispered instructions for James to keep an eye on Scott before he rushed over to both assess the situation and to get Steve to breathe again.
Of course, Scott had known the second Jean was gone, even if he hadn't seen how it happened. One minute, he was talking with her in their minds, and the next, it was deafeningly quiet. And he was barely conscious enough to take James before the little guy hugged him, and Scott wrapped himself around James. He wasn't able to do much more than that, but it was clear to anyone that saw the two of them that James was doing his level best to wipe Scott's face of tears beneath his wraps while quietly sniffling himself.
Tony did what he could to settle out Steve while a transport was called in to gather up the two fallen X-Men. Had they been in a situation without a little kid, he'd have just dealt with them himself, but … for how much James had wanted his Aunt Jean … and for how close he knew the kid was to the Elf, he didn't even want to attempt it. Once the transport arrived, he made his way over to Scott and James and dropped down to sit with the two of them. "We can help with the little ones, if it gets to be too much," Tony offered quietly.
"No." Scott kept one hand on the back of James' head. "They need to be safe."
"Then at least let me come up with something to help you see again," Tony said.
"Why." In just the one word, Tony could hear just how much Scott didn't trust the offer.
"Because, like you said, they need to be safe," Tony replied. "And no better judgement call on them than you. Obviously, Logan knew what he was doing when he picked you."
Scott froze, his mouth slightly open, before he let out a wordless noise. "Fine."
"Like it or not, Summers, we're going to do all we can to help, and I know that has to sound hollow coming off of all of this, but … we know we blew it."
"No kidding."
Again, the group made the trip to Genosha, and this time, on the way back, Steve tried to at least attempt to check on James as well as Scott. But that was shut down fast when James pushed him away with a stern-sounding 'no' that was laced with a touch of a growl.
"I got him," Scott said quietly, angling his body so he was between James and Steve.
"I see that," Steve said, letting out a weary sigh as he watched the two of them. James had never done that with him, and it stung, if he was being honest. "Tony's offering a place for you all to use until you decide where you want to be. And … that should give you time to make your arrangements. I can't even begin to say how sorry I am about all of this, Scott."
"Yeah." Scott had his eyes covered, but even if he hadn't, he wouldn't have been able to look at Steve. "Yeah. There's a … we have an arrangement with Magneto."
"So they'll be in Genosha, then?" Steve asked quietly, hoping that Scott didn't plan to turn to Magneto as a permanent solution.
"Maybe only until I can set something up," Scott said slowly. "I"m not sure yet."
"That's what Tony was offering," Steve said, watching him openly. "Anything you need."
"My kids safe are in Genosha," Scott said. "My team…"
"I know; we're headed there now," Steve agreed. "I'm not trying to divert you. I'm just trying to make sure you know there are other options available."
Scott nodded, though it was clear to Steve that he was still trying to process everything and wasn't quite up to thinking. "I know a little place. I took James fishing there before. It's Logan's."
"I'll make sure the jet you take doesn't have any tracking capabilities," Steve said. "No reason for anyone to bother you."
"Good." Scott nodded. "I need to keep them safe."
It was uncomfortably quiet for a short moment as Steve tried to find something to say that might help. "I know for a fact that James destroyed Tony on a level I didn't know was possible. If you say the word, you'll have him bending over backwards to do anything you want. All of us will, really."
"I just need my kids and …" Scott paused. "I … I'll let you know. We had a good security system before. Only reason he got in was he blew it up."
Steve let out a breath. "When word gets out … on top of the best Tony can come up with, I know for a fact you'll have Natasha invested. Might not mean too much to you, but she might surprise you."
"Fine. But they're the only two who can come. I don't need their location getting out. You know how dangerous that is."
"Understood," Steve said, nodding to himself. "No one else."
"Fine." Scott leaned back with James.
The rest of the flight to Genosha was quiet, and when they made their request to land, again, neither of them was surprised when they had the same group to meet them on the landing strip. This time, it was Tony that took the initiative to go talk with Erik. "We're leaving them both quinjets," Tony told him. "I'm working on something for Scott to enable him to see, you can run it by your tech people when I get it done - there will be no GPS, no trackers or tracers of any kind on anything, but I'll need to come back to make sure that it works right."
"You'll understand if I don't take your word for it and insist on my own labs."
"That's fine," Tony said, nodding at that. "I have a list - if you don't have some of the components here, I can arrange for them to get here without anyone else stepping foot on your soil." He didn't try to hide the clear regret in his voice. "I know it's late, but I need to do what I can to help now. And I can help."
"Clean up the mess you never bothered to help prevent," Erik said, not bothering to keep his own anger hidden.
And surprising Erik, Tony simply nodded in agreement. "If there's anything left of the labs of the people that started this mess, I will go in myself and take them apart."
Erik watched him for any sign of a lie and then very slowly nodded. "Yes," he said slowly. "If we can salvage his sight, then at least one of Charles' children can be saved."
"All due respect, there is no 'if' in this equation," Tony said. "I'll make it happen."
"Then I hope to see you quickly."
Tony held up both arms. "Just tell me where I need to go. I'll start right now."
Erik watched Tony carefully before he gestured with one hand - and Wanda joined them, looking worn as well. But she did smile tightly when she saw Tony.
"Mister Stark will be working in our labs. Under careful supervision," Erik said pointedly.
Tony turned to Wanda, doing his best to ignore Erik's warning or at least pretend like he didn't care about it even as the armor he was still wearing vibrated slightly. "I have an idea, but I need a lot of very small parts. I can get Pepper to package them up into part of a suit to get them here, if you want to catch them."
Wanda nodded and made it a point to take Tony's arm, which at least had the vibration letting up slightly. Though it wasn't until they were out of earshot that she told Tony in a low tone, "The way he's feeling right now, I'm not sure it was such a good idea to come in the suit, Tony. He's ready to go to war over this."
"I don't blame him," Tony said softly. "I wasn't kidding, either. If there are any traces left of the people that started this, I'll be right there burning them to the ground."
Wanda glanced up at him before she broke form and gave him a kiss on the spot on his armor where his cheek would be. "If Jean left anything of them at all, I will wipe them from existence." She glared and settled back on her heels. "They killed my brother."
"I know," Tony said quietly. "And both of the Howletts are gone."
"I heard. I don't know how Kurt is going to deal with that, but I don't blame him for giving the Phoenix a joyride."
Tony stopped and opened up the faceplate so she could read his expression. "No, Wanda … Kurt died with Jean. He killed her."
Wanda froze. "...what?"
"That's why we're here. We brought them back - Cyclops tried to talk her down, but it didn't work …"
Wanda narrowed her eyes and then shook her head, holding her arms tight to herself. "I'm tired of this, Tony. This is why I agreed to come here to stay with my father in the first place."
"I know," Tony said softly. "And as far as I'm concerned, we're not standing in anyone's way when it comes to stopping genocide. I didn't know it was this bad."
Wanda frowned and then put her hand on Tony's arm. "I wish you hadn't lost your innocence, you know."
"I wish we hadn't lost our friends," Tony countered.
"Me too." She led him around a corner to where the elevator would take them down to the lab but didn't say anything until they arrived. "If this doesn't work, get out of here fast. I know you think you're God, but I'm just warning you now…"
"It'll work," Tony said. "I know exactly how much trouble I'm facing, and if I can't do this … well … maybe it'd be earned."
"Not really," Wanda said, frowning up at him. "Tony… I didn't think you liked Scott that much…"
"It's not about him. He's got three little kids depending on him now," Tony said. "And he can't do right by them if he can't see them. Just James on his own … the kid doesn't say much - and I know. He's little, but he gets his point across with looks, you know?"
"Billy does the same thing," Wanda said. "It's not easy."
"Right, so just imagine trying to keep track of Billy without being able to see him." Tony gave her a look. "I have to do something."
"So, when are you and Pepper going to have your own, then?" Wanda asked, a quiet smirk at the corner of her mouth.
"Ought to get married first, don't you think?" Tony said, quietly bristling at the question.
"You haven't done that yet? Really, Tony, I've been gone for how long…?"
Tony hedged and shrugged one shoulder as he quietly shook his head.
"Give me a wedding, Tony. We need something - anything - good right now."
"I'd need a bride first," Tony said, finally turning to face her. "And Pepper's not it. If you must know."
Wanda looked honestly surprised. "You were head-over-heels when I left!"
"Yeah, and when I wasn't moving fast enough for her, she started trying all kinds of … jealousy… games, you know what … I don't really want to talk about it."
Wanda let out a breath and squeezed his arm. "I'm sorry."
"Its fine," Tony said. "She and Happy are making an honest run at it." He snapped his fingers and pointed at her. "But hey - you might get an invite to that if you're really hard up for weddings."
"Maybe," Wanda said. "I just need something to go right. Just one thing."
"Against all sense, I've got a few dozen drones deployed at the original FoH base - just to see what, exactly, the damage was, how many mutants were killed there in this last … mess. When I get the numbers, I'll let you know. If you'd like. Also low-key looking for Xavier. Figure they ought to be able to have all of them for the services if they can." Tony was frowning to himself as he stopped at the bench that had a whole slew of tools and supplies laid out. "In the meantime …" He looked around the lab. "At least I can get started while I wait for my parts." With that, Tony gave Wanda a muted, forced smile and then stepped out of his suit as he got to work at an almost frantic, concentrated pace that Wanda had seen him fall into so many times before.
As for the rest of the survivors, no one really had to ask what had happened once Scott and James got back. They'd seen that specific kind of hurt before.
Ororo had been holding it together with strings and tape until then, but that… seeing Scott so broken … and with the glaring absence of Kurt … she knew what the score was even before it was confirmed, and that burst through all of the strings and tape and hope she'd been clinging to. The dark black storm clouds that had been gathering and swirling overhead finally let loose with an earth-rumbling peal of thunder that hid her sob, and the citizens of Genosha sought shelter from the tempest the goddess inadvertently created as nature itself wept along with her.
Rachel was old enough that she knew what was going on, even if her ability to grasp the permanence was a little shaky. The basics were really all she needed to know, though. For instance, she knew her dad was sad and that a lot of her friends were gone.
Nate and James had fallen asleep with Scott, but Rachel slipped over to Ororo and put her hand on Ororo's knee. "I love you, Stormy," Rachel said earnestly. "Lots and lots okay?"
Storm took a moment to give Rachel's hand a squeeze. "And I you," she said, though Rachel was frowning at her wet face.
Rachel rubbed her face against Ororo's side as she snuggled in. "I'm sad too," she said quietly. "Everyone is sad."
"They are," Ororo agreed, trying to smile for the little girl.
"Do you need a hug?"
"Always, little one."
Rachel nodded and then wrapped her arms around Ororo's middle, listening to the rain against the roof of the house, which was enough to soothe the goddess at least a little bit.
Over the next few days, the surviving X-Men were visited by not only Scott's brother and sister-in-law, who were clearly destroyed, but Wanda as well. She hesitated to bring the twins along, all things considered. Not because she didn't trust the group - but she didn't want them overwhelmed by a pair of highly curious and helpful little boys. Not until the kids from Westchester started to show some kind of emotion other than numb, anyhow. She knew that Billy in particular would bend over backwards to help. And she wasn't sure watching those affected that it was the right time. Yet.
Instead, she helped Tony.
For as fast and dedicated as Tony was to his project … in the end, it took more time for Magneto's people to clear Tony's work than it took for Tony to create new bionic eyes for Scott. Finally, after what felt like forever to Tony, several of Magneto's people brought Scott to the lab so Tony could make sure that what he'd created for Scott was going to work properly for him.
"Sorry it took so long," Tony said as he took a seat near the bench, his tools close at hand.
Scott let out a breath as he sat down. "It's fine. Rachel is making a game of telling me everything she sees, so I haven't gone without."
"So you know, this isn't just a fitting," Tony said. "They should be done. All of it. This is for tiny adjustments and confirmation that it'll work for you."
Scott tipped his head to the side. "Yes, well, we'll see what you've got. Nate picked out my glasses, so if they're really that offensive to you…" It was the first attempt at wry humor he had made, and Tony somehow wasn't surprised it was dark humor.
"No, you don't understand," Tony said before he let out a breath. "You can keep the glasses. Whatever glasses you want. That won't impact what I made." He sat back while Magneto's staff came over to do the actual fitting with Scott. "The only thing I wasn't sure of was the color."
"Oh, I'm boring. They were brown," Scott said dryly.
"Well, I went with blue," Tony said.
"Fine by me. Nate will like that."
There were a few semi-uncomfortable moments as the doctors finished, and then, Tony quietly gave him a moment to process. Scott blinked his eyes as the bionics powered on … and slowly, for the first time in weeks, he could see. Scott looked like he was in shock as he slowly took in the details of the room. The doctors were watching both Scott and Tony carefully, which was when Tony spoke up again. "We have a whole slew of color and focus tests when you're ready."
"Yeah." Scott was still looking around. "I'm not used to … color."
"That actually makes sense," Tony said. "I rushed this set, though. I can change anything you don't like."
"No, that's not what I meant," Scott said. "I just meant - it's been a long time since I saw anything other than red. Let me get used to it."
"Then maybe I should wait to tell you the other features," Tony said slowly.
"No, go ahead," Scott said.
"Alright, so, you can ask for night vision or infrared. It's keyed to your voice only, so no one will be able to tweak that for you," Tony said. "When I get back to my lab, I already have ideas for a better pair that will have scanners that will help you with threat assessment - not too much different than the stuff I have onboard my suit."
Scott finally turned to look at Tony and blinked a few times in open surprise. "That… will help immensely."
Tony nodded and let out a breath of obvious relief. "Alright. Well. Consider this the starter version."
"Thank you." Scott reached up to rub a hand over his face. "I didn't expect… all of this."
"You know I don't do anything halfway, right?" Tony said. "Especially when I screwed up so badly already."
Scott frowned Tony's way. "You sure you're alright, Stark?"
"Yep. Fine." Tony nodded to himself, though it was clear he very much was not alright.
"Wasn't anyone's fault but Graydon Creed," Scott said, surprising himself with his concern - but then, he knew that look intimately.
"Still," Tony said with a shrug. "Alright. I'm going to suit up. Head out. I told Magneto that the two Quinjets are for you and your group. I'll grab Cap and get out of your hair, just … let us know when it's time … you know. We want to help see them off and pay our respects."
"It will probably be a combined service. Too many… it would be too much to do them all one right after another."
"No kidding," Tony breathed out. "You've got my number, so …"
"Yeah." Scott got to his feet and looked around. "Thanks again. I know our teams don't… mesh. So I wouldn't have blamed you-"
"Yeah, that's not gonna work anymore. I blame me," Tony said. "Just let us know when you need help. No questions asked but when and where."
"Honestly, I don't know that the team will… well, there aren't enough of us…"
"It's not just about the teams," Tony said. "But if you want to keep working for good and don't want to carry all the liability, you can join us."
"It's not about liability," Scott said. "I just don't know if we can ask anyone to keep… to come back after this."
"There's no time limit on this, Scott. Take your time; take care of your family and friends. We'll be here when you're ready either way."
Scott nodded gently before he put a hand on Tony's shoulder. "I'll call you when it's all set up. Thanks."
"Anytime," Tony replied, and when he stepped back from Scott, he made his way over to where he'd stashed the armor and quickly suited up. "Wanda seems to think I've got a death wish," he said with a little smirk.
"Knowing How Magneto feels about the Avengers? Wearing that suit? You might."
"Haven't got anything else, and the rock tee and sneakers seemed like I was under-dressed," Tony deadpanned.
"True enough. But you didn't murder me, so he might let you come back."
"One way to find out," Tony said before he waited for his official escort to take him away from the lab. While he waited, he hedged on telling Scott the other bit that he'd found out from his drones, but … seeing as Scott was taking charge of the funeral arrangements, it really was something he had to do. "Oh, Scott. I know there's no good time to tell you this kind of thing, but … I had sent out a small army of drones to search that site - where you were being held. I was looking for … well, I was looking for answers, if I'm being honest."
"And?" Scott said, half holding his breath on what it was that Tony might be hanging onto.
"I've recovered the professor's body along with the body of a young man that DNA matched up with Logan. He did lose a son; it just … wasn't the one he thought he'd lost."
Scott nodded slowly. "Akihiro," he said, though he barely breathed it out. "I didn't know him well, but Logan told K about him when they were married…" He shook his head and then swore under his breath. "The bastard wasn't lying."
"Probably ought to elaborate on that," Tony said.
"Sabretooth told Logan just before he killed K that his son had been asking for him when he died," Scott but out through his teeth, his hands in fists at his sides. "When K died, Logan thought he had lost everyone in his family."
Tony stared at Scott for a long moment. "And because of this guy … he wasn't lying."
"Logan would have known if he was," Scott said, still visibly angry. "Dammit, this shouldn't have happened."
"He played him," Tony said, shaking his head in disbelief.
"He'd never been able to before. Not that I ever saw," Scott said. "If it wasn't so damn believable, it would never have worked."
"But he wasn't technically lying. Logan just … didn't think about the other … this Akihiro?"
"They weren't close," Scott said. "At all. The fact that he was asking for Logan… he had to have been well past the breaking point. Logan wouldn't have believed it."
Tony nodded at that. "We found Creed's body too. Both of them."
"Stark, I don't give a damn about them. Leave them to rot. I don't care."
"No, I just … I know how much of a pain Sabretooth was, and you should know he's not coming back. He was pretty well torched."
"Good." Scott made a visible effort to calm back down before he turned toward Tony. "And… the professor…?"
"He's waiting for you in New York ... " Tony let out a breath. "I'm sure he'd have wanted to be home."
"Yeah." Scott was almost holding his breath before he sat down again. "Yeah. He… yeah."
"Anything you need," Tony said as his escort arrived. "Just say the word."
"Thanks," Scott said in a whisper, all the anger from before gone at the thought of burying the professor. "Really."
Chapter 7: Stage Four Grief: Depression
Chapter Text
Scott took his time leaving the lab, honestly torn on how to process everything while he was taking in the fact that everything on Genosha was so … vividly bright. But the joy and wonder at regaining his sight was still bitterly tinged with the heavy losses they'd sustained. And those losses were touching every single facet of their lives. For instance, Scott nearly lost his breath when, on seeing the beautiful flowers that lined the sidewalk, his first reaction was to automatically reach out to project to Jean what he was seeing, only to very suddenly need to find a bench to rebalance himself for a good, long while.
It was emotional whiplash of the worst kind, and Scott was already hurting before that had started up. The confusion and joy of finally being able to see in living color instead of shades of red since he was a kid was almost enough to make him momentarily forget that he'd lost the girl who held his heart. But that only lasted long enough for him to instinctively reach for her. Because she'd been there, in his head since …. Well, since the first time the Phoenix had nearly destroyed their world. Since the flaming firebird had chosen his first love to be its host. And even the memory of how that telepathic link had been forged was now tainted, since even that had been partially thanks to the bloodthirsty, lying ,cosmic parasite that had stolen her.
If he wasn't so damned depressed over all of it, Scott would have been furious. But he didn't have the energy to be that angry. Not when he knew it wouldn't bring Jean back. Not when he knew what little energy he had left was best spent taking care of their kids … and Logan's orphaned son.
Scott turned and found a clock that read out the time clearly - something that he might not have been able to read properly considering that the numbers were red - and he forced himself to his feet. He'd been gone for far too long. Especially when it was obvious that James got nervous when left with Bobby and Kitty for too long - as if he was just waiting for someone else to step in and take him to live with someone new.
He was almost back to the house where the team was holed up for the moment when he heard his name and turned to see Erik making his way over. It was a little different seeing the Magneto regalia in living color, though he tried not to look too surprised all the same at the garish combination - even if the red and purple were distressed and battle-worn.
"Hello, Erik," Scott said softly as Erik touched down lightly. Scott didn't know it, but Erik had rarely been walking the past week or so since the X-Men had been rescued from the brink of their own executions. He'd simply been too furious.
"How are you feeling, Scott?" Erik asked gently, though it was clear he was studying him as they walked.
"Still getting used to it," Scott admitted. There was no point in lying about it. "It's a shock going from the visor to bandages to living color."
"Stark pulled through, then," Erik said, sounding almost surprised.
"He did," Scott said. "Even better vision than I had as a kid." He was sure Erik's men would tell him about the upgrades, but old habits had Scott holding back the rest of it.
"I'll be honest," Erik told him. "I had my doubts about letting him remain here, even for this."
"I spoke with Storm. If anything had gone wrong, if there were implants or worse, she'd have taken the kids and gotten lost on the wind." Scott tipped his chin up. "I'm not risking them. Ever."
"You know you're welcome to stay here, where it's safer, Scott." Erik was watching him carefully. "Even if I know you were only planning to be here until you could get your feet under you."
"If it was just my kids, I'd consider it," Scott said. "But I think James needs to be able to get out in the woods. When he comes into his mutation, he'll need the quiet, not an island full of people."
"You don't know for sure that he'll be anything like his parents," Erik said.
"I know it's the most likely outcome. And I know from dealing with them both that crowds overwhelm their senses." Scott crossed his arms. "It's not something James will be able to control. Not like what our powers were."
"You still have several years before that would be a concern, my boy."
"I know." Scott let out a long breath. "And you have a point about safety in numbers. Just … let me think about it."
The two of them walked together in relative silence, but in trying to avoid looking at Magneto, Scott saw all of the mutants who obviously knew who he was - and what had happened to his team, if the sympathetic looks were anything to go by. It only made the quiet walk to the house that much more uncomfortable, but Scott had to find a better subject to discuss, or he was going to lose his fine grasp on his emotions.
"You should be at the memorial." Scott swallowed hard, a muscle working in his jaw as he dug for the words while Erik was still quietly in shock at their current, strange cease-fire. "I'm sorry. About the professor. I know he thought a lot of you, and the respect he had ...I know you meant a lot to each other."
"You've lost so much in such a short span of time," Erik said quietly, clearly touched by what Scott had said.
"I couldn't save him," Scott said, looking past Erik with his hands still in fists.
"We couldn't save any of them once those wheels set into motion," Erik said in a sad, metered tone.
Scott was quiet for a long time before he finally met Erik's gaze. "You were right," he said thickly, his voice catching in his throat.
"And I've never wanted to have been wrong so badly in my life," Erik replied with a tight smile.
"I'm sorry about Pietro," Scott said, his hand on the doorknob. "Kurt told me what happened. If it's any consolation, K was operating under threat of my daughter's death - and she knew that Creed had plans to use him. I wouldn't be surprised if that was going to be Creed's path here. Pietro would be killed or worse along with the rest of us."
Erik's gaze hardened a bit at that. "There's no way to know that for certain, is there?"
"I know it's hollow." Scott looked down. "Not one of my people had a choice in it. She was desperate, and I think … I think she fully expected to die. Just not … how she did. I can't make it any better or apologize enough."
"Let's not talk about the what ifs or could have beens," Erik said. "We both still have our losses to deal with."
"Then I can only say I'm sorry," Scott said.
"And I the same," Erik replied as Scott finally opened the door and the two of them stepped inside. The two Summers children rushed over, clearly excited to see their father, but James stayed back - warily watching the two men.
Nate immediately started to explore Scott's face with his hands, his eyes wide and his expression one of awe. "Daddy!" Nate declared happily. "Blue! Blue blue blue blue blue!"
It was the first time Scott cracked a smile. "What do you think, Rachel?"
"I dunno," she said, scrunching her nose up. "Where did your glasses go?"
"I don't need them," Scott explained. "When my eyes got hurt, it hurt my powers." He crouched to pick her up too. "Is that okay? No more optic blasts?"
Rachel looked shocked and then looked closer until she was nose-to-nose with Scott. "No more glasses?"
"No more glasses."
"O...Kay." She narrowed her eyes and then nodded once. "Okay. No glasses. You can just play with me an' Nate an' James, cuz we don't have optical blasts either."
"What about Mia?" Scott asked, failing at hiding his amusement at Rachel's assessment.
"She's with her mom," Rachel said. "Her mom is real sad." She glanced over her shoulder to James. "James too. Cuz of everyone dying."
Scott nodded at that. "What about you, sweetheart?"
"I'm kinda sad too," Rachel said. "But I'm tryna not be. Because everyone needs hugs, and I'm really busy makin' sure they get hugs."
Scott kissed the side of her head to hide the fact that he was so emotional hearing her say something that was so very Jean. "It's alright to be sad, Rach."
"Okay," she said, melting into a hug as Scott carried her and Nate to sit down with them both - and made sure to beckon James over too if he wanted it so he didn't feel left out.
James was slow about making his way over from where he'd been sitting in the window watching everyone as they walked by the house. Half of his attention was on Erik as he haltingly hedged closer to the Summers family. He was wary of all the new people coming in and out even though he was watching every one of them, and it was obvious that James was adrift. Scott knew it better than anyone else there, too. He scooped James up and then bent close to his ear. "We're not staying here forever, I promise," he whispered. "We're going to the woods soon. And we're going fishing. Okay?"
James still was watching Erik, even as Scott spoke with him, but finally, he very quietly nodded his head, though with all of the new changes - and Scott's new eye - James was standoffish about everything, even being close to Scott … unless Scott was walking out of the door, that is.
Scott let out a breath and tapped James on the shoulder. "Hey, buddy, I know it's a lot. Do you want 'em brown instead?" He tipped his head to catch James' gaze. "I don't care."
James stayed silent and shook his head lightly.
"Well, that's probably good anyhow- I think Nate is attached." Scott said, trying to get a smile out of the boys. "You can pick my shades, though. I still need sunglasses, and I'd like a break from red."
James shook his head again and tried to take a step back. "Rachel can pick."
Scott let out a breath. "Alright, James," he said gently. "I'm just - just trying to be a good godfather, alright? I don't want you to be left out."
At that, James turned away from Erik entirely and looked up at Scott for a moment before he stepped closer and wrapped his arms around Scott's neck to snuggle in without another word.
Scott let his shoulders relax with the hug, even as the two Summers kids joined in. "Yeah. Love you too."
Erik had just opened his mouth to ask a question when there was a light knock on the door that broke up the little snuggle fest. James let go of Scott quickly and zipped off to a more hidden spot- though Scott realized he needed to learn the layout of the house before he could do much else. He wondered for an instant how many hiding spots James had found for himself for when he was overwhelmed. But he didn't have time to think about it much when Wanda opened the door and let herself in.
"I hope it's a good time," she said just before a pair of three-year-olds darted around her legs, and Vision stepped up to stand behind her. "I held the boys back as long as I could, but they really want to spend some time with kids their own age." Billy made a loop back to his parents, and Wanda rested her hand on the top of his head as he hugged her legs, smiling up at her. "Say hello to Scott, boys."
"HI!" Billy and Tommy sang out - from opposite sides of the room as Tommy raced around.
Billy let go of his mother before she could stop him, and he bounced over to the living room, barely pausing to wave at his grandfather with a grin before he climbed up on the opposite end of the couch that Scott and his kids were on. He smiled at the Summers kids for a moment, and though Rachel smiled back a little, Nate didn't hesitate to climb down from his father and head over to play with Tommy - and the cars he'd brought along.
Wanda gave her father a look, though the others seemed to miss it, and a moment later, she took the seat next to Scott when Billy followed Rachel over to where she'd been working on a puzzle. "Sorry for swinging by without the warning," she said. "The boys were pushing to meet everyone. They heard all about your little ones from Alex and Lorna, so of course, they wanted to see if they were as fun as he'd said they were."
Scott nodded, honestly glad to see Rachel and Nate trying, at least. But he couldn't help but turn his head and look for James. "They can use the boost, honestly," Scott said, and a moment later, he'd tried out the scanner to see where James had tucked himself away without alarming him.
When he found James hiding under a corner table that had a cloth that covered it to the floor, Scott made his way over to him and simply stood there while he chatted with Wanda. When she frowned at his odd placement in the room, he pointed to the table to tip her off but not entirely bust James out as to where he was hidden.
Wanda made a face that showed exactly how much she wanted to pull James out and snuggle him, but instead, she nodded and stayed close by while Scott told her how he was adjusting to the colors.
Which drew Tommy and Billy closer. "My favorite color is red," Billy said, smiling up at both of them but staying just out of Wanda's reach.
"My fav'rit's green," Tommy announced, just as Nate threw his arms up and shouted out 'bluuueee!'
"What about you, Rachel? What's your favorite color?" Wanda asked, keeping half an eye out for James and hoping the kids would draw him out.
"I like a lot of them," Rachel said. "I like green because my eyes are green, but I like pink, too. And light purple cause lotsa flowers are purple that smell pretty." She looked around them for a moment as the twins bounced in place, only to gasp and look up at Scott. "Daddy! Where's James?"
"I think he's hiding," Scott said. "He'll come out when he's ready."
"Ooooooh! Hide an' seek!" Tommy laughed, clapping his hands as he bounced in place almost enough to fall over.
"No..." Scott tried to tell him, in a vain attempt to slow him down - but it was too late, and the three boys rushed off to find hiding spots.
Twice, Tommy returned just to circle the adults before darting off another direction - and once more to inform Rachel that she was 'it,' since she hadn't gone to hide. So Scott almost missed it when Billy came from the other direction and apparently decided that the little table that James was tucked into was the perfect hiding spot.
Scott was close to smiling, but when he saw Billy slipping under the table cloth, he turned to try and stop him - but it was a little too late, judging by the surprised sounding 'oh!' that Billy almost squeaked out when he saw the spot was taken. "Do you wanna share spots?" Billy whispered loud enough for Wanda and Scott to hear - and his tone shifted to one of deep concern when James' only answer was to curl in tighter around himself, his arms around his knees and his face half hidden as he folded himself over.
Billy lost much of his smile as he watched James react, and instead of pushing or trying to talk, Billy echoed James' posture as he scooted in to sit next to him, though he wasn't quite ready to sit entirely still like James was doing. He wiggled and tried to be still, and when James didn't answer any of his very soft questions, Billy unfolded himself and stuck his head out from under the table cloth to look up at his mother. "Mom," he said quietly - and very serious. "Help! He sad."
Wanda glanced at Scott and crouched down. "Who's sad?"
Billy looked very serious as he picked up the table cloth a little as if Wanda could climb in and fit with them. "He is. But I don't know his name 'cause he doesn't talk."
She peeked under to see James looking up at her - still folded up, still hiding as best as he could - and then she gently pulled Billy out and ran her hand over his hair and held him almost in a hug with her other arm. "That's because he lost his mom and dad," Wanda whispered in Billy's ear. "He feels very sad about them."
Billy was wide-eyed as he stared back at her. "Do we have'ta find 'em?"
"No, sweetheart," Wanda said as Billy went still to listen closer. "James is going to stay with Scott and Nate and Rachel from now on."
Billy nodded at that. "I think he really needs a hug."
"I think so too," Wanda said, then quietly picked up the edge of the table cloth and offered James her hand. "Hello, I'm sorry we interrupted your hiding spot."
James's shoulders went up to his ears, but he didn't run the other way.
"This is Billy, and I'm Wanda," she said as she sat cross-legged on the floor. "Would it be okay if we gave you a little hug? We hugged all the other kids here, and I'd hate to miss any of you."
James thought about it for a long moment before he very carefully unfolded himself and slipped toward them, only to pause and look up at Scott, who nodded once before James stood up, still half curled into himself as he tried to look smaller. Wanda reached out and gently pulled him in the rest of the way, letting him go at his pace, but also making it clear that she wanted to follow through on the hug … and surprising Scott, once Wanda had her arm around him, James melted into her shoulder.
Wanda let out a little sigh and held the little guy there, though it wasn't long before first Billy - and then Tommy and Nate -came in to join in. Of course, that only seemed to last for exactly as long as it took James to realize how many people were around him … and then immediately start to squirm his way out of it. Which was easier said than done when a couple of snuggly, very small kids were involved.
Scott picked him out of the dogpile, and James leaned toward him as the other kids seemed to just run with a little snuggle pile without him. "You alright, bud?" Scott asked quietly, and for an instant, James looked toward the window before he shook his head 'no'. "I know. It's hard with all the people you don't know, but they just want to help." James didn't really nod as he hid his face in Scott's shoulder. "What can I do to help?"
"I wanna go home," James said, whisper quiet - but it was the most he'd said since they got to Genosha.
Scott doubled down on holding him a little tighter. "I know, and we won't stay much longer, alright?"
The kids played for a while longer, until the twins started showing signs of being worn and tired, and then Wanda and Vision scooped them up and took them out with a promise to see them again soon. Erik had stayed behind, watching Scott and the others as they interacted with the kids.
In particular, he couldn't help but focus on how Scott was with James, quietly watching the whole thing with a strange sort of frown. For one thing, it was no secret that Scott and Logan weren't terribly close, so the godfather title had been a surprise. But watching Scott with the littlest members of the group outside of Storm's blue-furred little girl … it was clear even before Scott could think it over properly what his answer was going to be to his invitation to stay on Genosha.
Erik stuck around until Scott got James and Nate to lay down for a nap - and Rachel insisted on tucking them in. Scott closed the door to the kids' room behind himself and came out to meet Erik.
"I can't stay here. I can't stay where people knew her," Scott said, trying to explain his thought process to avoid a fight. He just wanted to leave and stop thinking about anything but the kids for a while. Especially with how traumatized they were over the losses they'd sustained.
"The door is always open should you change your mind," Erik said gently.
"Thank you," Scott said. "I'm only speaking for myself. Bobby, Kitty, Ororo, Hank - I don't know what they're thinking."
"As you well know, my offer is good for all of you," Erik replied as gently as he could. "I don't think I could turn my back on Charles' old students."
Scott's eyes tightened, and he nodded. It was clear to Erik why Scott wouldn't be staying, seeing how affected he was by the kids - and how dependent they were already on each other. Scott was positively wrapped around the kids' fingers, and if any one of the kids wanted out, he'd bend over backward to make it happen. The time simply wasn't right.
Bobby sat down beside Erik after Scott stepped back to check on the little ones, with a muttered, "Yeah, Logan shocked the heck out of … well, everyone when he told Scott who they wanted for godparents. K explained it better, though. Figured Scott and Jean would step in if anything happened…." He trailed off. "I mean, he was right. But you know. It sucks."
"I didn't realize …" Erik let the sentence fall.
"Yeah, I think they saw him do that thing?" Bobby tipped his head toward the semi-open bedroom door. "With Rachel? And it only was getting worse every time someone had a kid, so… clearly, it's a thing."
"I see."
"Yeah." Bobby let out a breath and turned to face Erik. "I know right now everyone's focused on the cleanup. And the funerals. And everything. But I gotta ask - did they get 'em all? I mean, not to downplay the Phoenix or anything, but there's the FoH and the MRD and Department H and it's not like there's a shortage?"
"It's been … very quiet," Erik said.
"Darn." Bobby glanced up quickly. "I mean - good. That's good. I just…" He let out a frustrated sound. "I didn't get to really do - after they knocked me out at the institute, I haven't gotten to do anything to hit back."
Erik looked surprised at that and turned toward Bobby. "I'm sure you'll find that even when one of those places is eradicated, more will show their ugly faces in short time."
"Yeah, it's just…" Bobby shook his head. "I got played. And I can't make it up to a dead guy. And it sucks."
"I don't know what you'd need to make up," Erik said. "But if you want to fight, you know I won't turn you away."
"Yeah, well, maybe I will," Bobby said, glancing toward Scott and Ororo, who were both clearly just hanging onto their respective kids to stay upright. "Not like the team's getting back together after this."
Erik frowned as he followed Bobby's gaze - and almost missed it when Kitty phased through the couch and made a space for herself to sit too. "You're not going anywhere without me," she informed Bobby, one finger pointed at his nose. "I didn't even get to see Logan before he died. I'm getting my katana and fixing a few problems I know the Phoenix didn't get to."
"You mean like Lady Deathstrike?" Bobby asked.
"Yeah, and some of those other idiots in Japan…" Kitty tipped her chin up. "I might not be able to bait out ninjas as easy without him, but I still know how to fight them."
"Once our official stuff is taken care of," Bobby said, nodding. "I'll go with you."
Kitty smiled grimly at that and then squeezed his arm. "I guess I can use a sidekick."
"If you want a sidekick, we can probably get Spidey to go with, too," Bobby pointed out.
Kitty smirked at that. "He would."
"Do you still have his number?" Bobby asked in the most low-key teasing Kitty had ever heard from him.
Kitty blinked at him and then shoved him in the shoulder. "I mean, yes, but - shut up!"
"Would you feel better if I passed him a note for you?" Bobby said with the start of a smile. "'Do you want to go on a world tour of butt kicking - check yes or no'."
"Are you asking for me or you, because you're way too happy about this," Kitty shot back.
"You were cute with your flirting," Bobby said. "I can see it."
"He… shut up, Bobby."
"I feel like I should try to stand in and be intimidating for you," Bobby said. "Set the ground rules …"
"Bobby, first of all, I'm way more intimidating than you are…"
"This is about intent," Bobby defended. "And I can be intimidating!"
Kitty smirked and then reached over to pat Bobby's head. "Sure you can."
"Just wait, Pryde. Just you wait," Bobby said.
Kitty smirked at Bobby and then stuck her tongue out before she phased back into the other room, leaving Bobby shaking his head at her - though in a considerably better mood.
For most of the people that attended the funeral, the whole thing went more or less in a blur. It was just… a lot. And nobody who came was remotely at a point where they had truly processed their losses.
So Tony was surprised when Scott was the one to find him, since he was sure the guy still had to be a mess of emotions from… all of it. But he had Nate asleep on his shoulder, while Rachel kept close to James, who was quietly listening to some Asgardian story that Thor was telling them. It was plain to see that Thor was completely entranced with Rachel's spunk and James' tenacity, even if he was still being unnaturally quiet for a three-year-old.
"Whenever you're ready," Scott said in an undertone, "the kids' belongings have already been unloaded. We just need to finish the security checks."
"I'll get Natasha," Tony said. "I've got some portable stuff you might appreciate."
"Well, so far, you haven't let me down…"
"How are the second gen eyes working out?"
"Focus is better," Scott said. "Rachel gets a kick out of the long-range scanners. So thanks for making me a video game."
"Welcome to my world, my friend," Tony said under his breath before he headed off to grab Natasha. The two of them had a quiet word that Scott watched go down. It took Natasha no time at all to compose herself, though one glance at James had her nodding quickly and strutting back toward Scott with her most professional expression in place.
"You're sure you want to use one of the old cabins?" Natasha asked. "I could find somewhere more hidden if you'd like. I never did find all of hers, but …."
"I need something familiar," Scott said. "Not for me, for James. Something that was his dad's." He met her gaze steadily. "It's not just about the security, though being that remote is part of it."
Natasha did a less than stellar job of keeping her game face on as she nodded along. "Then let's get it secured for you."
Scott nodded at that. "You understand I'm not letting anyone but you or Stark near this."
"He has access to the tech, and I spent part of my childhood with Logan," Natasha said. "I know what his idea of security was, and it was generally lacking."
"That's the only reason I'm letting anyone see the place. At all." Scott raised both eyebrows and gave her a pointed look. "Jean wiped Department H off the map, but I've always said you can't kill an idea. If someone finds out about James, they will come for him."
"I'll keep my ear to the ground," Natasha promised.
"And so will I," Scott said. "Believe it or not, I've got Magneto on my side on this one. So we're all in agreement."
Natasha nodded her head and turned in time to catch James and Rachel headed their way. Rachel was cheerful but cautious, and little James was apprehensive and openly watching her.
"You have red hair like me," Rachel informed Natasha as she came to stand by her dad, automatically holding onto his pants leg as she'd been doing since she really understood that her mom wasn't coming back.
"Yes," Natasha said with a little smile. "I think it's the best color, don't you?"
Rachel nodded. "It's like my mom," she said softly, twirling her hair around her finger.
"And you'll be just as beautiful, I'm sure," Natasha told her before she turned to wait for them to head to the Quinjet. "Are you ready for a little break from everyone?"
Rachel glanced up at Scott, who had a hand on her back automatically as soon as she was close enough, before she looked back to Natasha. "My daddy needs to be sad by himself, so we're going to go fishing."
"I happen to think that's a very smart thing to do," Natasha said, sparing Scott a little smile.
"Miss Storm says it's okay to be sad, so I think I will be too," Rachel said, hugging Scott a little tighter. "But right now, I'm doing hugs." She paused. "Do you need hugs?"
"I do," Natasha said. "But I won't ask for one unless your dad says it's alright."
Rachel glanced up at Scott, who nodded minutely, and then she rushed over to give Natasha a hug - with James watching the whole interaction carefully from the other side of Scott.
"My mommy and daddy were superheroes, so I'm tryna help like them," Rachel whispered to Natasha as she hugged her. "'Specially 'cause Daddy don't got his optical laser face no more."
Natasha melted into the hug, pouring it right back to Rachel as she gave her the best snuggle she knew how. "Then it's a good thing he never needed that to keep you safe."
Rachel smiled up at Natasha. "He looks silly now 'cause he's got blue eyes instead of red!" she giggled quietly.
Natasha smirked crookedly. "I think they suit him."
"They're like my Nate's!" Rachel said with a grin. "But mine are green like Mommy, see?" She got nose to nose with Natasha and opened her eyes wide. "See?"
"Stunning," Natasha replied, smiling a tiny bit more crookedly at the little girl's enthusiasm. "And that means all three of you have different eyes, don't you?" She peeked over to James, but he didn't step forward like she'd hoped he would.
Rachel let out a sigh. "James is shy," she said.
"He wasn't shy before," Natasha said.
"Uh-huh. And now he's sad 'cause of he lost his mom and also his dad."
"I'm sad he lost them, too."
Rachel nodded. "He's gonna be my brother now, just like Nate," she explained. "So I'll take really good care of him, okay? I'm really good at helpnin' with Nate, and James is a little older, so maybe he can help too once he's not so sad an' scared."
"If you ever need help, you'll let me know, won't you?"
"Uh-huh, 'cause we need to help our friends," Rachel said. "That's what Mommy says. She says you gotta help everyone and be nice and stuff."
Natasha gave her a warm smile and started toward the Quinjet. "Has your Daddy shown you how to fly this yet?"
Rachel giggled. "No, silly! I'm not big enough!"
"Getting close, though," Scott said with a soft, fond smile her way.
"Tony will fly with us - just to keep from drawing attention," Natasha said to Scott. "You can stay with the kids if you'd like. Or you can fly."
"I'll stay with them," Scott said, pointedly looking down at James before he picked him up with his free hand. "Pretty sure James isn't going to come unstuck until we're more solid."
"How's he been sleeping?" Natasha asked quietly.
"Not any better than I am," Scott said.
"That bad, huh?" Natasha said. "Has to be tough for such a little guy."
"His mom always put him to sleep," Scott said. "When his parents were out on a mission, he slept over with us, and Jean was the one who always did it." He smiled tightly. "I'm not a good replacement for any of them."
"That … I'm sorry to hear it," she said, frowning a little deeper. She started for the cockpit, paused, then went to the back of the plane to come back with a few little blankets. "Just for the trip."
"Thanks," Scott said, already unfolding the blanket to tuck around the still-sleeping Nate.
The Quinjet went in fast, low, and totally undetected right to the coordinates Scott had given them. When they landed, both Tony and Natasha were sure to suit up and head out before Scott could even begin to rouse the kids, though as he'd said to Natasha - James hadn't fallen asleep on the flight. Even if he looked exhausted.
The two of them started out doing a general sweep of the area and a much more thorough sweep of the cabin itself, though Natasha was having trouble getting through the little cabin without some tears.
"Remember? It's okay to be sad," Rachel said quietly, catching Natasha off her guard when she grabbed Natasha's hand.
She blinked back what she could and gave Rachel a tight kind of smile as she crouched down. "Logan was very special to me," she told her quietly before she rested her hand on Rachel's hair.
"I loved Logan and K lots," Rachel said, staring up at Natasha intently.
"Then you know how special it is to be in this place that he loved so much," Natasha said before she took a few steps back and quickly composed herself to get back to work - setting up all sorts of miniscule equipment.
Eventually, all three of the adults were convinced they were set up, and Rachel made sure to hug Natasha. Nate even hugged her too - having just woken up and deciding that whoever his sister was hugging, he needed to hug.
James finally made his way over to Natasha, while Tony was telling Scott about the panic buttons in addition to all the other measures, and for a moment he stared up at Natasha. When she crouched down, he came close enough to give her a little kiss on the cheek - like he would do before all this mess came down on them.
Natasha positively melted, and she snatched James up into a tight hug and pressed a kiss to the side of his head. "Ya tebya lyublyu."
"Proshchay," James replied quietly.
Natasha let out an involuntary noise. "I will see you soon. Whenever you need me. I promise."
When Natasha and Tony got back to the Avengers Tower, it was clear both of them were still reeling. There was no good way to leave behind a broken family, but they both knew the best thing for them was to let them find a new normal together.
They hardly spoke a word to each other before they split. Tony headed for his lab, and Natasha headed toward the residential halls, though not to her own room.
When she walked in, Clint was working on his bowtie with one hand as he pulled some leftovers out of the mini fridge. He smiled up at her when he saw her come in and then tipped his head to tell her to come in. "Figured you'd want to be alone, but if you want company, I can order out. Really only enough for one…"
Natasha shook her head as she closed the door behind her. "I don't want to be alone."
"Not complaining," he promised. "Really. This whole thing was rough. Even those of us that weren't that close… it's rough."
Natasha nodded before she kicked off from the door and crossed over to him in a few steps to snag him by the half-tied bowtie and pull him into a long kiss that didn't end until they were tangled up in each other.
Clint grinned. "Well, that's one way to cheer up."
"Shut up, Barton," she said, pulling him into another long kiss.
…..
From Russian:
Ya tebya lyublyu - I love you.
Proshchay - goodbye (as opposed to do svidaniya which is 'until next time')
Chapter 8: Investing In The Future
Summary:
Where we take a small break from the *new* Summers family dynamic to check on everyone else
Chapter Text
When Clint woke up the next morning, Natasha was already awake, though she hadn't moved from where she was, either. He was always slower to wake up anyway, though usually, she just went on with her day.
He figured she was still reeling from the funeral, so he turned to face her and kissed her shoulder. "Ain't a shrink, but I approve of this mourning mechanism."
"Shut up," she said, shaking her head at him.
"Already did that," Clint pointed out, smirking harder.
"Good." She turned to face him properly. "Then you won't be opposed to doing this until we get a little one."
Clint froze. "I… what?"
"If you mind terribly, we can do things in order. I can have the paperwork drawn up-"
"Nat." He blinked a few more times, though he kept smiling wider the longer he watched her. "I mean, sure."
"Unless you think I need to find someone else entirely."
"Um, no?" Clint stared at her, one eye closed in a wince. "But, c'mon, Nat. You want a family, you should, I mean, I'd want to be more than just DNA?"
"That's what I was hoping for," Natasha replied. "You didn't seem overly sure about yourself, though, so I thought I'd give you an out."
"You… sprung it on me," Clint said, shaking his head with that same disbelieving smile as before.
"I thought you liked surprises," she said with one eyebrow arched up slightly - teasing him.
Clint shook his head and let out a laugh. "I do. I just - are you sure this isn't just because of Logan? I know you weren't okay, and I don't want you to wake up in a year regretting it…"
"All teasing aside, I know exactly what I'm doing, Clint." She shrugged lightly. "Besides, it was James that got me thinking. Not Logan."
"Yeah?" Clint pulled her over to tuck into a snuggle and kissed the side of her head. "Hate to break it to you, Nat, but we'd probably have a blonde or a redhead."
"That's not what I was talking about, and you know it."
"Just had to make sure you knew what you'd be getting," Clint teased. "Might be a little blonde girl, and then we'd just have to try again for a little boy just for you."
"I didn't say we had to have a boy."
"Mmm, that's what I heard," Clint said, grinning at her. "No take-backs. We'll have five girls, and the fifth will have a twin brother."
Natasha tipped her head to the side and narrowed her eyes for a moment. "No … there are no twins in my family. That won't work."
"Triplets, then," Clint said without missing a beat.
"If it's triplets, you can carry them."
"There's my Tasha," Clint said with a laugh. He pulled her into a longer kiss this time. "I'm on board, Nat. For all of it. You know I can't say no to you."
"You've thought about this possibility already," Natasha accused him.
"Um, vaguely?" Clint shook his head. "When I was thirteen and it was the princess and we were gonna have a dozen circus brats?" He shrugged. "Then I grew up and figured no one in this biz would settle for me, so hey, I'm lucky you kiss me. Let alone this."
"I'm not settling; Clint, you need to get that straight right now. Settling would be talking to Bucky out of the blue about this."
"So you did have a backup plan."
"That would have been … plan 'D'."
"Steve beat him out. He'll never live it down," Clint teased.
"By a mile," she said, keeping her serious expression but smirking to herself all the same.
"Who was Plan C? Please tell me it wasn't Stark, because I just - I can't."
"Oh, no, of course not," she said, shaking her head. "There's a very sad little X-Man …"
Clint let out a disbelieving sound. "Cyclops? Seriously?"
"He's got three sweet little kids clinging to him - one of which belonged to my Logan," Natasha defended. "And his daughter has red hair and green eyes and calls him out all the time."
"Ready-made family for you, huh?" Clint shook his head. "He's Plan A, isn't he?"
"No, if he was plan A, I would have stayed."
"Well, small miracles," Clint said and then kissed her again. "Let's work on those kids, huh? We'll get to the paperwork after coffee."
"I can backdate it if we're busy," she said with a smirk.
"That's my Nat."
The echoes of the jet leaving hadn't even settled before Kitty and Bobby made good on their plans to head out to Japan looking for trouble - and a means to finish Logan's business there - which left Storm to decide which path she wanted to take. Though Erik's offer to stay in Genosha was a generous one, Ororo simply couldn't turn her back on Charles' dream. Not when she'd put so much of her life into it, living and breathing it as much as Scott had since joining the team.
But … the team was defunct. They'd lost so many important members, and Scott … seeing what had happened to Scott was too cruel for Ororo to forgive and too horrible to ignore. So when the time finally came to make a decision, it should have shocked no one when she and Mia packed up and went to New York with Hank to the Avengers.
She couldn't sit on the sidelines - not for long, anyhow - and she knew out of all of her options that the Avengers were more than likely the safest option for her little girl who had already lost too much so early in her life.
At first, the Avengers were sure to give her whatever space she needed, though it seemed like every time she crossed paths with Hank, the sweet fuzzy blue doctor would drop everything to give her one of his warmest and most heartfelt hugs.
Which … was more or less exactly what Mia needed. It wasn't the same as snuggling up with her papa, but … Hank was certainly fuzzy and warm and more than happy to entertain her.
It wasn't an instant fix, of course. There were still times that Mia was fussy and angry and nothing could calm her down except her papa - until she was too worn out and fell asleep anyway. But watching Mia with Hank, it was at least a little easier to hope that the youngest of the surviving X-Men would be able to move on to a healthy, happy life.
What's more, little Mia had the entire roster of Avengers practically wrapped around her little blue fingers once she and Storm moved in. While the team had been giving Storm room to mourn on her own terms, Mia was still too little to want to be alone. Sure, she was upset and unhappy without her father, but she needed the contact of other people to play with instead of space.
Which was entertaining to Ororo in itself, because the Avengers had never had such a little one around before - since Wanda had gone to Genosha before having her twins. And they all had different ways of adjusting.
Thor was the easiest. He would just scoop Mia up and play with her to her heart's content. Whatever she babbled to him, he'd run with it, and it took no time before Mia figured out that she could rope him into all kinds of trouble.
Steve, on the other hand, seemed completely unsure of what to do with a little one underfoot - until he started simply picking her up when she would come close and just doing everything one-handed while she talked to him.
Tony wasn't as noticeable - but Ororo saw how quickly the Tower was baby-proofed and how many new toys would magically appear in the playroom he'd designed for her.
Natasha was interesting as well. She liked to be around Mia and would go out of her way to sit with the little girl and help her with the little things like opening her packet of snacks or putting on her coat to go outside. She was just quietly there.
Jan and Clint, on the other hand, were almost as terrible as Thor. If Mia wasn't having a dance party with Jan, she was with Clint, who would get on all fours or lie on the floor to be at her level and play pretend for hours on end.
So yes, the Avengers Tower had been an excellent choice. For many reasons.
But eventually, it was Natasha who approached Ororo with an offer of a 'soft' mission. "I know you've been through it, and you can of course say no," Natasha said. "It's honestly a favor to Clint - some old mobsters in the neighborhood where he crashed for a while are causing trouble."
"As long as it's actually something simple, I suppose I could stand to get a bit of fresh air," Ororo replied. "The roof is fine, but …"
Natasha nodded. "I always feel better when I've put a few men through walls, but that might just be me," she said with a soft smirk.
"No, no, the ones that ask for it … that does make a girl feel like she can walk more upright."
Natasha smiled and nodded. "Well, these are your regular low-lifes. Running extortions and harassing people. Nothing world-ending, and I can handle them myself if you decide when we get there you're not ready for a fight." She smirked. "I've been instructed to low-ball you."
"If we get there and I don't feel like fighting, then the fight will be over soon enough," Ororo said with a little smirk.
"Then we'll get along just fine," Natasha said, gesturing with one hand for Ororo to lead the way.
It wasn't a long drive out, really. All they had to do was get to the other side of the city, away from the tower and the well-to-do houses and toward the inner city, where the artwork jumped out from every wall and there was a pickup basketball game not far from where they parked.
"Clint had a place near here when we were working together when we first met," Natasha explained as they walked together. "He keeps it up as an escape. Mostly, I use it to crash between missions if I don't feel like dealing with people."
"Perhaps I should consider a place like that," Ororo said, almost to herself.
"You're welcome to use ours," Natasha said. "Like I said: it only really sees use when I'm doing a job outside of the Avengers. And Clint hasn't used it in ages."
"We'll have to see when we get there," Ororo said, smiling almost wistfully. "Jean and I had a place in the city just the two of us years ago …"
"To get away from the boys. Yes, I know the feeling."
"They can't help themselves," Ororo laughed.
"Oh, I barely tolerate that excuse from them," Natasha said. "Make them do better - that's what I say." She was smiling as they rounded the corner - and very nearly ran into a little girl, about three, with wide eyes and mismatched clothes that she'd clearly put on herself. The little one had very nearly barreled into them, and when Ororo reached out to catch her, she yanked her arm back quickly.
"No!" the girl shouted. "No touching!"
"Calm yourself, little one," Ororo said, looking concerned as she tried to catch her gaze. "Who has you so scared?"
"I don't wike 'em," the little girl insisted. "I don't wike this new house!"
"Who?" Ororo asked, finally crouching down to her level.
"Funny men with funny voices and funny clothes," the little girl said. "I don't wike 'em."
Ororo reached out to rest her hand on the little girl's shoulder just as a small group of ill-dressed men rounded the corner.
"Oh, you find our girl!" one of them said Ororo's way.
Ororo raised one eyebrow as she stood up and pushed the little girl behind her. "Who are you and what do you want?"
The men, all of them in tracksuits, glanced at each other before the guy who spoke up shrugged easily. "We run this block, yes?"
"No," Ororo said. "I don't think so."
"You must be new," the guy said. "This block? Is our block. We protect it, you pay, is all good."
"Natasha," Ororo said, looking for just a moment down to the cowering little girl. "I think I can handle this just fine."
"I won't stand in the way of a goddess," Natasha said, making it a point to give Ororo space to work. "I'll be here."
Ororo turned back toward the men and tipped her chin up. "What do you want with the little girl?"
"She part of the family now," the man in charge explained. "We take her in, yes? After whole project goes up in flames."
"Do you want to go back to them, little one?" Ororo said, smiling sweetly at the little girl.
The little girl shook her head and held onto Ororo's shirt. "Nuh-uh."
"Would you rather go with us?" she asked.
"I guess," the little girl said quietly.
"Then please," Ororo said, "hold on to Natasha's hand for a moment." As soon as the little one stepped back from her even the tiniest bit, Ororo whirled around to face the still advancing men and took a step forward … before she started to float off the ground - the winds around her lifting her up as her eyes clouded over. "Go back to whatever rock you crawled out from under. I won't ask again."
"Is kidnapping, lady," one of the others broke in. "We get little girl."
"I doubt you're her legal guardian," Ororo said as the clouds started to crackle and grow darker over head. The moment one of them took a step toward them, a loud crack split the air, and a bolt of lighting hit just in front of the group of criminals.
To their credit, the guys seemed to realize how outclassed they were and scattered quickly, and Natasha let out a laugh as she picked up the little girl so she could be at their level. "You were right. It was a fast fight."
"It always is with men like that," Ororo replied as she turned and floated back down to the two of them. "Are you alright, little one?"
The little girl nodded, though she looked nervous as she held onto Natasha. "I don't wanna go to the smelly house," she said.
"You don't have to," Ororo promised. "We have a very nice-smelling place you can go to, if you'd like."
The little girl looked between the two of them. "That's what the funny guys said when they got me from my dance class."
Natasha tipped her head at that. "Your dance class?"
"Uh-huh." The little girl twirled her hair with her finger. "I'm real good. But then the funny guys said my mommy and daddy got burned up!" She let her lower lip quiver. "I don't wanna get burned up!"
"I don't think you need to worry about that anymore, sweet one," Ororo said with a decidedly down tone.
"Okay, but you made lightning," the little girl said. "Poof!"
Ororo nodded and then held her hand out to make a miniature raincloud right at the little girl's eye level - and let it start sprinkling down showers. "That's not all that I can do."
"Oh wow," the little girl said, leaning nearly out of Natasha's arms to touch the cloud. "Wow, wow, wow!"
"My name is Ororo," Storm said. "But my favorite people have always called me 'Ro."
"My name's Katie," the little girl said. "I like your name!" She turned to Natasha expectantly, which got a little laugh.
"Natasha," she said.
"I like that too," Katie said.
Natasha smiled and then turned toward Ororo. "Well, I don't know about you, but I did just tell Clint I wanted a family, so if you're not claiming her…"
Ororo smiled lightly at that. "I think that decision should be up to Katie."
"We'll see," Natasha said, though her tone was clearly teasing. "The way Clint is with Mia? I'll still get what I want."
"I won't stand in your way," Ororo said with a little smile.
Natasha smiled wider as the two of them headed back to her car - and in short order, Katie had a milkshake and clothes that suited her before they got back to the tower.
"Oh, okay. Um. Hello," Tony said when the two of them walked into the main area, with Katie holding each woman's hands and skipping between them. "I thought you were going to deal with those weird Russians…?"
"Yes, we were," Natasha said. "And the weird Russians decided to snatch up a little girl. So, here we are."
"Uh-huh," Tony said, before he made his way over and frowned down at Katie. "What's your name, princess?"
"I'm Katie!" she sang out happily.
"Katie what?" he asked before he offered her his hand. "I'm Tony Stark."
Katie grinned up at him and drew herself up, putting on a prissy sort of attitude. "Katherine Elizabeth Bishop," she sang.
"That ... is quite the name for such a little girl," Tony said.
"It's pretty!" Katie insisted.
"It is," Tony agreed, nodding his head. "And I think I know exactly who you are. Did you know you were famous?"
"I am?" Katie gasped and danced in place. "Like a superhero?"
"Not yet, but in this crowd? Give it time," Tony said. "Who's your favorite superhero?"
Katie giggled. "All of 'em!" she declared happily. "But 'specially I like Spidey! He's funny, and I saw him after dance once!"
Tony made a face at that and drew himself back up to his full height. "Gonna have to work on that."
"I like 'Ro too," Katie said. "She gots a whole storm in her hand! Didja know that?"
"You know that's her hero name, too?" Tony said. "She goes by Storm."
"I like that!" Katie said. "I like Tasha too. She's a dancer like me! She said!"
Tony nodded at that and then picked Katie up so he could walk her around the place. "That's not all she is. You tell her who you are yet, Nat?"
Natasha smirked as she caught up to them. "I may have been waiting to tell her I was an Avenger until she could meet Hawkeye too."
Katie gasped delightedly. "Oooh! Yes please!"
"Got news for you kiddo," Tony said. "You're surrounded by Avengers."
Katie giggled delightedly and squirmed to be let down so she could run in a small circle and generally get overly excited about everything - which gave Natasha a chance to pull Tony aside. "You know who she is?" she asked. "I was going to look her up when I had a moment alone…"
"You don't have to," Tony said. "Her dad was a big, dirty publisher. Big money, big trouble, too."
"She said her family burned up," Natasha said. "Considering the Phoenix debacle, I had to wonder…"
"You can look into it. Name's Derek Bishop. Guy was a piece of work and about as dirty as they come."
"I will," Natasha said, then smiled over at Katie. "In the meantime…"
"If you want to keep her safe, I'll get my legal team on it to make sure no one pulls anything shady."
"Please and thank you," Natasha said. "I think I'll have to tease Clint about this one. Dark-haired and sassy…."
Tony nodded at that and didn't make it more than another couple of steps before he'd pulled out his phone to get the ball rolling. "We'll fill in names later," he promised. "I just want to make sure no one can use her for leverage or anything like that."
"Absolutely. And what safer place to be than the tower?" Natasha said. "I have full confidence."
"Try telling that to the first X-Man - the one in hiding."
Natasha let out a breath. "That's different, Tony. You know it is."
"I know it, but that doesn't mean I have to like it."
"That family has every reason to be paranoid," Natasha said. She tipped her head toward Katie. "This is just dirty money, not … that."
Tony had the phone to his ear as he followed Natasha's focus. "Don't make me take her for a flight."
"Hey. I've actually put in the paperwork to marry mine and do this properly. You can wait your turn."
"Yeah, not happening," Tony said, ducking out of the way of the hit he knew was coming. "She'll have a little Iron Teddy bear before you can stop me."
"Ah, but I can teach her ballet!" Natasha sang out. "You lose, Stark!"
"Armor with a tutu," Tony teased.
"Just accept defeat gracefully!"
"Nope! Never gonna happen!" Tony called out as he headed off to finish his call.
Chapter 9: Burdened Goddess
Chapter Text
Natasha laughed to herself, still entertained with Tony's ongoing antics as she made her way to Ororo - with Katie still running in circles around the other Avengers. When she found Ororo leaning in the window with grey clouds gathering in the skies behind her, Natasha put her hand on Storm's arm. "I wouldn't mind doing more runs with you," she said. "I know how it can be to try to start a new life. You're taking it much better than I did."
"That part is easy," Ororo said. "Helping those that can't defend themselves … it's the rest of it that brings me more trouble, though … Mia keeps me focused."
"She's amazing - and the sweetest, most beautiful little girl," Natasha agreed.
"She's so much like her father," Ororo replied.
"I didn't know him well, except that he had excellent taste in best friends," Natasha said.
Ororo let out a breath of a laugh. "The two of them were something else," she said. "And my closest friends in Westchester. The three of us joined the team together, you know."
"I knew Logan since I was a child," Natasha said. "You aren't alone missing them. I hope you know it."
"Oh, I don't believe that Logan was lacking for friendship anywhere he went," Ororo said with a smirk. "But it is nice to know I'm in good company. He spoke highly of you - when he spoke."
"And when he was with the Avengers, he only had the best to say about the X-Men," Natasha said. "He was so proud when you and Kurt were married, even if he didn't say anything to us."
"He was," Ororo agreed. "And when Logan spoke at our wedding, he had Kurt in tears."
Natasha's smile turned sadder. "I would have liked to hear him do something like that for my wedding. But of course, it took him dying to put me on that path in the first place, so I'm sure he would argue he's already done his part."
"These last few years … he seemed at peace."
"He always wanted a family, Ororo. Everything else was noise."
"Which was why he snapped when he lost them," she said, her whole body showing her sorrow as she wilted.
Natasha pressed her lips together and put her hand on Ororo's shoulder. "And you?" she asked gently. "I have seen Cyclops holding back the worst. You must be just as affected."
"I am trying to keep Mia in mind. I know in my heart that if Logan had known James was alive, he wouldn't have done what he did. He would have been miserable and broken, and he would have mourned K for years," Ororo said. "Likely for the rest of his life. But for as heartbroken as their little boy is, I'm determined not to leave Mia to the same desperation."
Natasha nodded softly. "I know Logan was her godfather," she said. "So let me make the same promise to you I did to Cyclops: anything I can do to honor his children, I will do it."
"And I appreciate that," Ororo said, covering Natasha's hand with her own.
When there was a soft silence between them, a squeal from Katie, who was with Tony, broke that silence, and Natasha shook her head. "I need to spoil a dancer before Tony steals her from me. Mia is with Hank, I'm sure. Thank you for coming with me."
"Good luck," Ororo said as she looked past Natasha to where Tony had clued Katie in on the Iron Man issue. "I think you have an uphill battle on your hands with that one."
"I play to win, my friend. And she hasn't seen my pointe shoes," Natasha said before she slipped off on a mission.
Ororo watched her go with a smile before she started toward where she knew Hank would be - reading a story to a very sleepy Mia and making a point not only to use voices and side commentary but also to bust into his thesaurus and make many of the descriptions far more complicated than the text indicated. She watched them for a long moment before she made her way over and perched on the arm of his chair to look over his shoulder as he continued the story. "Don't let me interrupt."
Hank smiled up at her for a moment before he read through the last few pages, smiling more when he saw Mia lose her battle with sleep on the last page and simply snuggle in, her mouth open just enough to show off the few teeth she had - especially the pointy ones.
"I take it your first venture into the dangers of Avengering went well?" Hank teased.
"I'm afraid I could probably venture into those waters in my sleep and come off no worse for wear," Ororo teased right back.
"Ah, we should graduate you to more horrendous foes. Perhaps the Serpent Society. Or a common bank robber."
Ororo couldn't help but laugh at that. "It was almost a petty crime," she said. "If it weren't for the little girl that needed to be swept out of danger."
Hank raised an eyebrow at that. "Not so petty then." He readjusted the way he was holding Mia as he said it, so that she was more comfortable.
"Not entirely," Ororo admitted. "Though I was reminded of Logan's insistence that the Avengers were spending much of their time rescuing kittens up trees." She smiled his way. "Her name is Katie."
"Sometimes, we dabble in kittens, yes," Hank said. "Or Katherine's, as the case may be. What brought you to such a little kitty?"
"She ran into us," Ororo replied. "Trying to escape some Russian mobsters."
"What on earth was she doing with them?"
"I believe Tony said it was a big business issue of sorts," Ororo said. "At any rate, he and Natasha are arguing over custody."
"Let me let you in on a secret, my dear," Hank said, smiling and leaning closer. "Always bet on the Black Widow."
"Oh, I don't doubt it," she laughed before she smiled once more and then leaned over to kiss his cheek. "You've been wonderful with her."
"She is so easy to love," Hank said, shaking his head. "She has her father's heart and your expressions."
"She's more him than me," Ororo said.
"Perhaps you need to look a little closer," Hank said. "I see a strong-willed goddess in her eyes."
"I think, my dear friend, we only see what it is we're searching for."
"Then I hope you never cease to see our Nightcrawler when you look at her," Hank said gently.
Ororo's smile slipped a bit at that. "Henry, I have a more serious question to ask, if you don't mind …"
Hank sat up straighter to give her his full attention. "Of course. I know it has been said often, but the phrase 'anything you need' is still my creed for my dear friends."
She let out a sigh and rested her hand on his arm. "I don't want to think of all the losses we've had any more than I need to, but Mia is now without both her father and her godfather. I was hoping that you'd take up Logan's role and watch out for her."
For a moment, it was clear that Hank was simply stunned, his lips slightly parted and his eyes wide. But when he cleared his throat, his voice still had a slight wobble to it. "Yes," he said softly. "Yes of course."
"Thank you, Henry," Ororo said. "That is enough to ease my mind at least a bit."
Hank reached over and pulled her sharply to him in a one-armed hug, with Mia between them. "I'm honored. Truly. I only wish it wasn't necessary to make that change."
"You and I both."
"You know, of course, that this gives me official license to spoil her rotten with every confection in my labs," Hank said after a moment.
"And when have you ever needed an excuse to do that?" Ororo replied with a sparkle to her gaze.
"It is novel to have the excuse," Hank laughed. "I may become even worse than before!"
"As long as it brings you both happiness, then I am in favor."
Hank smiled and gave her one more squeeze. "I wish happiness for you too, you know. I know it is hard to find right now, but as Kurt would say, I have faith it can be found again."
"Now you sound like Kurt," she said.
"Coming from you, that is a high compliment indeed."
It was well past midnight when Rachel came in to Scott's room and very quietly woke her dad up. "Daddy, James isn't feeling very good," she said. "And he's real hot."
When he got to where the boys were sleeping, Rachel really wasn't wrong at all. James was burning up, his blanket wrapped around himself tightly, and he was shivering in spite of the fever. Worse still, he really wasn't breathing very well or even answering questions for Scott either.
If it had just been the fever or a stuffy nose on its own, Scott would have tried to to help him through it on his own, but the fact that he was that feverish and struggling to breathe right?
Scott swore under his breath - and then had to tell Nate to not repeat that word, please - before he simply scooped James up and turned to Rachel. "Help Nate get his shoes on. We're going to take James to see Hank."
Rachel nodded quickly, her eyes wide. She was obviously scared, considering how much loss she had already seen, but to her credit, she managed to get Nate to put on his shoes (on the wrong feet) and helped to get him to the jet while Scott hurriedly grabbed a few things and then set the perimeter alarm before he jumped into the pilot's seat.
"James is not okay," Nate said, shaking his head slowly.
"Yeah, I know," Scott said, trying to sound calmer than he felt. "What about you, bud?"
"I have a funny tummy feeling…"
"Me too," Rachel said quietly.
"Then everyone is going to go see Hank, okay? He can fix you up." Scott pushed the engines a little harder as he said it. "Everything is okay."
By the time they got to Hank, James was shivering hard enough to chatter his teeth in spite of the fact that he was absolutely cooking. And it had Scott that much more worried as he rushed past Steve and straight to Hank.
"Henry, James is sick," Scott called out as soon as he got in.
"I see that," Hank said as he made his way over. "How hot has he been?"
"When I checked at the cabin, it was 103," Scott said in a breath. "The other kids don't have it - yet - I don't know what - it just came out of nowhere-"
"Then let's try to get him cooled down," Hank said, directing Scott toward the showers. "Keep the water on the cooler side of warm."
Scott nodded and rushed off with James, while Steve stepped inside the lab and Rachel asked timidly, "Is James gonna die?"
"Not if I have anything to say about it," Hank said, though he was gathering up a few things to make it easier to get James settled in once his temperature broke. He touched the very tip of her nose with one finger. "And I have plenty to say about it."
"I'm scared," Nate said from behind Rachel, holding onto his sister's hand with his blanket clenched tightly in his other hand.
Hank paused and let out a little breath. "And how are the two of you feeling tonight?"
"My tummy's twisty," Nate said.
Rachel nodded. "Me too."
Hank let out a little hum. "Captain Rogers, if you'd be so kind to take my two tiny patients and help them settle in until I get back - I'd like to check them both over. Scott will likely be a little while with young James."
Steve still looked blindsided, but when he saw the two obviously worried kids, he did his best to give them an encouraging smile. "Can you tell me about your jet ride?" Steve asked as he picked up Nate in one arm and Rachel in the other.
The two Summers kids glanced at each other and then nodded, quietly explaining to Steve all about how Rachel had gone to get their dad and how James had been shaking and it was really scary...
It took nearly half an hour, but finally, between the medications that Hank gave James and the cool water shower, the fever broke - and when it did, the little guy was entirely exhausted. Enough so that when they carried him back to the lab for a break - with an oxygen mask in place, since he sounded rough - he was passed out to the world, and Scott looked as if coffee wasn't going to be a requirement to stay conscious due to the high level of anxiety he was coping with.
"I'll get him started on a few medications," Hank said. "But the other little ones are fine. They could use your attention, and I'm sure I can round up enough volunteers to keep watch over James."
Scott nodded, though he still looked frazzled. "You'll let me know if anything changes…"
"Of course," Hank promised.
Scott nodded and let out a tired breath before he squeezed Hank's shoulder and crossed the room to where his kids had Steve pinned between them. "You guys okay?"
Nate nodded and held his arms out to be picked up. "I'm tired."
"Yeah, I know. Sorry you had to wake up," Scott said as he tucked Nate under his chin. "How about you, Rach?"
Rachel nodded. "Mister Steve said it's okay to be scared, and it helped me and Nate to not have scared tummies."
Scott looked toward Steve and smiled slightly at that. "Smart."
"I can leave you three alone," Steve said as he got to his feet. "I'll just go see if Hank needs some coffee."
"Very likely," Scott said. "And thanks."
"Anytime," Steve replied, already doing his best to give them a bit of privacy while digging to see what the story was with the little guy in the lab.
"Bye, Mister Steve!" Rachel called out, halfway snuggled into her dad already as Nate started to drift off with his dad gently rocking him.
The three of them weren't alone for long, though; Janet came around to play welcoming committee. "I've got a room set up for you three to stretch out and rest," she said quietly, offering to help get the two little ones there. "I may have snuck down to the lab and gotten a peek at little James … Hank says he'll be there for at least a day or two. He's got a nasty little case of pneumonia that popped up fast … on top of what Hank says looks like asthma." She shook her head lightly. "For a little guy that came from two people with healing, he really seems to have hit all the low points, poor sweetheart."
Scott raised an eyebrow but nodded all the same. "His parents never got sick with their powers. Maybe he'll grow out of it."
For a moment, Jan paused and it was clear she was weighing out her words. "How are you doing, by the way? I mean … it's a lot. Three little angels … all by yourself... "
"I'm fine," Scott said in a tone Jan knew well.
"Oh. Of course you are. I know that," Jan said, waving one hand and shaking her head. "I mean, look at how much they clearly adore you - you're doing great! With them. But I meant … you know. You need to breathe a little too. If it helps …" She pulled her phone out and held it out for Scott to see that the picture she'd taken was of Steve keeping close track of James and obviously making sure that he was at the right angle to get air better. "Big. Squish. Star Spangled Squish."
Scott let out a minute breath. "Good," he said. "Hank's the only doctor I trust right now, so it's good for him to have support when we come out here."
"I don't blame you on that," Jan said. "Hank's great with the kids. You should see him being ridiculous when he reads to Mia."
"I've seen it," Scott said simply. "He and Kurt tried to outdo each other."
"The Ravenously Ridiculous Caterpillar?" Jan raised an eyebrow. "I swear that man ate a thesaurus."
"And that's when he's sober," Scott said dryly.
"Oh, but now I want to see how bad it is when he's not," Jan giggled as she skipped over to get a blanket. "I can help you get them settled in tonight - you have to be tired."
"I'm really fine," Scott insisted.
"Okay … but how about be fine over there snuggled up where you're all more comfy?" Jan suggested. "Look - Rachel's a little restless. That'd be easier out of the chair, right? I think. Please tell me if I'm wrong, and I'll just be quiet and tuck you all in."
Scott shook his head, smirking despite himself. "Yeah, alright," he said, smirking a little more when Jan's response was instantaneous and gleeful as she rushed to help with the kids. And he did have to admit that he was tired - not that he'd say as much in front of the kids.
"You're spoiling Mia properly, right?" he asked once the kids were squared away.
"Proper is such a subjective word, Mr. Summers …" Jan said with a little shrug. "But … if you mean she is played with by every single person on the team and in the tower that's close to the team …. Then yes. Yes. She's being properly spoiled."
"Good. She's probably the most social of all the kids. She needs the attention or she starts pouting."
"Well we'll probably never see that the way things are going," Jan said with a little grin. "Even with the new girl - she's loving every minute that she's awake." She tipped her head. "It was rough sometimes to start … but … she's tough, you know?"
"Has to be with the parents she had," Scott said softly. "I think Nate's doing alright now too, and the fresh air was great for James until he came down with this thing. But Rachel … was old enough to understand it. It's going to take longer."
"If there's anything she might like - just … tip me off and I'll make some magic happen," Jan promised. "But … I know you want to peek in on James. It was clear you're still stressed about him."
"I can't screw up with that one," Scott told her simply.
"I don't think you're capable of that with him," Jan said. "He's little, and quiet, but I think he's a quick enough little guy. He'll be great with time." She was nodding to herself. "But … if you're worried? I can totally find you a children's therapist. Natasha would run them through her whole system to make sure they'd be on the up and up …."
"Maybe," Scott conceded. He paused. "It's just - Rachel used to tell her mom everything. Project it telepathically. So… we'll see."
"So she probably needs to learn new ways to communicate," Jan said, nodding. "I'll start looking. And I'll make sure they're all screened - and if you're nervous, I'm sure you could do it as a full family session, too. You know. To start with."
"That would be best. James gets nervous if he thinks he's being left behind. He still thinks he's going to be handed off to someone else," Scott said, his gaze on the sleeping kids and the worry evident in his tone. "Just last week, he finally stopped looking for his parents to come back. He'd been watching out the windows every time he heard something. Took me a while to figure out what he was doing… he's been more quiet since then, somehow."
"He'll grow out of that," Jan said with a sad little smile as she rested her hand on his arm. "Especially with you watching out for him. He won't be able to ignore how much he's loved."
"We might be fighting genetics with that," Scott said dryly as he settled in with Rachel and Nate. He leaned his head toward Rachel as Nate slept on his chest. He absently rested his hand on the side of her head as he pulled her closer and kissed the top of her hair, and before he knew it, Scott had passed out with both of them curled up half on him. He'd been exhausted himself, and though he didn't mean to do it, he was out almost as fast as the kids.
Scott woke up with a blanket over his lap and a fuzzy blue face inches from his nose. Mia's fluffy white hair stuck up from all angles as her tail swayed behind her. "Hi." Before Scott could react, Mia leaned forward and kissed the end of his nose before she shimmied down and toddled off to find Rachel and Nate.
"Rachel has already been in to check on James," Ororo said from the far end of the couch. "He's very tired still, the poor little thing."
"How's he feeling other than tired?" Scott asked, sitting up and frowning around himself as he ran his hand though his hair. "Where's Rachel - and Nate?"
"James is a little out of it, to be perfectly honest," Ororo said. "And Rachel and Nate are with Katie."
"Who's that?" Scott asked with a frown. "I thought I knew the roster-"
"Katie is a force of nature disguised as a little girl that Natasha and I rescued not too long ago," she said with a sly smile. "There was a very short argument on who would adopt her between our Widow and Stark."
"I didn't think either of them were…" Scott shook his head. "Alright then."
"She's a lovely young lady, and they are perfectly safe and happy - for the moment, anyhow."
"Glad to hear it," Scott said, shaking his head as he ran a hand through his hair. He really hadn't meant to fall asleep. "And Mia? She's alright?"
"Obviously," Ororo replied. "She waited for you to wake up before she went back to her big sister, Katie."
"Oh, so you won the match between Widow and Stark?" Scott asked with the tiniest of smirks.
Ororo smiled wider at that. "No, but the girls seem convinced they should be sisters."
"And who are you to argue with them?" Scott said, shaking his head. "How old is Katie, then?"
"She's just a month younger than James," Ororo replied.
"Then she'll fit in well," Scott said. He paused. "And you?"
"I'm going out on missions again," Ororo said.
"Right." Scott let the word hang in the air between them without really meeting her gaze. "That's good."
"I know you can't leave for a few days at least, if nothing else because of James' health, but I can't help but think that this might be easier on all of you if you were to stay."
"I'm not doing that again, Ororo," Scott said in a tone that she'd heard before when he'd made up his mind. "I'm not mixing family and work. I won't let them live where a team is headquartered."
Ororo reached over to rest her hand on his arm. "I was only making sure you knew the door was open. You know I won't try to force it."
Scott let out a breath and then at least tried to look less like he was holding his breath. "I know," he said. "But you know I need to keep them safe."
"I know," Ororo said gently. "As do I."
"You and Mia - if you change your mind, you're welcome…"
"I think we'll see how this works, first," Ororo said. "The Avengers are trying very hard. I won't ignore their efforts."
For a second, Scott looked like he was biting back a comment before he nodded. "And you've never been one to sit still, either."
"Neither are you, but I can imagine with three little ones, that won't be an issue."
"No, it's not," Scott said with the hint of a smirk. "Rachel is naming the deer."
"So they still come up to the cabin?" Ororo asked, smiling in spite of herself when she was fighting the aching sensation of loss.
Scott nodded. "You should see James with them, 'Ro. He-" He paused. "It's … he's a good kid."
"Yes, he is," Ororo agreed before she slid over and simply wrapped him up in a hug.
If it had been anyone else, Scott would have tightly returned it, but with Ororo, he let out a breath and put his head on her shoulder as he hugged her for a good long time. "He's just like them," he said in a breath of a whisper as she wrapped him up warmly, fighting the urge to melt and weep with him.
"I would expect nothing less," Ororo replied just as softly, doubling down on the hug.
"And then there's Mia and Rachel…" Scott shook his head. "How are you - I know it's-"
"It's not easy," Ororo admitted. "But she has Kurt's pure joy in life."
"That helps," Scott agreed, leaning back slightly. Ororo would never tell him, but losing the visor made him so easy to read. He was more expressive than he realized because he was used to hiding his eyes, and that just made the grief easy to see. "Nate's got a lot of me in him. He's looking out for James like it's his mission in life, even if James is older."
Ororo couldn't help but let out a hollow chuckle. "He's practically your carbon copy."
"Jean was happy about that," Scott said, looking beyond her at the wall that was easier to talk to. "Rachel looks so much like her…"
"That will only intensify as she grows up," Ororo said.
"Mia will be the same way," Scott said. "If she ends up teleporting…"
"We'll cross that bridge when we come to it," she replied. "And I hope … that before then I have a new place for her to learn all that comes with it."
Scott frowned and turned sharply to face her. "What?"
"I plan to eventually reopen the school," Ororo said, drawing herself up slightly. "I've thought about it a lot, and I know that it's needed now more than ever."
"Ororo, you saw what happened. You can't-"
"I did," she agreed. "And for that much, you're right. Mixing the team with family was disastrous. But that doesn't mean we can turn our back on all that we were taught."
Scott held his breath. "It's a risk," he said. "I don't know if I can help … I need to…"
"I wouldn't ask you," Ororo said. "I know how much you lost. But when this finally happens, when I have the school running again, I will step away from any kind of hero work. I know, Scott. The X-Men are over. I won't even consider bringing that back."
"I just don't want it to happen again," Scott said, putting a hand on her arm. "Mia can't lose you."
"No, but I can't get the other children out of my mind either," Ororo said. "There are still so many that have lost as much as we have - or as much as our little ones have. Charles' school needs to be there to catch them. Even if they only learn to control their abilities. Not use them."
Scott sighed. "Yeah. I know," he said in that breath.
"I still believe that Charles had the right idea," Ororo said. "But it was simply too early."
"He-" Scott swallowed. "-was ahead of his time. Yeah."
Ororo smiled tightly. "You should probably check in on your three."
"Right." Scott got to his feet and then pulled Ororo to hers as well for a tight hug. "Whatever you need, you know I'll be there for you."
"And the offer stands true for you, as well," Ororo said.
Scott nodded to himself, thinking deeply about what Ororo had said, though he was still processing it as he got to the med bay. James was still tired and out of it, but apparently, the Avengers were taking turns, and Jan was curled around the little guy and clearly enjoying herself as he slept.
"How's he doing?" Scott asked.
"I'm probably the wrong person to ask," Jan said. "But he's exhausted. Obviously."
"Yeah, that doesn't surprise me," Scott said, sitting down next to the two of them and not really asking before he scooped James up - and the little guy curled right into him like that was where he fit.
"Kinda scary to see him like this though," Jan said, wrapping her arms around herself and shrugging her shoulders high.
"I didn't know he had asthma," Scott admitted.
"Well to be fair," Jan said. "It sounded like Hank didn't know either. So. Maybe it's new?"
"Maybe," Scott said. "I don't really know enough about the family medical history to know if it's…"
"Again, I doubt they knew either, so … right." Jan watched them for a moment before she reached over to gently brush the hair out of James' face.
"Yeah, I think everyone is making that face right now," Scott said dryly.
"Do you want me to leave?" Jan asked, though she managed to not make it sound like a threat or an accusation.
"I'm not kicking you out," Scott said, shaking his head.
"I know. But … I don't want … you know what? I'll just … how about I bring a little coffee over for you?"
"That would be great, thanks," Scott said. "I wanted to check on James and find Nate and Rachel - I know they were freaked out too."
"Do you want me to tell them where you are?"
"Please," Scott said.
"You got it," Jan said, doing her best to put on her usually cheery demeanor, but still falling short as she turned on her heel and headed off, leaving Scott alone with James for a minute.
While she was gone, Scott took a moment to check James over, to listen to his breathing and to make sure that he was, well, as healthy as possible for the moment. It was such a relief to have him on the mend that he wasn't aware the door had opened again after several long minutes until Nate and Rachel rushed over.
Scott grinned and carefully set James down so he could catch both of his kids in a hug. "Are you running the Avengers into the ground?" he asked at just over a whisper, his tone forcibly brighter than it had been before.
"Dr. Blue says we're a force 'a' nature!" Rachel told him proudly.
"So that's a yes," Scott said.
"I helped," Nate told him, climbing up his side until Scott picked him up instead of just hugging him. "I made PB&J!"
"Who helped you?" Scott asked.
"Umm, Arrow Guy."
Scott smirked at that. "You made sure he cut it in triangles for you, right?"
"Uh-huh." Nate snuggled into Scott's shoulder.
Scott had one hand on Nate's back and the other on Rachel's shoulder as he looked up at Jan, who was watching the whole thing from the doorway. "Thanks."
"No problem," Jan said as she zipped over to set his coffee down on the table next to them. "When you're ready to take a break from things here, let me know. I don't mind snuggling up with the little guy."
"You can come play with Katie and Mia too," Rachel told Scott.
"We got cars," Nate agreed, then reached into his pocket to show Scott the toy car he'd stolen from the toy bucket upstairs. "Blue, like me and Daddy!"
"That's right," Scott said, nodding quietly before he glanced up at Jan again, one-handedly grabbing the coffee. "Are you sure you don't mind staying with him? You'll let me know if anything changes?"
"I don't mind, really," Jan said. "And if anything changes at all - if he so much as flutters a lash, I'll let you know."
"Thanks." Scott smiled wryly. "I only have two hands."
"And they're full of snuggles," Jan said, smiling.
"Daddy needs hugs," Rachel informed Jan. "Hugs are good for if you're sad."
"He sure does, and it looks like you give the best ones," Jan said.
Rachel nodded and rushed over to Jan to hug her too. "I like giving hugs because I'm sad too, and Daddy says when you hug, it's like you're getting wrapped up warm."
"He's right," Jan said. "But even when I'm happy, I like hugs."
"So I can hug you lots?" Rachel asked.
Jan tossed her hands up. "Any old time you want."
"Didja hear that, Dad?"
"Looks like you found a willing victim," Scott said without missing a beat - or looking up from where Nate was almost nose to nose with him telling him about his friend Mia.
"Victim?" Jan blew her bangs out of her face. "No such thing as a hug victim."
"Uh-huh," Rachel insisted. "There is if you do a hug tackle and knock 'em over!"
Jan put her hands on her hips and shook her head. "Um. No. That is a shortcut to a snuggle, that's all!"
"Okay, but you're wrong," Rachel said, one eyebrow raised.
"We'll just have to see about that, little Miss Rachel."
"I'm almost seven; I'm not little."
"Well, I'm still little, and I'm all grown up," Jan said.
"You're weird," Rachel said, wrinkling her nose at Jan.
"I'm just used to being smaller than everyone around me," Jan said, tipping her nose up as she tried to get a smile out of Rachel, but when that didn't cut it, she blew her bangs back again and then shrunk down.
Rachel blinked once and then burst out into delighted laughter, and Nate came tumbling over to see what was going on. "Daddy, Daddy, look! Did you see? Did you see?"
"Neat party trick," Scott said with a smirk.
"It's worth the laughs sometimes," Jan said, still tiny.
"Yeah, I know. You should have seen the carving I could do with a fine beam to show off for the kids too."
"Oooh, I'll bet that was amazing," Jan said. "But … I think I can take my party trick out of here if you're soaking in the snuggles." A moment later, she'd grown back to full size and turned back to Rachel. "We can play hide and seek with Katie if you think you can spot me."
"Race you there!" Rachel said - already running toward the door and giggling madly.
"Is that okay?" Jan said at the door, looking worried. "We'll just be in the play room."
"That's fine. I'm just going to ask Hank about what I need to take care of James long-term and I'll probably join you," Scott said as he picked James up again.
"Okay, well. They might need your help anyhow. But Katie is kind of amazing at this game," Jan said.
"I'm sure you'll make them work for it," Scott pointed out. "And cheat."
"Oh, absolutely," Jan said. "I'm wildly outnumbered! I have to!"
"Yeah, that's the reason," he said with a dry smirk.
"Alright, mister, we'll see who cheats first," Jan said, leveling one finger at him. "Just wait!" with that, she headed off at a jog to catch up to the girls who were already squealing with laughter from down the hall.
Chapter 10: Gifted Youngsters
Chapter Text
(Four years later)
The new Xavier Institute had only been up and running for a couple of years, but it was finally getting to a point where things had leveled out. Since there were no X-Men, and since they didn't teach the students anything more than how to control their abilities and then to hide them as much as possible, no one really bothered the residents at the school. Of course, there were some repercussions from it. Ororo herself barely caved to temptation to use her own abilities and tried to keep her flights and moments in the wind confined to storms that were already passing overhead. Yes, it was restrictive and more than a little sad, but … it kept the students safe and showed anyone that was paying attention that there really weren't any more X-Men in the world.
Thankfully, groups like the Friends of Humanity and their like had largely lost public support because things had been so quiet… and largely because of the Avengers' outlook, as well. The first time a sitting US senator had called for action against mutants, Ororo had actually seen the change that came over Captain Rogers' expression - since the school hadn't been built yet at the time, so she had seen his response in person.
The next thing she knew, the good captain was all over international news, telling any reporter who would give him a microphone (and there were several) that the Avengers would destroy any groups that practiced hate, including and especially anti-mutant groups.
So while the X-Men were gone, the Avengers didn't let things get quite as bad as they had with the Friends of Humanity - though the anti-mutant fervor stayed under the surface all the same, in little things like graffiti on the fences or hate crimes in the cities. But nothing systematic, and that was something, at least.
As for Ororo herself, she'd finally gotten into what felt like a more normal routine. As soon as she had begun to really move on, Forge had shown up to help with the school and, in no time, Mia as well.
Which was good, because it was clear that the older Mia got, the more she had her father's mischievous side - and that wasn't always good for a school that tried to stay out of the spotlight. She was all of five years old, but she was already telling everyone who would listen that she wanted to be a pirate - "or at least a X-Men!" which was hard to correct her on while also honoring the stories Ororo wanted to be sure she heard about Kurt.
At the moment, though, she was hanging off of Forge's arm by her tail and grinning up at him crookedly. "You gotta play," she told him. "You're supposed to be the bad guy!"
"I told you: I don't know how to be the bad guy," Forge teased.
"Well, you can be a dragon and just roar a lot," she reasoned. "And then I can vain-squish you!"
"Don't you think I can be a knight?" Forge asked, waving at her with his metal fingers before he scooped her up and started tickling her.
Mia burst into delighted laughter, squirming around until he stopped and she could throw her arms around his neck in a hug. "You're so silly!"
Forge smiled as he pulled her closer and kissed her cheek. "Only when I've got someone fun to play with."
"I love you," Mia said, grinning at him widely.
"I love you too, little goddess," Forge said before he tossed her in the air and let her climb onto his shoulders.
Mia was grinning as the two of them caught up to Ororo, who was in the gardens as usual. Those had taken the longest time to replace, but she had kept at it, and for the first time, they were starting to bloom in splendor much like she used to see.
"Hi, Mom," Mia called out from Forge's shoulder. "My Forge is silly!"
"He certainly is," Ororo agreed before she leaned close enough to kiss his cheek. "And we like him silly, don't we?"
Mia giggled when Forge stole a proper kiss in response. "He's ours, huh, Mom?"
Ororo smiled at that. "For as long as he stays with us, yes."
"Oh, so forever," Mia said confidently, which had Forge laughing.
"Looks like you've trained the teachers well in who actually runs the place," called out a familiar voice - and Storm looked over in surprise to see that Scott was there with all three of his own kids. It was a rare occasion to see them there, after all. The boys were talking with their heads together, but Rachel was attached to her dad and wouldn't let go of his arm, looking distressed and overwhelmed and hiding her face as they got closer.
It was a surprise to see them there when Scott had made it a point never to come to the school. He'd invited Ororo and Mia to Christmas a few months prior, but for the most part, they kept to themselves, fishing and hunting and attending school in the small town a hundred miles north of Westchester. If not for the fact that Ororo knew better, she would have even said they looked the part of a small town family, in jeans and plain shirts; Scott even had a beard, and Rachel normally had her hair in braids, though it was down and she was using it to hide her face this time.
Mia grinned, faster to blink out of surprise than Ororo was, and bent over nearly backwards to wave Scott's way. "Hi, Scott!"
Scott smirked and waved right back. "Hi, Mia. Can I borrow your mom for a minute? You can play with Nate and James."
"Okay," Mia said happily, and Forge set her down so that she could rush over to her friends. It didn't take long before all three of the younger kids were chasing each other through the garden - and Forge went with them to give Scott some privacy to talk with Ororo.
Scott took a deep breath and let it out, one hand on the back of Rachel's head as the little redhead tried to disappear into his side - though she was getting old enough that it was harder for her to hide now that she was taller. "She's a telepath," Scott explained, getting right to the heart of the problem, as usual.
Ororo took just a moment to blink at the two of them before she couldn't stop the growing smile. "Well that's good news, isn't it?" Ororo said.
"Yeah, you could have gotten my powers and had to hide your eyes," Scott said Rachel's way, though she held on tighter, and he sighed. "It's overwhelming," he said.
"I'd imagine it would be easier where the four of you are," Ororo said before she gestured for them to take a seat.
"Yeah…" Scott trailed off and rubbed the back of his neck. "She's having a hard time with … with me, honestly," he said in a breath, and it was clear to hear in his tone how much the admission hurt.
Ororo straightened up at that. "Scott."
"I know. I don't let the kids see it, but every time she brushes my mind, it feels like Jean and-" Scott cut himself off.
"Betsy is here," Ororo said. "I know she'd be more than happy to help in any way she can."
Scott nodded, his shoulders relaxing. "Thank you."
Ororo offered Rachel her hand. "Do you remember Betsy?" she asked.
Rachel nodded quietly. "Yeah. I like her hair."
"She cut her hair since the last time you saw her," Ororo told her. "It's very short."
Rachel nodded shyly. "Okay."
Scott let out a breath and then simply picked Rachel up and gestured for Ororo to lead the way. "Come on, Rach. Betsy is one of the best."
"Not like Mom," Rachel said quietly - and Ororo could see the moment Scott almost lost a step before he shook his head.
"No, but she can still help you."
When they got to Betsy, she was sitting with Warren, quietly having tea, though to say that Warren looked ragged would have been a massive understatement. He simply didn't have much of a chance to stretch his wings anymore - and it showed. Both of them looked up when the three of them walked into the room, and both of them looked positively relieved to see Scott there. "We need to find you a razor," Warren said.
"You'd scare half the elementary school teachers. I'm a regular fixture, and they wouldn't recognize me," Scott said dryly.
"Maybe they need to be shaken up," Warren replied as he got to his feet and ruffled his feathers as he stretched. It was just an instant before Warren offered him his hand, and when Scott took it, he pulled him into a brief, tight hug. "It's been too long, stranger."
"You haven't noticed when you've got Betsy," Scott shot back with the beginnings of a smile.
"Are you kidding? I can hardly leave the house. I've noticed."
Scott shook his head as he looked over his old friend. "You do look worn down."
"No room to fly; don't want to draw attention," Warren explained.
Scott let out a sigh and nodded. "That's the one nice thing about ditching the shades. Seems like no one knew what I looked like under there. We're flying under the radar pretty well."
"Someone will notice you got a few good-looking kids sooner or later," Warren laughed as he smiled at Rachel. "Even if they all aren't color-coordinated to you."
Rachel smiled shyly up at him. "Hi, Warren."
"Hey, gorgeous," Warren said. "You here to steal my Betsy?"
Rachel nodded. "Yes, please."
"Alright, but only because it's you," Warren said before he ruffled her hair and threw an arm around Scott's shoulders. "Why don't you have a little tea, Miss Rachel? I'll take care of your Dad for a little while, okay?"
"He needs it," Rachel said, and Scott scoffed.
"You're trouble, Rach," he told her, and she smiled lightly.
Once the others were gone, though, Rachel looked up at Betsy, and her lower lip started to quiver as she finally stopped trying to hold it in. "I don't wanna die," she whispered out as the first tear started to fall.
Betsy was shocked, but she pulled the little girl over to wrap her up in a hug all the same. "What in the world makes you think you're going to die?"
"Dad thinks it," Rachel blurted out as she latched onto Betsy and clung to her shirt. "All the time. He thinks about Mom and her fire and the Phoenix and I've got fire when I touch his mind and I don't want to die!"
Betsy was on the verge of losing it herself as she pulled Rachel tighter, wrapping herself around her. "He's worried, Rachel. But it's not your fault, and I think you'll be alright with some training. We can help you build up your psychic defenses, we can make sure you learn to control your powers, and I can help you to keep out of other people's minds. If you like."
"Mom couldn't stop, though," Rachel said, still scared and holding on tight. "I can feel it in my dreams, and I don't want to!"
"Your mother couldn't stop because she was wrapped up in grief and rage," Betsy said. "You have to learn to not let the fear and bad feelings control you."
Rachel nodded and buried her face in Betsy's shoulder, crying hard in a way that Betsy could hear without even brushing her mind - since Rachel was projecting pretty loudly - that Rachel had tried to hold back. Rachel hadn't wanted to cry, because she could hear how scared not only Scott was but her little brothers, who had picked up on that specific type of fear and were worried themselves.
When Rachel had finally finished crying, she finally looked up at Betsy, who was emotional herself. "You're scared too."
"I'm afraid for you," Betsy said before she cupped Rachel's face in her hands. "I know that you can be strong enough to control it, but I also know how hard it is to focus when you're scared and worried about the people you love."
Rachel nodded, her eyes wide as she met Betsy's gaze. "I wish I had Dad's powers," she said. "I don't want to be a telepath. And I really don't want to be the Phoenix."
"Sweetheart, we don't get to pick what we are," Betsy said.
"I know," she said. She let her shoulders drop. "Dad thinks you can help me. He was happy to hear you're teaching here."
Betsy smiled at her. "That's because I'm a telepath too. So I can not only tell you, but I can show you - and even help you to see what you need to do to control things."
Rachel nodded. "Yes, please."
And while Betsy and Rachel talked a little more about Rachel's powers, Scott was in the hallway talking with Warren, shaking his head as he looked around the school. "It doesn't feel the same," he said. "Or maybe I'm just not used to seeing it in color."
"It's a little bit of both," Warren said. "I'm pretty sure, anyhow. It doesn't feel quite the same. But the color … that's … it's pretty close to what it always was."
"I wouldn't know," Scott said. "I'm sorry you're grounded, Warren."
"It's still better than some of the alternatives," Warren replied.
"Believe me, I know," Scott said softly, then cleared his throat. "But Ororo's right. Kids still need this place. Rachel needs it, for one thing."
"A lot of them need it," Warren said seriously. "It's a good thing that Betsy and I are still around and kicking in, too. We get more kids every year. Some of them can't go anywhere else because of the physical mutations they've got. We're planning a new wing just to house them."
"I know Mia was complaining this Christmas about sticking to the school. She wants to see the world."
"It's just too dangerous right now, Scott," Warren admitted. "And the old image inducers don't cut it like they used to."
Scott frowned at that. "I haven't heard it was that bad."
"Components are hard to come by, and some of the MRD guys have little devices that fry them. It's been driving Stark up the wall."
"I thought the MRD was mostly defunct after Captain America busted up their main headquarters when they tried to reorganize after the Phoenix."
Warren raised an eyebrow. "They're targeting mostly physically mutated people, but it's not defunct."
"I've been more out of touch than I thought, then." Scott ran a hand through his hair. "It's been really busy. James' teachers have been running him through a bunch of of tests. He's already skipped two grades like it was nothing. And then he came down with chickenpox and gave it to the other kids…"
"Wait," Warren said, holding one hand out. "He's skipped how many grades? And in how long?"
"Two grades this year," Scott said.
"How …" Warren let out a breath. "And with as sick as he is, that's … a little bit wild, isn't it?"
"Yeah, if he hadn't come down with chickenpox, we had a test lined up with some specialists, but then this thing with Rachel happened, and we haven't had time to reschedule…" Scott looked honestly exhausted just talking about it.
"I'm sure if you're around for a few days, Storm could line something up for you. She's still pretty tight with the Avengers - if nothing else because they're still bending over backwards trying to make up for … everything."
"I'd appreciate the help with him," Scott said, shaking his head. "He gets restless when he doesn't have anything to keep him engaged."
"Or we could just call up Hank," Warren said, already offering Scott his phone.
Scott chuckled at that. "You never were patient," he said.
"I don't want to interrupt Storm and Forge," Warren corrected. "They're getting really serious."
"They were pretty close when they came for Christmas. I know Mia thinks the world of him."
"She calls him 'my Forge'," Warren told him as he hit the button to call Hank. He smiled at Scott for just a moment as Hank picked up the line. "I have someone here who has a question for you about placement tests." He didn't wait for a response from Hank before handing Scott the phone and waving him on.
Scott shook his head at his old friend. "Hey, Hank. Got a minute?"
"For you, I have all the time in the world," Hank replied.
Scott smiled lightly. "I need to meet up with you or have you come to Storm's school and run some tests for James."
"Is there a problem?" Hank asked, sounding concerned.
"No," Scott promised quickly, knowing that Hank had seen James through many illnesses. "No, it's not his health. He's skipped two grades already, and I need to know where to take him so he's getting the academic challenge he needs."
Hank was quiet for a long moment at that - simply not having expected that kind of news. "I shall consult with my peers and find a reasonable solution. How long are you in town?"
"A few days. Rachel's registering for classes."
"Already?" Hank asked, sounding surprised. "We can be there tomorrow, I'm sure. While Ororo is working out a schedule for Rachel."
"Thanks, Hank."
When Hank arrived along with Tony, Jan, and Bruce Banner, the four Avengers were surprised by just who greeted them first - as Nate Summers came tumbling over and positively latched onto Hank with a troublemaking grin.
Though before he could even say hello, James came running around the corner soaking wet and wielding a water pistol that he'd clearly stolen from Nate after the initial attack - and James didn't have any hesitation about hitting Hank along with Nate, either.
"Harboring a fugitive!" James called out. "Also, hi."
"Hi, Hank!" Nate said, grinning and wet and laughing.
Hank smirked and scooped Nate up - though he was sure to dramatize an 'oof' as he did so. "You're getting too big for this."
"I'm gonna be as big as my dad!" Nate agreed.
"Maybe bigger," Hank said with a laugh.
Nate nodded seriously and then waved at the other three Avengers. "Hi. You missed it. I totally nailed James."
"Sure looks like you did," Tony agreed, looking entirely amused at the whole situation.
"I'm a crack shot. Dad says so," Nate said proudly.
"And what about you, James?" Jan asked with a grin. "I see you got his gun."
"I fought him for it," James said as he set the water pistol down.
"He cheated," Nate said. "He licked my hand!"
"Not my fault you're squeamish."
"You bit me last time!"
"I'll bite you again if you stick your hand in my face, too."
"Is this typical?" Bruce asked Tony, though Bruce was smirking hard and obviously amused.
"Little boys," Tony said with a laugh.
"So typical," Jan laughed before she booped Nate on the nose. "Hey, do you want to show me around while your brother takes a test?"
"Okay," Nate said. "We can go play with my dad and Mia!"
Jan flashed a smile at the other Avengers. "Have fun, boys. I'm taking my sharpshooter," she said, letting Nate take her hand to lead her out to the gardens, where Scott was watching Mia very carefully and methodically put flower petals in a pattern on the rocks, singing a song to herself the whole time - at least until she saw Nate, and then she roped her friend into playing with her. It wasn't long before they were screaming and laughing and dragging the adults into a game of tag.
As for James, he was more than a little out of his comfort zone with the adults around him. He didn't care that he was dripping wet, but he didn't really spend much time with any of them anymore - and Bruce Banner was definitely a new addition.
"If you gentlemen wouldn't mind," Ororo said as she rested her hands on James' shoulders. "My office is open for you to set up; I'll get our little friend dried off."
James looked up at her, tipping his head back to do so, and as soon as they were away from the three Avengers, he blurted out, "But I didn't do anything wrong."
Ororo shook her head and crouched down to his level. "You're not in trouble," she promised. "Your father told me about how you've skipped a few grades-"
"Only because they were boring," James said quickly. "And it wasn't my idea."
"Exactly." Ororo nodded and smiled gently before she rested her hand on his shoulder. "Your father wants to find you a class that won't be boring, so I asked three very smart people to come here and see just how clever you are. That way, your classes won't be boring."
James thought about it for a moment. "Will I have to go somewhere else like Rachel?"
"If you do, I know for a fact your father will go with you, though I don't know that it would be much of a challenge here for you," Ororo said. "Rachel is going to school here because she'll need to learn to control her abilities; maybe you'll move closer to the city to keep the family close."
James frowned at that but didn't respond, instead remaining silent as he let Ororo lead him down the hall to get changed and dried off. When they got to her office - dry and ready to go, it was clear he was still mulling things over.
"Are you nervous?" Ororo asked kindly.
"No," James lied, shaking his head.
"I had to ask. You looked like you might be."
"I don't think I'm smart enough for this." He shrunk in on himself as he watched the three brainiacs manage a few final adjustments. "I can just stay in the class they put me in. I won't cause any trouble. I promise. It's fine."
Ororo let her shoulders drop before she turned James to face her and draw his attention away from three of the brightest minds on the planet. "I tell you what, my little friend. You can give it your best shot, and no one will be upset with you if you're not smarter than Albert Einstein," she teased him lightly. "I promise you, James: this is only to see what grade you should be in and if you should be in a different school. We all know you're smart, James; we just want to know how smart." She ran her hand though his hair with a sedate sort of smile as he watched her. "But you must promise me that you will try your very best."
"I don't want to leave," James whispered to her softly, and all at once, she took in how stressed out the little guy looked and pulled him into a hug.
"You don't have to, James, I promise you. You can stay with your dad and your brother and sister."
"But we'd have to move, you even said so - and we just got comfy where we are," James said as Ororo held on tighter, though she had to keep a fine handle on her self control when he continued in an even quieter whisper: "Dad doesn't sleep when we move."
"Does that mean you don't sleep too?" Ororo asked quietly, to which James glanced over to the Avengers and barely nodded. She forced a smile into place and kept one hand on the side of his face to make sure his attention was on her. "He's only watching out for you all. But you don't have to worry. And you're getting far ahead of yourself. Take the test first, then I'll make sure your voice is heard on whatever the next step is." She could feel the tears prickling at the corners of her eyes as her next words bubbled up on their own. "Have a little faith, my sweet boy." James stopped what he was doing and glanced up at her with such a familiar expression … that was all the more striking when she could see Logan so clearly in his features.
James looked over at the three men in the room and bit his lip, missing the struggle Ororo was having with her emotions. It took a moment, but he turned their way and squeezed Ororo's hand as she joined him for the walk over so he could at least see what they wanted.
Ororo kept by his side as long as he wanted her there, too, though as James got more invested in the tests, she was able to step back slowly to observe.
And for James, though at first he was nervous, it all seemed like a bunch of stupid games that each one of the adults would play with him. Before long, the games were broken up with memory tests, reading and comprehension evaluations, and some math that was well above what they knew he already had down.
Ororo knew it was going well when Tony showed James how to work out an equation with a bubbling joy that she honestly hadn't seen from him in quite some time. When Tony gave him a new problem with a similar format, James hardly slowed down to solve it. It wasn't super high level for the adults in the room, but for a kid that wasn't even ten yet, it was pretty clear that he was picking things up as fast as they could put it in front of him.
Which honestly turned into a whole lot of fun for Tony, Hank, and Bruce as they decided to see exactly how far they could push the kid without prepping him properly. And once James was invested in the 'games', he barely noticed that the test had transitioned slightly - and he didn't notice Tony recording parts of it on his phone, either.
Chapter 11: So Much Potential
Chapter Text
Eventually, Jan and Scott had managed to get two overly energetic kids inside, fed, watered, and in front of a kid-appropriate movie while they ate their graham crackers and milk. If that wasn't impressive enough, the snacks didn't come until after they made sure the kids had their healthy lunch first - something that entertained Jan to no end when Nate seemed perfectly used to Scott laying out the rules, even when Mia wanted to negotiate getting graham crackers first.
The two adults were both finally getting to sit down and have something to eat themselves, though Jan was sure Scott wasn't even thinking about it as he got out the sandwich supplies for both of them like it was normal to just make food for whoever was in front of him.
"Ham or turkey?" he asked over his shoulder as he got started building sandwiches.
"Oh … whichever," Jan said, her shoulders up to her ears as she leaned on the counter watching him go into autopilot.
Scott shrugged, and a few minutes later, he sat down next to her and slid her some lunch. "Nate doesn't get to play with younger kids very often. He's used to bringing up the rear."
"He's keeping up great," Jan said, and was sure to thank him, even if it was wild to watch autopilot dad on Cyclops.
"What about you? I thought for sure you'd be next. Last time I really talked to Natasha, it had sounded like you were going that way and she was expecting a boy after their little girl a couple years ago, but we haven't been in regular contact."
Jan frowned at that. "Yeah, I haven't … really been seeing anyone seriously enough to get that far," she said.
Scott frowned and turned her way with a confused expression. "I thought you and Hank…"
"No," she said, shaking her head quickly, though for how she said it, it was clear something had happened. "No. That is waaaay over."
Scott froze, realizing he'd hit a nerve but not sure which one. "I'm sorry."
She turned toward him with wide eyes. "No, no. No. It's better this way. Really. He wasn't the guy I thought he was." She put on a forced smile. "He's not on the team either, so there's that, too." She shook her head. "I can't believe you didn't hear about that. It was kind of … public."
"I've been keeping my head down, Jan. If it didn't reach my small town or if it wasn't something one of our friends said in a visit…"
"Yeah, I know. It was kind of national news for a minute there, though. I mean … it's not every day Captain America bodily throws someone out of the tower."
"Well, now I'm curious," Scott said with the smallest smirk at the corner of his mouth.
"Hank lost his temper," Jan said, shrugging lightly. "And Steve … lost his, too."
Scott frowned as he put together what it was Jan wasn't saying. "I would have thrown him out too."
"You don't know that for sure," Jan said, forcing a little laugh. "Circumstances …"
"You think there weren't a few parents I was ready to put through a wall back when the X-Men were rescuing kids from bad home situations?" Scott shook his head. "If it hadn't been for our creed, there would have been more people-shaped holes in walls."
"Now you're sounding like my therapist."
"Must be a rotten therapist, then," Scott said without missing a beat. "Everyone I talk to around here says I need one, so yours might be a little nuts if they're agreeing with me."
"Well, it was a therapist that Tony found for me, so, you know … she might be biased."
"Yeah, that's why I haven't gone to any of the ones Storm recommended."
"Because they might agree with you or back you up?"
"Because they already know the story, and I'm not interested in rehashing it."
"Maybe you can be my therapist, since you don't know the story," Jan said.
Scott smirked and leaned back, gesturing with one hand. "I'd be terrible at it."
"Yeah, but it sounds like you're the one person in the country that hasn't heard it," Jan teased.
"I know. I'm slipping," Scott said. "Used to be I knew everything before even the Avengers did."
"No, no, you've got much better things to concern yourself with," Jan said. "And the Avengers didn't know … well. Nearly as much as we should have." She leaned toward him. "Between you and me? It's a pattern. I blame the guys in charge of information gathering."
"Well, did you put Katie in charge yet? Because the last time I saw her, she told me she was."
"She thinks she is," Jan said, nodding. "And she was mad she wasn't around when Cap threw Hank out."
"Anyone who hears that is mad they missed it. It sounds like a good show," Scott pointed out.
"Not really," Jan said. "It started with Tony, really - there was a lot of yelling, took his clearances, banned him from the workshop loudly, and you know, Tony's really not much of a yeller? So that drew in Steve … and, well … the two of them yelling in agreement is definitely weird, but ... " She gestured openly. "I thought Tony was going to hit him."
"I'm glad he's out of your life, then," Scott said. "And I'm sorry for what happened."
"I've gotten worse on the job," she said, the closest she'd say outright to a confirmation of what had happened.
"That's the thing, though," Scott said. "Even on the rare times Jean and I managed to get in each other's way on the job - which, by the way, I wouldn't recommend when Rachel comes into her own - it was a string of apologies, and it was all accidental, and we felt rotten for weeks. That? That's not the same thing."
She shrugged up one shoulder. "I still shouldn't have gone into the lab when I did."
Scott frowned and leaned forward, one hand on her wrist without thinking about it. "No way," he said sharply. "Nothing that happened is your fault. Don't even think it."
She smiled at him for just a moment. "Well, sure. I know that? But it doesn't change how I think about it."
"Yeah, you sound like-" Scott let out his breath. "Well, it's pretty common in the job."
"Yeah," she said, then quietly watched the kids for a moment before she reached over to steal a potato chip off his plate. "But here I am bringing you down, and I'm not supposed to do that."
"Oh, I didn't realize I came with rules of engagement," Scott said dryly.
"No, no, you don't," Jan clarified. "I do. I'm supposed to just … not do this."
"I'm not sure what 'this' is that you're avoiding, unless it's telling me about what's been going on in your life," Scott pointed out.
"Wow, you're really good at looking for stuff like that, Scott, no," Jan said, shaking her head. "I'm not supposed to get all wrapped up thinking about what happened with Hank. And I stink at that."
"You're talking to the wrong person, Jan. My daughter got telepathy and immediately freaked out because she could hear me panicking about her mom's powerset," Scott said, his smile tighter than before.
"That actually seems totally sensible though," Jan said. "At least as a first reaction. All things considered."
"Well, that makes you the first person to think so," Scott said, shaking his head.
"Then I must be nuts, right?" Jan teased. "I mean, it's not like I'm avoiding dating anyone because of this - or that the rare times I've considered it, I ended up shrinking down and flying off instead of going through with it because … well. The pity look."
"Jan, I'm active at an elementary school PTA of mostly women. I'm well-versed in that look," Scott said, rolling his eyes toward the ceiling.
"Then … don't throw stones, crazy person."
"Wasn't trying to," Scott promised, both hands raised.
"PTA, huh?" Jan asked after a long while.
"Hey, I used to run strategy for dozens of X-Men. I can handle a book drive or two."
"I'm not judging," Jan said. "Just sounds like a nice change of pace."
"The kids need to know I've got their backs," Scott said with a shrug.
Jan nodded and let out a sigh. "We were talking about kids before the .. ah … the thing."
"You'd be great. Nate was already saying he wants to come back and play with 'the nice lady,' so I think you're winning him over," Scott said with a smirk.
"Ooh, good," Jan said. "Maybe he'll remember my name when you come by next."
"Might be more often with Rachel going here," Scott admitted. "We've never been apart longer than a day - and only because I had to stay with James during a few overnight hospital visits while Natasha watched the kids with Katie, Clint, and Lexi."
"So what you're saying is that I've been robbed this whole time by that arrow slinger?"
"A...pparently," Scott said slowly, smiling despite himself that that was the direction she'd taken with that information.
"Unbelievable," she said under her breath. "Undercut by a freakin' cold war spy and her corn dog-breathed boy-toy."
"No, Jan, tell me how you really feel," Scott chuckled.
She turned his way and gave him a falsely angry side eye - not that she could sustain it. "I think I may have already," Jan said. "But … since you asked - that is totally a mistake. They can't be trusted. Honestly. Horrible influence. Both of them. And I will tell that to their faces. Their smug, kid hogging faces."
"Okay, okay, I'm convinced," Scott said, smiling a little wider. "Your application for first shot at babysitting is received, Jan."
"Oh good; it only took me this long to get my foot in the door. Even though I am clearly the best candidate."
"Hey, Natasha helped me set up security on the house."
Jan waved a hand. "Oh sure, that's one thing that she does well that can be applied around kids." She was at least smiling by that time, though.
"Oh, come on. You've seen her with Katie and Lexi," Scott laughed.
"Biased!" Jan said. "Totally biased!"
"I didn't even know you were so deeply interested until just now!" Scott said, still laughing.
"Well, you didn't really ask around, did you?" Jan said. "I have always loved these little troublemakers." She tipped her head. "Though … admittedly, I don't think I've really seen James outside of the lab and that little while that he was with Tony. And he totally hogged him the whole time."
"Yeah, we're pretty regular customers for Hank. He's starting to grow out of it as he gets older, thankfully, but he does still come down with every single bug that goes around the school," Scott said, shaking his head.
"Maybe it's a trial by fire for him," Jan said. "Get all the sick over with ... "
"Maybe," Scott said. "We had to get an X-ray last time we came after he landed wrong falling out of a tree, so we know he's got bone claws."
"So it's a possible thing," she said.
"I'd say at this point it's a likely thing," Scott said. "Considering his parents, anyhow."
"Just trying to be scientific. For like … five seconds."
"Well, you're not wrong. Nothing's guaranteed. For all I know, Nate will heal, and James will shoot optic blasts." Scott chuckled and gestured to his face and the three-pronged scars there. "Could surprise us."
"If that's the case, then I think you'd have some serious explaining to do," Jan teased.
"Oh yeah. The fact that he looks like his dad and Nate looks like me..."
"That just makes it really confusing," she giggled.
Scott rolled his eyes. "If you say so, Jan."
"I really don't," she said, smiling still. "But I think this is the most fun talk I've had with anyone in a while. All the guys are still half afraid to talk to me or, you know, treat me like I'm not a china doll that's going to shatter at any moment."
Scott shook his head. "You really need to get out more if I'm your measuring stick for fun. You can ask Rachel: I'm a boring dad."
"Hey. You bring the fun with you," Jan said.
"Oh, I see. You're using me to get to the real fun."
"Closest I'll ever probably get," she replied.
"I already said I'd let you babysit," he said, shaking his head. "We're going to be here pretty often for Rachel, and if James ends up needing more advanced schooling, we'll have to find a place close by and commute between them."
Jan tipped her head in concession and turned to watch the kids in the living room as Mia curled up with her head on Nate's shoulder as they started to settle down better. Which was about when Jan seemed to realize how long the kids had been separated from James. "How long is that evaluation supposed to take, anyhow?" Jan asked. "Seems like we might be getting close - if you go by how tired the kids are."
"I have no idea," Scott admitted, looking toward where Mia and Nate were curled up on the couch. "I don't know. Is that a good thing?"
"Want me to go spy on 'em?" Jan offered. "I can fly right through the keyhole."
Scott laughed, but before he could answer either way, the geniuses in question hit the hallway headed their way, and Scott got to his feet so he could grab James up into a swinging hug and check on him. "Hey, how'd it go? Did you make them all feel like neanderthals?"
"I don't think so," James said, shaking his head and looking a little confused now that he was out and away from them.
Scott raised an eyebrow and then readjusted the way he was holding James so he could point his gaze toward Tony. "See that look? That is the look of a man who has no poker face and is excited about his hand. That look tells me you did amazing."
"I don't know," James said slowly as Tony and Bruce came the rest of the way toward them. "They've been like that since before we did anything."
"Well, let's ask," Scott said, then made a show of looking toward Tony and Bruce. "Well?"
"He's got some serious potential," Bruce said, even cutting across Tony, which was impressive on its own.
"I could have told you that," Scott said, ruffling James' hair.
"He picks up equations after seeing the way they're solved," Tony said. "Nothing rocket-science level - yet - but yeah. He's gonna be bored with most things, I think."
"So, what do I need to do?" Scott asked. "Whatever program he needs, I'll do it."
"It's okay," James said quietly, curling in on himself. "You don't have to."
Scott let out a breath and turned to press his forehead to James'. "Hey, bud, it's not a problem. We found Rachel a school that works for her; now we need to find you one. And we'll find something for Nate where he can play every sport the world has ever known, too."
"Ah … about that. It might end up being more like a group of tutors," Tony said. "I can tell you from experience being a kid in a place meant for older teens and adults isn't … a great idea. And if he takes off like I think he will, a program might be restrictive." When Scott glanced up at him, Tony tried to clue Scott in at exactly how well James was doing. "I know I was bored in my programs most of the time."
"Right." Scott nodded and gave James a hug until he relaxed, then turned back to Tony. "I need them to be cleared by you, me, and Natasha before I'll let them meet him."
"Wouldn't dream of anything else," Tony said. "I'll start looking. Don't worry about costs; I'll get whoever you pick on contract and take care of it."
"Thanks," Scott said, adjusting the way he was holding James. "This really does mean a lot to me."
"Told you before you just had to tell me what you needed," Tony said. "I'm sticking to it." He reached out to rest a hand on James' back, which drew the little boy's attention. "You did great, kiddo. Really great."
James smiled quietly at that but kept close to Scott as Bruce started to chat with Scott and Jan - who was enthusiastic and cheerful enough that James started to relax more - a point that had Scott smiling at her. She was going to be an amazing influence if she was serious about her offer to spend time with the kids.
Chapter 12: Yellow And Black Influencer
Chapter Text
Jan's first shot at babysitting Scott's kids came just a few days after the evaluation had been completed for James. Scott had asked Natasha to help him find a place where he could be close to Rachel and he could be available for the private tutors Tony was looking into. He wasn't necessarily looking for anything permanent, just something he could use while his kids figured out this new turning point in their lives. As a result of the quick rush of new information and the buzz going around the Avengers regarding all of Scott's kids, Natasha had suggested using one of the apartments in the building Clint owned in Bedford-Stuyvesant.
Since Natasha and Clint had adopted Katie, the place was one of the safest buildings in the borough - in no small part because the tracksuit mafia that had tried to make Clint's life hell had gotten scared off by a combination of Storm's wrath in the early days after losing Kurt and then an unrelenting Black Widow making their lives a living hell as her hobby until they finally retreated.
So Clint's building was a safe place, with the promise of anonymity and the Avengers close enough that if there was a problem at the school or if there were problems as the two boys got older and grew into their powers, he'd have backup, too.
But Scott wanted to get everything set up himself, triple-check the security, and talk to the school that Nate would be attending - which also happened to be Katie's school, so the chances of it being problematic were low. Still, it just meant that Jan got to watch the kids while Scott let his paranoia guide him.
They were all hanging out at the park for the day, and when lunchtime came around, it was back to the tower, where Katie and Lexi Barton attached to the group. The next thing Jan knew, she had four kids building a fort to play pretend in. Once they'd worn themselves out, Jan somehow wound up in the fort with all four of them snuggled up with her while a movie played on the little laptop she'd brought in.
"That's impressive," Scott said as he came in and knelt down at the opening of the fort. "Usually, the boys keep to themselves the more tired they get."
"Really? They're so snuggly, though," Jan said. "No wonder you don't like to share."
"Hey, James has spent enough time being sick and needing the human contact…"
"And he was the one to start the snuggles, too," Jan said. "I am not complaining."
Scott shook his head with a quiet smile. "Well, now you're stuck in there, I hope you know."
"Again, not complaining," Jan laughed. "He's a great little teddy bear."
"He'd hate to hear that," Scott said, unable to hide his quiet laugh.
"I don't know," Jan said, tipping her head to the little guy. "He looks pretty comfy to me."
"Sure he's not sick?" Scott teased.
"He's been tired - no temperature though," Jan said. "And he wasn't complaining about anything - not that I think he would, but ... "
"No, you have to intuit it with him," Scott agreed.
"Then I would guess if he is coming down with something, it's probably not super bad."
Scott nodded to himself, though he was looking around the room until he saw that Lexi was curled up with a puppy at her side.
Jan tipped her head as she thought about it. "He was playing with Lucky a lot, too."
"Oh, yeah. There you go. He has a hard time with pets."
"That is so weird," Jan said with a little laugh.
"Yeah, especially since he has his dad's penchant with wild animals. He found a wolf pack that was ready to adopt him and was sniffly for days, but he still goes to them to say hi when they come around."
"Wait. He was playing with a wolf pack?"
"Freaked me out too, but you should see him. He knows how to communicate with them, and honestly, I wouldn't be surprised if it was the same pack out that way that was friendly with Logan."
Jan stared at him for a moment and then pulled James a little tighter. "Seriously."
"Hey, I don't … whatever it is, it used to drive me nuts. Logan would go missing or on one of his walkabouts, and sometimes, if we had to go looking for him, we'd find him with a pack." Scott shrugged. "K joked about it all the time. She thought it was hilarious."
"Things I didn't know," Jan said. "And … kind of interesting. I didn't know that was part of the powerset."
"I don't know that it is part of his mutation," Scott said. "The more I've seen it, the more I think it's an instinct to treat everything the way he wants to be treated."
"Then … I guess that means more snuggles, all the time. Oh darn!"
"You're just happy for the excuse."
"That's what I said!"
Scott shook his head, sitting back as he watched her with the kids. "James will snuggle Natasha sometimes. I've learned Russian just to keep up with the two of them."
"Well, he plays with wolves too, so you know..."
"I don't think Natasha would appreciate that," Scott chuckled.
"No, but you did!" Jan said. "Admit it! There's a parallel there, somewhere!"
"Russian timberwolves?" Scott shot back with a dry smirk.
"Yes! That. Exactly that." Jan was nodding along seriously. "Red Room was code for 'grrrrrrrr'."
Scott laughed. "Oh, is that why Lexi's so attached to the dog?"
"Probably," she said. "So … how do you usually get these sweetie pies to bed? Or is it just … camp out on the floor once they get here?"
"If you're very careful, you can get them to bed," Scott said. "But I don't know how well that will work while we're here at the tower."
"And … if I don't want to put them to bed? What if I'm just trapped?" She kissed the top of James' head. "Oh no!"
Scott chuckled and leaned back as he watched them. "I guess that makes me superfluous."
"Well, superfluous, why don't you toss me a blanket, then?"
Scott laughed as he did just that. "You're terrible."
"You kind of did it to yourself," she laughed. "And … I had to."
"If you say so," Scott said, lying back with his hands behind his head as he looked up at the ceiling. "I'm glad they've got someone here that they all trust. James does well with Tony, but Nate and Rachel ..."
"They're great kids, Scott," Jan said, settling in.
"They had good material to work with. I just stay out of their way and let them shine."
"Yeah, you help them shine," she said.
"I used to think that," Scott said. "The older they get, the more I'm convinced they're outpacing me. Which is good. They should."
"They're only outpacing you if you're giving them all they need," Jan said. "And more. You're doing a great job, in case no one's said so."
"It's not really about me, Jan," Scott said.
"I didn't say it was, but I am trying to give credit where it's due," she said. "They're amazing kids, but they get to be amazing because of the job you're doing as their dad. Own it."
Scott let out a breath of a laugh. "You're seeing a good day. You should have seen me last week when Nate tried to convince me he wanted a long-range rifle. He hated me for days until I promised I'd teach him personally when he was old enough."
"He's just in a hurry to grow up," Jan said. "Like most kids."
"He thinks he's got to keep up with the other two."
"Of course he does; he's the baby," she said, smiling at him. "It's always like that with the baby. Look at Natasha's kids. They get cutthroat about it."
"I didn't realize Lexi was so dangerous," Scott said with a smirk. "And I know for a fact Jim's still too young to follow them around."
"Yet. Too young yet. He still tries to lean away from Clint to get to them."
"Poor guy."
"You can't tell me I'm wrong. What about your brother? Wasn't he a total pain trying to keep up?"
"Oh, definitely," Scott said. "He still is. Visits from Genosha sometimes to be the 'fun uncle'."
"How does that work out?" Jan asked as James picked his head up to see what was going on.
James glanced up at Scott with one eye half opened. "Hi, Dad," he said quietly before snuggling in better with Jan.
"Hey, James," he said with a quiet smile. "You want to keep using Jan as a pillow or do you want a better nap space?"
"If you want me to go, I will," James said, sitting up a little, since he thought that was what they were after.
"No, it's up to you," Scott said. "I'm fine staying here and talking with Jan while you hang out."
James looked up at Jan, and when she nodded, he mumbled out a quiet 'okay' and settled back in with her, which had Jan melting and making sure he was as comfortable as could be.
The two adults waited until James was asleep again before they dared to say anything, and then Scott let out a breath. "I'm trying not to let him think he doesn't have a choice in what happens to him. He was young when everything happened, and I know getting passed around … not having a choice in who was in charge of him for a while…it made an impact."
"I didn't realize he was passed around that much," Jan said softly. "I saw him when he was with Tony …"
Scott was quiet for a long time. "He started out with me. Then things got complicated when some anti-mutant groups were looking to retaliate for what the Phoenix did, and we needed to make it harder for us to be identified. So … it was Kitty and Bobby for a while, at least until it was clear they couldn't handle being his watch 24/7 and he panicked about them taking him to Genosha. So I stepped up until, again, the idiots in special forces were getting too close. Then it was Tony. Then me again. Then Natasha. Me. We've all done what we had to in order to protect him - and us. Rachel and Nate even spent time with Alex, too - and they all had their turns with Ororo. It's what we've needed to protect them. But I can't let James think that he's a spare part. And I know firsthand that is an uphill battle."
"You know that just makes me want to snuggle him more, right?"
"Yeah, I have that reaction too."
"And I'll bet Tony was hard to get him from. Harder than you thought he'd be anyhow."
"I wasn't expecting him or Natasha to be so attached," Scott admitted. "But I helped raise James, and as much as they're attached, they had their own problems crop up. He needs stability, and I'm doing my best to give it to him."
"You're doing great, Scott. Really."
"I hope so."
"Yeah, you're getting a hug too," Jan said.
"Gonna be hard to do when you're trapped under that pile," Scott pointed out.
"I'll get around to it," she said. "Priorities."
"Yeah, I have to agree; the boys come first," he said. "Katie and Lexi too." He let out a breath. "You really are good with them. I'm sorry about-" He let out a breath. "Yeah."
"Well, I guess we're all settled in now," Jan said, gently shifting the subject. "So … good night."
Scott chuckled. "They'll wake up in about an hour anyway. They never take long naps."
"They didn't have a full-sized Wasp teddy bear before," Jan pointed out. "You never know."
"If you say so," he said with a smirk. "In that case, I'll just fall asleep where I am. Take full advantage."
"Fine by me," Jan said, then yawned a little as she got comfy too.
It actually was a few hours later that Scott woke up - because Nate had climbed on his chest and started poking his cheek. "Um, Da-a-a-ad, we're all playing, and you're still sleeping."
Scott peeked one eye open to see that, in fact, the kids were all quietly playing together with a game of Trouble. Lexi was too young to really play, but they let her pop the dice for everyone's turn. But apparently, Nate was concerned that their dad might sleep forever.
Scott shook his head. "Sorry about that. I guess I was tired," he said, ruffling Nate's hair and pulling him into a hug. "You go ahead and play. I'll talk to Jan about dinner, and we can all head to our new apartment once we've eaten, okay?"
Nate nodded. "Okay," he said, then hugged Scott and rushed back to take his turn.
Scott checked the clock and was surprised to see just how much time had passed as he came to sit by Jan on the couch. "I guess I needed that."
"Yeah, well … I can stay with them when you need to recharge," Jan offered. "You need to breathe sometimes, too."
"I usually get more space to breathe during the school year," Scott admitted, then paused. "Okay, so that's not - I guess with the projects and everything-" He let the argument drop and cleared his throat. "I didn't notice I was tired."
"Oh, I know how that works," Jan said. "That, too, is pretty normal for what I know."
"You should've seen me on the X-Men, then. Hank knocked me out once or twice. I was told afterward it was for my own good," Scott said dryly. "Still don't believe him."
"I've seen the other side of it when it goes too far," Jan said. "Tony once fell asleep on his feet after a three-day-straight bender tinkering in his lab. It was ugly. He thought he was fine until he just … dropped."
"Logan did that once."
"Bet it took longer than three days," Jan said dryly.
"Three weeks," Scott admitted. "It was right after Rachel was born. Sinister took an interest; Logan took offense. It was a long month."
"How did that turn out?"
"Well, at the risk of jinxing something, Sinister hasn't come back yet, so I think it was worth it."
"Well, good," Jan said. "He probably came back thinking he had another day or two in him, didn't he?"
"Yeah. I was grateful for K. She … made it easier to get on the same page with him." Scott's gaze was fixed beyond them.
"She really could handle him," Jan agreed. "Made it look easy, too - which I know it was not."
"Yeah, I used to laugh when people would tell me to get better 'control' of my teammate. Like I had control of anything."
"Yeah, well - Steve and Tony. Need I say more?"
"Which one's supposed to be controlling the other?" Scott asked dryly.
"That's kind of the ongoing argument," Jan said.
"You'd think it would be simple," Scott said. "But I grew up on Captain America newsreels."
"So did he," Jan said. "But Tony started the Avengers. So it's a thing."
"And you named them," Scott pointed out.
"Well someone had to," she said with a grin. "They weren't ever going to come to an agreement on it."
"So, why don't you step in?" Scott asked, genuinely curious. "Show 'em how it's done."
"I have," she said. "But it's a pain juggling those two. So … let them duke it out."
"Yeah, I know that feeling," Scott said.
"I'm sure you do," she said, smiling his way. "It's awful being in charge sometimes."
"Yeah, well, that's not a problem anymore," Scott said.
"Nope, sure isn't," she agreed. "This … this is much better. All around."
"Yeah. The world wasn't ready for the X-Men. But I think I can get the kids through life in one piece," Scott said in a sigh.
"I have full faith," Jan said.
"Rachel's got a fiery telepathic touch," Scott pointed out. "James keeps trying to die of … typhoid fever or whatever is going around. I think Nate's alright. He's on the soccer team."
"Well, that's the trouble. Put them all on the soccer team. It'll be fine."
Scott snorted. "James hates team sports."
"You're kidding," she laughed.
"Not even a little bit," Scott said, grinning her way. "He's good, but the other kids drive him nuts."
"Oh my God." She covered her mouth with one hand, trying to cover the giggles. "I thought for sure he'd go for like … hockey or football or something."
"He didn't do too badly with hockey. Actually, Nate's the football fanatic, but I told him he couldn't play until he was older. He's still so small and doesn't realize he's as skinny and short as he is."
"A recurring problem with your boys, then?" she teased.
"You know it," he laughed.
"They're going to be amazing," she said. "Well. Continue to be amazing."
"Yeah, I think they're already there," Scott agreed.
"I heard that Bruce is kind of excited to spend more time with your little genius," Jan said. "So that's kind of weird."
"Hey, I'm not complaining," Scott said. "He's a top scientific mind - and no one will bother James when he's with the Hulk."
"It's just … funny," Jan said with a little snicker.
"Hey, everyone said the same thing about me being James' godfather. At this point, it's practically part of his legacy," Scott said, smiling despite himself.
"It's a great match up," Jan said, grinning. "Genius move on his parents' part."
"I hope so," Scott said.
"I know so," she said, getting to her feet. "So. I'm buying dinner for you guys. Call it a housewarming present."
"You really don't have to."
"I know, but I want to," she said. "So … tell me what you want and I'll order in."
"Nate's kind of picky," Scott warned. "But he'll eat burgers from pretty much anywhere."
"Great - round up the orders and I'll make a call or two."
Scott shook his head, smiling to himself as he wrote down what he knew the boys would eat - and Katie informed him in no uncertain terms that she wanted to have whatever Nate had but she needed lots of ketchup.
Which was hilarious when the food arrived and Kate informed Nate that they matched and kept eating his fries until Nate took the last half of her burger.
"Should I be concerned that they're escalating?" Scott muttered to Jan.
"Nope," Jan said before she stole one of his fries. "Not at all."
"Oh, I see where Katie learned it," he chuckled.
Jan laughed and shrugged. "I dunno. I think it's a mystery."
"Yeah, sure," Scott said, shaking his head at her before he plucked her chicken sandwich out of her hand. "Well, this is a good trade, right?"
Jan burst out laughing. "I guess so!"
Scott grinned, though he eventually gave her dinner back to her, still smiling and shaking his head. "Thanks, Jan. I think everyone needed this after Rachel's powers freaked us all out a little."
"It's been a long week or so for you guys," Jan said. "And I'm always up for movies and take out."
"I'll keep that in mind," Scott said.
Chapter 13: Secret's Out
Chapter Text
Betsy and Rachel were just finishing up their lesson with the tall grandfather clock slowly marking time with its soft tick-tock in the drawing room at Xavier's School for Gifted Youngsters, and Rachel was making good, solid progress. Enough so that they were working not only on how to stop her from hearing every thought around her, but how to gently reach out - since it was such a natural thing for telepaths to do anyhow, and it was an excellent way to know when it was time to get out of any given area should trouble arise.
The two telepaths were sitting peacefully with some classical music playing in the background as Ororo looked over some English papers across the hall in her office when, very suddenly, Rachel's head popped up and she let out a gasp - about half a second before Betsy reached over to her and physically covered her mouth, blocking her from Ororo's view. Shhhhhhh, Betsy projected. I heard it too. Stop.
But he's gonna ask Mia-
I know. You have to play it cool. Consider this a lesson in keeping secrets. We have to keep everyone's secrets.
Like how Warren misses the X-Men so badly?
Yes, Betsy said, though her smile dropped, knowing how much isolation was devastating the man she loved. Like that.
That's the biggest secret with everyone, Rachel told her. You all miss it. You too. And you miss Bobby and Kitty and everyone on Genosha.
I do, she agreed. Because we were doing so much good. And it's hard to turn away from that when it's so desperately needed.
What about Dr. Blue? He's an Avenger now.
He misses it too, but he was an Avenger then, Betsy told her. So was Logan. But the X-Men were different. It was more like a family than a team.
Rachel nodded, though she kept her thoughts to herself as she watched Forge carrying Mia on his shoulders. She was sure that all of the adults had been happier when they were X-Men, her dad included. And it was hard to reconcile the way Betsy was teaching her to use her powers and not to give in to fear when everyone's thoughts were tainted with anxious nerves and spiraling in 'what if's.
But for the moment, she didn't bring it up - especially when there was so much excitement to be had watching Forge talk to Mia… and then watching Mia light up like a Christmas tree and throw her arms around Forge's neck.
...and then immediately take off running, shouting "Mom! Mom! Mom! Mom! Mom!" with Forge behind her trying frantically to stop her before she could upstage him. Though he was laughing the whole time, so he wasn't too put out by her reaction, either.
But it did mean that everyone within the reach of Mia's voice knew what had happened when Mia caught up to Ororo, wrapped herself around her mother's leg - and then Forge cut in with, "I asked her if it would be okay if I proposed, and I guess she's trying to beat me to it." He smiled at Mia and shook his head. "Dramatic little goddess."
Ororo looked surprised and then broke into a wide smile as she waved Forge over so she could kiss him while her legs were still trapped by a happy five-year-old. "I'm glad you know you would be marrying both of us," she teased before she looked down at Mia and rested her hand on top of her flyaway white hair. "It appears as though you have permission to ask, Maker."
Forge grinned and kept a light hold on her hand as he sunk to one knee and produced a box from his pocket as he asked her properly - and Ororo mildly inclined her head with a soft 'yes' that was befitting her royal title from the African plains.
Betsy, we gotta tell Dad, Rachel projected as the soon-to-be family settled into a solid hug.
Do you want to call him, or do you want to join me and reach out for him? Betsy asked.
Rachel faltered. Will it scare him if I'm in his head?
I can reach out first to test the waters, if you like.
Yeah, I think he's still worried.
Betsy smiled at her for that. You're not nearly as fiery as you think. But I'll go first. She squeezed Rachel's hand before she focused on Scott and gently reached out to call for him. Do you have a moment, Scott? she projected, since once she knew what someone's mental signature was - it wasn't easy for her to forget.
Scott startled, and Betsy could hear the worry in his mind. Is something wrong? He asked, sounding almost like he had been expecting - and dreading - news.
Not at all, she replied. I was going to have Rachel reach out, but she was afraid to try it unless you were prepared for it.
No, that's - yeah, I'm fine.
Take a moment to compose yourself and I'll guide her, Betsy said. She's doing wonderfully.
Of course she is. She's her mother's daughter.
And very much like her father, as well, Betsy corrected, though when it was clear that Scott was settling out with the unavoidable pride of how well Rachel was learning already, she gave him one last, gentle warning before she guided Rachel so she could reach out to her father.
Hi, Dad.
Scott's grin was obvious even this far away. Hey, Rachel. You're already running circles around everyone there, huh?
I'm working hard, Rachel promised.
I know you are, Scott said.
I wanted to tell you something really cool, though, Rachel said.
You're too young to date.
Dad!
You're only eleven…
Oh my gosh, Dad. Rachel shook her head, but she couldn't stop her smile. He was obviously doing a lot better than he was before if he was making jokes, and she was glad to hear it. She had been worried, because moves always turned him into a pile of nerves, especially when those moves included him being forced to ask others to watch the kids so he could plant misleading trails elsewhere. I wanted to tell you that Ororo and Forge are engaged!
Good for them, Scott said, sounding honestly pleased. I knew they were getting more serious.
It's so cute, Rachel said. You should come congratulate them.
I'll bring them something when I come get you for the weekend.
Okay, but you're missing out on the hugs.
You really just want me there, don't you?
Yes, please!
Okay, let me tell the boys I have places to be, Scott said, and Rachel grinned before she turned back to Betsy and hugged her.
"He's gonna come over," Rachel said.
"Oh good," Betsy said as she wrapped her up in a tight hug. "I'll bet it felt good to tell him how you feel, didn't it?"
Rachel nodded. "It's so much easier to talk to him like that."
"It really is," Betsy agreed. "He's always been easier to talk to like that."
"Which is weird because he was so scared about it when I did it for the first time," Rachel said, rolling her eyes.
"It will get easier," Betsy said.
Rachel nodded and then glanced toward where Ororo and Forge were wrapped up with Mia. She grinned and then rushed over. "I told my dad!" she told Ororo happily. "He's going to come and celebrate with you!"
"You did?" Ororo asked, smiling at her. "That's wonderful, Rachel. You're learning so quickly!"
"Betsy says I've got a lot of power. I just have to use it right," Rachel explained before she gave Ororo a hug. "Thanks for letting me learn here."
"We're tickled to have you, Rachel," Ororo promised. "For as long as you'd like."
"I want to see you get married," Rachel said, her eyes wide.
"Of course you're all invited to the wedding," Ororo said.
"Oh good, because I want my friends to see me get a dad," Mia said, snuggling into Forge's non-metallic shoulder.
Rachel smiled at that, though she hadn't meant to project to Betsy that, Maybe my dad will find a mom for my brothers.
Betsy was well-practiced in keeping her reactions to herself, but that was more than enough to tug at her heartstrings. She knew that Scott hadn't allowed himself to move on from the tragedy that had destroyed the X-Men, but with Rachel's infectious hope, she found herself wishing for Scott to find someone for them too.
Thankfully for her, Mia was already running around as soon as Forge set her down so she could tell everyone about her mom and her Forge getting married, so the mood didn't stay down too long.
Jan was tickled that she'd already gotten another shot at babysitting, even if it was just for a few hours. She got to watch Bruce Banner and James making friends, she got to watch Nate get totally into a football game on TV to the point that he didn't realize he was standing on the couch, and when Scott got back from Westchester, she saw him grinning - and that was a rare enough sight it had her grinning too.
"The boys didn't give you any trouble?" Scott asked as he locked the door behind him, a habit at this point even if the apartment was way well-protected, in Jan's opinion.
"Of course not," Jan said. "We even ordered buffalo wings and pizza for the football game. Total necessity."
"You're spoiling them," Scott said with a smirk.
"What? No way," she said with a wave. "Besides, it was Nate's idea to try something new."
"Wait, you got Nate trying something new?"
"Nope," she said, shaking her head. "It was his idea. I just went along with it."
Scott grinned a little wider. "Well, look at that."
"He loved it, too," Jan said, bouncing in place. "Different-flavored wings. Devoured them."
"Well, he might be hitting a growth spurt, then. Did the same thing a couple years ago and shot up several inches at once." Scott grinned. "He's going to be tall."
"I wouldn't bet against that for anything," she said. "I'm just surprised how James keeps growing."
"Me too. I can barely keep up with these kids. Rachel grew out of all her clothes, and then James hit a growth spurt, and now Nate…"
"You know, Scott," Jan said as casually as she could, failing spectacularly at doing so while she stared at her nails. "I do have an in for that kind of thing. It's kind of low-key a huge hobby of mine."
"What, tracking growth spurts?" Scott teased.
"Yes. Yes that exactly," she said with a nod, her head held high. "Especially since it means new clothes."
"We probably should change clothes anyway. We've been going with jeans and plain shirts - small town wear…"
"That's pretty classic, though," Jan said. "Even here in the city. I can update you guys a little bit, but I wouldn't want to alter your style too much."
"Yeah, nothing too flashy," Scott agreed. "And James doesn't like anything with a high collar. He says it feels like it's choking him."
"Pretty common complaint," Jan said as she made her way over to the kitchen table - and pulled out a notebook to start sketching. "Favorite colors?"
"The boys like blue," Scott said. "Rachel prefers green."
"And you?"
"Oh, I'll wear anything," Scott said with a shrug.
"Well sure, and you'd do well in just about any color … maybe not orange, but …."
Scott shrugged. "Hey, for a few years, it was nice to have a range of color options. Everything was red for a long time, Jan. Since I was a kid. So I just wear whatever is comfortable."
"That had to be wild," Jan said, sketching away.
"It was," Scott agreed. "Jean was powerful enough at her height that she could turn it off a few times, but never long-term."
"That's kind of amazing," Jan said, glancing up at him for a second before she pulled over some colored pencils that the kids had nearby, already diving in to the colors - including the palettes she was making for each one of them.
Scott looked over her shoulder with one eyebrow raised. "I didn't realize 'plainclothes' was so involved."
"Well … you know how it is," she said. "Something you love doing … it's easy to get carried away. Besides … collarless overshirt? That's totally not something to find off the rack right now, but it would be so comfortable."
"I'll defer to the expert, then," Scott smirked.
Jan smiled and handed him the first set of sketches and the color keys for each member of the family, already diving in to what was clearly for Rachel - if the hair on her little model was any indicator. Even if the style on the hair was more elaborate than what Rachel wore. Ever. "Little girls need at least one dress," she said.
"Rachel's not a big - she hates dresses," Scott said.
"Really?" Jan said, blinking up at him. "Well … maybe I'll just show it to her and ask first."
"She says they get in the way of keeping up with her brothers," Scott explained. "And she'd rather wear shorts and a tee shirt."
"Oh, well that might be a style thing, but maybe she could go for one that's actually shorts but looks like a dress. Stylish and easy to kick all the boys' butts."
"There you go," Scott said, nodding along.
Jan was smiling and humming to herself as she kept going - lots of pretty shades of blended greens with highlights here and there of gold or blue. Clearly, she was enjoying coming up with things for Rachel.
But the boys color schemes were wildly different - even with 'blue' as a basis for both. Nate's color swatches leaned to a darker blue with notes on the margins to add in bits of silver for accents, and she created a plaid for him that was mostly white - with shades of blue making up the checkers that would complement his eyes perfectly.
James' things were a different cut than what she had in mind for Nate - since the boys were built differently and she wanted to make sure they both had something that was clearly their own. But his blues were closer to a caribbean blue than Nate's dark ones, and Scott watched as she hesitated on her accent color for him before she went with an almost vibrant shade of violet, working those colors into a different pattern of plaid too - with white and black.
"Okay," Jan said, leaning back. "I think that's a good start."
"You're going to have a whole closet for them by the time I turn around, aren't you?"
"Maay-be," she sang out. "Throw in a few hoodies and they'll be set, I think."
Scott smirked as he leaned back and grabbed a slice of pizza for himself. "You really don't have to go all out," he said.
"If I went all out, I'd have tuxedoes and long dresses picked out," Jan said with a wave.
"They'd hate that," Scott chuckled.
"See? I restrained myself," she said, nodding to herself.
Scott laughed. "Well, I guess it's a good thing we moved out here. You'd be lost without them to spoil."
"I so would."
Scott smirked, but before he could say anything else, his phone went off with an alert, and he looked like he nearly came out of his skin as he grabbed his phone out of his pocket.
"What the heck is that?" Jan asked, startled by the sound.
"Perimeter alert," Scott said tersely.
Jan was on her feet in an instant, looking like she was ready to fight. "Where?"
"The cabin," he said. "We just moved out…" He was watching the video feed with wide eyes as it showed several black-clad soldiers bursting into the house with guns drawn.
"Oh. That's … I mean, that's good you're out, right?"
"How did they find us, though?" Scott asked, running a hand through his hair. "We've been lying low. We've been careful."
"I don't know how they ever found you to begin with - let alone at a place that no one knows exists." She leaned over his shoulder to watch the video with one hand drifting up to cover her mouth.
"Yeah." Scott shook his head before he snapped out of it enough to call up Natasha. "Did you get the alert?" he asked without saying hello. "By the look of the guys on surveillance, they're either MRD or government-issue."
"I'm pretty sure MRD doesn't have that caliber of weaponry right now," Natasha said in a clipped tone.
"Then this is government-run," Scott said. "I thought Jean burned out the department. What's this?"
"I don't know, but I'm going to find out," Natasha said. "Stay close. Go to the tower if you're concerned. And I'd say stick close to Bruce."
"He just left, but I'll call him back," Scott said.
"Good. I'll send Clint over," she said. "And I'll call Storm and let her know."
"Tell her to be on alert. I don't know how they found us, and if it was Rachel…"
"That's the plan," Natasha said. "Raise the alarm." Before the call was over, Clint was knocking on the door, since as it turned out, Natasha had been home, so sending Clint over had been a simple matter of saying out loud that she was doing it and glaring at her husband until he moved.
Clint waved, with Katie on his shoulders. "Hi. I'm here to play backup to the Hulk. Which is superfluous."
"Not if he's wrapped up in Scrabble with James," Jan sang out, even if her tone didn't quite match what she was going for. Especially with James and Nate watching the adults in a very solemn and silent manner, wondering if they were going to have to split up and hide again - even if Scott was doing his level best not to do that anymore when he could see the toll it took on them and could see that the kids were old enough to follow his security protocols anyway. "He got distracted."
Clint grinned. "You know what's more fun? Scrabble with the Hulk."
"I'm super curious if James can charm him too," Jan said, forcing the smile a little before she turned to Scott. "They were trying to do Scrabble with only the names of the elements."
"Of course they were," Scott said dryly before he turned to Clint. "What does Natasha know?"
"Right now? Someone's going to bleed." Clint shrugged as he set Katie down. "She's got Stark on the satellite to see where they came from and who sent them."
"The Avengers said they'd be watching for groups like this," Scott said, one eyebrow raised.
"And they have been," Clint said. "But if this is a government op, it's new and tiny."
"It's about to be extinct," Scott said.
"Pretty much," Jan agreed.
Scott paced a small path, running his hand through his hair, but once Bruce returned looking ready for a fight before he settled in with James, and Nate and Katie were trying to one-up each other on who could jump the highest, Scott had to sit down, feeling more useless than he had in a long while.
"Captain America's in the news," Natasha said with a dry smile as she sat down by Steve. "You're making headlines."
"Shouldn't have to," Steve replied, sounding irritated still, even after he'd chewed out a few Senators that he knew were behind the little group that had triggered Natasha's alarms. "This kind of thing is supposed to be over."
"We pushed it underground, Steve." Natasha sighed. "It's just what happens with evil like this."
"We still don't know for sure who they were after, though, and this isn't going to help Scott relax with those kids."
"I looked into it, actually," she said.
Steve turned her way, obviously waiting to hear what she'd found. "And?"
"School nurse," she said tightly. "She's the one who tipped off the MRD, and the government took over."
"Which one were they looking for, Tasha?"
"All three of them," Natasha said. "She tested for the X-gene when the kids had chickenpox."
Steve swore outright and started to pace, his hands on his hips while he had nothing useful to do with them. "She had no right to test them-"
"Steve, if you don't think she regrets her every life decision after I interrogated her, you don't know me that well," Natasha said darkly.
"What got her attention?"
"It was Rachel, actually," Natasha said. "She looks so much like her mother, and you know the X-Men who died had their faces all over the news after what happened."
"And the fact that James looks like Logan but is with them …"
"Right. She knew he was adopted, but the family resemblances were too much to ignore once she got on the right track." Natasha shook her head. "It's a good thing James is working with tutors and Rachel's in Westchester - or the kids would have been in the middle of it when those men came in."
"No kidding." Steve let out a relieved breath as he thought of what might come of those kids should someone unscrupulous get a hold of them. "James and Rachel won't be able to run from that. They're both already spitting images."
"Nate looks like Scott too, but his face wasn't blasted all over the national news, and the visor…" Natasha shook her head. "I'm going to keep an eye on Nate's school anyway."
"He'll be starting in a new school here, won't he?" Steve said. "Maybe they can register under a different last name."
"He'll be going to Katie's school. And the last time I talked to Scott, he suggested his mother's maiden name. No one knows what that is, publicly."
"Suggest it again," Steve said.
"I'm going to pull some strings on the school nurse, too," Natasha said.
"I'd like to get her license revoked," Steve said. "Breaking patient confidentiality? At least."
"By the time I'm done with her, she won't be able to get more than a part-time waitressing gig."
"Good," Steve said. "We need to update Scott. He's probably pulling his hair out by now."
"Might do him some good on his undercover work," Natasha said dryly.
"I'm sure that's what he wants to hear," Steve said just as dryly before he tossed Natasha the keys.
"I don't know if this is the right move," Scott told Natasha as he paced. The kids had gone to bed, though he wasn't sure if they were sleeping after all the tension and nerves that had sparked up earlier with the raid.
"You have to be somewhere, Scott, and considering how close they got, I think you're better off to be near us. Tactically speaking," Natasha said - her tone perfectly business-like as she watched him pace.
"You know I don't trust being so close to a team-"
"And it's a good thing that you'll still be far-removed from said team," Natasha pointed out. "They don't come here. Only Clint and I do. And Stark is sending his very latest in surveillance and defense to reinforce the building. You'll be safe here. I swear it."
Scott stopped and turned her way, the anxiety clear in the lines at the corners of his eyes. "If there's even a whisper of trouble-"
"I'll fly you to one of her places if the need arises."
Scott thought about it for a moment, then nodded to himself, running his hands through his hair when it was clear he didn't have much of a choice in the matter. "They need the best Stark has to offer. I'm talking about the caliber he uses for himself."
"Absolutely," Natasha agreed. "He already swore to do that much and more."
Scott nodded, his hands on his hips. "Okay. Okay. That … alright."
Chapter 14: Three Schools
Chapter Text
Even though the Avengers had destroyed the fledgling secret government agency that had been hunting the Summers kids, it wasn't until a month into the new school year that Scott relaxed at all. Natasha had checked the nurse at Nate's new school three times over, but it wasn't until Nate had gotten sick and there was no resulting raid after the school nurse had treated him that Scott felt like he could breathe again.
So it was almost inevitable that the same weekend he was starting to relax, Rachel came home from school looking pale as she immediately grabbed onto Scott's arm with a panicked look on her face.
"Why can't I hear James?"
Scott could feel his heart skip a beat, and he took off running to find that James was passed out asleep on the bottom bunk of the boys' bunk beds.
He sat down next to James and watched him breathe as he held his own breath for a long moment. Finally, he looked over his shoulder to see that Rachel was wide-eyed and standing in the doorway. "He's okay," she breathed out, her shoulders dropping as she said it.
"Yeah," Scott said, one hand resting on James' shoulder absently. "Yeah, he's fine."
"But I can't even peek at his dreams," Rachel said, shifting her weight from one foot to the other as Scott stood up to let James sleep.
Scott watched James for a long time and then nodded. "Jean had a hard time reading his parents," he said softly once he'd gently ushered her into the hall and closed the door behind him so they could speak more easily without interference. "He's eight… it's a little early, but considering how everything has gone for him, he might be at least starting to come into his powers. Some kids come into it slowly instead of all at once like you did."
"So he's not in trouble?"
"Not any more than usual," Scott said, shaking his head.
"You're still worried."
"I don't want anyone to find out about this who shouldn't know," Scott said, since she looked like she was on the verge of a panic.
"You don't want anyone to grab him."
"I really don't."
"And you're worried that the Avengers aren't going to see it."
"Rachel…"
I'm a telepath, Dad, she said. You can't lie to me.
You are just like your mother, he said with a soft smile before he pulled her out of the doorway into a hug, letting James sleep in peace.
All three of us know how to take people down, Dad. We've known how to take apart a gun since I was in first grade. We're going to be okay. We could even-
No.
Dad, I wasn't-
No. Scott put both hands on her shoulders and looked her squarely in the eyes. "Rachel, the second your existence hit the government's radar, they called in special forces. Anything more than that - any confirmation for them on what any of you can do with your powers - and they'll call in more."
"But you don't think the Avengers will catch it," Rachel argued.
"Natasha and Steve dismantled-"
"You can't just sit around and wait for us to get caught," Rachel said, drawing herself up to her full height with a flush to her cheeks. She looked so much like her mother in that moment that it set him back a step.
Scott held her gaze and then dropped it. "You're not going to get caught," he swore. "We're all doing everything possible to keep you safe. I just need you to trust me."
Rachel nodded, though she wasn't convinced in the least, and she reached out for Nate as soon as Scott went to get dinner started. Nate, James is getting powers and Dad's freaking out, and no one is going to actually do anything about how stupid this is.
What do you want me to do about it? Nate projected back. Not like I can stop James from doing whatever he's doing.
No, but you can help me convince Natasha and Steve to train us. We'll tell them we want to be Avengers.
I'll bet James can too; he's at the tower a lot more than we are, Nate said. And I'm pretty sure Stark is already hoping he'll be an Avenger.
Then it'll be easy to convince them to teach us to fight, Rachel reasoned. And then we can do something about this. Dad won't, and Ororo won't, and the Avengers are too busy to catch it all.
I think we can do this. Between us, anyhow. But how do we keep James in the loop now? Without getting caught, I mean.
Well, he has the tutors come here most of the time, but I know Mr. Stark is pushing to have him spend more time up in the labs with his tutors. He even told Dad it would be easier to keep track of everyone. But … even if that happens, you see James every day still. Until I can figure out how to talk to him like Mom talked to Logan, we'll just have to make it work and you'll need to keep him in the loop.
Alright, Nate replied, though he didn't sound overly sure about it.
Believe me, Nate. We're going to be amazing. She paused and smirked. And Katie would probably help too. She wants to be a hero when she grows up.
Katie will do more than just help, Nate said. She's going to take over on Clint's name. Or Natasha's. It's Clint's this week, though.
Mia wants to be an X-Man too, Rachel said. Once she's old enough to keep a secret, we'll pull her in.
James hasn't said anything one way or the other, though, Nate pointed out. Every time we talk about it, he just gets really quiet.
He knows Dad's freaked, and he remembers moving between everyone because of things like this when we were little.
Pretty sure James is a little freaked, too.
Yeah, well, if you could see what Dad sees every time he thinks about Mom and James' parents… Rachel shook her head. It's pretty … it's really bad.
How bad? Nate asked cautiously.
Dad… he was blind for a lot of it, but I can see the cells where they were kept, and I can see Logan in a room right before…. Her mental voice went shaky, and Rachel closed her eyes to block out the memory that was not hers.
Wait.
Yeah. It scares me, too. But Nate, there's no one else to stand up for us. Do you really want to hide for the rest of our lives? Ororo and Betsy taught me how to hide my powers. What if you get Dad's powers? Are you going to be like Warren stuck inside because of your glasses?
No way.
So you'll help me?
Yeah. We'll need to get James with us though. I don't want to leave him out, and he should be with us. I don't really want to do it without him.
Then you talk to him. He listens to you more than me, Rachel said. He thinks I'm bossy.
You are.
Shut up, Nate.
There you go, bossy boots.
Rachel rolled her eyes before she headed upstairs, though Scott had been sure to stay close by until James woke up, and then Scott grinned when he saw him coming out of his room.
"Hey, bud," he said.
"Hi," James said, sounding tired still as he rubbed his eyes. "Didn't mean to fall asleep."
"Don't worry about it," Scott said, coming to sit down at the table with him while dinner was in the oven. "You're tired a lot lately, aren't you?"
"Yeah," James said, nodding to himself. "Didn't think I was doing much, though."
Scott nodded and let out a breath, not sure how to approach this conversation. "James, I think you're starting to come into your powers."
It was almost like someone had flipped a switch for how quickly James woke up and froze. "What? Why would you say that?" he asked in a bare whisper that had Scott frowning.
"You're tired a lot more than usual, and to be honest, Rachel can't hear your thoughts. So you'll need to pay attention to when your senses start to kick in more."
"But that's not …" James was wide-eyed as he shook his head. "You never said anything about her not being able to ... Maybe it's something else. Like … the opposite of Rachel."
"No, I don't think so. Jean couldn't get into either of your parents' minds," Scott explained. "Neither could the professor. Not without them opening their minds first."
James paled as he shook his head. "No."
Scott frowned deeper. "James-"
"No."
"You know you have claws, James. This is just the rest of it."
"I don't want it."
Scott let his shoulders drop, and he pulled James into a tight hug, though the little guy was tense as a drawn bowstring. "James, I swear, you're going to be fine."
"You don't know that. Not if I'm … no."
"Yes, I do," Scott said. "I'm going to make sure no one gets anywhere near you kids. You know that. The tutors are safe, this apartment is safe - you're fine."
James watched him for a long moment but didn't respond to him, mostly because he didn't believe it - and it felt like Scott wasn't very confident about it himself, either. So instead, he let Scott pull in tighter to tuck into a hug. And though Scott was trying to reassure him, James kept his mouth shut, even though all he could think was that sooner rather than later, he was dead, and all the trouble Scott had gone through to keep him safe was just a waste of time.
"I promise, James, there is nothing I won't do to keep you safe," Scott said as he pulled James closer.
"Can you make it stop?" James asked quietly.
"No, I can't," Scott admitted. "I can't - and I don't want to change anything about you, James."
"Why not?"
"Because I love you," Scott said. "Unconditionally. And you can't change anything about your genes, and I would never ask you to."
James didn't reply to that, though it was pretty clear that he was upset, because coming into this power set, his parent's power set, the one that had prompted so many people to try to use them, felt like a death sentence to him - and he was supposed to just … accept it.
After a long while, Scott took a deep breath and then kissed the top of James' head. "James, please trust me."
"I do," James said quietly.
"Then trust that I will keep you safe. And that I love you."
James couldn't come up with a response other than a very quiet "Love you too."
"Hope your streak of different chicken wings is still going strong," Jan called out as she came into the Summers' apartment with James. "I brought seven different kinds tonight!"
It had become a regular thing for Jan to bring James in after his day of tutoring once Tony put forward a solid argument in favor of the security of the tower - and keeping home and schooling separate - which left Scott free to get a little quiet one-on-one time with Nate after school.
"Jan!" Nate rushed over and threw his arms around her neck. "You're just in time. Dad and I just got done with homework, so we can play."
"Yes! Just what I was hoping for!"
Nate grinned. "I already kicked Dad's butt at Yahtzee."
"Ooooh, good, you're all warmed up to be competitive for me to beat you."
Nate grinned, dragging Jan along with him as Scott pulled his arm around James' shoulders. "How're your lessons going?" he asked.
"Fine," James said.
"Still tired?"
"Yeah, a little," James admitted. "Hank spent some time with me today, so that was … different."
"Different good?"
"Sure," James said, shrugging. "He brought a bunch of sweet stuff with him, too. Then he looked disappointed all afternoon."
"I thought you hated sweets," Scott teased lightly.
"I do. That's why he was trying to guilt-trip me."
"He loves Twinkies," Scott said. "Our team overdosed on sugar every time we got hurt."
James raised an eyebrow at that. "Sounds like him."
Scott ruffled his hair. "You can ask him for something else and he'll bring that for a snack."
James shook his head. "I don't really need anything when we're doing stuff."
"Yeah, well, Jan brought wings," Scott said.
James wrinkled his nose a little at that, though. "I'm not really hungry."
"You sure you're feeling alright?"
"I'm fine."
Scott watched him for a while and then gave him a hug. "Well, stick around for dinner, okay? Even if you're not hungry, I like having my boys around."
"Okay," James agreed before he returned Scott's hug and started for the table.
Scott watched James out of the corner of his gaze, sure that James was taking the revelation of his powers just as hard if not harder than Rachel had, as the four of them sat down for dinner - though the conversation was mostly dominated by Nate telling Jan about the fact that Katie was in the grade ahead of him and had lunch at the same time as him and they had gotten in trouble for launching food at a couple bullies using rubber bands.
"Yeah, I got the call from the principal. You know better than that, Nate," Scott said, shaking his head with a sigh.
"Yeah, but I won," Nate said without missing a beat. "And they were asking for it."
Scott rolled his eyes. "It's not more important to beat Katie than it is to keep your head down."
"She can get in trouble!"
"She's not a mutant," Scott shot back.
The silence that followed Scott's statement was just long enough that both James and Jan stopped to watch how it was going to play out, though James quickly ended up going back to minding his own business and staring at his empty plate.
Nate glared at his dad before he got to his feet. "Whatever, Dad," he said and stormed out, leaving Scott frustrated and rubbing his forehead before he also got up and quietly excused himself as he left the kitchen, leaving Jan and James in a sort of awkward silence. It took a few minutes, but after a little while, James reached down to his book bag and silently pulled up a book - though Jan was pretty sure watching him that he wasn't reading so much as he was trying to show that he wasn't eavesdropping while Scott had a chat with Nate.
Jan could hear even with the door closed that the two Summerses were not in agreement on anything at all. Nate was furious with his father for making them hide; Scott was trying his best to keep them safe… Neither of them wanted to back down.
"Nate, would you just trust me?" Scott finally said, louder than before, obviously trying to keep his temper. "Do you want to get taken away, is that it? I'm doing my best to keep you safe."
But that was obviously one step too far, and a second later, Jan could hear Scott apologizing - and Jan felt like she couldn't even begin to figure out how to act like she hadn't heard the whole thing when Scott finally came out of the boys' room with his hand over his eyes.
Before Scott could look their way, James slid over next to Jan and took out some paper that had dozens of tic-tac-toe drawings on it - some of them finished, some empty, some of them halfway done. While Scott was composing himself, James slid Jan a pen and propped his chin up with one hand like he'd been waiting for her to make a move the whole time.
Jan blinked at him, then smirked and kissed his cheek. "You're the best," she whispered.
"Is that why you're losing?" James said, completing the little act.
"Um, lies. I am the x's. You can't claim my victories just because I kicked your butt."
"We're alternating," James said. "You can't claim all of those."
"Mmm, I think I can," Jan sniffed. "All mine."
"I'll let you think that," James said. "Just like I let Tony think it, too."
Jan shook her head at that as Scott sat back down at the table and cleared his throat. "Sorry about that," he said.
"I'm sure it's just the age," Jan said. "You wouldn't believe the discussions Katie has with Clint."
"About what, wanting to steal his name before she breaks ten years old?"
"That's an ongoing issue," Jan said seriously. "She says he's too old and needs to retire before he breaks a hip."
"Where did she learn that one?" Scott asked with an attempt at a smirk her way that wasn't quite convincing for as upset Scott had been moments before.
And Jan was more than willing to ignore it for his sake. "Believe it or not, I think it was from a back-and-forth between Steve and Tony."
"You know, I think I believe that," Scott said.
"Would you believe it was from Steve? Preemptive strike."
"Okay, that part I wouldn't believe." Scott shook his head, a smile tugging at the corner of his mouth despite himself.
"Cap is very sassy," Jan said.
"And those kids are still in elementary school. What are we going to do when they're teenagers?" Scott said, tipping his head back to look at the ceiling.
"Retire before we break hips?" Jan said with a shrug and a smile.
"Speak for yourself; I'm already a single parent staying home with the kids."
"Well, you can't escape them," Jan laughed. "You're doomed."
"Hey, I got good kids to work with," Scott pointed out, reaching over to ruffle James' hair, though James only halfheartedly tried to duck Scott's hand.
"You sure do," Jan agreed. "All three of them are smart as a whip."
"Don't I know it."
Jan smiled and pushed back from the table. "I'm going to start up a movie, I think … James picked one out earlier."
James waited for Jan to leave the room before he leaned toward Scott and dropped his voice low. "Hey, Dad, Nate's only showing off because he's got a crush," James said softly.
"Seriously?" Scott raised both eyebrows.
"Mm-hmm," James agreed, nodding slowly.
Scott shook his head, though he pulled James over to kiss the top of his head. "You're a good kid, you know that?"
"I'm just telling you what he wouldn't," James said as he gave Scott a little hug. "Mostly because he doesn't want to admit it, either."
"Well, he's not as old as you are," Scott teased.
"He doesn't know that."
"Little brothers are like that. Mine broke his ankle trying to keep up with me playing hockey when I was your age."
James smirked at that. "I just thought you should know. He doesn't mean to be like that. He can't help it. And I know he isn't trying to cause trouble."
"He gets it from me," Scott said, smirking hard as he thought of it. "When I met Jean, I couldn't string two words together."
James smiled at that. "That might be better."
"Well, he's got enough of his mother in him to give him more confidence than I had."
"Oh no," James deadpanned.
Scott laughed and shoved James lightly in the shoulder. "Really, James. Thanks. You know I'm just trying to keep you boys safe, don't you?"
"I know," James said, nodding. "And I know you're right."
Scott laughed out of sheer surprise and then pulled James into a hug. "You're so smart."
"You're only saying that because I'm agreeing with you."
"That's what makes you smart."
"Well, I'm going to go make sure Nate's alright," James said. "And if it's okay, I think I just want to read for a while before bed."
"Alright. Love you, bud," Scott said.
"Love you too, Dad," James replied before he got up and took his books with him, leaving Scott with Jan and a movie.
Scott shook his head as he came to sit down. "Yeah, I did warn you that it's not always as smooth sailing as you've seen before, didn't I?"
"They're kids, right? That's bound to happen sometimes. I still remember the bumps when I was a teenager. It's fine." Jan shrugged. "Of course, I was as close to a perfect child as one could be."
"Oh, I'm sure," Scott snorted.
"It's true!" Jan insisted. "Especially when my friends were all in the papers with Tony. Made me look downright innocent by comparison."
"Seriously? You're using Tony Stark as your measuring stick for good behavior?" Scott laughed.
"I am using him as proof that I wasn't in the wrong side of the columns," she said. "It's accurate!"
"Hey, you and I grew up in entirely different circles, clearly. I don't even know how to react to that."
"Yeah, that's true," Jan said. "I mean, I was friends with him waay before the team happened." She stuck one finger in his face. "Friends."
"I think you're protesting too much," Scott shot back with a crooked grin.
Jan let out a gasp and shoved him in the shoulder. "Rude!"
"Hey, you're the one with the terrible taste, not me," Scott said, holding up both hands.
"I … well. That's just … shut up." She was giggling by the end of her staggered statement. "Poor availability, okay?"
"Oh, yeah, I'm sure the dating pool was small for a gorgeous rich girl."
Jan blushed but grinned at him "When you weed out the guys that were after my bank account? Yeah. Pretty tiny, believe it or not! Especially when there were girls like oh, I don't know - Emma Frost - screwing up the nice guys, too."
"Hey!" Scott shook his head. "That's not fair. Jean told me to - there was a - the first time she died-"
"You're agreeing with me; you just don't know it yet."
"Yeah, well, Emma is not the motherly type. That's not happening again."
Jan snorted. "Yeah, no kidding. If she was a mother, she'd be the kind to eat her young."
"You haven't met the Cuckoos, then."
"Clones don't count!"
"They're still technically kids, and they're at the school."
"Yeah, but no one had to be forced to sleep with her for them to spring into being. Doesn't count."
"This conversation is taking a weird turn," Scott said.
"Oh, you love it," Jan laughed as she squeezed his arm. "And I'm right!"
"Everyone has an ex like that," Scott defended.
"I'm not even picking on you, Scott. I'm totally laying it all on her. I promise. You were probably mind-controlled anyhow."
"You sound like Kitty. She was second-guessing every choice I made until Jean showed up again."
"Smart girl."
Scott shook his head. "And now all my bad decisions are my own."
"That's just like everyone else, Mr. Summers. And you're doing fine, I promise. Those kids adore you. Even when they're mad."
"Well, it helps that James let me in on what's going on with Nate," Scott admitted.
"Oh? What's that?"
"Turns out my son is just as clueless about how to act around women he likes as I am," Scott said.
"Huh," Jan said.
"It was worse when I was sixteen…."
"You were probably adorable," Jan said.
"Yeah, I lost all ability to speak in sentences."
"That's the sweetest thing I've ever heard," Jan said, grinning at him. "I couldn't really talk at all - and then when I did, it was all at once in a big rush."
"I bet it was endearing," Scott assured her.
"Maybe," Jan said, blushing and biting her lip a little.
Scott leaned back slightly. "Hey, at least we both grew out of our awkward teenage phase into… whatever you call it when one of us is divorced and the other is a single dad. Not sure if that's good or bad."
"It is what it is," Jan said. "Not really our fault on either call, right?" A somewhat companionable silence fell between them as the movie got going, and for a long while, neither of them said anything - but finally, Jan had taken about as much as she could handle.
"So... all things considered, what would you think about maybe going out some time?"
Scott was obviously surprised, and he blinked a few times before he could even answer. "I… sure? Are you sure, I mean?"
"You're probably one of the sweetest guys I know," Jan said. "And … I think we get along alright, or am I way off? Because if I'm off, it's okay, and I won't get mad, I promise, really. Just … say the word and I'll back off, because I really don't want to push. I just thought … it might be fun." She'd picked up speed the further she got into it, and when she finally stopped, she'd shrunken in on herself a little and was holding her breath.
Scott was staring at her before he grinned quietly. "You're right," he said. "You do blurt everything out at once."
"Oh my God." Jan buried her face in her hands.
"No, hey, no." Scott shook his head and put his hand on her shoulder. "I'm still terrible at words too, apparently. You're - you're not off-base. I just meant ... I'm a mess, and are you sure you're - I guess if you're interested, what about dinner this weekend?"
"That sounds great," Jan said, letting her shoulders drop in relief before she broke out into a brilliant smile.
Scott still wasn't entirely sure how to respond, but he sat back all the same, watching the movie in relative silence. "You know this means the second-string babysitter gets to watch the kids, right? Natasha will try to be their favorite."
Jan rolled her eyes theatrically. "She can try, but she'll lose anyhow."
"What are you gonna do if Nate and Katie end up together and she gets the trump card of 'mother-in-law'?" he teased.
"Um … no, that … even if that did happen, I will eternally be the coolest. It's like a law or something." She nodded to herself. "Might even be snuck into the Constitution."
"I think I missed that in Rachel's social studies homework…"
"Oh, sure, teeny tiny print," Jan said, nodding, holding her fingers apart so there was just a sliver of light between them.
"Wasp-sized?"
"Yes. Yes that."
Scott laughed. "I'll keep that in mind."
Chapter 15: Paid With Silence
Chapter Text
James had positively thrown himself into his studies, which was a different look for him, all things considered. Yes, he'd been doing well with his tutors, but he hadn't pushed himself. Not like this. He wasn't really taking the breaks that his tutors had worked out for him - instead, he was powering through his lessons and then working on some yet-unnamed project. Or at least reading up on half a dozen studies at once, fully immersed in what he had found.
It was enough to draw more than a little attention from the geniuses keeping tabs on him. But it wasn't until one of his tutors realized what exactly he was digging into that Hank was brought in to talk the kid down. Especially seeing as he was digging deeply into genetics - and how to alter them, if it was even possible.
Hank let out a sigh as he sat across from James, who barely even looked up from what he was doing. "I know what you're trying to do, James," he said gently.
"I'm just reading," James said, still not looking up from the research paper he was waist-deep in.
"You're trying to find a way not to be a mutant," Hank said.
James stopped and finally looked up at him. "What's wrong with that?"
"There's nothing wrong with you, James," Hank said, his tone heavier than James had expected, even with the topic at hand.
"I disagree," James said. "And so does the rest of the world."
"And what does your father say?" Hank asked gently.
James frowned as he considered how to answer him. Scott hadn't specifically said it was good or bad But ... "He says we have to hide it. So, I don't see what's wrong with just getting rid of it." He was looking at his hands by the time he had finished his little statement.
Hank sighed and reached forward to rest a hand on James' arm. "Have I ever told you how I came to be the magnificent Beast you see now?"
"No," James said quietly, though it was clear he had James' attention.
"I wasn't fuzzy - or blue," Hank said with a rueful smile. "But I was proportioned this way." He held his hands out, palms up. "I wanted desperately to be normal, and so I did what you're trying to do now. I searched for a way to hide what I was, to change what I was - to stop being a mutant. But instead, despite my best efforts, I only made myself even more obvious." He smiled tightly. "It was a spectacular failure."
James looked up at him after a long while and spoke with an almost desperate tone. "Then help me. Please."
Hank sighed, his expression more heartbroken than before. "No, James," he said softly. "I am helping you by keeping you from repeating my mistakes." When James didn't look convinced, Hank tried another path. "My dear boy, even if we were to succeed, what then? Shall we play God, we mortals with our test tubes and numbers? Shall we consign the entire mutant population to deny what they were born to be?"
"I just don't ... " James let it fall for a moment. "I don't want Dad to have to worry about someone taking me. And I don't want to die like my parents did."
Hank sighed and then pulled James into a tight hug. "You're too young to take a burden like that on your shoulders, James."
"I don't want this," James said.
"I know," Hank said gently. "But we must do our best with what nature has given us. And you, my young friend? I believe you are destined to do great things with your mind-" He rapped James' head with one knuckle. "-and your heart." He rapped James' chest. "The rest is, as they say, window dressing."
"Rachel can't hear me anymore," James said softer.
"That's just part of your mutation, James," Hank said.
"I hate it."
"Do you think Rachel likes being able to hear every errant thought around her?" Hank asked. "Or that I revel in cooking in my fur coat during the summer? Everyone has something they struggle with. Even those of us who aren't blessed with the mutant gene."
"It's not a blessing," James said, with a touch of a growl lacing his tone.
"Yes, it is," Hank said firmly. "I know you don't see it now, but think of how you can help your father as you come into your abilities. When Nate gets in trouble, you'll be able to find him - and you know he will. Or when Rachel starts to date?" Hank tapped the side of his nose. "Your father could tell with a sniff whether men were interested in using up young women or if they were lying. You can protect her."
James gave him a dry look at that. "She can read their minds. She doesn't need me."
"She may be able to read minds, but she does need you, James," Hank said. "What about Mia? Katie? Lexi?" Hank kept his arms around James. "You have so much to give, my boy. Think of these gifts as a way to help your family."
James didn't look convinced at all, but he'd quit trying to argue with him entirely, and it was clear the tone from the little boy was one of solemn defeat.
"James, I want you to stay away from this kind of research," Hank said. "Not only because it could backfire so spectacularly on you but because there is so much potential for evil in it. The X-Men were plagued by a geneticist who did unlock the power to change his own underlying genetic structure, and he stole powers and people alike to bolster himself into something much stronger than he was on his own. I don't believe you would become like him, but if your research were co-opted or stolen, there could be so much damage."
"Fine," James breathed out finally, and the bitterness in his voice was crystal clear.
Hank let out a sigh and kept James in a tight hug, though he was absolutely downhearted long after James headed off with Jan to go back home. For a long while, he sat in the lab, shaking his head at the impressive collection James had stacked up around him. He was heading down the right paths already and Hank was sure that he'd make a solid attempt to alter his genetic sequence if he wasn't stopped - that much was obvious. So with that in mind, Hank wearily got to his feet and started to remove every scrap of James' genetic research.
"You okay?" Tony asked when Hank finally left the room after clearing out everything he could find that even remotely addressed the x-gene or genetic engineering.
"As well as can be expected," Hank said heavily. "It's always hard to see another young man in the same dire straits I found myself in years ago."
Tony paused and turned toward the door Hank had just left, frowning deeper to himself. "What's the story, doc? And where are we at with our little wonder-kid that's got him in dire straits?"
"He's trying to find a way to become human, Tony," Hank said. "He doesn't want to be a mutant."
"That's not really even possible," Tony said. "Why would he even start on something like that?"
"Is it so hard to believe, Tony?" Hank asked as the emotion began to creep into his voice. "Is it so hard to imagine why he might want to turn his back on his genetics when his father has taken such measures to keep them hidden simply for what they are? Who they were born to? Is it so difficult to see, when not too long ago, men in black uniforms came to their home armed to kill - all for the simple crime of a genetic test showing that they were more evolved than their classmates? When our little genius had to change homes and guardians so often when he first found himself without Logan and K? What child do you know wouldn't want to wish that problem away?"
Tony nodded, more upset than he'd thought he would be on hearing anything like this. "How'd you figure it out? And are you taking it to Scott?" Tony asked thickly before he tipped his head. "I should say: when are you taking it to Scott?"
"I don't think I should tell Scott just yet," Hank admitted. "I'd wager he's already aware of how all three of the children feel. Rachel was terrified of her abilities; James is trying to wash his hands of his genes to keep Scott from worrying; and according to Natasha, Nate is rebelling against his father by trying to be a normal, misbehaving child. How do you suggest I then approach one of my oldest and dearest friends to tell him that his son is willing to risk his own life in a terrifying scientific endeavor like this?"
"Not much to open conversation with," Tony agreed. "What I don't get is how you figured it out so quick. It's not like he was asking anyone for help."
Hank took his glasses off and let out a weary sigh. "Tony, I knew what James was up to because I tried the same experiments myself. Not all of us who are genetically gifted have handled it as well as we could have."
Tony took a few steps to rest his hand on Hank's shoulder. "You know I just want what's best for everyone involved, right? I'm not questioning you on any of it. I trust you to watch out for him. And the last thing I want to see happen is that kid falling apart. Or Scott. Or the others, either."
"I know," Hank said, resting his hand on Tony's outstretched arm. "There are limited options for us these days, that's all."
"It'll have to ease up," Tony said. "That's the only option."
"That's the hope," Hank agreed. "Things have improved, Tony. Don't misunderstand me. The weapons programs, the Friends of Humanity, all those who openly called for genocide - they're gone. But we've bought our lives with silence, and it's not easy to accept the price we've had to pay. Especially that family. Give the boy time."
James was quiet on the way home and didn't say more than a handful of words to Jan as she brightly tried to question him on how his day was, and as soon as they got back, he quietly made a beeline for his bed and climbed in, pulling the blanket up to his nose as he curled up on his side, his back to the door in a crystal clear gesture that he wanted to be left alone.
Not that it was going to stop Scott, who came into the room and sat at the end of his bed, quietly watching him as he rubbed the back of his neck trying to think of what to say. "Hard day?" he asked at last.
"I'm just really tired," James said. It was a lie, of course, but he didn't want to trouble Scott with how low he was feeling. James couldn't help but feel worse anytime he saw Scott worrying over him. Like he was being more of a burden than he had a right to on an already stressed out family situation. It wasn't fair to Nate and Rachel, and it wasn't fair to Scott. They'd already done more for him than they'd ever had to. So instead of the truth … James tried to keep his worries to himself. Which was tiring.
"That's only part of it," Scott said. He sighed. "You know you can't hide things from me."
"I know," James said, pausing for a long moment before he tried a little bit of truth. "My nose has been bothering me, too."
"Yeah, I'll bet the super senses are something else," Scott said.
"Not so super," James said flatly.
"I know," Scott said, scooting closer to rub James' back. "It's always hard to start. I used to get splitting headaches."
And then a little more truth: "I hate it."
"I know," Scott said. "I hated mine too. For a long time. But then I learned to use it." He paused and then rested his hand at his temples. "Now, I miss it."
"There isn't a good use for what I've got," James said. "Just … stupid."
Scott frowned at him and then went back to rubbing James' back. "You won't get sick anymore," he pointed out, trying to find a bright side for him. "Not once your abilities are fully realized. No more doctor's visits."
"I'd rather be sick."
Scott sighed. "Well… think of it like insurance. If anything does happen, you can help me keep the others safe."
"How?" James asked, though the bitter edge was still in his voice.
Scott paused. "Your father and I-"
"I don't want to be like him." The tone James had used was harsh enough to stop Scott in his tracks.
"Why not?" Scott asked with a frown.
"I just don't."
"James, he was one of the best people I knew."
"Sure," James said low.
"I thought I told you enough about him that you'd know that," Scott said in a bare whisper. "I tried - I tried to tell you stories about both of them. They were heroes, James. The best in the business."
"Yeah?" James said before he twisted to look him in the eyes. "Then why aren't they here?"
Scott let his shoulders drop and closed his eyes. "I wish to God they were. Your mom would make everyone laugh, and your dad would tell you what to expect from your abilities. And he'd find a way to tease every one of us while he did it, too." He smiled tightly. "But you have her sense of humor and her heart. I love that about you."
"I just wanna go to sleep," James said in a breath, clearly on the brink of tears as he turned away from Scott again and curled up tighter. He'd gotten too close to what was bothering him and already Scott was upset by it. Which only had James feeling worse.
"I know," Scott said, still rubbing circles in his back. "You know I love you, James. And I'll be with you every step. I promise." When James didn't respond, Scott sighed and simply sat with him, not about to let James feel like he was alone. Though once James really did fall asleep, Scott slipped out of his room and into his own before he put his head in his hands and let his shoulders shake.
A few hours away and a few days later, Rachel was having a great time in Westchester. In particular, she loved being around Betsy and Warren - especially since Warren seemed to need a little cheering up from being grounded and cooped up.
It was Monday, which meant that she'd spent the weekend with her family. And it had been a little bit of a mixed bag. Nate was worried about James, who was hiding more than usual and speaking even less than usual. And James really did look miserable. But on the other hand, Jan had spent the whole weekend with them, and she'd even gone to dinner with just their dad.
"How was your weekend?" Betsy asked with a smile once Rachel was back at the school.
Rachel smiled. "Kinda weird," she admitted.
"How so?" Betsy asked, frowning at the answer. "I thought it was supposed to be a fun one."
"Well, yeah, I mean, Jan was there, and did you know she and my dad are dating?"
"They are?" Betsy said, smiling in spite of herself. "That's very good news."
"I think so too," Rachel said with a bright smile. "Dad seems happier with her around. And I like playing with her. And she helps with my brothers." She paused. "But my brothers are a whole handful."
"I'm pretty sure they've always been a whole handful," Betsy said, shaking her head. "What was it this week?"
"James hates his powers," Rachel said. "And Dad doesn't know how to help him, because they aren't powers like I have or he had. It's sounds and smells and his senses are bothering him."
"They just are what they are," Betsy said, thinking of the connection she had once shared with Logan and trying to explain the powerset to Rachel in terms she would understand. "They're on all the time, and he can't turn them off. Ever."
"Well, it's making him and Dad sad - and Nate hates that he has to behave when he just wants to get in trouble with Katie."
"That sounds like Nate," Betsy said, nodding. "How upset is your dad?"
"Really upset," Rachel admitted. "He wants James to love his birth parents too."
"He doesn't?" Betsy asked, frowning deeply. "When did that happen?"
"They're gone," Rachel said quietly. She took a deep breath and let it out. "Sometimes, I get mad at my mom too. She could have taught me so much, and not just how to use my powers," she admitted, her gaze on the ground as she tried not to get emotional. "I miss her all the time, and so does Dad."
Betsy took a step forward and pulled Rachel into a tight hug. "It's perfectly normal to feel this way - and it's alright for James to feel that way too."
"But Dad loves Mom still - and James' parents - and it's not right and-" Rachel held her breath. "I don't know how to help."
"It's very sad, then, that you can't just reach out to James and see what he's thinking, don't you think?" Betsy said.
Rachel nodded. "If I could see James' thoughts, I could talk to him. And even if he thinks I'm bossy sometimes, I might be able to help."
Betsy nodded. "And how do you think James feels now that you can't peek like you had been doing?"
"He's sad. It's easy to see when he's just crying and sleeping all the time." She paused. "At least, I think that's what's going on when he's hiding in his room curled up in a ball under the covers."
"And no one else has the powers he does," Betsy said. "I'm sure he feels very alone right now. Even with everyone around him. Logan used to get that way sometimes, too."
"Nate and I try to make sure he's not alone," Rachel said. "That's all we can do."
"Being alone and feeling alone are two very different things," Betsy said. "Even when you and Nate aren't around him, James has people with him most of the time, but that doesn't make him feel any less alone."
Rachel was quiet for a long time as she considered it, and then, finally, she said, "I think that's Dad's problem too."
"I'm very sure that's true," Betsy said. "But … what if I told you that it was possible to reach out to James?" She smiled at Rachel as she watched her expression shift.
"Can you show me how?"
"Not without him," she said. "It was easy for me to reach out to Logan because we had a psychic rapport, but before that happened, and when I met K - the only time I could get in was when they would reach out to me. You need to see if he'll let you in."
"So… I can reach out like I reach out to Dad?"
"Only if he lets you in," Betsy said. "He'll have to learn to open up his mind to you."
"He'll have to come here. Dad doesn't want anyone from the school at the apartment," Rachel said.
"Then maybe the next time he comes, I can talk to him and see if he's willing to try."
"Thanks," Rachel said, pulling her arms around Betsy in a hug. She laid her head on Betsy's shoulder for a long time before she said, quietly, "I think Dad likes Jan. A lot."
"Good," Betsy said. "She's a wonderful person."
"She makes him laugh. And he really doesn't do that except with us," Rachel said.
"Then he needs to spend more time with her, doesn't he?"
"That's what I said, but he says he needs to look out for James, and that's fair, too," Rachel admitted.
"It is," Betsy said. "But maybe we can work something out to get the boys here and give your dad a day to have some fun."
"Well, what if we said Mia wants a playdate?"
"I'm sure she does. That wouldn't even be a lie."
"Then let's do that," Rachel agreed with a crooked grin. "Then I can talk to James whenever I want, and Dad can laugh some more."
Chapter 16: Highs And Lows
Chapter Text
"I'm 90% sure my daughter was going to push us out the door," Scott said with a smirk as he and Jan headed to a quiet cafe in Manhattan for a dinner date while Betsy worked with James and Rachel in Westchester and Nate kept Mia entertained. "I think she approves."
"That's like half the battle, isn't it? Kids' okay?"
"That's the rumor, anyway," Scott said, smiling as he held the door open for her.
"Such a gentleman," Jan said with a grin. "Thank you, kind sir."
"Hey, I was raised right," Scott said before checking them in for their reservations.
"I can tell; it's amazing," Jan told him. "Don't stop any time soon, either."
"I don't think I can," Scott said. "My mother would have had my hide otherwise."
"I like her already," Jan said. "Smart lady."
"Oh yeah. She taught me and Alex everything we know."
"Oooh, how is the not-as-cute brother doing these days?"
"I don't see him much. He married Lorna and moved to Genosha full-time," Scott admitted quietly. "The princess needs to be in her tower - apparently even after she's been married."
"Oh, wow," Jan said, eyebrows raised.
"Alex comes by sometimes. He taught the kids to surf last summer."
"I'll bet that was a laugh and a half," Jan said.
"Nate was so mad that James was as good at it as he is, especially since Nate's usually the athletic one."
"Well, individual sport," Jan said reasonably. "Right? Get to run it solo."
Scott chuckled. "Exactly."
"How did Alex take that?" Jan laughed. "I'm sure he was in stitches."
"Oh, he hasn't let it go."
"I hope he never does," she said. "I hate to say it, but it is funny when your little Nate gets twisted up on something like that."
"James has been gaining muscle too, and Nate hates it."
"I noticed," Jan said. "His shirts aren't quite right anymore, and I don't quite understand it for as much as he's just … studying. I mean, sure … he has access to the gym and he uses it, but it's mostly running."
"You remember how his dad was," Scott said. "He could lose half his arm, and the next day, it was right back. Must be part of the mutation."
"Must be nice," Jan said in an almost sarcastic tone. "Not like the rest of us that have to work for it."
"Yeah, add it to the list of things that used to drive me nuts," Scott said.
"Past tense - not worrying much about that list," Jan sang out.
"Well, we'll see how the boys do. I'm hoping I've done a good job keeping them from ending up like me and Logan."
"You absolutely have," Jan promised, giving his arm a squeeze before the maitre'd led them to their table. "Those two watch out for each other all the time. It's precious."
"All three of them do," Scott said as he pulled her chair out for her. "Rachel pops in even from Westchester just to leave psychic 'I love you' notes."
"Awwwww, she's such a sweetheart," Jan said. "She's always trying to take care of James with Nate … and don't think I missed James helping Nate with his math."
"The only real fight Nate ever got in at school was when someone was picking on James for skipping grades," Scott said with a fond smile.
"Surprised James didn't handle it himself," Jan said.
"He would have, but Nate was closer," Scott laughed. "James has always tried to keep from drawing any attention to himself."
Jan tutted. "I'll never understand why they'd pick on a kid for jumping a grade or two."
"There's always a reason," Scott said. "Before I had my glasses, I was a skinny, poor kid with no parents. With Rachel, she was too bossy for a girl. Nate's getting flack for playing with girls instead of the other boys. Always something."
"I'm pretty sure you just said 'jealousy' three different ways," Jan said.
"Oh yeah, everyone was jealous of me," Scott chuckled.
"Um, yes. You could have been a model, skinny."
Scott flushed red. "Not… really…"
"Yes, really!" she said. "Cute, tall guy, skinny too? They'd have loved you in Paris."
"Yeah, well, I was in Nebraska."
"Oh, there's your problem," she said heavily.
"If only I'd been born in France," he said dryly.
"New York would have gotten you there," she said quickly before she gestured to him generally. "Your bone structure? That hair? Done. Deal."
"I feel like you're just finding excuses for your own fashion dreams," Scott said, turning a red color on his cheeks that would have matched his glasses once upon a time.
"To say you're pretty? Kinda." Jan grinned and rested her chin in the palm of her hand. "I can do that. I'm well within my rights to point out the obvious."
Scott flushed a little deeper. "I'm… at a severe disadvantage when you're the first woman I've ever dated in full, living color all the time. Makes you stand out - and I never learned how to properly compliment anyone …"
"I'll take it," Jan said, nodding. "Sounded like a compliment to me."
"I was trying for that, anyway," Scott said. He tipped his head to the side as he watched her but didn't say anything until after they'd ordered drinks. "I do like it when you smile." He smiled and shrugged. "Sorry. I'm terrible at this."
"Thank you," she said, grinning at him. "You're awful cute when you smile too, but honestly, the little crooked smirk? Super attractive."
"Oh good. I don't think I can turn that one off," Scott said, complete with a smirk.
"Lucky me!"
Scott laughed and shook his head as he looked over the menu. "You're absolutely outclassing me in flirting, you know that? I'm not equipped for it."
"I enjoy it," Jan said. "It's fun once you get started, I promise."
"I only ever learned to do it telepathically."
"If it makes it easier on you, I can just make eyes at you - and you can guess what I'm thinking," Jan giggled.
Scott laughed outright as he looked over his menu. "You're thinking… 'how can someone with his bone structure be this bad at dating'?"
"Um, that's easy," Jan said. "You were always scooped right up before you could practice."
"I feel like I should argue that, but I don't know that I can," Scott laughed.
"You can't! I'm right," she said, positively enjoying herself.
"Okay, but now you have to try it," Scott said. "I'm on the spot!"
"I think we're doing just fine," Jan promised.
"Good," Scott said. "Because I do want you to enjoy yourself."
"Honestly, barring some calamity? I think I always have fun with you," she said. "So you can just … roll with it. We'll have fun no matter what."
"I think you're already past the limit and the wine hasn't even arrived," Scott teased.
Jan gasped. "I did not pre-load before we met up!"
"Are you sure?" he teased.
"Very!"
"I think you might be lying to me. That's a terrible thing to do to someone on a date!"
"Which is why I haven't," Jan laughed, clearly having a ball.
Scott grinned as the waiter came around to get their order, and for the most part, the date continued along those lines - with plenty of teasing from both of them… and a short interruption from Rachel telepathically sending her love with the boys.
By the end of the night, Jan was hanging onto Scott's arm, and they were both laughing as they headed back for the tower, still teasing each other the whole way. It was easy for Scott to read Jan - she was so open and honest about her feelings. And as for Jan, she loved how sweet Scott was, holding her doors open and pulling her chair out.
Scott was still a little paranoid about getting too close to the Avengers in the open like this, so they decided to part ways within sight of the tower, and then he'd drive out to Westchester to get the kids.
Jan gave his arm a squeeze as they came to a stop, and Scott turned to face her with a smile. "Next time, try to come without the pre-date pick-me-up," he teased.
"I did not-" Jan hit him in the shoulder. "You're never going to let that go!"
Scott grinned a little wider before he leaned forward and stole a quick kiss. "Well, I did also say I'd like there to be a next time, didn't I?"
Jan blinked up at him, completely caught off her guard, before she grinned, stood on her toes, and kissed him right back. "Looking forward to it."
James had been working away at his schoolwork, finally back up to his normal pace after a few weeks of dragging following his talk with Hank. He still wasn't in a good mood over any of it, but he knew he didn't have a route to deal with it yet, either, so for the sake of not causing a giant fight, he let it go and tried to just … stick to his homework.
But that was pretty frustrating, and he spent most of his breaks hitting a punching bag to blow off some steam. It wasn't much, but he did feel a little better when he was hitting things at least. Especially when everything seemed to be fighting him lately. It had taken several visits with Betsy playing intermediary for Rachel and himself to even begin to make it so Rachel could reach out and the repeated failures had him feeling like there was something wrong with his mind, too.
Needless to say, he was having a hard time and was using the gym to deal with it. He was frustrated and angry, but it wasn't until he stopped hitting the bag that he really got mad. His jaw was locked, and he was glaring at the ground, his hands in fists. He wanted to hit something but it just … didn't feel like enough to hit it, even when he was hitting it with everything he had. He was clenching and unclenching his hands, almost like they were itching, when he shifted his wrists a hair.
An odd sound echoed the gym that James had never heard, but the sound wasn't anywhere near the front of his mind when all he could do was keep himself from screaming. He stared down at his hands to see that, yep, he'd somehow managed to pop his claws. All at once, James was dizzy and sick to his stomach. His hands were shaking and he couldn't catch a breath right. He hadn't realized that there'd be so much blood. His arms were screaming at him, and the burning sensation had everything feeling white hot from his elbows to the tips of his fingers. But in spite of the pain, he couldn't quite make a noise as he crumpled to the floor, staring in shock at the blood that didn't want to stop dripping off of his hands.
In Westchester, Rachel heard the moment James popped his claws. She didn't think he'd meant to do it, but he was projecting panic and pain, and since Betsy had helped them set up a connection, it all flooded her way.
The sensation was so overwhelming that she nearly passed out herself, and then she started to panic, reaching out telepathically for her dad. James is hurt.
What? Scott wasn't even bothering to hide his panic. Where?
I don't - I don't know. I - I'll ask Betsy to help me.
I'll take Nate to Natasha and Clint. As soon as you have something-
I'll tell you, Rachel promised.
At the apartment, Scott was pacing, running both hands through his hair before he got Nate up from the couch. "We have to go," he said. "Now."
"Dad?"
"I'll explain later," Scott said. "I need you to stay with Natasha."
"Dad, what's going on?" Nate asked, and there was no mistaking the honest fear in his voice.
Scott stopped, held his breath, and then he took a moment to look Nate in the eyes. "You're going to be alright, Nate. I promise."
"You don't know what's going on, do you?"
"Nate, please, just stay with Natasha."
Nate nodded, though he was scared as they got to Clint and Natasha's apartment at the same time Scott's cell phone rang - with Steve on the other end.
"What do you know?" Scott asked in a breath.
"James used his claws," Steve said. "He can't retract them, and honestly, he's in shock. We've got him as settled as we can, but … he'd probably be better off at home. His healing isn't exactly on all the time."
Scott nearly lost his footing, and he leaned heavily against the door. "Claws," he repeated. "He … he used his ... Oh, God."
"Hank says it tore the muscles that control them loose but that they'll heal on their own, one way or another."
Scott was massaging his forehead as he leaned a little harder against the door. "Rachel heard him projecting pain when it happened. I thought… Damnit, I thought he was in trouble."
"We were with him almost as soon as it happened," Steve said. "Tony found him. I'm giving it to you as Hank tells me."
"Thank you," Scott breathed out. "I'll come get him. I'll tell Ororo … claws. I didn't even think what that would do to him the first time…"
"Neither did we," Steve said. "I knew it wasn't pleasant, but …I didn't realize it would be this bad."
"There's so much they never told us," Scott whispered.
"You know how Logan was. He didn't like to complain if it was only a problem for him. Specifically if it was something like this. He'd never say a word, just … tear himself apart and keep going."
"Yeah, I know," Scott said. "K wasn't much different about it, either."
"We'll be waiting for you. He's safe and fairly comfortable, though, so you don't need to rush."
"I'll be right there," Scott promised.
When James woke up again a few days later in his own bed, with his senses going totally haywire, the whole family was around him, and Scott looked so relieved to see James conscious that it only took a few seconds for him to pull James into a hug with James' head under his chin.
"Hi, Dad," James said tiredly.
"Hey, bud," Scott said, his voice still ragged even after a couple days of waiting for James to sleep off the shock as he healed. "How you feeling?"
"Like I could sleep for a few days."
"Yeah, you already did that," Nate pointed out.
"I did?" James asked with a frown as he sat up a little bit.
"You tore all the muscles in your arms when you popped your claws and lost a lot of blood," Scott explained. "I'm so sorry, James. I didn't think to tell you - I didn't realize it would be an issue. I should have realized that it would hurt … I should have warned you."
James frowned at that and looked down at his hands, running his fingers over the skin that had healed up while he was asleep, though the bloody, gruesome image of the claws sticking out of the backs of his hands hadn't left his mind's eye. "Yeah, it still hurts."
"You scared the cripes out of everyone," Rachel told him. "No one knew it would hurt like that." She sat down and inserted herself into the close space between James and Scott so she could hug her brother tightly. I'm just glad you're okay. No one likes to see you hurt.
I wasn't even trying to do anything, James told her, sounding both tired and upset in his mental voice.
I know. You sort of… instinctively called for help, kinda. Rachel gave him a little smile. I'm glad you did, though. I want to be able to help you when you need it. You're my little brother, and I want to take care of you.
I really didn't mean to bother anyone, James told her.
It's okay. That's what family's for. You'd come get me if I called for help, Rachel pointed out.
I wasn't calling for anything, James said.
Yeah, you were just hurt. But I'm glad you called me when you were hurt. If it had been something bad, I'd want to know, right? The system totally works!
Still feel bad that everyone got all bent out of shape over nothing.
Yeah, I know, but it's not nothing, James. It took me a while to stop feeling like crap for scaring Dad with my powers, too. I guess it's a family tradition, Rachel teased lightly.
Hopefully that's the last of it, James said, sounding irritated all over again.
Yeah, it should be, Rachel said. Unless Nate shoots lasers through the ceiling. That seems like a Dad heart attack again.
At least he could feel like he could give advice on that, James replied.
I'm really sorry you don't like your powers, James. Mine suck sometimes too. She paused and took a moment to loop Nate into the conversation. She knew their dad was aware that they were telepathically talking anyway, so she might as well. Nate and I have been talking about how stupid it is. The whole thing. We get these powers, and we can't even do anything but pretend they don't exist!
For good reason, James said.
Yeah, but what if we fought back? Nate put in. Everyone's hiding all the time, but that just means the bad guys are hiding too. What if we just… didn't play by the rules?
And do what? James asked.
Restart the X-Men, Rachel said.
James let out a sigh at that. I don't know. What would we even do other than be giant targets?
Maybe we could take down the lynch mobs and stuff like that. The stuff our parents used to do, Nate pointed out.
Let me think about it, James said. I'm not real anxious to do this again. Ever.
Well, Nate and I were going to ask if we could train with the Avengers. We'd tell them we wanted to be Avengers like Hank. And we'd wear masks so Dad doesn't freak over our identities. And not all the Avengers have powers. I'm sure they could work something out.
Dad'll freak out anyhow, James pointed out.
Yeah, but he'd also freak if we got caught and couldn't fight back, Rachel reasoned.
James mulled it over a little longer. Tony was kind of asking if I might consider the Avenger thing when I'm older.
Then we have an in, Nate said. You don't have to use your claws if you don't want to. You could do like I'm doing and be a crack shot. Or just hit people.
Maybe, James said. But the claws kind of just … they did it on their own. I don't know how I did it.
We'll figure it out, Rachel promised. But… even if you don't want to fight, will you back us up with Dad? Please?
Yeah, James replied. I told you about Hank. I'm still mad about what he told me, you know. Pretty crappy that we're supposed to be happy to hide. Doesn't make sense.
Yeah, you told me, Rachel agreed. And I'm kinda feeling the same way at the school. It's good to learn about our powers, but you can't get away from the nerves, and people like Mia and Warren don't get a choice. They can't go anywhere. Maybe if there were X-Men, we could, I don't know, do something about it. Challenge people to get over themselves.
Everyone keeps telling me about Logan, James said.
Yeah? Nate raised his eyebrows. What about?
All kinds of stuff, but.. I don't think he would have gone along with this at all.
I don't think my mom would either, Rachel said. Not from what people keep thinking about around me, even if they don't say anything at school where they're trying to keep quiet.
Dad's not even that happy about it, Nate put in. I overheard him telling Jan how he wishes things were different.
So why don't they do something? James asked.
They're scared, Rachel said. I can hear it every time we talk about it. They're scared of what happened to our parents.
Yeah, well. I've been reading about that, too, James admitted. And I don't just mean when we lost everyone. The stuff that happened to Logan and my mom - they have good reason to be nervous. If those people catch up … He stopped, frowning to himself, not really meaning for Rachel to hear it when his thoughts continued without him projecting '... I'm dead,' though she heard it anyway.
We have to stop them, Rachel said. The adults are too scared to do anything, so it's up to us. We just have to play smart, like Dad taught us. We'll start training with the Avengers. Maybe we can be junior Avengers or something. Let people get used to more than just Dr. Blue on the team, right? No one says we can't be Avengers. They just don't want X's on our chests.
We're totally putting X's on our chests, Nate said with a smirk.
Yeah, but like they keep telling me, you can't get what you want. So... James projected, trailing off.
So they want us to give up?
If I have to live with these stupid powers and the stupid legacy that goes with it, I'm not going to keep doing this, James insisted.
Then we're agreed, Rachel said. Something has to change. Let's just keep it between us until we're ready to break out the X's instead of the Avengers logo.
We won't announce it when it happens, then, James said. When we get there, we just do it.
This is why I love you, Rachel said, grinning as she hugged her brother, since she really wanted to anyhow. We're going to be the best team ever.
Chapter 17: The Cost Of The Cape
Chapter Text
While things had been calm-ish on the mutant terrorism side of things, the same could not be said for the Avengers where Hydra or AIM or their assorted villainous troublemakers were concerned.
Steve had, in fact, made it a point to move from simply stopping them to completely disabling every faction he came across - far more aggressive than he'd been before - but the end response was that their reactions to the Avengers was also increasingly more violent.
For the most part, it was easily dealt with by using armored uniforms - not quite to Tony's level of shell-like protection, but more than enough to keep them safe from almost anything.
And Jan was still active on the membership roster, which was good for the kids to see, but it was also a point of concern for Scott. It didn't happen often, but every now and again, Jan would be late coming over on a Saturday morning for breakfast with fresh injuries that had been patched up or with a scent clinging to her that had James making a face, even when the rest of the family clearly didn't notice.
But it also gave James the chance to spend more time between subjects reading up on his biological parents. He was to a point that he was ready to start asking some questions. Mostly things like why did they keep going after so much suffering? Why not just disappear somewhere like Scott and the kids had done? Or better yet, how did they get started on that path? It had him wondering more and more about what kind of people they were. Especially when he realized that not only had his father been an X-Man, but he'd been on several X-Men teams, two Avengers' teams, and one other team all at the same time - though that last one was even marked as 'classified' within the heroes' own bookkeeping systems. And that didn't even touch the part-time or short-lived team assignments … like the fact that he'd been in the Fantastic Four for a little while with Spider-Man, too. For the life of him, considering how he'd been raised, James simply had to know: what was driving him so hard?
Of course, all of his questions were dropped to the wayside when the mood of the table shifted as Jan's comm went off and she had to abandon their quiet weekend time to deal with business.
"Oooh, okay," Jan said as she got up and kissed the kids one at a time, then made a point to give Scott a lingering kiss that was still rated for all audiences. "Hate to do it, I do! But I have to take this one."
"Be safe," Scott said, not bothering to hide his concern - not that he'd ever learned a poker face after losing the visor.
"I always am," Jan replied with a broad smile as she bounced out of their apartment.
The table was quiet for a moment before Rachel nudged James' mind. You know, you had, like a whole list of things to ask….
Sorry, I'll try to keep from projecting, James replied.
I don't mind, Rachel promised. Besides, I think Dad needs distracting. You know how he gets.
Do you really think those questions will distract him and not tick him off? James gave her a pointed look.
Probably, Rachel said with a shrug and a cheerful tone. Besides, if you're trying to wait for sometime when Dad's not stressed, you're gonna be waiting until the day you die.
There's that winning positivity we all love so much, James shot back, though it was clear he still didn't want to broach the subject.
I know. I'm amazing, Rachel replied without missing a beat.
James let out a breath and looked up to see that Scott was watching the two of them. "She was talking about you," James said, if nothing else, because it was the truth - and maybe a little bit to get a rise out of Rachel.
"That's usually the case when a telepath can't keep a poker face," Scott told him, and Rachel let out a huff.
"So... always?" James said, nodding to himself, well aware that this track of chatter would put Scott more at ease.
Scott grinned crookedly. "Pretty much. Jean and I used to get busted all the time by the rest of the team for silent conversations. I'm glad to see you guys are carrying on the family tradition. It just means you're close and that you love each other and trust each other enough to share your thoughts."
"We were actually kind of talking about that," Rachel said when James didn't say anything else, not that it surprised her. She never noticed how much her little brother kept to himself until she was able to hear his thoughts and then she had been surprised by the amount of self doubt that colored his thoughts. "You know, the X-Men?"
Scott visibly straightened. "You were?"
"Well…"
"Not exactly," James said, cutting across her as he tried to keep Rachel from starting what was bound to be another lecture for getting too close to a sore subject. "Not the team."
Scott frowned between the two of them. "I'm sure you've both been hearing stories," he said slowly.
"Not really that, either," James said, trying to defuse a situation before it became tense. "No one's telling stories about the team. And we're not asking."
"So what…?" Scott shook his head. "I think you've lost me."
James sighed and looked down at his hands in his lap. "Tony's been letting me read about the team from the archives - not … it's not for the team itself. He said he wanted me to know where I came from."
Scott nodded gently. "I can see that."
"Well, you can only see half of it," James said. "There's next to nothing about my mom, anywhere and what I found on Logan … I don't really understand."
"Your mom always liked to stay out of the spotlight, so that part makes sense for her," Scott said.
"It's almost like she never existed," James said.
Scott sighed. "You have to understand, James: your parents escaped the department I told you about and came out the other side determined not to let it happen again."
"Yeah, I know. I read that. And I read the files on what the department did to them," James said, though he looked like he immediately regretted admitting as much.
"You did?" Scott blinked. "James…"
"I ... wanted to know."
"James, what those people did was beyond-"
"I know," James said as the frown got a little deeper. "What I don't understand is why, after all that, my parents joined on with any team."
Scott watched James for a long time, obviously weighing out his answer. "It's…"
"I'm not even talking about the fact that it was your team and the Avengers. It was a lot more than that, and no one told me. He wasn't just on two teams. He was on almost all of them. Why?"
"You know," Scott said slowly, "I actually had the same questions for a long time."
"But what was driving him so hard?" James asked.
"Well, your mom let me in on the secret," Scott said, not even noticing that Rachel had taken Nate into the living room so the two of them could talk in private - even if Rachel and Nate were still totally eavesdropping on the other side of the door. "I don't even remember why, but your father and I were arguing about something, and our tempers got the better of us. We'd yelled at each other, I threw it in his face that he was on other teams…" He shook his head and rubbed a hand over his face. "Jean asked K to come talk to me, because she was worried we'd drive the team apart. And do you know - I'll never forget how she sat down in the garage with me and laid it out." He was talking in a slow and steady meter that James had come to recognize as one that meant he missed all of them and was trying not to show it. "Those two couldn't remember everything after the department messed with them, but one of the worst things the program did was to leave them aware of their actions. They knew what they were being forced to do. They knew they'd hurt and killed people. And they worked so hard to do good once they were out of that program, because they felt like they had to make up the difference for the harm they'd been forced to cause." Before James could say anything, Scott held up a hand. "I've told you before that I have never, not once, blamed your father for these scars," he said, pointing to his eyes. "The same thing applies here. None of us feel like they were responsible for what they were forced to do while the department had them. But they still felt it."
"What was the classified team he was on?"
Scott held his breath for a moment before he decided to answer him. "We called it X-Force," he said quietly. "It… we didn't want the X-Men to be faced with missions that would cross lines, but there were times…"
"So they were dirty." It absolutely wasn't a question the way James said it, and his opinion on the matter was clear by the tone of his voice and the fact that he'd cut across Scott - something he never did.
"James, no," Scott said, one hand on his arm. "You have to understand. There were some missions that had to happen, but we were trying to keep the world from thinking of us as killers and weapons. I asked them to do the missions I couldn't ask the team to do, because I knew they could keep the missions covert, and I trusted them to only cross the lines they had to cross. Nothing more than that. Maybe it wasn't my best decision, but we were trying to - God, we just wanted to keep our heads above water."
"That was why Cap asked him to join the Avengers to start with, too," James said. "Because of his rep."
"You'd have to ask Steve about that."
"I don't. It's in the files," James said. "I read it."
Scott sighed and ran a hand over his face. "James…"
"I'm just trying to get the whole picture because I don't remember them, okay? Everyone keeps telling me that I'm like him - and I don't know what that means. But from everything I've read … I don't … "
"I know," Scott said. "But the files… they only show what he was trained to do. What they both were trained to do."
"I know," James said. "I want to know more. But that's what I've got to work with."
"Your father was more than what he was trained to do," Scott said gently. "James, he was so good at being a hero, I … I felt like I could barely keep up."
"Is that why everyone quit?"
Scott felt like all the air had left him, but James was watching him so steadily that he couldn't leave it hanging between them. "No," he said, the sound almost strangled.
James leaned forward. "Then why? The risks were always there. The danger was always there. The trouble was always there. I read every file - every bit of it. It's all laid out. So why give up?"
Scott stared at James for a long time. "You remind me of him," he said softly. "He had a way of getting right to the heart of the matter."
"I honestly don't know if I should take that as a compliment or not."
"You should," Scott said.
"He was not a good guy," James said.
Scott shook his head. "James, all the stories I told you - those were all true, too. Just because they weren't in the files doesn't make them any less true. The people I told you about - those are your parents."
"So is the rest of it."
"James…" Scott shook his head. "You didn't get to see him in action. He could tear apart an army bare-handed and in the next breath keep a little girl from crying over her broken doll…."
"It's not a criticism," James said. "It's just a fact."
"I just don't want you to think they were anything less than what they were," Scott said in a breath.
"And what they were was defined by who you ask," James said before he gestured openly. "I just want to know all of it, since everyone wants to tell me I'm like him."
Scott nodded, his heart in his throat. "James, they were family," he said. "That… that's why we quit."
James narrowed his eyes for just an instant. "I know you're going to tell me I'm too young to hear it, but one day, I'm going to ask how it happened. And I want to know the truth. Not the kid version of it. Please."
"You are too young to hear it right now," Scott said.
"Which is why I'm not asking right now," James said. "I already know you won't tell me."
"James, you have to understand. The way we lost them…"
"Doesn't make sense. The way they died - in the files - doesn't make sense. And I know that it had to have been written down in a way to keep this talk from happening too soon. So I'm not pushing. I'm not. But I will want to know. I do, but I know it's not time yet."
Scott nodded almost numbly. "When you're older, I promise, I will tell you," he said. "All three of you. But it was terrible enough to drive the X-Men apart. We couldn't…. James, we could barely hold our lives together, let alone a team."
James nodded, clearly on the brink of tears anyhow just from the weight of the conversation. "I don't want to find out that they died for no reason. That's all."
Scott let out a small sound from the back of his throat before he reached out and yanked James into a hug. "James, all I want you to know right now is that they both loved you more than anything. There is nothing they wouldn't have done for you. And if they'd walked out of that place and I'd been the one to die, I guarantee you they would be doing for your brother and sister exactly what I'm trying to do for you."
"Okay," James said with a nod.
"When I tell you how much you remind me of them, that's what I see. Not what was in the files you read, alright? I never want you to think that's what I see when I look at you. I see your mother's sharp wit and your father's heart, and I love you for it, James."
"Love you too," James said quietly. "I'm not trying to be a pain, I promise. I just … "
"I know you're not. I did the same thing when I was a kid, trying to find out more about my parents. It's hard to feel like you're trying to know a ghost."
"Yeah, but that had a very different outcome," James said dryly.
"Yeah, well." Scott let out a sigh. "You've met him. He's…"
"In love with a skunk-cat."
"Yeah. I wasn't too thrilled when I found out … all of it."
"She's nice at least," James admitted.
"She is," Scott agreed. "But I promise, James, you're not going to find out that your dad is secretly some space pirate renegade-"
"No, I know," James said. "He's gone. Pretty clear. If he wasn't … they'd probably be using him in some weapon program."
"No, James. If he wasn't gone, he'd be right here, because there is no force in the universe that could keep him away from you, let alone your mother." Scott smirked. "She growled at me when you were little and I was hogging you. She had an intense mother bear reflex."
James smirked, but there really wasn't any joy to it. "Okay. I won't ambush you with anything like this again."
"James, you know you can ask me anything, anytime. And even if the answer is 'not yet', I'll tell you that too," Scott swore. He took James' face in his hands. "You kids mean the world to me. There is nothing you can do that will make me love you less. You know that, right?"
James shrugged at that and let his gaze drop to the floor. "Okay."
Scott smiled and tried to redirect into something a little lighter for James' sake, knownig perfectly well what he was feeling since he'd felt that way himself when he was a kid. "Um, no, the answer is 'of course I know you love me, Dad! Just like I know Rachel and Nate are dirty little eavesdroppers!'"
"You sound like Jan."
"I'll take that as a compliment," Scott said.
"You should," James said. "You've been smiling more. It's nice."
"I'll try to do that more," Scott promised. "I've got three great kids - I should be celebrating all the time when you're not getting chickenpox, right?" he teased lightly.
"Or getting in trouble," James said.
"Oh, no, you never get in trouble," Scott said.
"Su-ure," James said, frowning.
"Nate never ends up in the principal's office. Rachel never flirts with boys I don't approve of. You never hit me with zingers I can't come back from…"
"Seems like a whole different level of trouble for everyone," James said. "And I thought you'd hear about other stuff. Not just … my stupid questions."
"They're not stupid questions," Scott promised. "You want to know about your parents. Nothing stupid about that."
"Kinda stupid."
"No, stupid would be if you wanted me to explain why, say, Alpha Flight kept trying to win him back when clearly I was the superior team leader," Scott teased.
"Um …that's because they had a guy that went by 'Puck' on the roster. They needed something that sounded more intimidating."
Scott laughed outright. "See? Ask a dumb question, get an obvious answer!" He ruffled James hair. "Come on. Your brother and sister are probably getting in trouble without us level-headed types."
"They'll stub a toe trying to run from the door."
Scott grinned crookedly. "Race you."
As expected, both Rachel and Nate scattered when Scott and James hit the door, but they weren't quite quick enough to pretend they hadn't been eavesdropping - especially since Scott had been sure to actively block Rachel so she couldn't see his thoughts when James had brought up what had happened to break up the X-Men. So the kids still had questions, but from Scott's perspective, they were still well-insulated from it all.
"We… we were... um…" Rachel floundered for an excuse.
"Watching the Avengers on TV," Nate said helpfully, pointing at the news broadcast. "Because Jan is totally taking down Hydra. With some help."
"Best Avenger," James said. "Least nosy, anyhow."
"I dunno," Rachel said. "I kinda like-"
"If you say Thor, I'm gonna puke," James said.
"No." Rachel turned bright red.
"Lie." James pointed her way without looking at her as he and Scott started to watch the broadcast.
"I don't see what the big deal is," Nate said, rolling his eyes. "All the guy Avengers are blond or stupid."
James frowned. "I think … you might be looking at another team. The non-blond isn't as stupid as he makes himself out to be."
"He's been pretty stupid lately."
"He's been nice," James said.
"He's nice to you," Nate said. "He makes weird noises around Jan and Dad."
"Well yeah," James said, shrugging. "Totally jealous."
"This conversation is going off the rails," Scott said, shaking his head. "Rachel, I think we need a movie. Can you pick something out?"
"You don't wanna see Jan?" Rachel asked, one eyebrow raised.
"I do want to see her - in this living room, in person," Scott said with a smirk.
"Dad's in love," Nate said, making a face.
"And Tony's jealous," James added.
"Boys." Scott gave both of them a look - not that it was going to stop them.
"You told us not to hold back from telling the truth," James said.
"I did, didn't I?"
James gestured with both hands, and Rachel fell apart giggling. "Got you there, Dad."
Scott shook his head at all three of his kids, but before he could come up with anything to say, the news caught a flash and a sound that Scott recognized, and he froze as he saw the aftereffects of the localized EMP playing out on the screen.
The camera was far enough away from the EMP to still be playing footage, but Iron Man had taken a bad hit and dropped - though the armor had crash safety measures in place… What was more concerning was that the last Scott had seen of Jan on the screen, she had been level with Tony, and at wasp-size, that was too far a fall.
The news crew hadn't picked up on it yet, not when Tony's was the more obvious fall. But Scott hadn't seen the countermeasures he knew Jan had… There was supposed to be a chute… Maybe it had deployed off-camera…
"Get your coats," Scott said, already headed for the counter to grab his keys. "Right now."
Not one of the kids was going to argue when they heard the tone Scott was using, and they followed him out the door and to the tower. Scott had a passkey for the place - an open invitation from the Avengers if he ever decided to take them up on the many offers to move the family - so he let himself in and then started to pace, not even hearing Jarvis telling him that he could wait somewhere more comfortable. He didn't hear anything Jarvis said until "they're on their way," and then he simply nodded and sat down by the medical wing.
Less than five minutes passed before the first wave of Avengers made it back - with Tony and Jan being rushed in first - and medical personnel had been waiting to dive in the moment they showed up. But that only meant that Scott and the kids got the front row seat (or close to it) to hear everything that was going on beyond the doors.
Neither of the injured Avengers were doing well, but the doctors were a bit more panicked with Jan than Scott was ready to hear. And when it was clear Scott wasn't moving, it was Clint who got the kids' attention with a hand on the boys' shoulders.
"Hey, the docs are the best in the biz," he said. "She'll be okay."
"She better be," James said quietly.
"Yeah. Well. Looks like you're staying the night, so why don't you come upstairs, I know Katie will be happy to see you, and Lexi will probably tackle you…" Clint was already trying to steer them away. "I promise I'll let you know as soon as the docs tell us we're out of the woods, but we can't do anything right now, okay?"
"I'm staying with Dad," James said, setting back on his heels.
"Me too," Rachel said in a breath.
"It's gonna be a few hours in surgery, guys," Clint said.
"That's okay," James said. "We'll be fine."
Clint looked between the members of the Summers family and realized pretty fast it wasn't an argument he could win. All three of the kids were just as protective as Scott was; he knew that from experience.
For a few minutes, it looked like the kids were just going to sit with an unresponsive Scott, but ten minutes in, Scott said, very quietly, "You can go. It's alright."
"Okay," James said, crossing his arms as he settled into his chair better.
Scott let out a breath and then almost absently kissed the side of James' head and gave him a hug without taking his eyes off the door to the medical wing. And with that, Clint quietly backed away to leave them waiting - and to tell the others what was going on with the family keeping watch.
Clint didn't return to check on them himself, but he did send Natasha down to see the level of stubborn going on with the kids and to see if she could at least get them to break away for a few minutes - or to rest.
We're staying with Dad, Rachel projected to Natasha before she could even begin to say anything.
It's going to be a long wait, Natasha said. Maybe you could-
No, we're staying with Dad, Rachel said. Because if something bad happens, he needs us.
Natasha let out a sigh and then nodded. "If you get hungry…"
"We've been here before," Nate said. "We got it."
"I know," Natasha said gently. "But your dad looked like he needed the reminder."
"Our dad can hear you just fine," James said. "We're all fine. If anyone gets hungry, I know my way around. I'll take care of it."
Natasha smiled softly, unable to stop herself when James sounded so much like Logan. "I know you will."
The little group stayed right there, every now and again interrupted by one Avenger or another that was checking on them. Which was expected, of course. But every time, it was the same response - and the little family only seemed to regroup better as interruptions continued.
Finally, Hank came out of the double doors Scott had been watching so closely. "I thought for sure you'd find somewhere more comfortable to wait," he said.
"How is she, Hank?" Scott asked - which was the first sign of life the kids had seen from him the whole time.
"She's stable," Hank said. "She had a hard fall, and her chute slowed her descent enough to keep it from being much nastier."
Scott waved a hand. "I know that part. How is she?"
"She's asleep still, so she's not in pain, but she broke several bones, punctured a lung and her liver. She will heal, but she'll be stuck in bed for a while. If you'd like, I can take you to her - though I wouldn't expect much conversation for a while still."
"I just want to see her," Scott said in a breath.
"Of course," Hank said, stepping back to the double doors and pushing them open for him. He led the way, noting to himself how anxious the kids looked as they kept up all the way down to where Jan was - all cleaned up and hooked up to almost every piece of machinery available to monitor her as she slept on. She had bandages on her head and her arm, and one leg was in a cast, but the machines showed that she was breathing easily and steadily, and her heart was strong.
For just a moment, Scott paused in the doorway before he stepped inside and rested a hand on her arm, watching her for a long time before he simply sank into a chair beside her and leaned forward, resting his head on his arms crossed over his knees. They didn't hear much when his shoulders started to shake, but the kids all looked like they didn't know what to do.
The three of them didn't discuss it, and they didn't look like they'd thought about it at all before every one of them simply made their way over and did their best to wrap Scott up in a wordless hug, staying there until Scott gathered himself up enough to sit up and pull them in so he could hold onto them, too.
Hank backed out slowly, leaving the group of them to their own devices, and he was glad for it, too, since he couldn't possibly have been expected to speak with the lump in his throat, let alone to be eloquent about it. With a very heavy heart, Hank headed toward the upper levels of the mansion to let the rest of the Avengers know not only how Jan was but how Tony was faring too, though he was in a little better shape since, even dead, the armor had all kinds of shock absorbers and redundancies in place for just this kind of emergency.
But Hank wasn't expecting the assault when he turned the corner to head toward the living room and Katie came barreling toward him.
"Dr. Blue, where's Nate?" Katie demanded, climbing up his fur until he picked her up.
"He's with his father and his siblings," Hank said, snuggling into her for a moment. "You're getting a little big to be scaling me, I think." He tapped the end of her nose. "But don't ever stop."
"One day, I'll be tall enough to take you down with a tackle instead," Katie told him.
"I await that day," Hank said. "But until then, I'll just have to make do with losing handfuls of fur."
Katie grinned at him crookedly, though when he sounded a little hoarse with emotion, she cocked her head to the side. "It's alright. Jan and Tony're gonna be fine. That's what my mom and dad say."
"I know they will," Hank said. "I've been taking care of them myself. Of course they will."
"Well, how come you're sad?" Katie asked. "You've got a wet spot on your fur." She touched the fur just under his right eye. "So… you can't hide it."
"I'm simply unused to seeing my oldest and dearest friend so upset," Hank said. "Though it's also quite rare for Ms. Van Dyne to find herself so injured."
"Dad said it was pretty bad," Katie said with a slow nod.
"It was, for both of them," Hank said.
"My daddy gets pretty upset when Mom gets hurt, and I caught Mommy crying when Daddy got shot a couple weeks ago," Katie said. "Mom says it's part of being a 'Venger."
"It can be," Hank said.
"So it's okay to cry if you gotta. Dad says you can let it out, and then you can be okay when you're done and get right back up and give the other guy a black eye."
"I'm afraid there's no one to give a black eye to," Hank told her as he gave her a little squeeze.
"Oh, well, then that's just a job for hugs," Katie said, snuggling in tightly.
"It is," he agreed. "And when the Summers kids finally come upstairs, I hope you'll be sure to give them the hugs they need."
"Oh yeah," Katie promised. "I'll get all of 'em. Even Nate."
"Somehow, I heard that Nate would be at the top of your list," Hank teased.
Katie scrunched her nose up. "Um, he's a boy."
"And a cute one at that."
"Okay, you can think that, but my daddy says if grown-ups think kids are cute, you gotta kick 'em in the balls if they get fresh."
Hank burst out laughing at that. "He's completely right, but I meant he was cute to you. You seem to worry about him more than the other two."
"Um, yeah, 'cause of he's my best friend. We're gonna get married."
"You wouldn't marry him if he wasn't cute, would you?" Hank asked with a smile.
"Yeah, I guess," Katie said. "Mom says everyone is pretty, though, and I shouldn't pick on anyone for looks or nothin,' so I try and think everyone's cute."
"There you have it," Hank said.
"What about you, Dr. Blue? Do you think someone's cute?"
"Are you trying to play matchmaker, Katie?"
"Well, you're askin' about Nate, so my dad says turn-bout's fair play."
"It is," he said before he set her down. "Why don't you work something out with your parents to have some food ready when they come up? It probably won't be too long."
"Okay," she said brightly, giving him a wave before she skipped upstairs.
Chapter 18: I Can't Do This
Chapter Text
It wasn't really until late the next morning when Jan finally fluttered her eyes open, and when she did, it was pretty clear she was hurting.
"Hey, you're alright," Scott said, though his voice was gravelly, and he was still wearing the same clothes he'd been wearing the day before. At least he'd managed to talk the kids into going to bed instead of sleeping in the medical wing with him - even if James had made a point to check on Tony before he'd allow Natasha to take him away from the medical unit.
"Are you?" Jan asked quietly.
"Fine," he said with a quiet shrug.
She smiled lightly. "I'm sorry I worried you."
Scott nodded and put his hand on her arm. "Yeah," he said in a breath. "Yeah, don't… do that."
"Roger that," she said, nodding once.
Scott watched her for a long time before he couldn't stop himself from reaching out to brush some sweaty hair from her face. "So, Hank says you're grounded for a while. In case you were wondering."
"I so earned it?" Jan said. "It totally wasn't my fault, and I didn't get the plate number on that guy, but I'll take it."
Scott smirked at that. "You know, if you want, you can stay with us while you're stuck being a civilian."
"Are you sure?" Jan said. "I'll bet I can pay someone to take care of me if it's too much."
"Jan, I've seen James through just about every childhood illness on the planet, not to mention all three kids have had their share of broken bones-"
"And you're saying you miss that," she teased.
"I'm saying that even if I'm not in the business anymore, I never got out of practice on this part," he said.
"I know, I just … don't want to make you think I expect it, you know? And I know your space has to be a thing with the kids, and it's a big imposition. I know it is." Again, she was picking up steam the more she spoke. "Idon'twanttopush. Or assume… or..."
"You're not pushing," Scott cut in. "I'm the one making the invite."
"Really?" she said, double checking again and almost wincing. "You're not going to decide I fell off a building to get your attention?"
"Jan, if you fell off a building on purpose, we're going to have problems, because I don't think I can handle that," Scott said, one eyebrow raised.
"I didn't," she swore, then winced a little from moving too quickly. "I was trying to be funny ... "
Scott let out a breath and then leaned in to kiss her forehead. "I know. Sorry. I just… you scared the hell out of me."
"I'm sorry; I scared me too."
"Let's try not to do that anymore, huh?" Scott said, smiling lightly.
"Yeah, totally worst decision of the week."
"And that's including the bad sushi on Monday that we were feeling until Thursday…"
"That was totally not my fault either."
Scott let out a breath of a laugh and kissed her. "Oh, sure. You weren't trying to poison me at all. I've heard that before."
"I'm really not the poisoning type," Jan said.
"Spoken like a true evil queen…" He smiled and cupped her chin. "I'm just glad you're alive, Jan. Really."
"Me too, and for the record? Best wake up in the hospital I can remember."
"Let's not make a habit of it."
"Cross my heart," she swore.
For the next couple of months, the Summers family had something almost like normalcy. Jan stayed with them through James' birthday, which she loved, and all the way through the Christmas Break, too. Not only Scott but all three of the kids were spoiling Jan with their attention, too. It was starting to really feel … comfortable for everyone involved. Every one of the Summers family was relieved to see her doing better - and the kids were happy to see their dad smiling again as he took care of Jan.
It was fun for Jan, too, because she got to see the four Summerses at work, balancing Rachel's schooling, James' tutoring, and Nate's sports all while never making her feel like she was a burden.
It was honestly hard for her to think about going back to the team when she was enjoying playing house - but she loved being an Avenger, and she really did want to go back to it now that she was back up to speed.
The problem now would be telling Scott.
She knew he hadn't taken it well when she'd been hurt. Clint had been pretty clear on that much when he'd helped her pack up her things so she could stay at the apartment for a while. She knew Clint was trying to watch out for her, and she appreciated it, but that was a heavy thing to have hanging around her neck.
It was just… she really did love being part of Scott's life. Especially now that she had a full-time part in their lives. She could have stayed there forever helping the kids with homework, playing house, and curling up with Scott while the kids were all gone. She really could have. It was the instant family she'd longed for.
It was that much harder for her when she thought about how he might take it. Especially when she came out of the bedroom and Scott was sitting at the table at his laptop looking over the school schedule for Nate so he could find a good time for Alex to visit again - he and Lorna had "news" that probably meant a little one if how cautious Lorna had been acting at Christmas was any indicator. It was all very… domestic.
"So, I talked with Steve, and he says it's totally fine if I want to keep living here. I can still be on the team even if I'm not in the tower. I mean, Clint and Natasha live here most of the time too, so if you're - I mean, I don't want to assume anything permanent, but like, I sort of need to figure out if I'm living with the team again now that I'm back up to snuff…"
Scott frowned as he looked up from his laptop. "Are you sure?"
"Well, yeah," Jan said as she dropped into the seat nearest him.
"So you're rejoining… are you sure?" Scott asked again, his voice a little tighter.
Jan frowned at that. "I never quit, Scott. I just had to heal up."
"Right. I know. That wasn't…" Scott shook his head and held his breath. "That didn't come out right."
Jan reached over to rest her hand on his wrist. "You can take your time thinking it all over, and this has been fantastic, so don't think I'm trying to push for something more permanent or anything. And I'm not running away. It's just - if you want me to go back now, I get it."
Scott shifted his hand so he was holding hers. "It's not anything like that..." He paused, and she could see him make an honest effort to take a deeper breath. "I'm sorry, Jan. I'm a mess."
"We all are," she promised, giving his hand a little squeeze.
Scott nodded. "I want to ask you to stay," he admitted.
Jan lit up on hearing it. "That's great!"
"No, Jan, I-" Scott closed his eyes for a second and let all the air out of his lungs. "I can't. I can't handle it. I can't take a chance to lose anybody else."
"I'm fighting to keep them safe," Jan said quietly, her smile completely gone by that time. "You know that, right?"
"Jan, I lived that," Scott said in a breath. "From the day that we started the X-Men, that was my life."
"I know; I'm not saying you didn't. I just … the job isn't done yet."
"It never is," Scott said. He let his gaze drop. "I still believe in it, you know - the professor's dream."
"Of course you do," Jan said gently.
"But I can't … this isn't my fight anymore. God, Jan, I couldn't - when you got hurt, I couldn't even breathe, and it was just like-"
Jan stared at him for just a moment before she darted forward and stole a kiss. "It's okay. I know. I get it. Family has to come first."
"You're still part of mine," Scott clarified, looking positively miserable as he ran his thumb over her knuckles. "I'm just not built for your life anymore."
"Which is a big part of why I can't stop," she told him. "You shouldn't feel like you have to pick …"
"I know. And I know I can't ask you to," Scott said. "Which is why I won't."
"This has to be the dumbest reason to split up," she said as she wiped away the tears brimming at her lash line before it could wreck her mascara. "But I get it. I just don't want you guys to disappear on me, either."
"We're not going anywhere," Scott promised. "Nate likes his school too much, and James is doing well with the tutors. And…" He let out a breath. "Look, maybe one of these days I'll figure out how to breathe."
Jan nodded almost enthusiastically at that. "I hope so. That's not how I want to take your breath away."
Scott couldn't help but laugh at that. "I love you, Jan, you know that?"
There wasn't any warning before Jan launched herself at him and wrapped her arms around his shoulders to hold on tight. She had to to keep from completely bawling on the spot, after all. "Love you too."
Considering how well things had been going between Jan and Scott, Steve thought when Jan showed up at the tower that she was there to grab the rest of her clothes and other things for a more permanent stay. And he was absolutely thrilled for her and ready to congratulate her - until he saw the look on her face.
"Jan, what happened?" he asked, at her side in an instant with a hand at her elbow.
"Oh, just … that's it. That's all."
"What?" Steve stared at her. "What are you talking about?"
"We called it off." She shrugged her shoulders up in a motion that didn't look natural on her at all.
"Why?" Steve led her somewhere she could sit down, still looking like the rug had been pulled out from underneath him.
"Cause we love each other, and we're going two different directions, and it just isn't gonna work," she said in a rush before she started to cry.
Steve didn't really know what else to do, so he pulled her into a tight hug. "I'm so sorry, Jan. We were all pulling for you both."
"He just can't take anything to do with a team. I thought it was just the X-Men that had him upset, really! But I don't blame him; he was so scared when I got hurt …"
Steve frowned harder when he heard it. "Is that what… Jan, I'm so sorry."
"I mean … I kinda should have seen it coming. Really. I should have."
"No, how could you have?" Steve asked.
"Steve," Jan said, stopping to look him squarely in the face. "He's so not even close to over what happened to his team. At all. All the warning signs were there - he didn't want to be spotted too close to the tower when we first got started. I should have seen it!"
Steve let out a breath. "I don't think any of them are over what happened," he had to admit. "Hell, Jan - we're not over what happened to them."
"Yeah, but it's so … it's different for him. It is." Jan shook her head. "You'd have to really be around him a lot to understand it. But it wasn't the same for him as it was for the others."
Steve nodded quietly as he thought it over. "It's hard to lose someone you led," he said, thinking of the war and Bucky and everything he'd seen, too. "Especially when you consider them family, too."
"And I really think the only thing keeping him going is the kids. And you wouldn't believe the look he gets when Rachel does something little that is so Jean, or when … well. Whenever James questions him about anything."
"You really love him," Steve said gently.
Jan nodded her head. "Which is why I won't stop the fight," she said, drawing herself up a little bit. "That's what happens if we turn our backs again. How many other people are just as crushed as he is?"
Steve smiled at that and pulled Jan under his chin. "There's the Wasp we all know and love."
"I'm not going to let those kids be afraid of keeping heroes in their lives, either," Jan said in an almost sullen tone. "We have to do this. And they need to see it's okay."
"I had sort of assumed Nate would let the others in on that secret when his 'best friend' becomes the next Hawkeye," Steve said, trying to tease her into a better mood.
"Oh, sure," she said with a sniffle. "But all three of them are ones to watch. Mark my words, they won't be content to be so …."
"Hidden?" Steve offered.
"Yes. Yes. That. Some of the questions coming out of those kids …"
"That actually gives me some hope for them."
"Keep an eye on what James is looking into," Jan said, pointing a finger at him. "He's a lot sneakier than the other two, even if he's more hesitant to cross Scott."
"That doesn't surprise me one bit," Steve said. He let out a breath then got to his feet and pulled her up with him. "But right now, one of my best friends just had her heart broken. And that's where my focus is. How many Hydra LMDs do you want to hit? I'll line 'em up for you and you can break Hawkeye's record. Again."
"Right now, I think what I really need is Natasha, some gelato, and a spa." Jan shook her head before she patted his arm. "No offense. I'll kick your trash around tomorrow."
"None taken," Steve assured her, one arm around her shoulders until they could find Natasha.
"Are you sure I can't convince you to stay in Bed-Stuy?" Natasha said for what had to be the fiftieth time. "You know my security is top notch; you'd have back up just one floor above you…"
"And Avengers dropping in, drawing attention …" Scott let out a breath. "I started paying attention, you know. After Jan was here for a while. It's just a matter of time before someone spots one of us and puts two and two together. Your security is great, Natasha. It is. But it's no substitute for as much anonymity as I can give these kids."
It was still fresh - the break up with Jan - and it had been obvious that Scott was ready to put more space between his family and the teams if he possibly could. At least, as much space as possible when Rachel was going to school in Westchester and James was still getting tutored by Stark's hires. The image inducer James was using to get in and out of the building was working, but no one knew how long that was going to last.
Natasha pursed her lips as she considered Scott's angle. "Then at least let me help you find a suitable place. I know that the very idea of changing schools has Nate pulling out his hair."
"The neighborhood is already too busy for-"
"There are other neighborhoods in the borough," Natasha said, cutting him off. "You'd still be close enough if you needed help but far enough away to have your space. And the boys could keep their schedules mostly intact."
Scott watched her for a moment, weighing out what she had to say. "You've been thinking about this already, haven't you?"
"I may have had a contingency plan in mind," Natasha admitted. "But selfishly, I did want to keep you nearer to us, so I also kept it to myself. It was nice to be near you four for so long."
Scott let out a breath of a laugh. "Alright. Show me what you've got."
What she had was a house in a reasonably well-to-do neighborhood with room enough for the kids to have their own rooms - and a view of Manhattan that made it possible for them to spot Avenger's tower from their living room if they opened the curtains. The neighborhood was clean - or at least as clean as Brooklyn could be.
"Quiet neighbors," Natasha said as they walked through the house. "Good area … fairly conservative, but I think you'll find that they won't take issue minding their own business. Mostly."
"Mostly?"
She shrugged lightly. "They're very religious. Don't be surprised if you get more questions about your faith than you do anything else."
"I'm not so sure that's a good fit," Scott said, though Natasha was already shaking her head.
"Don't be ridiculous," Natasha said. "I've looked this over more times than I care to admit, and this area is the perfect spot." When Scott didn't look convinced, she blew out an impatient breath. "Sentinels aren't allowed in this neighborhood, Scott. The population here - they won't stand for anything even close to something that targets people based on their genes or their familial ties. The area has strong political pull. None of the politicians on either side want to cross them, so they get more say than other areas. And … there are a few mutants in the area that enjoy the protection that this neighborhood provides."
Scott didn't look entirely convinced. "This is a little more advanced concern than just being mutants."
"And for anything even resembling special forces, you have me somewhat close - and ... "
Scott raised an eyebrow when Natasha let her sentiment fall. "And …."
"And … we're just a neighborhood over from where Steve lives."
"Ah."
"Hey. Everyone in the borough is proud of their local superhero," Natasha said with a crooked smile. "And they won't bother you. I'm sure of it." She bumped his shoulder with hers. "Besides … don't try to tell me you didn't want to see where Captain America grew up."
Scott didn't have any solid argument against it - and Natasha was very sure she'd seen the smallest smile tugging at the corner of his mouth - so before he could argue it, she made the call to get Tony to have one of his unconnected companies buy the place. By the time the ink was dry, and even before Scott could get the kids to really pack up anything, Tony and Natasha headed into the place wearing image inducers with his newest security measures to give them a serious upgrade before any of them had the chance to even step foot in the building.
When moving day finally came, though, Scott felt far worse than he'd prepared for when Nate was clearly heartbroken to leave the building in Bed-Stuy, even with Natasha promising that the apartment would remain their spare safe house.
Still, the little boy was dragging his feet as they made the trek to almost the other side of Brooklyn to their new place by the river. Rachel was there to help - and to set up her room - but neither she nor James seemed to react to the move at all, instead working hard to get the job done.
They'd barely gotten their second round of boxes from the truck when the first neighbor came by bearing welcome gifts and a broad smile, welcoming them to the neighborhood. Of course, it only took a look from Scott before James and Rachel started moving a little quicker to get things put away while Scott spoke with the neighbor - and they both were watching as the dreaded first questions came out, like they had any other time they'd stayed somewhere. It didn't matter if it was for a few days or for much longer; it was always the same. 'Welcome, welcome - where's your wife?' or 'When will your wife come by?' or one that was somehow worse 'What did she do that let you have custody of all three?'
And the questions were always repeated ad nauseam, with every single person that came through, so the Summers kids were preparing for a good few weeks of bucking their dad up after 'well-intentioned' neighbors came nosing around.
But this time, it seemed just a little bit different. And it was Scott who had noticed it, not the kids.
One time. Just one time amid the dozens of neighbors that came by - just once did he have to answer anything regarding his MIA wife. Scott answered it as truthfully as he could - since even for him, the truth with a few tried and true omissions was a much safer route to take than a cover story. And his answer of 'she died a few years ago in a fire' was enough to placate neighbor number one … and no one else that followed asked about her at all.
Instead, the questions turned to the kids as they brought gifts to welcome the Summers family, and it wasn't long before the kitchen was stacked with baked goods and bottles of wine and honey. To be frank, the kids didn't know how to process it, and Rachel was shaking her head within the first hour. "If we're really going to live here, I'm going to have to learn yiddish," she said. "It's driving me nuts not knowing what they're all projecting toward us."
Scott smirked at her line of thinking as they sat down to their first meal together in the new place. "Is this for threat assessment or curiosity?"
"Both," Rachel replied truthfully, and Scott let the matter fall, though he couldn't help but be amused by Rachels commitment to nosiness. She really was so much like her mother sometimes.
It wasn't long after that, though, that one of the neighbors came by with a concerned look. "I haven't seen those kids of yours in school," said the woman, who, Scott realized, was a teacher at the closest school to where they were living. "Are they alright? Or are they in the Montessori?"
It took Scott a moment to answer, though he'd known that it was possible for this to come up - it wasn't something he'd dealt with in Bed-Stuy, and again, a partial truth for now seemed to be the wisest route. "No, they're fine," he said, putting on a practiced smile - or close enough to it that most people wouldn't push for more. "My daughter is in a private school upstate, and my boys … well. My youngest wanted to stay in the school he was in before, so we're trying to keep him there for now. It's a few miles east. And my older boy … he's got tutors in the city."
"He's okay though, too?"
"Yeah, we just haven't been able to find a program to keep up with him," Scott reassured her. "He's tested off the charts, but I didn't want to put him in classes with kids that were a lot older than him. Tutors are a better fit."
She seemed relieved to hear it - just before she went on a bit of a rant about how much trouble it had been for her cousins-in-law who had a genius too - though that little girl simply skipped a few grades and got caught up in affairs much too old for her age. "You're doing the right thing, keeping that boy away from older kids like that all the time." She paused after she'd gone down the first two steps toward the street. "I hope your daughter isn't in a questionable place, though … those boarding schools can be trouble."
"I'm on good terms with the headmistress," Scott said, trying not to smile at his new neighbor's concerns. She sounded genuine - and perfectly prepared to impart her wisdom on him should he answer her questions incorrectly.
"Good," she said, pausing to nod to herself as if her job there was done - for now. "You know, if you're not busy, we always have room Friday night at dinner."
"I'll keep that in mind," Scott said, admittedly a little uncomfortable at how approachable most of the neighbors were trying to be. Whatever Scott was expecting out of this neighborhood … this wasn't it. But it wasn't necessarily a problem, either. After all, even knowing that they had solid reason to hide and to keep away from trouble, he didn't want his kids to grow up paranoid and afraid of everything…. So maybe, if these people were being genuinely nice, it would let them have some semblance of normalcy.
Chapter 19: Scott, You Need To Shave
Chapter Text
For weeks after the big move, Scott was simply going through the motions. He barely spoke outside of what he felt was needed - and that mostly boiled down to making sure that homework was done, meals were served, and the kids were sticking to their new, slightly altered routine.
And over the course of time as they quietly tried to settle in, Scott seemed to lose the drive to do all of the day to day self care that he was usually so meticulous about. The most glaring example of such was of course the full, beautiful beard he was wearing.
A month in and his hair was shaggy, his beard was getting bushy, and he was still quite clearly mourning the end of the relationship with Jan. He couldn't watch the news with the kids around. Not without obsessing over it and scanning to see how Jan was holding up because of course, if she was upset, that was Scott's fault. She was healed up from all her injuries, but even that had him watching for her more, worrying about her. And pining.
There was a part of him that wanted to throw caution to the wind … but the wound from losing Jean was still white-hot when he allowed himself to think about it. And now, when he was in the depths of depression nd trying to keep a stiff upper lip for the kids, it was like those early days back at the cabin all over again, but this time, the kids weren't as needy and that only meant Scott didn't have the busy work that came with three kids that still needed teddy bears and tucking in to keep him distracted from the ache in his chest.
Losing Jean had been soul crushing - the single worst moment of his life was the moment that their psychic link went silent. But that didn't mean that this wasn't enough to send him down a spiral too. And this time the spiral didn't involve losing the mother of his children - it was more about the doubts he had.
Doubts that he was teaching them the right thing by having them hide away. Doubts that trying to keep the separation between them and the teams was giving them the right message when he couldn't even think about hero work while he was doing everything in his power to keep them safe and alive.
Doubts that he could manage any of that when he was both no longer in possession of his powers while being a walking target with an x-gene that had no use anymore.
If it wasn't for the fact that the kids all seemed to be thriving in their studies and needing the time together with him on the weekends, he'd have rethought the arrangement all together. But that would once again draw down the need to have the Avengers intervene - and as it was, they were already overly involved in th safety of the Summers family. He couldn't ask them to move them already. And he couldn't take James from his tutors any more than he could take Nate away from the normalcy he'd found competing with Katie at school.
He was trying to get through the day. That's all he wanted to do, but he seemed to be stuck on just finishing his coffee. The day slipped by, as it so often did, and Scott seemed almost startled by the alarm that he had set to tell him that he had five minutes before he had to leave to get Nate. He'd set the alarm intending to get some work done while the kids were gone … but somehow, the day had slipped by him and instead of doing his usual rush to get himself together, all Scott could do was take his mug to the sink, dump the contents out, rinse the cup, then pick up his keys where he'd left them near the door on his way out.
He didn't bother with grabbing a coat. He wasn't driving anyhow, just … walking to the subway station down a few blocks so Nate wouldn't be riding home with an Avenger in tow when Hawkeye inevitably elected himself to step in and help.
It was bad enough that James was getting rides home from any one of half a dozen different Avengers, though Scott didn't know that James had been keeping to himself more while he was a the tower to avoid as much time with any of them as he could manage. And that meant that for him, the safest place to hide to avoid too much talk about feelings was to stick close to Tony when he had to be near the timing was such that Scott didn't know that James had managed to talk them into letting Happy fill in to take him home more often than not so the Avengers could stick with keeping Jan upbeat.
And Scott was distracted enough that he didn't see that Nate was on his best behavior at school and at home - or that he had James helping him with whatever homework was giving him trouble just so he wouldn't bother his dad when he looked so forlorn.
They just didn't know how much he could have used that. So it only made things harder for those first few weeks in the new house.
He picked Nate up and walked home with him, lost in his thoughts to the point that Stark's upgraded eyes were the only reason he was able to pay attention to possible threats.
By the time all the kids got home, all three of them were convinced they needed to do something to help - they just didn't know what. And they definitely knew that they couldn't get away with putting on anything with an X on it like they'd been talking about. Not with Scott as depressed as he was.
None of them expected Scott to more or less get forced into being more social when their neighbor showed up.
Nate blinked up at the tall man on their door - this was different, considering most of the well-wishers that were obviously both concerned and interested in their dad. "Um. Hi."
The stranger smiled at Nate warmly. "Hello, I'm afraid I need to apologize for not coming by to introduce myself sooner. Is your father home, young man?"
Nate crossed his arms as he looked the man over. "Yeah, he's in the living room. Who're you?"
"Rabbi Toby Cohen," he replied, still smiling warmly.
"Huh." Nate tipped his head to the side and then held up a hand. "Wait a minute - I'll go get 'im," he said. And then, characteristic of a little boy his age, Nate started yelling for Scott when he'd only taken a couple steps away from the door.
A few moments later, Scott got to the door, frowning slightly - though the rabbi couldn't have known that he was accessing his scans to make sure he wasn't armed. "I really appreciate all the well-wishing, but we're fine, really."
Rabbi Cohen held his hands out to his side. "It's a very nosy neighborhood, I don't know what to tell you." He smiled to himself. "But that's not why I'm here. Not entirely. I am your most negligent neighbor when it comes to playing welcome wagon, but I think that makes me your most honest one."
Scott smirked only the slightest bit. "Probably."
"Do you have a little time to chat, Mister Meuller? I have to admit, I'm not the kind to get excited about seeing what kinds of things people are moving in with. I prefer to get to know the people that are trying to mind their own business."
Scott glanced to Nate, and Nate nodded quickly, going to find his brother and sister so the three of them could find something else to do while Scott invited the rabbi into the living room. "There's not much to tell," he said. "Like you said: we try to keep to ourselves."
Rabbi Cohen waved a hand as he took a seat. "And most of what people would ask you answered already. I tend to watch the people in my neighborhood before trying to bother them. And you … are you alright?"
"We're fine," Scott said automatically.
"No, I know the kids are okay," the Rabbi said. "I'm asking how you are. You haven't lived here more than a few months and already you can go on autopilot like someone who's been here their whole lives." He gestured to Scott openly. "And it's not a criticism, but that beard wasn't something you grew to fit in." He leaned forward. "It is a good look. It'd be better with some help though."
Scott paused, absently raising his hand to his chin. "We moved at a… rough time. That's all."
"Anything I can do to ease things for you?" Rabbi Cohen asked. "Or was it just that the closing happened too close to an Anniversary … or …"
"No, nothing like that," Scott said.
"Then I hope you forgive me, because you look like every grieving widow I've ever met who's going through a knot hole. I can't ignore that look. It goes against everything I am."
Scott frowned and then decided to fall back on his usual tactic: a little bit of truth. It was easier to keep the story straight that way anyway. "I tried to get back into dating. It didn't go well." He figured that would not only explain it - but might have the extended consequence of this rabbi asking the "well-wishers" to back off.
"I'm sorry to hear that. If there was some kind of signal I could light in the window for you to get the single women to stop, I don't know that I would."
Scott very nearly smiled; he could appreciate the rabbi's sense of humor. "At least you're honest."
"That's what I tried to tell you earlier," Rabbi Cohen said. "And also that the area is nosy - and that I can't ignore when a neighbor is in pain. So. We're all caught up. What are we going to do about it? We can't let you wander the streets looking so downhearted or the matchmakers will be beating down your door."
"So you're saying I'm stuck between a rock and a hard place here."
"I'm saying 'welcome to the neighborhood. You can use a friend - what time is good for coffee'?"
Scott shook his head, an almost-smirk at the corner of his mouth. "You remind me of an old friend," he said, thinking of Kurt and the way he was persistently trying to instill faith and hope in his friends at their lowest points.
"I will go ahead and take that as a complement, but I still need to know what time to show up with coffee."
Scott shook his head again. "You're not going to accept a 'no', are you?"
"In this instance, I don't even know the meaning of the word." He shrugged. "Give it a chance. Worst case scenario, after a few times if you really can't stand my company, I won't bother you but to ask how the kids are."
Scott tipped his head to the side and then sighed. "The mornings are busy with the kids going to different schools. Your best bet is late in the morning, around ten."
"I'll be here at ten fifteen." He held up one hand as he got to his feet. "And I'll bring the coffee."
Winter was melting into spring, finally, and as Brooklyn and the rest of the city began to kick off their outdoor activities, the Summers family found themselves hosting the other Summerses.
Alex and Lorna had finally come to visit - and they were radiating joy everywhere they went. Alex was his usual positive self and Lorna was even more cheerful and excited in spite of the obvious baby bump she was carrying.
"Hey big brother," Alex said with a grin as he pulled Scott into a tight hug, before Scott could even begin to address what he was seeing while Lorna pulled the kids over to say hello with bear hugs and lots of kisses. "Nice place."
"It's new," Scott said, blinking a few times before he smiled despite himself. "And that's not the only new thing. Boy or girl?"
"A boy," Lorna said, grinning with an arm around each of Scott's boys. "I think that's what my family does best this generation."
"Wanda's boys must be thrilled," Scott said, still stuck in a surprised smile.
"They are," Lorna said, beaming up at him with a grin. "Of course they are. They're such sweethearts."
"I haven't seen them in a while. Send them my love, will you?"
"I'd rather you guys just came to visit," Lorna said. "Maybe when the baby gets here? August?" She grinned wider. "Please?"
"I… will think about it," Scott said. "But you have to talk to your father. Last time we were there, he was pushing for a more permanent stay. Again."
"Oh, Daddy just wants to help if he can," Lorna said. "He worries about you, Scott."
"We're alright," Scott said, absently bringing a hand to his recently-shaved chin. "The community here is supportive. Sentinels aren't legally allowed in the neighborhood-level supportive."
"I think he'd like this neighborhood," Lorna agreed before she pulled Nate over to kiss his cheek again - and made sure to leave a lipstick print just to watch him complain about it. "It's lovely."
"Aunt Lorna-a-a-a-a-a," Nate whined.
"Get used to it, handsome - all the girls are going to want to kiss you!" Lorna told him with a delighted laugh.
"It's already started," Scott said with a dry smirk.
"Dad."
"If I'm wrong, I'll say so."
"It's true," Rachel said, smiling to herself at how much their Dad was already enjoying himself. "And Nate's in trouble all the time with Katie."
"Rachel!" Nate tipped his head back and groaned. "How come I'm in trouble?"
"I ask myself that every day," Rachel shot back, crossing her arms. "You're just like this."
Nate stuck his tongue out at Rachel, but he projected to her: It's hard to get mad, because Dad's just… so… happy.
I know. And I think he's actually considering visiting them, too. Rachel was grinning at him while she took her turn getting the treatment from Aunt Lorna and enjoying every bit of it.
Nate smiled. I hope so. He's happier with Aunt Lorna and Uncle Alex.
Do you want to go? Rachel asked.
Nate paused. Not… really. Magneto gets pushy, and he treats James different than you and me, and that doesn't feel right. James hasn't even gone for a long time. Which isn't fair; he's our brother!
He doesn't want to go there, Rachel said. He wouldn't go when we were smaller, either. I think he's kinda afraid of that place.
So, yeah, I don't think Dad'll say yes because of James, but, like, Rach. He's smiling?
I know. It's nice. Rachel turned to grin at her brother. And don't say anything to James about Dad not going for any particular reason.
Don't worry; I won't.
Before they could continue their conversation, Lorna busted them out. "Oh … I've seen that look before. Alex. Alex. They're talking privately. I'll bet it's about you and your brother."
Alex broke into a grin and spun Rachel in a hug. "You're just like your parents. Both of them. Stop that," he teased.
"I didn't … we weren't talking about you!" Rachel laughed.
"Well, what else is there to talk about? I'm clearly the life of the party. Or I guess you could talk about my son. That's good too."
"What are you going to name him?" Rachel asked, knowing that her Dad wanted to ask, but hadn't found a good way to do that yet.
"It's the subject of some… discussion," Alex admitted, smiling over at Lorna. "We've got it narrowed down to 'Michael' and 'Christopher' - just didn't want to steal Scott's thunder, seeing as he gave Nate five hundred names and Christopher's one."
Scott shook his head at Alex. "I don't mind, you idiot."
"Scott, you know he's just like this," Lorna said. "He wants to rile you. I think he misses when someone else calls him a dork."
"Oh, good; I'm glad you haven't stopped," Scott said, smirking Lorna's way.
"I'd have to lose my mind to stop," Lorna laughed, then finally got away from the kids to give Scott a hug. "We've missed you!"
"You'll have to visit more often, then," Scott said as he returned the hug. "I've got three kids with three different school schedules. I feel like you have the easier time finding a minute."
"I know, but summertime, Scott," Lorna said.
"Surfing's going to be great, too," Alex said.
"Come take my kids to the beach," Scott said. "Nate's going out for baseball. He wants to play every sport under the sun. Throw surfing in there…"
"Alright, I hear you. You're not interested in visiting. What about a joint family trip to Hawaii again?"
Scott actually grinned - something that Alex and Lorna didn't realize was as big a deal as it was. "Now you're talking."
"Alright then," Lorna said. "As soon as the baby's here and we can travel - something in the fall maybe? Doesn't have to be very long, just a weekend would do it. A long weekend."
"Sounds perfect," Scott agreed. "I'm sure we can find a few days somewhere."
"Great!" Alex said, grinning wider as he came over to throw his arm around Scott's shoulders. "So bigger, older, much older looking brother … how about you fill me in on everything that's happened since Christmas?" He pulled Scott along into the kitchen leaving Lorna to make over the kids in peace - and she was thrilled to get them to herself, too - sure to pepper each of them with a dozen questions - and kisses, much to Nate's well hidden delight.
She made Rachel promise to show her around the school before she left - and she promised Nate to watch him play catch with Alex as long as he promised not to take it easy on him, of course. And she talked James into agreeing to take her to the botanical garden, since she was sure that asking to go to the tower might push the wrong buttons with those in charge there.
Lorna was a great fit for Alex, and she was bubbling with raw joy more often than not, but somewhere in the farthest reaches of her psyche, she did buy into a lot of what her father said. She wasn't blatant about it, but she did have a healthy distrust of the Avengers after everything had gone south with them so often. The fact that Wanda and Vision had been on the team for so long hadn't really tempered her opinion of the organization as a whole. Especially when faced with Wanda's reasons for leaving.
So while Scott was cautious about spending time in Genosha, Lorna was almost as cautious about spending time in the city. Her concern however, was tempered by the confidence of someone who felt they were more untouchable than those around them. So it didn't show quite as vividly as it did for Scott. And she really did love the kids, so she wanted one on one time with each of them in their own environments.
Alex … Alex never did understand nuance, though. And he was very much like an overgrown kid himself most of the time, so for him it was always a simple matter of 'your house or mine'.
By the time the Summers brothers returned to the living room, Lorna had moved on to teasing Nate about how tall and lanky he was getting to be. "Are you sure you don't want to be a basketball player?"
Nate shrugged. "Maybe I'll try that next year. But I'm pretty good at football."
"American or everyone else's football?" Lorna asked.
"Yes," Nate replied with a crooked grin.
"You might have to teach Wanda's boys. They can't get a decent team to play. Either sport."
"Yeah, and that's why I don't wanna live on your island. Sorry, Aunt Lorna, but you don't have a good football team," Nate teased.
Lorna pulled him over to kiss his temple. "That's as good of an excuse as I've ever heard," she said. "I'll be sure to bring it up to Daddy. 'Not enough sports. Your country is lame because of it.'" She turned to grin at James. "What about you? What are we lacking for you?"
James didn't miss a beat or take any time to consider it before he answered with one word. "Snow." Which was of course, impossible to honestly get for an island so near the equator.
"Boys my age," Rachel put in, since Lorna was looking her way.
"We have those, actually," Lorna said. "And you're not even related to them." She smiled at her. "I'll bet there are even some other telepath boys."
"Yeah, but she's got her eye on someone at school," Nate said, grinning outright.
"So do you," James said, not letting the opportunity pass when Nate was obviously crushing on Katie.
"Um, no I don't," Nate said.
James stared at him without saying a word or blinking until Nate got frustrated - and only then it was only to say "Really."
"Really!"
James rolled his eyes at that. "Sure, Nate. whatever you say."
Alex burst out laughing and pulled James over one armed to give him a hug. "You can't just bust him out like that, bud. He takes after my big brother too much. You'll break him."
"It's literally the same thing he's trying to do to Rachel -only Rachel isn't flipping out and lying to herself about it," James said, which had Alex laughing harder.
"Give your baby brother a break, wouldja?" Alex snickered. "And let's order a pizza. That's something else about Genosha - they don't have much for pizza."
"Yeah, we can't live there then," Nate said. "Ever."
While Lorna did her best to act shocked and shaken - and got Nate laughing uproariously, Scott took a moment to pull his little brother into a hug. "Hey. Congratulations, really. I can't believe you didn't tell me sooner."
"She wanted to," Alex admitted. "But I really needed to see you in person with news like this." He looked over to where Lorna was doing a fine job of keeping all three kids engaged with her, even going out of her way to snuggle on James as soon as she finally got a good hold of him. And while the two tucked in for a good bear hug, Alex took advantage of the moment for a little privacy and dropped his voice low. "I'll be honest, Scott … I think this is the scariest thing I've ever done. And that's including everything with the X-Men and taking on the North Shore."
"Alex," Scott said, smirking crookedly. "You've got this."
"I don't know-"
"What are you worried about? You grew up with a Dad. You know how it's done. You're amazing with my kids, and I'll bet you're great with Lorna's nephews, too."
"It's a little different when it's nieces and nephews, Scott. And yeah. My dad was … we had our issues, but he was there, yeah," Alex said as he stepped back from his brother, one hand at the side of his neck in a gesture that had to be genetic. "I wish you'd have been adopted with me, Scott. Mom would have loved you, and you would have gotten to know my Dad better. Probably would have had him toeing the line." He smiled ruefully. "We're headed to see Haley next. She ought to get the same square chance to meet her nephew. And I know my parents are going to be excited to find out about their grandson. I just … I'm not good at stuff like this. Not like you."
Scott was honestly surprised by that, his eyebrows high as he took half a step back. "What?"
"Come on, Scott -you're a natural. How do you do it?"
"Alex … you'll be amazing. If Lorna didn't think you'd be great, there's no way she'd have let you-"
"Yeah, that … well it was kind of a surprise," Alex admitted with a troublemaking grin. "Her morning sickness involved levitating everything metal in the room."
"Alex … stop."
"See? This is what I'm talking about!"
Scott laughed and draped his arm around Alex's shoulders as he steered him toward the kids and Lorna. "You're going to be fine. In spite of being yourself. Relax and enjoy it."
"Yeah, Alex," Lorna said in a teasing tone that had Rachel giggling in spite of herself. "Did you order the pizza yet?"
When Alex paused, she sent the kids after him to tackle him - leaving her and Scott to handle being the logistics of the big crew.
Chapter 20: Home Sweet Brooklyn
Chapter Text
"You've been running yourself ragged lately," Rabbi Cohen said as he took a seat at Scott's breakfast table. "More so than usual. What's the new drama?" The little family had been living in the neighborhood for a little over a year - and over the course of time, their neighbors had proven to be both friendly and patient with giving them a chance to warm up. When the little Summers family hadn't joined in on any of the block parties in the first half-year of living there, the rabbi next door had taken notice. Especially since he'd yet to meet a kid that didn't join in an open party sooner or later. But these three? They seemed to be perfectly obedient and quiet - another little thing that had gotten him motivated to make friends with the family … to check in.
Even at that, it had taken Scott a while to warm up to him - though he was much more willing to trust the rabbi once he realized that not only did Rabbi Cohen know they were mutants but he knew exactly who they were. And there hadn't been a problem with it. After they'd been living there for a year and there wasn't even a hint of trouble, Scott had warmed up enough to be social - and he could at this point even say he was friends with Toby Cohen.
So when he asked about the latest family drama, Scott just poured him some of the orange juice from breakfast because that was what he had on hand while the coffee percolated and sat down with him. "Nate's started soccer, and he wants to do baseball again in the summer," he explained. "He was pushing for hockey and football this fall, too, but I told him he's gotta slow down and do one at a time."
"That's good for him, isn't it? The soccer?" Toby asked as he reached for the juice.
Scott shrugged lightly. "It's great for him. It's a lot for me when the other two are still doing private studies. And I have to look into the coaches."
"I thought your pretty red-headed friend was the one that liked to do all the digging," Toby said with a smirk.
Scott smirked right back. "She's busy right now. Her husband got into some trouble with some Russians again, and it's more time-consuming than anything else right now."
"So business as usual with those two, hmm?" Toby teased.
"You'd think they would figure out how to deal with small problems like that, but…"
"They're just too busy looking at the bigger picture," he agreed.
"Likely," Scott nodded.
"So, what's the big plan then, hmm? Are you going to keep running yourself ragged with all the sports now? Or can you get both of the boys to be in one place for more than ten minutes?"
Scott started to laugh at the suggestion. "James lasted one practice."
"He doesn't look like the kind to give up that quick," Toby said.
"It wasn't that he gave up," Scott clarified. "But he disagreed with the coach's style and didn't like being bossed around with no explanation. If I'd let him keep going, he would have organized a revolution by the third practice."
"Did he want to keep going?" Toby laughed.
Scott shook his head. "I think he went to support Nate, but even people who don't know him well could tell that thirty minutes in, he was practically shouting 'this is stupid' without saying it out loud. The fact that he went rogue partway through practice and took it on himself to try and run the field on his own was just the cherry on the cake."
"That's too bad," Toby said, shaking his head. "He could use something outside of just schoolwork."
"Believe it or not, he gets to play racquetball at the tower, and he likes to surf," Scott said with a smile. "Last time we met up with my brother, he took the kids surfing, and James is a natural."
"So what you're saying is that he likes solo sports." Toby did a fine job of keeping his amusement controlled - but the expression on his face and the dancing light in his eyes gave away exactly how funny he thought it was.
"If you'd met his parents…" Scott shook his head. "I'm not even surprised."
"You're doing good by him," Toby said - always quick to hop onto that train of thought when the opportunity presented itself. "You've got good kids. That's your work showing through." He tipped his head slightly. "But … I have to wonder how they might act up in a few years as they get older."
Scott shook his head. "We'll see. Nate is already a handful; I don't want to think about the teenage years with him just yet. I'll go gray even faster."
"I'd imagine you'd be more concerned with how Rachel will handle things, seeing as she's almost there now."
"Rachel is at a school run by one of my oldest and dearest friends. She'd have to work hard to get away with anything I'd disapprove of," Scott said with a quiet smirk.
Toby laughed at that. "I haven't seen her in a while now. Does she still come home on the weekends? Or is she getting more independent - so far from home."
"No, she still comes home on the weekends. She's actually been bringing back stories for the boys in case they decide to go to school there too. I doubt James will, since he's pretty well past most of the curriculum, but Nate might."
"Might do them both good," Toby said. "Spend more time around kids dealing with the same things they are." He paused and drew in a deep breath. "Of course … it wouldn't hurt if they wanted to go to one of our youth nights. We're not recruiting, mind you, but … it's a safe place for the neighborhood kids to spend a few hours. It's not in the open like the block parties that I know you're all allergic to."
"You know why I don't like those parties, Toby," Scott said in a sigh.
"I know," he agreed, nodding. "I hate to see them so isolated. Though your youngest clearly has a good handle on things if he's pushing for sports."
"He was too young to understand what happened," Scott admitted. "He was old enough that he can remember his mom, sometimes, but…"
"The other two were old enough though," Toby said when Scott's sentiment faded. "And it shows."
"I know," Scott said. "I see it every day."
"You know, if your pretty lady friend is too busy to research, all of you are welcome to talk with me. It would be good to know where the kids stand, don't you think?" He shrugged, holding both hands out. "I'm sure she's already looked into my records or whatever, but she can look again if it makes you feel better."
"No, we already know about the college arrest when you were protesting," Scott teased.
"Then you know I can't keep my nose too far out of it forever when I know something's wrong." He leaned forward slightly. "Let me try to help."
Scott rested his chin on his hands clasped in front of him. "You know the kids flat-out refused to talk to any therapists, right?" Scott said slowly.
"After what you said happened with that nurse, I'm not surprised," Toby replied. "But I'm not saying to go down to the office. We can do this here. Just like this. It's not like I don't come by anyhow. It can just be us. No one outside of your house needs to know either way."
Scott was quiet for a long time as he considered the idea before finally, slowly, he nodded. "I can't promise anything, but I personally don't have a problem with you talking to them."
"That warms my heart," Toby said with a teasing smile.
Scott chuckled. "Hey, the fact that you know any of our story at all should tell you how much trust you've earned with me and mine."
"I can tell you - the stories the neighborhood has cooked up on how you got those scars is quite the adventure," Toby said. "Especially when your James gets dropped off by the little rotation he's got for rideshares."
"They try to be discreet," Scott sighed. It was the one thing he hadn't been able to do himself - managing to get all three of his kids to where they needed to be at the same time. And while Steve was alright at blending in, Clint was not. And while Natasha was good at spywork, she ended up only making fuel for gossip when she came by.
"In any other area? They'd probably be perfectly fine. But you've got a whole neighborhood that's gonna be watching the single dad of three anyhow. Add to it that all three of the kids are good-looking, too … you're going to have trouble when they get a little older, that's all I'm saying. People are paying attention and interested in getting to know them better."
"Rabbi, are you looking to find my daughter a match already?" Scott teased.
"Not this week," Toby laughed - a constant tease between them. "Ask me again next week."
Scott smiled and shook his head. "The rumors don't bother me, to tell you the truth. It's actually helpful to have them flying around."
"Of course they wouldn't bother you. Most of them think you singlehandedly saved Captain America's life somehow," Toby laughed. "I'm not going to argue with them. Neither is he, apparently."
"To hear him tell it, he still thinks he owes the old team, so of course he won't argue it."
"Are you arguing it?" Toby shot back. "Because it doesn't sound like it to me!"
"I learned a long time ago not to argue with Steve," Scott said, thinking of some of the fights he'd had with the Avengers when he'd been trying to get them to see how bad things were for mutants when all the Avengers cared about was the way mutants stood up for themselves.
"When you were right and Steve finally admitted it, you mean," Toby said just before there was a knock on the door.
Scott smirked but didn't confirm Toby's assessment either way as he went to the door, somehow not surprised to find one of his neighbors there - one of the women his age, and a widow herself, so she was always sympathetic. "Hello, Sara," he said.
"I just thought I'd check in and see how you were doing," Sara said. "I know the new semester started up, and I didn't know if you'd gotten the boys gathered up or not yet."
"They're doing great, thanks for asking. Nate's going out for soccer, and James has a new science project that's consuming his attention already."
"Oh, good," Sara said, smiling widely. "I hope they can get the time to spend an afternoon with the kids this weekend. Rebecca would love to see them, I know."
Scott smirked, knowing Sara's daughter had a crush on Nate and that Nate was completely oblivious. "We'll see. You know Rachel comes home on the weekends, so we try to dedicate that time to being all together."
"Yes, and it's wonderful that you're all so close," she said - absolutely genuine with every word. "Of course, you're all welcome to join us, if you haven't got anything set in stone."
"Thanks. I'll talk to the boys and Rachel and see what they had in mind and let you know," Scott promised.
Sara smiled wider. "Alright, well, you take care of yourself until then," she said. "Tell the boys I said hello."
"I will," Scott promised - and didn't wait longer than it took for Sara to be out of earshot from the door before he turned toward the kitchen. "Not a word, Toby."
"What would I say?" Toby asked, doing his best to look innocent. "I'm just here, temporarily deaf … enjoying my morning."
Scott shook his head, though he couldn't help but smirk. "Sure."
"It's not like she's available or interested," Toby said, shaking his head.
"Toby…"
"I said 'it's not' …" He shook his head more insistently.
Scott chuckled and then picked up Toby's empty cup. "I think I need to go research coaches. You can play matchmaker somewhere else."
"You just tell me when I should come by to talk to those kids," Toby said. "One at a time, if you think we can't gather them up."
"I'll let you know," Scott promised.
"Then I wish you luck in your searches," Toby said as he got to his feet. "Incidentally - if you tell me who you're looking into, I can maybe give you what the word is from the neighborhood too."
"You know what? I'd really appreciate that."
Rabbi Cohen didn't have too long to wait for his opportunity. A few weeks passed, sure, but it was easy enough for him to see that Scott wasn't blowing him off when the day-to-day schedule was organized chaos - even with just the boys home. Early in the morning, Scott had to get Nate off to school - and since his school was in an entirely different area of Brooklyn, Scott took him there himself - at just about the time that James' ride came by to pick him up and take him to Manhattan, where he'd study and work on …. Lord only knew what. That was something that Scott had never been overly specific about.
From there, the house was mostly vacant until after school when, once again, Scott would get Nate … and a few hours later, someone would roll up to drop James off. At least, that was the normal schedule.
Toby was over for a lovely mid-morning coffee with Scott, as usual, when the lock in the front door rattled and James let himself in.
"What happened?" Scott asked, on his feet in a heartbeat and already on his way toward him - ready to check him over for injury, which James didn't fight him on at all.
"Ah ... " James glanced over at the rabbi and censored the details out entirely. "Power's out in the building and half the block - and the back ups aren't working very well, so … I got sent home until they fix it." He set his bag down and slipped his shoes off at the door as he let Scott look him over. As soon as Scott was momentarily satisfied, the two of them started back toward the kitchen, though Scott was wearing a frown as he walked behind James, steering him to the kitchen with one hand on his shoulder. "Hi, Rabbi Cohen," James said with a little wave, then quietly took the seat Scott pointed at.
"What happened with the power?" Toby asked - mostly to see if James would share. "And am I going to read about it in the Daily Bugle tomorrow?"
"Maybe." James replied slowly, though he seemed to almost shrink in on himself in the chair. "They told me it was a bad experiment."
"Was it yours?" Toby asked, trying to tease him, but James was perfectly serious as he shook his head.
"No, my stuff is on an independent power source," James said, tipping his head down. "Less chance of it causing trouble if I screw up. I think it was something with my afternoon tutor." He looked toward Scott with a significant expression. "He tried to call, but communications are down too. They were scrambling to fix it when they sent me home." He slid his cell phone to Scott. "So I need to fix mine, too. I heard something about reversed polarities, so it shouldn't be a big deal, unless i damaged circuits."
"Then maybe you can take a few minutes to tell me about what you're doing up in that big tower?" Toby said warmly.
"O-kay." James nodded as soon as he saw the look on Scott's face - they'd discussed this as a possibility, and James knew that Scott wouldn't have brought it up unless he wanted them to do it, so … he drew in a breath and started to try and explain what he did. "It's really just tutors," James said uncertainly. "There isn't much to tell."
As soon as James was trying to halfway answer Toby's questions, Scott got up to leave them to chat while he dug into what happened at Avengers Tower to shut the place down.
He didn't have to search too hard for answers either, as there was a text from Stark explaining that they were still investigating matters, but it looked like it had been an attempt on his life. Nothing that they'd found so far, including going through the creep's communications and correspondence or any of the taps Tony used to dig into the guy's connections, showed that they had any idea that James was there … which at least meant that the image inducer he was using to go in and out of the building was doing its job.
But it also meant that for James' studies to continue - as a matter of paranoid security - they would have to happen either from the Baxter building or Clint's apartment building for the next week or so until Tony had given Natasha a chance to chase down every possible concern. It would screw up the usual flow for Scott and his boys, but … it also showed Scott exactly how paranoid Tony was being on James' behalf. Not that he was surprised. James had a standing open invitation from Tony to simply stay there if he wanted or needed to, and it was clear the more time James spent with his tutors and with Tony that he was getting more and more attached. And lamenting not having simply kept him instead of letting Scott take him back after he'd spent months with the kid.
And with a few hours to kill before Scott had to be at the field to pick up Nate from soccer practice and while James was tied up talking to Toby, Scott decided his time was best spent helping dig in to what was known and what wasn't about the attack on the tower.
He already knew that Tony was going to shift the tutor to the Baxter building - if nothing else than to keep the trouble out of Brooklyn and in close reach of a large contingency of superheroes that could dive in to help. And … it didn't hurt that James and Franklin Richards got along well enough. Though, Scott had to wonder what would happen if the two boys got competitive.
Chapter 21: Group Session
Chapter Text
Toby Cohen had spent a little over a month taking little opportunities to chat with the Meuller kids next door. They were going by "Meuller," but Rabbi Cohen knew that it was the Summers family, not the Meullers. And only three of them were Summers by name, the fourth - well. It would be unfair to say that the rabbi wasn't worried about all four of them, but some of the behavior he was seeing from their odd man out did have him watching even more carefully. He just didn't know how to explain to Scott what he was seeing without alarming him unnecessarily. And with Scott's stress levels, that was an entirely new level of balancing act.
James was, by all accounts, a good kid. And to the untrained eye, he was more than just a good one. He was easy. He didn't rebel against his family, and he seemed to approach everything with an attitude of quiet gratefulness that most people aspired to. However, it was the fact that James was totally unwilling to even consider going against the grain his family had established. And his motives as to why that was so were of deep concern to the Rabbi. In the time that the Meullers had lived in the neighborhood, not once had Rabbi Cohen heard a complaint about the dark-haired boy. Not only from the family, but the people in the neighborhood too. In fact, if he was going to analyze it, it seemed to him as if James was constantly conscious of everyone around him, always testing the waters of his family before saying or doing anything - purposely avoiding any topic that might upset his adoptive dad in particular. he was polite to a degree that Rabbi Cohen simply didn't see in kids his age - even in the strictest of families, and he knew that wasn't the case in Scott's house. The other two kids had little trouble rocking the boat with their father - even if it was minimal, they didn't seem to be purposely avoiding it like James was.
But Toby had been around for a few dinners with the family now - and though all the kids paid attention to the conversation, James was consistently quiet unless asked a direct question. Always. And when he did answer, it was always with the most direct answer that used as few words as possible. Which was intriguing since the boy was a genius.
Rachel … Rachel had clearly tried to do all her growing up at once. She seemed to be trying to take care of her father and her brothers - though James was careful to keep from being a bother to her, too. She had a kind of anxiety just behind her eyes that Toby couldn't quite put his finger on - but it was the kind of thing that was universally something that needed outside help to keep from blossoming out of control.
And Nate? Nate was the little rebel out of the three of them in the most amusingly normal way ever. Where else would you find a little boy that was arguing by wanting to be like everyone else? While Rachel was content to be a small adult and watch out for who she could and James was trying to blend in with the furniture as far as neediness went, Nate just wanted to be a kid.
There were three very different problems happening at the Mueller house. Every one of them needed a different approach. And every one of them was worrisome if left unchecked. Yes, Scott was the picture perfect father - and Toby knew he had the ulcers to back it up - but that didn't change the fact that there was no way for the Summers kids to avoid the numbers when it came to risk. For Nate and Rachel, having lost their mother so young was the gateway to anxiety and mood disorders right off the bat. Especially since Scott had obviously suffered from the same trouble himself.
What he didn't know how to explain was the fact that Nate was at a higher risk for those troubles than Rachel was. It was something that even the most involved experts didn't quite understand yet, but it was an issue. The younger they were at the time of the loss, the more likely they'd have attachment issues, depression, or anxiety. Substance abuse issues and eating disorders weren't off the table, either. And while James was at risk for all of the same, the fact that he'd lost both of his parents and was showing signs of trying to fly under the radar at his age to avoid conflict had the rabbi concerned that if the pattern continued, he'd keep tipping his risk factors closer and closer to self-harm and suicide.
And that was without knowing any of the fine details on how the kids had lost their parents. Extended trauma the kids might have suffered, or how much they knew of how their lost parents were killed … all of it factored in, and none of it was easy to discuss. Had he known the details on what had happened to them - and what James had been there to witness, he would have been much more alarmed for all of them.
The lone glowing beacon of hope in the whole mess was how absolutely dedicated Scott was to those three kids. It was obvious he'd put his life on hold so he could be there for them at the drop of a hat. Toby had seen him interacting with the three of them. It was obvious that Scott knew where they kids were coming from, emotionally. And he knew how to support them and how to be there even if they looked like they didn't want it. That … that was the one thing that made Toby think the kids had a solid chance at being alright. If their issues were addressed and the downward spiral was stopped before it became a tailspin.
But Toby wasn't sure of the best way to approach Scott with his concerns. Especially when some of the reasoning the kids were showing was a double-edged sword. Rachel had to take care of her father and brother because they were both so stressed out and needed someone to watch out for them … while ignoring that what she was trying to give them was exactly what she needed.
Nate was trying to be the normal that the mutant family was pretending to be - by embracing it as fully as he could - and not realizing that he was almost making fun of how 'normal' he could pretend to be, even while he was spectacularly ahead of the curve in cleverness.
And how should he break it to Scott that his adoptive son absolutely hated when anyone called him 'lucky' for his family and his private studies because if he was lucky to have it, then his luck could run out - and that if the people in his life thought he was special and had picked him, it was just as possible for them to change their mind? It was just the tip of the iceberg with James, and the kid had been quick to shut down and get quiet when he thought he might have said something that would eventually upset Scott. Toby wouldn't even have been surprised if James had read up on psychology just to protect himself from the therapy that Toby was trying to help him with.
So Toby waited until he knew that the kids were going to be at their respective schools and that Scott would be free for a long while that day before he came over with coffee for both of them from the cafe down at the corner.
"I know you don't want to leave anything laying around for the kids to read," Toby said in a softer, more somber tone than what Scott was used to hearing from him. "So you're going to want to read the email I just sent you when they're not around. It's not about them specifically - but it is an outline of what I'm concerned with for each of them. And it's also a strong suggestion that you get them professional help sooner than later. If they can't trust a doctor, you know I'm more than happy to help, but they do need the help."
Toby set the cup of coffee down next to Scott and took a seat. "I can stay here while you read if you have questions, or you can call me once you get through it. But, if it's all the same, I'd rather be here with you for clarity."
Scott didn't hesitate to open his computer and open up the email. He was completely silent as he read through what Toby had written, though Toby could see a muscle in his jaw getting tighter and tighter until he finally sat back in the chair and let out a breath. "I'll… talk to them," he said at last.
"And do what?" Toby asked, honestly not surprised at Scott's first reaction. "You're already doing all you can."
"Obviously not," Scott said, gesturing to the email with one hand.
"Scott, this isn't from anything you did or didn't do," Toby said. "This is just their way of coping. And they need help learning new methods."
"Then, yes, if you'd be willing… I can't even get Rachel to think about a doctor, let alone the boys…"
"Of course I'm willing," Toby said.
"And… if you're not opposed, I'd like to forward this to a friend of mine. A telepath at Rachel's school. She could help too," Scott said, obviously working out a plan for himself to move forward as a back up if he couldn't get the kids to go along with Toby.
"Do with it whatever you will," Toby said. "I just thought that would be the easiest way to outline what I'm seeing and a good way for you to be able to go back if you want to later..."
"I'll talk to the kids, too," Scott said. "James needs to know … and God, Rachel's doing the same thing I did.."
"Apple didn't fall far, did it?"
"For any of them. You should have met Jean when we were young."
"From the sounds of it, you just need to point to which kid is most like her, and I'll try to imagine," Toby teased.
"You could look at either Rachel or Nate, depending on the day," Scott said with a fond smile at the corner of his mouth. "She wanted desperately to be normal when I first met her… but she couldn't help trying to nose into others' business to help, either."
"I like her already," Toby said, perfectly straight-faced. "Just think of the team-up we could have run on you." Toby reached over to rest his hand on Scott's arm. "I meant what I said before, too, Scott. Every one of those kids of yours is an absolute gem. Best kids around. I just don't want to see them lost in their own heads or to get too carried away with bad choices if it comes up. They're not the tiny adults they think they are."
Scott was quiet for a long time before he let out a soft sound from the back of his throat. "I could use the help," he said at last, thinking through his next words before he said, "Look, not many people know this, so don't spread it around, but I honestly don't remember much between the ages of ten and sixteen. This age… I'm flying blind."
Toby frowned and nodded, agreeing to it before fully grasping how literal Scott was being in the moment. "Is that a circumstances thing, a 'it's so long ago' thing, or just a matter of not being able to visualize where your head was?"
"Evil telepath," Scott said simply.
"Oh, sure," Toby said. "Should have known."
Scott smirked lightly. "I think if you'd known the X-Men in our prime, you'd know that's not even the strangest thing we dealt with."
"I assumed that it had to get wilder for as casually as you said the words 'evil telepath'."
"Yeah, believe it or not, that's the mild description."
"I believe it," Toby assured him. "So … how do you want to move forward? Talk to the kids first? Then we can try to make it happen slow and easy? I know it won't be a simple matter of making an appointment. As soon as James thought something was off … your daughter, too. They got quiet fast and stayed that way."
"Why don't you let me talk to them, let me explain what I told you about this particular age not being my forte… I think, from what you've told me, if they think it's helping me…"
"Seeing a bit of yourself in some of what I gave you on them?" Toby asked gently.
"Hey, I'd be surprised if I didn't."
"Not a criticism, my friend. I didn't say there was anything wrong with you." He got to his feet and brushed himself off - not that there was anything to brush. "Let me know when we start. Otherwise, good luck."
Scott took a few days to weigh out all that Toby had said to him - and to try to find a way to relay all of that to the kids. But before he could sit down to discus things, his usual routine was interrupted when he got a phonecall from Ororo - requesting that he make his way out to Westchester at his earliest convenience.
It wasn't a huge problem. But when he heard the tone in Ororo's voice, he switched gears quickly and made a phone call to Clint to see if he could take Nate home with Katie for a few hours if he didn't get back before the soccer game was over. He knew Nate wanted to spend time there anyhow, and once Clint heard there was a possible issue with Rachel, he not only agreed to take Nate, but he promised to have Natasha bring James home, too.
So without anything holding him back, Scott grabbed his keys, locked up and started the drive to Westchester. Nothing seemed out of place when he got there and the kids outside were in fine moods, enjoying a sunny day. So he wasn't sure how to process things when Ororo gave him a perfectly flat, serious look before leading him to her office where Rachel was bright red at the cheeks and waiting for him. "I'll give you two a moment," Ororo said, closing the door to give Rachel a chance to fess up to her father.
Scott paused and raised an eyebrow before Rachel let it out in a rush. "It was supposed to be a date, and I know you think I'm too young, but I also know that you'll say that when I'm 40, but it wasn't a big deal until he got … stupid!"
"What happened then?"
"I punched him," Rachel said, blushing brighter, somehow.
She didn't expect him to nod to himself with a quiet 'okay then' before he opened the door for Ororo to come back. The room was tense with silence as Ororo returned and took her seat at the desk, only looking up at Scott once she was comfortable.
"Scott, I'm sure you could have guessed that this was going to be an issue sooner or later," Ororo said to Scott as he took a seat next to Rachel - and across from Ororo. "And it's not that I think she should accept it, of course. But perhaps the next time this issue presents itself, you shouldn't retaliate for just a thought."
Rachel's shoulders were shrugged up to her ears - not because she thought she was wrong - of course she wasn't. She just felt badly about her Dad being pulled out of his usual routine to deal with something so monumentally stupid. And she was not the Summers kid to get phone calls over. That was Nate. This? This had to be the single most embarrassing thing that had ever happened to her. Ever. And that included when she caught Betsy and Angel making out. That … She blushed just thinking of it - and found herself desperately trying not to think of it.
"Did she tell you what happened, Scott?" Ororo asked with the most clear cat who caught the canary look that Scott had seen in ages. "I'd assume that it would either be a point of contention or one of pride. Perhaps both."
"Just that the guy deserved it," Scott said, trying not to smirk at Rachel's description, since he had been the one to teach her how to deal with guys that tried to push her or got too handsy.
"Scott, all he actually did was kiss her good night," Ororo said, though she was barely doing a better job than Scott at controlling her smile. "And that's not an offense that is paid back by doing what she did."
Scott turned toward Rachel, one eyebrow raised. "Rach…"
"You don't know what he was thinking, Dad," Rachel insisted, blushing high on her cheeks.
Scott let out a breath and rubbed his eyes. "Rachel…" He shook his head, still rubbing his eyes, before he finally looked at her again. "It's only the guys who act on it that deserve to get laid out like that."
"But he was thinking it." Rachel stared at him wide-eyed. "Loudly!"
"Yeah, I'm sure he was," Scott said, holding her gaze steadily. "Every teenage boy does. It's the ones who keep it to thoughts that matter. The ones who push? Destroy 'em."
"But Dad."
Scott smirked and leaned forward. "Okay, Rach. What were you thinking?"
"I was thinking it had been a nice date until he got all super-perv on me!"
"Did you kiss him first or did he initiate?"
She paused and thought about it for a moment. "What difference does it make?"
Scott smirked. "I'm just wondering if you even wanted to kiss him…"
Rachel blushed deeply as she turned his way. "If you try to say that this is my fault that he can't keep his mind out of the gutter-"
"No, obviously not. I'm just pointing out that you were ready to be physical too, and he was only thinking about the future."
"But just a kiss! Not - ugh!"
Scott let out a breath and leaned back in his chair. "He let the kiss end when you wanted it to?"
Rachel sat back in her chair and crossed her arms. "Yes."
"So he was just thinking about how he'd like things to go down the road?"
"Like a pervert."
"Rach…" Scott sighed and rubbed his hand over his face.
"They can't possibly think like that about everyone all the time."
"God, if your mother was here, she'd be laughing," Scott muttered.
Ororo had by that time, turned partly away from them and had one hand over her mouth to hide the feeble attempt at avoiding outright laughter. Especially since her shoulders were shaking from silent giggles.
"You're no help, 'Ro," Scott shot her way.
"She's thinking like a rational reasonable person, Scott," Ororo managed, though she was grinning broadly. "They can't possibly think like that all the time, can they?"
"Dammit, 'Ro."
Ororo gestured broadly. "I'm not a telepath, Scott. I cannot answer that with any true knowledge."
"Dammit, 'Ro."
Ororo entwined her fingers and rested them on her crossed knees. "Yes, Scott? I was under the impression that you'd have some wisdom to give your sweet daughter on this matter."
Scott gave her the driest look he could before he sighed and turned back to Rachel. "Look, what I told you about boys… all of that's true. If they start pushing you, deck them. But-" He sighed. "-look, you can't punish them for their thoughts. Lord knows your mother didn't do that to me or I'd be dead a hundred times over."
"Dad."
Scott smirked lightly. "What, did you think you sprang up from the ground fully formed?"
"I would like to think so!" Rachel almost shouted back.
"So you're telling me that when Jan and I were dating, you didn't pick up on any of that…"
Rachel glared at him. "First of all - no because you had the decency not to broadcast it." She drew herself up. "Or did you want me to know what you were up to?"
"I'm just saying: you're old enough to date now. That means you need to learn how to differentiate between what boys would like to do and what they are actually doing or planning."
She crossed her arms again and slouched in her chair. "I know what I'm gonna do …"
"Rachel."
"What?" She smirked. "I didn't do anything. I'm just thinking it."
"Well, now you sound like your mother, so I know you'll be fine."
By that time, Ororo was laughing outright. "Yes, I think she will be," Ororo said, wiping tears from her eyes. When she got a little better control of herself she turned to Rachel with a grin. "Off the record? I agree with you. They should keep their minds out of the gutter. If at all possible." She looked back to Scott. "If only they could discover how to do that at some point in their lives after they reach puberty, all the world would be more relaxed."
Scott gestured to Ororo with a smirk. "You saw my rebound taste. I'm no good for this talk."
"Yes. Every one of your rebounds," Ororo shot back.
"Then if you girls have things under control…"
"Yes, I think we should further discuss this in Salem Center, Rachel," Ororo said. "My treat."
Chapter 22: Spring Is In The Air, Apparently
Chapter Text
Scott shook his head to himself most of the way back to the city after that little meeting with Ororo and Rachel. He couldn't believe that Ororo had managed to make him defend the boy that kissed his little girl. But it hadn't taken all afternoon. And he had time to find a way to laugh about it during his drive. By the time Scott managed to get to the soccer fields where Nate was playing, the first games were already underway, and the sounds of referees blowing whistles on one field or another were easy to hear even from the road.
Rabbi Cohen was watching the games from the sidelines - having promised to show up for the game on behalf of several kids on the field. Nate had yet to take the field, but he was nearly bouncing in place waiting on his turn. When he saw Scott, though, Nate lit up like Christmas morning and waved enthusiastically at his dad.
It was a relief, frankly. After dealing with the uncomfortable situation with Rachel … and having the whole drive back to the city to mull it over ... an enthusiastic Nate was the perfect break. Scott raised one hand in a muted wave - which was all Nate needed to puff his chest out and bounce in place - chomping at the bit to get out there and show off for his dad now that he was there.
"Everything okay with Rachel?" Toby asked as Scott stood next to him.
"Yeah … she took offense to a boy's thought process, that's all."
"Good for her," Toby said, nodding, though Scott was smirking and shaking his head at Toby's obvious misinterpretation.
"I'll tell you about it later," Scott said, his focus on Nate.
Toby did a little double-take. "Oh. Oh," Toby said, made a face, and then turned back to Scott. "Oh, that poor girl. You mean she hears …." Scott raised an eyebrow at him as he turned to face him. "... all the time?"
"Only if they're loud about it, so … yeah, I'd bet most of the time," Scott said, to which Toby made a noise at the back of his throat.
"It'll be a miracle if she ever dates a boy seriously," Toby said, shaking his head at all of it. "Poor girl … I mean, I know they all have to suspect how boys think, but still …"
"If it's all the same to you, Toby, I'd like to just … try not to think about that too much. Especially considering that one of my oldest and dearest friends is far too entertained by all of it and has punished her by taking her out for ice cream."
"How is that a punishment?"
Scott sighed. "It's not. At all."
Toby chuckled to himself but didn't comment further as the game got underway - likely trying to think about what Rachel might or might not have 'heard'.
Nate was doing well right out of the gate, running fast and scoring and assisting with just about every play he was involved in. All while grinning broadly. It was even better, then, when, on the second game he played, he was squaring off with Katie.
Katie had her hair pulled back in pigtails and was also bouncing in place. "You gonna cry if you get your butt kicked by a girl?" she teased Nate.
"You gonna cry if you get your butt kicked by a boy?"
"No!"
"Exactly!"
The first few plays were rough, and it was pretty clear that they were well matched - for now. But … as soon as the whistle blew, it was on, and Katie wasn't taking any prisoners as she flat out ran Nate over. He got up quickly and gave chase, and the two of them fought hard - more or less ignoring their teams as they concentrated on trying to beat each other first and foremost.
The ball went back and forth - and both teams were scoring - and every goal was accented by one or the other doing their best 'in your face' that had been recorded in kids that age. But during the final showdown, Katie was more than ready to go, and she zipped past him, leaving Nate not only stunned but determined not to let it stand, either.
Which meant the kiddie soccer game was getting far more cutthroat than either kid's coach was prepared for.
Nate had just caught up to Katie and was running level with her, but as soon as he pulled ahead enough that he could kick the ball away from her, she faked him out, dribbling the ball backwards so it was behind her feet and Nate kicked air instead - with enough force that he went flying.
Katie burst out giggling and then ran with the opportunity, all while Scott could see exactly what words Nate was muttering through mouthfuls of dirt and was not happy about it.
Nate brushed himself off and went back into the game, though much more sullen and less smiley than before. But time was running out - and he was more determined to keep from letting her get another goal in, even if neither team scored again. He was angry with himself for not seeing the set-up as Katie pulled it - and more angry with himself, once the game was over, that he let it mess with his gameplay after the fact.
He was just getting a good scowl on when Katie bounced over with a grin. "Good game," she said before she very quickly kissed his cheek and then headed back for Clint, leaving Nate staring after her and Scott shaking his head with a grin.
"We need to have a word about your boy," a deep and rich voice said - from just behind Scott - and the angle was such that he knew without turning that this guy was big and tall.
It was such a shock that Scott's first reaction was to take a defensive stance, though he also switched the visual on the bionic eyes Stark had given him to scan for anyone else in the area and to quickly realize that at least this guy was alone.
Though when he turned to see Luke Cage, he almost repeated Nate's words - which would have only cemented the kid's problem - before he caught himself. "Give a man a heart attack."
"All I've done so far is say hello," Luke defended with his arms crossed. "But like I said: we need to talk. And I came all the way out here from Harlem to do just that. Your business if you go and have a heart attack about it."
Scott shook his head. "Whatever Nate did-"
"Wrong boy."
"Seriously?" Scott straightened up. "What did James do?"
"You mean aside from kissing my daughter?" Luke asked - a little louder than he'd honestly meant to. "She was supposed to be getting help with her little science project, but if this is what your boy considers help..."
"...what?" Scott couldn't come up with a better response. James had never gotten into trouble, and he hadn't even seemed interested in flirting with any of the girls in the neighborhood… Scott shook his head as he thought about it - and realized that even if he wasn't flirting with the neighborhood girls, all of the Avengers that had kids close to his age were bringing them to the tower - and at one point or another, most of them were going to him for tutoring help.
Jessica Jones was laughing a few paces behind Luke, and Dani was behind her, arms crossed and not looking amused one bit. All the while, Jessica had one hand over her mouth to keep it from bubbling out too much, but still … "I told him it was her idea," she said, with Dani echoing 'it was!' before Dani shook her head and ran off to hear how the game went for Katie. "But Luke can't seem to believe his sweet little girl would take the initiative. No idea how he got so delusional."
Scott spared her a smirk but was still shaking his head. "Did you ask Dani what the story was?" he asked Luke. "Because James doesn't get into trouble. He just doesn't."
"I didn't come down here to get redirected on how angelic you think your kid is," Luke said. "I came down here to make sure you knew that your boy is on notice."
"He didn't ask Dani or James," Jessica said, cutting over him. "Dani told him what happened; he's gone deaf to anything like common sense."
Scott shook his head. "It's just that kind of day," he muttered.
"What else happened?" Jessica asked. "Because now I'm curious." She tipped her head to where Dani and Katie were cackling with laughter next to a grinning Clint.
"Rachel decked a boy."
Luke gestured openly. "See. That's how it's supposed to work. Boys bein' fresh get laid out."
Jessica narrowed her eyes and tipped her chin up at Luke. "Sure about that?" But Luke just nodded, looking as serious as he was able, so Jessica turned back to Scott. "Anyhow. I wasn't going to let him come down here and start anything that didn't need to be started. James is fine. He didn't do anything wrong except, you know …be a boy and breathe."
"I didn't think he would," Scott said. "I taught my kids right." He tipped his head toward the soccer field. "And, apparently, they keep attracting girls who kiss first. Or did you miss Katie and Nate over there?"
"Yeah, but that's the new Hawkeye," Luke said with an ill-hidden laugh. "Bumps and bruises and everything that goes with it."
"They're getting kissed because they're good boys," Jessica said.
Scott gestured to Jessica with one hand. "They are. And they know what I expect of them. And they have a telepathic sister who would send them into next week if they even thought otherwise," he added, leaving out the part where James wasn't exactly open to Rachel all the time.
"You just tell that little troublemaker that I'm keeping an eye on him," Luke said, looking perfectly serious as he pointed at Scott. "And there won't be any more one-on-one tutoring sessions."
"Fine by me. You tell your daughter to make sure he wants to kiss her if she wants another one."
Jessica snorted at that. "He wasn't complaining," she said as she pulled on Luke. "Leave him alone. He got your stupid macho message." As she passed Clint by, and they caught up with Dani, Jessica raised a hand to wave - then loudly called out "Oh wow! Is that Iron Fist?" just to irk Clint, which at least had Luke in a better mood. Even as Scott's smile fell completely.
"Shut up, Jessica," Clint called back.
"No way to talk to your adoring fans, Iron Fist."
"I hate you, you know that?"
Jessica turned with a huge grin and blew a kiss as she walked backward. "Right back atcha, big guy. See you at work."
"Are you okay with all … whatever it is that just happened?" Toby asked as Clint and Jessica traded a few last snipes back and forth. "Because I kinda think I could use a drink."
Scott finally relaxed slightly and rubbed his eyes. "The kids being kids part? Yes. The Avengers going back and forth with me at a public game? I'll need to get back to you on that. And possibly spend a few days elsewhere." With that, and with a heavy sigh, he turned to go gather up his youngest.
Just a few hours passed after Scott and Nate got home when James came in with Steve - though Steve was wearing an inducer, which was new. As soon as the door was closed behind them, Steve flipped it off and called out to Scott. "It's already being handled, by the way. The Luke and Jessica thing."
"You came here in an inducer to tell me you're handling my son's love life?" Scott asked dryly, even though he was actively sweeping the neighborhood with long-range scanners from where he sat.
"Didn't want to draw any more attention in case people were looking for Avengers," Steve said. "And it's not about his love life. It's about a noisy security breach." He looked down at James, who looked like he was ready to pack up and move again, since this broke all the usual ways of dealing with things. "So you know, James didn't do a thing wrong."
"Oh, I didn't think he did," Scott promised, even going so far as to pause his scan to smile James' way. "She kissed you, huh? Nice."
James dropped his bookbag by the door. "Not my idea," he swore. "But I'm not dumb enough to tell her no, either."
"You can if you don't want her kissing you," Scott pointed out. "But…"
"She's cute," James said with a shrug and an understated, crooked smirk.
Scott smiled. "She is. And she must have noticed you're just as good-looking, kiddo. Good taste, that one."
James scrunched up his nose. "Yeah, okay. Su-ure."
Scott got to his feet and squeezed James' shoulder on the way past before he gestured for Steve to follow him to the living room. "I did a scan at the soccer game after Luke showed up, and no one in the immediate area was suspicious, but the gossip is going to spread."
"Clint was swearing up a storm, in case you missed it," Steve said. "He said Natasha was on the move before Luke opened his mouth."
"I noticed, yeah," Scott said with a small smirk.
"Luke honestly thought you were settled and not hiding - Jessica, too," Steve said. "For what it's worth."
"Sounds like you need to remind your team the reality on the ground for mutants," Scott said, his eyes narrowed. "It's better, not genocidal, but…"
Steve nodded. "Already done. And Luke is ticked off at himself. Jessica is … well. Jessica. It was a fluke thing on his part, and I'm sure if Natasha and Tony hadn't both chewed him out about how he approached initially, he'd be apologizing for throwing a monkey wrench in the works."
"Good. Then he can help deal with the fallout if there is an issue."
"He already volunteered to," Steve agreed.
Scott nodded once and then, simply because he could understand it, relaxed his stance slightly. "I get it, though. My daughter's dating now, too. I get it."
"I'm sure you do," Steve said. "And between you and me, Jessica had a talk with Dani about warning a person before kissing them."
Scott nodded. "It's just something about my boys. Katie kissed Nate's cheek after she made him eat dirt at the soccer game. It's just that kind of day, apparently."
"All three, huh?" Steve asked with a crooked smile. "I heard about Rachel from Storm."
"You didn't see the sudden gray streak in my hair?" Scott asked with a light smirk.
"Don't know if it'll help or hurt, but even if James wasn't expecting it - kid ran with it. You know who to blame." He was grinning as he looked toward James, who was headed up the stairs.
"Not even surprised," Scott said, shaking his head with a smile at the very corner of his mouth.
"Call if you have any trouble, huh? I'll let you know if we see anything out of the norm at all."
"Will do," Scott promised. "And Steve?" He let his shoulders drop. "Thanks."
"Sure thing. I'll keep the inducer for pick-ups - and it'll be me for a while. Until we know for sure."
"Alright. I'll make sure James knows what's up."
Chapter 23: The Affairs of Teenagers
Chapter Text
As it turned out, Tony went out of his way to ensure that his little genius was well protected. Security breaches on the whole were down dramatically, even considering the company's reasonably good record in the field. With James there - and Scott's concerns well known with those in charge, they went above and beyond to keep the boy and his family safe - and secret from the public at large, which was quite the feat when James was coming and going in an image inducer for years. It also became more important as he got older since the older he got, the more he resembled Logan, and even if the old man had been dead for years, that didn't mean that his face wasn't well known enough to be forgotten.
But all of that found its own way of leveling out. And Scott found himself far more engaged with their every day activities. James tried to be on autopilot as much as possible to streamline his own schedule and to keep from upsetting anyone else's. He also started staying in the city longer every day after the 'school day' was over. Rachel was making leaps and bounds at school and even mentoring some of the younger kids that came in with mental prowess that they needed to master … and Nate was still doing his best to break records in every sport he ever took half an interest in, cementing that the Summers competitive nature was alive and well in the new generation.
More fun than that, though, was the kids' personal lives. The little romantic entanglements of the Summers kids continued to be varying degrees of problematic, entertaining, and flat out sweet for Scott to watch over the last couple of years since 'the day of many kisses', as Clint was calling it. Rachel had the same draw that her mother did - and always seemed to have a handful of boys tripping over themselves to try and charm her, though rarely did she bother allowing them to do so. Not when she already knew what they were thinking. Anyone who actively thought like any normal teenage boy was disqualified immediately - and often with no small amount of disappointment from Rachel. Especially when it was someone she thought was particularly good-looking or otherwise nice.
She simply couldn't stand that outlook, even if she was now sixteen years old and really wanting to go on dates with her friends now that she could drive. But … that didn't overrule her own personal codes and morals, and boys who only had sex on the brain were absolutely off limits. Not only because the objectification made her feel gross but because she really didn't want her dad to have a heart attack any time soon. He was having enough trouble with James and Nate to expect him to survive his daughter getting involved with questionable boys.
James' issues stemmed from his uncanny knack of finding new dates every few months - half of whom were the offspring of someone in the Avengers' orbit. Scott still wasn't sure how the kid was meeting the ones that weren't at the tower, though, so that was a slightly different and less controlled situation than what he was used to seeing around the young man. Which was really where the trouble was.
At thirteen, James wasn't quite old enough to be trouble on the dating front - even if he looked a few years older. Until rather recently, the most he was after was someone to watch movies with and steal kisses, but with unverified girls that hadn't been through Natasha's strict screening process…
Scott hated to think that someone would use a teenage girl to go after the kid, but he knew it wasn't outside of the realm of possibility, so he was on alert with everyone Natasha, Clint, Tony, and his own kids told him James was meeting up with outside of the tower.
Then there was Nate.
Nate had been pushing harder and harder in sports from the moment he'd gotten involved in them. Which was fine, and lined up with his competitive nature. Scott certainly couldn't fault him for that. But ...he'd gone a little too far during a hockey game and ended up with a broken collar bone and was sure he was slowly dying because of it - and because of the fact that he'd just transferred to the Institute in Westchester with Rachel. It was a double hit for Nate. Not only was he out of the game for the rest of the league's season and missing tryouts for the next sports season, but he was separated from Katie for the first time since they'd moved to the city.
He still got to see Katie on the weekends when he and Rachel came home or mid-week occasionally when she'd come to spend time with a few of the kids at the institute, but … it wasn't as much fun for him at school, and he was working hard to get better control so he could go back to public school.
But that left Scott alone all week with James - and James was increasingly concerned that Scott wasn't going to be able to make it so far from Rachel and Nate. The two of them had just gone back upstate for the week, and like they did every week, James went along with him to drop Nate and Rachel off, feeling like a third wheel in an otherwise well-balanced machine. The drives back to the city were always quiet - and James had noticed on more than a few occasions that Scott's attention would be drawn by houses for sale within a more reasonable distance to the school. It didn't take anything at all for him to put it together … and decide on a plan of action.
"Dad?" James said quietly, unsure if it was even something he should bring up.
"Yeah?" Scott replied, half distracted just a few miles before they got on the freeway.
"You know, if you want to get rid of the place in Brooklyn and move out here to be closer, I can probably just … stay with someone in the city." When Scott frowned and quickly looked his way, James tacked on another option. "Or I can quit the tutoring and stuff. I'm almost done with the last tests and I'm sure MIT can wait.."
Scott shook his head quickly. "No, no," he said. "You don't have to do anything like that. And I wouldn't leave you behind, either. You're my son."
"I know," James said a little softer. "But it would be easier for you if I-"
"Nate wants to get back into public school as soon as possible, and your tutoring is going well. Tony was just telling me last week that he's got MIT on speed dial wanting to work out a distance program for you so you don't need to leave the company. This is just a temporary thing, James," Scott assured him. "I'm trying not to uproot us. The house in Brooklyn is a good place - for all of us."
"I just know you've been going nuts with Rachel gone … and now Nate too? Come on."
Scott shook his head. "I'm fine, James. It's hard to transition to raising teenagers, that's all." He smirked James' way. "It used to be you all needed me every second for games and snacks and hugs; now you're all growing up."
"Well if you still want to lose at Mario Kart …"
"Maybe I do," Scott said, smirking harder. He turned his attention back to the road as the light turned green. "I'm proud of the people you're becoming - all of you. I hope you know that. I don't want to stand in your way."
"That's not even close to an issue," James said. "I just … I know there's not much else I can do to help."
Scott reached over to squeeze James' shoulder. "Not something either of us can fix, James. We just have to wait it out until Nate has a handle on things, and with Rachel staying in Westchester to help Betsy, we'll just find our new normal again. We always do."
"Okay. I just felt like I had to offer an option. You deserve to be happy, too, Dad."
"I love you too," Scott promised. "But you're part of the family; don't discount that. I wouldn't want to be separated from you any more than I like being separated from your siblings."
James was quiet as he weighed his words, not wanting to let Scott think that he wanted to go any more than he wanted everyone to be at odds. "Should be easier mornings anyhow, huh?"
Scott smirked and nodded. "Besides, this gives us time to hang out just us - and I will win at Mario Kart. You're delusional."
"Yeah, I'll take it easy on you, don't worry."
Scott snorted. "I'll order the pizza. You set up the game."
"James," Natasha said slowly with a perfectly even tone as she and Katie stepped into the space Tony had given him to invent and experiment in. "You have to stop meeting girls at their discretion before I can look into them."
"Why?" James asked without looking up from the programming job he was going through at his 3D printer. "No one knows or cares who I'm related to anymore."
"You know that's not true," Natasha said, crossing her arms.
"Well … no one outside of the spandex crowd even knows I exist, so …"
"They don't know you exist because I've worked very hard to keep you safe," Natasha said with some heat. "And your father has bent over backwards to do the same. Tony too, for that matter."
James let out a breath and pushed back from his desk to face her properly as he crossed his arms. "Okay. You're going to need to pick a direction," James said slowly. "Either … I'm in constant danger and I need to stay holed up and hidden indefinitely, or I'm relatively safe and should try and make friends with people that don't have aspirations to become Avengers."
"You know it's not that simple."
"Yeah, well … is it that bad, Katie?" James asked in an open attempt at deflecting. "You went with last time for coffee …"
Katie held up both hands. "Hey, I'm only here because Mom has to take me to cello practice after she does whatever this is. Leave me out of it."
"'This' is called a guilt trip," James said. "And a bad one at that."
"It's called security," Natasha said. "And you're old enough and smart enough to understand it."
"I do understand it," James said. "I keep an eye out for trouble. I did research into all the baddies and all their bad little kids … so I know what they look like and how to avoid them. You know. It's fine. Most of NYC isn't made up of creeps. Even the ones without spandex in their veins aren't all bad."
"Says the boy," Katie grumbled - since, as she was getting older, she was discovering as Rachel had what boys their age were usually thinking about.
"I know. All boys are fundamentally horrible people," James said. "But there are a pretty fair few stalkery women too."
"And not every one of them is going to be related to a bad guy," Natasha pointed out. "And the kinds of people after what you have and what you're capable of aren't above using young girls to lure you. I'd know."
"Okay, but you're not telling me what it is you want me to actually do about it outside of not talk to anyone unless you preapprove them for chatting. Which sucks the fun out of it." James held out both hands. "You told me to make friends. Socialize."
"Don't go with them unless I vet them," Natasha corrected him. "Talking is fine."
"What do you think I'm doing? Talking and coffee ...98% of the time."
Natasha shook her head at him. "Yes. Away from others. That's my point."
"So I need a chaperone for coffee too?" James challenged. "Because nothing says 'don't look suspicious' like walking around with an Avenger all the time."
"I want you to at least tell someone where you're going, who you plan to be with, - and for God's sake, do it someplace close so if there is trouble, we can help. Half the time, I don't even know who you're dating or that you've gone out until after the fact!"
He leaned back in his chair. "Fine. Give me a list of approved coffee shops and I'll do what I can to stick to it."
"Fine," Natasha said, turning on her heel to leave.
Katie gave James an apologetic smile. "You should have seen her after my first date. Sorry about this," she said before Natasha called for her to catch up.
"You're getting grumpy in your old age, Aunt Nat!" James called out just to irk her even as he smiled at Katie. "Not as 'black' anymore either."
Natasha let out a wordless noise, and Katie grinned. "Hey, say hi to your brother for me, wouldja?" Katie said.
"Any love notes you want passed?" James called back. "Boxes with check yes or no?"
Katie giggled. "Yeah, 'when are you coming back from Westchester; please sign and date'."
"I'll draft it for you in purple crayola," James said.
"Please and thank you!" Katie called out before the door closed behind them.
James hummed to himself then took his phone out to draft up a quick text. So, what do you say, Mayday? You gonna leave me hanging or are you going to go out with me? I just got the ticked off Aunt treatment and she wants to know that who I'm seeing isn't a security breach. I didn't mention who I was asking, but I know you're cleared.
There was a pause and James smirked as he watched the three dots dance, waiting for her to respond before finally: I will only date you if you come and introduce yourself to my parents.
They've both seen me here.
Dad doesn't know you've been asking me out or that you're ignoring other girls to get my attention. Yes. I know you've been ignoring them.
James sighed. Queens was definitely out of the radius that Natasha had established for him … but on the other hand, little May Parker was absolutely cleared as the daughter of an Avenger. It really boiled down to what was more attractive to him. Keeping Natasha's head from exploding or impressing Peter Parker's troublemaking but very attractive daughter who he knew was interested in him. He looked across the hallway though the glass separating his lab from Tony's as he weighed it out. It was a no brainer. I can be there in an hour.
Not tonight! I have school in the morning- not all of us are so far ahead of schedule.
James smiled crookedly to himself. He knew tonight wouldn't work but he liked to rile her. Friday then?
The three dots danced and stopped several times before May finally answered. Coffee after you talk to my parents. 3:30. Don't be late.
I won't be. See you then.
Scott was visiting the tower more often lately. It had taken him a while even to go once, because he still didn't like to associate with the team in their work environment, and the last time he'd been had been when Jan got hurt. But the more time James spent there, the more Scott knew he needed to check in and support James so James didn't feel any more like a third wheel than Scott knew he already felt. He just had to remind himself that it was like going to Nate's soccer games.
So, Scott had started going - and was going more often lately, especially with Nate and Rachel in Westchester. His world revolved around the kids, and James was the only one home for the moment. So, he went where James was.
He smirked when the first person he saw was Jan. It had taken the two of them a while to figure out how to maintain their friendship when they both knew they deeply cared about each other, even if they'd broken up. But, somehow, it was easier once Jan started dating Tony Stark. It was easier for Scott to play a protective friend than to walk a careful line of trying not to fall back so easily into the way things had been between them once. And she seemed genuinely happy with Tony - surprisingly so - so that made things easier too.
"Oooh! Good timing!" Jan said when she saw him. "You came by between strikes in the prank war! You should be safe today. Tony's still trying to figure out how to get James back."
"Oh, good, because last time, I was picking feathers out of my hair for hours," Scott said, shaking his head as he closed the door behind him.
"You know, Tony apologized for that for ever, too," Jan laughed. "But it's back in his court … I'm not sure how the counter strike is going to go when your boy managed to rig one of Spidey's cartridges and webbed him to the ceiling."
Scott laughed outright. "That's my boy."
"You know, he's kind of asking for it when he lets the kid help him design triggers?" She pulled him along to the kitchen - already offering him a cup wordlessly. "So. Anything new with you? Anything that maaaybe I don't know about yet that I should know about?"
Scott shook his head with an easy shrug as he took the coffee. "It's been nice to have more one-on-one time with James lately. You wouldn't believe the games of Risk that have been going on at our house."
"Yeah? I already know better than to play chess with him. Is he getting sassy with you finally?" She was grinning widely.
"Mostly when I'm winning at Mario Kart," Scott chuckled. "Or if I have a blue shell."
"I'll have to take you by Tony before you go because you need to see the sassiness - he's got something for you to watch but … before that, I have news … and I want to be sure that all is good in your world."
"Other than Nate regularly contacting me to complain that he's ready to get back to public school?" Scott smirked and tapped his temple. "Which I would believe more if he could maintain the contact."
Jan made a disappointed face. "Poor guy. Being overly upset can't help with that, either, I'll bet."
"Nope. And he hasn't figured out yet that it's a who that he misses, not a what," Scott said, clearly entertained.
"Mmmhmm. Well. Give him a little time. He'll get it, and when he does, I totally have a new place to go for wings that I'd love to take him to," Jan said, nodding to herself before she subtly held her left hand out in front of herself and wiggled her fingers. "So …. News…"
"I noticed," Scott said, smiling outright. "I was wondering if you could stand to keep it to yourself much longer."
"How long have you known?!" Jan said, looking shocked - but delighted.
"Jan, I have eyes that pick up metal on everyone I encounter. I saw before you took your hand out from behind your back." He paused. "And when Tony was carrying it in his pocket for weeks."
She grinned wider. "Well. You have the scoop on the press. We agreed not to let it out until you knew - and it has to be a controlled release. Don't want the press swarming our little wonder kid accidentally."
Scott nodded along to everything she said before he simply pulled her into a hug. "I'm really happy for you - but I also feel like it's my job to say if he hurts you, I'll put him through every wall in the tower. Just so you know."
Jan grinned wider and wrapped him up in another tight hug. "Aww, such a sweet guy."
"Got your back, Jan - you know that," Scott said, pulling her into a spinning hug. "And congratulations."
"Thanks, Scott. It means the world to me. And now … since you're ahead of the curve as you should be … you really need to see the video Tony has for you. He's been laughing for days over this thing. I mean … I didn't realize sass was that strongly genetic."
"What's the video?" Scott asked.
"James giving Natasha a hard time. Like … to the point she was nearly sputtering."
He grinned. "Then yes, I definitely need to see it."
She laughed as she pulled him over to Tony's lab - which was right across the hall from James, both for security and supervision issues - and as luck would have it, Tony was laughing and watching the video in question with Steve. "Oh, good. I need to know - is he like this at home, or does he save it up just for our Widow?" Tony asked when he saw Scott and Jan.
"It's for her … or for when I take Australia in Risk."
Tony was almost giggling as he cued the video up and turned the screen slightly for Scott to watch - again, the discussion at hand was security, and again, James was working loopholes and twisting Natasha's words on her like a pro - all while looking so much like an overly smug Logan it was almost illegal.
Scott shook his head. "And there's his father."
"I don't know," Tony laughed. "Awful lot of mom in there. Lawyering up all over the place."
Scott chuckled again. "You didn't have to deal with him as often as I did. They were a matched set."
"I don't know about how much we didn't have to deal with," Steve said, shaking his head. "His father gave me flack every single chance he got. The man called me his sidekick, for cry eye."
"And I had both of them trying to give me and the professor flack. In tandem."
"Yeah, but I saw her turn on him and play defense for you a couple times," Steve said. "I think she did it just to get that fully blindsided look of betrayal out of him."
"No, it was because I was right," Scott said as if it was that simple.
"Obviously," Steve said, shaking his head with a laugh.
"So … is that normal all the time at home or does he save it for special occasions?" Tony asked.
"He's never that obstinate with me," Scott admitted. "Must just be for Nat."
"Makes sense to me," Steve deadpanned. "Her spy-Nat expression doesn't work on him. He just gives it right back to her and asks what he wins when the staring contest ends." Steve grinned to himself. "Gets her worked up every single time. Even if I'm pretty sure she loves it."
"Jan tell you about the webbing bomb?" Tony asked, his expression somewhere between irritated and proud. "He won't tell me how he got a hold of one of those canisters."
"Oh, well," Jan said, grinning crookedly. "I know."
"Yeah, and you're not sharing," Tony said, rolling his eyes. "I can guess just fine. Little May's been spending a lot of time making excuses to get him out of the lab.."
"Yeah," Jan laughed. "And he runs with it when he's not instigating trouble here."
"Aside from the little prank war, he's really not causing trouble," Tony defended. "And if you tell him that this war is good for him, I'll deny it, but it really is getting him even more creative than usual. I've been taking apart the trigger system he rigged for that webbing attack all morning. Amazing work."
"High praise," Jan said his way with a crooked grin.
"He's earned it," Tony defended. "And if he can keep his focus on his work … then MIT will be bending over backwards to work around his schedule." He turned to Scott. "They probably would anyhow, but considering security, I still think it'd be best if he worked for his degrees remotely. I'm reasonably sure I should have done the same thing - but I wanted away from my dad at the time."
"Totally not the problem here," Jan said with full confidence. "But … Mr. Summers, I think I'd like a moment to chat with you, if you don't mind terribly. I have a wedding to plan and I'd like your input while these two act like teenagers."
"Do they ever stop?" Scott asked, one eyebrow raised.
"No. So it's best to leave them to it." She pulled on his arm to lead him away from the two snickering Avengers who were continuing the tape where James had called Natasha the 'grayer widow' and gotten an actual huff out of her.
Chapter 24: Crushed
Chapter Text
As it turned out, Clint and Natasha's second-oldest girl was a mutant, which meant the trip to Westchester for the family - not that Katie was at all bummed about it. She'd been missing her best friend fiercely and couldn't wait to tell him about how his brother was getting into trouble with May Parker and how Spidey refused to believe that May was the source of the trouble.
Nate seriously needed to hurry up and be done with his telepathy control stuff so Katie could get back to teasing people with him.
So she was grinning as she bounded out of her parents' car and bounced past Mia - who knew exactly who Katie was looking for and directed her toward the living room with a whispered: "He needs rescuing. An idiot blonde has him cornered."
Which was great! Then Katie could tease him about being the damsel in distress again.
Except… Nate didn't need rescuing. In fact, Katie barely got a glimpse of the two of them on the couch in a lip-lock before she slammed the door shut, turned purple, and skipped out of there as fast as she could.
She'd never seen Nate kiss anybody else before, and she didn't know what to do with that information. Her brain was basically rejecting the whole idea on the premise that it was too weird.
She made it out to the family car - her mom was dealing with Storm and talking about Lexi's newfound ability to gossip with every bird in New York and to talk to Lucky - and had thought that no one had noticed her quick escape until her dad got in the car from the other side and sat down with her with one eyebrow raised.
And, look, everyone always talked about how her mom was the spy and could get what she wanted with a look, but when her dad pulled that look, it was all over. The next thing Katie knew, she just started crying, and she couldn't figure out how to stop, especially once her dad hugged her and that just seemed to be like giving her permission to fall apart even more.
Eventually, when she felt like she'd cried hard enough that she was starting to come back down to Earth, Clint asked, "So, what happened - and is anyone going to care where I bury the body?"
Despite how terrible she was feeling, Katie ended up laughing as she shook her head and wiped her eyes. "It's stupid," she said, her cheeks still burning bright red.
"Doesn't look stupid to me," Clint said.
"It's Nate."
"I stand corrected."
Katie burst into a little laugh and finally managed to get her cheeks dry. "He's just… never … I mean, I didn't mean to walk in on him making out with a bottle-blonde, but…"
"But he's an idiot."
Katie sniffled and nodded. "Yeah. I mean, I guess he can kiss whoever he wants… I just…" She drew her shoulders up. "I guess I like him, Dad."
"You can do better."
"Yeah, I know," Katie said. "I just didn't even know I liked him, y'know?" She winced out a tiny smile. "Oops?"
Clint couldn't stop his smile. "I honestly don't know if you're more like me or your mom that way."
"Well, Mom says she figured it out one of the times you were, like, dying, so at least I didn't do that," Katie pointed out.
"Maybe he needs to be dying to figure it out … I can arrange that, you know. I know a guy."
Katie laughed and rested her head on Clint's shoulder. "Love you too, Dad."
"Sorry your friend is a moron," Clint said, pulling her in for a bear hug. "If it makes you feel any better at all, most guys at his age are. Hell. most guys at my age are. Sorry 'bout that."
"Yeah, Rachel was complaining about it last time the Summerses were over," Kate said with a small smile.
"I have heard a lot about what little Rachel Summers has been forced to hear."
"Have I mentioned I'm perfectly happy being a non-telepath human?" Katie said, her eyes wide. "Because I am. Very, very happy about it."
"I'll bet. Come on, let's say good luck to your sister and get out of this place, huh?"
Katie nodded and gave her dad one more hug. "Let's jet," she agreed.
"Taser arrows," James said out of nowhere. "I can make 'em tiny. Like darts. He won't see them coming."
Katie looked up from the homework she had been doing at the tower. James was ridiculously sneaky, which she didn't think was fair, and she hadn't heard him coming until just that moment when he'd spoken up. "Who won't see them coming?" she asked.
"Anyone that's dumb enough to have ticked you off," he said, raising one eyebrow. "Anyone I know?"
"Oh, just that idiot brother of yours has been kissing blondes," Katie grumbled, flushing pink. She wasn't sure what had given her away, since she'd sworn her dad to secrecy.
"Glitter bomb if you don't want to hurt him. But I still think a taser is appropriate. Just be sure you shoot him in the butt."
"It would be more satisfying to shoot her, since she was the one, um, being pushy…" Katie said, drifting off and really not wanting to talk about what she'd seen.
"Stink bomb then. Or something to dye her hair … orange. Like neon orange."
Katie smirked. "That last one for sure."
"It'd dye the skin, too." James leaned on the chair next to her. "But … how about a study break?" He peeked over her shoulder. "You've got this lesson down."
Katie let her shoulders drop but closed the book. "Yeah, I was just trying to look busy," she admitted. "Dad keeps offering neutering services, and I love him, but I'm trying not to be that girl, you know? Not like I ever asked Nate out anyway."
"Did you even know you liked him before the skank encounter?" James asked as he offered her a hand up.
"Well, no," Katie said slowly.
"Then you can't kick yourself over it." He leaned toward her and let his voice drop lower. "He was not prepared for her at all. It won't last long. But in the meantime, you look like you could use a coffee. Or a cocoa. And I have a short list of coffee shops that your mom won't stroke out over if I go to them … so we need to ignore that list and find a new one."
Katie laughed. "She might stroke out if she thinks I'm rebounding with you - especially if she thinks I'm rebounding cheating with May's guy."
"You're not rebounding. You're just … getting some coffee with me." He snapped his fingers. "You're my chaperone. Responsible party."
"James, I hate to tell you this, but if I'm the responsible party, we're all in trouble," Katie laughed.
"We'll have fun," he said, grinning at her. "Come on. What's it gonna hurt? Cross my heart, I'm not hitting on you. You're too much like a dorky little sister to me."
"We're practically the same age," Katie said, rolling her eyes.
"Still not the same."
"One month!"
"So you should be more mature. Are you coming or what?" James was still smiling at her. "May's going to be at her debate club all afternoon and it's definitely time for a break from here. So count yourself lucky because she wouldn't ask before retaliating against him or his skank."
Katie smiled and shook her head. "I'm coming," she said, taking a few quick steps to catch up to him. "Your girlfriend is trouble, you know that? I love her."
"What? She's just … creative. And starting to get spider-powers."
"Which is why you like hanging out with her so much," Katie pointed out. "But if it's alright with you, can we just talk about something not related to dating for a while?"
"Anything but Nate, yes. Please. That's what I was hoping for."
Katie smiled and let James lead the way as the two of them talked about Tony's latest shenanigans, not to mention how Lexi was getting along with classes in Westchester and how James' dad was still trying to fend off single women in their neighborhood without stepping on any toes.
Eventually, they got to the cafe and settled down with their coffee, now well into a discussion of Katie's love of sports colliding with sleazy and sexist coaches the older she got. She told him she was leaning toward cheerleading at this point because the soccer and softball coaches were both driving her nuts.
"I will 100% beat the daylights out of any coach that looks at you crooked," James promised. "I'll even make it look like an accident."
Katie laughed. "Mom's already taking care of it."
"She's a hog when it comes to that stuff you know. And we should really watch out for her the older she gets."
"Well, you know I've been talking to Aunt Jan about designing something for me for that secret project we're definitely not supposed to be even considering…"
"Ah," James said, leaning back slightly.
"Nate let me in on it," Katie explained. "I hope that's okay, even if I'm not, you know…"
"I'm not even sure I'm in on it," James said. "I know about it, sure, I just … don't know that it's a smart move. And even though I know you're going to go into the one team, just … think it over before you commit to anything like the other one."
"Yeah, Jan sat me down to have a good talk when I approached her," Katie told him honestly. "She saw how messed up your dad was after what happened - how messed up he still is - and … she says she'll totally design for us if we do it, but I think I got her version of 'buyer beware'."
James looked surprised to hear it. "Really."
"You know she was really torn up about everything after that breakup, right? Not just the romantic angle," Katie pointed out.
"Ah, yeah, I was the only one that came up here when it was still fresh," James said. "Pretty sure I buried myself in applied astrophysics for a month. You know … before I ended up spending too much time with Franklin."
Katie nodded. "Still. If it's okay, I'd like to do it if you guys decide to go through with it." She paused. "Even if Nate's still being an idiot. Not like I only wanted to help for him."
"They're going through with it," James said. "I'm the only one on the fence. They've wanted to forever, I doubt they'll back off until they at least try it."
"Then I guess I'll have to back them up so they aren't even stupider than usual." Katie pulled a face. "Nate alone…"
"That is a really big job for just one person," James said seriously. "Both of them when they're secret keeping too?" He let out a noise of disgust. "Makes me glad I can block them out. It's nice to be defective sometimes. Make them speak."
"Actually, I like talking with Nate when he's-" She paused, blushed, and then let her shoulders drop. "Oh, never mind. That would be super awkward right about now."
"Katie. Come on. Don't lose your stride now." He dipped his head down to catch her gaze. "Do you need chocolate or explosives?"
"Um, yes?" Katie said, with one eye closed. "Sorry, I'm just…"
"You can take it out on me if you need to," James said.
Katie let out a laugh that didn't sound like her and instead of getting mad at him she started to cry a little bit. "Not your fault your brother is like this," she said. "And I really should get over it; I should."
James let out a sigh and got up to cross over to her side of the booth and wrapped her up in a hug. "I'm sorry, Katie. It's not your problem to fix."
Katie leaned her forehead on his shoulder as she hugged him back tightly with a soft, "I know."
They would have stayed like that for as long as Katie needed the hug, too - but they were joined by an unexpected visitor. A girl with curly, dark hair and a cropped hoodie that showed off her midriff sat down at their table and tipped her head at the two of them. "So, who's the jerk that made a gorgeous girl cry and can I help pound him?"
"Got it covered, thanks, new girl," James said.
"Yeah, you're a great shoulder to cry on; I can see that," the girl said before she held her hand out to Kate. "America Chavez, by the way. And my offer's good. I think most sleazebags deserve a beating anyway, but for a pretty girl, I'll go out of my way for it."
James couldn't help but laugh under his breath. "Okay, sure … been offered already and he's not that big of a sleaze. Just … stupid."
"He's dating an idiot blonde," Katie explained, smiling in spite of herself at America's brazen approach.
"Over you? Chica, you can do so much better than a blind moron," America said, smiling easily.
"She's not wrong," James said quietly as he sat back, though he didn't move away from her as he watched America.
"Yeah, I've gotten that message a few dozen times over, thanks," Katie said, brushing a hand through her hair.
James drew in a slow breath, subtly testing the air, then turned his head toward the counter. "Would you ladies like a refill? I'm buying."
"Well, if you're buying, I won't turn you down," America said easily.
James slid her a napkin. "Write down what you want. I know what she likes to order."
America smirked, took the napkin, wrote down her phone number - and gave it to Kate instead. "I'll just have cocoa, gracias."
James smirked and stood up. "De nada. You girls have fun. Don't worry, I'll take my time."
Katie was smiling in disbelief as she watched James leave and then pocketed the napkin with America's phone number on it. "Okay, I admit it: that was a good move."
"Hey, my opening move of offering to be a knight in shining armor didn't wow you," America laughed. "And you are very pretty."
Katie blushed. "You're not so bad yourself."
"I'll take it." America leaned forward with a smile. "Is 'not so bad' enough for a coffee date without your friend around?"
"We'll see," Katie laughed, knowing her mom would have a fit if she didn't at least run America's number through a few databases before she went anywhere alone.
When James came back a while later with drinks for the three of them, he couldn't help but slide another napkin to America. "Number of the barista in case you can't get any traction," he said as casually as breathing.
America laughed and pocketed the number. "Consolation prize. Nice. Should I be worried?" She was looking at James but obviously directing the question to Katie, who laughed and shook her head.
"Bout what?" James asked.
"Well, you're the friend she cries on in public. You've got sway," America teased him. "If you're already prepping me for failure with a backup option…"
"I've got a girlfriend. And I like to help wherever I can," he said with a crooked smile.
"So do I," she said, matching his smile with one of her own. "And I think I'm doing fine without the consolation number."
"I help even when it's my own brother being the idiot in question," James said.
"Ooh, that is a good friend. You're lucky, Princess," America said, grinning Katie's way.
"I know it, too," Katie said, smiling over the top of her coffee cup.
America grinned wider and then got to her feet. "Call me when you're ready to wash the taste of the idiot brother out of your mouth," she told Katie, all but bouncing out of the cafe.
James waited just long enough for the door to close behind America before he turned toward Katie with one eyebrow raised - and not a word spoken.
Katie threw both hands up. "I don't know. Maybe."
"She's cute. She seems like fun. And she wasn't being deceptive or sneaky about anything."
"No, I don't have to have a super sniffer to know how open she was being," Katie agreed, smiling in spite of herself.
"It wasn't a line either," James said.
"Well, that's good, because if I do end up kissing a girl, I don't want to dig up that conversation with, like, everyone for a line," Katie said.
"No one will bother you on that front," James said with a wave. "If you go for it now, when you're all … heartbroken, they'd probably just chalk it up to rebound or a fluke thing or … honestly the furthest thing from Nate you can find."
Katie shrugged. "I dunno. I guess it can't hurt to try it out, right?"
James held up one hand. "And I swear I won't breathe a word or have a thought about you or your pretty girlfriend to Nate or Rachel."
"No, no, you can definitely think about it around them," Katie said quickly.
"Yeah, I can. And they won't know anyhow," James said. "Cut 'em out, remember?"
"No, I mean…" Katie flushed. "I mean, turnabout…"
"Test the waters," James said, smirking and nodding slowly. "Yeah, okay. Or … ask her out. We can double. He'd hear about it through proxy by Dad and your mom won't have fits if you're not alone." He pulled out his phone and started texting May.
"James, has anyone told you you're a genius?" Katie asked, leaning over to kiss his cheek.
"Nope," he said, smirking wider as May replied with an enthusiastic 'when and where' that he tipped so Kate could read. "Genius hasn't come up."
Katie grinned. "Okay, but let me at least run her number or my mom will kill me. And besides, you don't call the same day you get the number."
James pointed at the cup America had left behind. "I was gonna run DNA, but sure. A phone trace won't be a problem either."
"Awww, you look out for me so well," she gushed.
"I have to. I'm a whole month older." When he got up, he carefully snatched America's empty cup. "Ready to go back? Just tell May the when and where. Don't worry about her parents. She'll get out anyhow."
Katie laughed. "You two are going to get in so much trouble one of these days. More than the usual level you get into."
He frowned at her. "What are you talking about? We're perfectly innocent."
"Yes, of course," Katie said, nodding along before she pulled her arm through his. "Now, come on. Let's get home so we can set up a double date."
Chapter 25: Trick Or Treat
Chapter Text
"Are you sure it's okay for Kate to bring a date to a school dance at a school she doesn't go to?" Nate asked Rachel with a frown as he put the finishing touches on his costume. A few weeks had passed since Katie and America started dating - or more accurately, double dating with James and May.
"You'd rather she went to the haunted house that America and May suggested?" Rachel countered. "Because you know if May suggested it … it wasn't for the haunted house. It was for the dark corners." Rachel shook her head with a muted laugh. "I swear, her projections are every bit as bad as most of the teenage boys I've gotten mad at."
Nate let out an annoyed breath. "That's not what I meant," he said as he flipped his pirate eyepatch down.
"Well those were the options," Rachel said with a shrug as she finished her makeup.
"Yeah, it's just… we were texting and she told me what they're all doing for costumes…" Nate muttered, not meaning to project to Rachel how he just knew he wasn't going to be able to focus all night. Along with exactly how frustrated he was that Katie was dating someone else.
It can't be that bad, Rachel tried to tell him. And you're dating someone else. I'm just surprised that everyone let them go with America driving.
America can talk anyone into anything, Nate pointed out sullenly.
Yeah, but Dad.
Dad… thinks James is the angel child.
No, Dad thinks that May won't do anything too far off the rails, Rachel corrected. Especially since the plan meant meeting Spidey once they got here.
Yeah, cuz James isn't the one dating America.
No. Just double dating with her. Rachel was smiling to herself - especially since even now, Nate still wasn't fully aware of how sullen he was acting over Katie having a date.
Nate let out a breath and then kicked off from the dresser. "C'mon. Let's watch Spidey have an aneurism."
By the time Rachel and Nate got down to the party, America, Kate, May, and James had already shown up - and as predicted, Spidey was a few steps away from having a cardiac episode as his sweet little girl was having a blast dressed up as Daenerys Targaryen and proudly grinning at the slit in the skirt that went up to her hip. She'd gotten James to go along with her 'freak dad out' plan as a shirtless Khal Drogo. America of course, thought it was the height of hilarity, too, which was all the fuel on the fire that May needed to go through with kicking it up another notch.
She and James stuck around long enough for Mia to gush about their full costumes and makeup, then turned to Kate and America as James and May disappeared with May leading the way through the crowd and giggling madly the whole time.
"You guys look so much better in person in these outfits!" Mia declared, bouncing on her toes as her tail swayed behind her. "The cell phone pic was great but this …"
Kate and America grinned at each other, both of them wearing short skirts as matching Sailor Moon characters - both of them nailing the look complete with pigtails. "Your costume's amazing too," Katie pointed out. "I can't believe Forge put together a working Ghostbuster proton pack."
"Of course he did! He's the best," Mia answered with a warm smile. "Come on! You have to show off for mom before you both get too busy."
America smirked Kate's way. "See, Princess? She knows what's up."
"Oh, hush," Katie said, though she was blushing deeply - and grinning.
Mia dragged them to Storm, gushing the whole way, only to pause when she saw Nate show up across the hall. "Oh. Right. So … did you get your candy yet? Bob for apples before the water gets full of gross."
The pause was so obvious that America leaned over to Kate to whisper "oh look, the idiot," which prompted Kate to fall apart giggling - and got Nate to frown even deeper than before, if that was at all possible.
"Hey, Nate," Kate said, waving his way. "I like the pirate costume."
Nate made a small noise at the back of his throat before his date, Taylor, started to pull him away. "I like your costume too," he managed to say - over his shoulder.
"Yep. Confirmed idiot," America said loud enough that Nate could hear it and turn around to glare at her - only for America to take that exact moment to pick Kate up and kiss her hard.
Nate glared harder, especially when Kate kissed America back just as enthusiastically, and after that, he really wasn't paying much attention to what Taylor was saying anyway.
Across the room, as Nate got more and more irritated with Taylor, Mia let out a squeak and teleported over to Rachel with wide eyes. "Um … Spidey can't … talk. I think your brother is in trouble."
Rachel shrugged, not at all concerned with that brother at the moment. "May picked the costumes, so Spidey can't claim anything against James here."
"Yeah, but he went looking for them and … found them in the corner?" Mia told her quietly. "He looked like he was going to yell, but May just picked up your brother and took off. Laughing."
"Sounds about right," Rachel said, smirking.
"Is Nate okay?" she asked quieter.
Rachel let out a sigh and gestured wordlessly to her sulking brother. "He doesn't even realize he's being like he is. And I'm actively trying not to listen to his thoughts right now ever since he saw the Sailor Moon outfits, thanks. I don't need to know my brother's fantasies. Ever."
"Oh. My. God," Mia said, even more wide eyed than before. "Can you stop him without making him stroke out?"
"I'm not that good yet, and honestly, when I'm annoyed, my touch is more fiery than usual, so… that's a double no."
"How about you step away from the sulking brother then?" Mia suggested. "But I wouldn't go toward the library. I know James is probably blocking you but May …might be problematic." She turned and took in the room at large. "Yeah, you know … I'm betting this whole party kind of stinks for you right now, doesn't it?"
"I'm getting better at tuning them all out," Rachel said. "Actually, the adults are worse in some cases."
"Okay. please don't enlighten me … and how about … we just I don't know … find something to do that's fun?"
"Yeah, let's make my brother play the advanced candy toss Warren set up. He can't resist sharpshooting," Rachel said, smirking.
"Yes. good luck with that, I'll make sure we have enough candy canes." She grinned and disappeared in a poof of smoke - only to return a few moments later and pelt Nate with a few pieces of candy. "Come on! Time to play games!"
Kate and America shared a look and grinned as they took their places at the candy toss. There was a whole line up of quick games both old fashioned and some more modern to keep the students occupied. Everything from apple bobbing and the candy toss to donut jousting and moving candy corn with only straws. Which meant there was much that Kate and Nate could do to compete.
"Partners!" Kate called out, and America was quick to snatch the bucket from Kate's hands.
"Oh, come on," Nate grumbled just low enough that Taylor didn't hear him as she took up the spot next to America holding his bucket, though he raised his voice to Kate and America. "I hope you're ready to get beaten one-handed."
"In your dreams, idiot boy," America laughed.
It was simple enough - Kate and Nate were throwing pieces of wrapped up candy for America and Taylor to catch. The two with buckets weren't allowed to move beyond their reach, so accuracy started with the two throwing and right out of the gate, it was entirely lopsided.
The truth was that Kate and Nate were pretty evenly matched with aim … the problem was that Taylor didn't know that and was trying hard to compensate and impress them by over correcting and panicking when he'd toss something at her.
America and Kate on the other hand … America barely moved. At all. It was child's play to win that round - which frustrated Nate even further as he tried to gently tell Taylor repeatedly to quit. Moving. Which really only showed him that she had zero faith in his skills.
A few tables over, Storm was overseeing the apple bobbing all while encouraging and laughing at the kids that were participating. Lexi had just come up to try, but was nervous about it. Or she was until Spidey came in, marching May ahead of him with one hand on her shoulder - and dragging James along with his free hand, insisting that the two of them stay somewhere public … though his direction was lacking the kind of laser guided directive that James decided was required, and to Peter's absolute irritation, James and May shared a trouble making look and dove into a very public borderline makeout session right there at the apple bobbing station.
Storm busted out laughing, but broke up the fun with a well-placed miniature storm cloud that had May loudly protesting and James laughing with his face tipped up to the rain. "Now that you're already wet, it won't hurt you to show Lexi how it's done," Ororo said as she pulled James back, laughing all the more when he simply used one hand to push the wet hair back and smiled up toward the last bit of the tiny rainshower.
"Are there teams?" James asked.
"Yes, and you're on Lexi's," Ororo said. "Let May find someone else for five minutes."
James was still grinning as he turned to Lexi. "You heard her. She put me on a timer."
Which of course had Ororo laughing again at him. "That is not what I said," she managed through her laugh. "Try to behave yourself."
Lexi giggled, knowing that James was picking at her, but it gave Peter a chance to actually talk to his daughter without James distracting her. It also left James and Lexi joking around as if there hadn't been an angry dad there just a moment ago. "You don't need me to win this," James said over her shoulder, though he hadn't backed away to go after May, knowing full well she should take a few minutes for both of their sakes.
"Your eye liner is running," Lexi laughed.
"Because you're breaking my heart by stalling," James said, gesturing to the apples floating in the water. "Get to it so we can get on with the game."
"Do you have a strategy for me?"
"Don't breathe in once your face is in the water," James said as seriously as he could - at least until Lexi hit him and called him a dork before diving in to try. She hadn't been at the institute for long yet, and she still was a little self conscious around all the kids, but James either didn't have that issue, or he didn't let it show because he seemed to be fine joking around and playing games with anyone around them as he and Lexi kept it up - with both of them giving the other advice - until they got their apples.
Which was when Nate came over ready to take his turn too - and wanting to at least beat America and Kate for time. "I don't know that you're authorized to play in the water, pirate boy," James said as he gestured to Nate's sling.
"It's not a cast," Nate said, frowning at his brother. "You're wearing more eye makeup than Rachel, you know." Lexi took one look at the expression on Nate's face and decided to get out of the line of fire.
"May did it," he said, not at all bothered by Nate's irritated tone, even if he was still dripping water from both the apple bobbing and the short shower that Ororo had hit him with. James grinned at Nate and crunched into his apple, perfectly at ease with all the chaos around them.
"You're supposed to go put caramel on that," America said as she and Kate came over to play, too.
"No thanks, I don't need the sugar," James said as he leaned into the chair nearest him to watch the spectacle. "And I wanna see who wins this round. I think I know already."
Nate narrowed his eyes at his brother but took up a position where he could glare at James if need be.
"You both know the rules here," Ororo said as she joined the little group of teenagers, though she paused to turn toward America. "I take it you would like to race Nate as well?"
"I could, but I already won," America said with a crooked smile. "Isn't that right, princess?"
"At one game, anyhow," James said, which was just enough to get America to shove him sideways and for Nate to regain his grin. "You sure you want to play this one, Katie?"
Kate glared as she took her spot across from Nate. "I'm on a winning streak. I totally want to play this one."
"Yeah, but are you sure?" James asked, only to get smacked in the chest by America.
"She wants to win, chico. No reason to give your idiot brother a chance." America shook her head at him. "Let her do her thing."
Nate and Kate were settled in at the same bucket. The water wasn't terribly deep, but it was still big enough for them to get soaked in if they weren't careful. Not that it was going to make a difference when the two of them squared off. They never could just play a game. It had to be a contest.
"No hands," Ororo reminded them. "And no powers."
"I don't need telekinesis to win," Nate said almost sullenly since, part of what his trouble with getting full control was his unintentional use of telekinesis. And with Katie right there it was a wicked reminder that he still had a way to go. And he hated that fact.
"Come on, little brother," James said. "There's no way you can't win this one."
"Thanks, James," Nate said, smiling crookedly until James continued.
"Your mouth is way bigger than hers."
Nate barely even looked at his brother before he shoved him back a step - aided by his telekinesis, not that it needed to be advertised, and not like James would bust him out on it. "Can we do this thing or what?"
"Waiting on you," Katie said with a smile, and after a quick countdown, the two of them dove into the water face first. Nate was determined, and Katie wanted to keep her winning streak, but … before she could quite isolate one, Nate was up holding one of the bigger apples by the stem between his teeth.
He was grinning around the apple as Katie sat up too, but the smile fell from his face when he realized how soaked she'd gotten and he quickly looked away. Before she could quite figure out what his problem was, Nate was already offering her his overshirt. "You got more soaked than I did," he said quietly, then rushed off once Katie had taken a hold of the offered shirt.
"What was that?" Rachel asked as Nate made his way over to her.
"Nothing," Nate said, still red high on his cheeks. Just trying to be nice. That's all."
Kate spun toward James with a frown as Nate rushed off. "Why did he …"
James cleared his throat and gestured toward her costume. "He probably didn't want you showing off in the impromptu wet t-shirt contest." He shrugged. "Or … he's just like that. Who knows. I'm no telepath." He kicked himself away from the chair he'd been sitting in. "I have to find May and try to talk Spidey down. Probably check on my siblings, too."
"Yeah, make sure he gets his eyes put back into his head," America shouted, then turned back to Kate.
"Worry about yourself, America," James laughed. "See you in a little while… party's almost over." He was still laughing to himself by the time he met up with Nate and Rachel and unceremoniously dropped into the seat next to Nate. "So. Are you okay?"
"I'm fine," Nate said, rolling his eyes.
"That was so chivalrous."
"It's more than you were doing," Nate said, though that only had James laughing to himself.
"Seeing as I had no shirt to share ... I mean … I doubt dropping my pants would have helped her."
"Oh my God," Nate said, covering his eyes with one hand. "I just … I was trying to help. And America wasn't-"
"America wasn't complaining," James agreed, cutting him off. "And she wouldn't."
"Not if she got to take a peek," Nate said almost sullenly, though James let out a long and pained sounding sigh.
"America wouldn't complain because you were helping not … being a slimeball."
"I'm never a slimeball," Nate said, sounding insulted, though that wasn't at all what James was trying to insinuate.
"I know - just … you know what? Nevermind. Have fun with Taylor. I'm going to make the rounds before Dad gets here," James said as he got up.
"Too late, he got here a few minutes ago," Rachel said, tipping her head toward the far side of the ballroom. "He's with Spidey. Have fun."
"Will do," James replied, turning on his heel to head toward where their Dad was having a muted chat with Peter and May Parker, though much of that fell to the wayside when Peter spotted him approaching.
"And here we go," Peter said, half frowning at James as he walked up and stood between his Dad and May. "Done causing trouble already?"
"I was just talking to my siblings," James said with a smile as he reached over to hold May's hand - which got a grin out of her anyhow. "So … probably, yeah."
"I'm telling you, you should have seen them earlier," Peter said, shaking his head. "I'm glad you're here to help me break it up."
"Do I need to break it up?" Scott asked, turning toward James with a raised eyebrow, though James only shrugged one shoulder up in response in a very non-committal gesture.
Until very recently, Scott really hadn't needed to worry too much about James and what he was up to with the girls he dated, but things had changed when he started seeing May Parker. Scott knew that James had been the one to kick things off after a few weeks of tutoring her at the tower for a project she was having trouble with at the Midtown High School Science and Technology, but once they had become an item, he watched as James seemed to simply hand the reins to May and let her run the show entirely.
Which meant that at least Scott knew that if they were getting into more adult situations, it wasn't from James pushing. "If you don't have a good answer, then it's probably time to call it a night," Scott said, and James honestly didn't argue it at all - which Scott thought should have been a signal to Peter that he wasn't pushing. Especially when May made it clear she wasn't pleased with the idea and dragged James off for one more goodnight kiss.
"They've been non-stop all night," Peter said, looking off to where May had disappeared with James. "Pure. Trouble."
"Has he been pushy?" Scott asked, trying to see if he could gently ease his mind.
"No, not really," Peter said, then sighed heavily. "Is it bad that I know I'd really like the kid if he wasn't dating my little girl?"
Scott did a fine job of keeping his smile in check as he shook his head 'no'. "I know exactly what you mean. I feel the same way with anyone Rachel so much as talks about."
Peter turned toward Scott with a perfectly open expression. "Is it easier with boys?"
"No," Scott replied immediately. "No, then you have to worry about everything from a whole different angle. Worry about them making the same mistakes we did at their age …"
"Oh. Man. Yeah … I'll just … I'll just try to get used to the polite and agreeable mini-Wolverine. Even if they're … they're just kissing, right? Tell me they're just kissing."
Scott tried not to laugh, though for as concerned as Peter was, he'd have been lying if he said he wasn't also wondering the same thing. "As far as I know."
Across the hall, America was saying goodnight to Katie since her parents had shown up too. It was the weekend, so those that took their kids back for a few days were picking them up a little later than their usual Friday afternoon timeslot.
While Nate and Rachel waited near the front door for their father and James to make it to them, Katie carefully positioned herself to say goodbye to America, who was driving back alone.
"So. I had a great time," Kate said, pulling Nate's shirt around herself a little tighter, but that was all she got out before America grinned and pulled her into an extended kiss that honestly left them both a little breathless for the moment.
"See you soon, Princess," America said, walking backward to the door before she turned on her heel and almost skipped out of there, leaving Kate in the entry with Nate and Rachel for the longest thirty seconds of her life.
Rachel was giving her a raised eyebrow look, though she was also smirking crookedly while Nate had taken an intense interest in his shoes, though the tips of his ears were cherry red.
The standoff lasted less than a minute but time seemed to crawl by the three of them as Scott and made his way over with James in tow. "You ready to go?" Scott asked when he came to a stop near them.
Nate was silent, though Rachel answered for them both. "Waiting on you, Dad."
Scott nodded and spared Katie a smile that she almost missed, though she didn't miss the sign James managed outside of the other's view. You OK? She nodded and smiled, then smiled wider when Nate peeked up and the Summers family got moving, leaving Kate in a haze from the admittedly good kiss with America and the flannel shirt that she had wrapped around herself … that she had no plans on ever returning.
Chapter 26: November Thrills
Chapter Text
Barely two weeks had passed from Halloween when Tony finally struck - and managed to prank James solidly. It wasn't as simple as a web cartridge gone wrong, but webs were involved. He'd come up from a coffee break - a short one where Clint joined him for the trip to the cafe and James wore his inducer like he did most days. He was still tired from answering the several hundred questions his father had asked him about May and how far they'd taken things - which of course had morphed into a more scarring reiteration of the birds and bees talk, so James wasn't really in the right mindframe to even pay attention to his surroundings like he usually did. Which made him a perfect target.
James walked into his lab, coffee in hand and barely paying attention. He set the coffee down and before he could pull his jacket off, his hands were webbed together in front of him to the bench - inches from his coffee. From there, the light fixture popped and James looked up in time to see a waterfall of foam coming at him. He closed his eyes and tipped his chin to his chest since he knew there was no way to pull away when he was webbed there, and he just took it, though he did bury his face in his hoodie.
Which was fortunate since just before the prank went off, Tony had been called away and the foam was not meant to be left alone for long periods of time.
Jarvis and Happy had come in to get him out of the webbing as soon as they saw that things were amiss -though not before snapping a picture for Tony. Especially since Tony hadn't intended for the prank to go off at all without being in the building himself.
Which was when Katie found herself walking into James' lab and trying not to laugh at the disaster that was half-hardened piles of foam.
"You didn't bring me coffee by chance, did you?" James asked, pushing some of the half set foam into the pile where he'd been trapped not long ago.
"Um. No. What is this?" Kate asked, still grinning since James was working in a tee shirt - and the hoodie he'd been wearing was already stiff and stuck upright. It was pretty obvious that he was going to need to change his jeans soon, too.
"I'm told it was a premature trigger on Tony's prank," James said, then paused and turned her way. "I know. You don't even need to say it. That joke speaks for itself."
"No … the joke that speaks for itself is your hair. Does that stuff come out?"
James sighed. "No. Wanna shave it off for me?" He gestured to the clippers that Jarvis had set down on a nearby bench. "One time offer. Make me bald."
"Are you serious?"
"Has to happen," James said. "I'd rather have someone who can see the back of my head do it for me before I take a shower." He flicked off a blob of foam from his hand. "This stuff will come off in water if it's still wet, but the stuff on my head is already mostly dry. I'm guessing the idea was that he was going to hit the sprinklers before it set up, but …."
"Yeah, I'll give you the look," Kate said, still giggling to herself as he made his way over to a section of the lab that was untouched by the prank. It wasn't exactly easy to get a few of the spots on the back shaved, but with a little encouragement, Kate managed it all the same.
And James honestly didn't look like himself without his hair. "I'll give you anything you want if you get me a new coffee while I wash up," James offered. "Please? Mine got ruined in the foam explosion."
"You didn't tell me Tony attacked coffee too."
"I know. An insult to the empire. Please? At least get someone good to pick out a flavored latte if you don't want to do it for me."
"You must be miserable if you're asking for flavoring …"
"Kate. I just had you shave my head and now I'm going to try and get this yuck to wash off without taking any other hair with it. If you want me to beg, I'll do it when I get out. But now-"
Kate waved one hand. "Yeah, yeah, please go. You stink anyhow. I'll have it taken care of."
James was sullen as he thanked her and headed off for the gym to wash up. He was very sure the prank would have been better if it had gone off like Tony had intended, but now, he found himself jogging to get to the water quicker as his jeans were starting to harden up more and he didn't want to have to peel them off his legs. He was cursing the foam as he scrubbed off bits of it that had cured entirely. It came off his skin easily enough, but it took hair with it so by the time James was done, he was a little grumpy for the bald patches on his arms and legs.
But it had also given Kate plenty of time to not only get a coffee for him - that she was sure to order with caramel, chocolate and marshmallow - but she also had come up with at least a dozen wonderful zingers to accompany his new-found cue-ball look.
She grinned when James called out asking if she had his coffee and spun in place only to lose her smile entirely and stare when James finished walking toward her in new clothes … and with half an inch of dark fuzz already growing on his head.
"You're wonderful, Katie, thank you," James said as he took the coffee, trying desperately to ignore the way she was staring at his head, even when she started to walk around him. Instead of stopping her, though, he simply took a drink, and had to work harder at not making the face he wanted to when he realized how sweet it was. But that wasn't as distracting as how she was still openly staring at him. After she'd gone all the way around him, she still kept staring until finally James closed his eyes and let out a huff.
"Alright I know," James said with a tone of irritation. "Apparently I grow hair, okay? It's a thing."
"You robbed me of all my jokes!" Kate said almost in a breath. "Since when is hair one of your superpowers?"
"Kate …"
"No! I want to know! What kind of a power is that anyhow?"
James scrubbed his hand over his eyes and dropped onto the couch. "I have no idea. I just want my coffee, okay?"
"What do you mean you have no idea? About the hair? How could you not know that? Its your hair."
"Kate … can we not talk about this, please?"
Kate shook her head a few times but finally leaned against the wall, taking out her phone so she could text Nate her reactions if James was gonna be self-conscious about it.
Your brother's secondary mutation is that he can go from bald to having a buzz cut in the time it takes me to get coffee. How's your morning?
He's not old enough for a secondary mutation. But that's just weird. It's so quiet here. We don't have impromptu buzz cuts for no good reason. Just English Lit with Ororo.
I got to shave your brother's head. Ha.
No you didn't. You would have sent pictures.
You can ask him if you need verification. I was gonna take pictures when I got back with coffee; how was I supposed to know the cue-ball look vanished that fast?
How fast are we talking and can we test this theory this weekend?
I won't be party to shaving his head when Mom only ever lets me go out on group or double dates and I need him for that.
There was a long break where it was clear Nate was typing, deleting, and typing again several times. What about if you just documented it? I think I can hold him down with the TK.
That's a good loophole. I'll think about it, Kate texted back with a growing grin.
You know. Unless you're totally busy and can't. I get it.
You act like I'm the socialite of Bed Stuy or something, Kate shot back.
You kinda are. All the group activities and checking your schedule.
Are you jealous?
Bored. My weekends are open outside of whatever Dad has planned.
Doesn't sound like you. Last I saw, you had groupies.
What groupies? I didn't see any.
Aww shucks, ma'am, I didn't notice the blonde hanging on me or the other three giving her jealous looks...
I don't know what you're talking about there, Katie. I thought you heard I ditched the pushy one? You know. For being pushy. And wanting me to talk to her telepathically all the time. She wanted a link up.
Kate could feel her whole face flushing as she tried to not sound or look or smell any different to James when he was in the room too. Oh. That's news to me. I'm sorry she was that pushy, especially when I know your family history with link ups.
You called it. The pushiness.
I did, but I didn't know it was THAT bad.
It wasn't until after Halloween. I don't know what her problem was. Doesn't matter though.
Kate bit her lip. Well, you're always welcome to hang out. You know that, right?
Now I do. Maybe coffee then if you can get coffee with my brother and half the tower, one more won't hurt, right?
Not at all. Join the fun.
I have to say, ma'am, it's been an awfully long time since we got the group together. Without it being some big official whatever. And May really is funny when she gets going, FYI.
I know! She and Cassie and Lexi are actually the best teamup ever, and then add in Dani Cage? You've been missing out not growing up with us Avengers.
Hey, Dad could barely handle James being up there as much as he has been. He'd probably have died if we all were going there that often.
Yeah, true. And I do get it. I mean, my dad went through the five stages of grief when we found out Lexi was a mutant because he's so worried she'll get hurt because of it.
He does know that she's just got a different gene and not like … she's not actively dying. Right?
He does, but my family has also been the point of contact for yours when the worst comes knocking on your doors, remember? And Dad's always been a worrier.
Yeah, trying to forget. It's been a while. Crap. Now I need to knock on wood or something. Hey. Hit my brother in the head for me, would you?
Kate laughed out loud and then hid it behind her hand, even though she knew James had heard her. I miss you. Hurry up and finish your telepathic work!
I'm trying, Nate replied. It just seems like I start to get the TK balanced and the telepathy goes haywire. Or the other way around. Just to screw with me.
Well, let's make a game out of it. I'll bring my bow over and yell PULL and you TK something for me to shoot.
If you come over with your bow, it's just going to be to lose at a shooting contest. And you just said you missed hanging out.
You can't beat me without your TK and you know it.
Sure I can. Happy to prove it, too. I'll even keep proving it until you can accept it.
You, me, a dampener to make sure you can't cheat, and a range. Saturday morning when we come to get Lexi.
You're on. Scardey-hawk.
I literally don't understand how you can think that when I'm the one laying down the challenge. Unless you think I'm scared for asking for a dampener, in which case: Manipulative Telepath Trying to Cheat Alert.
That is a highly specific alert and only applicable to my sister, thanks.
Mmm, no. I know about the Cuckoos and their mom.
That … is not really a parental situation. Budding, I think.
Whatever. Point is, cheating telepaths. You're scared to go without your powers, aren'tcha?
Not even a little bit. And I'll even use the crappy school bow to beat you.
Nope. Not gonna give you the excuse to lessen MY victory. Best bows. And I'll still wipe the floor with you and you'll have nothing and no one to blame but yourself.
Nate started to type up a response, and Katie waited with a grin to see what his retort would be … only instead of a text, her phone rang.
"Calling to forfeit, scaredy cat?" she sang out.
"Calling to remind you that even if they're easily distracted, I can't have even my favorite Hawkeye distracting my students during class," Ororo said.
Kate let out an eep. Even if Natasha had ultimately adopted her, Ororo had always been like a second mom to her since she'd helped rescued her, so this was a pretty serious call-out. "Right. Right. Sorry!"
"I'll be happy to supervise Saturday morning, however," Ororo said.
"Awww, you're the best, Stormy!" Kate said, grinning wider than before. "Love you. Tell everyone there I said hi!" With that, she quickly hung up before she could get in actual trouble, then slipped out to go practice archery.
I can't believe my Dad is making me go to Westchester. There is nothing to do out here in the sticks. We don't even have neighbors!
James sat back at his workbench with his cell phone in hand. It had been all of three days and he was getting constant texts from May since her father had decided she needed to learn to control her powers - mutant or not. And James was trying very hard to walk the tightrope of good, supportive boyfriend and some kind of responsible party. It's not permanent, he texted back. And even if you're smarter than most of the kids there, you're going to get in trouble with Ororo if you keep texting in class.
Am I bothering you?
No. But I don't want to get blamed when you get busted. Call when you get a break. I'll keep the phone nearby.
There was a pause before May wrote back - though it wasn't what James was expecting. I didn't think you'd take his side.
Not taking sides, Mayday. Seriously. I'm right here. Call when you can do it without getting in trouble. I'll be waiting.
James spun a slow circle on his stool. She'd be mad. Of course, she would. She haed when James pointed out that she wasn't sneaky enough to get away with things like this and she hated when he was right, which was more often than May would admit to - even when it was blatantly obvious - but he didn't like to point it out. Because pointing it out always ended up biting him in the backside. But that didn't make waiting around to see how mad she was at him any easier.
He knew that May thought she had her powers under control, and James knew that simply wasn't the case. She didn't know her own strength, for one thing, and had accidentally sent him flying once or twice. And for another, her spider-sense was entirely unreliable to the point that she found herself flinching at things hat weren't a threat and ignoring things that were sometimes. And James had more than a couple of shirts that had been ripped when she'd rested her hand on him - and then found herself unable to let go before she panicked.
In spite of all of that, James hadn't breathed a word about it to anyone - and he had no plans to. But it was pretty clear that May didn't entirely believe that was the case. She didn't realize how much her father had struggled with that powerset on getting it overnight as opposed to May's slow ease in. And she didn't realize how watching her make similar mistakes was honestly scarring for Peter to watch. Instead, she mistakenly assumed that James was on much better speaking terms with her father than had ever been the case, and she didn't appreciate it.
James had no idea how to address it, let alone handle it. But again, it wasn't something he thought he had much say in, and he wasn't about to ask for romantic advice from anyone at the tower. At all.
So James simply went back to studying. He had some major tests to take in a few short weeks, and Tony had made it clear he expected great things out of his little golden boy. So James put his mind to his work and honestly lost track of how much time had passed before his phone chimed. He'd assumed May was finally reaching out again, so he wasn't expecting the text to come from Mia, or for it to consist of one line and a picture of Mia, Lexi, and Cassie Lang.
I guess all the cool Avengers kids are going here now! We're being invaded! Send Katie!
James shook his head at the photo then took a picture of his textbook to reply with. Love to send help but they all got scared off by a little homework. YOU send help.
He wasn't expecting her to respond with an enthusiastic "Will do!" Or for them to show up not fifteen minutes later with Natasha grinning at him.
"Check the timestamp in the photo's file next time," she advised as the girls paraded into the lab. "They were coming in for a tour of the tower ad I talked Storm into letting MIa out with an inducer."
"You missed it," Mia said, grinning as she looked around the lab with a grin. It had been a couple years since she'd been to the tower - and it was her first trip to see what Tony had set James up with to work and tinker in. "I was a blonde with blue eyes."
"I could program it to look like you without the fur," James offered, then turned to Natasha. "Unless that's a security breach."
"It would be much less of one if you wore yours for more than entering and exiting the tower," Natasha said as she ran her fingers through his hair. "You're all grown out again."
James jerked his head away from her hand. "Yeah. No one told me it did that."
"It's one of those little things we didn't think about until we saw you doing it."
"Any more of those I should know about?" James asked dryly.
Natasha smiled to herself as she watched him. "Very likely. I'll let you know when it happens."
"Thanks, Mom," Lexi called out. "I think we can finish our tour on our own now."
"I don't think Ororo intended for this to be a social call."
"Too bad, it is," Lexi countered with a grin even as May drifted over to where James was with a trouble making look. "You said James was hanging out with questionable kids when he isn't with his friends."
"That was before those two started dating," Natasha said, gesturing to James and May.
"I do need a coffee break," James said, smiling to himself as he pulled May over with one arm so he could wrap her up from behind.
"And I need cocoa," Lexi said.
"Me too," Mia echoed, with Cassie nodding her head in agreement.
"We can wait for Katie and America if you want," James offered. "I know Katie was more or less done with her English paper just a little bit ago, so it's just a matter of time before America shows up."
"You don't mind hanging out with all the girls, then?" Natasha asked with a sparkle of trouble of her own.
"Hell no," James said, frowning. "Feeling pretty well protected, to be honest. We've got a super strong webhead, a teleporting blonde. Today. A dimension kicker, an ant-girl, and a Hawkeye … I think Lexi and I are safe enough with this crew."
"And you girls don't mind keeping James safe?" Natasha asked with a laugh, knowing full well what the response would be, even if she hadn't expected James to take that route with his argument.
"Oh, I guess we can keep people away from him. If we have to," Mia said with a laugh, then turned toward Natasha. "Please? I promise we'll just go for coffee and come back with snacks."
"You can't get in trouble with Mia there," Natasha said as she pointed at James. "Take a comm or you won't leave this tower without an escort."
"Yeah, okay, fine," James agreed - just to get out of the tower for a few minutes. His trips out had been few and far between with Cassie and May in Westchester - and always chaperoned by someone. Even when it was just Happy.
"Then stay close - and only to the cafes I cleared for you. Please." Natasha held James' gaze until he nodded, though she wasn't convinced that he would follow her terms. He had all sorts of trouble doing so on his own. Maybe with the girls directing traffic it would go easier… "Girls … you know my rules. Make sure he sticks to them."
James let out a deep sigh as the girls around him agreed - which meant any troublemaking would be a lot harder for him to manage. Or it would seem that way, anyhow. It was just a little trip for coffee and snacks. And by the time they met up with Katie and America, the girls had already picked out which cafe they wanted to go to - which meant James really was just along for the ride.
Which was how Cassie, Lexi, and Mia led the charge, though they were chatting with Katie - which mostly left James and May to follow behind them by a good length, holding hands and honestly enjoying the chance to spend a few minutes - even if it was on a public street. Even if they were heavily chaperoned, too. And as expected, at the cafe as the rest of their group spent their time chatting and catching up, May was making up for lost time with stolen kisses that had Mia blushing brightly.
"It's not like he's going off to war or something," Katie laughed as she threw a napkin at the two of them.
"No, you're right. It's more like I am seeing as I'm two hours away at boarding school," May countered, throwing the napkin right back at her. "Besides - it's not like you and America aren't sucking face every chance you get after school!"
"Mayday, don't," James said, automatically trying to buffer a little for Katie when she turned bright red. "Please."
On hearing his tone, she backed off, but didn't quite understand why he'd want to back off - especially when he was the one with the rep for picking. But … on seeing how sincere James looked and how embarrassed Katie was, May did decide to back off. If nothing else, then to go back to what she was doing.
"Kinda not a shock at all that you and Kate are getting along," May said quietly to James - her tone low enough that she knew only he'd hear her.
"Yeah?" James asked. "You and Nate taking up a lot of time in your similar misery?"
"I really want to get back to basketball," May agreed. "And I know I'm getting close already, I just don't know if Dad will let me."
"Sure he will," James said. "If you want to make a thing out of it, put yourself in competition with Nate. See who can get it together faster."
"That might work," she said, nodding. "Of course … you keep finding out new things about your mutation, too … who's to say you don't need to go learn how to cope?"
"Mayday, what I do is passive." James took a moment to take her hand and leaned over to kiss her cheek. "There isn't anything they can do there to help me, and I've learned how to deal with what I do already."
"But you might have a new mutation," she said with a grin.
"I don't think my hair growing stupid fast is something I need coping help with."
"You are missing the boat, mister."
"Maybe, but I'm also enjoying my time with Dad," James admitted. "And I doubt anyone would believe me if I suddenly said I needed help with my senses, or … whatever."
"Do you have to be logical about it?" May laughed as she curled into his side.
"I can try not to," James replied and the group continued their discussion about the upcoming break.
People were already scurrying for the Christmas season to start and May and Cassie both had plans to go watch the tree lighting at Rockefeller Center with their families. May opened her mouth to try and invite James along, but stopped herself when she remembered how much his family carefully avoided large crowds like that. The discussion fizzled when it was plainly clear that Mia longed to go to a gathering like that. It was still a rough adjustment for most of the Avenger's kids to remember how difficult it was to be a mutant, unless of course they were .. and May and Cassie were not.
"Oh, crap, mom is going to be mad," Kate said as she leaned away from America suddenly. "We're running behind. We need to start back before she sends out a search party."
"And we can't have that," America said in a sigh. America had been trying to get a little more traction with Katie, but she kept coming up with excuses that felt like they didn't have much weight to them. They'd only been on one date that wasn't a double since Halloween.
"Can we at least take the long way?" Cassie asked. "For the air?"
"Yes," James agreed as he left a tip on the table to cover all of them. "We need the long way."
The kids were pulling their coats on - and Cassie took an extra moment to tie her scarf a few steps from the group when a man behind her bumped into her. "Oh, excuse me. Sorry. I didn't mean to bump into you."
"It's alright," the man said, though he'd looked supremely irritated until he saw her. "Aren't you a little cutie? Pretty girl like you needs a smile on."
Cassie blushed and pulled her jacket around her a little tighter. "Oh. Okay …"
"Come on, chika," America called out, waving for Cassie to catch up, which she did - gladly. But she didn't see the guy and his friend when they followed her out of the cafe.
The group formed up much like they had on the way to get their coffee, and James for one, was carrying back a tall latte as he walked hand in hand with May. The two of them really didn't look like they were part of the bigger group of girls by the time they hit the end of the block. A few pairs of people had gotten between them and their group … including the two men who were following Cassie.
At first, James didn't hear what they were saying … and then when he did, he unconsciously let go of May's hand as he watched them talk about 'that little cutie'. He frowned and narrowed his eyes trying to determine who it was they were talking about since there were several attractive women walking amid the group. As James looked at the shifting crowd, the comments got more graphic about one of the women ahead of him on the sidewalk. Or he thought it was about one of the women, anyhow. America and Kate were at the head of the pack - and a few more people had gotten between them and Cassie, too, but James could see something was wrong when America turned and looked over her shoulder at the guys.
"She's so beautiful. I wish she wasn't so young …"
"She could pass for sixteen with a little makeup. Maybe a pushup bra..."
The two men chuckled and James felt the blood drain from his face when he realized it wasn't the grown women ahead of him they were talking about. It was someone in his group of friends - and every one of them was well under 18. May said something to James and squeezed his hand to get his attention. When he turned, he saw that she clearly had caught up to the presence of trouble, too. So they needed a plan.
Before he could come up with something though, he caught the scents coming off of the men .. and one of them finally took a few quick steps to whisper over Cassie's shoulder. James didn't even hear all of it. Just "Sweetie, I'd love to be the first guy to-" before he dropped his coffee and burst forward, pushing the people between himself and Cassie out of the way. As the stranger put his hand on Cassie's waist, James grabbed a hold of the back of his jacket and picked him up bodily before slamming him into the nearest building face first.
Cassie squeaked as James began beating on the guy. He hadn't given a warning to him,and he didn't even speak as he just kept hammering him. James got in half a dozen hard hits that echoed with cracks before his buddy realized what was going on and tried to help, but by then, America had caught up and didn't ask any questions before she started beating on the buddy, leaving the rest of the group in honest shock at how quickly a simple walk had turned sour.
The only one who really knew why James was so mad was Cassie - and she was half scared at seeing him lose his temper. She'd never seen him do that, and she'd been around him plenty at the tower growing up. There were a few people that had backed up and were watching in horror … until James finally ground out "You can't talk to her like that! She's eleven, you sick sack of shit!"
He kept pounding on him - even after America had stopped hitting her guy before the cops showed up, but only just. With every hit James delivered, the creep's head rebounded off of the concrete before two uniformed police officers rounded the corner, then started shouting as they broke into a run.
One of them, a tall, broad, Black guy pulled James off bodily, looking surprised at how much hassle that was, though James stopped trying to pull loose when he realized it was a cop that had pulled him back. "What do you think you're doin' boy?" the cop shouted. "You can't fight in the streets!"
"That pervert put his hands on my friend," James said, his voice shaking for how angry he was. "She's eleven and he thought he could ...!" He cut himself off, not trusting himself not to threaten the guy's life in front of the two police officers. And he wanted to.
The two cops shared a look. "Anyone else able to back that story up?" the other cop asked, even as the first cop got started putting James in handcuffs.
Cassie looked upset when she saw that James was getting in trouble and quickly spoke up. "Yes, it's all true. That guy and his friend said all kinds of gross stuff and he told me what he wanted to … he had his hand on my waist," she said. "James was just trying to get him off me. I swear."
"You got any ID on you, son?" the first cop asked James quietly, though it was loud enough that most of the girls there caught it and held their breath. No way around it - this was bad.
"Back right pocket of my jeans," James said through his teeth, holding his hands out of the way so the cop could get the ID out. "I'm not old enough for a driver's license."
The second cop laughed. "Sure, kid. If you say so. But we're gonna need some real ID out of you."
"Come on, son, you're gonna have to do better than this," the first cop said as he looked over James' passcard for Stark Tower. "They sell these on the street to tourists. I need a real form of identification."
"That's all I've got. Just … take me to the tower and they'll verify it," James said, but the second cop was laughing outright as Katie quickly called her father on her cell phone. This was spiraling out of hand fast.
"No, what we're gonna do is take you to the station and run you through every database known to man until we figure out who you really are." He shook his head. "We're not wasting time for anyone at Stark's place."
"Am I being arrested?" James asked through clenched teeth, knowing that it was going to be a disaster if that was the case. All that cop needed to do was put his name in the computer or use facial recognition and Logan would come up. If not for name correlation, then because the facial markers were likely earmarked by weapons agencies who were looking for him… and that would be it. "Because if you are, I think you need to run the idiot that was groping my very underage friend."
"I am eleven," Cassie said. "And he did put his hands on me and said .. some stuff I'm probably going to need a therapist for."
The two cops shared a look and the second officer made his way over to check the unconscious man out, though once he picked up the wallet that fell out of the man's jacket, it was just a matter of a few minutes over the radio before that guy's ID came back … with an arrest warrant out for being a sexual offender that had neglected his registration requirements. Which meant that even if James was technically in the wrong, neither cop was going to go out of their way to cause him grief when he had practically gift wrapped a dangerous offender for them.
It wasn't that they wouldn't have arrested James … it was just with all of the kids swearing up and down that James was a minor and too young for ID and with Cassie crying as she told the full story, all it took was for Clint to come rushing around the corner ready for a fight to clear the air.
Though Clint had been on the team nearly from the beginning, his face still wasn't one that was entirely recognizable to most of the residents of the city, but after he produced his ID and vouched for knowing all of the kids there, at least the cops weren't ready to arrest James for beating the guy up. But the first cop didn't want to hand James over to Clint.
"If it's all the same to you," the tall Black guy said. "I'd like to have a word with his parents about what happened today, and no offense, but legally, I can't release him to you - superhero or not."
The cop's partner looked vindicated at hearing it since many of the city's police force wasn't too keen on all that even the Avengers did. But hearing that he was refusing one of them had the second officer in a good mood as he turned toward Clint and the first officer. "I'll handle these two if you want to take the kid," he said.
"Yeah, I got him," the first cop said.
"Officer …"
"Officer Wright."
"Okay. Officer Wright, really," Clint said, trying to keep it from escalating. "I know his Dad. He's in major trouble even without anything official on the record-"
"I'll need to talk to the boy's father, that's all there is to it," Officer Wright said. "Unless this kid's some kinda supervillain. If that's the case, speak up and I'll rush him through for you."
"I could be," James said under his breath, but not only did Clint miss part of it, Officer Wright caught it and actually found the humor in it.
"Yeah, you're real diabolical," Officer Wright said. "Beatin' down some loser cat callin' little girls. The city quakes." He leaned toward Clint. "Still can't do it though, and my choices are take him to his parents or bring him in. I'm tryin' to take it easy on him and just bring him home - keep pushin' and I'll change my mind."
Clint glanced at James, half holding his breath before he made a decision. "They live in my apartment building," Clint said. "So we can compromise. We'll all go together, huh?"
"That sounds good. You won't have any trouble tellin' me where to take him."
Clint sighed but nodded all the same, knowing better than to push and get James in more trouble when that could be disastrous in so many ways. "Just let me call his dad and make sure he's home," he said, already gesturing for Lexi and Katie to head back with him while he got Scott on the phone and quickly told him to come home - to the apartment, he was careful to specify. Cassie and May were already redirecting Mia - and America was gladly playing bodyguard to be sure the three of them met up with whichever Avenger was waiting at the corner for them - keeping distance so as not to draw any more attention.
Chapter 27: Sentencing
Chapter Text
Scott was at the apartment in Bed Stuy when the parade found its way there, looking stressed already because the apartment was supposed to be a secure backup - and even more stressed when he saw that there was a police escort. "What happened?" Scott asked.
"From what I saw, it was a public beat down," Officer Wright said. "But then I heard the story."
Scott's entire expression tightened as he thought of the many times James' parents had lost their tempers, and he motioned the officer - and James - inside. "James?" He had both eyebrows raised, not only at the story but at the fact that James' inducer wasn't on - and they had only been blocks from the tower.
"I lost my temper," James said carefully, trying not to think of what he'd heard from the creep while also trying to remember exactly what he'd done to the guy. "This idiot was harassing the girls."
"James, you damn well better have a better reason than street harassment," Scott said, his mouth tight as he almost breathed the words out.
"He put his hands on Cassie, Dad," James replied through his teeth, doing his best to keep from growling - successfully.
For a long time, Scott stood where he was in the entryway, a muscle working in his jaw, since that was, in fact, a good reason to lose his temper. He'd probably have done the same. The problem, of course, was that James was standing there with a police officer, and that meant records. But he couldn't bring himself to scold James when he'd done the right thing protecting Cassie, either.
Officer Wright cleared his throat. "Officially, no one saw anything," he said. "But I wasn't so sure my partner wouldn't go for bein' a pain since the boy didn't have any identification on him to speak of. Figured it would cause more trouble than help anyone if he went down to the station." The cop still hadn't shown his cards on what he thought of all of it, though he started to as he watched Scott try not to react. "The guy your boy beat half through a brick wall was a registered offender, by the way."
Scott nodded slowly, doing his best to not look like he was already running through the myriad of ways this could go wrong and the dozens of backup places he'd need to vet so they could start over. "My son doesn't lose his temper like that, Officer," Scott said at last. "Not without very good reason."
"I can believe it," Officer Wright said. "If nothing else, than because he didn't try to fight me when I pulled him off the guy, though I still didn't hear the full story - I think that aside from doin' our fine city a service … this young man needs to try and keep from doin' my job for me until he can carry identification at the very least."
Scott nodded, though he was still watching James carefully. "Our family tends to keep to themselves. This particular asshole managed to go out of his way to step into James' path with his stupidity. I promise it's not a regular occurrence."
"The perpetrator was stalking an eleven year old girl." Officer Wright nodded his head then watched James for a moment himself. "I'm sure that if takin' up hero work was a regular thing for your boy, I'd know about it. Now … we did search him. Standard procedure, I did it myself, so this," he said as he handed Scott James' things - including the inducer. "Can stay between us, though I think that if he'd been hit while he was using it, it would have caused more of a stir when it broke and I guarantee my partner would have hauled him in with backup."
Scott stared at the inducer for a long time, knowing they were caught and knowing there was no way around it. "Damn," was all he managed to say.
"I'm not gonna say a word," Officer Wright said. "Not to anyone. Not ever. I got no room to talk, anyhow."
Scott finally looked up at Officer Wright again, the lines etched in his face even more apparent than usual. "You don't understand," he said in a breath. "If anyone knows-"
"No, I think I do," Officer Wright said as he gestured at Scott. "Pretty distinctive callin' card there. But I'm not sayin' anything, and my partner was too excited to arrest the guy that got the beat down that I don't think he realized the kid's strength." He turned back to James. "Lay low for a while, get a hair cut or somethin', too, because you do not look like your Dad here."
"I'll handle it," Scott said.
Officer Wright offered Scott his hand to shake, and made sure to give him his card, too. "You come up on any trouble, let me know. I'm just gonna make sure any traffic cams near there go blank before I call it a day."
Scott blinked his surprise at the officer. "You don't have to put your career on the line."
"I'm not lettin' anyone look too hard at the kid," he said. "Definitely not over some scumbag that was askin' for it." He shrugged. "Chances are good one of the higher ups already did it anyhow. Don't want the guy's lawyers sayin' we missed out on doin' our job." He leaned toward Scott slightly. "And between you and me? If he'd had ID on, they'd probably want to throw him a parade."
"Which wouldn't help us, really," Scott muttered.
"No, it would not," he agreed. "I'll leave you to deal with this between you, but … you know where I stand with it. Really just wanted to see the kid get home myself. No offense, but the Avengers don't have the best track record with our kind. I wasn't gonna blindly trust 'em."
"I appreciate it, really," Scott said as he put a hand on James' shoulder, waiting until Officer Wright was gone before he tipped his head toward the living room so he and James could sit down for a more private chat.
James didn't say a word as he followed Scott's nonverbal cues and took a seat, waiting for the reaming out he knew was coming. But unlike when Nate knew he was in for it, James felt no desire to defend himself ahead of Scott or whatever he had to say. He understood it - and he understood why the cop had handled it like he had, but the truth was that James was pretty ticked off at himself for not keeping a handle on it and for not using the damn inducer more, though the cop was right. One solid hit and the inducer would have made a much bigger mess.
Scott was silent for a long time before he finally put his other hand on James' other shoulder to look him in the face. "First thing's first," he said evenly, "you didn't do a damn thing wrong when it came to the guy who came after Cassie. I don't know that I would have been any more elegant about it myself, considering her age, not to mention the fact that I know she hasn't had the same training you kids have had about watching her surroundings."
"That was on me," James said. "I should have stuck closer to her."
Scott shook his head. "No, don't start on that," he said. "Any one of you kids would have been enough to stop this guy. Frankly, from what I've heard, I'm surprised you beat May or America to the punch."
"They couldn't hear him."
"Ah." Scott nodded. He seemed to think over what to say next before he asked, "How's Cassie?"
"I don't know," James admitted. "I didn't get to talk to her without the cops around. I honestly don't know how any of them are. America took out the guy's buddy that was just as nasty. I don't know how anyone is though. I saw America take the other girls to the tower. I think Jan was waiting for them at the corner."
"We'll head over to the Bartons later, then. I'm sure Clint and Natasha are waiting to hear if they need to help us move." Scott took a deep breath and let it out. "James, you were incredibly, incredibly lucky that Officer Wright is a mutant too. You get that, right?"
James nodded, his gaze on the ground.
"You know the security we put in place is there for a reason, James. I'm glad you have a group of friends, and I don't want you to lose that, but I need you to be responsible. The Avengers don't always remember how different it is for us - and their kids have no reason to know either, outside of Katie and Lexi."
"I know," James agreed quietly.
Scott nodded and let his breath out in a rush. "I'll talk to Stark. Officer Wright was right; you do need to lay low for a while. Let's you and I go fishing." He smiled lightly. "It would do us both some good, and besides, it would let Natasha watch for any activity at either of our houses while we, ah, don't celebrate your heroic rescue. Or something."
James looked up at Scott with a concerned expression. "No. Really. Is this a lay low thing or are we scouting somewhere to go?"
Scott shook his head. "I've had the next place scouted since Luke crashed the soccer match. This really is just you and me laying low." He paused, then added, "And I meant what I said: I'm not mad about you standing up for Cassie. It's the security breach that I'm worried about. But with that guy? You protected your friend from someone who meant to do her harm."
"Just sorry I didn't put him through the stupid wall," James grumbled.
Scott smirked. "Hey," he said, "once we get out where no one's around to interrupt or overhear us, I'm going to have to tell you about the guys I did put through walls," he said, tapping the side of his temple. "It's a hazard of living in this family: we can't stand aside when the people we love are in trouble."
James was pensive as he weighed out how to say what he really thought. "I can't even say it was that, Dad." James looked up at him with a perfectly open expression. "I thought the guy was talking about someone else that wasn't even in our group at first, but if he would have touched her … I don't think it would have gone any different. Not with what I was getting off the guy."
Scott looked thoughtful for a long time and then reached out to affectionately ruffle James' hair and rest his hand at the side of James' neck. "That… you get from Logan and K," he said. "If they saw a kid in trouble or a man trying to take advantage of a woman, nothing I said could have stopped either of them. Not that I would have tried hard knowing what they were stopping, mind you… but it was like a switch flipped with them." He smiled tightly, the same way he always did when he talked about the teammates he'd lost. "It was honestly one of their best qualities. Made me want to be better about standing up for everyone around me, too."
James honestly didn't know what to say - or how to react to that, so instead, he simply didn't. Not when he knew that it was rare for Scott to talk about them like that, and he wasn't sure how he felt about either of them. Especially if it was anything that might have been tied in to the mutation.
Finally, Scott let his shoulders drop and got to his feet, offering James a hand up. "Let's go down the hall and let the Bartons know we're heading out and asking them to watch the places for a while. I'm sure they're worried - and we should check on Cassie, too. Her dad will probably have a fit when he hears the story."
"Clint was having trouble getting the cops to listen to him," James said.
"Clint is a former criminal with very little facial recognition from the public in spite of his position on the team. He also still hasn't learned how to speak to the cops like an Avenger and not a kid trying not to get caught stealing. This does not surprise me," Scott said dryly.
"That kind of explains everything," James agreed quietly as they crossed the hall. "Can we tell him I'm going to super-max?"
Scott smirked. "Nah, we'll tell him you're running away to the circus. He'll have a stroke right in the kitchen."
"Awesome. As long as I'm not the archer."
"Don't you love how we didn't do anything wrong, but we still end up being grounded somehow?" Nate asked as he dropped into the seat next to his sister. They'd gotten the message from their Dad, who assured them that it was only a precaution to keep all three of them more or less grounded for their own safety, and how as an extra step in paranoia, he and James weren't coming by the school on the way out of town so as not to draw attention to the school in case they were seen or followed.
"We're not grounded."
"He's taking James fishing, you know that's what's going on, right?"
"And?"
"And … when I get busted it's actual grounding."
"And the last time I got in any trouble, Ororo took me out for ice cream," Rachel pointed out. It's all just a matter of how it happened. You fight with Dad. This? Come on. Mia told us what the story was. This trip to the woods is just as much for Dad to relax a little as it is to get James away from anyone that might see him. And we're only on restriction because they might look this way to find him. It's a precaution, baby brother.
Yeah, I know, it's just … of course he ends up taking a vacation as soon as the angel-child steps out of line a little.
It's not a vacation.
It's not a punishment either. And blowing up Natasha's security isn't good for any of us.
True. But …
Cassie didn't deserve what happened, I know.
And you wish you'd gone on the fishing trip, Rachel surmised. Dad will take you if you want him to. Might do you good.
I don't want to go fishing, Rach. And they're probably going to end up being gone for James' birthday the way this is rolling. Which … okay, that's fine. We did your sweet sixteen in Oregon and we had my last three with Alex in Hawaii - and James has never asked to be anywhere special for his, I just … I guess maybe I wanted to do something with all of us for that this year?
Rachel sighed heavily, but wasn't sure how best to reassure her little brother. Not when nothing she said seemed to make a dent in how miserable he was. "You have to tell Dad if you want to do something with just him," Rachel said finally.
"Yeah, I know," Nate agreed with a heavy tone. "It's James too, though. I'm so tired of watching him act like he doesn't want anything ever. And it's hard to try and change that when we're here and supposed to be working on control."
"So," Rachel said turning his way fully and holding his gaze. "Let's get to work. We have no where to go, neither one of us has any distractions … and I can help you get a handle on it if you let me." And that would mean getting back to your teams and your friends.
Nate finally cracked a smile and nodded to himself. "Thanks, Rachel."
"Any time, little brother."
The trip to the cabin Scott had picked out was a long one, and once they got there, James and Scott had a whole lot to get done just to use the place. It was one of the Howletts' old places, though it had been mostly untouched since their death. Natasha had been there shortly after everything had gone south for the X-Men and packaged up most of the personal effects decorating the place. Not because she was getting rid of it, more because at the time, she didn't know which place Scott wanted to use to hide the kids - so she prepped several by going through them and putting away most of the photos and momentos that might have triggered a very young and freshly traumatized James.
But she'd also put away most of the soft items - blankets and pillows were packaged up in heavy plastic and secured in trunks that mice couldn't get in to destroy. So while Scott was clearing out the dust, James pulled in the firewood from the shed. And while Scott started the fire in the old wood burner, James was put to work setting up the beds for the two of them to use for their stay, only … as he was making the bed in the master bedroom, he went still slowly.
There was a scent clinging to the blankets that was deeply familiar, but mostly forgotten and James was honestly confused as to what the scent meant … or why he felt so calm on breathing it in. It was an odd combination on its own … spruce that didn't match the scents of the wood walls around him mingled with cigar smoke, motor oil, fresh hay, ozone, and leather.
He closed his eyes and stood there with the blanket halfway to his nose, overwhelmed with the desire to just … curl up and wrap himself in it and sleep. It didn't take him very long to convince himself to do exactly that, either, and before Scott had the fire going well, James kicked off his shoes and crawled into bed with the blanket clutched around himself tightly. He rubbed his face into the pillow, trying to make the scent last longer, trying to surround himself in it more completely - and as his chest began to feel a crushing weight and his eyes prickled at the edges from a scent he couldn't even fathom letting go, James fell asleep.
It took Scott a little while to catch up to him, and in all honesty, he didn't even think to look for him until the fire was crackling away cheerfully and putting out a fair bit of heat, and then, his only thought was to get dinner going, but when he found James curled up in a ball like he used to do all the time as a three year old, Scott was hit by a similar pang in his chest that James had felt. Even to his nose, Scott could smell the scents on the blanket, though no where near as acutely as James had to have. The way his nose was buried in the fabric was like watching him as a three year old again when they had first gone to Logan's cabin … but this was K's place near Lake Superior. It was the spot she had preferred to hide out at when she needed a break.
He backed out of the room slowly, deciding on the spot not to mention it at all to James unless he asked. He had no idea if James would make the connection on his own, or if he knew already where they were. All Scott knew for sure was that James wouldn't have crashed that hard that fast unless he needed it. And one thing Scott refused to do was take that away from him if he needed it.
Dinner could wait. Fishing could wait. This? This was obviously long overdue.
Chapter 28: Rocky Waters
Chapter Text
America was starting to notice a pattern, and as much as she hated to admit it, this pattern was not favorable to her campaign to get a little more traction with Kate.
She didn't think Kate was aware of the fact that she'd given herself away with the casual mention that Nate had broken up with his idiot girlfriend, but things had definitely changed since then. Kate wanted to go to more group activities. She was finding reasons to hang out with the Summers family more. Which had been fine when they were double-dating with James, but they'd yet to go out just the two of them in ages, and America was starting to get the hint.
So she dropped in on Kate at the tower, smirking to herself when Kate's immediate reaction was to break into a grin, rush over, and kiss her. That was the great part about Kate; she wore her heart on her sleeve. So, the fact that she was in love with someone else was obvious – but what was also obvious was that Kate liked America, too.
But America didn't like to be anyone's second choice, no matter how gorgeous the girl.
She caught Kate and spun her around in a kiss before she set her down again and met her gaze with a crooked but tired smile. "How's the Westchester club?"
"Doing alright," Kate said in a sigh. "Nate's still convinced James is their dad's favorite, which is crap, because he doesn't remember seeing Scott going to every sports game of his with the Proud Dad Look, but hey, that's the usual drama with them, really."
America smiled more broadly, leaning against the gate to the tower with a quiet laugh. "Already practicing to get in good with the in-laws, huh?"
Kate turned a brilliant color that America wished she'd put on her face for a different reason. "What are you – we're not even old enough-"
"Be real, Princess," America said, unable to stop herself from cupping Kate's waist as she shifted closer, "you're still hung up on the idiot. And now that he's single, you're practically tripping over yourself wishing you were dating him."
Kate's eyes widened, and she shook her head. "America-"
"Hey, I don't play second-best," America said. "I'll still be here for you. I mean, you're the best friend I've got in this crummy city, and someone's got to be there in case this whole thing with the idiot blows up in your face, right?" She grinned crookedly. "But you and I aren't going to get off the ground – not figuratively, anyway – until you figure out what's going on with you and him. So go figure it out. If he hurts you, I'll pound him and then kiss you until you forget all about him, deal?"
Kate stared at America for a long time before she let out a noise from the back of her throat and then flung her arms around America to pull her into a tight hug. "You are just – just – so amazing, you know that? And I really do like you – you know that too, right?"
America smirked and gestured to herself with one hand. "What's not to like?"
Kate laughed and hugged her tighter, then pulled her into a long kiss that America absolutely wasn't going to stop until Kate pulled back. "So… we can still totally hang out all the time and make fun of stupid people, right?"
"Like I said: I'm not going anywhere, Princess," America chuckled. "You just figure yourself out. I know what I want; you gotta do the same."
Kate shook her head and kissed her cheek. "What did I do to deserve you?"
"Hey, you're a fierce, gorgeous, slightly-confused, confident princess with the arms of an archer and the heart of a lover. Like I wasn't going to pick you up."
"And you're a powerful force of nature who loves as deeply as she kicks through reality," Kate said, blushing bright red. "If we're not at least best friends, what's even the point of the universe letting two of the most amazing girls on the planet meet up?"
America smiled as she put her other hand on Kate's waist. "How opposed are you to a break-up makeout? Because I gotta say, Princess, you're making it hard to be mature and let you figure out your feelings when I'd rather just fly off with you and show you the best time you've ever had."
"Not even a little bit opposed," Kate said, her eyes glittering with the kind of excitement that always had America thrilled.
And with that kind of open invitation just sitting there, America wasn't going to squander the opportunity. So, she pulled Kate into a kiss long enough that they were pressed into each other, and then she took them to the sky for some privacy.
The holidays passed in a daze, like they so often did. Juggling everyone's schedules got slightly easier with the big break at the end of December, but everyone's family obligations ended up making fun things like dating or going out as a group next to impossible. And when the Summers disappeared to who-knows-where to meet up with the other Summers clan, that just meant that they were more unreachable for a longer stretch. Which made it seem to those that wanted to spend time with them as if they were on an even harsher lockdown than usual.
But … the start of the new semester was met with bright cheer for May Parker at the very least. She was lucky in that her powers were almost entirely physical, so learning how to hold back wasn't super hard for her to do. Not overreacting to spider senses was a totally different story, but she had gotten her reactions down to a much more reasonable response than the full on Parker startle that she'd been doing when it had first manifested.
She still wasn't quite ready to return to public school, but she was pretty certain that she was ahead of Nate Summers, anyhow. A fact that she loved to flaunt to Nate at every single opportunity. And the fact that her father had agreed to let her join the Avengers when she was old enough - and if she was cleared by those 'in the know when the time comes' had her on cloud nine. She had permission to be a hero - just like her dad! And she wanted to not only share the joy, but do a little preemptive recruiting too. And she knew just the newly un-grounded, freshly back to the city guy she wanted in on it. He needed the boost, after all.
Especially since he'd gone from being tons of fun to almost dreary- and he flat out refused to break any of the security protocols in place. It was bad enough that even Black Widow seemed downtrodden that James hadn't even tried to push. And he had put zero thought into returning to the prank war with Tony, either. It was obvious to May, at least, that her guy was depressed. And she was pretty sure she needed to do something about the nasty case of Stockholm syndrome he came back with after spending a couple weeks in the woods alone with his dad. He hadn't even wanted to do anything for his birthday after he spent it in the woods, either. And since they'd disappeared not long after their return for Christmas, May had plenty of time to dream up ways to pull him out of his funk.
Stranger still, her father had even agreed that James wasn't acting like he should - far too serious, and as Peter Parker had said - 'in extreme danger of becoming entirely too grumpy' at the rate he was going. All the adults had had the same basic reaction to the mess that went down around Cassie Lang. Shock had been quickly followed by equal parts fear for James' safety and pride in his actions, though most of the adults were being fairly quiet on the details on why. At least, they were … then May caught her father calling James 'a kinder, gentler, less stabby Wolverine' and she found herself getting lost in the idea of them joining the team together.
Her father had pictures of himself and James' dad on his desk at home from when they were Avengers, and she started doodling all of their hypothetical team … She was supposed to be working on her homework, but watching James working so intently on upgrading her dad's webshooters had gotten her mind wandering. She saw herself as Spider-Girl, Kate as the Purple Widow, Cassie as Ant-girl, Dani Cage dressed like her parents in leather gear and flat refusing to use a code name of any kind, and James as their new Wolverine … though she was playing with the name and the costume. Yellow and Red were too jarring next to each other, after all.
"Maybe blue," she said to herself as she continued to doodle, which was enough to draw James' attention.
He looked up at her, frowning when he saw the almost vacant expression on her face, so he set his tools down and decided to sneak over to see what it was that had her so distracted. She didn't know he was there until he was nearly on top of her, and then she startled so badly, she dropped her notebook that she'd been doodling in. James laughed - finally wearing a broad smile on his face as she started to berate him for scaring her, though that fell to the wayside when James' smile slipped.
He'd picked up the notebook for her and was staring at the drawings she had - the little codenames for most of their friends - some of them scratched out several times and re-written slightly differently from dozens of childhood conversations born of daydreams and wishful thinking. "What's this?" James asked, though he was watching her as he asked.
"Oh, just a few ideas. Watching you go all … rawr on that idiot with Cassie got me thinking."
"About what?" James asked. "Being Avengers?"
"Well … yeah."
"No," James said before he dropped the notebook on the couch and started back for his workbench. "Not unless you know another James that you're putting in that costume."
"They're not costumes, they're uniforms," May said before she hopped over the back of the couch and followed him. "And you need the right uniform for the job."
James shook his head as he got back to work. "Pretty sure I've already set myself up with a job if I want it. Right here, in the lab that Stark built for me."
"Yes. Exactly! Tony would love to have you on the team!"
James set his tools down and held her gaze seriously. "No, May. That's never gonna happen."
"But you're already so good at it!"
James was shaking his head and the set of his mouth was grim. "Forget it, Mayday," James said in a tone she'd never heard him use before.
"But … what harm would it do? You are good at this, James! Think about it! Anyone with the powers you have should use them to help people. Otherwise you're not doing everything you can to stop idiots like the ones that went after Cassie."
James could feel his temper rising faster than he wanted to admit. And he had yet to get upset with May. "You think I haven't thought about that already?" James snapped. "There's more going on than just stepping up for those in trouble, May. I can't look at things the same way you do. Your family's motto doesn't apply the same way to me and my family."
"Yes it does!" May threw her hands in the air and let out a groan of frustration. "I get being anxious, but James, you know you could try it out and if you didn't like it, you don't have to stay with the team! It's not like you'd be the first one to decide it wasn't for them!"
"You don't get it," James shot back, his work on the webshooters forgotten. "You could try it and back off. Kate and Cassie could, but I cant."
"Is this all because of the whole mutant thing your family's so paranoid about?" May challenged, hands on her hips and obviously ready to fight. "Hank is a mutant and he's been on the team for forever! And he's physically mutated, too! You don't have that to worry about!"
James stared back at her for a long while, then grudgingly went back to finish the adjustments he had been making before he said something he'd regret. "It's not just the mutant thing, May. I know I told you about some of the crap that follows us. You know about the security Natasha and Tony have in place. You know it's not just the mutant thing."
"But if you were an Avenger-"
"No," James growled out, slamming one hand on the bench. "That stupid badge doesn't solve anything. If it did, do you think I'd still be under lockdown in their tower?" His tools clattered on the ground and the two of them glared at each other for a long moment before May huffed and grabbed her backpack.
"I'm going to finish studying where people are more reasonable and not so delusional."
"Good. Tell your Dad I'm almost done with his gear," James called back - still ticked off, and not willing to even think about cooling off. He'd purposely not been overly descriptive with May about the trouble he could be in if he was caught, but he also knew that he'd told her that people who used mutants as weapons would want him given even a miniscule chance … and now he could see that she thought he was just paranoid.
She didn't get it. At all. And it was clear that it wasn't a matter of not knowing. It was a matter of not being able to grasp what it was that not only her mutant friends were dealing with, but her boyfriend, in particular. And he honestly couldn't wrap his head around how she didn't believe him that there was a major issue. It had him ready to pick a fight. Especially after he'd spent so much time at his mothers cottage breathing in scents that had to have been all that was left of his parents. So yes. James was a little touchy about how much people like those running the weapons groups had cost his family.
So while May flounced off, tossing her hair over her shoulder, James nearly broke a tooth as he tried to swallow the growl down and got back to work picking up his discarded tools and then going back to the webshooters.
May, however, ended up going right to her father, who looked irritated at the way May was throwing things around and huffing to herself. "What's wrong today, sweetheart?" Peter asked - earning himself a deadly scowl from his daughter before she dropped her backpack - and then launched into a detailed retelling of what had just happened in the lab from her point of view. Which was a lot less flattering of an opinion than what had actually happened.
"I don't understand how someone who's been training and working for so long can't understand why they need to go be a hero! He doesn't even try and he does it!"
"May, sweetheart, it's not that simple," Peter said, not understanding how it was that he was defending her boyfriend to her.
"I swear, Dad, if you say it's the whole mutant thing I'm going to scream."
"It's not! Well it is. But it's not - you know what? It's just … it's not as simple as you think, okay? It's not just the mutant thing."
"But you always said that we have to live up to our responsibility - and that means that if you can protect someone and stop bad things from happening, you need to! Great power comes with great responsibility - thats like … our family crest!"
Peter blew out a breath and ran his hand through his already messy hair. "Sit down, May," he said, then took her hands in his as he tried to keep their conversation somewhat private. "I know it's hard to understand, but James keeping out of things and laying low is being responsible. For him."
"Dad."
"No, hear me out. His parents - both of them - they were used by people to do horrible things. And even though the Phoenix destroyed the labs and the research centers and … pretty much everyone involved that she could … the idea behind it didn't go away. James is making the right move by staying off the radar. If they got a hold of him …"
"They won't."
"They could," Peter said with a bit more force. "I know you think the world of him, May, but he's still a kid. His Dad was the the toughest, meanest, hardest to deal with person I ever met, but they managed to use him anyhow. James is just a kid - and I don't care how good he is, he's nowhere near what his parents were at their peak and they still got caught. If someone wanted to take that kid down … he wouldn't stand a chance." He took her by both shoulders so he could look her in the eyes more clearly. "And sweetheart, you do not want to see what happens to him if someone gets a hold of him. He's right. Don't push him into being on the team. He can still save lives and make a difference doing what he does right here, safe in the lab."
May stared at him for a long moment. "I can't believe you're on his side!"
Peter stared after her. "How is that what you took out of that statement?!"
"You don't even like him," May snapped. "And you're supposed to be on my side, Dad!"
"May, I'm not going to agree with you if you're wrong," Peter said, but that only had her looking and sounding that much more angry as she stomped away to find someone who would commiserate with her.
Which left a few people staring at the scene and Peter feeling like he had to say something. So, he quietly turned and made his way over to James' lab. He let himself in, and the instant he did, James looked up, sighed, and let his shoulders drop. But he didn't wait for Peter to get started before he spoke up.
"Timing's good," James said, hoping that Peter wouldn't try to talk to him about joining up, too. "Just wrapping this up. Should get more out of the cartridges and they can fire faster now."
"That's great," Peter replied as he came over to pick one up and try it out while James was finishing up the second one. "But not why I came in."
James carefully kept from looking up at Peter. "Alright. Go ahead. I'm listening, but if you're going to harp at me to join up, I'm gonna tell you that Tony's already offered up a few solutions that I've turned down. And my Dad's worked too hard to keep me safe just for me to turn around and give him the finger for a spandex bodysuit."
"Okay, first of all," Peter said, holding up one finger. "It's not just spandex, okay? It's reinforced with vibranium mesh and -" He stopped when he saw the dry look James was giving him. "- not the point. Fine. Secondly - and more importantly, I wasn't going to push you, and I wasn't going to lecture. As it happens … I agree with you and your Dad, okay? I just wanted you to know that May isn't getting this from me. It's all … we've tried to protect her from the bad stuff. The worst stuff, anyhow, and I know it's hard to explain how bad it can get to people outside of the loop- your father didn't ever talk about it, so I-"
"You're not telling me anything I don't know," James said. "And I'd rather not talk about my father if it's all the same to you, Mr. Parker."
Peter's eyebrows went up high and fast. "Oh. We're doing the formal thing. You must be upset then."
James dropped his gaze as he shrunk back on himself. "I'm just trying to- nevermind."
"Hey. If it makes you feel any better, I think you're doing the right thing. All the way around! It's a lot harder than anyone wants to admit when your friends and your girlfriend are pressuring you."
"I just know that it would be bad for everyone if any of those weapons programs got a hold of me or my brother and sister."
Peter began nodding his head in fervent agreement. "You're entirely right, and on behalf of the rest of the Avengers, the population of New York, and the world in general - thanks. Just … keep it small. Point those heroic tendencies like you have been - at creepy jerks who are literally begging for it. Just … don't get caught next time."
"That sounds suspiciously like something an Avenger shouldn't say."
"To … a criminal, yes, but to a little budding hero that is trying to not be turned into a mindless weapon full of razor sharp awful? Perfectly acceptable." James made a face at that and hesitated before searching for something to do. "And I made it weird again." Peter sighed. "I'll tell you one thing," he said as he picked up everything James had come up with - including the new recipe for webbing. "When it came to your Dad? Your biological dad, that is - it didn't matter how bad it looked, I knew if he was with me, we were going to get out of it somehow."
James' shoulders dropped a little more and he turned toward Peter, frowning at him. "That seems to be the repeating theme," James said in a perfectly neutral tone. "But I didn't ask."
Peter looked more disappointed than he realized. "No. I guess not. Okay. So. Good talk. I'm here if you ever feel like just quietly glowering at me or something." He skittered out of the lab, but that only left James behind trying to decide how to even process that. It wasn't like it was the first time that he'd been told he was doing things like Logan did. And James didn't mind doing things that he thought were right. But he did take issue with feeling like he had no choice in how he was reacting to people or situations, so every time someone looked pleased that he'd reacted like his parents, James retreated a little more.
Chapter 29: Joy And Angst
Chapter Text
Even if America had basically given Kate the go-ahead to figure out her feelings with Nate, Kate didn't go running straight to Nate or anything. That would be undignified. And she had been raised by the Black Widow.
No, what she did was go to Westchester more often to "visit Lexi," wearing some cute clothes that she knew drew attention to all the right things about her appearance - and openly projecting the fact that she and America were on a break.
Okay, so it wasn't quite dignified either, but, well, she wasn't her mother.
Still, even with how much she was projecting, Nate didn't seen to take any hints until just before the Summers took off for Christmas, when Kate more or less threw a sprig of mistletoe at him and kissed him full on the mouth. Because if he wasn't going to make a move, she would. And if he still wasn't interested, then forget it. She had a gorgeous girlfriend she could go back to and know that Nate Summers just wasn't good enough to keep up with her.
For a long moment, Nate just stared at her, and then, he broke into a crooked grin and pulled her into a long kiss in return. "For the record - this isn't some weird rebound thing, right?"
"Oh my gosh, is that why you weren't taking my massive hints, you dork!" Kate hit him in the center of his chest. "You're lucky you're cute, because wow."
"I don't know … got a wow either way."
Kate rolled her eyes. "There is a different between 'wow, you're cute' and 'wow, you're stupid,' and you tread a fine line, mister."
Nate grinned but hadn't stepped back from her either. "Hey, for all I knew, you were projecting for Rachel, not me."
"You're an idiot." Kate shoved him in the shoulder. "But if you take me out on a real date, I'll overlook that."
Once more, Nate's grin widened. "You're on."
"Why does Angel look like he's getting ready to face down a monster?" Mia asked as she walked into her mother's office. She stopped in the doorway, her tail still behind her as she watched Warren walk away with his feathers slightly ruffled and his wings stiff behind him.
"Because he's not used to being burdened with such responsibility," Ororo replied with a warm smile. "Even though I told him it was only for two weeks."
"But … what?" Mia asked, turning to her mother with wide eyes even as Ororo approached her calmly.
"My beloved daughter, you need to go upstairs and pack your bags. We're going to take a short trip to my homelands, and to visit an old friend. Be sure to dress for warm weather."
"Wait. Hold up. Wait." Mia was grinning in spite of herself. "We're taking a vacation? Since when do we take vacation time?"
"Since I realized that you should get to see something more impressive than the dirty streets of New York," Ororo said before she kissed Mia on the forehead and walked by her. "Pack quickly. Our Maker has the jet ready to go. He's only waiting on us."
Mia was on her toes for the whole flight, half holding her breath as her leg jiggled. She was excited - so excited - to get out and to maybe even get to socialize with people that didn't know her parents and were also second gen superheroes.
When they finally started to circle around for the landing, Mia couldn't keep her excitement under control. She was grinning broadly -moreso as they circled lower and lower, and by the time they were on the ground, she was bouncing in her seat, wide-eyed and at the edge of squealing.
Ororo and Forge shared a smile - particularly since Mia was doing her best and still acting like the excited kid that she was. She so rarely got to travel and to see the world … sure, she'd gotten to see where Forge was from - and enjoyed every moment on the reservation where what was left of his family lived - but it was an entirely different kind of sweeping wind-swept plain in Montana with the Rocky Mountains looming in the distance. This … this was her mother's homeland - or close enough to it. And the African plains were something else entirely.
The colors were unbelievable, for one thing. The oranges and deep warm reds made everything else seem dull by comparison. Everything reflected the orangey glow. It was so distractingly vivid that she almost didn't realize that they were at the edge of a sprawling city that she didn't even see coming in.
"Where are we?" Mia asked in a breath. "I didn't know Africa had such big cities … I mean, I knew it had cities, I just mean …"
"We're in Wakanda," Ororo said, a sedate aura emanated around her as she closed her eyes and breathed in the fresh air. Without thinking of any consequences for the first time in a very long time, Ororo gently let her arms extend at her sides as the wind around her picked up and lifted her skyward. She didn't fly high, but clearly, she had needed to fly a little bit. For her own sanity.
It wasn't until she was well into the air though, before Mia called out to her. "Looking good, Mom! Mind taking someone with you next time?"
Ororo paused and turned her way, blushing high on her cheeks - not that anyone saw it for as high up as she was. "Of course. What was I thinking?"
"Likely, that you were glad to be back," Forge answered.
Mia looked between her parents as her parents gazed longingly at each other. The relationship was certainly on equal footing, but there was something about the way that Forge didn't even attempt to hide his open near-worship of his wife that had Mia pining for someone to look at her like that. She just didn't know how that would ever happen when she wasn't able to leave the institute … except in cases like this, of course, when her parents totally blindsided her. And she was going to soak in every single skyscraper, tower, and friendly face she came across.
For the past several months, James had noticed a marked change in how things felt at the tower. The Avengers were the same, as always, but those going in and out of the tower were a little … off. America hadn't really been around as much, and Dani had started up in a new school that meant her time at the tower was less and less. Most of the kids near his age were going to Westchester to deal with their power sets, too, so that meant less and less kids were around - which was okay. Except that when there was a break - like at Christmas or Spring Break - all the kids that should have been at the tower for some reason weren't.
Again, James wouldn't have found it too odd, except for the fact that May was among those not showing up - even when she could. And considering how much she'd always pushed for more time, the change was noticeable. When she finally appeared on the last weekday of Spring Break after not answering his texts for the past few days, James could see what was coming. And he wasn't exactly looking forward to the visit. He really likes her, and he'd spoiled her every chance he got as best he could. Still … things had been odd since the beginning of the year, but it wasn't until now that it was just … weird.
He looked up as she approached, though she was moving stiffly and didn't look like she was at ease at all as she stood across the bench from him, watching and remaining quiet. When he set his tools down, it all happened very quickly.
"I think there's a better person out there for both of us. This isn't working for me anymore," May said, though she looked half upset as she sid it. "Are you okay?"
James blinked a couple of times then chose to cope the best way he knew how - at the time. "Yeah. I'm fine. Thanks for letting me know." Though he definitely was not alright, he wasn't about to make a big deal over it. Definitely not in front of anyone.
She took a step toward him looking like she was going for a hug, but James stepped back at that. "You don't need to do that. You should finish your break with people you want to be around. I have work to finish up anyhow. I get it. It's fine, Mayday."
May looked equal parts worried and vindicated at that though. "Then I guess I'll see you around. Coffee with the group one of these days, right?"
"Sure," James replied, watching her out of the corner of his eye as she left - and then as soon as she was gone, he set his tools down and sat down himself. He had zero drive to even try and keep working now, and a glance at the clock showed him it would be a while still before it was time to go. So instead of speaking up, or trying to put it aside, he made his way over to the couch and dropped onto it to stare out the mirrored windows for a while. He was pretty well convinced that touching anything he was building would end up causing an explosion at this point, so it was best to just … not. At least he had the weekend at home ahead of him, away from the tower. It would be easy enough to isolate, anyhow.
But he didn't have nearly as long to wait as he thought. Steve showed up a little early to give him a ride home because his dad wanted to make the most of their weekend before break was over - which undoubtedly meant intensive family time. The ride home was mostly silent - save for anything that Steve said, or tried to say, and when James walked in the door, Nate and Rachel were already elbow deep in trying to make dinner for the family without burning the house down.
They were having a blast - laughing and joking both verbally and telepathically while they punched some pizza dough into submission and tossed little shreds of cheese at each other.
James watched them from the living room for a moment as he hung his keys up and took off his shoes. Of course they'd be up to something like this when he wanted to put some headphones in and take a nap.
"Katie is on her way over," Nate called out. "You should call May, we can make a night of it. Dad's hoping for equal numbers when we get to the games."
"Yeah, no, that's not gonna happen. I'll just sit it out this time around," James said. "I've got … stuff to do." As soon as he'd said it, he knew it didn't sound right. He wasn't enrolled anywhere. He had no more degrees on deck at the moment to hide in. So James didn't wait around for them to poke holes in his story. And since they were properly blown off - and in good moods … and especially since the last thing he wanted to do was draw attention by being the quiet, broody one, he left his siblings to themselves. He was accused of being too quiet often enough as it was. But he didn't make it all the way to his room upstairs before Scott called out to him, halfway up the stairs as he followed.
"What happened?" he asked, a look of concern on his face, though not nearly so deeply etched in as the last time Scott had felt compelled to quiz him.
"Nothing too major," James said, though he glanced toward the bottom of the stairs, sure that his siblings would be coming around sooner than later. "May and I split up, and I'm not in the mood to drag everyone down, so I thought I'd just head up, listen to some music and read … or something." He held up both hands, even with the earbuds dangling from one. "I'm fine, Dad. I promise. I just don't want to talk about it and I don't want to be around the group. Not tonight."
Scott nodded slowly. "Alright. You know I'm here if you change your mind."
"I know," James agreed. "But you know I'll be here when the other two are back to school - so … have some fun with them, please. I doubt they'd be up to both of us kicking their butts up and down Bedford Avenue."
Scott smiled at that. "No, I don't think they'd handle it well either. I'll send up some pizza in a while."
"Thanks," James replied before he slipped into his room and dropped onto the bed with a weary sigh. Now that he was there, he was much more tired. But it was still early enough in the night that he could hear every little thing in the borough, so he put his earbuds in, put on something relaxing and soft, then closed his eyes as he tried to hide in the music all he way until he fell asleep.
An hour or so later, Rachel came up to check in on him and to bring him food. "Alright. What's going on?" she asked, waking him up as she dropped down next to him where he had been sleeping. Or trying to.
"Nothing overly important," James promised as he took out the earphones and all the ambient sounds around him came rushing back, breaking the little bubble of isolation James had created for himself.
"James." Rachel gave him a dry look. "You're missing out on watching Katie on cloud nine even when Nate wins a round. It's adorable. She's still tickled that they're unofficially official. Come on. If you don't want to tell me, then show me."
"Not much to tell - or show," James said, though he settled in on his side so they could talk - a sure indicator to Rachel that he was more affected by the breakup than he'd admitted to.
"Okay," Rachel said, dipping her head down to watch his expression better. Because he was blocking her from peeking or checking in, about the only indicator she had to know how he was doing was his facial expressions and body language. And he was being guarded. "Mind telling me what happened then? Because I don't understand. I thought you two had it together."
"She … she probably just got bored."
"Not even a possibility, little brother." Rachel shifted to sit cross legged on the bed to show him she had no plans to go anywhere. "So … I get not wanting to dwell on it, but … I need to know enough to make sure Dad stays back if you want him to."
"I dunno," James admitted. "Things have been off, I guess since we got back after Christmas. She's been hanging in for as long as she could. I don't blame her."
"But you haven't done anything wrong since then," Rachel said with a frown before she leaned forward slightly. "If you can't figure it out, maybe you can show me. I swear I won't tell anyone. I'll lock it up tight away from Nate. I can do that, you know."
James chewed on the inside of his lip for a long moment before he let out a breath and nodded. "Okay. Sure." He rested his head on his arm while Rachel resituated herself and reached over to rest her fingertips on his temples - and as soon as he'd opened his mind for her, she started looking for what had happened that James had missed, since clearly, he wasn't getting it.
What she wasn't expecting was the beginning of the end having been May trying to push him into being a hero. Rachel had to control her reaction since she and Nate had been low-key doing the same thing, but obviously James hadn't gotten that angry with them. And she had to wonder if he wasn't projecting some of that toward May. But … since she was seeing it through his eyes, she could see what he thought had been so obvious and she could sense the way he'd desperately wanted her to understand, even if his means of conveying his concerns and feelings weren't stellar. She could also see the moment that James quit trying to convince her of anything and simply shut down and drew a line in the sand. It was a look she and Nate hadn't seen much themselves, but the fire with which he defended his decision to avoid the hero lifestyle was strong. Which, if nothing else, gave her a little perspective on how not to approach her little brother in the future when they got closer to being heroes … or more precarious - restarted the X-Men.
Rachel kept looking, surprised at how involved James and little May Parker were when no one was around - and how keenly hurt James was at her almost nonchalant rejection. And by the time that Rachel had seen all she could without prying into more personal things, she had to take a moment to consider it herself.
James sighed heavily when he saw the expression on Rachel's face, but he didn't break her concentration.
"I'd have to double check with May just to be 100% sure and to keep you from holding on to that instance of incredible misreading, but I don't think she got tired of you, little brother. I think she was comfortable with you, from what I saw. And I could see by watching her through your eyes that you really love her. You two … you had fun from the moment you got together, didn't you?"
"More or less," James admitted.
"But … she didn't understand your concerns. And I don't think she could."
"I know," James said. "I can't figure out how to explain it right."
Rachel was already shaking her head. "No, James, it's not up to you to show her that. It's not something she'll just get. And the fact that she dropped you like this? You'll find someone that's just as much fun, just as hard for you to say no to, just as full of light … but hopefully, next time it'll be someone who can understand your perspective without imposing their beliefs on you."
James nodded wordlessly, though he looked strained at the corners of his eyes, which Rachel took as her cue to lean over and wrap him up in a hug. The moment she got her arms around him, he returned the gesture and doubled down on the hug. Heartbroken was not a look she ever wanted to see on either of her brothers, especially when James had always been so open about showing the emotions that mattered.
He hadn't even realized how much he'd needed that contact until it had happened, and Rachel found herself getting upset on his behalf for a moment. Eventually though, he managed to get a firm grip over his emotions again. "Sorry," James said when the two of them let go of each other.
"No, no," Rachel said. "Don't do that. Don't apologize for being hurt. You might have seen in hindsight what was happening, but it was plain as day that you weren't expecting it when you came in tonight." She paused and considered her next words carefully. "You know, I don't want to upset you, but she was right about one thing, James." When he looked up to meet her gaze, it was clear he had no idea what direction Rachel was headed. "You would be amazing if you ever decided to be a hero."
Maybe," James conceded. "But a lot would have to be different before I could even think about it."
Rachel pulled over the dinner she'd brought up for him. "Then I guess I better get to work, huh?" She smiled crookedly as she decided to share with him something that even Nate didn't know yet. It seemed like the kind of thing that might cheer him up, after all. "I finally talked Dad into letting me start training to be an Avenger. There are a lot of conditions, of course-"
"Naturally."
"But when he heard how much I wanted to do this for mom and for your parents, and Grampa Charlie … he didn't shoot me down."
"That's because he knows if there was anyone that could outstubborn the world into behaving like civilized folk, it would be you," James said.
Rachel smiled widely at that and their discussion drifted into more neutral territory as she quizzed him on what he thought he should be doing with his time. There was a moment of pure pride when he admitted that he'd considered being a doctor like Dr. Blue, but it was short lived when he continued to say that there was no way he'd be able to honestly consider it with the restrictions he had to live by in order to stay out of the wrong side of laboratories. But it only had Rachel thinking more about how she could change things.
How could she make it easier for her brother to try living again instead of just surviving? He was miserable without any real distractions now and she could see it so easily. And like any good big sister, she wanted to fix it for him. Nate had an easier time of it - even if he would never believe it. And she hated that James was giving up on doing things that would be so good for him. And out of fear. It didn't fit with his personality. Cautious, sure … but things really had changed for him after the Cassie incident.
"Well, if you could do anything, what would it be?" Rachel asked. It was a discussion they'd had since they were kids, but now as they got older it was becoming a wonderful litmus test to see where his head was.
James thought for a long while, until finally, he drew in a slow breath. "I think it would be best if I could just find somewhere to go miles away from anything and just … stay there."
"Alone?" Rachel honestly wasn't sure if his answer was still coming from the fresh heartbreak or if this truly was how James felt. It was always harder to tell with him.
He looked pensive as he nodded slowly.
"That … no. We wouldn't make it without you. Just. No."
"Rachel," James said, his chin tipped down even as he looked up at her with an expression that echoed Logan more accurately than he realized. "If it's not something I can do behind the scenes for the team, what can I possibly offer to anyone that doesn't put me out there with a sign on my forehead that screams out who I am? I can't change what I am, and I can't change my face. My options are very limited."
"And you don't want to work behind the scenes at the tower," Rachel surmised.
"I'm already tired of feeling like their mascot," James admitted.
"That wasn't a problem when you were going out giving Natasha heart attacks over strange girls and coffee."
"That … was stupid and reckless of me."
"You're allowed to make mistakes, James."
Again, she was rewarded with an incredibly dry expression before he projected out to her. Rach. Of the short list of things I am allowed to do, screwing up is nowhere on the list. At all. As it stands, you know I'm going to end up talking to Rabbi Cohen while you guys are at school after all this.
Rachel smiled to herself and couldn't help but tease. That's not all bad - though he'll probably start trying to suggest good Jewish girls for you to date.
You mean good Jewish girls to court.
Same difference to him. Rachel squeezed his arm. Don't worry. He'll give you an appropriate mourning period before he starts bringing pretty girls over.
James couldn't stop the bark of a laugh that slipped out at that. "Love you, sis."
"Love you too. Don't forget that."
"How could I?" James replied, which earned him a warmer smile from Rachel before she got up to leave him to his solitary dinner and to let him get lost in his music again. So far, Rachel had managed to beat any of her boyfriends to the punch when it came time to end things. This was just … rotten.
When she turned the corner at the bottom of the stairs, Nate and Kate were laughing hard and playing Uno, but Scott was waiting for her. "He'll be okay," Rachel told him quietly. "He's just in shock and hurt. He was in pretty deep with her."
Scott paused. "How deep?"
"It doesn't really matter now. They weren't anywhere close to old enough to be serious serious, but you know how James is. He gets attached when he starts to really care about someone," Rachel said. "He got the rug pulled out from under him, but he'll be okay. He's not doing anything wrong. He's just … trying to figure out what's next. That's all. Totally normal and not as dramatic as me when I got all upset and cut my hair super short."
"The buzz cut and rat-tail was a good look," Scott teased.
Rachel made a sound of disbelief from the back of her throat as her father chuckled. "Please just let him deal for a while before you let the Rabbi get a hold of him, please?"
"I'll give him some space," Scott promised.
The rest of the weekend was spent with Rachel playing bouncer to let James keep his peace and quiet. He barely left his room until Sunday afternoon - and that was because he knew without being told that Scott really wanted him to join the family for their now-traditional Sunday dinner together. And James wasn't about to interrupt that regardless of what he was dealing with. Especially when he knew that his siblings were going to be thrown back into their studies when they had so many other things on their minds.
But he was still quiet and barely kept engaged in the conversation. Not that there was a lot of room for him to join in when Nate was excitedly talking about how he was going to get control of his powers because he missed team sports way too much to stay out of it for another year.
It was the one time that Scott caught James smiling to himself, even if he had his chin tucked almost to his chest as he valiantly tried to hide from Nate the fact that he knew what Nate really missed.
And by the time that Rachel and Nate watched their dad and James head back down the road leaving Xaviers that evening after listening to Mia gushing about how wonderful her vacation was in Wakanda - how warm the people were there … and how it even though she'd been there for two weeks, she still felt exposed and scared walking in her own skin. After all that, Rachel had managed to have a good long time to weigh all of it out. So she was already in a mood by the time she actually stepped into the living room where there was a small group of kids with wings talking with Warren who, though he was telling them again why it was important to keep their muscles in shape, he was also highlighting how crucial it was for them to keep their heads down and limit themselves to controlled night flying.
The anxiety and misery the group of them were feeling was plain on every single face - Warren included, and as she stood in the doorway, Betsy broke into her thoughts. Someone looks particularly displeased. Did something happen at home?
Rachel turned on her heel, then crossed her arms as she headed for the kitchen with Betsy keeping pace. No. I'm just … frustrated with all of this.
Which part is bothering you most right now?
Which part isn't? Rachel countered. Mia can't socialize and she clearly needs to, James is shutting himself down on possible things he can do because he's being too careful trying to keep from getting spotted by anyone - and all the mess that goes with that. Nate just wants to be back to regular school so he can play sports and be with Katie … I mean … everyone here! Everyone! Look at Warren! I'm sick of everyone being scared to live!
You know it's not for any reason other than safety, Betsy replied, honestly concerned with how upset Rachel was.
And that's the problem! Rachel threw her hands up. "Why can't people just let us live?"
Betsy sighed. "You know it's more complex than what you're pretending it to be."
"It's really not," Rachel countered. "It's really really not. How can people be so okay with treating mutants like this? It's not okay to be a racist, but it's alright to hate us because we have powers?"
"Rachel .."
Rachel let out a growl of frustration. Nate is an amazing athlete but he can't play sports because he's a mutant. James … if James was human instead of a mutant he'd be on the cover of magazines for how insanely smart he is but instead, he's practically a prisoner in Avengers' tower.
What about you? Betsy challenged, already well aware that arguing with her wasn't going to be worth much at this point.
Rachel had her hands on her hips. What about me? I'm joining the Avengers because the X-Men are defunct. I will find a way to turn this around. My brothers deserve better. I deserve better, Warren and Mia and every kid here deserves to be treated with respect that they don't get on the basis of one mutated gene? "Screw that."
Chapter 30: First Place
Chapter Text
James had spent a lot of time working at the tower after the fiasco with Cassie and all the fallout from dating little May Parker. Instead of getting into trouble, or acting like most kids his own age, he put his focus on the few things he could do while hiding away and powered through his studies and accrued several Stark-approved degrees while tinkering alongside Tony. In the process, he'd secured himself a spot at Stark Industries - and had saved up some money - though Scott assured him he could just keep to his studies, since it was no secret that as long as the kids were in school he could keep a close eye on them. For the most part.
There was a small adult freak out that happened after James helped his brother have a nice coffee date by distracting a girl that hated Kate but happened to flirt with James whenever she saw him. James didn't like the girl. But he did have a little fun with her. He even considered her offer to go on a real date that was just shy of a promise to get right to fooling around.
As soon as the two of them parted company, Nate couldn't help himself. "Okay. But why?"
"Why what?" James asked, frowning at his brother.
"Why are you making out with someone that evil?"
"She's not … she isn't evil," James said, rolling his eyes. "Not liking Kate isn't an instant qualifier for some kind of supervillain club."
"It so is," Kate giggled. "It so is and you know it is."
"Wait. Are you going to date her now?" Nate asked. "You might get drafted to the other side if you do."
"Oooh, that's why he's so reluctant to consider a t-e-a-m," Lexi said with a perfectly straight expression. "He wants to go evil."
"At least long enough to get in her pants," America added, which had Nate busting up laughing.
"Hey," James said, though Nate cut in laughing hard as he did so.
"Saying she started it isn't a good enough defense!" Nate laughed, but instead of trying to cut into the picking, James found himself thinking it over. Kate and Nate got their date … and James pretty well had a sure thing lined up if he followed through - which really only equated to making the call and setting it up.
But that line of thinking only lasted long enough for him to get back to the tower with Nate and Kate … far too slow to beat the picture that Lexi had sent ahead of them showcasing James kissing Isabella Frost.
He had no way of knowing that he'd have not only Natasha, but Tony, Jan, Steve, and Scott in full blown freak out just from one little kissing session. Until he heard the connections - namely the fact that Isabella's mother was Madame Masque. And her aunt was Emma Frost. Which meant both Tony and Scott were just a little sensitive on hearing even the name.
Given the chance to think it over, even with Nate dying laughing, James ended up going quiet for a week, kicking himself for his luck while carefully blocking out Rachel and Nate since … he really was considering taking Izzy out for more than just coffee. Sure, she hated Katie, her best friend was Arcade's daughter, and her family was evil, but she was very pretty and a good kisser. So there was a draw there .. even if it wasn't entirely on the up and up.
It made James second guess himself, and he was understandably more cautious after that, even if it put a dampener on his dating prospects. It didn't stop him, but it had him paranoid that he'd be picking up someone worse … and considering the kind of girls he was playing around with, it'd be just his luck if he ended up getting wrapped up with the daughter of Viper and the Red Skull. And the fact that he was half wondering what said girl would look like, and weighing out if her parents were a real deterrent was distracting in itself. In ways he didn't want to ruminate over.
But behaving was starting to wear on James - the constant study was stifling. He felt far too much like a bookworm when all he wanted to do when he couldn't chase a girl was run in the woods and sit by the edge of Lake Superior listening to the waves roll in off the big lake. But that would be a waste of his talents, too. After it was clear James was getting bored with what most people at the company would throw themselves into, and especially considering that the Frost girl was still looking for James, Tony started to pull the kid into the garage with him.
Tony took the time to teach him a little bit on how to upgrade and see how to take a perfectly amazing racecar and turn it into something honestly mind blowing. He had James helping to 'restore' a gorgeous old sports car that didn't have much wrong with it other than some neglect showing through the faded paint and ripped leather seats, though the engine was misfiring, too. But it was something to draw James' interest, and considering that he was slowly inching toward driving age, it had the young man thinking.
He was only fifteen, and he and Scott had talked about the idea of him getting a car of some sort, if nothing else, than to free up Scott to come and go now that Nate had finally returned to public school after mastering his powerset at Westchester. But after working with Tony on both a new car and an older one, James had come to a decision on his own without consulting anyone about it. He'd spent the past few months since his birthday looking through ads in the paper for a car.
It was probably the most typical of his age thing that he'd done in years, and once Scott had discovered what James was up to, he certainly wasn't going to put an end to it. Though, he had to admit to being curious about what James was looking for. Particularly when James wasn't making any notations on what was catching his eye or not. But Scott kept his distance, unsure if James was taking this kind of information to Tony, or if he was simply working on his own for this one.
The Summers family was settled in and having breakfast that quiet Sunday morning in Brooklyn. Rachel was making plans for graduation and Nate was plotting out his newest workout regimen for spring tryouts when Scott noticed that James once again had a whole book of car for sale ads, so he had to ask. "What are you looking at?" Scott couldn't hide the curiosity as he sat down with a cup of coffee. "Find the sports car you've been searching for yet?"
James made a face and shook his head. "Don't want anything like that. Too flashy. Draws way too much attention. Which would kill Natasha dead on the basis of having spent too much time with Tony." He flipped through a few pages - looking between two sections before he settled on something - and sat back in his chair, looking them all over more carefully.
"Fair," Scott said. "But he's not the only one around with an eye for sports cars. I had a great convertible when I was younger."
James smirked at that. "Yeah, that's a thought. I was kinda leaning that way. Sort of."
"Cute girl you're trying to impress?"
"Ah, no," James said, shaking his head. "Where would I meet her that wouldn't end up with her being a super creep? I've already dated my way through all the available or interesting Avenger's kids." Rachel snorted at that, then doubled down on her breakfast when both James and Scott looked her way. "And everyone else at Stark's place is too old for me."
"You know, you can go for coffee again," Rachel said. "You don't have to wait for someone else to go out and bribe them to get yours. I seem to remember you had pretty good luck at the coffee shops not that long ago that wasn't the daughter of Madame Masque."
"Even if she's still pining," Nate said with an ill-hidden grin. It was clear that he still thought that Izzy looking for his brother was the height of hilarity.
James shook his head and turned his focus back to the ads. "Too much chatter and I don't like the inducers."
"You can still go out without it if you're careful," Nate said, but then muttered out a soft 'nevermind' when Scott gave him a look.
"You go to the school every other weekend when Mia gets stir-crazy," Scott pointed out as he shifted his focus back to the subject at hand. Especially when he knew James was still catting around when given ample opportunity - and he wanted his son to take better care when it came to relationships of any kind.
"Okay, that's fair," James conceded, nodding. "But that hasn't really worked out too well yet. Megan still won't acknowledge my existence after that blew up." Nate snickered to himself again since he knew far more about that affair than he'd have wanted to. Dating 'Pixie' had been an unmitigated disaster between how jealous she'd gotten from other people flirting with James and the two of them getting caught causing trouble at the Institute when he went to visit. "And like I said," James continued, ignoring his brother's amused expression. "I'm not interested in impressing anyone. If I've got to do that to turn someone's head, then they're not looking at me. This isn't about girls."
"Too bad," Rachel said with a smirk. "The way Mia tells it, you have a following if you open your eyes. At least … if you pay attention to girls that don't have evil in their family history."
James gave her a dry look then rolled his entire body to turn away from her, which had Nate snickering. "I just want something that'll be good in the snow but still fun in the summer too." He looked up at Scott, though he hesitated before admitting to him "I was kind of looking at a Jeep, to be honest."
Scott blinked at him before he broke into a grin. "Seriously?"
"Okay wow, what did I do?"
"No, it's just…" Scott chuckled. "Yeah, I think a Jeep would be a great idea."
"Alright. Then … there's another problem," James said as he leaned toward Scott slightly. "Everything I find that isn't brand new off the line - which I don't want - needs some work. But I don't want to ask Tony to get involved even if I'm sure he would if I asked. He'd take it too far. So. Would you help me if I got something that's probably going to be worse than I think when I find it? I'm not talking about a total rebuild, just … you know. A lot of the stuff in here is suffering from neglect. And I know I don't know enough on my own to wing it."
"Yeah, absolutely," Scott said, still grinning widely. "I'll help you wrench on it."
"Oh, good," James said, letting out a breath. "I could afford to get a new one, but I don't really like the way they look inside." James made a face and looked uncomfortable. "It's hard to explain, but for something you can take the doors off of and pull a drain plug - leather seats and a big stereo, navigation… all those bells and whistles seem … dumb."
"No, no," Scott said. "That makes perfect sense."
"Okay, but … you're going to break your face and it's kind of freaking me out."
Scott reined in the smile by a fraction and leaned back. "It's just that your dad was always wrenching on a bike or a Jeep. I even helped him a few times."
James looked honestly surprised at that. "You're kidding."
"I wouldn't be surprised if he had a lot of the same reasons in mind that you do."
James smirked to himself and shook his head, since he had been hearing more and more stories about Logan as he began to resemble him more strongly with age. "Huh."
Scott smirked and reached over to ruffle James' hair. "I'm not surprised."
"So. Maybe … we could take a look at a few of them?" James slid the ads toward Scott. "There are a few that look interesting at least. And I want your honest opinion."
"Yes. Absolutely." Scott grinned.
"Are you sure you don't want to finish up at Xaviers like your sister?" Scott asked Nate as he got ready to re-register at the same High School that Clint and Natasha had chosen for Kate and Lexi.
"Dad. You know I've missed playing football," Nate said, rolling his eyes.
"And baseball and soccer and hockey," Scott said as he set the newspaper down on the table. Online articles had been growing in popularity, but no matter how many of their neighbors dropped the print copies, Scott couldn't seem to shake the habit of needing to see the news in print. "And I'll go to every single game when you join up, I just … "
"You're worried about the anti-mutant garbage that's rising in popularity," Nate finished. "It's okay, Dad. That's not even in our borough. Most of the trouble's in Queens."
"I know that, Nate, but you can't expect it to stay in Queens." Scott shook his head, took his juice glass to the sink and started the coffee maker. As was his usual morning routine, he planned to have coffee with Rabbi, Cohen once he'd gotten Nate to school. James was already gone with Captain Rogers, and the subway to get Nate to class was only a fifteen-minute ride. "If it's there, it's everywhere. It's just getting worse there - and sooner or later, it'll show up in school-"
"Dad. I literally can hear what people are thinking if I concentrate just a little bit." Nate held his fingers a fraction of an inch apart. "And I don't have to listen if someone has seriously ill intent. They scream it."
"Alright, but I just know that teenagers have a harder time not projecting."
"What, you think that human teens are worse than mutants? Dad. I've been dealing with it the whole time I was in Westchester, only that was worse because they were all staring at me because they knew my parents were amazing superheroes that were on the original team and practically founded the school with Grampa Charlie. Believe me. This will be easy."
Scott suddenly looked much older as he pinched the bridge of his nose. "Nate, please."
"I'm just saying. I've got this, Dad. It'll be fine." Nate slipped his backpack onto one shoulder. "Ooh, and I'm supposed to go with Katie after school. She talked her mom into letting her shop for cars too since James is. She's determined to get a car before him."
"Even if he gets one, it won't be drivable for a while," Scott pointed out.
"True, but you know how she is, Dad. She's gotta beat him sometimes - it's the whole birthday thing. She hates that he's a month older and looks like he's an adult."
"Looks," Scott pointed out with a laugh as he grabbed his keys and ushered him out the front door. "Just tell me why you need to go with Katie when you should be going with us."
"Um … she could actually die if I don't go with," Nate said with a totally unapologetic smile.
Scott chuckled to himself, but didn't argue it. "Alright, Nate. Have fun with Katie. Just remember it's your night for dishes."
When Scott returned home, he hit the steps at the same time as the rabbi, and he found himself mentally checking off one more thing on how his day was slipping away from him already.
"You know, I half think that the mothers in this neighborhood forgot you have two sons until Nate showed up full time again?" Rabbi Cohen told Scott even before the coffee was poured.
"It's probably better that way," Scott said with a grin, handing Toby his coffee before he took a seat himself. "Seeing as Nate and Katie aren't anywhere close to a split."
"Yeah, you might want to keep a close eye on those two," Toby said. "They have all the markers for trouble if they keep it up."
"They're not even old enough to drive," Scott laughed. "Their idea of a great date is a couple stolen kisses here and there. It's not serious yet."
Toby gave him a raised eyebrow look.
"It's not. But even if it was, she's a good kid and her parents are-"
"Good friends, I know, I know," Toby said, waving one hand. "Your other boy though-"
"I'm not letting anyone set him up, Toby. There's too many what ifs there."
"You'll change your mind when he gets caught up with some girl that's trouble from a family you haven't done a full background search on."
"Sure, Toby. I'm very certain that's going to be what happens."
"You never know," Toby said, then broke into a broad smile that Scott cut off at the pass.
"Rachel isn't interested. Don't start."
But that had Toby laughing outright. "Okay, okay. No matchmaking. I'll just send the hopeful suitors over with chocolates and flowers."
"Just make sure it's not dark chocolate," Scott said. "No one here likes that stuff."
Toby burst out laughing, and Scott refilled his cup before the two of them continued their planning and picking with the good rabbi even piping up on what to watch out for when Scott and James went looking for a Jeep with Steve - who had volunteered to drive the Jeep back - whenever they found one all three of them could agree on. A fact that amused Toby to no end.
"Katie's pushing to get a car first, but she'll still have to wait until she's sixteen to drive it," Scott laughed. "James will work on his until it's ready, but knowing him?"
"It'll be ready by the time he's old enough," Toby said, nodding. "And probably upgraded."
"We'll see. If he was going for upgrades, he'd have asked Tony to help," Scott pointed out.
"Yeah. But think about how that would look," Toby chuckled - a sound that now always got a smirk at minimum from all the Summers clan.
"Are you sure you don't want a newer car?" Clint asked as he took Kate to look at the car she'd found online - with Nate joining them for the fun of it and Carol Danvers there to help check the mechanical side of things with Clint. It was pretty clear that the pictures didn't do justice to how dinged up the old car was. He was standing with a frown on his face, one hand on his hip as he tipped his head sideways at the psychedelic-painted '71 super Beetle. The top had tears in it, and the chrome bumper was rusty, too. But … the old flower-child woman that was floating out of her brownstone was grinning at Kate even before she could answer her dad.
The woman looked like a cross between a fortune teller and a straight up hippie, with long flowing hair riddled with gray streaks. Her skirt was flowing, and she wore at least three scarves with a chunky ring on every finger and her half moon glasses perched on the tip of her nose as she came closer. "Oh, yes. You look like exactly the kind of kindred spirit my Janice needs," the woman said, grinning widely at Kate as she bounced in place. "Namaste, brothers and sisters. I'm Meadow."
While Meadow was staring at Kate with a grin, Kate only had eyes for the Beetle. Which left it up to Clint to do all the requisite safety and mechanical checks. And while Clint and a very amused Carol were looking over the engine, starting the car, looking for trouble as it ran, and kicking the tires, more or less, Meadow was telling Kate all about Janice's adventures.
Including the fact that apparently, Janice had originally been white … but Meadow and her friends decided to start painting her one day. On closer inspection, Kate could see the layers of flowers and rainbows … peace signs and all sorts of other hippie-inspired artwork that had been painted on and worn off then painted over again several times. "I'm afraid she'll need at the least a new coat of paint," Meadow told Carol in a forlorn tone. "But if you do take her, I hate to even ask it where she can hear me, but … would you consider just one color? I might not be able to take it seeing my wild-woman friend crusing the streets without me."
"She's not a wild-woman," Clint said, wiping his hands free of grease and dirt from looking over the engine. "She's fifteen."
"Oh, not your daughter," Meadow said, shaking her head quickly before she rested her hand on the car's front fender. "Janice. She's a wild woman. You have to be careful about her, too - she likes to take her top off!"
Clint smirked at that as Kate laughed delightedly. "Can we take Janice for a drive?" Clint asked. "I know we need to see how she runs first."
"Oh, absolutely!" Meadow dug around in her purse for the keys and handed them to Carol - even though Clint was standing nearest the driver's side door. Carol of course simply grinned wider at Clint before stepping around him to take the wheel.
"What are you waiting for?" Carol asked. "Or do you want to stay and ask Meadow more questions about Janice?"
"Not … the worst of ideas in a great many worst ideas you've had," Clint admitted as Kate and Nate climbed in the beetle - giggling like they were getting away with a massive crime, though Meadow looked as if the deal was already done even before Carol started it up and headed off down the block.
"We should discuss things," Meadow told Clint as she patted his arm.
"I'd like to make sure she wants it first," he said, but Meadow was already smiling and shaking her head. "Katie-Kate gets ideas in her head sometimes, and there's no telling if it's just an idea of a real desire…"
"She'll want it. I've seen that look on my own face a hundred times. That girl will love that car."
Before the two of them could get too deeply into anything, Meadow was handing Clint all the information she had on Janice - including decades of meticulous record keeping on service, repairs, and improvements. "Like I said, Mr. Barton," Meadow said as she readjusted her glasses on the end of her nose. "Janice has been very important to me. The only reason I'm selling her now is because I no longer can drive. Seizures, you know. I'd hate to hit someone or bang up that car if I had a problem going down the road. Mechanically, she's in pretty good shape. I'm sure you can see most of her trouble is cosmetic."
"Yeah, it'll take some time to find a new top," Clint said.
"Which is great if she's just fifteen," Meadow said. "Plenty of time to get it right. Just … if you happen to find an old glass pipe, don't panic. It hasn't been used in years."
Clint couldn't stop the laugh, which was great timing as Carol took the last corner around the block at speed and a few moments later, the car came to a screeching halt in front of Meadow and Clint - and Kate was laughing hard.
"She handles pretty good," Carol called out as Kate tumbled out of the passenger side of the car.
"Yes, I should have mentioned that," Meadow said. "Mind the nitrous button near the radio. The tank's nearly out but it'll blow the engine if you hit it too often."
Carol was grinning wider on hearing it. "If you don't want it, I'll take it," she told Clint, but Kate whirled around to face her dad fast enough that her ponytail stuck straight out behind her.
"No! I love it!" Kate said. "Purple, dad! We can paint it purple!"
Nate was laughing outright still - not even attempting to hide his amusement as Kate had chosen her color - down to the exact shade - before Carol had taken the first corner.
"I should talk it over with your mother," Clint said, but he was cut off by a wide-eyed Kate. "She was hoping for something sleeker…"
"Daddy! Come on! If we don't take it, Carol will!"
"That's right, Daddy, Carol will," Carol said, arms crossed over her chest and even more amused than before.
"You know I hate it when you two team up on me, don't you?" When Carol nodded, Clint groaned and covered his eyes with one hand for a moment. "If Nat hates it, you'll buy it off me, right?"
"Oh yeah. But only if you leave the Nitrous system in there."
Kate was watching the two of them - though Nate was laughing harder than the rest as he could hear what Meadow was thinking - that she'd been right from the moment she saw them.
"Alright. We'll take it," Clint said, then pointed one finger at Carol. "Do not wreck my daughter's car on the way to my building."
"I thought I was taking it to the tower. For repairs. And paint."
Kate's entire expression fell. "NO!"
"Yeah, that's probably smart. Don't need anyone taking out aggression on it in the street," Clint said as Kate looked more frustrated to hear that her car would be living at the tower without her.
Carol grinned as Clint turned toward Meadow with a wry smile to pay her - and Carol dangled the keys in front of Kate. "I'll take good care of her, Katie."
"You better!" Kate made a failed snatch for the keys that she hadn't ever expected to actually get back. "And don't let Tony touch that paint!"
"Don't want race car red, Katie?" Nate teased.
"You really think I'm gonna let Tony, the man who's married to a fashion designer but who still thinks 80s punk is the height of fashion, come anywhere near-"
Nate burst out laughing all over again and grabbed her hand. "If you're that worried, I can nudge Tony into not touching it…"
Kate beamed and kissed him full on the mouth. "My hero."
On the other side of the city headed toward Westchester, the other car hunt was going rather slowly. Just because of the nature of what James wanted, there was a lot more intensive looking involved. Where Kate and her parents had to look for rust troubles with the frame, James, Scott, and Steve were looking into damage in addition to rust issues. All three of them were put to the test to find something that wasn't entirely on its last leg. If it wasn't hidden or badly disguised rust or frame damage, then there were other issues. Welded gears in the rear axle, worn out transmissions, head damage in the engine, electrical problems, and on one occasion, they even found that the transmission (which wasn't working right) had been welded into place by skid plates.
To put it mildly … there were a lot of disasters when it came to older Jeeps for the boy to sink his teeth into.
But finally, after a dozen short trips to look things over … Steve okayed one. And a short couple of scans later, Scott did too. Which brought them to the final round where the two adults asked intensive questions and James watched … and scented the air to see if the guy was lying about anything critical.
"I'm not gonna pull your leg," the seller said, gesturing to the mostly pristine looking Jeep. "I've had some fun with it on the trail, but … there's an exhaust leak I don't want to tackle, and I'm sure it'll need more because of how old it is. But it's a good little car. Climbs hills like a cat and starts up every time."
When the questioning was over, the three of them shared a look, and after James nodded along to what the others had to say "You've got six months anyhow before you're sixteen," Steve said. "That should be enough time to get it running the way you want it to."
"If all goes well," Scott added, though he was trying hard to hide the smile. The prospect of getting into a project like this with James had him in high spirits.
"I think it looks good," James said. "Better than the last few we've looked at for sure."
"Then let's do it," Scott said, still trying to restrain the smile.
"I'll drive it back," Steve said, not even close to hiding his grin while his back was to the guy selling. "Been a while."
Scott nodded and stepped around them to finish the deal, since, at fifteen, James still had a few years to go before he could legally own it anyhow.
"Heard you're not asking Tony for help," Steve said quietly. "Smart move."
"Hey, I just want it to drive - not fly," James said, which got a warmer, broader smile from Steve.
"I'm not the best, but I can help. Or supervise if you need it."
"Careful how loud you say that or it'll be you and dad working on it while I watch," James said. "But thanks. I think the two of us can handle it. I'll let you know if it gets to be a problem."
Steve dropped a hand on James' shoulder and gave him a little shake. "Hard to believe you're going to be driving."
"Not if we don't get it fixed," James pointed out, which had Steve laughing.
"It drove alright when we tested it," Steve said. "It'll be good. Don't worry. It's a Jeep. It might need a little work now and again, but it's made to take abuse."
"Ah. My spirit animal," James deadpanned, though Steve only chuckled at that before Scott returned with papers in hand and a smiling seller to hand the keys to Steve.
"We'll follow you," Scott said. "Give us a little chance to start up a plan of attack on this rig."
"And I'll let you know if I see anything critical on the drive back," Steve agreed before they loaded up and headed back.
James thanked both the seller and Steve before he followed Scott to their car, and once they were moving and a little down the road, Scott had to start teasing. Just a little. He was already immensely proud of the kid anyhow, but this was a big step. Repairs pending or not, it was a step in the right direction.
When they got back home, Nate and Kate were on the front steps with Clint - and grinning widely. Though Kate had to laugh when she saw Steve climbing out of the Jeep. "Sounds rougher than it is," Steve said, momentarily ignoring Kate after he got the Jeep in the garage.
"Oh my God," Kate laughed. "My car is older but yours … yours is so worn out."
"Nah," James said. "It just needs some minor fixes."
"No, like … exact opposite," Nate said, grinning since he'd listened to Kate talk about how amazing the bug was for the last two hours. "Yours looks good but sounds like crap. Hers looks like crap-"
"Hey!"
"But sounds great," Nate finished, laughing when Kate shoved him. "Hers has nitrous too!"
"It won't for long," Clint said, earning a groan from Kate.
"Dad, that's the best part!"
"Uh-huh."
"Mom would let me keep it!"
"Mom will help me get rid of it."
"Not when I point out how good it is for escapes!"
"Escapes from what - handsy Summerses?" Clint asked, though Nate just nodded solemnly and put his hand on Kate's waist, distracting her right back into her good mood.
"Doesn't matter. We got mine first," Kate said, turning back to James. "And it'll be roadworthy before yours, because mine just needs a top and some paint."
"And you need a driver's license," James pointed out with a smirk. "Which I'll still have a month before you."
"What good will that do you when your heap isn't even functioning?" Kate laughed.
"I guess we'll just have to see how that works out over the summer," James countered - though both of them were laughing, and by the time Scott stepped up with Steve to break up the back and forth, Kate had rushed over to look the Jeep over - and had even asked if she could help supervise the reconstruction.
Which meant that at least the three teenagers would be safely distracted for a good portion of the summer once school was out.
Chapter 31: Blindsided
Chapter Text
While the race to drive had been one filled with competition and many ups and downs between Kate and James, it was still debatable as to who the winner was. Yes, Kate's car had started out being perfectly drivable, but it had ended up needing a lot more TLC than even Carol had suspected.
The first thing that had happened, of course, was Natasha yanking out the Nitrous system - which ended up being the beginning of a slide for Janice. A peek in the engine had revealed that years with the throttle in a bottle had done subtle but serious damage to the heads. Which meant that there was a full engine rebuild to be done, leaving Natasha promising Kate with an amused smirk: "She needs a full new identity. Entirely. Obviously that means she needs a new engine as well."
"With … an engine that doesn't need the juice?" Kate asked with a grin, hoping her mother wold go for it.
"No," Natasha replied with a cheshire cat smile. "But it was worth a try."
James' work with his father and Steve had been steady, though. One thing would break - or show it self to be on the edge and they'd replace the problem or fix it, then a week later, they'd find something else. It was slow, steady repairs - all of which seemed to coincide well with how long it took them to order in new parts. But by the time he got his license, he was able to drive it. A little. For the month between his birthday and Kate's he got exactly two weeks of good driving before another broken part. Which meant Kate got to giggle her way through her birthday being the only one between them that could drive at the moment.
And it continued that way for the rest of the school year and even into Summer, though Kate's car would have it's own fits with less irritating regularity. Especially when James' car was working in prime convertible weather and Kate's decided it needed a new transmission. She just counted it as a good time though, when the Summers brothers stepped up to fix it for her. They had plenty of practice, after all.
Nate had only gone to the school in Westchester long enough to get a handle on his powers, though he and Rachel had been messing around with their telekinesis and telepathy for years so they had more than their fair share of lectures from their dad about keeping their powers under wraps before, during and after their time at Xavier's.
But even if Nate wasn't as careful at home, he was careful at school, because he was the quarterback on the varsity team, and he did not want anyone to think he was cheating. Especially because he was only a sophomore. He'd worked his butt off to get on the team, between recovering from injuries and bulking up enough to compete after being out of group sports for a couple of years. Even with those odds stacked against him, he had only ever cheated once - accidentally, during practice, and then it was only because he hadn't known Kate was going to try out for the cheerleading squad. She'd been captain of the archery team her freshman and sophomore year, so … it was kind of a shock. He hadn't expected her to go all in with cheerleading when she had been so aggressively competitive with every single sport she chose to go into.
Nate had just finished up practice when Kate came bounding over with a crooked grin on her face and grabbed his arm. "Come on!" she said. "I have Jan's notebook, and we've got to show Mia some of the designs she came up with!"
You're attracting attention, Nate projected to her.
Oh, please. They all think we're going to find a hot makeout spot. Go ahead. Mind scan them and tell me I'm wrong.
Nate rolled his eyes - but he couldn't exactly argue with Kate, and the next thing he knew, they were in her purple VW on the way to Westchester with the top down. He'd already texted his dad to let him know that he and Kate were dropping in on Mia one last time before the fall semester officially started.
Everyone was trying to reach out and cheer Mia up more lately since she'd been in an honest funk about how there had been some advances in tech that screwed with image inducers, so she had to play it safe unless it was a known safe spot. Or relatively safe. The life of a part demon was a rough one, and it was taking its toll on the kindhearted young woman. So of course, specifically designed uniforms would cheer her up considerably.
"Jan and I are trying to decide if I need a midriff shirt or if I should go with a one-sleeve archer look," Kate said as Nate looked over the sketches that Jan had come up with. She had already designed Rachel's official Avengers outfit now that Rachel was eighteen and old enough that Scott couldn't stop her from joining the team full time - which she did. He'd had a hard time adjusting to that little change, and just about the time he'd gotten his anxiety under control, Nate had started wearing his dad down on letting him join up too the same way Rachel had when she was his age.
But these uniforms? They had X's on them, and not even the other Avengers knew that Jan was working on this project with them.
"Mia said she wanted something like her dad wore - you know, Nightcrawler-style. But with her white hair, we wanted to do more white accents than her dad had," Kate said. "And with yours, I wanted something that accents your football bod." She grinned over at him. "If you've got it, flaunt it."
Nate laughed and shook his head. "The story of your life."
"Oh, totally," Kate agreed. "Do you think you could get James to finally look at some of the sketches? I know he says he's not sure if he wants to join the secret club, but Jan has some drawn up anyhow and they're pretty amazing…"
"He's just worried about Dad," Nate said. "And, he's kind of been drawing his attention away from us and the secret club with the whole ... Jeep project, to be honest, so it's been good for our plotting purposes. We'll get James to join. Eventually."
"I thought your dad knew you were training to be Avengers? He signed off on all three of you."
"Yeah, but he's suspicious and James hasn't taken up Tony or Cap on the offer," Nate said. "And Dad's got his psychic defenses up all the time, so I think his paranoia's through the roof."
"Your dad is always paranoid," Kate said, rolling her eyes.
"Yeah, but there's paranoid," Nate said holding his hand up around chest level. "And then there's Dad." He held his hand well over his head.
"He's going to have to get over it sooner or later. Rachel's doing great on the Avengers. I totally love the hood-cape-thing she's got going on to hide her face and hair too. It's gorgeous."
"You underestimate him."
"Apparently."
"So … do you wanna get going before Dad calls up and says to forget Westchester?" Nate asked.
Kate grinned. "Um, yes. But before you pick out your makeout spot, lemme show these sketches to Mia first. I sort of already called her."
"You know, I could just … project them …"
"It's not the same, Nate," Kate laughed.
"Says you," Nate laughed with her.
"Hey, you're just cheating, you… telepathic goon."
"I'm teasing, you know that, right?" Nate said. "I can be patient." For a while.
You so can't, Kate said, laughing even in her mental voice as she pushed the speed limit. And if you try and have a psychic makeout with me and we get in a wreck, I am blaming you and throwing you under every single bus.
Pretty sure I could TK us out of trouble if it came down to it.
Your dad would kill us both. Straight up murder in the streets.
Yeah, he's a total killer, Nate replied, almost snorting to himself.
Kate laughed. I'm speeding for you, I hope you know. If I get another ticket, Mom will hang you by your thumbs.
Nate grinned crookedly at her. If you get pulled over, I'll make him think he pulled over Dazzler. He'll be starstruck.
You're hilarious.
Totally serious.
Yeah, I know. Which makes you that much better. Kate laughed to herself - which really just meant a whole lot of telepathic flirting all the way to Westchester.
Though Kate and Nate were surprised when they got to Westchester and they weren't the only ones there to visit. Though it was incredibly close to the start of the school year, there were some new students - a pair of twin boys that looked exactly alike except for their hair - and Mia was giving them the tour. They were just making the rounds in front of the school, and Mia waved at both of them as she passed - then teleported over to say hello, even though she wasn't supposed to teleport, even now that she had a handle on it, and even though they had no neighbors close enough to the school to see her unless they were someone going out of their way to spy. And someone likely was.
"Gimme," Mia said, grinning widely as she devoured the designs that Jan and Kate had come up with. "Ooh, can you elongate the shoulders more? I want to look a little more like my dad."
"Something Jan hasn't heard lately," Nate said under his breath as Kate nodded to Mia and handed her the pencil to make notes in the margins with her requests.
"This is amazing.. but I have to go back to my tour. They're cute, don't you think? My new students?" Mia asked with a crooked smile as her tail swayed lazily behind her.
"If you flirt with the kid with white hair, you'd totally match," Kate teased.
"Oh, like Kate and Nate?" Mia shot right back.
"Ex-actly."
Mia laughed and then teleported back to the boys - and Kate burst out laughing when she realized that Mia had taken the white-haired twin's arm to pull him along.
"This is why she's my best friend," Kate said. "Ugh. If her mom wasn't so nervous about how people would react to another blue Avenger, she'd be on the team with me already." We so have to hurry up with the X-debut. This gets stupider the older we get!
Yeah, but you know James is right, Nate said. We need a place to start, and we don't have anywhere to start yet that would need the X-Men over the Avengers. Just a matter of time - I'm not totally making excuses for him.
Not 'totally' anyway, Kate said before she grinned and stole a kiss. I'm perfectly fine with waiting for a dramatic debut.
You would be.
Hey, you never know. Maybe the MRD pulls something super duper stupid...
We'll know it when we see it, Nate said.
Kate grinned, and she was ready to move on to something else - except that she spotted something unusual and let out a gasp. "Um. I think I see it."
Nate turned and swore under his breath when he saw what or who had Kate sounding like that. "You never know … maybe it's … nah, who am I kidding, that's trouble." He pulled on her hand. "Come on. We should go see how bad it's going to be."
Kate was wide-eyed as she let him pull her toward the slightly levitating Magneto, who was mostly staying back from Mia's tour as he looked around the school, frowning to himself the more he saw. He seemed like he was building anger, and Nate and Kate thought they'd just been sneaky in their attempt to look like they were going to talk to Ororo until he turned their way with his cape billowing behind him.
"Oh, hi!" Kate said with a bright smile, holding onto Nate's hand a little tighter - which was really quite the picture for Erik seeing a Scott lookalike in a football jersey and a girl in a cheerleading uniform.
"Ah. Young Mr. Summers. I wasn't aware that the school had progressed to a point of playing with the locals," Erik said.
"Oh, no, we go to school in the city," Nate said.
Erik frowned at that. "Why on earth would you want to do that?"
"Um, because I'm the quarterback," Nate said.
"But we come here and hang out with Mia and everyone," Kate said brightly when Erik looked annoyed.
"Are you here for anyone in particular?" Nate asked, unconsciously stepping a little in front of Kate. "Or are you just visiting for fun?" He smiled up at Erik, trying to defuse what should have been a peaceful situation, but certainly didn't feel like it. "Just trying to figure out how to help best."
"I came to see the school that my grandsons would be attending," Erik said, narrowing his eyes as he looked around.
Nate's eyebrows went up. "Your grandsons?" he asked.
"Thomas and William," Erik said.
"That's great," Nate said. "Are they the twins? I saw them just a little while ago when we came in - they were going to the greenhouse with Mia, I think." He jogged closer to Erik. "Have you been by since they added the new dormitory wing?"
"No, I'm afraid I've been too busy with more pressing matters… But I see now that I should have come by far sooner."
"It's pretty nice," Nate said. "I didn't go here for too long just because I got control of things fast. Didn't want to take up space for a kid that needed more help."
Erik's glare softened slightly. "You sound like your father, Mr. Summers."
"Of course I do," Nate said with a winning smile before he gestured to the doors. "I know he'd like to say hello and he should be here soon. He wasn't far behind us."
"Good. I think I'd like to speak with him," Erik said, turning on his heel as soon as his feet finally touched the ground.
Nate nodded to himself and led the way, even going so far as to hold the door open so Erik could pass through, and inside Mia was indeed going over part of the daily schedule with the two boys.
You're really cute when you're all… taking charge of a tour to a school you don't even go to, Kate projected to Nate.
Family duty, Nate replied quickly - and she could feel the smile in his tone.
You're loving this, aren't you?
Not really. I didn't know Magneto even left Genosha for anything this small.
Well, they're his grandkids. Everyone's got a soft spot for something, right?
You obviously haven't heard what kind of dad he was. Is.
Um, no, I was busy learning how to shoot a bullseye with my eyes closed.
Yeah, well, my uncle Alex married his youngest and I didn't need to practice as hard as you, so …
You're such a cheater! TK doesn't count!
Doesn't need to. I'm just that good.
You cheat. Don't lie.
Not lying. Not cheating.
Okay, that's it. You, me, and a target range.
You got it, beautiful. Prepare to lose.
The two of them rushed off, though that left Erik looking over the school and getting angrier all over again the more he saw. The trappings were the same with the rich dark woods throughout the house just as Charles had always rebuilt it, but what he overheard from the students and in bits of the tour Mia had given them was repression and hiding.
So by the time Scott and James arrived twenty minutes later- grinning and in the Jeep they'd been working on together - Scott was absolutely not expecting it when instead of Ororo or any of their friends, he was met at the door by Erik, who by that time was livid.
"Have you lost your mind?" Erik's voice thundered through the halls, halting all motion and drawing the attention of all the young people and teachers alike who were milling about.
Scott blinked and then unconsciously straightened up as the door closed hollowly behind him. "Hello, Erik."
Erik didn't pause. "Is this how you intend to honor Charles' memory? This is nothing like the dream he instilled in you, and you know it. How dare you put his name on this mockery of an institution? It's a sham and a disgrace. You're teaching mutants nothing but shame and silence? Have I been gone for so long in Genosha? Have you drifted so far that you can't remember anything he taught you? This is how you repay your professor, your mentor, the man who gave you everything? He treated you like a son! How dare you?"
Scott looked like he'd been hit, and he fell back a step. "What…"
"Hey," James said, stepping in front of Scott and driving forward to get right into Erik's face with Scott quick to catch up to him and keep him from completely going after Erik, though the growl that thickened with every word showed how fine a margin Scott was fighting against. "What the hell are you doing to honor that legacy outside of floating around and treating people like crap? Everyone here is learning what they need to survive. You don't get to sweep in here and take your inadequacies out on my Dad. Back off."
"What am I doing?" Erik shot back holding his ground save for the fact that he floated up a few more inches as James looked ready to pounce. "I have created a place where mutants are free. They don't need to cower and hide in disgrace as they're doing here. They walk proudly through my streets."
"So you think holing up on an island isn't hiding?" James challenged.
"I don't ask them to hide what they are," Erik snapped.
"No, because they've got a hundred miles of ocean between them and anyone lacking an x-gene."
"That is the point," Erik said. "But clearly, I've been gone too long. How Charles' disciples could turn his dream into this-"
"Disciples ... " James sputtered as his lip curled up. "He wasn't the one to act like he thought he was a God, expecting people to fall at his feet to pay obeisance. You really have trouble with comprehension if that's what you took out of everything the professor wrote."
"James, it's fine," Scott said, one hand on James' arm. "I've got this."
James let out a breath and took a step back to stand next to Scott, though he was clearly still upset. A feeling that only grew as Erik sneered and tipped his nose up to look down at them.
"I see you've managed to train this one to heel better than the last. Though I suppose it helps that you got him so early on in life," Erik said.
The response from James was instant - a rippling snarl echoed around the hall as he darted forward - and Erik barely shot up in the air out of reach. But Scott grabbed James' arm, slowing him from catching Erik, and then stood between them. He knew James would keep going when his reaction was that strong if he didn't put an end to it quickly. "If you have an issue with me, take it up with me. But that is my son and if you won't speak to him in a civilized manner, then you aren't welcome on the premises, no matter who you have here at the school."
"Scott isn't wrong, but I thought you knew that he doesn't teach here, Erik," Storm said - her voice echoing the commanding tones of a Goddess as she made her presence known. "There is no need to speak to either of them in such an uncivilized manner. If you take issue in how I run my school, I'll thank you to take it up with me. Now. Shall we be civilized or do we need to see who wins between lightning bolt and lightning rod?"
Erik narrowed his eyes as he turned to face her before he nodded. "Then you're the one I'd like to speak to about this… situation," he said. "I'd assumed that he'd turned his nose up at my generous offers to stay in Genosha because of this place. Clearly I was wrong."
Ororo smiled tightly, and stepped forward. "I won't speak for Scott's reasoning beyond saying that I'm sure he was more concerned with his family's happiness than yours. For the rest, you know where my office is."
Erik spun, though he didn't miss the chance to pause long enough to look James up and down with a disgusted expression. Though, James returned the favor in kind with a look of pure loathing that Scott hadn't seen since Logan had squared up with Magneto. As Erik passed them by, Mia teleported over and grabbed both Scott and James then teleported them out of there.
"Ohmigosh I've never heard you snarl before," she gasped out to James.
"Didn't mean to," James said from between his teeth with a growl still lacing his tone.
"It's an instinct when you're that mad," Scott said.
"Doesn't make what he said any better, then, does it?" James said, which only had Scott looking more upset on hearing it.
"No one that's ever known you believes that," Scott told him earnestly, but James didn't look like he bought it.
Mia looked between them before she let her shoulders drop. "Okay, well… do you want to help with the tour, maybe? I'm pretty sure we can stretch out the rest of it to give you some space."
"I don't know if that's the best idea or not." James held her gaze for a moment as he thought it over then turned to Scott. "Are you okay?"
"I'm fine," Scott promised.
"He just … hit a sore spot I guess. I'm sorry."
"You've got nothing to apologize for," Scott promised, resting one hand on James' shoulder. "He has that effect on just about everyone."
"Are you sure you're alright?" James asked, still looking like he'd go back to take a shot if he needed to. "Because I don't mind grabbing a hold of that cape and strangling him with it."
"James, I'm fine. It's been long enough I've heard all of it more than enough," Scott said.
"You know, if I'm not allowed to lie to you -"
Scott let out a breath. "He had a point."
"Doesn't make it okay to take out his shortcomings on you. And who the hell does he think he is - no one asked him to speak for anyone here," James said, still clearly irritated with Erik.
"Um, yeah, he's like that," a new voice broke into the conversation - and the twin boys from earlier poked their heads in as James and Scott turned toward them. The boy with dark hair waved the tips of his fingers. "Hey. Billy Maximoff. I don't think I've ever seen anyone tear my grandfather up like that."
"He asked for it," James said- entirely unapologetic and watching to see what the story was with this kid.
"Yeah, he usually does," Billy's twin said with a shrug. "Hi. I'm Tommy - or Thomas if you're listening to the old man. You know, since Billy didn't intro me. I think he's still caught up in the snarls."
"Older siblings are like that," James said without missing a beat. "Forgetting to intro the younger ones."
"Ha!" Billy said, though Tommy was already shaking his head.
"Fifteen seconds does not count. And we're not entirely sure I wasn't first - you just got Mom's attention first!"
James let out a breath and raised his hand. "I'm James. Sorry if I startled you."
"Nah, we grew up on Genosha," Tommy said. "And I can blow up a block. You're kinda loud, but hey, we've seen worse."
"I've just never seen anyone stand up to him that effectively," Billy said with a badly hidden smile.
"I didn't realize it was a big deal," James said, crossing his arms as he started to get his temper in check.
"It was great; don't apologize," Billy grinned.
"I wasn't planning to," James said, finally relaxing enough to smirk a little. "I try to keep my head down when I'm here."
"Well that was the best fail I've ever seen," Mia laughed delightedly. "You should do that more!"
Scott smirked as he backed off from the conversation, still shaking his head to himself over the whole thing. James really was so much like his father sometimes. But now, he was talking with kids his own age, and Scott wasn't going to get in the middle of that. So, he went toward Ororo's office so he could back her up.
"So who'd you have to kill to get off the island?" James asked, which Scott managed to snerk at on his way out - and that, if nothing else got James to let his smile peek out. He knew Scott wouldn't be able to relax if he was worried about James … and vice versa.
"Actually, Mom wanted us to meet people who weren't, you know…" Billy started to say.
"Crazy?" James offered.
"Um, no," Billy said. "But everyone on Genosha kind of treats our family like royalty."
"Mom wants us to meet some normal people," Tommy put in.
"Welcome to the mainland," Mia giggled.
"Yeah, but you're cute," Tommy pointed out, grinning obnoxiously at Mia. "So I think I'm in favor of sticking around…"
Billy covered his eyes with his hand. "I'm sorry. He's just like this."
"Not surprised," James said. "Gonna have to compensate for that fifteen seconds for the rest of his life."
Billy grinned outright. "Oh yeah. I like you."
"You just like him because he agreed with you," Tommy grumped.
"Well, and he's cute," Billy pointed out.
"Hey, you're not so bad yourself, little prince," James said, without missing a beat, though he almost looked surprised at himself for saying as much.
Billy grinned a little wider. "Mind showing me around? I could use a tour guide my brother isn't hitting on."
"Sure," James said. "But I was never a student, and I'm only here now and again. So I'm not an official tour guide."
"Yeah, well, maybe I'm more interested in something other than the school," Billy said.
James tipped his head for a moment and smiled crookedly in spite of himself. "Okay." He glanced over his shoulder at Mia, who was close by him still. "You might want to rethink that - Storm will get mad if you had two tours and still can't find your way around." He turned away from Billy for a moment to try to catch Mia who was flirting with Tommy shamelessly. He had to clear his throat twice to get her attention, too. Which made it more interesting since … James could swear that Billy was flirting too … "Hey. Mia. What did you guys miss?"
"Well, we covered almost everything in the school. We still haven't hit the grounds all the way," Mia admitted, though before she could get too much farther, there was a gasp from the hallway, and the Scarlet Witch stood there with her hands over her mouth.
"You look just like him," she breathed out. "I can't believe you've grown so much since the last time I saw you!"
The little group of teenagers shared looks and unconsciously grouped up facing her as Wanda came closer. "Hi," James said. "No one's said it was that close." He offered her his hand as he introduced himself, tense with her approach considering how friendly Erik had been.
Wanda took his hand, then reached up to rest her other hand on his cheek, still staring at him. "You look amazing, James, really."
"Thanks... I think," James said, glancing at the twins and Mia because for him, this was a little different than the norm. And much more warm than her father had been.
Wanda smiled and then turned to her boys, shifting her position so both of her hands were on James' shoulders and they were facing the twins. "Remember what I told you about the X-Men? This is Wolverine's son."
"Oh, cool," Tommy said. "Have you got metal bones too?"
"Definitely not," James said without missing a beat. "That wasn't standard equipment."
"You can't just ask someone if they have metal bones," Billy said, sounding scandalized.
"Why not? Seemed like an important detail in the stories," Tommy said with a shrug.
"To be fair, I think you would have known if I had metal bones already," James pointed out.
"True. It would be hard to stand up to the old man with that," Tommy agreed.
"But not impossible," James shot back with a troublemaking look as Wanda grinned wider still at his response.
"Okay, so… we clearly missed something here," Kate said as she and Nate were the last to join the group - a little disheveled and grinning crookedly.
"That's what happens when you're sucking face under the bleachers. Or something," James said, then gestured to Nate. "Nice lipstick - not your color though. Brings out the bruises."
Nate didn't look the least bit apologetic, even as Wanda went right to him with the same smile, taking his face in her hands too. "And you! Last time I saw you, you were just a toddler, and now you look just like your father!"
"I think she's just saying that to everyone today," James said as he elbowed Kate. "Sorry Katie. Condolences."
"Yeah, well, I don't look like either of my parents, so I'm fine," she said with a shrug.
"Yeah, you had an Iowa hick and a Russian spy…" Nate smirked. "Someone cheated, clearly."
"Milkman?" James suggested, eyes narrowed - in an expression the Summers boys shared that made it clear this was a common tease.
Kate giggled. "Last week, it was the pizza delivery guy," she told Mia.
"And the week before that, it was Tony," Nate giggled.
"That one was the most believable, really," Kate said. "Especially since he keeps trying to steal me."
"He's like that with me too," James said. "Steal all the kids."
"Evil pied piper that he is."
"Well he does have the best toys," James pointed out.
"Okay, you guys are hilarious, clearly, but I was having a tour," Tommy said as properly as he could just before grabbing Mia's arm. "Which is faster, do you think - teleporting or running?"
"One way to find out," Mia said - and the next second, they were both gone.
"Oh great," James said. "Now there's two of them."
"That's what I was thinking," Billy said, shaking his head.
James smirked at that and turned back to Wanda. "Nice to meet you, but I think I need to go outside and finish the tour before your father returns. If we're gonna finish it. So." he looked over at Nate and Kate "You two can go back to your hiding spot or you can go with us. Dad's busy with Storm and the battle axe in the cape."
"I would apologize for him, but it wouldn't stop him from being awful again," Wanda said. "He never could be civil with your parents, James. I don't think he realizes how it comes off."
"That or he doesn't care how it comes off," James said, which had Wanda looking remorseful as once again, she couldn't help but touch the side of his face again in a familiar, motherly gesture that James just wasn't used to. It was enough that James dropped her gaze, which had Wanda looking somehow even more sympathetic.
"I should go help Scott and Storm with him," Wanda said. "Please, try to forget my father's poor manners."
"Should we be concerned?" Kate asked.
"I don't know," James admitted. "I lost my temper a little bit."
"That is a big deal," Nate said, one eyebrow raised. "You never do that."
"Yeah, well, he was being a jerk to Dad and I kind of slipped," James said. "Might have snarled a little." He was holding his thumb and forefinger just a sliver apart
"Um, what did he say and how far do you think I can throw him with TK?" Nate asked with a deepening frown.
"It doesn't really matter what he said," James said, glancing at Wanda, who seemed to relax on hearing it. "He didn't seem to have expected the growl, and when I charged him, he took off fast."
"I'm kinda sad we missed it," Kate said.
"Yeah, I'm sure it was a real show stopper," James snorted. "Sixteen year old threatens senior citizen…"
"It was great," Billy said. "Really. He needs someone to stand up to him sometimes, and Mom usually has to do it."
"How mad would he be if you headed off away from the mansion?" James asked. "Don't want to take off on my Dad, but we could hit a trail in the woods for a while. You'll probably want to know those from someone that doesn't have instant travel down."
"Hey, I'm not, like, attached by a leash or anything. I'm allowed to take a walk with a cute guy," Billy said, which again had James unconsciously pausing.
"Walk nothing, I've got my Jeep outside. and there trails go for miles." James tipped his head. "Technically, it would be touring the grounds and I'd like to get away from … everyone for a little bit."
Billy laughed. "Bye, Mom!" he said, one arm around James' back as they led the way with Kate and Nate following close behind with matching grins. "See you at Christmas!"
Chapter 32: Culture Shock
Chapter Text
The little foursome made their way out through the entryway with no sign of Erik or Scott anywhere, though there were still quite a few students milling about who watched James pass them by with wide-eyes. James tactfully ignored them as he and Billy led the way with Nate and Kate holding hands and making eyes at each other on their way out the front door. Which of course, James commented on only by the expression on his face showing how weary he was at their constant PDA.
Once he'd taken a moment outside to ask Billy where they'd been already, he gestured toward the little red Jeep and they started toward it with Kate bouncing at what was to come.
"Are you sure we should be taking this thing off road?" Nate asked as he and Kate clambered into the back of the Jeep. "You just got it driving again."
"Yeah, and now it's time to break something so I can have something to fix," James said in a tone that read it was the most reasonable thing in the world. "But if you don't want to try driving once we're out of sight of the school ... "
"I thought you weren't going to share," Nate teased.
"Well I wasn't … but then Dad mentioned looking for a car for you and I remembered I was going to need to change the clutch out anyhow, so if you're going to learn, it's better to do it now when it's okay if you tear it up." James gave Nate a pointed look. "Unless you don't want a car, and if that's the case, I'll quit looking."
"Hey, no. But for the record, it's not my fault that your windshield broke," Nate said, holding up both hands.
"No, it was some other telekinetic that folded it forward just before it shattered."
"Still not my fault," Nate said as Kate snuggled in with him. "I didn't know it was going to be that easy to fold over."
"It has a hinge," James said, sounding exasperated - and making it clear that this wasn't the first time the two of them had gone back and forth about this particular set back.
"It did give you something else to fix though, right?" Kate teased.
"You suck, Katherine," James said in a breath - which only had Kate kicking his seat for revenge. Even if she was grinning at him.
"Can't have it both ways," Kate sang. "Either you're mad about it being broken or you're happy you had something to fix!"
James' response was to let the car shoot forward, setting Kate back in her seat - laughing all the way as they headed off into the trees and down the trails. They were barely into the woods when the radio suddenly turned on and tuned itself to Nate's favorite station, which had James letting out a sigh before he reached over to lower the volume. "You're a horrible little brother."
"I'm amazing and you know it," Nate replied, smiling smugly. "How about the trail that goes through the creek? It rained a few days ago, but it's probably not too deep."
"That depends on if Kate can handle getting wet," James said. "It was still deep enough to go into the floorboards the last time you and I went through it."
"I can lift my feet," Kate said, demonstrating by resting her feet on the back of his seat again and jostling it carefully. "See? What about you, Billy? Are you okay with wet feet?"
"It might be fun," Billy said, smiling at the company and the bumpy trail as they flung sticky mud going through the still-wet lower sections of the trail. He'd never gotten to do this before, let alone with kids his own age in an entirely unstructured setting.
"Alright then," James said, nodding to himself before he looked up at Nate and Kate in his rear view. "If one of you wouldn't mind playing tour-guide Barbie, that would be great. Whoever does a better job gets to drive next."
Nate groaned to himself as Kate straightened up and did her very best tour-guide impression, though it was a little jilted as James hit deeper mud holes, winging mud everywhere and cracking Kate up as she tried to describe the events as they happened. Especially after James drove the Jeep between two trees close enough on both sides to make the mirrors fold in against the body. "Please keep all hands and legs inside the vehicle as our driver seems to have no respect for things like trees getting too close!" She shoved his shoulder as James chuckled to himself. "Crazy driver!"
"But did you die?" James called back - which had Nate laughing outright before he dove in to take over on the actual description of where they were in relation to the school. It wasn't long after that when James stopped on a drier patch of land and Kate called out the next order of business.
"Me next!"
"No way, you didn't even do the good part," Nate laughed - laughing harder when James handed him the keys before he turned to Billy.
"I know it's asking a lot, but can you ride back there with the lunatic while I help my brother learn how to shift?" James asked. "She probably won't bite."
"Probably," Nate agreed. "No guarantees."
"She was raised by circus folk and a spy," James added with a crooked grin - hoping to rile her a little more.
"I thought she was the milkman's baby," Billy replied with a badly hidden grin of his own, though at least he wasn't blushing like he was afraid he'd be doing.
"Undetermined. Your guess is as good as ours," James replied without missing a beat. "But she was still raised by a carnie and a spy. Who knows what her real parents were. Might be alien for all we know. Might explain her obsession with paleolithic weaponry."
Kate let out a sigh of longsuffering as Billy grinned wider and climbed into the backseat even as Nate bounced on his toes next to James doing his very best annoying little brother impression to get the keys. "Hi," Kate said, going back to friendly and approachable as the brothers talked between themselves on what Nate needed to be doing. All while Nate impatiently tried to wave James off as he told him he'd just take the instructions out of his thoughts. "How unfortunate for you to ditch your brother and end up getting stuck with these two."
"Yes, 'unfortunate,'" Billy agreed, not at all able to keep a straight face with that description. "This is the most fun I've had in forever! We don't get to spend much time around people our age back home."
Kate gave Billy her most dramatically sympathetic expression. "Poor sad little dragon locked up in his tower."
"Prince?"
"I said what I said."
"You guys have weird senses of humor; you know that?"
"We kinda have to," Kate pointed out. "We were all raised in the shadow of one of the worst tragedies to ever hit superpowered beings. If we didn't have senses of humor, we'd all be like Nate's dad and- hey! Nate! I know I was thinking about cutting my hair, but you don't have to do it for me with a car crash taking the rest of my head off too!" Kate called out, interrupting her train of thought when it was simply impossible to pass up teasing her boyfriend when he took a turn too hard and Kate and Billy both had to duck to miss the whiplash from the tree branch.
Billy was laughing right along with Kate - it was impossible not to - but he was still curious, so he tried to steer the conversation back when Kate looked like she had stopped telepathically flirting with her boyfriend. "How did you get mixed in with everyone, then?" he asked. "I mean, you're not a second gen-"
"Oh, Storm rescued me from some mobsters after the Phoenix killed my birth parents," Kate said in a perfectly matter-of-fact tone that didn't quite fit what to Billy's mind was a whole lot of big revelations at once. "I was pretty little, so I don't remember much, but I do remember that Tony kept trying to convince me I should pick him over my mom. Which was never gonna happen."
Billy blinked and shook his head. "And all I've got is an android for a dad," he joked.
"Which is still so cool," Kate promised - and then promptly got distracted teasing Nate again.
The Jeep jackrabbited forward in a massive lurch as Nate got them going again - bouncing Kate and Billy hard in the back, though James had at least braced himself for it - and was visibly trying not to swear as Nate played with learning how to shift. All three of them cringed the first time the gears began to grind, but with every shift, Nate was getting better. Not good enough to avoid grinding the gears at all but better all the same.
James was doing his best to help Nate navigate through the worst stuff they found - even standing up in his seat to get a better view of what they were headed into when the mud looked questionable. But most of that section of trail was easy driving … just a seriously bumpy trail that snaked through the trees that they had to go slow through. But it was perfect for Nate to practice shifting.
Which was fine, all the way up until Kate had to speak up. "Okay, but is this offer to drive open to everyone or is it just favoritism to Summers?"
James tipped his head back so he could see her between the seats. "Are you going to break something?"
"Would you love me more if I did?" Kate asked with a grin.
"Um … A) I thought you were happy with the Summers you have, and B) - it depends on if you strand us or not."
She held up one hand, the other over her heart. "Okay. I am very happy with the one I have. Eew. Don't put pictures in my head and I won't strand us. Probably."
James gave her a dry look. "Then you get to go last."
"Oh, you're gonna let the new guy go before me?" Kate asked, sounding scandalized.
"I doubt he'd break something first time out," James said, with Nate nodding sagely beside him.
"I … probably shouldn't," Billy said, holding one hand up and blushing lightly. "I've never driven anything before. No reason to on Genosha."
Kate looked sympathetic as James turned around more fully. "Don't let Nate scare you off just because he doesn't know how to drive worth a damn. It's not his fault. He spends all his time staring at Kate."
"Hey!" Nate shoved James hard, which had James smiling widely at how easily Nate was riled. "I can drive just fine! Maybe I'm having trouble because my teacher is slacking!"
"Doesn't matter!" Kate said, lunging forward to snatch the keys from the ignition before either James or Nate could stop her. "He's done and now it's my turn."
"I hope your family isn't going to miss you too much," Nate teased Billy then leaned over so he could kiss Kate's cheek. "Just remember, gorgeous - this is off road. If you hit something at sixty, we're all gonna die."
"Well … not all of us," James said dryly as he looked back at back at Nate with a smirk to find Nate quickly buckling his seat belt and making a show out of bracing himself against the roll bars.
"True. Katie, my gorgeous sweetheart - we're not going to need the roll cage, are we?" Nate asked. "Because TK bubble or not, I don't want to take the risk on an empty stomach."
Kate rolled her eyes - and then threw mud when she hit the gas. There was no jackrabbiting. No stalling, and most importantly to James - no grinding.
"Kate gets to pick the radio station," James sang out - to Kate and Billy's entertainment and Nate's groan.
"So much for Summers-favoritism," Billy snickered.
"You know, he's a Summers too, right?" Nate said with a little frown.
"Not entirely," Kate said before Billy could reply in any way. "Raised by a Summers. Like … like raised by wolves but with better manners."
"Careful how you talk about the wolves," James teased.
"Like you have room to talk," Nate shot back, rolling his eyes as Kate cackled and they took a corner at speed, jostling Nate into Billy and getting James to swear outright as he held on to stay in the Jeep, seeing as the doors were off and he hadn't re-buckled yet. "She's just … like this," he told Billy quietly.
"I love it," Billy admitted, grinning, even as they tried to get situated better in spite of Kate's gleeful laughs as they ran the trails and hit smaller mud holes. "We don't get to do anything even close to this on Genosha."
"Yeah … so … was this your idea to come here or was that purely a parent's choice?" Nate asked, already reaching out to touch Billy's mind since Magneto had been so clearly hostile toward James and Scott, even if he'd been reasonable with Nate. Not that it was a surprise, he just really hated when someone treated his brother differently, and he despised it when someone was awful to his dad.
"Mom's idea actually," Billy said. "But we were happy to go along with it. She wanted us to try out life as a 'normal' mutant? And, if I'm being totally honest, we both had a bad experience or two with people trying to use us? So … we needed to get away from that."
Nate couldn't help but see the faces that Billy was unconsciously projecting - and the hurt that went along with them. There was a lot of raw anger directed at a young lady, though not a whisper of emotion for her otherwise, and then a pair of young men that brought forward an echo not only of anger, but of honest hurt. "That's … well I hope you don't have any trouble like that here," Nate said finally, though a moment later, Kate swerved to drive James' side of the Jeep into a low hanging branch, just to smack him - and Nate barely got the TK shield up in time to save Billy from getting smacked too - as James swore up a storm while picking leaves out of his hair.
Which was about when Nate also caught the fact that Billy was openly watching James and smiling to himself all the while. He stopped himself from doing a double-take, since that wasn't something Nate was used to catching. But … considering that this was just day one for Billy, he didn't see the harm in letting the guy have his crush unbothered.
Kate was having a blast all the way up until she hit a deeper-than-she-thought mud hole and an echoing very metallic clunk echoed the trees even as they went out the other side of the mud, followed by a wicked grinding sound just below her.
"Well. At least we're on dry-ish ground," James said, gesturing for Kate to try and get them further from the mess. It was clear from the moment the noise echoed that Kate felt bad, and just as quickly, James wanted to make sure she was okay. "Katie, it's fine. These things break. It's like 80% of what they do. You know that, Hawkeye. You've helped supervise me fixing it often enough. So let's see what happened before you freak out, m'kay?"
When they got to a flatter area, the sound under the Jeep was clearly something that was metallic and unhealthy and getting more loud and grinding as they limped forward. Kate stopped and turned it off as James jumped out to take a look at what went wrong. He'd barely gotten underneath it when Nate hopped out to see if he could do anything to help and the other two were quick to follow- and get front row seats to watch the brothers at work half covered in mud.
"How does it look, doc?" Kate called out, going for cheerful, even if she looked like she would have rather been anywhere else in that moment.
"I ... can fix it enough to get us back," James said. "And get it home, too."
"Do we have the tools?" Nate asked.
"Well … if we don't I'm pretty sure I know a telekinetic that likes to show off for his girlfriend," James said from under the Jeep. "But yeah… the wrenches are behind the back seat. That should be enough to do it."
Nate volunteered to hand James the tools as he tried unsuccessfully to avoid the mud and dirty water falling off the bottom of the Jeep as he worked. It only took a few minutes before something under the Jeep lurched and James started chuckling to himself, with Nate right along with him - though Nate looked like he wasn't too sure of his brother's particular choice in a quick fix.
"What are you doing with that?" Nate asked. "I thought that was kind of important to you know … move."
"Temporary removal," James said. "We only need one driveshaft and this is the one that broke… so … I'll drive on the way back. We'll have to avoid the water though. If the front driveshaft breaks, we will actually be screwed."
"We can always ask my big, strong boyfriend to float us over the water bits," Kate teased, fluttering her eyelashes dramatically at Nate.
"If he comes back with a nosebleed that doesn't come from a broken nose, you won't get to steal him away after football games for a solid month. He already got in trouble for that kind of thing this week," James said, then paused and turned to Nate. "I could just hit you though. That would solve it."
"Why would a nosebleed be such a big deal?" Billy asked, genuinely lost. "I got them a few times overdoing my powers. No biggie."
"Same thing when he over does his powers too," James said as he handed the drive shaft to Nate - it was obviously broken at one of the joints and covered in mud - as was James. "It gives Dad fits when he takes the powers too far. Something his mom did, I guess. So Dad gets nervous." When he stood up, he was dirty, greasy, and wet - and couldn't even begin to wipe the mud off, though he did offer Kate a hug as Nate dropped the driveshaft behind the backseat. "Come on, Kate … you know you want to."
"Ah, no, I've already got the superior brother, thanks," Kate teased without missing a beat.
"You're just afraid to get your cheerleading frock dirty," James said before he took the keys from her. "Backseat, Jeep wrecker."
"I really am sorry-"
"I'm really not upset," James promised, one hand over his heart. "I'm just giving you a hard time, Katie, but if you feel that bad, I'll just have to hug you until you get over it."
Kate pulled a face. "Okay, I'm over it," she said, holding up both hands between herself and James.
"See? That wasn't so hard," he said, stepping around her to climb in the driver's seat. "Nothing else changes, though. You pick the radio."
Kate positively beamed at him as she started to climb in the back. "Awww, you're my second-favorite Summers boy."
"Happy to take third place," James said, shaking his head at her. "You might want to be careful of what you and Nate get up to on the way back … mud is pretty incriminating."
Kate simply drew a halo over her head, but since Nate had climbed in the backseat alongside her and was already draping his arm around her shoulders, that was pretty much a lost cause.
The drive back was a lot less eventful than the drive out had been. As it turned out, the kids did know how to avoid every mudhole and mess on the way back, though every now and again, James or Nate would share a look in the mirror and have what looked like a silent conversation. And once, James even quickly took a different trail with a muttered out 'nope' that had Nate snickering to himself, knowing that James had scented out Mia and Tommy getting a little too cozy in the woods alone.
When they got up to the house, Ororo and Scott were waiting, and though Scott didn't look like he was overly thrilled with the muddy Jeep - Ororo was trying hard to keep from grinning outright.
"Hey, Dad, I'm learning stick," Nate called out before Scott could say anything.
"We only broke a CV joint, too," James said.
"My bad," Kate sang out, not about to let Nate or James take the fall for it.
"It was ready to break anyhow," James said with a wave. "Just waiting for the parts to come in."
"Was Mia with you four then?" Ororo asked. The four of them hedged and James and Nate shared a look before James was the one to answer.
"She's by the far side of the lake," James said. "Taking the more dry trail. Don't worry."
"She'll learn stick shift when she's older," Nate said, smirking at James.
"She'd probably do better than you right now," James said.
"Obviously," Kate said with a sniff. "Girls rule; boys drool."
"Guess you don't want to drive it again," James told her.
"It's okay, James; you can admit you drool," she shot back.
"No more than you do," he replied easily, then frowned. "But … that's a lot, isn't it? I should talk to Fuzzy and Blue if I drool like a Hawkeye."
"You're measuring by how much I drool when Nate takes his shirt off. Unfair standard," Kate teased.
James let out a sigh that showed exactly how tired he was of hearing this. "That really is confusing. What are you going to do if he ever gets a few muscles? We'll need to keep a defibrillator on hand."
Nate looked supremely insulted, but Billy burst into giggles. "He's not wrong," Billy said half under his breath as Nate pushed James back telekinetically, which had James laughing outright. "Comparatively, I mean, come on. James."
"You have your taste; I have mine," Kate shot back, though she was grinning at Billy in a completely troublemaking way as James and Nate got caught up in a silent telepathic conversation -both of them having missed Billy's comment entirely while they acted like … well, brothers.
"Hi Dad," Nate said, refusing to look at either Kate or Billy for how they were giggling. "Nothing to worry about. Nope. Not at all."
"Why don't you guys do what you can to clean up before we head home," Scott suggested as he made his way over to take a look at the broken driveshaft sticking out from behind the back seat. "I'm pretty sure Clint and Natasha won't be happy if you bring the VW back full of mud."
"Pretty sure that'd be just your typical occurrence after any given Friday night," James said under his breath.
Only when it rains, Nate projected to James, smirking.
See, now you need luchador masks. To have the cover story of mud wrestling for all the questionable hand prints.
Thanks, James.
You're welcome. So very welcome. Advertencia Ojo de Halcón.
Speak for yourself, Nate said. I like the trouble she gets into.
I'm just teasing, James replied. I know you're utterly smitten with everything she does. And though I'll smother you if you repeat it, the two of you are kind of cute. In a very weird … corndog carnie way.
Nate couldn't help but smile. Don't worry. Your secret's safe with me.
If she can't take me picking at her, then just tell me and I'll back off. But usually that's when she gets to be more fun. And that's where her more wild ideas come from.
She's too competitive to know when to stop.
Pot, kettle, little brother. And you love it. James hopped out of the Jeep to let the other two out of the back without having to climb over the mud, but as they were getting out, he made his way over to Ororo to kiss her cheek. "See? Not everyone is afraid of some mud, Kate." He grinned Kate's way and leaned in to whisper something to Ororo that the others couldn't hear.
"She's a weather goddess who can wash it off with a snap of her fingers," Kate pointed out.
There was a soft, echoing crack of thunder that sounded as if it was miles away, and a moment later, there was the tiniest of rain clouds just over Nate and Kate's heads that let loose as soon as they realized what Ororo was up to. Not that James got away clean from that, either. As soon as he had taken a few steps from Ororo, she hit him too … just on principle, though he didn't seem bothered by it as he tipped his face up toward the little cloud.
Scott smirked Ororo's way. "That never gets old."
"It really doesn't," Ororo agreed with a growing smile before she turned to Billy. "Your mother told me what you've learned. Be so kind as to bring your brother and Mia here, please." She paused just long enough to be sure Billy was focused on her properly. "Discreetly."
"Yeah, that's…" Billy bit back what he wanted to say and instead focused on sending himself to where Mia and Tommy were. At least that way, he could warn them.
"Brave," James said to Nate under his breath.
"Like our Mia could like anyone who didn't have a heroic streak - or at least a heroic brother," Nate muttered right back, smirking hard.
You know the two of you aren't fooling anyone, right? Scott projected to Nate, cutting into the brothers' back and forth. You're both in trouble - and covering for trouble, too.
What did we do wrong? Nate asked, looking perfectly surprised.
Scott simply gave Nate a dry look in response. He didn't say anything except to keep one eyebrow raised until Nate threw up his hands and turned to James. "Dad says we're grounded."
"Okay," James said, nodding. "That tracks."
Just then, Billy reappeared with Tommy and Mia in tow. Both Tommy and Mia looked slightly muddier than "taking the dry path" would have left them… but it was mostly on their legs and shoes. Not that it was going to stop Ororo from giving James a look.
"I did say more dry and not totally dry," James pointed out, holding both hands up at chest level. "Everything's a mess out there."
"And Mia did dare me to see if I could catch up to Billy and the others without disrupting the Jeep fling. Which I could," Tommy said, grinning crookedly at Mia, who couldn't take her eyes off him.
"Crossed our path about four times on the way back in," James confirmed.
Mia grinned and then finally looked over at her mom, who looked as though she had been bowled over. "Hi, Mom. What's wrong?"
Ororo took a moment to respond after that, though, which only had Mia on edge by the time she finally spoke. "You should go inside and clean up. We're not far off from dinner time and I'm sure you can help Warren in the kitchen."
"Okay," Mia said, seizing on something she could do that wouldn't get her in trouble when her mom was wearing that expression. A moment later, she'd teleported off, leaving a grinning Tommy behind - with Billy shaking his head at his brother.
Kate put a hand on Billy's shoulder. "Welcome to the family," she muttered. "It's like this all the time. I'd say you get used to it eventually, but you don't. You just learn to have fun with it."
"Kate, Nate will head home with us," Scott said as he held his hand out for the keys. James barely looked up at him before handing them over without comment. "I'm sure you can catch up later on what the restrictions are this time."
"This time?" Billy whispered to Kate, who grinned in the same troublemaking manner she had when she realized Billy had been complimenting James' looks.
"Yep. This time. Next time, when Nate's out of the doghouse, you can drive."
"Right," Nate said, nodding along. "So. I'll call later."
"You'd better!" Kate sang back, blowing him a kiss - just to grin at the look of longsuffering on Scott's face before she turned to Billy. "It's too much fun to get the adults riled up, isn't it?"
"It's not the same as what we did back home, but … it is our first day."
Kate grinned even wider. "Oh, I knew I was going to like you," she said, threading her arm through Billy's.
"So … are we in trouble too? Because I'm pretty sure even Mom would say that's some kind of land speed record." He tipped his head toward Tommy, who caught up to them in a blink. "Even for him."
"I claim diplomatic immunity!" Tommy sang out with his hands on either side of his mouth.
"You so can't," Kate said, laughing.
"Just did." Tommy replied with a grin. "So what did I miss? Couldn't have been much. You had a whole bunch of uptight Summers just now."
"Oh, they're always like that," Kate said, waving, though she was grinning at Billy. "Even James. But he's fun when he wants to be."
"I don't know," Tommy said. "He did scare the business out of our Grandfather earlier. You missed the show."
Kate waggled both eyebrows at Billy. "Oh, is that why you have a crush on our James?"
"That's not the only reason, but I'm sure it helps it along," Tommy said, grinning wider at his brother as he bumped his shoulder. "He knows everything about every hero … ever. So I think most of them that are kids from the old teams are higher up on the list anyhow."
"Cape chaser," Kate teased.
"Excuse you, capes run in our family," Billy shot back.
"Yeah, why would he chase a cape? Hides everything from the back side that way," Tommy cackled.
Kate looked even more delighted somehow. "Okay, yes, you two have to stay," she said, clapping her hands before she turned to Billy. "And you know what? Just because you're adorable and fun and I like having you around, I'll put some feelers out. James has only dated girls before, but he might be interested in someone so fun." She held up a hand. "I can't promise anything, but I can do a little investigating."
"You don't need to," Billy said, holding up one hand.
"I know. That's what makes me so awesome," Kate said. "Don't worry. Despite appearances, I can be sneaky if I want to. Mom's the Black Widow, you know."
"Which .. is really really cool," Billy said, trying to find a way to change the subject. "So does that mean you get to go up to Avengers Tower sometimes?"
"Um, I practically live there," Kate said, drawing herself up and grinning. "You so have to come see me. We can go get coffee and people watch. Oooh! You have to meet my best friend."
"I'd love that," Billy agreed with a wide grin. "I just need to know what the rules are. Mom said there would be a lot of them about using my powers … and I don't want to start a war my first week."
"Second or third, maybe," Tommy said, shaking his hand at the level.
Kate laughed and then turned to Billy more seriously. "Yeah, it kind of drives Nate nuts. You can't let anyone know you're a mutants, so no powers unless you're in the tower or the school, alright?"
"Then I'll need a ride," Billy said slowly. "Maybe I do need to learn how to drive…"
Tommy stuck his head over his brother's shoulder. "What he wants to know is where does the Summers family live?"
Kate grinned at Tommy again but then shook her head. "Sorry, that's actually super classified. I only know because my mom helped Scott set up the security and I'm dating a Summers. But I was sworn to secrecy by my mom, my boyfriend's dad, my boyfriend, and my dad, so you have to earn your way into the house on your own."
"He could just wish his way in," Tommy said with a grin.
Kate shook her head seriously. "That's an easy way to make sure Scott never wants you anywhere near James let alone have a chance to date him," she said. "He's terrified of losing his family, so he's paranoid to a degree that so isn't healthy, but it's also kept them all alive, so…" She shrugged. "You gotta earn the trust first."
The twins shared a look before they both flanked her, taking up an arm each. "You're going to need to elaborate more for us," Billy said. "Because this kind of thing is just … weird. And we don't know what unhealthy paranoia looks like."
"And we want the juicy stories," Tommy said. "And everything you can tell us that's not going to like … set off some kind of curse."
Kate raised both eyebrows - and then quickly took their arms in even tighter holds. "Buckle up, boys," she declared. "We're going to need popcorn."
Chapter 33: Detective Katie Barton - Matchmaker
Chapter Text
As it turned out, the punishment this time was on par with what the punishment had been the last several times the boys had gotten carried away with having a little too much fun. Home and school for Nate; home and work for James. But that was only because Tony had told Scott that he had James working on a special project. Had it not been for that, he'd have been home. Something about being a bad influence on Magneto's grandkids and how much hellfire that could rain down on everyone.
He understood it, honestly, he did. But it had always been more okay to let loose at the institute and now? With the lingering concern that having too much fun with the twins could cause Ororo- and everyone else - trouble, James was just glad he had something to do at the lab.
It really wasn't even that pressing, but when asked if James was working on anything important, Tony had picked up on the tone Scott was using and stepped up to cover. Which was how, while Nate was likely drooling through Algebra class waiting for lunch, James found himself combing through code.
"I guess you did something wrong by being a kid," Tony said as he handed James the flashdrive. "So … how about you try to look guilty while you sift through my code. That sounds like it's some kind of punishment."
James sighed heavily and turned toward his laptop to get started. "Anything in particular that I'm looking for - or will I just be mentally scarred when I find it?"
Tony shook his head at him. "I know everyone keeps saying otherwise, but .. you really are so much like your mother sometimes." He watched as James stared at him with a perfectly open expression. "I'm absolutely sure she started a fight with Magneto the first time they met, too."
"I didn't start it. I was just going to finish it."
"See? Tiny K right there," Tony said with a proud smile before he clapped James on the shoulder and then headed off. "Have fun with the code. When you get done with it, I'll be in the garage."
And though Tony didn't know it, that was exactly the kind of thing James needed to hear after a full afternoon of almost everyone telling him he was just like his father. He smiled to himself as he stared at the flashdrive, then blew out all his breath and settled in to get to work.
Nate, meanwhile, was bored out of his mind. There was no practice after school since the team was taking a rare day off during the season because they'd been pushing so hard - and winning. His coach didn't want them to get overstressed and hurt themselves if it wasn't during a game, after all.
Which made it all the more unbearable that he was grounded. He could have had a normal-ish date night. Alone. With Kate. But no-o-o-o. He had to go straight home where there was supervision and pointed silent glares from his father if he happened to accidentally have too much fun while he was grounded. Nate was pretty sure the terms of how he got grounded were just an excuse anyhow .
As far as he could tell, the twins didn't even like their grandfather - and clearly, their parents thought sending them halfway across he world to Westchester was smarter than keeping them near stupid Grandpa. Besides. James and Nate getting caught would hinge on one of the twins telling their grandfather that they'd gotten in trouble. Which, from what he'd gleaned from their thoughts that hadn't centered around who the twin boys thought were cute, simply wasn't gonna happen. So this whole grounding thing was a prime example of Nate and James' father overreacting. Again.
"Come on," Kate said as she slid over next to him at lunch. Halfway through the day and he was still moping. "You need to lighten up. Your whole family needs to lighten up."
But that was enough to get Nate to defend his dad. "He's just trying to protect us - and I see what he was worried about. Even if he was a little overzealous. James is grounded too."
"Yeah. In the tower. With Tony supervising him. Soooo grounded." Kate rolled her eyes. "All that really means is that you don't get to go with me back to Westchester." She tipped her chin up and smiled at him.
"You're not going to hang out with the white-haired one, are you? He's trouble."
"Nope," Kate said as she sent off yet another text. "I'm going to hang out with his twin brother - who is truly hilarious, by the way. He needs advice."
Nate stopped and tipped his head as he watched her. "You're not serious, are you? They're both probably trouble. And … do you really think my brother is going to be interested in a guy? After the string of girls that he's been going out with? He's got some pretty good taste in girls, Kate. Sure, most of them are questionable with their family history, but … they are definitely girls."
"Don't know until we ask. Gently. Indirectly." Kate fluttered her eyelashes at him. "Or you could cheat and peek. I mean, I know he's harder for you to read than other people when he wants to be, but this isn't state secrets. This is the simple matter of whether he'd go for the cute Magneto-grandson."
"Um … I'd need Rachel to help if you want to be sneaky about it. But I don't like doing stuff like that to family. You could just ask him. Of course … the fact that he's the grandson of Magneto might be enough to set off his trouble magnet. Still … no. Even for the good teasing, I'm not going to help someone with that much potential power chase after my idiot brother."
"Yeah, but you should see how nervous Billy is about this, and I don't want to put him off his first crush away from the island," Kate said, her eyes wide. "He's not used to having to ask - he doesn't know how!"
"Kate. Between someone I just met and my brother, I'm going to pick protecting my brother every time. Besides … they came here to learn how to be normal. Might do him some good to get shot down. I don't even know how James would handle that. I don't think he's ever been hit on by a guy."
"Na-a-a-a-ate." Kate leaned over to kiss his cheek. "Come on. What if they work well together? You can't protect him from that?"
"And I wouldn't want to protect him from someone that was good for him," Nate said as he took Kate's hand. "What if James gets ticked off at me for this? Then what? We're getting along well right now! What if the evil in Billy's family skips a generation and this is just another example of my brother drawing in another dangerous mutant - like he's some kind of catnip for evil or something."
Kate rolled her eyes. "Stop that. Billy isn't evil."
"Fine. But I have a hard enough time getting James to consider suggestions on where to stop for drive-through or if he's even going to try to be on a team. Besides, do you want to ask your sister something like this out of the blue?"
"Lexi already told me she likes boys and girls. She informed me. Because Mom sat us down for the explanation when we were, like, eight."
"Because you guys talk all the time, but you know, this is not 'the talk'," Nate said. "We got the full talk. I just don't know if James has ever shown an interest at all in a guy - and maybe it's easier for girls to consider going both ways, but it's not so simple for guys, okay?"
"No, this is just a quick little peek to see if it's even a remote possibility. Come on; I'm not asking for much! Just tell me if Billy has a chance, and I'll make him do the rest, pinkie swear!"
"Why don't you ask him?" Nate said.
"Because I'm not a telepath," Kate pointed out.
"No, but you do like to talk about everything." He projected the last half as well as said it for added emphasis.
"Yeah, but if I ask, it feels like a setup, but if you peek, then it's just exploratory committees of Summerses."
"It's still a set up!" Nate laughed. "Brothers don't talk about that."
Kate grinned and fluttered her eyelashes again. "Aww, big strong boys scared of talking about feeeeeeeelings."
Nate did his best to school his expression. "Yes. Yes we are. We're not empaths."
"Poor scared Nate," Kate said, still grinning maliciously.
"Poor scared Kate," Nate shot back. "Scared of big bad James. Since … forever probably."
Kate rolled her eyes and then simply whipped out her phone and texted James:
Hey, having an argument with your emotionally-stunted brother. APPARENTLY you guys don't have the talk as in-depth as WE do, and he seems all kerfluffled about the whole subject.
James was quick to reply, too. I don't know what you're talking about. He seems perfectly normal to me.
Well, you probably had the same 'talk.' Kate grinned. ANYWAY, point is, apparently he didn't even know I already knew Lexi swings both ways (and as you know, so do I, thank you very much), so I'm polling: what about you? Boys, girls, or both? And will your answer surprise your idiot brother?
It took a minute or two for James to reply. I'm not going along with a set up no matter who it is. I've still got Izzy pestering me every chance she gets and that started just to keep her off your back.
I'm not taking responsibility for that and anyways, that was NOT the question, James. At this point in this argument, I'm genuinely curious how you boys FUNCTION.
The only time someone asks something like that is when they want to set you up. Get a hobby, Kate. And maybe read a biology book or two before you find out the hard way how us boys function. The answer, by the way is 'on autopilot and often.'
Oh, come on. You're just as emotional as he is.
Oh. Far more, I'm sure.
Probably.
I'm getting emotional just talking about this. I can't take it.
Poor lamb. He has the same weakness. It's okay. I'll just wait for you to go doe-eyed over some boy or girl and there's my answer.
Yeah, okay. You do that. Love you, Kate. (But not like that. I'm not going to poach my baby brother's girl.)
I'd hope not. Your brother and I are practicing birds and bees.
I'd have to throw myself off the tower if I had Hawkward thoughts like that about you.
Dramatic. Do you need a cape now or does that only happen when you reach EXTRA levels of drama?
For the first time since the beginning of their rapid fire texts, there was a real pause. Wait. I get options? No one told me there were options. Is that why you were pushing the designs at me so hard? You think I need a cape- even though I can't fly? Wow. That's a terrible costume choice.
Well, there is a scale. For example, Tommy is EXTRA dramatic but no cape… Billy is hilarious and dramatic but has a cape… Magneto is EXTRA dramatic and has a cape…
This scale seems off. Tony is also extra dramatic and has no cape. And Cap only has one when he wraps himself in a flag and poses dramatically with a bald eagle screeching overhead. Otherwise I think it's more tied to the 'look' that fliers go for. I'd need a secondary mutation for that to work.
I bet Tony would have a cape if the armor would let him….
You should poll him too. Betcha he'll turn about fourteen different shades before he answers. You know. Because you're one of the kids. But he could have a retractable cape. He might, actually. Has everything else shoved in that armor.
Don't think I won't. And I'm asking Rachel too.
I already know the answer there. For Tony and Rachel. And I think you do too.
Yeah, but I like to hear things out loud sometimes. And I mostly asked you because you're INSCRUTABLE, James.
Probably because this is a text.
I know. But still. Inscrutable. Sometimes, I gotta just ask.
You did ask. And I thank you for thinking of me in your not at all scientific polling to set me up. But it's not a question I'm answering - so you can set me up.
Well, James, love you and all, but you have not helped me win against your brother, and this is sad.
Yeah, that probably won't ever happen.
Oh, don't do that. His head is already the size of Jupiter.
He got that from Dad. Oops.
So what's your excuse?
I have been reliably informed that both of my parents were the biggest hard heads ever. So. There probably. Reinforced by Dad. It's okay. Everyone is disappointed.
Bless your sweet little soul, Kate teased. It's okay. I still like you. (Just not like that.)
Get back to your classes. Just because you're utterly smitten with my brother doesn't mean you should fail just to graduate with him.
You've got such faith in my multi-tasking abilities, Kate teased. Bye now! Off to flirt!
"So. How'd that go?" Nate asked smugly, arms crossed and already well aware of how it had gone.
Kate rolled her eyes at him and kicked him under the seats. "Shut up. I'm texting Billy now. If you boys can't just give me an answer, I'll make the Maximoff take the risk whether he likes it or not. They'd be too cute to pass it up, and if James says no, I've got my answer and I'll help Billy find someone cute to make up for it."
"Don't act like that wasn't what you wanted from the beginning anyhow," Nate laughed.
"Hey, I promised Billy I'd look into it, and I keep my promises!" Kate said, one hand over her heart. "Fully!"
Nate raised one eyebrow in an expression just like his father before he started projecting the musical version of the Matchmaker song into her head, only accenting certain lines with his own mental voice adding to it.
"Aww, and I thought you wanted more kisses," Kate said in a sigh.
"Awwww, I thought you could multitask."
"Not with your terrible singing in my head," Kate shot back without missing a beat. "It's so distracting. How do you sound like a cheese grater even mentally?"
"Would you prefer the actual Broadway version? Because I can do that too if I think about it."
"Or," Kate said, rolling her eyes before she stole a kiss, "you could do neither of those things and skip history with me. Seeing as you're trying to fail it anyway."
"I am. But I am also grounded, so I don't know what I'd skip it for if you already said there would be no kissing and only picking at me," Nate said off-handedly.
"I denied kisses for the mental singing. Cut that out and there is something fun to skip for," Kate said, fluttering her eyelashes.
"Oh. well. That's a totally different story," Nate agreed with a crooked smile.
America had taken to hanging out at the tower pretending she wasn't entertained by the fact that the adults were starting to ask her when she was going to join the Avengers. She was Kate's best friend and knew there was a different team to look forward to, and she was waiting for that one to coalesce before she'd join a team. She wanted to join the team that would draw down the worst trouble - because she was actually attached to those idiots and figured they could use some backup.
But in the meantime, there were people to play with. Lexi had tried to flirt with her a couple times, but she wasn't touching that with a ten-foot pole, not when she was a) Kate's little sister and b) a little too young to have fun.
But the real reason she was at Avengers tower as often as she was? She'd been in trouble a few times, enough that Officer Wright had issued her a serious warning. And she was maybe supposed to be keeping her head down after she might have maybe kicked a guy's balls into orbit when he tried to put his hands on her. Maybe.
And seeing as the Avengers knew that America didn't do subtlety, she was supposed to stay there. And play it safe.
So, naturally, as soon as Kate came by with a visitor, wearing a look that America recognized from when they were dating that usually meant plenty of fun, America was on board before she even saw who the visitor was.
And then, America saw a face that she recognized - only much younger than the version she worshipped. He didn't look like she'd imagined he would; he was wide-eyed and innocent and slightly… off. Her powers allowed her to cross dimensions, so she could sense the right Billy, and this? This wasn't quite it. She must have been off in her estimation of which reality she should have stopped at.
For a long moment, America felt her heart drop. The whole point of her dimension hopping had been to find the Demiurge…. This was one, yes, but not the one who had created her universe. And she didn't know what to do with that information.
But… looking at Kate's wide smile, she decided not to bring it up. Ever. No one else had known why she'd come to this dimension, so no one needed to know she'd gotten it wrong. She liked this reality. And the eye candy. And hey, if she truly hated it, she could find a different one when she was older - after she made sure her idiot friends all survived their X-Men debut.
The moment lasted only a few seconds, so she was sure Kate and Billy Kaplan hadn't noticed it, so she grinned and waved them into the living room. "Didn't know you were giving a tour. Hey, chico. Welcome to the non-ivory tower."
Billy raised his eyebrows at her wording and leaned over to Kate. "You been snitching on me already?"
"Um, no?" Kate said, one eyebrow raised.
America smirked. "Family resemblance," she explained easily. "Welcome to the rest of the world, Cape Wearer."
Billy glanced over his shoulder just to double-check that he wasn't wearing a cape - he had specifically dressed in jeans and a tee shirt so he'd blend in - and then rolled his eyes when he heard America laugh. "Oh, come on."
America smirked. "I'm America Chavez, by the way. Since Kate's slow with the introductions."
Kate rolled her eyes as Billy stepped forward. "Billy Maximoff."
America nodded to herself. Maximoff, not Kaplan. That's probably the difference I'm missing, she thought before she smiled. "Well, come have a look. The view will blow your mind, and then I'm sure Kate has the rest of the tour planned out." As she said it, she met Kate's gaze and raised both eyebrows, and Kate broke into a troublemaking giggle once Billy ran to the windows that, gods, made her wish she wasn't the bigger person and had kept her for herself instead of letting her run to Nate. She loved that troublemaking giggle.
The funny part was that she was mostly past things with Kate; it was just the little things like that which made her sure she had to find someone with as much of a flair for trouble. Someone fiery.
But that wasn't the most important thing at the moment. The most important thing was that Kate was ready for trouble, and America put her arm around Kate's shoulders to pull her aside so they could quickly talk about Kate's plans. And once she heard Kate's theory about James and Billy being the cutest… well, how could she resist? Could be fun.
So once they'd decided that America would distract Tony from trying to prank or play with James by feigning interest in the Avengers so Kate could take Billy to James' workshop for the "tour," America had to step up the teasing. She liked James, after all, and since this wasn't the Demiurge? She was much more comfortable pushing his buttons.
"So, Cape Wearer, how evil are you? Scale of one to ten."
Billy blinked at her. "What?"
"One being Kate the Endlessly Optimistic Butterfly and ten being the Phoenix on a Bad Day."
Billy cracked a smile at her scale and then held his hands out to the sides. "Um… one?"
"Two," Kate corrected him. "You get a point just for the family nonsense."
America looked between Kate and Billy and then smirked and shrugged. "Well, I have to go talk to a Stark. Wish me luck."
"We'll see you around!" Kate said, grinning as she seized Billy's arm. "Come on, Billy. I know where to go next."
Minutes later, Kate let herself and Billy into James' lab after having explained to Billy what the story was with James and Tony and the whole internship thing. Which had surprised Billy, all things considered. But it didn't make the picture any less ridiculous after hearing how smart James was to find him sitting at a bench - back to the door with his forehead resting on the table in front of the laptop and his hands on the back of his head.
"What are you doing?" Kate asked before she hopped up on the stool next to him.
"Coding," James replied thickly before he slowly picked up his head. "What does it look like?"
"Like you're trying to communicate with the workbench. Smashing your face into it not working, huh?" Kate teased, grinning as James gave her a dirty look.
"What do you want, Kate?" James asked. "You never come in here unless you want something, and I told you that if I come up with more trick arrows, I'd tell you about it.."
Kate didn't drop his gaze as she pointed at Billy. "He broke his cell phone." When James turned toward Billy, Kate grinned wider behind his back, urging Billy to run with it. "And I said you could fix it."
Billy hesitated for just a moment before he slid the phone to James.
"Is there a reason you didn't take it to the carrier?" James asked, though he turned to look at Kate more than Billy for that.
"More reliable this way," Kate said with her chin in her hand. "And … I may have told him you could upgrade it a little."
"May have," James said, shaking his head before he turned back to the bench, closed the laptop, and got up to head over to the right bench. On the way over, he cracked open the phone and set the battery aside on the bench as he sat down. He didn't say a word as he took the phone apart and began removing what looked like some important components.
Within a minute or two, James was working fast, not really paying attention to what Kate or Billy were doing as he switched out a few things with some circuit boards that he had in the drawer next to him.
He pulled the magnification over as the soldering gun smoked - and with a weary sigh, James leaned forward and started making some major alterations. The moment that he caught the telltale scent of anxiety, he did what he could to ease Billy's mind. "I'm not touching any of the memory. Your contacts, apps, and pictures will be fine, even if they haven't been uploaded."
"Okay, I wasn't too worried about that," Billy admitted as he moved a little closer to watch him work.
"Sorry, you just … smelled anxious," James said distractedly. "I won't screw up anything important, but I'm taking the tracker and tying it to a pigeon."
"Wait, what tracker?" Kate asked hopping up to slip over and see what it was James was talking about.
"Don't all cell phones have trackers?" Billy asked.
"No," James said, making a few new connections. "They have GPS for maps that you can turn on and off integrated with the internet, but they don't have something exclusively to track. most of the time, to track you using the phone's capabilities, it's being done through triangulation with cell towers and by request. This is not that. This is an honest-to-God, spy-quality tracker." He set the soldering gun down and pulled over the tiny mass in question. "It's not standard equipment on any cell phone. Someone put this in after it was bought."
As Billy frowned at the little device, James put the phone back together. "Do you need the battery yet?" Kate asked, holding the little silver square.
"Toss it in recycling," James said as he slipped something new in place and snapped the phone back together. "Any other superfluous excuses you two have to come up here?" He watched both of them as he handed the phone back to Billy and watched the look on his face as he powered it up - shocked already at the difference.
"Yes," Kate said, bouncing to her feet. "Billy wanted to see the tower and your lab - and try to talk you into teaching him to drive, so … have fun!" She rushed out, leaving the two of them behind as Billy stared at her open-mouthed at the full betrayal.
The door closed behind her with a sound of finality, and it took a full thirty seconds before Billy finally turned back around to see James watching him with an open expression. "Alright. What's going on?" James asked. "Kate can be somewhat sneaky, and cleary, she wasn't even trying, so come on. Spill."
"It … was just ... " Billy held up the phone and gestured to the room at large.
"Yeah, I knew she was lying from the minute it came out of her mouth," James said, then leaned forward. "And she knew that I knew. There was nothing wrong with that phone." When Billy looked like he'd been thrown under the bus, James explained by tapping the side of his nose. "Lies stink. Even little ones. Didn't she tell you that?"
"She did not." Billy ran a hand through his hair but honestly didn't know James well enough to give it a shot yet. "She's not lying about the driving thing, though. I think I'll need to get a license to get around." He smiled sheepishly. "We didn't realize how restrictive travel would be here."
James raised an eyebrow at that, but Billy really wasn't lying. Now. "I know I don't look it, but I'm only sixteen. I'm hardly an expert."
"But that just means the test is still fresh in your mind, right?" Billy did his best to keep his nerve up. He also wasn't used to needing to go so slow if he was interested in someone, but there was zero response from the teenagers here when it came to the royal mutant family - as they were called home on Genosha. "And I had fun when Kate broke your car."
James finally smiled a little and nodded. "I'll talk to my dad and see how long he plans on keeping me grounded, little prince. No promises on how long that might be."
Billy frowned slightly at that. "I guess I don't understand what the charges were to get you in trouble."
"Honestly?" James asked, and when Billy nodded, he gestured to himself. "Being a bad influence. Covering for Mia when I didn't realize how interested she is in your brother - I'm gonna have to threaten him, by the way. On principle." Billy grinned at that. "And I guess the fact that I was ready to take on the old man is bad for mutant safety on a worldwide level. So … I kind of stepped in it."
"Isn't the same true of threatening the lesser prince?" Billy teased, relaxing a little as they started to talk.
"If Magneto is so out of touch that he can't understand why protecting Storm's daughter is a priority, then I guess I'll have to explain it to him."
"You're not afraid of him at all?"
"Not even a little." James smirked crookedly. "But, yeah. If you want help learning how to drive, I'll help you. Just not in secret."
"I didn't mean to make it sound like I wanted to keep it a secret," Billy said. "My parents told me to have fun and make friends. Just … please ignore what Grandfather was saying and doing. He's like that with everyone. Besides, I had a blast on those trails."
James smirk widened, though he managed to get control of it quickly enough. "Alright. We'll figure it out." He thought about it for a long moment. "But not this week. Week one is forbidden to even try and get out of trouble. Dad needs a cool-off period."
"What about next Friday when you're out of work?"
James held his gaze, but shook his head. "I can't. Nate has a football game, and he really does get all puffed up when the family goes to cheer him on. Unless … you wanted to go watch the game with us. That might even count as outreach."
"If I have Kate pick me up, you won't have to ask," Billy pointed out, but that had James shaking his head.
"Two things. One: I'm very sure that I understand the hard work you had to do to get around your Grandfather, but … a word of advice. Try not to go around the adults. It just makes things harder and causes more trouble," James said. "And two: Kate is a cheerleader, so she won't be around to give you a ride. But … yeah. If you can get a ride to the game, or if I can get the Jeep together to get you, you should come to the game. I'll still talk to my dad about driving lessons. He'll probably want to make sure I'm not showing you how to power slide or something."
"I'm sure," Billy said, looking a little disappointed, though he decided that direct was probably wisest path. "I was hoping for something more one-on-one." It took James a beat or two to realize what was up, and when he did, he blinked a couple times, and his lips parted as he tried to reply. "Unless there's no way you'd be interested. Then yeah, I still want to learn how, and supervision … sure."
"No, that's not - no," James said, shaking his head. "I wasn't expecting … you just surprised me."
"Kate said you had only dated girls, but I was hoping that maybe that was a 'so far' situation," Billy said, blushing high on his cheeks as he tried to smooth things over. He broke eye contact first as James continued to watch him with a curious expression on his face. "So … maybe … nevermind."
"Gimme your phone," James said, his hand out and waiting for it, a smirk tugging at the corner of his mouth.
"Why?" Billy asked even as he handed it over.
James shook his head as he unlocked it and took a few moments. "Stop using Kate as an intermediary," James said as he once again gave Billy his phone back. "She doesn't know half of what she thinks she does."
"You gave me your number," Billy said, looking surprised.
"Yeah," James replied, barely smiling, though he looked a little nervous. "That way, once I'm not grounded, you can call me, and then we can talk about going out. And not just for driving lessons. That would be a terrible date."
"And in the meantime, we can text," Billy said slowly, smiling wider the more he thought about it.
"And take a little time to get to know each other. By the time I'm ungrounded, you may not want to go out with me."
"Yeah, right," Billy said, waving the notion off immediately. "Even if they did treat me like royalty back home, I didn't want to ask any straight guys out. I was just …"
On seeing that Billy was clearly still nervous too, James decided to try and explain himself. "I really don't like all those labels," he said, reaching out to catch Billy's arm before he could walk away. "As far as just dating girls? My dating options are slim, and to be honest, I hadn't met a guy I was interested in until now. Not to mention, I kinda figured you were off limits after I got grounded for trying to finish that tour."
This time it was Billy's turn to look surprised when he realized what James had said. "Oh."
"How long is Kate going to leave you stranded?" James asked, when it was clear Billy was off his game. He took a step back and headed back to the laptop just to give him space.
"I … don't know," Billy admitted. "I - I'm not really stranded, though. I could wish myself back to the school, and she knows it, so I think she's just… leaving the exit to me."
James let out a little 'huh' but didn't comment further for a long while. "So what do you want to do about that? As much as I've spent time with Mia, instant travel that far isn't really something I'm used to."
"Oh, well, then, you should try it," Billy said, extending a hand. "Five minutes? Tony won't tell if you disappear for just a little bit, right?"
"Tony … is a little preoccupied," James said, hesitating only for a second before he took Billy's hand.
Billy smiled and then started to chant: IwanttobeinthewoodsinWestchester over and over again until they blinked into existence in the woods near the lake, and Billy grinned. "I've got to be pretty specific with the spells, so some of them get long… but I can get around."
"Lot more useful than what I do," James said.
Billy shrugged. "Depends," he said. "I also once accidentally rewrote reality so that I was an only child. Mom had fits until we could figure out how to reverse it. So I'm also kind of more dangerous than you are."
James turned his way with a teasing look. "You deleted your brother? What did he do?"
Billy blushed. "It was stupid," he said, turning even pinker somehow.
"Always is. Still wanna know."
"It's just… he told me the guy I was going out with was only doing it because we're royalty." He sighed. "He was right, and that made me even madder. And instead of taking it out on the guy, I… sort of… maybe… blinked Tommy out of my life." He held up both hands. "I instantly regretted it. Wasn't on purpose."
James blew out a breath and fell silent for a long while as they started to walk through the trees, then decided it was wisest to share some of his own stupidity to hopefully get Billy to feel a little better about sharing something so private. "When I started to come into my powers, I tried to figure out the genetics to stop it."
Billy frowned. "Why?" he asked - genuinely curious, since he hadn't grown up thinking the X-gene was anything but, well, superior.
James gestured to his face. "The closest thing I can tell you is that I didn't want to be me. Your grandfather's not the only one that takes issue with what I am. My parents were hunted most of their lives because of this stupid powerset. So growing up, I always thought of it like a death sentence. Still do." He smiled tightly. "I tried to find a way to reverse it. Just delete the X-gene. I think I was eight-ish? So … There. See? Everyone does stupid things."
Billy looked like he wasn't sure what to say before he finally leaned over and bumped shoulders with James. "For the record, no matter what my grandfather thinks, I like your powerset. It gives you a kind of … fearlessness." He blushed bright red, all the way down to the tips of his ears.
"I'm going to say thank you but also respectfully disagree," James replied before gently shifting the subject. "I can't even imagine the trouble you got into for your brother, though. How are you not grounded still?"
Billy shook his head. "Mom has the same powers. She's made some huge mistakes too, so she knows how hard it can be."
"Ah," James said, long and drawn out. "So she does play favorites," he had to tease.
"Actually," Billy admitted quietly, "if there was a favorite? It'd be Tommy. She never really got over losing Pietro, you know. Tommy gets away with a lot because of it."
"I can believe that," James agreed, then bumped Billy back. "How about we talk about something that doesn't end with pure misery for the people we love?"
Billy nodded his quick agreement. "How about… I'm about five years behind the mainland on movies. Where should I start? The school has a good collection…"
"What kind of films do you like?" James asked.
"Depends on the mood," Billy said with a shrug. "Usually action, but I'm also a romantic sap."
"What's your go-to to get out of a funk?"
"Oh, in that case, it's always something scifi," Billy said, then paused and smirked. "Usually with the bad guy in a cape getting his comeuppance. Not that Grandfather is the root of half my drama problems. Noooooo."
James couldn't help but laugh at that. "Did Kate show you the text thread from earlier?"
"Um, no, she just said she texted you and you are emotionally inscrutable and wouldn't help her win her bet with Nate."
"True enough when you only can read Nate as far as inscrutable goes," James said, then pulled out his phone to pull up the thread for him. "She's been fishing. Badly. I just had to ask, what with the cape reference."
Billy blushed as he read it through. "I… didn't want to push you if you weren't… not everyone takes it well, you know…"
"You're not pushing me," James said, still smirking crookedly at him.
"Yeah, it's just… I've had that happen, you know, where someone is straight but I'm also the prince, so then they have to examine whether it's safe to say no, and… it messes with a person…"
"We're not on the island." James smiled honestly at that. "And I'm not afraid of you or your family, little prince."
"Even knowing I could poof you out of existence?" Billy asked with a teasing smile.
"Poof away."
"But I don't want to, and I have to want to."
"Then why would you even bring it up?" James asked with a laugh.
"I don't know… because I wanted to be impressive?" Billy asked with one eye shut.
"That is definitely impressive. But I'm used to heavy-duty powersets around me," James said. "Bruce Banner helped tutor me when I was younger. I spent two hours the first session peppering him with Hulk questions and pestering the snot out of him. We played with Thor whenever we had to come to the tower when I was sick …which was often. All kinds of people could have snuffed us out. Being the least powerful person in the room doesn't bother me."
"Oh good," Billy said, then glanced down at his phone. "I… should probably get you back to the tower before you get in trouble, huh? If I want to see you at the football game, I mean."
"It wouldn't be unusual for me to slip away without anyone catching it. Not like I haven't learned how to evade the cameras in the building." James held up both hands. "You have to if you're going to prank Tony."
"Now it's my turn to be impressed," Billy said, smiling wider. "Alright then. Let's stay a little longer."
Chapter 34: Getting To Know You
Chapter Text
"You totally set me up," Billy said to Kate when she and America met up with him the day after they'd gotten him into James' lab.
"Duh. That's what I said I'd do."
"You didn't say you were going to lie to someone who apparently can smell that kind of thing?" Billy said, looking upset - if not for the smile he had yet to wipe off his face.
"You don't look too torn up about it."
"That's because it worked," America said over Kate's shoulder with a smug smile before she flounced off to see what Dani Cage was up to. She didn't want to listen to the head over heels nonsense anyhow. Not when she knew part of that would be the lovesick play by play on both Summers boys now.
"Not the point," Billy said. "I need to know what everyone can do with their powers so I don't make a fool of myself again. Honestly, Kate. I should have known that going in. That he knew when there were lies."
"Well … Nate's a telekinetic and a telepath - Rachel too, but I thought you knew that. You already know America can beat holes in reality, is super strong, and super cute - which is totally a superpower for her … Mia teleports and is insanely flexible, and James does the whole super senses, healing, um … enhanced strength... and oooh! He grows hair like .. freaky fast. That totally counts as a power, too. I shaved his head once -"
"You what?"
"Shaved his head. It's okay, he asked me to - but it grew back to normal like … in hours. I was so disappointed." She ran her hands through her hair, remembering her frustration. "I had a whole list of amazing jokes and he just … ruined it for me!"
Billy stared at her for a moment. "Okay … I don't know what to do with that. What about you? What do you do?"
Kate scrunched up her nose as she sat cross-legged next to him on the couch. "What do you mean? Aside from being awesome and the best shot in the planet? Nothing."
"But … your aim is superhuman, right?" Billy said, apprehensive for the first time as he watched her.
"Well … I mean, yeah, but that's just from hard work and being naturally amazing. I'm not a mutant though, if that's what you're asking. 100% human." Kate paused and lifted one eyebrow as she shifted to face him more squarely. "Why? Is that going to be a problem?"
"I just … I've never been near a human before." Billy looked like he was weighing it out and dealing with conflicting information. "But … you've got mutants in your family, right? You're not like most of them. Humans, I mean." Billy blushed. "I mean … you're dating a mutant, right? So you have to be one of the good ones."
Kate stared at him for a long moment. "If by 'good ones' you mean one of most of the human population that isn't part of some evil weapons program or evil military group or evil bigoted racist group of rednecks hiding behind the guise of religion … do you see where I'm going with this? Then yes. I'm one of the good ones." She narrowed her eyes. "What about you? Are you one of the good ones? Or one of the 'too good for everyone else' ones who were so extreme they gave the rest of the world an actual reason to think mutants are terrorists before the X-Men got killed?"
"I … I don't … know how to answer that," Billy replied, wide-eyed.
"Kinda sucks when it gets turned around on you, huh?"
"I just… I've never…"
Kate let out a breath and tried to temper her reaction, knowing Billy and Tommy had led very sheltered lives. But considering what she and Jan and Rachel and Nate were all working on, the whole notion was wearing on her nerves. "You should read Charles Xavier's works," she said, which seemed like the most reasonable thing to say.
Billy still looked shocked anyway. "I'm not sure I'm following you. Grandfather already told me about his dream and-"
"-and clearly, your education is lacking," Kate finished for him. "Because guess what, buttercup, if you actually read it - and I have, thankyouverymuch - it's all about humanity and mutantkind working together. Peaceful coexistence. Not mutants in one place and humans in another. I mean, your island paradise is great for mutants to let loose, but it's really just a bigger version of what all the other mutants out here in the real world are doing: hiding." Kate shrugged. "My parents - my human parents - taught me ever since I was adopted that the world never realized the gift the X-Men had given them until they were gone. Mutants out in the open with humans. Being separated just makes people like you scared of people like me."
Billy blinked a few times and then nodded slowly. "I… I'll find a copy in the library, I'm sure."
Kate smiled. "And in the meantime, we can still be friends, right? I like you when you're not being all 'one of the good ones' racist."
"I'm not-"
"You are, but it's okay. You'll grow out of it," Kate said, smiling crookedly at him. "After all, a human set you up with a hunk, right?"
Billy gave her a weak smile in return. "I don't even know what to do with you."
"That's the title of my biography, my friend," Kate said. "Now, come on. Let's find something fun to do. Philosophy is nice and all, but it's not fun." With that, she didn't give Billy a choice and simply grabbed his arm to find something new to do.
On Genosha, Erik was having some trouble deciding what, exactly, to do about things surrounding what was left of the X-Men. Clearly, he'd been neglecting his responsibility to stand up for mutant kind for far too long judging by the kinds of things that his grandsons were being taught as 'normal'. The very idea that his own flesh and blood was being told to hide who they were - to be ashamed and bow down to humanity when they could so easily crush them with little more than a thought - had Erik burning.
He hadn't worked this hard simply for them to be tossed to the side by the humans. But he'd honestly counted on this kind of reaction from the world at large. The boys needed to see what homo inferior thought of mutants firsthand for them to understand their place in the world - their rightful place in the world. Ruling. Genosha was getting crowded, after all.
Using the mutant-detecting technology in Sentinels that Erik had commandeered from around the globe, his scientists had been able to scan the general public outside of Genosha. Initial predictions that the mutant birth rate would climb were all proving themselves to be true. But the scope by which they were right was off tremendously. Far more mutants were being born than had been calculated by anyone's reasoning.
It was just a matter of time before his grandson would be able to step in and rule. Naturally, Erik wanted to give him the world. All of it. But things were at a delicate point, worldwide. It would take precious little for the humans to spark up another genocide against their betters. He wanted William and Thomas to be ready when trouble happened. And unfortunately, the only way they could be prepared for such hatred was to experience it themselves. It was the only reason he allowed Wanda to continue to think that he was putting up a fight. Going along with her wishes easily would have been suspicious.
But his work with the boys hadn't been a total wash, either. One of them was doing exactly as Erik had instructed and was reporting back to him as requested - and he was learning so much from those check-ins. Not just the curriculum that was being taught at Charles' old school but the interpersonal relationships between the different X-Men and Avengers - how their whole system worked out between them.
Of course, he hadn't actually been specific with young William on why he wanted to know these things. The boy was still innocent, after all, and he still held the Avengers in high esteem. Cluing him in on why Erik was paying attention to certain matters would only have left the door open for him to bring his concerns to the Avengers themselves.
The boy was a quick study in spite of his soft heart. Erik had spent years with him, molding him. Mentoring him. He had high hopes, and for now - in spite of his tracking chip having gone dead in his phone - Erik would allow things to continue as they were as long as the boys continued to check in appropriately. Appearing now would only look suspicious to those that would work against him. And yes, at first Erik had gotten angry on hearing that William was going against his warning about the Summers family. But the more William had to say about how the Summerses were so protective of each other, the more Erik knew that, under the right circumstances, he could use their extreme situation to his advantage. The original X-Men were still inspirational to mutants around the world, even if they'd been beaten down. And Scott could be the perfect figurehead and example of what humanity was capable of.
Hearing that Wolverine's orphaned pup was being so well looked after by the Avengers and Tony Stark in particular though only had Erik seeing an in to find out what Stark was up to, and if William ended up spending time in Stark's tower where the Avengers were headquartered, it would be that much easier to find the best way to topple them. With or without his conscious help.
He could wait and see what the boys could find on their own. Then he'd give instructions on how to move forward. It had only been a few weeks. The boys could use more time getting a lay of the land - and Erik could use that time to decide the many different directions their intel would take them.
It was kind of rare for James and Rachel to go to one of Nate's games, but seeing as they knew Nate was in the starting lineup - and it was homecoming to boot - Scott had very quietly hoped that James and Rachel would go to support their brother. For most parents, that would have been subtle, but seeing as both Rachel and Nate were telepaths - and quite often telepathically chatting with James when they were all home - it was almost like he was nagging. And there was no way Rachel and Nate were going to let James be out of the loop if they had to listen to it.
The Summers family headed off to the football game, fully ready for the overly large crowd that would be cheering on their favorite blue-eyed quarterback - even if 'Summers' wasn't on the jersey. But Nate Mueller was incredibly popular with the local crowd, too.
"You hear that wolf whistle?" asked a familiar voice as a blonde version of Mia sat down by Scott, with the Maximoff twins sitting on the other side of the group by James. "Kate's marking her territory. The girls in the squad are totally jealous."
"They'll get over it," Rachel said. "He's always been out of their league anyhow."
Mia grinned at that, leaning across Scott to wave at Rachel. "Do you like the look?" she asked. "I thought about going dark this time, but…"
"It's different enough and shocking enough that I think you're doing alright," Scott said. "I'm glad to see you getting out for a minute."
Mia beamed at Scott. "I know, right? I love being around people. I really loved being in Wakanda - it was just so .. wow."
"That's because you're so much like your dad," Scott said - a compliment that never failed to get a proud grin out of Mia.
She drew herself up and let out a noise of triumph. "I know," she said happily. "But to be fair to Mom, she loves people too. She just likes quiet people."
"Which you won't find a lot of here tonight," Scott said with a smirk as the student section started stomping their feet and making the bleachers shake, screaming and cheering and making noise.
"I know. That's why I brought our exchange students," Mia said, her smile growing more troublemaking. "Throw 'em in the deep end of American football."
"If it was the deep end, it'd be a ravenous college rivalry," James said, laughing to himself at the hubbub on the track around the football field. It was almost dusk, and the air was chilled enough that they could see their breath starting to hang in the air.
"You know, I really, really thought about it," Mia said. "But then I wouldn't be allowed to go. Mom wouldn't let me get somewhere that… ah…" She dropped her voice. "Surrounded by metal detectors and … similar things."
"And that would be criminal," James said. "I wonder if you know anyone that could make something that would override the… nevermind." He dropped his thought as Scott gave him a look. "Passing thought. That's all," James defended. "Not like I have access to that crap."
"Uh-huh," Scott said, though he didn't comment on it beyond that. He knew he didn't need to give further commentary with James - and besides, he was a bit more focused on the fact that, somehow, even when Nate was on the field and Kate was on the sidelines, those two were managing to make it clear that they were more interested in each other than just about anything else. The way he was watching her had the other cheerleaders swooning and seething in jealousy all at once.
Which was frustrating enough on its own, because Scott didn't know how to slow it down, let alone stop it. He had watched Nate dance around his crush on Kate until they finally got together - just like he had with Jean - and now, he was watching Nate fall hard - just like he had with Jean. And considering how he'd felt when he was young… he didn't know that anything anyone said would have changed it.
Still, at least Nate had enough sense to keep his head in the game once that got started, even if Scott knew that Nate would be sure to at least reach out to Kate to flirt during time outs and calls from the refs.
Just before things really got started, Tommy asked how the game worked, though with Scott distracted, he was stuck with James' synopsis before Scott could explain it right. "Buncha pimple-backed juvenile gorillas trying to get the ball to the far side of the field. They like to hug violently when they don't get their way. Usually from as much high speed as they can muster in that much padding and spandex. Better than half of them are on steroids. Same half of them are persistent in their ignorance of things like deodorant or words that have more than two syllables. But hey. They do love that ball."
Mia did her best to keep from laughing as James continued trying to get a rise out of his dad as his description got more obnoxious. "They're lucky they have Nate to tell them what to do, or I swear to you, some of them wouldn't know where their own homerooms are."
When Scott finally turned to give James a dry look, James smiled at him brightly. "I did say it was only half the team, didn't I?" When that didn't get a reaction, James stood up. "Alright then. I'm going to get something to drink. Dad, I've got your usual. Rachel, Mia, either of you need anything?"
"Cocoa," Rachel said with a nod. "Please."
"Ooh, can you get a couple bags of popcorn for me and the boys?" Mia asked.
"Yep," James said, shoving his hands in his hoodie pocket. "If you come up with anything else- let me know."
"Will do," Mia said brightly.
"Mind if I join you?" Billy asked, already halfway to his feet.
"Sure. Gotta learn your way around, right?" James replied. "Probably smart to give your brother a chance to breathe, anyhow. Need anything, Tommy?"
Tommy was still wiping tears from his eyes from snorting laughing. "Go on. I'll be okay. Just leave me a little water… some chips if you have them…"
James smiled crookedly as he led the way, though that just really gave Tommy the chance to slide closer to Mia as Scott explained what the rules actually were. James and Billy slipped through the crowd to get refreshments for the group, though even as they got in line, James had to point out something important. "I don't know if we'll have seats when we get back. Kind of full crowd. But … I am curious. Keep in mind I'm not complaining. How did you get Ororo to let you three out?"
"You did invite me, but … Mia's been pestering her mom about wanting to go out for a while, as I understand it," Billy admitted. "And then she started pestering her about wanting to go on a date, and suddenly, her mom was a lot more open to a group activity." By the time he finished what he was saying, he was laughing to himself.
"So who's your designated chaperone - since I'm willing to bet she wouldn't go with you chaperoning your own brother?" James asked.
Billy glanced over his shoulder until he finally saw a tall blonde staying back from the crowd. "Angel wanted to get out too. It's harder for him to hide…"
"Did you wish his wings off for him?" James teased.
Billy shook his head quickly. "Never. I think they're amazing," he said. "But we all helped with this… harness thing? Didn't look comfortable, but he's so depressed cooped up in there, so… we pitched in." He shrugged. "I'm still getting used to this whole idea. Growing up, Angel could have been flying around wherever he wanted. It's… weird."
"I don't know if that would have been good for us," James said. "In a weird way, I don't really think we would have done the things we have if we were just focused on avoiding the rest of the world by hiding from it - a hundred miles from civilization." He shrugged. "I can't really speak for anyone else, but I know I have a little mean streak. And I think needing to keep myself under control is a better path than not."
Billy looked thoughtful as he nodded along to everything James was saying. The life Billy had been raised in was worlds different than what everyone else had grown up with. And he was starting to really see that. "To be honest," he said slowly, "I think we shouldn't be as isolated as we are. That's what got Mom to send us here. But I still think, well, I liked being me. Unapologetically."
"So don't change that, little prince. Just … control the more dramatic stuff a little. That's all you gotta do to be more 'normal'."
When they got up to the counter, James put in everyone's requests - including Mia's last minute addition of M&M's for her to share with Tommy - though James was very sure that Rachel had found that part funnier than anything else. He also got an extra bag of popcorn and made an easy arc over to Warren before they headed up to the bleachers again - just so he wasn't entirely isolated. "So you don't have to wait in line," James said quietly as he handed the bag to Warren without warning him or saying hello otherwise.
Warren looked surprised and then broke into a smile. "Thanks."
"Let me know if you need anything," James called out as they left.
James and Billy got back to find that, yes, their seats had been filled - but James didn't look bothered in the least when it was three kids under the age of ten that had taken his and Billy's spots with their family. He turned to Billy for a moment. "Just wait here a minute. I'll take this stuff up to them and we can find a spot on the fence. I'm not gonna make kids move."
"That's alright with me," Billy promised.
It only took a few minutes - and James even pointed out to Scott where he was headed since he knew his dad could relax a little better in a crowd if he wasn't searching for everyone. As it turned out, the spot that was most open was right in front of the 45-yard line where the bleachers opened up to a stairwell. James and Billy leaned against the fence to watch as the refs blew their whistles and, once again, the game came to a screeching halt.
"So, seriously, what's the story with this game?" Billy asked. "Because I think I'd be able to follow a neanderthal-level game."
"So, there are a lot more rules than there should be for such a simple concept," James said. "The core of it is easy. Team A wants to take the ball to the opposite side of the field, and Team B wants to stop them. Add in a whole lot of crap about how many chances they have to do that - how legal certain hits are, how they determine the line of scrimmage when the coaches are acting like toddlers," he said - sure the last part was loud enough that some of the kids on the track heard it loud and clear. "I'm really horrible at team sports. So I try to avoid getting involved. Honestly."
"Yeah, well, you and me both," Billy said. "Hard to play team sports when the kids your age are scared of beating you. Or… interacting with you."
"Dad tried to get me to do more with sports once I got pulled from regular school," he said. "I could play. I just didn't like to follow the coach. I'd rather just … do it myself instead of going with the team. Didn't matter what the sport was. If the coach was an idiot, I couldn't blindly follow their stupid drills. Not a lot of other chances for that when you're locked up in the tower with the genius squad." He pointed to Nate at centerfield. "Most of the calls out there have to be snap judgements on his part. He's good, so it's not really a problem. But … if you get someone in that spot that's a total idiot or there because of popularity or their parents are friends with the coach or whatever ... "
Billy pulled a face. "Sounds awful."
"Nate makes the wrong call, his guys can get creamed. Or he can." He thought about it for a moment as more whistles sounded and the announcers droned out what was going on over the loudspeaker. "What did you do? You look like you could be a 'lock yourself in a racquetball room' kind of punish yourself person maybe."
Billy smiled lightly. "Actually, you're not far off. Tommy and I are wicked good at tennis."
"Doubles?" James asked.
"Yeah, when we can talk Uncle Alex and Aunt Lorna into it. Aunt Lorna has a serve you wouldn't believe."
"I can believe it," James said. "Hockey was okay for me as long as I was in a forward spot so I could go anywhere; otherwise, I liked surfing with Uncle Alex and swimming."
"I didn't mind swimming," Billy said. "But that's all anyone who arrives on Genosha wants to do. And Uncle Alex keeps trying to push surfing on us, too."
"That …is not a surprise either. He loves it, and he loves sharing it with others. And … I do okay with that." James smirked. "He kept trying to get Dad to let him take us to Hawaii for every vacation, but Dad thought it would draw too much attention - seeing as Alex is known to be with one of Genosha's princesses. We went a few times. It was fun. The surfing."
Billy smirked. "I'd like to see it."
"You just want to watch me wipe out," James laughed.
"I just want to see you in swimwear," Billy countered with a crooked smile.
James returned the smile but had to chuckle to himself before blowing smoke rings with his breath in the growing cold. "Sadly, this is the wrong time of year for that. You'll have to make do with layers and layers of clothes for a while."
"Yeah, no one warned me about the cold." Billy completed the statement with a dramatic shiver.
"It's not even cold yet," James said, gesturing to his hoodie, though most everyone around them was bundled up more. "This is kind of perfect weather."
"Says you. I need extra blankets at night." Billy turned his hands out. "But I grew up in tropical heat."
"Exactly," James said. "You might get less clothes and beaches now, but here? Warm drinks. Extra blankets. Not to mention curling up with someone by the fire. Good stuff." He smirked crookedly as the teams lined up again. "You'll learn to love it."
"Maybe," Billy said. "Or I might just die of hypothermia all alone in my blanket burrito," he teased.
James laughed. "Yeah? Sounds like it'd be your choice. Pick your hiking partner carefully for the survival course. That's all I can tell you."
"Oh, so for Storm's sake, I should take Mia so Tommy doesn't?"
"I am very sure she wouldn't allow them to pick each other for that class. You don't have to do the hypothermia section … but … the mental imagery."
Billy chuckled. "Those two are already getting in trouble. Not that I'm surprised on Tommy's count."
"Yeah," James said. "Mia's got a little demon in her, if you haven't heard. She gets into plenty."
"Should I be concerned?" Billy asked with a smile.
"Friendly demon," James said seriously.
"Good to know." Billy leaned back. "And what about you?"
"What about me?" James asked.
"Any demons I should know about before I ask you on a real date?"
James almost snorted. "Not that anyone'll admit to."
"Interesting answer."
"You already said I'm not the dangerous one," James pointed out with a grin.
"True, though my grandfather gave me and Tommy both stern warnings about you and your family," Billy said. "We ignored him. Obviously."
James turned his way fully. "Well, now I really want to know what the battle ax had to say."
"Just that you were nothing more than an animal on a leash replacing Scott's previous pet guard dog. Garbage like that."
"I must really irk him. D minus on creativity," James said, doing a beautiful snooty expression as he tipped his chin up. Even if it stung.
"I thought so too," Billy said. "Besides, I saw you step in for your dad. I know that side of you and this side. Pretty sure I know enough to ask you to dinner."
"You sure about that? I don't want you rocking the boat too much," James said. "I mean … if you get in trouble for just associating… it might be upsetting to the royal family on how low you set your standards."
Billy waved a hand. "I'm allowed to make my own choices," he said, then paused and bit his lip. "Honestly… full disclosure… Grandfather's been dropping, well, hints that he'd rather see me take over than Alex and Lorna's kids or Tommy. I think I get some leeway."
"Knowing how he feels about my whole family - past and present - you sure that won't tank your chances? Slumming it, I mean," James said. "Do you even want the royal cape?"
Billy shrugged and decided to tell James the truth - especially since he knew that lying wouldn't cut it. "I'm not entirely sure. I've always known it was going to be mine, so I'm trying to, well, I mean, I do think it's a good idea to have a safe haven, you know? I've seen the refugees come in. And the people there seem happy - that I've seen."
"Safe haven? Absolutely," James agreed. "The idea is sound. I just don't know enough about how it actually works. Or, if I'm being perfectly honest," he leaned in closer. "I don't know how much your grandfather has done personally to keep attacks on the island from happening. If I had to guess, it's more than we know about here." James leaned back, giving Billy a little space as he tried to consider Magneto's position. There was no reason, he decided, not to give credit where it was due. "I can understand some of the grump, believe it or not. Just ... the way he tried taking it out on my dad? No."
Billy nodded. "We all get it," he said. "We just get annoyed - like all families do. Sometimes, Grandfather goes too far, and Mom gets worried about him." He sighed. "She doesn't want him to be more than the ruler of Genosha, if you know what I mean."
James nodded and the two of them fell into silence - relatively speaking - as the game continued, neither of them quite sure where to take the conversation at that point. So neither of them was expecting it when a pair of girls came up to say hello.
"You're new," one said as she took a hold of Billy's arm.
"Umm…. yes?" Billy said, looking like he'd been caught completely off his guard.
"I'm Jessica Locke. You are …"
"He's not interested, Jess," James said, though that had her grumbling. He didn't get the chance to expand on his statement, though, before Isabella slid up closer to him and got much more comfortable, even slipping her hands around his waist.
"I know, James, you don't like to date high school girls," Isabella said before she turned to Jessica, who was getting too close to Billy. "Just tell us you're not as uptight as the Mueller boys, new guy."
"I'm not?" Billy scrunched up his nose. "But I'm also gay. So…"
Isabella blinked a few times and then broke into a laugh as Jessica took her hands off of Billy's arm. "That's hilarious, come on. Let's all four of us go find something more interesting than the game to do."
As Isabella began pulling on James, Jessica took her cue from her friend and tried to persuade Billy to move with her, too, a little too handsy as she batted her eyelashes. James glanced at Billy with an apologetic look, and then, he carefully and gently removed Isabella's hands and held onto them long enough to get his message across. "I'm just here to support my brother, Izzy. And neither of us are available. Go find someone you know will play your games. I'm sure you've got someone else lined up"
"And I'm just here to learn the sport," Billy put in, trying to extract himself as well. "I'm not looking for a pretty girl."
"But you think I'm pretty?" Jessica said with a wide grin, clearly fishing for a compliment.
Billy shrugged. "Objectively, sure," he said. "But the quarterback has you beat in the ass department."
James burst out laughing at that, not even trying to hide it, though that seemed to jar the girls more than anything else. Isabella turned to smack James in the chest, but he caught her wrist. "Please quit trying to make your boyfriend jealous, Izzy," he said quietly, subtly shifting how they were standing so she could look past him onto the field, where it was obvious one of the wide receivers was watching with a deep scowl. "I won't stop you if you're just here to put on a show - but no touching my friend."
"Oh, is that what's going on?" Billy muttered low James' way.
"Among other things, yeah. Every time they have a fight, she waits until he's on the field to pull something where he can see it, right Iz?" James prompted, and in answer, her smile only warmed up as she nearly growled out a 'maybe' and stepped in so that her boyfriend couldn't see what she could have possibly been up to that close to James. "We're trying to watch the game, girls."
Isabella looked past James and saw that her boyfriend did in fact seem suitably riled, and that more than anything finally got her to nod and take a step back. Jessica had given up long before and looked almost nervous as she stood next to Billy, hugging herself. "Have fun, boys," Isabella said, then waved and blew a kiss with the tips of her fingers. "See you later, James. We've still got unfinished business."
The two boys watched them go until they melted into the crowd, and finally, James turned to see the look of utter bewilderment on Billy's face. "Must not have been a big fight," James said quietly. "First time they pulled that crap at a game, it was a lot more involved than grabbing an arm."
Billy's eyebrows shot up. "Are you serious?"
James frowned as he watched him react. "Ye-ah. Not a big deal though. Probably doesn't help that … we … kinda almost dated a while ago. Before I found out she's related to Madame Masque and Emma Frost."
"My mom would have …" Billy shook his head. "My upbringing was very different."
"Hey, it's not something my dad approves of either," James said. "But it's just easier not to make a thing out of it."
Billy shook his head. "Still," he said, then offered James his hand. "Best to ask first."
"Generally, yeah," James agreed, then he took Billy's hand and the two of them left the railing. There were too many people to talk properly, and it was clear that Billy didn't have his head on the game. At all.
It was nearly halftime by then anyway, and Scott had gotten up to see if he could find the two of them - though he nearly stopped in his tracks when he saw how comfortable they were. James could almost see the gears in Scott's head turning before he finally blinked back to regular speed and tipped his head their way. "How long has this been going on?" he asked - since technically, James had been grounded.
"What time is it?" James asked without missing a beat.
Scott almost smirked, then caught himself and pointed at James. "You're still grounded. Don't be stupid for one more week."
"What exactly did I do to break terms?" James asked.
"This is a preemptive warning," Scott said, then finally allowed himself to smirk. "Since you have a date I need to worry about now."
"Not yet, I don't," James said. "We've just been talking and poorly avoiding the jealousy squad. "
Scott pressed his lips together. "Again?"
James shrugged openly. "Every time."
"I'm sorry, James."
"It's fine, Dad. I don't care. Ask Rachel about it if you want to know the story. Maybe she can tell you why she keeps trying."
Scott raised an eyebrow Rachel's way - and got a quick telepathic rundown that had him frowning and then outright rolling his eyes. "If you pull that kind of nonsense on anyone you ever date - any of you kids - I'll pack you up and send you to Genosha."
"Dad."
"I'm just saying."
"You've got to be kidding me," James grumbled.
"I know I didn't raise any of you to behave like that. I needed a suitable threat."
"Not much of a threat if I'm there, too," Billy whispered under his breath to James. "Could be fun."
James kept his reaction flat, doing a fair job of not smiling before he muttered out 'loophole' - to Rachel's absolute amusement. Especially since Billy couldn't stop the grin at James's snark.
You're having way too much fun, little brother, Rachel projected to James.
Isn't that what you keep telling me to do? He asked. Get out of the lab. Have some fun. Verbatim.
Sure is. And I'm loving this look on you, Rachel said, and James could hear her smile even telepathically.
What look is that? Perpetually grounded for not doing anything?
Having a blast even if you get in trouble? Trying new things? Yeah, Rachel countered.
I've been doing that since Stark set me up with my own lab. James crossed his arms and leaned against the nearest post as the crowd trickled by them. I don't know what the hell I'm doing here, Rach. Little out of my depth.
Well, that's half the fun, I'm told, she replied. I wouldn't know. So far, I've run away from most of my relationships.
Because they were all idiots.
Fair point.
At least he's telling me the truth, James said. Like the fact that the old man has a real problem with me. Already. Even singled me out while warning them about us.
You did stand up to him beautifully, Rachel said, obviously proud. Dad was happy to share with me how it went down.
James looked toward Scott for a long moment. He doesn't actually think I'd do anything even remotely like Izzy, does he? I mean I'm not that … narcissistic. I don't think.
No, of course not. But he was so annoyed by how often that happens to you that it turned into his weird sense of humor. You know how he gets. Might be because I showed him how she treats you. He hasn't seen it fully himself … until now.
Right. Just have to ask sometimes.
That's what you've got me for, Rachel promised. Got your back.
Right. So. What's new with you? I've been working more than anything else, and I've missed pretty much everything.
Not much with me. Just conspiring with Jan, as usual. She's tickled to design us things with X's on them.
I don't know that I should know about that.
We'd show you anyway. Can't leave you out of the loop when the rest of the family's in on it.
You mean Nate. Nate is in on it.
Yes, that. Rachel smiled. Seriously, Jan's having a ball. We should at least show you her designs.
Rachel …
I know, I know. Rachel let out a sigh he could hear in their connection. It was a common enough argument with them. Rachel and Nate were far more primed and ready to debut as X-men, but James was still on the fence. I'm being cautious too. That's why we're keeping the circle small and waiting for the right moment. We're not going to kill Dad, I swear.
I know. But this is another thing now. If I end up dating this guy for any length of time - isn't that kind of problematic for this team you want? I mean, part of why I got grounded was being a bad influence - and pissing off Magneto. And this seems like the kind of thing that would definitely piss off Magneto.
We'll figure it out when we get there, Rachel said. You just keep enjoying yourself, and I'll keep plotting, okay?
So business as usual.
Pretty much.
James smiled to himself and turned to face Rachel, who wore an almost proud expression. "You like him," she said quietly. "Don't overthink it."
Chapter 35: The Art of Flirting
Chapter Text
"I was right," Kate sang out as she skipped behind Nate, then slid into the seat next to him in study hall. "Just got the text from Billy. Your brother is at least curious about the adorable and fun twin."
"Not super surprised," Nate said, doing his best to keep his reaction low and lying through his teeth. "Scientific and all that. Has to check all the possibilities … including the modifier that the fun twin might be evil."
"No way!" Kate laughed. "Billy said he was maybe a one - though I upped it to two just for family affiliation. Two. Out of ten. Not evil."
He has the same powerset as his mother, Nate projected to her. Potential fifteen, easy.
The scale is only up to ten.
You're underestimating Magento's family, Nate countered, grinning at her before he leaned in and stole a kiss. "You're cute when you're wrong," he said.
"Pretty sure we just established that I'm right," Kate replied, though she kissed him right back.
"Yeah, the thing with my brother just proves me right - power and danger magnet that he is." Nate pulled her closer until she was practically in his lap. "But I really don't want to talk about my brother and whoever he's seeing or not seeing." He kissed her again. "Do you really want to talk about someone else right now?" Because I know I'd rather keep my focus on you instead.
"That's really not a fair question," Kate replied. And when they got a few glares from the teacher who was supposed to be keeping the peace at study hall, Kate smiled sweetly and then switched to totally psychic - in a full-on makeout with Nate in their heads.
The boys still had a whole two weeks to kill before they finally could go on their date, and by the time they met up, James was nervous. Not just about the fact that Billy was from a massively powerful family, or the fact that ticking them off could have widespread consequences. It was a lot more simple than that. He just wasn't sure what was supposed to happen with this date. Already, everything about it felt different.
Were their expectations the same? What was a first date like for Billy versus how James' first dates ran? He didn't know how much Billy got away with wearing a friggin' crown on Genosha, but he knew what he got away with. So he was a little concerned that a slower approach might be a deal breaker for the little prince.
And he'd spent the past two weeks trying to anticipate how he'd react to Billy if they hit it off in person and how to move forward or stop things if they didn't hit it off. It was a daunting prospect. But there was a bigger draw than there was apprehension. Which was how James found himself driving out to Westchester.
He was supremely glad that Billy was waiting with a few new friends when he got there, though they cleared out fast enough and the two of them slipped outside before anyone on the staff could stick their noses in.
"So, there aren't a lot of places we can go and talk openly," James said after they'd stepped outside. He'd planned to pick BIlly up and head out, but on the way to Westchester, James decided it might be smarter to let Billy decide the where, since he'd handled the rest of it. Even if he wasn't familiar with the area, he had his own ways to travel, after all. "So… did you have a place in mind for this picnic, or am I driving somewhere?"
"Right. Hard to talk about ourselves if we need to keep family details secret," Billy said, nodding, but that got James to smile a little more crookedly.
"I keep forgetting that you grew up in a sweet little bubble that nurtured you for who you are," James teased. "It's not just the mutant thing we need to be careful about."
Billy frowned - honestly unaware of what James could have meant by that - and when James realized that the little prince of Genosha had no idea what he was talking about, he smiled tightly and decided to just pull the bandage off.
"NYC may be pretty open-minded in some aspects, but this is small town, USA," James said gently. "There's an attitude over same-sex couples. In some areas of the city, too, if I'm honest."
Billy blinked at him a few times. "How bad is that here?"
James hedged as he weighed his answer. "I know a guy at S.I. that went on a blind date not long ago. It ended up being a setup to beat the hell out of a gay guy. It's an issue. They put him in the hospital."
"What … is even wrong with everyone here?" Billy asked in a clearly outraged and shell-shocked tone.
"I don't even know where to begin," James said. "But it doesn't matter right now. Not really. Not when the answer to my question ends with some alone time so we can see if there's a decent spark. Stay on track, little prince. Unless that's too much to ask … and if that's the case, this is a waste of time."
Billy paused. "If this is your way of saying you're backing out-"
"Nope," James said. "This is my way of saying even I'm used to keeping my date's attention. So - where are we going? I've got the food - you pick the place."
Billy rubbed the back of his neck, still looking like he was caught between wanting to have fun on the date and being frustrated by how stupid people were on the mainland. Finally, he said, "What about a picnic on the roof? Avengers Tower or here in Westchester; you can pick. I just like to see."
"If it's here, you can bet it'd probably end up being a double date with Mia and your brother. The roof is her spot. She's marked it. Repeatedly. The tower? You got a 50/50 shot of Tony being … Tony. So your call. Mia and Tommy or Tony."
"Well, what about your place?" Billy asked. "Kate said you guys have a place in her dad's building. Can we steal their roof?"
James did well to stop short of frowning as he nodded slowly. He knew the rule was not to let just anyone know where the Summers family lived, but seeing as the brownstone in Bed-Stuy wasn't - and hadn't - been their full-time home in a number of years, James nodded. It was a loophole he wasn't afraid of exploiting. "Sure. We can give it a try."
Billy grinned. "I can magically lock the doors, you know."
"You think that would stop Aunt Tasha?" James laughed. "Or Dad for that matter?"
"True," Billy said. "But let's try it anyhow. It's just a first date. I'm not fast enough to need to lock everyone out on a first date."
"Well … I've been known to be that easy." James laughed. "But let's see how it goes before we're locking people out. I'm probably considered slow getting to know people anyhow." He stopped and tipped his head. "How … exactly does this work? Do you need the address, or …" He was nearly holding his breath as he asked, if for no reason other than Kate had done the right thing and told Billy about their apartment instead of the house … but what Billy didn't know was that it wasn't the Summers' home. It was home, once upon a time, and they did use the place now and again. But the actual Summers home was off-limits without Scott's say-so. And James knew better than to bring Billy home. Not yet. Certainly not for a first date - and definitely not so close to Magneto's hissy fit in Westchester.
"That should work," Billy said before he carefully took James' arm, and the next minute after James had told Billy where exactly they were headed, they were on the roof of Clint's apartment building - after a very specific spell to get there with all of their things. When they arrived, Billy looked around, taking in the sights as James breathed a sigh of relief on not seeing the Brooklyn Bridge from the view at the Summers' actual house. "Did I get it right?"
"Looks like," James agreed as he gestured around them. "Behold. Bedford Stuyvesant, Brooklyn. Keep your wallet close and don't count on the cops showing up. Ever." He turned a little circle, gesturing to the handful of trees behind the building - which was still greener than most of Brooklyn. "Nothing special."
"That's what you think," Billy said, smiling with his hand still on James' arm. "Every skyline is different to me still, remember?"
"True, but I can think of half a dozen better skylines, so … not so special." He smirked and found his favorite spot to lean against the wall that actually overlooked the trees between the back of the building and the back of the buildings on the next street over. "So, how do your first dates usually go?"
"Ah, usually we have dinner and then go see a performance," Billy said.
"So you people watch … while you're with a new guy … huh. Constantly on the lookout for the next pretty face."
"Not really," Billy said, blushing lightly. "Some of the mutations on the island are beautiful."
"I'll bet. Kinda drives me nuts that most of the physical mutations are locked away," James said. "I'm just lucky mine's something that can be hidden most of the time."
Billy nodded. "Angel probably would have been a leading man in half the stuff our art department puts on."
"Nah, he can't remember his lines," James laughed.
Billy laughed along. "Oh, well, he can light the opening torch or something."
"He was really good at pushing me through some of the business classes Stark had me take - he insisted on it," James said. "Bored me to tears, but Warren has a good and enthusiastic grasp on that stuff."
"Huh." Billy shook his head. "I'm not signed up for anything like that. But I am taking human-mutant relations. Which is weird, since I didn't have to even deal with humans growing up."
"Right. No puny humans. How's that going? Are you failing?" James asked with a grin. "Real tough for you, I'll bet. Just for how stupid it is."
"No, I'm not failing, but there is a learning curve. I guess I didn't expect all the rules of engagement," Billy said in a sigh. "All I grew up knowing was that humanity was out here, and that was about it. I think Grandfather would eventually have shown us more, because I'd need to know to run Genosha and negotiate for us, but…" He spread his hands wide. "It's all very new."
"Sounds frustrating," James agreed. "I know we have a stilted view of the logistics even compared to 'normal'. Bigger implications if we break the 'rules'." He sighed heavily at that. "I get it. I'm just … I don't know what to do with it. Take the Izzy thing for example. Dad was sure to make it clear that we have to think six steps ahead for stupid things like that, even when it isn't a matter of someone related to Emma and Whitney Frost. See … I can't just say no, because she won't listen - and if I run with it, the boyfriend comes to fight later, and then it's either I take a beating for no reason or face the questions of 'how do you know how to fight like that' and 'why aren't you bruised or bleeding?'" James ran his hand through his hair. "So … I politely ask her to stop and then usually just … tolerate it if she doesn't listen and keeps pushing. She usually gets bored before the game is over."
Billy pulled a face. "And all I worried about back home was whether people were talking to me for me or for my title."
"For our family, that's just the tip of a very nasty iceberg. I have all kinds of things to concern myself with as far as why people are talking to me. How long did Mia wait before she told you we were using a fake name?" James asked, settling in a little better.
"Not very," Billy admitted. "She didn't want me to accidentally call you the wrong thing and blow your cover."
"Kinda figured," he said.
"She was also pretty adamant about not using our powers. She showed me how the inducers work, too. It's crazy the lengths you have to go to here."
"Yeah, that's a big one for her especially, though I have to use one when I'm going in and out of the tower," James agreed. "Glad mine are passive. Don't have to do anything, really. Except, you know, not react to some sensory stuff and keep my temper under control so I don't do something to get myself hurt."
"Tommy's bored out of his mind," Billy admitted. "He's used to doing everything at his speed."
"Poor Tommy," James laughed. "Has to let someone else set the pace."
"He's dying, I've been reliably informed."
"As long as he doesn't try to push Mia, I'll feel sorry for him."
"Yeah, well…" Billy let out a sigh. "We'll see. He's not patient."
"I noticed."
"Mom and Dad rein him in," Billy promised quickly. "Most of the time."
"Storm can handle him. She can handle just about anyone."
"Yeah, that's what Mom's worried about," Billy said with a quiet laugh.
"She'll just zap him a little," James said with a grin. "I guess that makes you the more reasonable one, then?"
"Theoretically," Billy said, a troublemaking smile spreading over his features. "Or just less high-maintenance."
"Okay, not what he says, but sure …"
"Yeah, he would say I'm harder to deal with," Billy said, rolling his eyes.
"So … as entertaining as your brother is, I don't really want to hear about him. Tell me about you."
Billy flushed. "Sorry. I guess I'm not good at this part either. Most people already know the basics, and I just… build from there."
"I didn't have your floating grandfather to make me memorize your life story. So you're gonna have to tell me your unofficial version from your point of view."
Billy chuckled and then leaned back on his elbows. "I guess… I could start at the beginning? Mom wished me and Tommy into being, so we've always… stood out."
"Not gonna lie: that's kind of cool," James said.
"I think so too," Billy said with a smirk. "And then growing up on the island, Aunt Lorna doted on us, and so did Uncle Alex, of course…"
"She dotes on everyone," James pointed out. "And Alex tries so hard to be the cool uncle."
"Yeah, they're like that." Billy shrugged. "But then when Grandfather realized Tommy acted like Pietro in addition to looking like him, he accused Mom of wishing that part too and… I think that's when I realized I was his favorite."
"What's wrong with being like your uncle? Your brother's hilarious."
"Yeah, but Grandfather never got along with Pietro as well as he did Mom and Lorna," Billy admitted.
James gasped dramatically. "That doesn't seem possible."
"Oh, shut up," Billy said, though he was smirking. "The point is: Tommy figured out pretty quick that Grandfather only wanted him around when he was feeling nostalgic, so… I spent a lot of time at the palace filling in for both of us."
"Yeah, that's pretty crappy," James agreed. "At least all I get is how much I look like Logan. And occasional vague references now and again."
Billy nodded. "Mom was pretty struck by the resemblance," he admitted. "She used to come to the mainland - she was an Avenger and an X-Man, you know? But after everyone died, she said it was too hard to watch."
"I was too small to remember," James said. "So I only grew up on the stories, and the cautionary tales, but it's been just us and Dad for almost everything." He drifted off for a moment, thinking it over. There were times where Natasha had stepped in … or Tony. And he didn't think Billy would appreciate hearing how he'd been with Kitty and Bobby until they wanted him to go to Genosha - and he freaked out. But most of the hand-offs that James could remember had centered around when James had been sick or some of the weapons groups had caught up to them and they were forced to leave James with the medical help he needed while they tucked away someplace secure. It had never lasted long, of course. But there was a reason James looked at Tony and Steve more like uncles than his brother and sister did.
"We got stories from Mom, Dad, Alex, Lorna… even some people on the island who used to be X-Men or who were rescued by them and came to the island to feel safe after the attack on the school," Billy said.
"I'll bet there were a few of those," James said. "We lived in the woods for a while. I loved it there. Dad said it used to be Logan's place."
Billy smiled. "I think that would be fun. I like what I've seen so far of the woods near the school."
"The woods by the school are pretty tame." James shook his head. "We can't go back to that cabin, though. Which kind of sucks. I had a wolf pack that was friendly there, but-"
Billy's eyes were wide. "You had a what?"
"Timberwolves," James said as if it was a perfectly reasonable answer. "They were friendly. They let me pet them, and they liked to kind of hang around the place." He tipped his head and closed his eyes for a moment, thinking back to those woods that he'd loved. "We had deer that would come up to the front door, too."
"Holy… wow."
James raised an eyebrow at that. "You're only saying that because Magneto Island doesn't have deer. Or wolves. And the city just has rats the size of small dogs and pigeons that are completely rabid."
"I think I heard a lion once?" Billy said, then winced. "Yeah, I don't… hey, on the other hand, I've been shark diving! Dad took me."
"That sounds like fun," James said. "Did you pet one?"
"Yeah, no. When the cage is designed by Vision, you can't touch them, and they can't touch you? But it's still pretty cool."
James nodded along for a moment. "I'd want to pet one. If I get that close, I wanna touch it."
Billy chuckled. "I feel like I should be surprised. But I'm not."
"You had to have thought it too," James said. "Even if you wouldn't do it - you thought it."
"Particularly about the hammerheads," Billy admitted.
"Tigersharks. Or Great Whites," James countered with a grin. "I want to know if the white part feels different than the gray."
"Of course you do," Billy laughed.
The two of them chatted for a long while, nibbling on their picnic and sharing stories as they got to know each other better - and got more comfortable. James was partly through the story on how they'd ended up living out of the woods when he paused and tipped his head to the side, watching the door.
"Clint," James said. "He's probably planning to give you a hard time. Sorry, in advance."
"No one knew we were coming here," Billy pointed out.
"No, but this building has better security than pretty much anywhere but Avengers Tower," James said. "Aunt Tasha knew the instant we showed up. Only reason it didn't set off the system to battle stations was because I'm with you." He shrugged one shoulder up. "DNA scanners."
Billy still couldn't hear anyone approaching, but just before the door opened, James told him quietly "If he gets to be too much, just get us out of here. I don't want this to end early because he has boundary issues." Which, of course, had Billy quietly smiling to himself.
Clint stepped through the door and paused, his expression somewhere between troublemaking and aloof - though that was pretty normal when he was ready to get after one of 'his' kids dates. "I thought maybe I was misinformed, but no," Clint said.
James glanced at Billy but didn't say anything, waiting to see which direction Clint was going.
Clint, for his part, was doing his best to look disapproving and angry until he simply couldn't hold back his grin. "You just had to find someone Nat couldn't do a full background check on. You're driving her nuts, you know that?"
"Figured she didn't need to do a full background check on an ex-teammate's kid," James countered. "Two ex-teammates, technically."
"You'll be lucky if she doesn't come up and interrogate him," Clint said.
"See … but now I want her to," James said with a crooked smile. "Where's the line she won't cross? I know she doesn't want to tick off the Scarlet Witch. So …"
"Don't kid yourself," Clint said. "She's not afraid of Wanda."
"If you say so," James said airly, turning his head away from both Clint and Billy with a serene look that he couldn't possibly know was straight out of his mother's handbook. But it was enough to get Clint to crack a smile.
"But that's not why I'm here now," Clint said as he crossed his arms.
"Here we go," James said under his breath, his chin tipped down to his chest and his fingers entwined in his lap where he sat against the short wall.
Clint smirked crookedly for a moment but pushed forward. All of the kids had been subjected to this at one point or another, and he'd really enjoyed watching little May Parker squirm when he gave her a run down. This was cheap entertainment. "Normally I'd ask if you had a criminal record or what you're expecting out of my kid. Turns out it's hard to be criminally liable for anything when you're considered royalty." He smiled a little wider. "And since my lovely wife couldn't do a real run down on you, I went ahead and called your mom. Had a lovely chat. Made it easy to skip the big questions when I already know the answers."
"You could have asked me," Billy said, blushing lightly. "I would have answered."
"Yeah, but I'd rather you answered the stuff no one wants to," Clint said with a wave. "I already know what the plans are for you when you're older and what you do in your spare time. Wanda even told me what your powerset it. Seems she thought we should know what kind of trouble you get into. So …"
The two boys shared a look, but James had nothing he could do to help as Clint continued. "So. What's the big plan tonight? You just playing the 'G' rated 20 questions or are you going right to the adult version."
"Uncle Hawk," James said flatly. "Come on."
"It's a valid question," Clint said, then turned his attention on James. "What made you decide to go out with this guy anyhow?"
"Who's getting interrogated here?" James asked.
"See … the fact that you don't know means I'm doing it right," Clint said, the crooked smile creeping back into place. "Nat'll be proud." He pointed at James. "Answer the question."
James blew out a breath, but by the expression Billy was wearing, this was the kind of question he needed to answer. "He's fun," James said. "And we hit it off. We've been texting since they got here, and I like him. Figured I'd give him a shot if he was game."
"Alright," Clint said, nodding. "Who made the first move?"
"That would be me," Billy said, raising his hand. "Hi. Nothing nefarious going on. Promise."
"Do I need to have the consent talk again?" Clint said, going back to serious.
James frowned and looked between Clint and Billy for a moment. "Only if it applies to people asking questions they don't need to ask because this is a little aggressive as far as first date stuff."
"Nah. I have the same chat with all my kids' prospective suitors." He stopped and watched both boys. "Unless you're not serious."
"It's a first date," James said. "Leave us alone for a while and we might be able to form an opinion."
"Answer like that makes me want to get comfy."
James turned to Billy with a significant look. "Your call. But I'm good to go. He's not going to be any better the more he sticks around."
Billy nodded. "Okay. Yeah, just ... " He reached over to take a hold of James' arm and started chanting under his breath. They were there just long enough for Clint to realize what was going on before they disappeared without a trace, leaving Clint on the roof.
When the two of them popped back into existence - it was once again in the woods, but it took James a few moments to reorient himself - only to reach out and pull Billy to a stop before they could walk any further. "We're … a few miles from the school - which I'm fine with if you don't mind walking for a while." He smiled crookedly. "Guess we'll need to find a way to make that one more specific, huh? Westchester is the town, after all."
Billy let out a self conscious sort of laugh, and shrugged. "I did say it wasn't an exact science."
"You did," James agreed as he pointed them the right way. "You also said you had to want something to make it happen too. So maybe this is what you really wanted. Deeper woods ... not to be interrupted."
"Did you want to rush back?" Billy asked, trying to check on how James felt about how the date had gone.
"No," he replied, shaking his head slowly. "I'm fine going through the woods if you are. And nothing will bother you. In case you were nervous."
The two of them walked on in comfortable silence as the sounds of the forest picked up around them. It was dark, after all - and though summer was well past, there were plenty of creatures and birds still in the trees to make up for the lack of crickets and other cheerful insects. But there was no trail, so Billy found himself getting a little crash course in traversing the woods off the beaten path by the light of a full moon. He was doing remarkably well, too, until he made a small misstep. The rocks underfoot were slippery, and Billy lost his footing. Before he could hit the soft dirt, however, James caught him.
"I'm not holding up my end of this deal very well," James said as Billy brushed himself off of imaginary debris, trying to regain his composure and hoping that James didn't see the blush he was wearing in the low light. Before Billy could react, James reached over to take his hand. "Stay close this time, huh?"
"Good idea," Billy agreed, smiling to himself.
The two of them headed through the woods, hand in hand and side by side until the path became too narrow, then James simply shifted his grip on Billy's hand and stepped forward to test the rocks on the slippery downhill slope before Billy could. For no other reason than it was easier for James to see. Which was all fine and good until at the bottom of the slope, James lost his footing in the slippery clay only for Billy to catch him and the two of them to end up on the ground, though they were both laughing about it.
"Are you okay?" James asked with a grin, half tangled up from the fall and on his side as he faced Billy.
"Yeah, I think so," he replied, shocked at the ridiculousness of it and smiling himself.
"I'll be docked for bad guiding," James laughed before they could even begin to untangle from each other. "Sorry 'bout your luck, little prince."
Billy frowned at that, though the smile didn't slip all the way. "What do you mean by that? I think my luck has been pretty good."
"Well … we started out alright, I think? Halfway in the sky on top of the building, and now? You're in the dirt. Kind of a spectacularly rotten turn, don't you think?" James pushed himself halfway upright, but that only got him just a little closer, which made it that much easier for Billy to be a little spontaneous.
Before James could untangle, Billy reached out and rested a hand on the side of James' neck and leaned forward to steal a kiss. And while it wasn't something James had exactly expected, to his credit, it didn't take him long to respond. The two of them paused long enough to lock gazes before James leaned in for a more extended kiss. The first quick kiss turned into another longer, more involved one and by the time they stopped a while later, both of them were out of breath, more tangled up, and wearing a fair amount of smeared mud and crushed leaves from their fall down the last few steps of the hill.
"See?" Billy said after a moment. "Nothing wrong with my luck."
James let out a breath of a laugh as he broke into a brilliant smile. "Does that mean you want to do this again? Not - the whole falling into the dirt thing necessarily, but date two?"
"Ah, yeah," Billy laughed then started one more kiss before the two of them finally untangled from each other. James was on his feet first, and he pulled Billy up with him, then tried to brush off some of the forest that stuck to him before once again, he offered Billy his hand and they took their time heading back, enjoying the walk more now that the tension was broken.
When the boys finally parted company for the evening, Billy was in a great mood as he headed back into the school, where his brother was waiting for him. "So," Tommy said. "How did hunting the hunter go?"
"You're a horrible brother," Billy said, shaking his head as he checked his texts, grinning to himself.
"But … does that mean it went well, or that you need to consider that guy that was watching you in human-mutant relations, because if I'm being honest - I don't like the guy in class at all. At least the young Wolverine is funny."
"Hey, did you get a solid answer from Storm on when you're allowed alone with Mia again?" Billy asked, which only had Tommy throwing a pillow at him.
Kate had been bouncing on the balls of her feet after she'd gotten home from her date. She'd heard from her Dad how the near-interrogation went - and how the boys had disappeared to avoid dealing with the rest of Clint's questioning. Which, she thought, was a pretty slick way to handle it. For a little while anyhow.
Her mom was a little irked at how easily Billy got them gone with no clue as to where, even with Clint promising her that Wanda swore that Billy was a good kid. But considering that no one had heard from them since they disappeared off the rooftop, Kate was waiting as patiently as she was able with her cell phone in her hand expecting the text to come through.
She'd already sent two … okay. Maybe more than two, but the point wasn't numbers. It was content. And she needed to know how it had went. Now! She was excited and hopeful for both Billy and James's' behalf, nervous for Nate - even if he thought he was hiding how anxious he was over James' new sweetheart. Oh, she really hoped that they hit it off. They were so cute together, after all. And Billy really did want to take a shot.
It was getting late - though not yet to the Summers' boys' curfew when she finally got a text back from Billy.
So I just got back, Billy wrote. The three dots danced and stopped. Danced and stopped again, and as Kate was drafting up a tease, Billy replied. I kissed him. There was a lot of kissing. Don't worry though. I'm going to be a gentleman and try to keep it to myself.
Good. I really don't want to hear details on how my Superior Summers' brother kisses. No thanks.
But now I want to tell you …
Kate giggled to herself and settled in, already asking for how the non-kissing section of their date had gone, not that she had to when Billy was already gushing.
Chapter 36: Double Agent
Chapter Text
There really hadn't been anything special about that random Friday afternoon in New York. Not to James, anyhow. He and Tony had been working together on a project for the military - though Tony had been careful to keep James far away from the junior military liaison that followed Rhodey around at every visit. The two of them were working on a new, thinner armor that Tony had insisted would only be produced if it was made for the soldiers - not just the officers. The lower level military guys had been dealing with sub-par stuff for years and Tony was tired of being asked to upgrade continually only for his upgraded gear to be used exclusively by those not even close enough to the action to make use of it.
Rhodey and his shadow had just left and Tony took a few minutes with James to go over the notes that he'd taken during the demo before he nodded to himself and headed out - already putting in the order for some pizza that they could dig into for a late lunch while they re-worked the specs for production. Which left James with a stack of gear to go through, deciding for himself which parts he wanted to work on and which ones he would pass on to someone else. He was finishing up tossing some of the parts into recycling when the door to his lab opened to admit his sister, Billy, and Tommy - all of whom had been spending a rare day off of school going through the city, sightseeing.
"It's snowing," Billy said, before James could even say hello.
"Which almost makes up for the cold," Tommy decided - and a second later, he was on the other side of the lab, dropping onto the couch. "Almost."
"It's not even really sticking to the ground yet," James said, moving a vest to his main work bench, since that was the one part of the armor that was coming along better than the more fidgety helmets. "So it's not even cold enough to complain yet."
"That's backward thinking," Tommy said, making a face, though he paused to look around the room - then darted around the lab to take a closer look - not that James cared much.
"I'm surprised you didn't rush back to Westchester," James said toward Tommy as Billy took off his coat and scarf.
"I will," Tommy said. "But someone said I should try to be more social here at the tower. So … I'm being social."
"You don't have to be here if you don't want to," Rachel said, and in the time it took Billy to open his mouth to argue it, Tommy grinned, zipped over to kiss her cheek and rushed out leaving all of them to take a moment to catch up to what had just happened. "I shouldn't have said that."
"No, it's fine. He would have been awful if he hadn't grabbed that loophole to run back. He needs to stretch his legs anyhow." Billy grinned at Rachel. "I almost want him to hit ice and fall on the way back."
Rachel laughed and shook her head. "Your brother did that purposely to ditch me, didn't he?"
Billy shrugged openly. "Maybe …"
Rachel rolled her eyes and was just turning to leave when the door opened in front of her and Tony came in with a pizza box in hand. "Hey. You've got visitors! Put it down and take a break, would you?" he said to James, then smiled at Rachel an instant before turning his focus to Billy, too. "You two stickin' around? Grab a slice and help me get him to stop for a minute."
"I'm almost done," James defended as Tony set the box down with a raised eyebrow. "I am."
"It's not going anywhere, kiddo. You did great dealing with Rhodey's shadow, too. Better than I did."
James let out a breath as Rachel gave him a look, then he turned to wash up. He didn't make it a habit to argue with Tony when he was in a good mood like this - and he was in a pretty good mood after both a training session to teach James how to deal with the military brass and a very progressive inventing session with him, too. It was the best of both worlds, as far as Tony was concerned and his work on James was starting to pay off.
As James washed up, Rachel grabbed some drinks from the mini fridge for all four of them and then slipped over to pull out some paper plates, too. Until she'd started stocking them in James' lab, he and Tony had been in the habit of sharing their lunch right out of the box - which went against just about everything their father had taught them.
James sat down between Billy and Tony, barely glancing up as he cracked open the can of coke Rachel slid him and the group started to dig in silently at first. But Rachel couldn't help that her attention was still drawn by the body armor on the bench.
"So," she said between bites. "What's the big project today? Looks serious."
"Same old," Tony answered - long used to simply answering questions from Summers kids. "Upgraded body armor for the military. New components. Lower cost, higher strength. Just have to make it a little lighter without losing the durability and protection."
"Just one more step to the process," James agreed, which Tony was smiling over and enjoying the easy conversation they had going on.
"You need anything for that?" Tony asked after a beat, though James shook his head before answering.
"Not for this, no," he said, cluing Rachel in at least that the two of them were simply picking up on where they left off their last conversation. There was a hesitation before James smirked. "Could use a 3D printer with better capabilities though. Resolution isn't as good as I'd like it to be on the one I've got now. And it's way too small."
"The printer you've got isn't even on the market yet," Tony pointed out with a dry look, but James didn't back down, shrugging carelessly.
"Doesn't change anything. Still need better resolution."
The two of them continued their discussion - though silent as they stared at each other - all the way up until Tony let out a sigh, got to his feet, and grabbed another slice of pizza. "You gonna tell me what you're making?"
"Nope," James said, shaking his head lightly, and again, the discussion seemed to fall into silence for a long moment only to be broken once again by a non verbal sound from Tony as he watched James.
"How much bigger do you need it to be?" Tony asked finally.
"Three times what my max is now. Four would be better."
Rachel was smirking behind her soda can. She wasn't sure what James was up to, but she could hear Tony loud and clear - and he was trying desperately to figure out what the kid was doing without being pushy. His curiosity was getting the better of him, and Rachel could see watching her brother that he knew it without anyone confirming it for him.
"Will you tell me what you're working on if I can manage a bigger higher resolution SLA?"
Again, James shook his head lightly. "No. But I'll show you after the test run."
Tony sighed heavily and dropped one hand on James' shoulder as he thought it through- still doing his best to look as if he was weighing everything out. "Gimmie a couple days. Should be up and running by then."
"No rush," James promised. "I've got plenty to do here for the generals."
"I want to see what you're up to," Tony said. "Especially when I'm guessing a large reason you want it bigger is so you don't have to do any seams?"
"Maybe," James replied, still totally relaxed and at ease, even when Tony smirked to himself and gave James a one-armed squeeze.
"You kids don't do anything I wouldn't do while I'm gone now," Tony said, winking at Rachel just to rile her.
"Told you, I'm not going to your board meetings unless it's necessary," James called out.
"Not this year. Next year? Well ..." Tony said just before he slipped out of the door, leaving the kids to their own devices.
"This isn't lunch, is it?" Rachel said once the door was closed. "It's past three."
"We were distracted," James defended.
Rachel smirked at her brother. Sure you were, she projected. You've made his whole week by whatever it was that you pulled off earlier - I could hear him preening before we were even halfway here.
He's training me, James replied, always easier to converse with telepathically when he was busy eating. He's going to talk to Dad about having me join him on a few trips overseas this year. Teaching me how the company works. Dealing with foreign entities … contracts …
Doesn't sound like the usual thing his inventors need to do.
It's not, James agreed, though he was focused on grabbing a bite and clearing his head - so he missed the expression on Billy's face as he stared at the body armor on the bench. But Rachel didn't miss it.
Rachel quietly watched Billy for a moment longer before gently reaching out to see what the guy was thinking and found herself frowning at his suspicious line of thoughts. It was pretty clear right off the bat that Billy was dealing with conflicting information and having seen not only the fact that James was working on stuff that was above the level of 'student', but that he was making subtle demands with no promise of outcome to Tony for equipment was one thing. But the genuine warmth Tony showed toward James - the fact that he wasn't questioning him further than to ask what he wanted before he was obviously prepared to move mountains - It was the kind of conflicting information that meant Billy had to come to his own conclusions - and the conclusions he was coming to certainly didn't add up to what he thought was an established truth.
But, Billy blinked out of his haze and looked up to catch Rachel watching him, and very suddenly, Billy's projected thoughts dropped off almost entirely - except of course for the quiet gut reaction of 'oh crap' when faced with a telepath. The two of them stared at each other for a second longer before Billy cleared his throat and went for the most obvious subject. "What is this stuff made of anyhow?" he asked James, tipping his head at the body armor on the bench.
"New formulation of resin, mostly," James said between bites before he turned toward the armor. "And a bunch of other stuff, too. That's the prototype I liked. Brass didn't agree. Too bad for them."
"Is that what you've got Tony jumping through hoops for?" Rachel asked.
"No," James said, finally engaging in the conversation. "That's a little pet project of mine - for him. He doesn't know about it and he's not going to until it's done."
"Not in a sharing mood?" Rachel asked with her head tipped slightly.
"Obviously not," James answered. "Don't worry about it though. It's not another prank. Well … not yet, anyhow." He turned toward Billy this time with a crooked smile. "If you're done with the tour guide routine, we could have an early date. I'm done for the day."
Billy blinked once then broke into a grin. "Sorry, Rachel, I have plans now. I can find my own way back to Westchester."
James smiled at his sister and switched to projecting. Let Dad know I'll be home a little late, please? Not super late, just … I'll miss dinner, but make curfew.
Diving right in, are you? Rachel asked with an ill-hidden smile.
I'm pretty sure this is the first nearly-normal thing I've done in … a long time, James countered. And I'd like to try a little normal for a change.
Have fun, Rachel told him as all three of them left the lab. And if you need anything, project to me. I'll be listening. Just in case.
Starting to sound like Dad, James countered before he and Billy headed out into the falling snow leaving Rachel thinking hard about what she'd gleaned from Billy's thoughts.
"I don't think you understand, Grandfather," Billy was saying quietly into the receiver as he tucked himself into a quiet spot in the empty horse barn at Xavier's. "Or maybe I'm not being very clear - there is no strain between the Avengers and mutants that I've been able to see. Mr. Stark is very supportive of Cyclops' family. He's been backing up Rachel and helping her to be an Avenger - and she's amazing, honestly. And nice. They're all really nice here."
"Stark has no reason but guilt to take those children into account," Erik replied. "Had his team of so-called heroes done what they claimed to from the beginning, their families would be intact and Cyclops wouldn't be in such a sorry state of limbo. No. If he's not using those children, then he's using their father."
"That doesn't line up," Billy argued with a little more stern tone. "I've watched Stark in James' lab. He gives him whatever he wants without … he doesn't make him do anything that I've seen."
"How does that not sound like guilt, William?"
"It's not. He's training him for something. I didn't get the details on what though," Billy said, half bragging and half complaining when in fact, their last date just days before had been interrupted when Tony had informed James that they had to go. To Los Angeles. Right then. And they'd been gone for almost three days, yet none of the other Summers family members seemed bothered by that fact.
Sure, James had texted Billy back, but he couldn't give Billy a reasonable time frame on when they could pick back up with what had been pretty regular dates. Once the boys had started exploring dating each other, it had become a frequent thing. Which meant that with James across the country with Tony, Billy had less than usual to do. He was quickly discovering that the mainland was even less fun when he couldn't do anything with his favorite distraction. Kate was fun … when she wasn't tied up with her sweetheart, but seeing as Kate and Nate went to school together … and they weren't in Westchester … it just wasn't the same. The fact that Tommy was being obnoxious with Mia every spare second of the day was just adding insult to injury. Even America was acting as if he was causing her pain when they hung out and he was being so mopey.
But Billy had still managed to stop just short of telling his grandfather that he was dating anyone. Even if he was getting dangerously close to that subject, he knew that Erik would avoid bringing up that issue. Particularly since he likely didn't care if Billy was dating - though he would care if he knew who he was dating. "I'm telling you, honestly, I don't see anything going on that's anywhere close to what you're worried about," Billy swore.
"Then it's only because you haven't been around when it's been happening," Erik said patiently. His tone was even and relaxed, as if this was normal conversation. "Stark is a weapons manufacturer. There is no coincidence that the one child in that group that he's showing an interest in happens to be the offspring of two weaponized mutants. If nothing else, he's keeping the Summers children close so no one else can pick them up and convince them to fight the Avengers."
But that actually hit close enough to the truth that Billy had to take pause. He'd heard more or less the same thing from the Summers kids, and Kate, and her parents.
"What we don't know is what the Avengers are planning to do with them. Or about them. They're too dangerous for the Avengers to allow them to roam freely. All three of them." When there was a pause, Erik realized how little Billy was agreeing or arguing by that point. "You cannot allow yourself to sympathize with those humans, William. They would imprison and use you in an instant."
"No, I'm not .. it's not really a sympathy thing, Grandfather. It's more that I know that the Avengers aren't-" He stopped himself from continuing, knowing that it would only start a fight - and he didn't want to fight with his grandfather. Not in person. Not from a distance - not at all if he could help it. Before Erik could lay into him, Billy handled it quickly. "I can't assume what they're up to until I get closer."
"Do you have someone that you've gotten to be friends with in their tower?" Erik asked in a slow, even meter.
"Yes," Billy replied, one eye closed.
"And is it someone that could get you into their labs?"
"Ye-es," he said slowly. "I can do that pretty easily, I'm sure. Even without using my abilities." He hoped that would be good enough for his grandfather and that he wouldn't ask how.
There was a long pause on the other end of the phone. "Then I suggest you spend as much time as you need there finding out what exactly, the Avengers are up to and what Stark is using that boy for. I'll expect to hear all about it when you come home. Oh, and be careful around Rachel Summers. Telepaths are notoriously nosy."
"Yes. I will be careful. I should know what the story is by the time the holidays hit. Hopefully."
Billy hung up his phone and stared at the screen for a long while. He knew he had to keep up his communication with his grandfather, but the longer it went on, the more Billy wasn't sure about … all of it. Very little of what Erik had taught them had proven to be true - at least as far as horrible humans went. Yes, Billy had finally seen a few anti-mutant people in action from afar, but they truly were in the minority. Of course, he kept it in the back of his head that maybe some of these people were so reasonable because they didn't know who was a mutant and who wasn't. That was a concern, after all. So until he saw irrefutable proof one way or another, Billy decided to go back to reading the book that he'd found in the library that Professor Xavier had written.
Billy smiled when he first opened the book containing Xavier's works - in part because he knew it was something that had been dear to all mutants, even if he hadn't read it yet. His grandfather and mother had referenced the works many times, but even at that, he hadn't expected it to be so starkly different than what Erik had tried to raise the boys with. Many of the words were familiar, and the basic ideas, but the further Billy got in reading the words that Xavier had written, the more he wondered how close Charles and his grandfather had been. Erik's outlook was very different than Charles' words … but Erik spoke with such affection in his tone when he talked about Charles Xavier … it had Billy wondering if Erik's misinterpretation was born from heartbreak.
Which meant Billy was looking at his grandfather in an entirely different light. The more he read, the more inconsistencies he found between what was written and what Erik had told the family and the citizens of Genosha. The more he read, the more he wondered how long Erik and Charles had danced around each other from afar, and the more he felt sorry for both of them having missed out on being able to enjoy each other's company more openly. And considering what James had told him about how uptight people were now, it had to have been worse for gay men at that time. It certainly explained Erik's total attitude toward intolerance. Everything about Erik had been something for someone to hate. Being Jewish. Being a mutant. Being gay - or at least bi. Any one of those things would have been taboo. To be all three? Erik had created Genosha to be a utopia - but it was a utopia that Charles simply didn't want to run away to.
Billy closed the book as he made the connection. Now he realized - or thought he did - what it was that had motivated Erik so strongly. All he needed now was a way to figure out how much of what Erik was doing was revenge and hurt and how much of it was accurate to how the world actually worked.
His cell phone chimed and Billy unlocked it to see who it was that was texting him - only to break into a grin when he saw that it was James - with good news on his return to New York, and already working on plans for something fun even before he got in the air to fly home. And that sounded like a lot more fun than whatever espionage his grandfather wanted him to commit.
Erik might have backed off enough to let Billy and Tommy go to school in Westchester - thanks in large part to Wanda - but he was also good for his word. He showed up in Washington D.C. just before Thanksgiving for a dramatic hello and to throw his weight around leaving the same old message that mutants were not to be trifled with lest those involved wanted to invoke his wrath.
Of course, the Avengers were called in as soon as he appeared - even before he started to make a scene, which meant Rachel and Kate were sharing looks with Jan the whole way.
"Just get him to sign off on the uniform," Jan said quietly to Kate. "And I'll have them all ready in a snap."
"Good, because this feels like a good bad guy to debut with," Kate said.
"It so does, and considering that the twins said James almost stabbed him, you know ... " Jan said with a serious look.
"Oh, come on," Kate laughed. "It was just a snarl."
"Yeah, James doesn't pop his claws unless he means to use them," Rachel said. "There's no almost."
"When was the last time he snarled?" Jan asked.
"Um… probably that guy that tried to get me in the back of his truck a few years ago," Rachel said.
"Mmmmhmm. That was a good year for that kind of thing. Were there claws then?"
Rachel hedged then tipped her chin up. "I can neither confirm nor deny on the grounds that Dad would have a heart attack either way," she said with a sniff.
"That's totally a yes."
"Hey, he had it coming," Rachel said.
"Further confirmation," Jan sang out quietly.
Kate giggled. "She's not wrong, Rachel."
"Are the sweethearts still sweet?" Jan asked. "I know there was a small break when Tony took James to the west coast. But those boys are so cute together. Ooh! How is your dad handling that?"
"I think he was kind of surprised James swung that way," Rachel admitted. "We all kind of were. James too, a little, if I'm being honest. But Dad got over it pretty quick once he saw how happy James is with Billy and how relaxed he is when they're together."
"Good. They're adorable," Jan said. "And Billy told me he has something special in mind for James' birthday. He's such a sweet guy. And totally smitten."
"Well, you know dad. If it makes us happy, he has a hard time saying no. The only thing we've ever fought about was this." Rachel gestured to her uniform.
"Yes, well. The new ones have a little extra pop," Jan said. "When you get James to stop being so anxious about it and sign off, I'll show you the full team look I have planned. And believe me. You want to see it."
"He just needs to know Dad isn't going to have an aneurism," Rachel said. "That's all."
"Which is a real concern," Jan agreed.
"Yeah, well, you know how he is," Rachel said in a sigh as the team arrived to find Magneto still floating over the city.
"Stand down," Steve called out, announcing their presence - not that Magneto needed it. "No one here wants a fight."
"Is that why you came in a show of force?" Erik asked with one eyebrow raised.
"It's not a show of force, Magneto," Steve insisted. "It's outreach. We came with some of our newest members-"
"To show them how best to push around those you find beneath you? Yes, I think that's already been established by how mutants are treated already."
"Woah, take two hundred steps back and pull your head out," Jan said, her wings fluttering behind her as a blush rose up on her cheeks. Before she'd gotten so involved with Scott and his kids, Jan hadn't been sure how to fight someone that accused the Avengers of doing less than their best, but those were her kids too as far as she was concerned. She wasn't going to let anyone get away with accusing her and her family of turning their backs on any kids. "You don't know what you're talking about, mister."
"I know that mutants are only allowed to live in this country and elsewhere if they hide who and what they are," Erik said. "And I will not stand idly by any longer."
"Then you haven't met our newer members," Kate sang out with a crooked smirk. "Prestige, say hi."
Rachel smirked as she took off from the ground, her cloak catching the wind of her motion - and Nate, who had just convinced his dad to let him be a junior Avenger, put his arm around Kate's shoulders to pick her up to float too. It was both a flirt… and a way to hide that Kate was just plain human from a guy who clearly had a vendetta against humanity.
"You're the one attacking people based on their genetics, and we're the ones with a mixed team," Nate pointed out.
Erik turned toward him with a crooked sort of smile. "Ah. The football player," he said. "This is your little cheerleader friend, is it not? Tell me, what can you do, my dear girl?"
"Outshoot my boyfriend, for starters," Kate said without missing a beat, and Nate barely tipped his head back with a groan as he tried to keep it as professional as possible
"Seriously?" Nate said under his breath, though he didn't turn to look at her.
"He asked."
"I'm sure that's very impressive at the high school," Erik said in his most patronizing tone. "But I meant what are your abilities? What superior gift were you endowed with - or is that all you do?"
"Like we're going to give you personal details when you're coming so close to busting secret identities to the news," Rachel said, then projected to Kate to be careful, since Erik, according to Scott, had always looked down on humans. Not that Kate needed the crib notes when she'd already had a far less aggressive conversation like this with Billy.
"Ah, yes. I was wondering what had happened to you, young lady. How closely do you plan to follow in your mother's footsteps?" Erik said in a booming voice that carried to her easily.
Rachel paused and swallowed before she did her best to look confident all the same. "Actually, I'm more like my dad. I plan to step up and lead when I'm older."
"Before or after you step into your fire?"
Rachel froze. "I-"
"I thought you were coming to tear us down for the way we treat mutants," Steve snapped. "Don't come after my junior team members while telling me I'm the one that has a problem. If they believed in your philosophy, they'd have joined you, but they have more sense than that, Magneto."
"They only know what they've seen and they are in the minority here. Most of our kind do stand with me. Where they are free to be as God intended."
Steve bristled. "Then maybe you need to pander to your own country, because doing this on American soil looks like a threat more than it is a statement. Go back to Genosha. That is helpful to mutants; that's why the Avengers haven't stopped anyone from-"
"The Avengers have perpetrated the way that mutants have been treated," Erik said. "I don't need to listen to you, Captain. Not when I speak for a larger, growing group. Not when the only time you help mutant kind is when it benefits you."
"You don't speak for us," Nate said. "Since when is terrorizing the government speaking up for mutants? All you're doing is putting a target on us."
"If you'd like a target, I'm sure that can be arranged," Erik said. "As well it should be for anyone - even mutants that stand against our interests."
"Hey." Kate was livid as she twirled an arrow - wooden, since they'd known who they were coming after - in her fingers. "You know better. You know the history. You can't threaten to put a target-"
"I know that the X-Men allowed the mutants of this country and beyond to fall to the wayside with no one to speak in their defense or to offer them help as they once did. I know that the Avengers turned a blind eye while many of the X-Men were murdered brutally because they simply didn't care," Erik said in a booming voice. "And I know that the X-Men that survived turned their back on Charles Xavier's dream for a better world for all mankind when they walked away leaving all of mutant kind in the lurch with no hope for anything but a slow and painful genocide."
"Shut up," Rachel said, losing her temper as she reached out and tossed something at him - it didn't matter to her what it was, though since she was reacting in anger and not training, it ended up being a car, which Erik dealt with easily enough.
"You claim to take after your father," Erik said in a low undertone. "Yet you have no planning. No preparation. No thought. Your actions are purely emotional and I've seen them before, young lady. You are your mother's daughter right down to the bone. So let me impart on you a word of warning. If you stay the course - this same course that your mother once took - you will either meet the same tragic end or doom all of us with you."
Rachel was almost shaking - and Nate reached out to her mind to bolster her while Jan flew closer to Erik, spitting mad. "Listen," she said. "We're trying to give you a chance to walk away. But if you say one more word to those kids-"
"A chance to do what? Hide? Cower behind closed doors hoping and praying that no one comes knocking? I've done that before and I'll never do it again. Not to those that would hold themselves above my people."
"You've said your piece," Nate said evenly. "You don't have to spit on the X-Men's legacy while you're at it."
Erik gestured widely. "There is no legacy from the X-Men anymore. The only purpose they've served as far as humanity is concerned was to leave a gravemarker for the humans to admire."
"You're wrong," Kate said. "But I don't expect you to see that when you're too busy being a megalomaniac to see the family they left behind picking up the pieces. You just see what you want to see."
"I came to make my intentions known and your arrival was only meant to try and shout me down and attack," Erik said. "Typical of the Avengers right down the line." He floated a little higher in the air. "No matter. My message will be heard by those that will act on it. Soon enough, we'll see where mutant kind stands - if they choose to cower and hide - or embrace the dream that Charles failed to see come to fruition."
For a long moment, the Avengers were quiet as Erik stormed off, and then Kate turned to Nate and kissed him hard. "That guy is so full of crap - you know that, right?" She looked up at Rachel. "Both of you know that, right?"
"Yeah," Rachel said in a breath before she finally shook herself out of it. But you know this just means we need to pull out those uniforms, right?
Yeah, no way are we letting him have the final say on what the X-Men stand for.
Let's talk to James, Kate said. But even if he's not fully on board…
Yeah. It's time, Nate agreed. If Magneto's trying to speak for mutants, the world needs the X-Men.
Chapter 37: Magic Tricks
Chapter Text
James and Billy had, of course, seen the broadcast from James' lab at the top of Stark tower. "Oh boy," James said dryly. "Your Grampa's making headlines again."
"Yeah, he does that," Billy said, leaning back on James's chest on the couch that James sometimes crashed on when he had a long project.
"That makes him the world's worst helicopter parent, you know that right?"
"Are you sure? You're the one who's constantly worried about your dad…"
"Total reverse of whatever this is," James said, giving him a little squeeze. "Besides, mine's got anxiety from this mess, not … world domination."
"Fair," Billy said, leaning back enough to kiss James' cheek. "You've got your 'I'm going to do something about this' look. Usually, that means a date or some adventure, but this time…"
"It can mean that too. We were going to do that anyhow this weekend, but … In a little bit, my siblings plus Kate are going to come through that door all worked up and frothing to tell me I need to hurry up and pull my head out - or something to that effect." James let out a breath and leaned his head on Billy's. "As much as I get it, and have to admit … it's time, I still don't know if I want to show up all … me."
"Nothing wrong with being you," Billy pointed out.
"Except, you know … there is. Everyone has the same reaction to me that your grandfather or your mom had - to a lesser degree, but still," James said. It was the first time he'd admitted that he actually did care about what people around him thought. Even Magneto to some degree. And Billy honestly hadn't expected it.
"Well, Tommy gets that sometimes from people who knew my Uncle Pietro. He died from that same stupid mess, you know?"
"Yeah, I know. It's different though. You both have nothing but good stuff to say about Pietro. My mom hardly exists on paper and I don't even know what to think about Logan, okay?"
Billy frowned and turned so that he was looking at James better. "Wasn't he an X-Man and an Avenger?"
"Yeah, but he was also a killer and into black ops and mercenary work. He was a living, breathing weapon, Billy. Both of them were. So what does that really mean when everyone tells me how much I remind them of him? Is that their way of saying that's where I'm headed, too?"
"Absolutely not." Billy watched him for a long time before he took a deep breath, held it, and took both of James' hands in his. "So," he said slowly, "you know how my powers let me sort of… bend reality?"
"Yeah," James said slowly, frowning as he watched him. "What's that got to do with anything?"
"Well, what if we peeked at your past?" Billy asked, holding James' gaze for a long moment as James really processed what Billy was saying.
"Wait. You've been thinking about this for a while," James said finally. "Haven't you?"
Billy flushed. "Well, yeah. I kinda wanted to do something, you know, spectacular to tell you… you know. How much I -" Billy swallowed hard and blushed all the way to the tips of his ears. "- you know."
James smirked and shook his head. "No. No idea. What are you talking about?"
"Oh, shut up," Billy said, smiling brightly as the blush receded. "My point is that I think I can do it without time travel."
"That's a bonus," James said, arching one eyebrow higher, though he wasn't sure what exactly Billy was proposing yet.
"So, I was listening to Betsy talk about our how our minds hold all sorts of details that we can't readily recall, and I think all I have to do is work up a spell to look at the memories you don't even know you have," Billy said. "I was going to wait and do it for your birthday because you are crazy hard to shop for, so ... I had to come up with something kind of special."
James watched Billy in quiet admiration until it was clear Billy was growing uncomfortable under his studious gaze with no comment to clue him as to what James was thinking. "You're really sweet, you know that?"
Billy flushed again. "Yeah, well, so're you."
James leaned in to steal a kiss that went on for a little longer than he'd initially intended, resting his forehead against Billy's when the kiss met its natural end. "You know I trust you, right?"
"Kiss like that and I might not think straight enough to do it," Billy said, grinning crookedly before James went for another kiss just for the fun of it and to get a laugh out of Billy - which it did.
"Alright Romeo," James said when the kiss broke. "If you think you've got a way to help me, you know I'll be eternally grateful. And if not, we'll just have to slip out and grab a bite alone then find a quiet spot to pick up with this again. You know. If you can't think straight."
Billy grinned crookedly. "Okay, stay still," he said before he rested his hands so that the tips of his fingers were at James' temples. Billy recomposed himself and started to chant quietly, his eyes glowing brightly - and the next thing James knew, he was watching his memories from when he was barely old enough to walk, only he was seeing it from the perspective of an outsider.
There was a lot more for James to see than he'd thought would be there - and though there were a ton of memories that were buried deeply in his subconscious, not a one of them was of what his parents were like on the job. Not one. He wasn't sure what he'd expected, but no one had told him about them like this. He wasn't prepared to see the level of affection that was clearly so commonplace between his parents and himself - or even just to watch them interacting with each other and so obviously deeply in love. When he heard them laughing while the tiny version of himself was wrapped up between them, he held his breath and just soaked it up for as long as the memory and the peeks lasted, burning every moment into his mind as he tried to hold on to them tighter. The feeling welling up in his chest nearly choked him as longing came back like a tidal wave at what he'd missed out on by losing them.
Scott had been right. The files and folders - dossiers - they didn't hold a candle at all to the people they were, and though Scott had tried to tell him, his retelling had fallen short of what James had just seen himself. When the spell had run its course, James was openly shocked and clearly emotional.
Billy didn't move for a long moment as he watched James carefully. He was concerned that something had gone wrong in tampering with his memories, but as soon as he managed to accidentally draw James' attention, James leaned forward to curl into Billy and just - hold on with a whispered out 'thank you' that was barely loud enough for Billy to hear.
"Oh. Okay." Billy curled protectively around James, still half afraid that he'd done something to hurt him. "I - I'm sorry. I wasn't trying to-"
"No," James said softly. "I wasn't expecting … any of that. They were amazing. There was so much love. I didn't- I didn't know."
"So…"
"So I think you would have liked them," James said.
Billy smiled at that and kissed the side of James' head while he was still holding on and trying to put it into perspective. "Then I'm glad you got to see them," he said. When James had started to get a handle on his emotions, Billy started a kiss that would likely have progressed into something else had the other kids not shown up right then.
"Oh. We can come back," Kate said, thumbing over her shoulder. "Or we can get you to sign off on the uniform and then come back?"
The two boys sat back from each other and James covered his face with one hand for a long moment as he got himself reined in again, though Nate was watching him with a concerned expression.
And while outwardly, he looked like a mess, it was obvious to James that there was really only one path ahead of him. "Let me see it," James finally said in a sigh with one hand held out.
Kate grinned crookedly and rushed over to show him what she and Jan had drawn up. It was a more updated version of Logan's old uniform, but tailored to James' taller build with an updated cowl that didn't have points that were as tall or obvious as Logan's had been.
While James studied it and Kate jiggled her foot waiting for his reaction to it, Nate and Rachel shared a concerned look and held a very private conversation. Rachel had been watching Billy for a while now, and seeing her little brother so emotional had her on the defensive. Clearly, Nate needed to know everything Rachel did - and all she suspected as well. Their brother had never been overly shy about showing his emotions, but this was beyond normal for him, and they didn't like it.
Kate, however, seemed to be doing her best to ignore the clear evidence that James had been crying. "Now, I know it kind of looks like it's just the same thing, but we've got accents here and here," Kate said. "And the yellow is way less garish…"
"You know, I actually like the brighter yellow, but … no yellow. Not yet. I'm not ready for it," James said, then cleared his throat, recovering quicker now that he had something to focus on. "As much as I love this look, I'm going to have a big enough target on my back when I step out in something with stripes anyhow. And yellow was his." James' voice broke on the last word, though it wasn't clear to anyone if it was the usual upset concerning Logan or something else until James got his emotions under control and finished what he was thinking while holding Billy's gaze. "I need to earn that."
But Kate pressed on, striking while the iron was hot. "Okay, well, we can change the colors and drop the stripes no problem," Kate said.
"Keep the stripes. I want them. Just make it red and black," James said, then pointed to the head. "And use a similar cut to the original cowl. I don't want my whole face covered like this design. As stupid as it sounds, I don't want any idiots thinking I am Logan and there is some difference at my chin and jawline."
"Okay, so… kind of a mix between Wolverine and Cyclops' uniforms… with some James flair in there… I like it," Kate said, smiling and already making notes on the design as James continued to look it over with her.
"What do you think?" James asked Billy, taking the drawing from Kate so Billy could see it better, though that had Nate and Rachel sharing a look.
"I think you'll look great," Billy said with a growing smile as he took the sketch. "Red is my favorite color, so… I'm in favor."
"I just don't want to take yellow and screw it up," James said.
"You wouldn't," Billy promised, though that was one step too far for the other two Summers kids.
"This is way more input than you've given since we started," Rachel said, obviously concerned with how upset James still looked, and wondering what had happened before they'd come in. After all, it had been years that the Summers kids had tried to get their brother on board. This felt too easy after all the fight they'd gotten from him. "What happened here?"
"Do you know why I've avoided this?" James asked turning her way and flat ignoring the fact that his lashes and cheeks were wet still.
"Because you don't want to kill Dad?"
"No. Well - yes. But it's because the second it makes mainstream anything that I'm alive and anything like my parents, all hell is going to break loose," James said. "Think about the cabin when we were kids - when it got broken into by special ops or all the times we had to split up when we were little - all the bouncing around I did with Tony and Natasha and Kitty - the month long stretches you spent with Alex or Storm. All of it was to hide from those people that want to use mutants as weapons. Those organizations aren't gone. I read the reports from back then and I go over them now as soon as Natasha does. They wanted us. Not Dad. Us. I don't know what they'd do to you and Nate, but I do know what they'd do to me. I've known that since before I got my abilities, and since I started to heal it's been like I've been waiting for them to find me and kill me or worse ... and I'm very sure I don't want metal replacing my bones and someone controlling me. And they would."
"But someone has to stop them," Rachel said, glad to hear what James had been holding on to for so long, but also unsure of where that was taking him. "Or they'll go after other kids."
"Why do you think I'm going along with it now?" James said. "It's a risk I have to take while certain people try to start a fresh war. If I don't … I might as well just hand myself over to one of the weapons programs, because they won't stop looking for me or you."
"Well, I'm glad you're on board," Nate said, shoving James in the shoulder as he leaned over the couch and kissed Kate's cheek. "Wouldn't feel the same without all three of us."
"Just start taking bets on how long before they start calling me by Logan's codename," James said dryly.
"Well, what do you want to use?" Kate asked, genuinely curious.
"I don't know," James said. "But I know what will happen and how it'll end up anyhow, and knowing what I do now about Logan… I don't want to fall short of what he was. I know I don't measure up to him."
"You won't know that until you see what you can do," Rachel said. "I know I'm trying to live up to my mom. No reason you can't live up to him."
"We're not going to let them get to you," Nate said, clearly upset by what James had said. Yes, Scott had warned them for years, but it had sort of meshed together for Nate. Hearing how James had processed it explained so much on how reluctant his big brother had been and for the first time in his conscious memory, really, Nate could feel the weight of the threat James had been concerned with.
"I'm not afraid of that so much anymore," James said. "Eventually they'll try anyhow. Let them come."
"Yeah, we'll take 'em down," Kate agreed with a crooked grin.
"But - if we're going to do this," James said as he reached over and took Billys' hand. "Billy and Tommy said they wanted in too." He turned to Billy. "And I sincerely hope you won't hold it against me if I end up stabbing Grampneto."
"How about the rule is you don't stab him unless there's no other way to deal with him," Billy said. "He's actually not terrible when he's on Genosha."
"If you knew how much it hurt to use the stupid claws, you'd know that part goes without saying," James told him, then squeezed his hand. "I don't want to hurt anyone. And I don't want to upset your family. Not really. Tick him off, sure. But I don't want to hurt him and I promise I won't stab him or anyone else unless they try to take out one of us first. Anything short of that and the claws won't even come out."
"Then I think we're on the same page," Billy said, before he yanked the sketchbook back from Kate and turned to a fresh page. "So I had some ideas for me, if you're taking notes…and part of it will involve keeping my royal cape."
On Genosha, the shockwaves from Magneto's foray to the States was being felt by much of the population. Years of isolation and a major separation from even their closest neighbors left them feeling like a giant target any time Magneto stepped away from the island and started his speeches and sabre shaking.
It had been a while since he'd bothered to go to the States, but considering that both of his grandsons were attending school there, it was really just a matter of time before he'd turned his attention that way. And with his attention focused on the States, it was only a matter of time before that came back to bite the citizens of Genosha. They all knew it. They all were afraid of it. Except, of course, the royal family and their guards.
But for those outside of the palace, it honestly wasn't rosy. Supplies were in high demand for anything imaginable. Yes, the population was fed and safe - and homelessness was non existent, but that didn't mean they were happy. They had enough to survive, and they were away from humans mistreating them, but aside from being able to use their powers and wander the streets freely, but they also couldn't leave Genosha. That was something reserved for royalty. Not even former X-Men were allowed that liberty.
Which was in large part why Bobby Drake often found himself in trouble. He kept looking for ways to get away from Genosha - even if it was only for a moment or two - but that simply wasn't possible. And every time he was caught trying to leave - which was often - he'd end up spending time in Genosha's prisons.
He'd lost muscle tone over the years from spending so much time locked up - though he was getting to be impressive with his powers considering he spent every available moment practicing when he was out of lock up - away from the dampeners that kept the prisoners where they were supposed to be. It was just luck that Kitty had managed to keep out of the prisons with all the tech she'd been hoarding and developing just so they could find out what was happening in the world outside of the island nation.
So when they saw for sure that Magneto was stirring up the Avengers … and saw that some of the newer anonymous young members were obviously Scott's kids …
"Would you look at that," Bobby said, eyebrows high on his head. "That's got to be Rachel."
"Oh yeah," Kitty agreed, nodding her head as the camera zoomed in on the young Avengers on screen. "She's been on the team for a while. Nate is the new face now."
"He shouldn't be old enough for that," Bobby said, though he was smiling at the screen. He'd been in the jail for over six months. He hadn't seen Nate's debut with the Avengers, but he was incredibly proud. Though after watching for a moment, his smile began to slip. "We should have been there to help them."
"They have the Avengers to teach them. They'll be fine," Kitty said as she sat down next to him.
"Yeah. Against like … Hydra or AIM. Not Magneto." Bobby shook his head. "What's he so tweaked about anyhow?"
"The princes are going to Xavier's," Kitty said. "And Erik doesn't like the way the rest of the world works."
"So something he'd probably let slide if his precious little crown princes weren't out in the middle of it," Bobby said with a sigh. "Great."
"Well, at least they're not X-Men, right?" Kitty said, though her tone was entirely down as they continued to watch the broadcast. "The professor never would have allowed it to get this bad."
"No, he wouldn't have," Bobby agreed as silence fell between them. His sense of humor had been beaten down by a vicious cycle of imprisonment and trying to stomach the 'all is well' propaganda that the citizens of Genosha were used to. "I miss them."
Kitty nodded quietly. "Yeah. Me too," she said under her breath as the broadcast continued softly until Bobby got up and flipped the switch to turn it off.
"Come on. I just got out of jail again. We should take one night to celebrate before I figure out how to get us off this island."
Kitty smiled to herself. "Right. Might want to wait until Erik is going to be off the island."
"Which would be great if we knew when he'd be gone."
"Um … holidays are coming. That should be enough time to plan. The Guthries can keep an eye out for when he leaves, and I know that he's already planning to be the one to go get the boys," Kitty said. "Alex told me."
Bobby nodded slowly. "Then we have a little time."
"Has Jan said anything about the um … project she was working on?" Billy asked as he and James walked out of the subway close to where the Summers actual home in Brooklyn - though James still wasn't taking him to the house - but Billy had wanted to see some of the sights that Lorna had told him about. All of those sights of course, were much closer to the Summers house than they were to the Barton's apartment building.
"She's working on it," James promised. "But she's got to do the work when no one will bother her and get nosy." He gestured to the coffee shop two blocks down from the house to direct Billy on where they were headed. He was entirely sure that Lorna had tried to push them toward the right neighborhood to bust James out, but he hadn't been ungrounded often enough to consider getting the clearance from his dad to bring Billy by. Yet. He wanted to, of course, but there was an order of getting things done and pushing Scott before the mood was right was a sure fire way to sink himself.
"Yeah, but maybe I'm looking forward to seeing how they look," Billy laughed with a crooked smile. "Especially since it's still too cold for swimwear."
"You're relentless," James laughed before they got into line to order. They were fairly quiet as they made their way through the line since this was one of the more conservative neighborhoods in Brooklyn, comparatively. So at least until they got down to the park by the river, they were going to play it fairly cool.
Or that was the plan. Until they stepped out of the cafe, smiling and laughing at a quiet private joke only to stop dead when Rabbi Cohen called out to James. "Are you ready to let me set you up with a nice girl, young Mr. Meuller?"
James spun on the spot, his smile firmly in place as the Rabbi got close enough to clap a hand on his shoulder. "Hi, Rabbi Cohen," James said, utterly out of his depth on how to get him to stop his usual teasing. But he knew that Toby Cohen would just get worse about it if he didn't say something. So, he decided that he'd try to buy a little time if he could. "Have you talked to Dad at all lately?"
"A little," the Rabbi said, still grinning, though he turned to Billy for a moment, just as approachable and friendly as ever. "Aren't you going to introduce me to your friend? I don't think I've gotten to meet any of the kids you hang out with yet."
Billy was plainly amused and couldn't stop himself from joining in on the teasing, curious on which way he would get to pick on him. "Yeah, introduce me, James," Billy said with a grin.
James gave Billy a look, but turned back to Rabbi Cohen looking perfectly relaxed. "Rabbi, this is my boyfriend, Billy," James said. "He wanted to see the bridge from the park."
Rabbi Cohen blinked a few times as he looked between the boys, who were both smiling politely as they reached out to hold hands. "Well. At least tell me he's Jewish."
"I am," Billy said with a grin as he smiled wider at Rabbi Cohen and shifted his coffee so he could shake his hand. "Pleasure to meet you."
Rabbi Cohen grinned at that and burst out laughing. "Well good! One of you Mueller kids listened to me at least! I'm going to expect a better meeting with the two of you after Hanukkah!"
"Sure thing, Rabbi," James called out, though Cohen was still clearly entertained and Billy was beaming as the two of them continued to the bridge. "Chag urim sameach."
"Good! Keep teaching him, Billy," Rabbi Cohen shouted as Billy broke into a laugh and put his arm around James' back.
"I like him," Billy laughed.
"Of course you do," James said with a chuckle.
Their discussion fell short when the Brooklyn Bridge came into view - and Billy let out a delighted sound on getting a fresh view of the city. It was exactly what he'd wanted to do before the school break and he was riding a high from the little encounter with the rabbi. It was moments like this that made it indescribably hard to keep telling his grandfather anything about the Summers family - and he hoped that Erik hadn't noticed how little he was saying about them in particular, though he doubted that Erik would let it slide once they were in person.
But that wasn't supposed to be the case until the following day - and he had a date with his sweetheart who had just introduced him to his rabbi. Things were looking up as far as Billy was concerned.
Chapter 38: Ready Or Not ...
Chapter Text
Erik had been patient with matters concerning his grandsons, and he'd tried to give the world a chance to come to see sense, but it had been more trying than he cared to admit. Especially with both of his grandsons out of his easy reach fending for themselves in a world dominated by humans. Because of that alone, he was more than happy to insist on being the one to retrieve the two of them for the holidays. There was no reason, after all, for the boys to be stuck at the school with orphans and those who had been sent away from their families. No reason for them to be counted with the otherwise unloved teenagers that had no ties to anyone but the staff at Xaviers.
And he could use the time that they would take returning to Genosha to talk away from outside influences and anyone that might be listening in.
What he wasn't expecting to see when he appeared at Xavier's School for the Gifted, however, was Thomas barely acknowledging his presence as he and Ororo's demonic looking daughter had a less than polite kiss goodbye. Or more accurately, a series of drawn out, near makeout session worthy kisses. He controlled the smirk, only because it wasn't dignified to do such things in public, though he had to admit that he was pleased to see Thomas making the most out of his time in New York.
As the three of them headed off to the airport where Erik's private jet waited, he couldn't help but notice that William was fidgeting with his collar and somewhat avoiding his gaze. He looked toward Thomas and raised an eyebrow in a silent question, which of course was answered almost immediately.
"He's just trying to be secretive about his new boyfriend," Tommy said with a wave and a broad grin even as Billy swore at him. "Nice guy. Definitely not looking to raise his social status like the last one."
"Tommy," Billy said from between his teeth. "Shut. Up."
"He's not distracting you too much, is he?" Erik said to Billy, trying to ignore Tommy's amusement for the moment. He knew better than to push on such a delicate matter if he wanted the chance to look into this young man, after all.
"No," Billy said, blushing bright red high on his cheeks. "He's got his own commitments away from the school. He doesn't take much of my time at all."
"I don't know, the beard burn says otherwise," Tommy cackled, earning himself a death glare from Billy. "Oh, relax. You haven't even been seeing him for that long. No reason to be all …" Tommy held his brother's gaze and grinned wider. "... growly."
"Your mother didn't mention that you were seeing someone," Erik said, brushing by Tommy's delighted laughter at the look on Billy's face. If he was that embarrassed and Tommy that entertained, then he definitely wanted to know who it was taking up Wiliam's time. And that wouldn't be easy information to learn if the boy was being defensive. "Is he a mutant?"
"Yes. He is. But we've only been able to go out on a few dates," Billy answered, trying not to look at Erik as he lied through his teeth. "Schedules … he's in the city … you know … it's not too serious."
"Yes, I'm sure your powers make scheduling difficult," Erik said as he smiled to himself and nodded - and Tommy looked like Christmas had come early. Still, Erik was determined to find out more, he'd let it go for now, just to let the boy's defenses drop. Patience was the key here - particularly after the last few young men that had come after Billy. If he was honestly interested, Erik knew that sooner or later, Billy would slip up and say the boy's name. He simply had to pay attention.
But for now, while they were alone, Erik planned to find out the finer details of the school - the staff - and all that he could about the Avengers. It would be harder to pick their brains when they were back on Genosha with Wanda hovering. So Erik settled in and simply started asking questions that he hoped Billy would jump to answer - if nothing else, than to avoid the uncomfortable questions about this new young man. He'd use that as leverage to get answers until he couldn't. That was the best option for pressure at the time, after all. No reason to overlook it.
Billy had been positively relieved to leave Genosha after a long holiday of barely avoiding his grandfather's awkward questions and gentle inquiries about who his boyfriend was. He knew that was going to be bad when it finally came out, but he still wanted to avoid letting it come out as long as possible.
They'd barely been back to Westchester for an hour before he got a text from Kate all in emojis that made it very clear that he wanted to be at Jan's studio. Now. So, with little more encouragement than that, he looked over to see his brother and Mia saying 'hello' then simply started to focus on teleporting himself to the studio.
When he got there though, he had to do a little double take - not only at Kate, Nate, and Rachel in uniform - but at the fact that Jan was putting the finishing touches on James' red on black striped uniform. He realized what was happening just in time to hear James quietly ask Jan a question about the fitment. "Does it really need to be this tight?" James asked, to which Kate, Billy, and Jan all answered at once with their own versions of 'yes' that had Nate and Rachel highly amused.
"It's part of the gig," Jan said, grinning to herself. "You have nothing to be self conscious about either. You're built so much like your dad was, after all."
Rachel cringed, expecting the usual bristle from her little brother, but was pleasantly surprised when James simply looked up at the mirror and nodded to himself. "Guess so," he said before he let out a shaky breath.
"You might need a haircut," Jan suggested as she reached up and took over on pulling the cowl down to adjust it, too. "Or not." She stepped back and the grin started to grow as she nodded to herself. "Oh yeah. There's a look I haven't seen in way too long."
James turned his head toward his siblings, then followed, turning the rest of his body to face them. "How ridiculous is it? Honestly."
"Not even a little bit," Rachel said, grinning. "And it's about time. We've waited forever - and it's perfect." She came forward and took a hold of his arm to pull him over then wrap him up in a tight hug. "We're going to be amazing, little brother."
Rachel had an updated version of the uniform she wore for the Avengers, as did Nate and Kate - though for the X-Men uniforms, she'd taken a slightly more edgy approach by making all of the detail lines pop with glowing color. Rachel's accents were green, Nate's were blue, and Kate's were purple, of course, but James' was red and it gave the whole look an almost dangerous angle with the group of them barely glowing at the colored lines of their uniforms.
"Okay, you next," Jan said, snapping her fingers at Billy. "I can't get my team picture until you're all dressed and ready to go."
"All of us?"
"Oh, totally," Jan confirmed, nodding her head as she led him over to get changed. "Tell your brother he's slow in getting here. Make sure Mia comes too. I want to see all of you in person, ready to go. It took me forever to find the right shade of magenta for Mia's accents."
"You got it," Billy laughed as he texted Tommy and pulled his shirt off even before he saw how well Jan had kept to the sketches they'd come up with. "This is amazing."
There were very few people that had Scott's cell phone number, so when a call came in from a number he didn't know, he honestly didn't know what to make of it. Especially when his cautious 'hello' was met by an enthusiastic Kitty on the other side.
"You didn't tell me you were getting the team back together!"
"Kitty?" Scott shook his head. "What are you talking about? How did you even get this number?"
"Come on, Scott, I was your tech girl for how long?" Kitty said. "I can get your number. But that's not the important part - the important part is the team! Together! How long have you been planning this?"
"I haven't," Scott said, though he was already pulling up the news. "I haven't touched a uniform since Graydon Creed. You know that."
"Well … then who are these guys? Do you know them?"
Scott frowned as he found the news footage showing a group of kids wearing x's on their uniforms as they rescued civilians from a building Magneto had trashed. Considering the powersets at play, the fact that they had a girl with swords that he knew had to be Kate delineating her skillsets on the different teams… and the fact that he recognized Tommy's voice when the reporter asked what they were doing, Scott breathed out a curse as he turned up the volume.
We're the X-Men! Magneto wants to speak for mutants, he's going to have to step back. Some of us don't like being labeled terrorists like he is, mkay?
Scott massaged a spot on his forehead over his nose. "Those… those would be my kids. Apparently."
"You didn't know?" Kitty asked a lot quieter.
"Kitty, do you think I'd let - Hell, James is wearing stripes!"
"Yeah, he looks great," she said, the little smile plain to hear. "But that's … I mean, as amazing as that is, that's really not why I called."
"Oh God, now what?"
"We've got big trouble with Magneto," Kitty said. "He's finally snapped, and I don't know what caused it, but he's going into the dangerous … floaty zone."
Scott let out a sigh and pinched the bridge of his nose. "I know what it was," he admitted. "He came to the school."
"What's wrong with the school?" Kitty asked. "I thought Storm was running it. She's great with the kids."
"She is," Scott agreed. "And the kids there love her. But she's … we've been showing the kids how to control their powers so they can blend in. Keep their heads down. Avoid another disaster. And Magneto didn't take well to it."
"Oh, man," Kitty said in a flat tone.
"I know. I know we aren't living up to everything we stood for, but Kitty, it's kept them alive. No one has destroyed the school, no one is calling for extermination…"
"I know, I know, I just … I didn't realize … oh, crap," she almost whispered.
"Yeah," Scott said. "I almost can't blame him. I mean, my own kids are rebelling into X-Men. How far off the path have we gotten?"
"Okay, but Scott - he's been looking for a reason, if I'm being totally honest," Kitty said.
"I thought things were alright on Genosha. Alex hasn't had any complaints."
"Right. Because he's married to one of the princesses. He's the next best thing to a royal himself and he doesn't see what it's like outside of his charmed life in the palace. That's part of why Wanda wanted to get the boys out of there. They were getting spoiled rotten."
"The boys are alright," Scott defended. "Billy's dating James, even."
"Wait - what? Okay, I didn't see that coming," Kitty said under her breath.
"Tell me about it. But they work."
"Yeah, that …. Probably won't sit will with Erik either, to be honest," Kitty said. "But I was calling because it's going south here. And we need to do something to stop him before he kicks the wrong hornet nest."
Scott sighed as he sat down. "How bad is it, Kitty? I can pull some strings for an evacuation, but we'd have to fight him on it."
"That's just it, I don't know if you can get everyone out," she said.
"Why not?"
"Well, outside of the obvious millions of people here, the fact remains that Erik would lose his mind if Genosha emptied. No one outside of his family is allowed to leave."
Scott frowned harder the more he heard. "You wouldn't be calling if you didn't already have an idea."
"We have to take him down," Kitty said. "But he doesn't trust anyone near him. He's completely paranoid. We need to figure out how to get someone close."
Scott held his breath for a long moment. Ten years ago, he wouldn't have hesitated, but now… he waited until he'd gone over several other options in his head and found himself back on that same idea. "I could do it," he said. "It would take time, but… I could do it."
"Are you sure?"
"He's not going to consider me much of a threat, Kitty," Scott pointed out. "I haven't had my powers for years. I stay away from the school and the Avengers unless I'm with the kids. I'm as close to a neutral party as you can get from an outside perspective. And he's already chewed me up and down about the school. He had some good points; I wouldn't be lying if I said I agreed with some of what he said."
Kitty was quiet for a long while. "We need to work something out," she said slowly. "Make a plan …"
"Kitty, he's going to end up fighting my kids if they keep wearing those uniforms."
"So try to get them to stop that," she said.
"What do you think I've been doing for ten years?"
"Right. Something must have gotten to them, though."
"I don't know," Scott said. "I know Rachel and I fought when she wanted to join the Avengers, and Nate wore me down until he could join, too. They've been wanting to make a difference for a while now."
"And James just … what? Came out of the woodwork?" Kitty asked with a suspicious tone.
"Came out of a couple closets at once, apparently," Scott said dryly.
"Very funny," she said. "I just … you know Billy's powerset, right? Are you sure this is on the level?"
"I've seen the two of them together from the very beginning," Scott said in a tone that made it clear he knew why Kitty was asking - and that he'd run down that possibility already and proven it wrong in his own mind at least. "It started very organically. I don't think Billy made this happen. If I did -"
"Okay. Good … okay. I'll trust you on that. You know your son better than anyone. I haven't met Billy more than a couple of times though. I don't know him. I had to put it out there. So lets figure out how to do this, okay? I'll call you back when I can get a little time. Think it over, please."
"Okay. See if you can find a way for me to end up talking with Erik, even if it's just a visit to the school. I need to get in his ear if I want to have a shot at all."
"Hey, I'll call if I find out he's going to go floating over to the school even," Kitty said. "Like I said he's not happy with a lot of things around those kids."
Scott let out a sigh. "Alright. I'll… talk to my kids. And I'll think of a good argument for Erik on why I'd be willing to side with him. All I've got right now is 'desperate dad'."
"Which considering how the past ten, fifteen years have gone? That might be your best bet."
"Right. Sell him a line on how I'm worried the world will tear them apart like they did us… hell, that's not even a line."
"Pretty sure that's spot on," Kitty said.
"Okay. Let me know next time he's in Westchester."
"Will do," Kitty said. "And Scott? Take it easy on them. Their hearts are in the right places if they're stepping out like that."
Scott sighed. "Yeah, I know. Their hearts are always in the right places. Doesn't make them any less…" He trailed off. "I'll talk to you later."
With that, Scott hung up, his own thoughts echoing in his head for a good long while as he tried to wrap his mind around everything. It had been so long since he'd had anything to do with this particular fight, but he remembered how Magneto could be, how he could steamroll anyone in his path. And he didn't doubt that if Kitty was calling from Genosha to ask for help, it was a serious situation. Kitty and Bobby had quietly been handling problems on Genosha for a long time now; he knew that much from Alex…
He sat down and ran both hands through his hair - and stayed that way more or less until the kids came home.
"Hey dad," James called out, perfectly casually as he tossed his keys on the counter. "Brought home Chinese if you're interested."
Scott tried to keep his temper as he got up and went to where the kids were in the kitchen unloading boxes of takeout. "I saw the news," he said flatly.
"Figured that would happen," James said under his breath.
"What were you thinking?" Scott asked sharply, looking at all three of them in turn. "You know the X-Men left those uniforms - that name - behind for a reason. You can't just go out there putting a giant target on your- James, do you know how many organizations in the world saw-"
"Sixty two," James said. "Give or take. That's how many have programs that Natasha's been able to find anyhow. Might be more after this, honestly." He didn't sound pleased, but he wasn't alarmed either.
"And you just announced yourselves to the world!" Scott narrowed his eyes, especially when none of them looked sorry. "You can't do this - after everything that - the precautions - the work everyone went through! You know - you can't risk everything like this!"
"Do you know how long it's been since Warren was out to fly?" Nate asked, perfectly calm, as though he'd been waiting for this for years, and in actuality, he had. "Or how much he wants to be able to live again? How much he misses all the good you used to do with the team?"
"Or what about all the people looking at the school again as it gets bigger?" Rachel pressed when Scott frowned. "They're not backing off just because we're hiding. They're looking at it because there's so many mutants asking for sanctuary."
"The mutant birth rate is rising," James said, though his gaze was on the ground almost as if it pained him to admit it. "It has been for decades, but they're finally starting to find out what they are now. Dr. Richards has been doing everything in his power to wreck anyone developing fast track genetic tests to use on kids and newborns for years even though there's been a call for it. Tony's been pushing his contacts to squash any unconstitutional laws … and for the kids our age and younger it's still like it was when you were young. Parents are kicking their kids out over something they have no control over. The fear just walking around the city is off the charts. For everyone."
"You always said the X-Men were heroes," Nate put in. "Kinda sucks to have them out of the picture now."
"We want to do what you did - what you set out to do," James said as he finally looked up to meet Scott's gaze. "It's time to see Xavier's dream play out."
"You're going to get yourselves killed," Scott said. "You made these same arguments to become Avengers, but now you're pulling this?" He gestured toward the TV in the living room playing the news. "Do you have a death wish?"
"Dad," James said, letting his shoulders drop. "You know none of us are that deep."
"You're picking a fight with Magneto for your opening move," Scott said. "I know he upset you but this isn't like the games you play with Stark, James!"
"We weren't fighting Magneto," James said gently. "We were saving the people he was stomping on."
"That's the point," Rachel said in a more soothing tone. "I thought the X-Men were there to look out for anyone overlooked. You said you guys looked out for the people the Avengers didn't see. We're not trying to take on the whole world. We're just out to show normal people we're not big scary bad guys." She paused. "Especially when the biggest mutant news right now is a big, scary bad guy."
"He's not a bad guy when he's home," James said quietly to Nate.
"You're biased," Nate whispered back.
"I just like it when he goes home and stays there," James admitted.
"Hear, hear," Nate said before he let out a sigh and turned back to their dad. "No one's asking you to come back, Dad. You guys already did the hard work. You showed the world what the X-Men were supposed to be and laid out the ground work for us to finish for you."
"But the world misses you," Rachel said. "The team - all of it. They didn't see how good you all were until you were gone."
Scott frowned as he watched all three of them - knowing he couldn't argue against his own philosophies. "Damn it," he muttered under his breath and sat down at the table with one hand on his temple. "Damn it all."
"So…." Nate said slowly, though he'd put a hand up to stop James from moving toward Scott when it was so clear to him that James was having second thoughts. He didn't need to read his brother's mind to know that he already thought they might have pushed their dad too far. And that would end up pushing James back off the team if they weren't careful. So he tried to carefully redirect both of them. "We brought dinner?"
James glanced at Nate and stepped toward Scott. He had to try and reassure their dad somehow. "We're not going to ignore your advice. But this is something all of us have been thinking about for a very long time. I promise you, I've run down every single avenue to look for a different way to handle this. I have. If there was another way to do it, I'd have gotten started o it already."
"The world needs the X-Men, Dad," Rachel said quietly. "Maybe one day they won't anymore, but that will only happen if people aren't scared to be who they are. You know it too; I know you do."
Scott didn't look up at them for a long time before he finally let out a sigh that slumped his shoulders. "Fine," he said. "But every one of you needs a panic button with a direct line to the Avengers. The second something goes wrong, call them in. I mean it." He looked between the three kids. "No one knew what had happened to us because we did everything ourselves. Do not make that mistake. Understood?"
"Yes," the three of them answered in unison before all of them shared a look and made their way closer to wrap their dad up in a hug.
"I'll work on integrating the panic button in the morning," James promised.
Scott nodded, wordlessly hanging onto them until he got his feet underneath himself again. "Don't go anywhere until it's done. Not in those uniforms. I can't lose you too."
"Yes, sir," James replied.
"Love you too, Dad," Rachel said.
Chapter 39: The X-Men Return
Chapter Text
Whatever Erik had expected to come of his shaking up the world on their stance on mutants after years of relative silence, the very last thing that had come to mind was the possibility of facing his grandsons as they took up his old friend's flag. To say that Erik was shocked to see a new iteration of the X-Men reforming was an understatement in itself after the discussion he'd had with Ororo, but this …
They simply shouldn't have been there. Nothing that he'd heard from the old guard of Charles' X-Men indicated that there was even a consideration of reforming. Yet … As Erik razed a building that had been a set of offices that were central to a SHIELD operation, it wasn't the Avengers that had come to the aid of the humans inside. When he first saw the x-badge on the glowing-team members, Erik had very nearly tossed a car at them for insulting his old friend's legacy. Until he realized that there was a speedster in the mix - and a certain crown prince that he had his own plans for. It was stunning enough that for a long moment, he didn't quite realize that Ororo's daughter, Scott's children, and Logan's boy were even there. But once he saw them, he found himself pausing.
Anyone else would have found themselves squashed already.
But he couldn't do that to his own blood. And he couldn't do that to Scott after all he'd already lost. So instead of doing anything more proactive, Erik simply finished what he'd come to do and quietly left as if these new X-Men hadn't even been there.
He was almost as livid as he was shocked. William had said nothing to indicate that he'd even consider galavanting around like a common pawn. It had to be the influence of the Summers children. There was no other explanation. And though he wasn't sure what the response from the old X-Men were going to be, he knew, without a doubt that he would have to take the time to have a serious talk with his grandsons. Especially when they were clearly keeping secrets from him.
Regardless of what Wanda and her little android thought, this was simply unacceptable behavior for his princes. And they would be dealt with accordingly. He had only taken off his helmet to make the phone call, and he didn't even need to say a word before William was rapidly explaining himself.
"I know you're angry," he said, 'And I am sorry about that, but the fact is, after seeing what things have been like here for mutants, we do need to change things. I just think … that after seeing how much they're missed that the X-Men are the answer. Not force."
"William," Erik said patiently. "Had the X-men ever been the answer, this would have been settled years ago - while you were still a child. Nothing has changed for these humans."
"But - that's where you're wrong," he replied quietly. "The rest of my team -the rest of the X-Men - they know that you're not entirely wrong."
"And they've said as much to you?"
"Well … one or two has," Billy replied quietly. "But the point … listen. People here - not just mutants, but humans too … they hold the memory of the old team as something good and unifying. I just think … that maybe it would be easier on mutants that aren't on Genosha if we can follow closer to that."
"Or," Erik said. "You can get them to see sense and understand that their best chance of continued survival is to join us." When Billy didn't answer right away, Erik continued. "You have a duty to the people of Genosha, and if you truly believe that the X-Men are the way to the liberation of mutants, then the only way for that to happen is with a unified front."
Again, Billy didn't really reply, so Erik pressed on, carefully choosing his words as he informed his grandson on how to manipulate his friends into doing as Erik said.
"And a word of warning: if you lie to me or hide things from me again, I will bring you back to Genosha by any means necessary."
It wouldn't be easy to get the boys to turn these young X-men, he was sure. Especially with two telepaths already on the team, but … if they were to be saved, this would be how it would happen. And if anything happened to his grandsons, then what was left of the X-Men would pay for it.
"So, you want to know the weirdest part? I think Kate is the only one not grounded out of all of us, and I'm pretty sure we could argue it's discrimination," Nate said as he let himself into James' lab with some coffee. They were all grounded, limited to school and whatever commitments they already had - though it was worse for the kids at the school, who were practically on lockdown.
"You mean outside of Billy and Tommy? That doesn't surprise me one bit," James said as he worked on the tiny panic button that was to be incorporated into their uniforms. "Your sweetheart's got a circus boy for a dad, so you know …"
"She says he high-fived her when she got home," Nate said, shaking his head to himself.
James snorted at that. "Of course he did. How was Aunt Widow?"
"Worried about you, obviously, because you're her favorite, but mostly glad to see the family tradition being carried on…"
He shrugged. "No I'm not," James said. "Rachel's her favorite. She has a thing about helping other redheads cause trouble."
"Sure she does," Nate said as he sat down by James. "Really, though, I think they're happy about it, same as Jan. Not all the adults are paranoid."
"I haven't seen anyone yet today," James said. "Or I'd give you a better cross section of what's what. Maybe they think I quit already…."
Nate tapped the side of his head. "Well, Cap's worried. That's broadcasting loudly because he thinks our whole family is about to explode or something."
"He's always worried about something," James said. "Unless he gets mad at someone and just goes all … rage Cap. He's got the best 'how dare you look at them crooked' thing going on." He set his soldering gun down and turned to Nate - though that was to steal part of Nate's bagel, too. "How's Jan doing?"
"You mean besides dealing with Tony finding out his wife was secretly co-conspiring with us?" Nate asked with a crooked grin. "Actually holding up alright. Worried about Dad, obviously. And you."
"Yeah, that. I was a little concerned that might be why Tony hasn't made his usual obnoxious rounds today. I know he's going to be mad at me. "
"She's dealing with it," Nate said. "And no, I'm not sharing dirty details."
"Oh, why would you go there?" James said as he made a spectacular face and let his whole body slump.
"You asked."
"I didn't ask how things were working out, I just said I was concerned."
"Hey, I have to know things, and now you do too," Nate said with a smirk.
"You don't think I know things anyhow?" James said, tapping his nose. "You can shut it off and avoid it. I can't. You only know all the things because you're nosy about it."
"Rachel's worse," Nate defended.
"She really is," James agreed before the brothers settled into a more familiar relaxed stance with their coffee and now-shared bagel. "You sticking around for a while? I was thinking about ordering up and going home a little late, but I don't know how that would work out for the old man's blood pressure, honestly."
"Yeah, you know he's not handling it well, right?" Nate said. "And he's totally shut me and Rachel out."
"Yeah, he hasn't been real open with me either," James said. "But I know if I return the favor, it'll just escalate things."
"Rachel took his phone," Nate said. "He's been talking with Kitty, apparently."
"That's interesting," James said. "I thought she was in the mutant paradise."
"From what I've seen in the twins' heads, 'paradise' is a massive misnomer."
"Is nothing sacred, Nate?" James said in a sigh.
"Hey, I get to play protective little brother sometimes," Nate defended. "He's a good guy; I just wanted to make sure, all things considered!"
"Oh yeah?" James laughed. "So you were checking him out by running through his head."
"And Tommy's," Nate said. "That guy I'm watching closer. For Mia's sake."
James smiled at Nate for that. "He's hilarious. Especially if you get him all wound up and competitive."
"He also really wants to score," Nate said.
"Too bad for him," James said. "Mia's not going to be that easy."
"Yeah, well, the point is, something's rotten in the state of Genosha, and I think Dad's… almost backing us up? In his way?" Nate shrugged. "Checking up on Magneto to see threat level… I think. It's hard to tell when he's also pretty darn convinced we're gonna die."
"Maybe it's time I asked him about Logan," James said quietly. "Might redirect him a little."
"Or give him a heart attack."
"Do you know what happened?" James asked. "I don't. All I know is 'all hell broke loose' and half the team died. I am incredibly curious on what could have killed two healers. Aren't you?"
"Rachel … saw bits of it," Nate admitted slowly. "And… the thing is, even what she has seen looked pretty bad. It's all… cells and collars and Ororo in a box."
"I still want to know," James said.
"Yeah," Nate said. "Yeah, me too. I want to know what made my mom lose it like she did."
"I love Dad, and I don't know where I'd be without him - but I still want to know what happened to my parents," James said before he let out a breath and held Nate's gaze. "Billy did a spell for me. Did you see that in his head while you were measuring how evil you think he is?"
Nate paused and then nodded. "I ... figured you wouldn't want me looking at too much of that. It seemed private. So I just skimmed it over."
James nodded to himself. "He did it so I could get a chance to see what Logan was really like. I got both of them instead. It was just the memories hidden away that I was too little to really … grasp right, I guess." He tipped his chin down to his chest. "That's what really sealed it for me, you know. I don't know how many other kids got good parents ripped away from them, but I'm pissed off about it."
"Yeah." Nate held his breath. "You know Rachel told me when I got my powers… I was freaked out but she told me at least I didn't have the Phoenix, right?"
James nodded. "Yeah, and I've been convinced I'm going to die anyhow since everything turned on."
"Yeah, but … the Phoenix tells you what it thinks you want and you know she can hear Mom, right?" Nate said.
"I didn't know that," James admitted, looking honestly concerned. "She didn't tell me."
"She didn't even tell Dad. I just heard it because she was freaked out and projecting around me," Nate admitted. "But … but she said Mom was proud of us, and this was back when we were still just talking about being X-Men. All three of us. So I think we're doing alright."
"I hope so," James said quietly, staring at his hands for a long while. "Do you think Storm has any pictures of them? All three of them." He gave Nate a little smile. "I could show you my parents, but … I doubt you want to see tiny me."
Nate snorted. "Tell you what," he said, "one of these days, let's sit down with you, me, and Rachel, and she can show you what the Phoenix showed her of our mom, and you can show us yours. But all three of us. Considering what we're starting, I don't want to leave anyone out anymore."
"Only if she comes up with that on her own," James said. "I don't want to intrude on her at all."
"Hey, if she hears where your head's at? It's happening."
"I have to project for that," James said. "And I'm trying to give her space. I know you two have a lot of other things on your minds." He tapped on the workbench. "Anyhow. I think I have the panic button done. Take a look. Tell me if it's easy enough to work."
Nate raised both eyebrows and then grinned as he picked up the little button. "Hey, I like it," he said. "You could hide that anywhere, really. The bad guys wouldn't even know backup was coming until it was too late."
"Figured we could put it in the badge," James said. "Couple on every uniform."
"More than just a fashion state-" Nate laughed. "Oh crap. Kate has me doing it now."
"Yeah, you were born into it," James snickered. "Just admit you love it."
"Didn't say I didn't love it," Nate said. "Just said I was getting sucked in."
"You'd wear purple hip holes if she asked you to," James said, laughing.
"I would not. I draw the limit somewhere!"
"You so would. You could match. Twinsies."
"Shut up, James," Nate laughed.
"Or … maybe you could wear just what she's got cut out. Scare the hell out of whoever we're fighting …"
"You're going to give her ideas!"
"I think I will," James said, pulling out his phone to text Kate as much. "New challenge, Squawkeye - Nate wants a uniform composed entirely of what's left from hip holes and single sleeves." He hit the send button then grinned at him. "There. Done."
"You're a horrible brother," Nate deadpanned, though he was smiling crookedly. There hadn't been a lot of time for joking around lately, so this was a welcome distraction.
James held up his phone. "We have a response already."
Oh, silly James. You act like that doesn't already exist just for ME. You're not invited, Kate replied.
I really don't want to see it, but he brought it up. Said you couldn't make it happen.
Lies, was the one-word response.
I'm a little worried on where a panic button might go though, so I'll leave that to the experts.
Glad to know you recognize genius when you see it.
Stretching, princess.
There you are. I knew it burned to compliment me.
I just don't like to lie. Even for a good cause. We're in the lab if you want to see your sweetheart before he's back home and grounded. Though I do have the panic buttons done so …
Oooh! On my way!
"She just can't get enough of you, Nate," James said, shaking his head.
"You're such a pain, you know that?" Nate said, though he was laughing.
"That's why you come here, isn't it?" James said, pocketing one of the buttons. "This one goes to Dad to look over."
"We should give one to Dad to keep," Nate said thoughtfully. "I mean, with us stepping out, there could be a backlash and if we show him we know there could be trouble anywhere…"
"That's what I said. Kinda. If we give it to him and tell him to keep it, he'll probably get huffy, but if it's 'to look over'," he said, making air quotes, "then he'll have it."
"I'd feel better if he took it with him everywhere, seeing as he's worried about Genosha."
"Then you talk him into it," James said. "He won't listen to me and he likes you best."
"It's because I'm amazing," Nate said with a shrug.
"It's because you're not Phoenixing or wearing stripes. And … you're the baby. Spoiled."
"You're never gonna let that die, are you?"
"Nope. If I gotta listen to the 'middle kid' crap, you're stuck with the baby stuff."
"There's no hope of getting another baby in the family when Dad's like he is, either," Nate sighed dramatically. "I'm stuck."
"Forever and ever. Unless …. You know. He decides to adopt another poor, lost, little, pitiful orphan."
"He might. Maybe that's what he's calling Genosha for," Nate said.
James snorted laughing at that. "Sure, Nate. Hold on to that hope."
"Someone's gotta," Nate said with a smirk, then raised his voice when there was a knock at the door. "I also like holding onto Hawkeyes."
"Both of them? Jeez, Nate. I don't know what to say. Other than … I'm concerned."
Kate was giggling as she let herself in. "You're such a good big brother," she teased and kissed James' cheek.
"I try," he said. "I should ask when you guys are getting married the way you're going, though."
"Um, we're in high school," Kate said, rolling her eyes. "Pump the brakes, James."
"Yeah, but he's just like Dad …" James said, grinning widely.
"Shut up, James. I'm not getting married straight out of graduation," Nate grumbled.
"No, it'll be your eighteenth birthday."
"You planning on holding the shotgun?" Kate asked.
"Nope, I'll be taking pictures." He tipped his head. "Unless that's you saying there's a reason there should be a shotgun."
"That would be a definite no," Kate said, her eyes wide and horrified.
James was chuckling as he waved her over. "So. The buttons are done and I think we can work them into the badges."
"More than a fashion statement," Kate said - and Nate tried hard not to fall over laughing.
"You two are mind melded," James said with a crooked smile. "He said the same thing then wanted to practice his runway walk for you."
"Oh, is that where that text came from?" Kate laughed.
"I try to keep you in the loop for these things, Katherine."
"Because you love me," Kate agreed as she came to sit down in Nate's lap.
"If you say so," James said, shaking his head as he went back to tinkering. "If you're going to start in though, I will have to ask you to find somewhere else. I can't do my job and big brother properly while you're trying to get your shotgun wedding started up."
The picking didn't even really get a chance to get off the ground before the door opened again - but this time it wasn't another member of their fledgeling team. And it was crystal clear that Tony was not happy.
"Hi, Uncle Tony," Kate sang out sweetly in a tone that she'd used a hundred times when she was little to get out of trouble.
"Uh-uh, no. that's not gonna work," Tony snapped her way. "What the hell were you three thinking, huh?" He was glaring at all three of them and any humor they'd had was out the window that quickly.
When Kate looked shocked that Tony had gotten mad at her, Nate shook his head. Looks like we're having this argument again, he projected to the other two before he said, "Come on; tell me you don't know we're right. You married Jan. I know you know things aren't as good for mutants as the superficial 'we're not dead so that's good' level look would say."
"That doesn't mean you go out there parading around with an 'x' on your chest like some kind of glowing target," Tony shot back. "This is something to leave up to the adults. You're not trained for this."
"Trained for what, exactly?" Nate shot back. "Helping civilians?"
"The kind of heat that badge brings down on you - it's not what you're doing - it's what the bad guys are going to do to you," Tony replied. "You want to help? Do more rounds with the Avengers. Make a patrol out of it for Christ's sake, but don't …" he turned and pointed a finger at James. "And you aren't even on our team. That's just asking for it."
"I'm on my own team," James replied perfectly calmly, though that only seemed to wind Tony up tighter.
"And it's not just the team you need to be worried about," Tony bellowed, which got James to honestly take a step back. "I'm relying on you. You're supposed to step in when I'm ready to step down. What do you think I've been training you for with all the business classes and giving you every damn thing you could possibly want in this lab?"
When it was clear Tony had knocked the slats out from under James, Kate stepped up. "It's not like the Avengers aren't dangerous too," she reasoned. "I got kidnapped, like, three times by Hydra when I was in elementary school…"
"That's not it either, and you know it," Tony said. "You go out there as X-Men, you don't have any connections. You don't have the back up -"
"Is that your way of saying you're disowning us? Or that you're changing your mind about what you want from me?" James said. "Because if this is a press job for that, it's not going to work. You know I'll stick to your plan. But I don't see why helping fix the rampant racism would hurt your company if you want me to take over eventually. It's not going to fix itself."
Tony looked like he was ready to tear into James freshly for that, but Nate intervened. "Besides," Nate said, grabbing the panic button James had made and handing it out to Tony. "We made these. Well, James did. Dad's idea, though. Hit the button, call for a rescue."
"I'm not going to even consider that as an option unless every last one of you joins up on our team," Tony said. "And more than just as a title. You have to do the rounds like everyone else that wants to be an Avenger."
"You're just trying to keep us from having time to do the X-Men," James said, though Tony didn't look as if he was going to even deny it.
"And most of us are already on the team anyway," Kate pointed out. "I mean, unless you want to talk to Storm about Mia and Magneto about the grandkids…"
Tony looked more irritated at that. "Yes. And Cyclops about his junior Wolverine. They need permission. Because they're minors. Just like you are."
"It'd be Wanda, not Magneto," James said to Kate as he kept his focus on Tony. "And I'm pretty sure Scarlet Mom would be tickled if they wanted to be Avengers. Not a problem there. Storm and Dad though …"
"Dad already let Rachel and I do it. Go with Rachel to talk to Storm," Nate suggested. "She can't say no to Rachel the older she gets and the more she looks like Mom."
"No," Tony said. "You want to pull this crap, you figure it out, but you're not going to be using our team for back up unless you can do that."
"Oh, so just because my big sister is an adult, she's off-limits for team-ups?" Nate rolled his eyes. "Good to know."
"No, that's fine," James said, holding one hand up to signal Nate to hold off. "It's not what he meant. I get it. Nate, we can talk to Storm." He took a second to project out the rest. Rachel's not the only one she has trouble saying no to.
Point.
"When's practice?" James said to Tony, arms crossed.
"Ask Cap," he said, turning to leave. "He's the one that said he'd handle the whole X-Men thing. But I've got my own concerns that reach farther than just you on the teams."
"Fair," James said, nodding, and that, if nothing else seemed to be enough to get Tony to relax a little. As soon as Tony left, James looked back at Nate. "You want to call Dad or should I?"
"I'll call Dad if you call Ororo," Nate said without missing a beat.
"I'm just gonna drive out there," James said. "Harder to say no to face to face. You comin'?"
"Absolutely," Nate said.
"Me too," Kate put in. "I want to watch you guys work."
"Tag along," James teased.
Kate grinned and nodded. "Yep. Token human tagalong."
James shook his head and started picking up the things scattered on the workbench, though he pocketed the panic buttons - one for Scott and the other for Ororo. The rest went into a little box that he'd pass to Jan on the way out the door. "I'll go talk to Steve," James said. "Get the official details so I can say I dotted all the 'i's and crossed my t's."
"Probably a good idea, considering how thin the ice is," Kate said, making a face.
"Meet you in the garage," James said. "And I'm driving, you lunatic."
"Okay. I'll just make out with your brother in the back seat!"
"Uh huh. Knew you were working your way up to that shot-gun wedding." James called over his shoulder as he headed out to track down Steve to make it official.
When the three of them got to Westchester, James took a moment to sit there with his hands over his face. "I'm already getting more mad about all the hoops," James said.
"We knew the adults would freak out on us," Nate pointed out.
"I know, and we've spent all this time trying not to piss them off or freak them out," James said.
"We're teenagers; I think that's in the job description, right?" Nate said with a crooked grin.
"Sure, that's it," James said flatly before he frowned, nodded to himself once and then got out. "Whatever. Let's just get moving on this, huh?"
We knew it was gonna be hard when we agreed to wear the uniforms, Nate said, trying to buck his brother up. And we didn't give Dad a heart attack on the spot, so this is actually going well.
Sure, James said. Just makes me want to push harder, if you want to know the truth.
Oh good, because I was thinking the same thing, Nate said.
I hate going against Dad. You know that. But it's overdue, and if Tony really does want me to run things … there's no way that it wouldn't be a blow to SI. One more thing to worry about on top of Dad's stress levels.
We all have our concerns, Nate said. And we're all worried about Dad. Rachel's been trying to convince him to get help but apparently, the last time he asked anyone for therapy, Emma Frost tried to have a telepathic affair with him using my Mom's face so…
Alright, but can you blame him for not wanting to try there?
Not even a little bit.
The three of them let themselves into the relatively empty entryway and crossed the foyer headed right for Storm's office, where it looked like she had been having more or less the same argument all the other adults were having with their kids, if Mia's switching tail and angry glare was anything to go by.
"Should we come back?" James asked, doing his best version of an innocent expression.
Both of them looked up at the newcomers, and Ororo let out a sigh before she shook her head. "I'm surprised to see you here. I would have thought Scott and Tony would have you under lock and key after that stunt you pulled."
"We're on parole," Nate defended.
"First of all, it wasn't a stunt," James said, holding up one hand. "And second, the parole has conditions."
"Oh?" Ororo raised an eyebrow at them, clearly waiting for the other shoe to drop.
James started toward her and reached into his pocket to hand her one of the panic buttons. "Dad knows that if he's too overbearing it'll just cause bigger problems, so he told us to get a panic button that will call in the Avengers if we have any whisper of trouble." He didn't let her refuse it as he dropped it into her hand. "I'd like if you and Forge looked them over before we do anything with them officially."
Ororo looked honestly surprised as she looked at the small button. "That… is not a bad idea," she said.
"And as for Tony, there were more conditions," James said, holding her gaze. "They said the only way we'd get protection was for those of us not on the team yet to join the Avengers. Steve said the invitation was to the twins and Mia, too - for more protection, better training, and a safety net."
Ororo looked to Mia, who was standing with her hands clasped under her chin and her tail swaying behind her, obviously hopeful - and it was hard to say no to something so reasonable. "Let me look at this panic button," she said. "Then perhaps I'll talk to Steve about working with Mia's school schedule."
James let his shoulders drop and gave her a crooked smile. "You think I'd pull your leg, Aunt 'Ro?"
"I think there's more to this than your smooth tongue will let slip," she said with a fond smile. "You get that from your mother."
"Ask me anything, you know I won't lie to you," James said, still smiling at her.
"Then tell me why you resurrected the team," Ororo said, holding his gaze. "I know what Mia said, but I want to hear your answers. All of you."
The teasing smile slipped, but James didn't miss a beat. "To honor my parents, Nate and Rachel's mom, the professor, and all of you," James said. "I won't ever admit it anywhere else or to anyone else, but Magneto wasn't entirely wrong. The way he's trying to change things now is wrong, and the way he's perverting the professor's dream is insulting to what Dad and you taught us about the professor. The fact that he's doing it while waving the 'X-Men' flag like he ever did anything but fight you on it burns me. So, speaking for myself? I want to do it right. Show the world how it's supposed to look."
Ororo's expression had significantly softened by the time James finished saying his piece, though she didn't say anything as Kate and Nate chimed in too.
"James is right," Nate said with a shrug. "And I don't argue with my big brother when he's right. Plus, I'm tired of seeing my dad get scared every time something hits the news having to do with mutants. I know the Avengers are putting out fires, but I didn't sign up to be a firefighter, you know?"
And when Kate realized Ororo was waiting for her and not just assuming like everyone else had that she was on the team for Nate, she blushed. "It's just… it's stupid everyone thinks only the mutant heroes should take the biggest risk, so like… if I can help and be on a team with Nate, win-win, right?"
For a long time, Ororo was silent as she stared at them, and then she cleared her throat, straightened her shoulders, and nodded. "You… certainly are the X-Men I remember," she said, trying and failing to keep her composure before, in the next second, she had her arms around James, since he was closest, in a tight hug.
"You know we love you guys, right?" James said as he curled into her shoulder.
"And you know that you mean the whole world to us, don't you?" she told him gently.
"Yeah, but that's why we have to do it, too," James said.
"You really are so much like them. All of you. Just like us - bright-eyed and hopeful and wanting to make a difference…" She shook her head and stepped back from the hug. "Be careful."
"We promise," Nate said, holding one hand up. "None of us want anything bad to happen to anyone."
"I should hope not," Ororo said. "I'd hate to think Scott raised masochists."
"The whole reason it took us so long to get going was because we were worried about him," Nate said.
"And now?" Ororo asked, sounding concerned herself.
"I know I can't see into the future, but it's easy to see that now, if we don't do something, Magneto is going to drag it all through the mud and everything will get worse," Nate replied. "And maybe, maybe if we can pull this off - Dad might realize we're not going to disappear on him."
"You know I want success for you," Ororo said, looking between all of them, her gaze resting especially on Mia. "But you also know why I'm asking you to be careful, don't you?"
The three of them nodded, and though it was clear they felt the gravity of it, James was frowning to himself as he agreed with the others.
"So…" Mia said slowly. "Does this mean I'm an Avenger now?"
"Even if she says yes?" Nate said. "Technically you have to pass Cap's entry exam."
"I'll help you," Kate promised. "I got in when I was just old enough to have 'being a teenager' on my side. I've got a few tips and tricks."
"We can all help you," Nate added then turned to Ororo. "And so you know? We told Dad we wouldn't turn down his advice - short of 'don't do it at all'. We'd be stupid not to offer the same to you."
Ororo smiled almost sadly. "Just don't get ahead of yourselves," she warned. "Don't make the mistake of hubris. Ask for help."
"All we've done so far is to clean up a mess someone else made," James said. "We're not above asking for help."
"I know," Ororo said. "But we started small and got bigger than we anticipated - faster than we realized. Don't get caught up in it. That's all."
"Keep it small. Keep it family," Nate said, nodding.
Ororo let out a breath and then made sure to hug him too. "I know I can't talk you out of this," she said. "You really are just like we were. I couldn't be prouder - or more worried."
"I think Dad'll have a support group for that - or at least a time to get together and complain about us," James said.
"Don't think I won't be dragging him over here when you're all on missions," Ororo warned.
"Please do," Nate said. "He could use it."
"Then it's settled," Ororo agreed - while Mia tried very hard to act like she wasn't bouncing for joy behind her mother's back.
"Oh, and when you're done looking that panic button over, keep it," James said. "Tell me how many you want and I'll build them for you."
"We know the school's drawing attention too," Nate explained. "And you should probably take your own advice - you know, have a way to call for help?" He smirked. "Maybe the X-Men can save the school. Or help save it anyway. Novel idea, right?"
Ororo smiled at that. "You are so much like Scott sometimes," she said, then tipped her head James' way. "Both of you."
"Love you too," James said. "So … I guess if we're not going to get yelled at anymore today, what do you think, Nate? Pick up something on the way home?"
"Burgers and fries?" Nate suggested.
"And a shake for Kate so she doesn't die of lack of sugar?" James said, giving her a look. "Or should we not share?"
There was an obvious telepathic conversation between Kate and Nate, with a lot of significant looks in between, before Nate shrugged. "Can't leave her out. We'd be discriminating."
"Alright you can walk," James said as he turned to head for the door. "Both of you. Since you can't keep your minds out of the gutter - no other reason not to speak freely."
Ororo couldn't help but laugh. "Some things never change," she said, grinning broadly.
Chapter 40: Dirty Little Secret Comes Out
Chapter Text
Usually, when James came by to visit the school and gave Billy advanced text notice, that meant Billy was waiting to see him with a huge grin on. This time, though, he was on the couch in the living room with his headphones in distractedly grinning over whatever he was listening to.
James didn't interrupt him more than to just slide onto the other end of the couch, and put his arm up on the back of the couch, then waited for him to finish whatever it was he was up to. He didn't want to interrupt when Billy was concentrating on something that hard.
Suddenly, Billy seemed to notice he wasn't alone. "Oh, hey!"
"Wow. Knew it was a matter of time, but still."
"Sorry. There's this new podcast…" Billy pulled one of the earbuds out and let it dangle around his neck. "PodXcast… It's kind of amazing. Total fangirling of the team. Way better press than the news gives us."
"That really doesn't take much," James pointed out as he slid closer.
"Okay, that's true," Billy admitted. "But seriously, you should listen. She's making a lot of our points for us without getting fed any lines…"
"You sure you didn't just wish her into being?"
"That's what Tommy said…" Billy admitted, blushing. "I didn't though."
James was grinning at him for that. "Subliminal wish?"
"Hey, if I was going to wish someone into being, it would be a big, strong, sassy - oh hey! Look! You're here!" Billy teased and then stole a kiss. "Yay!"
"Alright, that makes up for missing that I was here," James laughed.
"I swear, I just was wrapped up in this podcast," Billy laughed.
"Mmhmm, I'm forgettable. I know." He took a second to give Billy a chance to respond, but when he didn't do more than just stare back, he took the second earbud. "Alright. Hit me. Whatcha got?"
Billy grinned and resumed the podcast, which was talking about the latest X-Men mission - this one going to help some kids that had been busted as mutants accidentally using their powers when they got scared during a Hydra raid. It had actually been pretty seamless… the kids were all Avengers anyway, so they'd seen the trouble brewing and switched gears to help once Hydra was taken care of.
The girl running the podcast - who just gave her name as Alyssa - was gushing about the whole thing, obviously thrilled. "This is exactly what the X-Men used to be! I mean, don't get me wrong, I love the Avengers as much as the next girl who loves eye candy, but it's nice to know there's someone out there who can save a couple college kids from losers…"
She went on for a while after that, covering a lot of the same arguments the kids had made to their concerned parents - and the whole time, Billy was grinning at James, watching his expression.
"Well?" he asked. "Pretty awesome, right? And she's not even a mutant!"
"She's definitely enthusiastic," James said, nodding. "I really didn't expect there to be someone this … well. We haven't been doing this for too long, you know?"
"Yeah, but I think that just speaks to how badly everyone missed the X-Men, you know?" Billy said.
"Definitely," James agreed. "How long has this 'cast been going on?"
"A couple weeks after our first mission," Billy said. "I think she didn't want to jump on board until she knew we were serious and not just… some publicity stunt, y'know? A lot of people thought we were working with my grandfather… still do, actually…"
"That'll change," James said.
"He's already threatened to drag me and Tommy back to Genosha by our ears," Billy said with a smirk.
"We'd be forced to stage a rescue," James replied with a crooked grin.
"Well, actually…" Billy leaned forward a bit. "We're headed back for Spring Break to see Mom anyway, so we sort of placated him, and promised him we'd listen to what he had to say. Mostly so he'd stop threatening to wrap us in metal and shuttle us home if we don't behave?"
"Nothing says a loving gesture like a metal cocoon."
Billy shrugged. "He's… grumpier the older he gets," he said mildly.
"Stop. You're scaring me." James was smiling mildly as he joked around.
"Thinking of the future?" Billy teased, grinning wider. "Worried I'll be a grumpy old man?"
"Yep, and then what would we do?"
Billy grinned and then kissed James. "That, probably."
"Does that help with the grump?" James raised an eyebrow. "Or would it help if I pointed out that at some point, I really won't age anymore?"
Billy grinned. "You mean I get eye candy for the rest of forever? I like this idea."
James laughed and pulled him a little closer. "Dad said Logan was pushing 150 when he died and didn't have a single gray hair."
"Nice. I'll probably go silver like my grandfather," Billy said.
"Well that's not horrible. I mean … look at Tommy. He's already white, right? So he'll probably be bald by that time."
Billy snorted, then leaned back to rest against James' shoulder. "You could come if you wanted," he said. "See the island, I mean."
"Do you want me to?" James asked, smirking crookedly.
"If I say it's because I want you to meet my parents, would you totally bust me for falling too hard too fast? Because I just… it matters to me if you get along with my dad and my mom."
"You get along with mine," he said. "It's only fair, right?"
"Ooh, you know what? We should probably bring him so he doesn't get, like, separation anxiety. And I know Kitty and Bobby would love to see him again."
"I'd have to ask anyhow," James said. "He was doing a good job of controlling his panic attacks when I go with Tony to the other side of the country. Different continent would probably still trigger an arrhythmia. Besides, he could use a break, let's be honest. Besides, if we're in Genosha, we're not running missions, right? If you mean it, I'll ask him tonight."
"Yeah, I mean it," Billy said. "I've never gotten to take a guy home before. Kinda exciting."
James smiled a little wider. "Alright then. We'll see if Dad's game. So … until then, what are we doing?"
Billy grinned crookedly. "We're writing the future where you're ageless and I'm the only twin with hair and you take care of me 'til the day I die and kiss the sense out of me every night …"
"Just every night?"
"Of course not. Mornings, noon, and whenever I say, too."
"Oh, obviously. So … practice for that then?"
Billy grinned and then stole a long kiss. "Yes. That."
"What's that for?" James asked as Katie slid a latte to him while pulling up a chair in his lab. He'd been locked in the tower with Tony for days working on the military project and entirely concentrated on whatever it was the new 3D printer was churning out - not that he'd told anyone what it was yet.
"Just trying to be nice, that's all," she replied with a smile. "That's all."
James raised an eyebrow but haltingly took the coffee. "I'm not saying I believe you … but thanks." He took a sip of the coffee then settled in as Kate got comfy, peeking over at what he was working on.
"Is that for the team?" she asked when she saw the tiny, sharp edges. When James looked up at her, she batted her eyelashes and grinned, knowing it would at least get a smirk out of him. He was practically her brother, as it was - the fact that she was dating Nate hadn't changed that much.
"Absolutely not," James said, then pulled a small tray over to let her take a look. "Just for you. But you knew that or you wouldn't have brought me coffee, right?"
"I … might have heard from Jan that you were working up something new." She grinned as she pulled the box closer. "What are they?"
"Low dose sedative," James answered. "You had all kinds of deterrents, I figured it was time you got something that would sedate a threat harmlessly."
"So I can totally save Nate's butt when he gets in trouble," Kate decided as she picked up the container and grinned at the fact that it wasn't just a handful of them like Tony usually made for her Dad - this was enough to last her for months. "Awww, you do love me."
"I'm pretty sure I have to at this point," James said as he went back to his work. He'd just reached for a screwdriver when it and every other metallic component in the lab suddenly started to float. At first, James frowned, then looked to Kate, who looked just as confused as he was an instant before they were hit by a tremendous wind as the metal holding the glass in place on the outer walls peeled back to admit Magneto, who looked thunderous.
"Can I help you?" James said as dryly as he could manage about half a second before he found himself wrapped up tightly in wires and whatever bits of metal Magneto had pulled out of the walls around them. It was tight enough to keep him from fighting back, but not quite tight enough to dig in deeply.
And before Magneto could say anything, a ball of plastic wire covering hit him in the back of the helmet. "What, do they not teach you how to say a polite hello on Genosha? What is your problem?"
"This doesn't concern you, young lady," Erik said shortly.
"Um, you wrapped up my second favorite Summers. I'm concerned."
"Kate, just go," James said from between his teeth. "He's not going to do anything stupid like piss off his grandson by being more of a jackass and actually hurting me." He glared at Erik with every bit of venom that they'd gotten acoss on their first meeting at Xaviers. "He knows that would blow up in his face. He's just like this."
"Yeah, well, I'm protective of you, so… there," Kate said with a shrug. "Hi, Magneto, by the way. What's got your cape twisted?"
"That is a private matter," Erik said. "And it doesn't concern little Avengers and would-be X-Men."
Kate gestured toward James with one hand. "Um, you attacked someone on both teams in the presence of an Avenger in Avengers' tower, so I'm just gonna have to disagree with that assessment. Assault by magnetic burrito is still assault."
"He's just mad I'm with Billy," James said. "It's not about the teams."
Kate rolled her eyes. "Seriously? Your grandkid finds a beefcake and you're pissed about it?"
James stared at her in disbelief, and Erik seemed to be doing the same, though before James could find the words to respond, Erik got there first. "That has no bearing on matters."
"It's not that he found someone, it's that it's me," James said. "I'm not the right kind of mutant."
Once again, Kate rolled her eyes. "Uh-huh. Not bad enough there's the human-mutant divide, now we gotta do subdivisions?" She gestured to James. "What's wrong with him anyway? He's a total cutie and a genius and he's got all the Summers manners drilled into his head. Come on."
"Why are you here?" Erik asked with a sneer, though when the banging on the door got louder, he flicked his wrist to send an entire bench across the room to barricade the door better. "And more importantly, why haven't you even tried to defend your friend if that's how you feel?"
"Well, one, I like Billy and I think he'd be mad if I used his grandfather's cape as a hangman's noose? And two, I'm here because James and I are friends. And three, I didn't bring any wooden stake arrows. So… we can be civilized, right?"
For a moment, Erik simply blinked at her before he started to walk toward her. "What is it that you do again, Miss Barton?"
"Cheerlead?" Kate offered with a winning smile.
For an instant, he looked almost amused. "Ah. Now it makes sense. The Avengers will only allow you to parade around as so called 'X-Men' if you keep a token human in your ranks."
"If that were the case, it'd be exactly what the professor would have wanted," James shot back.
"Peaceful coexistence," Kate agreed, nodding fervently. "Isn't that the point?"
"Not anymore" Erik said, turning her way with a snarl. "I think there's been more than enough human interference with mutantkind. And I've had enough of your influence as well."
"Can't take the truth," Kate muttered to James. "Good thing Billy got the sense his grandfather missed out on. Must be his dad's influence."
"I think, Miss Barton, that you'd find you'll live longer if you mind your own business," Erik said. "And as for you." He turned toward James looking just as livid as ever while tightening the metal slightly - but enough that Kate could see it moving. "Do not dismiss my offer to protect your little group. Unless of course, you're simply biding your time before you find yourself discovering your real usefulness inside of a lab isn't going to be conducting the experiments. The company you keep will determine who it is holding the leash - and who you drag down with you."
James glared back at him, but surprisingly didn't have anything to respond with before Erik simply dropped him and found his own way out, demagnetizing the barricade that had been shoved against the door, though the windows were going to need professional repair. Which meant that James needed help to get out of his wrapped up state and his lab was wrecked for the time being.
"Kate," James said after a moment. "Are you okay?"
Kate sniffed slightly and tipped her chin up. "Of course I'm okay," she said. "You're the one in a metal cocoon."
"Just … find something to cut through this crap, please."
"Good thing I hang out in your lab," Kate muttered, looking through James' tools until she found a precision laser and a wire cutter. "Okay, tell me if I get too close…"
James turned his head away from Kate and the cutter, only cringing a few times when he got burned from the laser or the wire cutters pinched more than just wire. He was quiet and clearly angry as she worked, though it wasn't until she was done that he spoke again. "Not a word."
"About which part? The metal bodysuit or the fact that Magneto now knows you're a beefcake?" Kate asked with just a bit of her usual teasing - though she wasn't quite on her game and James could see it.
James barely smirked as he shook his head. "He's just mad. We're both fine, and my Dad does not need to worry himself over this." He gave her a significant look. "I'm sure Billy already knows that he was coming to talk, so just … let it go."
"Yeah, well, I at least have to tell my parents I got busted as a human," Kate said, wincing slightly. "Nate made me swear to tell the Avengers when that happened. He's kinda cute when he's protective."
James gestured around them. "Fifty bucks says the redecorator already knows anyhow, but yeah. You need to tell them that much. For your own safety. Just … ah … leave me out of it."
"Still gonna look out for you - you know that, right?" Kate said. "You're pretty much family."
"I'll be fine, Katie." James' tone was clearly down as he turned and simply started cleaning up a little bit before the sounds of pounding grew louder with shouts accenting the hits. He looked at Kate for a moment, then started pushing the bench out of the way to admit half of the Avengers. "Katie strained her sass-box," James said, then went back to salvage mode while the adults began to take in the damage.
"I couldn't help it," Kate said, then waved at her mom with the tips of her fingers. "Hey, Mom. Promise I'm okay. James backed me up, right, James?"
"Yep," was the sort response, and it was clear he was closing down and getting madder the more he thought about it. "Great rebound, Hawkeye."
"What did he want?" Steve asked, surveying the damage with his eyes narrowed - the Avengers didn't have to ask to find out who was responsible.
"To be sassed," Kate said. "Oh, and to meet Billy's boyfriend."
"It's fine," James said, though he wasn't looking at any of them and he didn't realize how irked he really looked with the determined glare he was wearing .
"I know that look," Natasha started to say, but Kate cut in. (After all, she wanted to back James up, and she knew he really was worried about his dad getting too stressed about it.)
"James is… kinda pissed off on my behalf," Kate put in, blushing red. "I got… busted. As a human. Because I couldn't help James except to sass." She glanced up at the other Avengers. "Oh, and he thinks that means the Avengers won't let the X-Men exist as a team without human supervision, so that's fun."
Tony swore outright and started to pace - at least until James pushed a few tablets into his hands. "He didn't take anything with him. It's fine."
"He really was mostly just here to make threats because James is so obviously a bad influence on Billy and I'm such an evil human," Kate said, rolling her eyes. "I sassed him away."
"What kind of threats were made?" Natasha asked with a frown.
"Nothing," James said.
"Be a good human and don't interfere," Kate said at the same time - because her version of mad meant she was going to complain about it.
Natasha arched one eyebrow high. "Is that all?"
"Jackass spilled my coffee," James said under his breath, blatantly avoiding answering her as he picked up the now-empty cup then walked over to grab his coat. He turned toward Tony, not even looking at Natasha. "Am I going to work with you tomorrow, or do you want me to just stay home until this gets fixed?"
"I'd say dealers choice, but I kinda think you might need a day if you're not even going to answer questions," Tony said, looking far more stressed out than he had in a long time.
"Fine," James said, his lip almost curling as he spoke. "Let me know when I can come back." He started toward the door, only pausing to kiss Kate's cheek. "Glad you're alright. Thanks again for the coffee."
Of course, Kate wasn't doing a very good job hiding the fact that James had been threatened, no matter how hard she was trying to hold the line. Obviously, her mom was suspicious. But she had been worried enough about James that she hadn't pressed Kate in front of all the other Avengers.
Her dad, on the other hand, was a whole other thing.
Kate was on the roof of the Bartons' building pegging empty soda bottles with dimes - something her dad had taught her to do not long after she was adopted - when Clint sat down with her.
"You know you can't protect him from Magneto on your own, right?" Clint said.
Kate glanced up at him quickly and then went right back to what she was doing. "It's fine, Dad."
"It's not, Katie," Clint said in the exact same tone and meter she had been using. "What did he say to get you to clam up?"
"Dad…"
"Katie," Clint said, copying her whiny tone.
Kate rolled her eyes. "You know I hate it when you do that."
"Well then don't blow me off and I won't have to do it."
Kate huffed out an annoyed breath, but again, Clint stood his ground. So, she hunched her shoulders and rested her chin on her knees. "He just doesn't want his dad to have a stroke worrying about him, okay?"
"That's a valid concern," Clint agreed, scooting closer. "But maybe it would be better for him to know the truth instead of twisting himself up worrying the what-ifs." When Kate raised an eyebrow his way, he shrugged. "I speak 'worried father'."
Kate shook her head and rested her head on his shoulder. "It really wasn't a big deal. It was the supervillain version of Luke going after Scott when James and Dani were a thing. Except with more drama and 'don't mess with my warped vision for the world if you want to live' in there. With swishy capes."
"So was it Luke-level or Red Skull-level? I think I've lost track somewhere," Clint teased.
Kate laughed. "Honestly, it's hard to tell with him. He definitely threatened me and more or less told James not to associate with riff-raff if he didn't want to end up with the riff-raff being thrown out or whatever. So sort of a tangential threat? I didn't hear all of it. But he also wrapped James up in metal as an introduction before he said anything at all, so he's pissy about James and Billy and will almost definitely try to break my second favorite Summers if Billy gives even the slightest indication he's not interested or, heaven forbid, they don't work."
"Kate, that's not nothing from Magneto."
"I know," she said. "But … James isn't wrong either. He's not going to stop dating Billy, and besides, we're already pissing Magneto off wearing the X's, so this isn't new information, right?"
"It is, but the attempt to play it down was valiant."
Kate smiled and snuggled into Clint a little more. "So, can we not talk about supervillains for a minute? I already got interrogated by Uncle Tony and Uncle Steve."
"Oooh. Double-teamed?"
"With Mom playing referee."
"You need ice cream, then."
"Yes. Yes, I do."
Clint had only waited long enough for Kate to get distracted texting with Nate before he told Scott the whole story - and then Scott had waited until James was gone the next morning to get himself breakfast before he even started to dissect everything he'd learned.
He wasn't just thinking about the incident with James, either. He still hadn't forgotten Kitty's warnings or the fact that Magneto was showing his face far more often outside of Genosha - and drawing down exactly the anti-mutant sentiment that the X-Men and Avengers had managed to keep at bay with their avoidance tactics.
It was starting to feel distressingly familiar, right down to Magneto threatening the feral on the team for being inferior.
Kitty's call was almost enough to get him thinking about dealing with Magneto himself, but knowing his son was in danger too, not to mention his younger son's girlfriend - well, he didn't like the way this was going. He might not have been leading the X-Men anymore, but he hadn't lost the ability to plan ahead and strategize. And mitigating the damage Magneto could do was crucial now - before he got too much traction.
He just didn't like his options with the X-Men disbanded and the Avengers even bigger targets because they had failed to stop the first X-Men from being killed off. He knew Magneto still harbored a grudge. A big one. If they stepped in, he'd kill them. He'd barely held back on Genosha the first time because Tony had been helping Scott at the time.
He sighed and shook himself out of his thoughts when he heard the familiar knock at his front door that meant Toby was there. He hadn't had time to process all this information and form a plan yet, so he put it out of his mind for the time being.
"Why the long face?" Tony asked when Scott opened the door and invited him in wordlessly.
"James is getting a hard time for dating Billy," Scott told him honestly.
"He had to know that was going to happen sooner or later from someone," Toby reasoned. "Who was it being a pain?"
"Billy's family, actually," Scott said. "He's dealing with it. I'm waiting to see how he deals with it before I decide if I need to step in." He gave Toby a tired smile. "He's almost an adult. I'm trying to remember that."
"Well," Toby said slowly. "How bad can it be? The two of them seemed good together when I saw them last. Billy seems like he's stable, so he probably had a good home life … it'll blow over, I'm sure. Your boy isn't the type to start much trouble, that I've seen."
"We'll see," Scott said. He paused. "Do you know who Billy's grandfather is?"
"Does it matter?" Toby asked.
"It's Magneto."
Toby paused, staring at Scott for a long moment. "Well that explains why he's suddenly showing up again."
"Yeah." Scott let out a long sigh. "We'll see how this goes. Billy's parents were Avengers. He seems to take after them. But I'm keeping an eye out."
"You're still not sure about the boy then?" Toby asked.
"I'm as sure as I can be when Betsy tells me he and his grandfather are in regular contact."
Toby went back to stirring his coffee, though it was clearly a habit and not out of necessity at all. "What exactly would Billy and his crazy grandfather have to gain by messing with your boy?"
"So far, the worst trouble has been that James is close with the Avengers."
"How is that a problem?" Toby asked.
"To be honest, Magneto never forgave them for not stepping in to help mutants in a more substantial way before the professor and everyone else was killed."
"So … what? Association would mean the kid is guilty of turning on mutants, or ... "
"Toby, all of this is new intel for me too. When I was an X-Man, there were times we could work with Magneto and he was a dependable ally. Other times, he was an egomaniacal villain trying to take the world down with him. I still don't know which way he's leaning. I'll let you know when I do."
Toby nodded at that. "And you know, if your boy needs to talk to someone …" He shrugged. "He's welcome to sit and have coffee anytime. I know he won't talk."
"Thanks, Toby."
Chapter 41: So Much Teenage Drama
Chapter Text
While Nate was taking a day with his team for a seminar and James was with Tony working away, Kate was more than happy to take a day to go visit Mia. It was overdue anyhow - and the way she'd heard it from her sources on the ground in Westchester, Mia was in hot water over her speedy boyfriend. And by all her sources, that meant Billy, who had an inside scoop on everything concerning his twin.
But he hadn't gotten the time to relay to Kate what he knew, or what was going on with how grounded Tommy was via remote, including how Storm was in charge of enforcing his punishments. Mia knew, though. And she was not thrilled.
The fact remained that Ororo was in charge of both of their punishments on a level that was more meaningful than just headmistress. Especially when she was making sure that the punishments were complementing each other.
When Kate got to the Institute, Billy and Mia were getting the snacks together in preparation for their night in. Mia had insisted Kate bring a couple of new movies, but the moment she'd walked into the room it was pretty clear that Mia had zero intentions of watching them. Especially when so much in her world was so epically unfair.
"We haven't even done that much," Mia lamented as she perched on the back of the couch with Kate and Billy watching her rant as they shared the popcorn.
"Whose definition of 'not much' are you working off of?" Kate asked with a smile. "Because there might be a sliding scale for you know … time dating and age ... "
"Doesn't count as much when you're like … practically living together," Mia argued. "Which … same building."
"Different wings," Kate laughed.
"I know you're enjoying pushing things, but … you really should be careful with Tommy-," Billy said.
"You mean like your grandfather told you to be careful - no. that wasn't it," Mia said with her finger on her chin. "He told you to steer clear of James. Not just to be careful."
Billy stared at her for a moment in shocked silence. "How did you…"
"Yeah, Tommy totally threw you under the bus once he got started on perfect little Billy." Mia shook her head. "He was honestly surprised Magneto was even mad at you, but he wasn't surprised you didn't get in trouble while your boyfriend did."
"How … how mad was he?" Billy asked quietly. "My grandfather, I mean."
As Mia lifted one eyebrow, Kate pushed him in the shoulder. "Are you kidding? He totally rearranged James' lab." Kate frowned, though she stopped short of telling him anything else if James was going to try to keep secrets. "You knew about that. I know you did."
"I thought it was more sweeping than just James' lab," Billy said, looking honestly alarmed. "That would explain why there wasn't an answer yet."
"An answer to what?" Mia asked brightly, though the way her tail was swaying was a dead giveaway of how much she was enjoying someone else in trouble.
Billy glanced up at her and shook his head. "Nevermind. We should just … focus on how you're going to have your mother stringing Tommy up and how you'll never be able to be on any team because you love trouble so much."
Mia gasped dramatically and threw a handful of popcorn at Billy. "Like you have room to talk! You're spending every minute you get trying to be just as speedy as your brother!"
"Time out," Kate said, holding her hands up in a 'T' in front of herself. "We are not talking about who got how far with who. At all. Ever." She turned to Mia with a grin. "You're too young. And I like coming here to see you." But she honestly couldn't help herself. "But he looks like he's fun. You know. With the kissing and troublemaking and … yeah...still not nearly as interesting as my Superior Summers, though."
And while they were chatting and comparing Nate Summers to Billy's twin with a level of detail that Billy wasn't entirely comfortable with, Billy took his phone out to text James and find out how bad it had been when Erik had come by. He really wanted to know since James hadn't said what had gone down at all. Of course, halfway through drafting the text, he second guessed himself, deleted it, and instead sent a selfie with Kate that Mia photobombed upside down at the last possible moment with a caption of 'wish you were here'.
He wasn't expecting James to reply with 'me too' and a selfie taken by Tony that had both of them, Peter, and little May Parker all working on the military project. Or to be more accurate, Tony, James, and Peter were. May was there simply to keep her out of trouble and it was clear from the pictures she wasn't amused, even if the three brainiacs were having a good time. She was gravitating toward the one person closest in age, though.
But on seeing what was going on - the three guys picking on May, with her hating every second of it and trying to use James as a buffer - Billy didn't want to push or to come off as too … needy. Especially if James wasn't telling him things like when grandfathers attack. So instead of trying to find out what had happened, Billy did the wisest thing he could think of and kept it light with a few comments on how James looked and a few emojis. But it wasn't long before he had to ask how things were going with May in the middle, too. He cringed at himself as soon as he'd sent it, but … it was too late to take it back. But the response felt almost mixed.
Mayday really isn't helping much one way or the other, James wrote - which was both a little dismissive of her while also going back to her nickname.
Billy knew that he and May had been a pretty serious item, but again, he knew that more from the spilling that their friends had done. Not so much what James had said.
"Hey! Are you going to be here with us or are you going to daydream about your man-candy all night?" Kate teased before she reached over to steal Billy's phone.
"Like you're not texting Nate," Billy said, turning away from her to keep it to himself, not that it did him much good with Mia there to snatch it away then teleport to the other side of Kate, smiling at the string of texts as soon as she looked.
"Awwww, you two are so sweet," Mia said, her tail swaying behind her. "I thought it would be more steamy than 'oh, I miss you why can't we be kissing' kind of stuff."
Kate snatched the phone from Mia. "If it was, all the more reason for you not to read it!" When Billy tried to take it back, Kate held it tight to her chest, protecting it. "I'm not going to read it. I'm just going to keep you from going off the deep end when we're supposed to be having a movie night!"
Billy paused just long enough to decide on his course of action and lunged to steal Kate's phone. Which he managed to get as Kate protested loudly in his ear. Clearly, she'd thought he was going for his own phone. "Fine. But I'm keeping yours and answering Nate's awkward flirting myself until you give mine back."
Kate grinned in spite of the situation, but it was pretty clear neither one of them wanted to share their texts. "Trade on three. And no more having a whole facial journey while staring at your phone."
"You're one to talk," Billy laughed. "You should see yourself when you and Nate have your telepathic flirting sessions in public."
"I'm not that bad," Kate defended with wide eyes, thunderstruck at the accusation, but she ended up throwing a pillow at her friends when Mia slid over to sit by Billy, nodding solemnly.
"You really are," Mia said.
Scott had been increasingly quiet around all three of his kids, and not one of them had missed it. At all. Family dinners were getting less frequent from the kids' work with the two teams, and when they did happen, they were mostly in silence. No one wanted to talk about much of anything to avoid hitting the wrong nerve.
The four of them were more or less staring at each other as Nate tried to casually mention that he needed a sign up time for Scott to talk to his homeroom teacher, who also happened to be his history teacher. And the more Nate tried to press the subject, the more James and Rachel were sharing a raised eyebrow look Nate's way.
You're not subtle, Nate, Rachel projected to him. You're lucky Dad's distracted, or he'd bust you for matchmaking.
Why do you think I'm trying? Nate replied. Look at him. He needs the help.
Rachel bit her lip as she watched Scott. Okay, but your history teacher?
She's nice, she doesn't take crap from anybody, and she's always gushing about her nieces and nephews. Dad needs 'normal family woman' so…
You just want Dad distracted with Ms. Hale so you can get distracted with Kate.
Not 'just'...
Uh-huh, Rachel said, and Nate shot her a dirty look.
"Hey, Dad," James said, blatantly ignoring that his siblings were again clearly having a telepathic chat. Especially when what he had to ask would make some waves. Especially after Magneto's little warning. But just because Magneto didn't approve did not mean that Billy didn't want to move forward. And he'd been gently hinting to see if James had even asked about the trip. It was pretty clear that Billy was concerned that Erik was going to chase him off, but James wasn't going to let Magneto mess up what he thought was a good thing. Even if he was concerned his dad might not be as approving after the incident in the lab. "Spring break is coming up pretty soon." When Scott didn't really seem to react much, James pressed on. "So if you don't have plans already, Billy invited us to go to Genosha for the week. He wants me to officially meet his parents, and he asked me to extend the invite to you, too."
Scott looked up in obvious surprise at that. "Wait, what?"
James frowned at him as he answered slowly. "Billy invited us to Genosha for spring break. I'm asking if we can go, since I'm sure you don't want me to go alone and probably end up locked up for breathing or looking like I do."
Scott blinked at James slowly and then nodded. "Alright."
For a moment, James looked surprised at how quickly that had happened - with no further questions at all. He blinked a few times and glanced at his siblings. "Great, I'll let him know you're on board. Thanks."
"Absolutely," Scott said, looking back down at his dinner, though that just left the three kids sharing confused looks across the table.
He can't wait to get rid of me, James projected to Rachel, only halfway joking and still in shock at how easily Scott had rolled with it.
No, that's not it, Rachel said. He wants to go to Genosha… but he's blocking me on why.
Yeah, that can't be good, James projected.
He didn't mean to let me know he was thinking that way, but he was so… pleasantly surprised when you brought it up...
Doesn't make me feel any better, James said. This has that whole 'hiding things' stink to it. He frowned to himself and then pointedly took his phone out to text Billy - just to see if Scott would say anything like he used to do.
"Phones at the table," Scott said after a beat too long.
"Just checking for a pulse," James said, then finished his text before he put the phone down.
Scott looked up and saw that all three of the kids were watching him, and he let out a small breath. "Sorry," he said. "I've just been distracted."
"So let us un-distract you," Nate said.
"Right." Scott cleared his throat. "This homeroom teacher - I thought I already went to the parent night before the semester started."
"I may or may not be failing history," Nate said.
"Nate." Scott was suddenly much more engaged in the conversation. "If you can't keep your grades up, you can't be on any team at all."
"Yeah, I know," Nate said. "But that's why she wanted to talk to you. That's what I was trying to tell you."
"I'm sorry; I -" Scott took a deep breath and, seeing how the kids were looking at him, decided to tell them at least some of it. "An old friend of mine reached out to me. I'm sure you remember Kitty. She's worried about… everything. I told her I'd … well, I'm trying to ease her mind."
"So …you're agreeing to let me go to Genosha because it's tactical," James said slowly.
Scott nodded. "Kitty is worried about Magneto stepping out in the open again. Historically, he's been reasonable when he's left to his own devices, but when he's on a mission like this, everything falls to the wayside and he doesn't stop unless - well, it used to be that the professor would remind him he wasn't a monster…"
"And it's got you worried enough that you totally missed the reason behind the trip," James said, raising an eyebrow. "Awesome."
"I'm sorry, James," Scott said, reaching out to put a hand on his arm. "I was listening. I think it's great that Billy invited you, and I'm glad you've found someone like him that wants you to be more involved in his life. I really am."
"Good," James said. "I'll take that double standard." But at that, Rachel telekinetically tipped his chair back and rolled her eyes at him.
Scott shook his head at them both. "Anyway, this trip will let me get a good idea of how far off the beaten path Magneto is so I can help Kitty," he explained. "So, yes, I was distracted. I'm sorry."
James nodded slowly as Scott seemed to at least begin to tell them what was going on, and after a little while, he reached out to Rachel again. First thing tomorrow, I'm going to finish the panic buttons with no metallic components. If he's this worried, we should have them for the trip - and we should be able to leave some with Kitty and the others.
Agreed, Rachel replied. And see if you can manage to drop one on him without him noticing. He's definitely holding back, and he's got that look like he and Natasha get when they're about to overhaul the security.
You want a bug on Dad? Really? Or just a tracer? Either way, I'm going to have to make something that will go around the tech in his eyes, too.
Rachel paused and bit her lip. Just a tracer. For now. I'd feel weird spying on him, and it does sound like he's trying to help.
But not weird trying to pick it out of his head.
Oh, like I don't spy on everyone that way, Rachel said with a shrug.
My point is what's the difference?
Well… he can block me telepathically, Rachel said. So it's … it feels more invasive to eavesdrop anyway.
Alright, got it. You want to be the one to hear it, James teased. Like the Punisher but with eavesdropping.
That's not what I said!
I'll get the tracer, sis. Don't worry.
Rachel let out a breath of a laugh. Alright. And… if we still don't feel like we know enough after you get back from Genosha, then we can old-school spy.
I'll try to put one on him when we're in Genosha, James said. Ready or not.
Might help us if we eavesdrop on Magneto…
I'll try to wear one when I'm stuck around him too, James said. I know it'll have to happen.
Be careful. If Dad's this worried, enough to actually put himself out there, in the field...
I know. This is bad.
Something goes wrong, reach out to me and the Avengers, please. Me first. If Dad's in trouble, or my little brother…
Sure you don't want to go too? James asked. I'll bet Billy wouldn't mind.
Rachel paused. Maybe I will, she said at last.
Might help him focus if all of us weren't off doing missions while he's gone.
Very true. And he'll probably make Nate study all break, she teased.
Which won't be possible if Kate's around to help him.
He's not even really failing. He'll be fine. He knows the material.
Yeah, but like Dad's going to let it stand at that. This is obviously a set up.
Honestly? I think Dad doesn't see it. Which just means the Magneto thing is so bad…. That maybe this setup will work. Which is kind of nuts.
Good, James said. He's been unhappy for too long.
Fingers crossed, Rachel agreed before she got up and smiled at Scott. "Come on, Dad. Let's have a movie night. We haven't done that in forever."
It took a solid week to schedule out all the repairs to the lab and to have the work actually done, and yet, by the time Tony's workers were moving the equipment back into James' lab, the boy still hadn't said more than a handful of words to any given Avenger about what had happened in the lab between himself and Magneto. So naturally, Tony felt like it was time to step in and make sure that his favorite of the team was actually okay. The trouble was finding the right time to do it.
As soon as the last workers cleared out and James started setting things up, Tony dove in with him, getting the more delicate equipment set up properly so they could run some tests to make sure everything was in good working order. Magneto's little hissy fit had set his work back considerably.
His computers were humming in the background rebooting and preparing for whatever might be asked of them as they started on the last of the equipment, and Tony paused when he saw a mass of ceramic circuitry. "What … are you working on here?" He turned the mass over in his hand, frowning at the vague familiarity of it, and barely getting ahead of James' explanation as he realized that it had been in the base of the 3D printer he'd made.
"As soon as the team started up, I began working on better communication systems," James said. "You knew that. You came in to yell at me after I made the panic buttons."
"Yeah but this …"
"Is a grade or two above what I came up with for the prototypes," James finished, then turned toward Tony with his arms to his sides. "I know everyone thinks I have a death wish, but I don't. I had no intention of facing Magneto with metallic components. That-" he gestured to the mass Tony was holding. "Is hopefully, a way to go around him so if we end up needing help you won't have to listen for the silence and the news reports."
Tony blinked and glanced at James as he continued setting up his equipment. "Is this what you're printing and didn't want to tell me about?"
James didn't turn around as he kept working. "No. I'm printing what it's going to be housed in." Finally he turned and gave Tony a significant look. "It's not just the new team that I want to see protected from this guy in particular. You might be freaking out about what happens to your company down the road, but what about now? What about Jan? Or the rest of the team? If you know you're going to eventually face a guy that manipulates metal, why the hell would you bring him some when you end up talking to him?"
Tony couldn't dampen the smile that was cropping up in spite of himself. "So what's your plan now?"
"Finish your armor first, because he will definitely come back at some point and I want to know that you have that much at least. Then I'm going to re-create everything here that I can in this new material to replace anything metallic in my lab. He had too much to work with last time. No reason to make it so easy."
"James, half the city is metal," Tony pointed out.
"I'll deal with it," James said with a grim smirk. "Don't worry. I've got a few contingencies in place. I just need to build them and test them."
"Ah. And we're back to the devious look. Good," Tony said, nodding before he set the circuits down and simply started working with James to make things go a little quicker. "You mind if I ask what your boyfriend thinks of his grandfather threatening you?"
James hedged for a moment, but kept working. "I maybe didn't give him specifics when he asked what happened."
"Why not?"
"I don't want to be the source of any discord between him and his family," James said. "And without even trying, I already am. So I'm not going to make it worse. Either Magneto will find a way to cope or Billy will get tired of me."
Tony frowned, but didn't stop working. "And if neither of those things happens?"
"It'll be one or the other," James said, then blew out a breath. "If you really need to talk though, could it be about something … not Magneto related?"
"Sure. As soon as Magneto stops trying to threaten you into … something. Are you ever going to tell me what he said to you?"
"No," James said quietly.
"Hey. You know that even if I didn't want you to take over for me down the road, I still want you safe, right?"
James was thankful Tony couldn't see the look on his face at that moment, because the idea that he was safe at this point was laughable. Chatter was up - he knew that from watching Natasha, and any promise that the tower was a safe haven was up in smoke since Magneto stuck his nose into things. It was all the more irritating when he knew that now he couldn't tell Billy where the real house was since that could get back to Magneto and put his family at risk. But instead of voicing any of that, he did what was quickly becoming the norm for him and did what he could to ease Tony's mind. "Yeah. Love you too."
Chapter 42: New Age of Mission Prep
Chapter Text
The week before Spring Break, Scott found himself at Nate's high school to talk with his history teacher, Ms. Hale, while Nate was still at football practice after school. He hadn't been as active at the school as he had been when the kids were younger, so he wasn't as well-known outside of the coaching staff, who knew him well.
Ms. Hale was a short, slightly plump woman with brown hair pulled back into a ponytail, but Scott was impressed as well with the way she had her classroom set up. There were reminders around the room of upcoming events, each section of the room was dedicated to a different theme… The kids had visual reminders everywhere of what they were learning and what was due.
Which should have been perfect for Nate, so Scott was already frowning to himself even as Ms. Hale looked up with a smile.
"You must be Mr. Mueller," she said.
"And you must be Ms. Hale," Scott said, shaking her outstretched hand.
She smiled and nodded. "Please, sit down," she said as she sat behind her own desk, and once Scott was seated, she didn't wait to get right to it. "I'll be honest: Nate should not be failing my class. He's a good student, and he's got a stellar record not just on the team but in his other classes. And I know he knows the material."
Scott frowned at that. "It's not like him to fall behind in any of his classes," he agreed.
"And that's why I wanted to talk to you," Ms. Hale said. "I don't think this is a problem with my class. I think this is behavioral. But he's a model student. He's only ever been in trouble here with his girlfriend, and that's typical teenage behavior."
"Tell me about it," Scott said in a sigh.
"So I want you to tell me, Mr. Mueller, why your son is failing my class for attention."
Whatever Scott had been expecting to hear from this conference, that was clearly not it. "I - what?"
"He's a star football player, he has a girlfriend who adores him, he's well-liked - the only conclusion I can come to is that he wants either my attention or yours, and considering how much trouble he gets up to with his girlfriend, I sincerely hope it's not mine he's after," Ms. Hale said, one eyebrow raised.
Scott shook his head at that. "He's never done anything like this before," he said, then paused. "Well, we have been disagreeing lately. But-" He sighed and rubbed his forehead. "I'll talk to him. He knows better than this, and he knows better than to disrespect his teachers just to get my attention."
"I've seen worse, you know," Ms. Hale said gently, obviously seeing that Scott was bothered.
"Not the way I raised my kids," Scott said. He shook his head and got to his feet. "I'm sorry he decided to use your class to do this. You shouldn't have been pulled into our private argument."
"It's been my experience that if one of my kids is crying out that much for attention, maybe you want to try something different," Ms. Hale suggested.
"I go to all his games, and we go fishing during the summer," Scott clarified. "He gets plenty of attention. This is … something else entirely. A very old fight that's been going on since he was a kid. I'm sorry he pulled you into this."
"Mr. Mueller, if there's something I can do-"
"If you learn how to get teenagers to stop rebelling, I'll personally build you a monument," Scott said with a small smirk. "It's fine."
"Still," Ms. Hale said, her head tipped to the side as she watched Scott, "these kids - all of my kids - mean a lot to me. And Nate really is a good student. I don't want to see him throw his potential away."
"Yeah, I can see why he chose you now," Scott said, shaking his head and smiling despite himself. "We've been talking a lot about his potential and what he wants to do after graduation."
"I thought he wanted to play college ball?"
"He's still figuring a few things out," Scott said. He let out a sigh. "Thank you for bringing this to my attention. I promise, I'll talk to him. He shouldn't be failing your class."
Ms. Hale nodded as she got to her feet, though her smile was soft as she took his hand to shake it again. "Don't be too hard on him, Mr. Mueller. He's talked about you sometimes in class, and it's obvious he looks up to you."
All at once, Scott put it together, and then he almost laughed. "Ms. Hale," he said, smiling despite himself, "my son was trying to talk me up. I'm so sorry. I think he's trying to set us up." He shook his head. "I should have realized as soon as - I'm so sorry. He thinks I need to start dating again."
Ms. Hale flushed high on her cheeks. "Oh. Really?"
Scott was still smiling and shaking his head. "I really am sorry you went to all this trouble. Nate means well; he really does."
"Obviously," she said, still flushing.
"Though this is the first time he's ever pulled a stunt like this," Scott said. "He must really like you."
"Yes. Well." Ms. Hale tucked a stray strand of hair behind her ear.
"It was nice to meet you, Ms. Hale," Scott said when it was clear she was still a little flustered. "Obviously, you're an amazing teacher, or my son wouldn't go to these lengths to get us to meet."
Ms. Hale nodded, though it wasn't until Scott was at the door that she let out a breath and said, "Well, maybe I'll see you at the football games. It would be nice to meet you outside of your son's matchmaking scenario."
Scott paused and then let out a breath. "Well, we'll see what happens come the fall season," he said, and Ms. Hale frowned a bit but nodded all the same as Scott left.
"Nathaniel Christopher Charles Summers."
James and Rachel shared a look where the three of them had been sitting together working out plans for their own training exercises and all at once, the two of them gathered up their things, stood up and utterly abandoned Nate to their father without so much as a backward glance.
"Hi, Dad," Nate said as Scott stalked over and put a finger in the center of his chest.
"You do not fail your classes just to try and set me up with your teacher," Scott said. "It's disrespectful to her, and it's not the way I raised you to behave."
"I won't fail," Nate said. "I'm pulling a 68, and I can get it up to-"
"That's not the point," Scott said, pinching the bridge of his nose. "You arranged for your teacher to stay after school and take time out of her day on the pretense of - she was worried there was some kind of trouble at home and that you were acting out for attention, you-" He shook his head. "This is not how I raised you to behave."
"Message received," Nate said, holding up both hands. "I won't do it again."
"Good. You're grounded," Scott said. "You're spending your break studying, and you're spending it under Ororo's watch, and she will decide how best to keep you busy. Is that understood?"
Nate nodded.
"Good." Scott turned on his heel to leave.
"Yeah, but did you get her number?" Nate asked.
Scott closed his eyes and tipped his head back before he turned to face Nate. "Nate, my kids are X-Men, my old friend is worried about a megalomaniac - what makes you think I want to date right now?"
"You should," Nate said. "You're all cooped up here trying to find new ways to shoot up your blood pressure." When Scott gave him a dry look, Nate shrugged. "Wouldn't kill you to try, Dad. And she's not even an Avenger or anything."
Scott stared at Nate before he shook his head. "Unbelievable," he said as he walked out of the door and headed for his room. "Just like your mother."
"You're sure you're alright with most of my family coming along, too?" James asked as he and Billy headed for the little movie theater in Salem Center. Scott had reached out to Wanda when Rachel and James asked if she could go along - and they'd even been sure to point out that Rachel might just be able to help him get a peek at what people on the island were thinking - not just the royal family, but the citizens too … for a more comprehensive look into what life on Genosha was like.
And although Scott was obviously hesitant at first, it was hard for him to deny the invaluable tactical advantage that could give him when weighing out how best to approach all of it.
What was shocking to Scott, and his kids was the fact that Wanda sounded relieved that Rachel would be coming too. And she'd even pressed to make sure Scott knew she wanted time alone with him to talk once he was there. But Billy didn't know any of that, and even Wanda had wanted to make sure that none of the Summers' said a word about it to Billy. Clearly, she knew something was wrong on Genosha.
"Seeing as Rachel would be the odd-woman out and stuck as the sole witness to Kate and Nate sucking face all day? Yes. She could use a little vacation from thinking she's in charge of everyone, and besides - I love your sister."
"Everyone loves Rachel," James agreed as he took a hold of Billy's hand as they walked down the sidewalk.
But aside from that, James fell quiet for most of the date. It wasn't until the movie was over and they were headed back to the Jeep before Billy decided to step up and break the ice. "You've been more quiet than usual," he said. "Is everything alright? You're not like … trying to break up with me easy, are you?"
James blinked as he turned toward him, looking alarmed. "What? Why would you - no." He had stopped cold and pulled Billy to a stop with him. "I thought we were okay."
"We are," Billy said, quickly stepping closer to lower his voice. "But you've been in your head a lot, and that only happened after I asked you to come meet my family. I figured you were freaking out and rethinking all of it."
James shook his head, frowning at that as Billy continued. "Especially when you didn't tell me that it was just your lab that my grandfather trashed."
"Oh." James lost all of his frown and he dropped his gaze to his hands. "It wasn't a big deal. No one got hurt. I just lost a coffee from it."
"The horrors."
"Well, Kate had bought it for me, so yeah. Horrible."
Billy couldn't quite stop the smile, though he still didn't like that James hadn't disclosed the whole story. "You can tell me if my grandfather is trying to bully you. He does it to everyone, but that doesn't mean I'm okay with that."
"That's just it," James said, looking up to meet his gaze. "I don't want you to have to play referee. And I don't want the misunderstandings I've had with your grandfather to screw up your relationship with him."
"He shouldn't be bothering you, though."
"I can take it," James promised, then forced a little smile. "You asked me to meet your family. You're taking me halfway across the world to meet your family. That's a big statement. You're not the only one falling hard. If you were, I wouldn't want to go. I will find way to cope with your grandfather. I'm going to have to if we keep going like we have been."
Billy grinned at him for an instant before he darted forward and kissed him. "He is a pain, and the more I'm away from him, the more I see how much of a pain he is. But I appreciate you trying to keep the peace with him."
"He's your family," James said. "He can't be entirely bad. I'm just at a disadvantage that he hated my parents."
"He'll get over it," Billy said, grinning wider. "He's going to have to if he wants me to take his place."
"That's not what I was trying to say-"
"Too bad. That's how it is," Billy decided. "He just doesn't know you yet. He will come around."
"No wishing for it," James warned.
"I wasn't going to," Billy swore, then smiled crookedly. "But I could."
James pulled him off the sidewalk and stole a kiss that went on right to the edge of what was permissible in public. "I can think of better uses for your concentration."
"When you start your argument like that, so can I," Billy said before the two of them redirected to the Jeep for a winding drive back to the school.
Although Toby and Scott had almost a standing appointment for breakfast together at this point, it wasn't solid and often got moved around during the week. Though this week, there was something distinctly different in the air when Toby got to the Mueller home.
"You have a lot on your mind, don't you?" Toby asked with a frown as he watched Scott turning a bottle cap over in his hands.
"You could say that," Scott said, then let out a sigh. "We're going on a trip for spring break. Nate's in trouble and is staying here with a friend of mine who will keep him away from his girlfriend and out of more trouble, but if you could keep an eye out… This friend of mine doesn't get out much. Physical mutation."
"Sure," Toby said, looking surprised that this was Scott's first option. "But that's not all that's bothering you, is it? Nate and Kate … that's going to be an eventuality. This … is not that."
Scott let out a slight breath. "It's going to be an eventful trip," he said simply.
"Why is that?" Toby asked, settling in as a sign to Scott that he wasn't going anywhere until he understood what had him looking like that. "For a guy going on vacation, you don't look like it's something you're looking forward to."
"It's not really a vacation," Scott said in a sigh, then clarified. "Part of it is. We're going to see James' boyfriend's parents - who are old friends of mine and also happen to be my brother's in-laws, so there will be family there."
"That … is a mouthful," Toby said. "So what's the part that's not going to be vacation-like?"
"They live on Genosha," Scott said.
For a moment, Toby outright paused, clearly reordering his thoughts. "These friends on Genosha …. Are they okay? You're spending vacation with - " Before Toby could finish his thought, he cut himself off. "Are the boys getting serious then? Is James thinking of relocating?"
"No, nothing like that," Scott said quickly. "If anything, I think Billy would want to stay here permanently. He doesn't get along with his grandfather all that well unless Magneto has him isolated from everyone else, and frankly, Billy's flourishing outside of his shadow. Even if his grandfather is pushing to go back to the status quo."
"Who does get along with him?" Toby couldn't help but blurt out, then quickly held up both hands. "No offense, of course. But the guy's nuts."
Scott smirked. "Yeah, that's the problem. Family dinners with Magneto in attendance."
Toby waved a hand. "Your boy can smooth it over, I'm sure. As long as the old man doesn't take issue with both of them being boys, anyhow."
"Actually, Magneto has taken exception to James' mutation, not the fact that they're both boys. He always thought the feral mutation was beneath him and he was sure to let James know what he thinks about him dating his favorite grandson already."
Toby's hand hit the table with a thud. "Wait. The guy that shouts down that all mutants are superior gets to pick and choose himself what's alight and what's not?"
"Why do you think we fought him all the time?" Scott pointed out. "And now that he's being more public, he's just getting worse."
"Honestly, I figured you fought with him because he was a royal pain in the rear to everyone," Toby said.
Scott shrugged. "That too. But he always had his favorites. He'd try to recruit us - regularly - and dismiss others outright."
"You mean people he'd be able to lie to easier," Toby said.
"Well, that - and people he thought would give him more power. I know for a fact he was disappointed we chose not to live on Genosha, especially given Nate and Rachel's potential."
"What made you decide to leave, if you don't mind my asking," Toby said. "Hard to imagine that you'd find a better, safer hiding place outside of there."
"The kids," Scott said. "Rachel was spending all her time trying to comfort everyone else instead of dealing with her own grief, and James was terrified of every newcomer who might come to take him or me away… Nate enjoyed it, though."
"Of course he did," Toby said, shaking his head. "He was just barely a toddler, wasn't he?" He let the conversation settle, then leaned forward. "So … what's going on then, Scott? Because I can see something is up. You're not yourself."
"I'm fine, Toby," Scott said, waving him off.
"You haven't been fine since - " Toby stopped. "... you haven't been yourself lately."
"I'm fine," Scott said again. "I'm busy, and this trip to Genosha and my boys and their relationships are obviously a lot to juggle, that's all."
Toby clearly wasn't buying it. "And all the other things, too, hmm? When were you going to talk to me about all the other things?"
Scott rubbed a spot between his eyes. "Toby…"
"They're doing good work, Scott," Toby said. "And they're making a difference already. You don't see it because you're too close, but it's not the same as it was before."
Scott sighed. "You know I'm proud of them, Toby. I am."
"Of course you are," Toby replied as if it wasn't even a question. "But I also know you worked hard to give them distance from that life. You're not fine after spending all that time protecting them. You can't be fine to watch them go and follow in your footsteps."
"I can't change it either, Toby. You said yourself they're doing the right thing. I can't in good conscience ask them to stop."
"I wouldn't expect you to," Toby said gently. "But that still doesn't cover you. Really. How are you, and if you say 'fine' I'll throw something at your head."
"Doesn't seem like a thing a rabbi should be doing," Scott teased lightly.
"It's a good thing that I'm your friend then, and I can do those things."
Scott smirked and then shook his head. "I'm… doing what I can to support them. And that includes talking to Magneto and trying to redirect his attention away from them if I can."
Toby sat back on hearing that. "So it's a tactical move, then. That's what's got you so far off of yourself."
"He thinks James is animalistic and would like Kate off the team entirely - and I can't risk him acting on that," Scott said. "And he would."
Toby scoffed. "Did he miss the whole lecture that that Xavier did on coexistence?" Toby said. "That girl is doing what no one before her did on that team. And your boy? I know they're supposed to be 'secret' identities, but I have to tell you, Scott. No one has missed the way that young man can be with the little kids. Even with the mask on, it's clear who's under there. How is that 'animalistic'?"
"I'm hoping he's seen as much since I last spoke to him, but…" He sighed. "I have a friend in Genosha. She's … been keeping an eye on Magneto. As much as she can. The fact that I'm going there myself to try to talk him down…"
Toby's concerned expression deepened somehow. "Do your kids know all of this?"
"Not all of it," Scott said. "Part of that is just because I haven't worked out the final details for myself - and probably won't until I can talk to my contact."
"So are you working with the team or are you doing this all on your own - this … negotiations or whatever you want to call it."
"Yes and no," Scott said. "The team can't get close to him. I can. But they can give me insight."
"Okay. So. Best case scenario …. What happens from this trip?"
"I get Magneto to back down and let the new X-Men carry on our legacy without his interference."
He leaned forward further. "And worst case?"
"I stop him."
"How?"
Scott gave Toby a look that Toby had simply never seen before that showed exactly how haunted Scott still was from the loss of his team. "Whatever way is available to me."
"Scott .." Toby rubbed a hand over his eyes. "You are dealing with a lunatic. I know you have at least a dozen plans in place. You have to, but … this doesn't even sound like your usual thinking."
"This visit is as much about seeing for myself what's going on as it is about James and Billy," Scott said. "Consider it intel gathering before I can make a better plan."
Toby sighed. "Okay. I hear that line of thought. It's reasonable. But … what happens if he doesn't let the kids off the island this time out? I've heard the rumors about that place and how it's a one way street."
"Then I guess I'll have to step up the fight faster than I'd like."
"Step up and do what, though?" Toby asked. "I know you can fight, I'd be stupid to believe otherwise, but tell me you have something in mind. Something concrete. Not just a vague 'I'll handle it.'"
Scott was quiet for a long time before he nodded. "It's a matter of being close enough. And being underestimated without my powers. Yes, I have a few plans. I just need to be close. But those are the worst-case scenarios. I'd rather get intel and regroup - I don't want the kids in the line of fire."
"I really want you to come back and tell me how this goes," Toby said. "Because I know I can't do anything about it but bring Nate a pizza or two while you're gone."
"Don't worry," Scott said. "I'm not going to risk the kids. I'll get them back here."
"With you."
"Now you're not sounding like yourself," Scott said.
"You're rubbing off on me," Toby defended with a shrug.
"Toby, we'll all be back before you know it, I'm sure. This really is a preliminary step, not a final one."
"I hope that's true," Toby said.
Scott nodded, then paused as he seemed to consider something. "Just… keep an eye out for the kids, please. All of them."
"That'll be hard to do when you have two of them in Genosha, but sure. I'll keep an eye out while you're temporarily out."
"Thanks."
Chapter 43: Welcome To Genosha
Chapter Text
The day the Summers family and the Maximoff twins were set to head off to Genosha, naturally, things couldn't happen on Scott's proposed timeline. Billy was set to go, as promised, but Tommy … Tommy was in no rush for the first time in the history of ever. Billy and James shared a look, but kept their commentary to themselves as Tommy dragged his feet over leaving Mia behind.
Mia wasn't making it any easier, either. She was soaking up the attention as Tommy made it clear that he'd rather stay in Westchester. With her. And even if Ororo had been irritated with him for how fast the two of them were moving, she had to admit … the way he treated Mia was awfully sweet.
"You're going to miss your flight," Mia said quietly, though James heard her loud and clear from the other side of the foyer.
"Hard to do when it's a private plane," Tommy argued, then stole another kiss. He looked over his shoulder at the group waiting for him. James was pointedly looking between his shoes and Billy, refusing to look their way while Billy did his best to try and give him some little bit of privacy. Rachel, however was openly smiling and not even trying to hide that she was telepathically eavesdropping.
Scott however, didn't look amused - even if Ororo seemed to be enjoying it.
"Your brother is a lot sweeter than he lets on," Rachel said quietly to Billy as Mia broke into a giggle and Tommy finally zipped over.
"Don't tell anyone," Billy replied, then took James' hand as they headed for the waiting jet.
"Are you going to be able to survive a week away from your sweetheart?" Rachel teased as she walked next to Tommy.
"Definitely not," Tommy said, then smirked crookedly to himself. "But … I don't really have to."
"What's that supposed to mean?" Rachel asked, unable to not smile along with him.
"Nothing," Tommy replied, resolutely focusing on something else since he did like to keep his secrets and the nosy telepath thing was so overplayed. If he could keep a few things to himself - or better yet, he thought - think too fast for Rachel to track - then all the better for him. In the meantime, he had a whole flight to suffer through listening to his brother flirt. Even if he was pretty sure Billy would restrain himself while he was so closely in earshot of Scott.
Genosha was somehow both exactly what the Summers family had expected to see - and not at all what they'd expected.
It was just as big and imposing as they'd assumed it would be, but it also had a whole population full of mutants out in the open like Alex had told them about when he would come to visit. There were plenty of physically mutated people, since they were more likely to hide away on an island than anyone else.
People flying, powers flashing… it was what Magneto had promised. Except for the big metal walls and the feeling of unease that Rachel could sense as soon as they arrived. That feeling had her taking an unconscious step closer to Scott. She hadn't expected the people on Genosha to feel the same way the people in Westchester did - separated from the world - but it was also clear that they were just as worried about being a target as the people at the school. Because Magneto was out in public, threats on Genosha seemed inevitable, and then where would these people go when they had literally run away to a far-flung island to find peace?
You alright? Scott projected to her. He seemed hyper-aware of her and James now, and she saw him walking ahead of them both almost like he was acting as a shield. She didn't think it was a conscious decision, either.
I'm alright, she promised. Everyone seems a little edgy. A lot of people think that Magneto stepping out and causing trouble is going to make them a target.
They're not wrong, was Scott's simple response, though before he could say anything more, Magneto himself met them there, along with Wanda, who rushed over to both of her boys with a broad smile to wrap them in hugs while Vision, not far behind her, asked them about how they liked school and if they'd made any friends.
"Yeah, have you met Billy's boyfriend?" Tommy said. "Because you should. My girlfriend couldn't come because Storm said she has to help prep for midterms, in case anyone was wondering."
"Nice to meet you," James said as he offered Vision his hand to shake, then managed to give Erik a tight smile. "James Howlett - the second."
"Vision," he replied, smiling as he took James' hand. "You look just like your father."
"Thank you," James replied with a little smile that he obviously meant. And Scott was watching him more carefully because of it.
"I promised I'd show him around," Billy put in as he took a hold of James' arm and pulled him away from Vision. "We'll sit down for dinner together later as a family, okay?"
Wanda smirked. "Just be back in time-"
"Thanks, Mom!" Billy said, grinning as he pulled James with him to head off, even with Erik glaring after them.
Scott shook his head before he gave Wanda a warmer smile - and she beat him to the hug. "It's been a long time," he said.
"Too long, if you ask me," Wanda said. "I kept hoping you'd come back and stay for a while. I'm so glad you're here. All of you."
"Hey, you've seen my kids. The youngest is still at home - he's the quarterback and he's failing history, so he's grounded," Scott said with a smirk. "I couldn't take them away from the friends they've made."
"Nate looks just like you, Scott," Wanda said. "I saw him in Westchester with that pretty little girlfriend of his. You've got trouble on your hands, you know."
"Oh, I know it," Scott said, shaking his head. "And he's got his mother's powers. So you can imagine how much trouble I'm keeping up with."
"You have to be getting a headache constantly just to keep your thoughts your own," she laughed. "Maybe we can send you home with one of father's helmets so you can get a break."
He couldn't help but smile for that one. "Hey, I was married to the most powerful telepath in the world. I know how to keep people out if I want. Rachel's not as powerful as her mother was."
"Speaking of," Wanda said, turning to Rachel. "You are simply stunning, Rachel."
Rachel blushed. "Thanks," she said. "I get that a lot at school from the old X-Men."
"Are you at the school with my boys then?" Wanda asked. "It's been so long I can't remember how old everyone is anymore."
"Oh, I graduated," Rachel said. "I'm an Avenger now."
Wanda lit up. "You are? That's wonderful!"
Rachel resisted the urge to look over her shoulder at Scott. "Yeah, it took some convincing, but I love it."
"I loved my time on the team," Wanda said. "They really are the best friends you'll ever make."
"Well, there aren't too many my age that I'm not either related to or - well, probably going to be related to with the way Nate and Kate are going."
"Billy said they were given an invitation to join up," Wanda said. "It sounded like they were expanding their younger roster."
Rachel nodded with a smile. "Tony's still got everyone in training, but I wouldn't be surprised if Steve tells him to stop hemming and hawing and just let them be official."
"Tony means well," Wanda said, "But he really thinks he runs everything. All the time. Everywhere."
"When we all know Jan's really in charge," Rachel said with a crooked grin. "Especially since she and Tony got married."
"That was a very long tapdance," Wanda said.
"Well, she dated Dad first," Rachel admitted, dropping her voice to a whisper.
Wanda turned to look at Scott, one eyebrow raised. "What happened? Jan's wonderful."
"Jan got hurt," Rachel said, entirely serious now as she kept her voice down. "And Dad can't lose anyone."
Wanda let her shoulders drop as she made her way over to give Rachel a little hug too. "You're such a wonderful daughter."
Rachel smiled as she returned the hug. "I was raised right."
"You sure were," Wanda agreed with a smile. "So … why don't you tell me about your brothers?"
"Do you want dirt on the one dating Billy or are you just asking generally?" Rachel asked with a troublemaking sparkle in her gaze that was so much like Jean's that Wanda had to laugh.
"I'm asking about both, but I'll take dirt too," Wanda laughed. "Billy's been very vague about all of it. I wasn't even sure of who he was seeing until he mentioned wanting to bring him here."
Rachel linked arms with Wanda. "Well, I think he's just trying to protect James. Largely because James has never dated a boy before. But Billy really is so sweet." Rachel was sure to play up how much Billy was liked, even if she wasn't sure yet if he was trustworthy.
"He really is," Wanda agreed. "But I am incredibly biased."
"You're supposed to be. I bet if you ask Dad anything about us, you'll get sunshine and optimism."
"Really? Sunshine and optimism from Cyclops? I can't wait to hear it," Wanda laughed.
"Well, just for us," Rachel clarified. "And only to other people. We definitely still get the 'how dare you break the rules' side of things, but to everyone else, Dad's all 'my kids are the world' and … you know how he is."
"He's a darling," Wanda said, smiling over at Scott as she led Rachel ahead of the others.
"High praise," Erik said to Scott as the two of them fell back a bit. Vision had of course, stuck to Tommy and was quietly quizzing him on all the trouble he'd been causing.
"My kids are biased," Scott said simply. "They know where they stand with me."
Erik nodded slowly. "We do so much to try to protect them."
"That's all I've been doing. You see how much they look like us."
"Yes, I've seen already how much they look like you," Erik said. "I'm honestly surprised that you let them step out of the house in those uniforms."
Scott stopped walking and turned on his heel to face Erik. "That," he said, "was your fault."
"Excuse me," Erik said, sounding perfectly insulted.
"You show up talking about how mutants need a voice, and my kids - who were raised on stories of the X-Men and what we really believed - took you up on it," Scott said, drawing himself up with his chin tipped up. "You wanted more mutants out in the open? Well, there they are. Fighting for what they believe. I hope you're happy."
"Perhaps they simply need someone to guide them," Erik said in a thoughtful tone, even if he'd been carefully choosing the words to use in this conversation for months. "Someone to keep a close eye on them and guide them."
"Right now, what they need is to stay small," Scott said. "They're still learning how to be X-Men. It's only been a few months." He frowned Erik's way. "I agreed to come here so I could get the chance to tell you to be careful with my kids. I can't lose them."
"I'm not sure why you'd think that I would harm them," Erik said. "I haven't had any trouble with them yet."
"You mean besides that display in my son's lab," Scott said dryly.
Erik scoffed, waving one hand dismissively. "The boy was unharmed. I was under the impression that it was his idea to keep things quiet and I have yet to see anything that would make me believe that the boy isn't simply stringing young William along. As I understand it, there hasn't been an interest in other young men. The circumstances seem questionable at best. Especially considering his background."
"I raised him myself," Scott said with narrowed eyes. "Not only to have respect for himself and others but to look out for people around him." He tipped his chin up. "Regardless of their backgrounds, Magneto."
"I'd imagine that that may be the trouble, considering who he is close to. The fact that you still trust that elitist group of humans will never be something that I can understand. Their little team is a bit of a joke don't you think? Compared to what the X-Men used to be?"
"They're just helping people where they can. Stopping hate crimes, stepping in when they see the need. They're not reaching any higher yet because I asked them not to go too big too fast," Scott said. "They'll stay out of your way as long as you keep your attention on what's actually important. The bigger fish to fry."
"And that applies to all of them?" Erik asked. "I won't pretend like I'm not concerned that there might be one or two that are more headstrong and reckless."
"They're kids," Scott said. "They're teenagers. I have to get onto Nate for getting caught with his girlfriend behind the bleachers still. They're not adults, Erik. They make dumb decisions. And I came here to ask you to let them."
"Yes, I heard you," Erik said. "I'm simply concerned for them, and the company they each chose to keep, that's all." He smiled more warmly. "We're on the same side, Scott."
Scott watched Erik for a long moment and then relaxed just slightly. "You know there's nothing I wouldn't do for them, don't you? I'm just trying to keep them from making my mistakes."
"Yes, And I feel the same way," Erik said. "The twins have been here from the moment of their birth. Seeing them out in the world that hates and fears them isn't something I was prepared to deal with."
Scott nodded. "I know," he said. "I hate it too."
"So tell me," Erik said. "Is it true that the only training they've received was Avenger's approved?"
Scott nodded, though he knew what Erik was getting at already since he disapproved of Kate. "They started out on the Avengers, since we never restarted the X-Men," he explained. He held up a hand before Erik could say anything. "And I'll thank you to stop telling the world we ran away. Some of us never recovered, and some of us still don't have any power." He gestured to his face and the three long scars. "Some of us can only keep our families safe."
"As much as I sympathize with you, Scott, the fact remains… the X-Men did run away."
"The X-Men died with the professor," Scott said flatly.
"Then let's hope that you're wrong about that," Erik said. "Especially since both of my grandsons are wearing that badge now and the two of them are meant to be the future leaders of Genosha. The mutants of the world need them to be safe."
Scott let out a breath and ran a hand over his face. "Erik," he said slowly, "we can't let any of them get hit. Not like what happened before."
"Scott, I can't protect anyone that isn't on this island."
"Then why am I seeing you on the news bashing governments and stirring up trouble?" Scott shot back.
"I'm not stirring up trouble," Erik said defensively. "I'm putting the call out to make it right."
"And look what happened!" Scott said, finally raising his voice. "You resurrected a team with a price on their heads for existing just by invoking our legacy!"
"If you and Storm hadn't decided that cowardice was the way to allow young people to survive, then I wouldn't have been forced to defend my old friend's dream."
"I'm not the one who restarted the school!" Scott shot back.
"No, but you are the one that raised the three that are at the center of the X-Men's resurrection."
"I raised them on the professor's dream - of course they responded to it-"
"And you're somehow surprised that they too said you were wrong to hide?"
"I can't lose them!" Scott shouted, though as soon as he said it, he blinked and let his shoulders drop. "They're still kids. I can't lose them to the badge."
Erik was quiet for a long moment. "If they'll follow my lead, I can protect them."
"They won't even follow mine; I doubt that's going to happen," Scott said with a hollow laugh.
"You'll have to convince them," Erik said.
Scott shook his head, looking up at the ceiling as he considered his options. "I don't know that they'd be willing to follow anyone but themselves right now," he said. "But they're still young, and the team is still new… it's possible."
"You work on your children, and I'll work on mine," Erik said with what passed for a warm smile.
This time, it was Scott's turn to be quiet for a long moment. "Just promise me something," he said slowly. "If you're about to kick a hornet's nest - the MRD, government programs, whatever - tell me so I can keep them from getting caught up in something they're not ready to handle. Please."
Erik frowned but watched Scott for a long time before he finally nodded. "If nothing else, then to keep the twins safe. Yes."
Scott looked visibly relieved. "Alright," he said.
"We'll need to talk about that little issue too, though," Erik said.
"I can't help you with that," Scott said. "I haven't been an X-Man in years, and I lost my powers." He smiled ruefully.
"I meant your son," Erik said.
"James knows the stories," Scott said. "He knows what his parents went through, and he knows what to look out for."
"But does he know that someone like those that used his parents would not hesitate to pick up Billy if they couldn't get to James directly?"
"I gave all three of them a warning about protecting anyone they're close to as soon as they were old enough to understand it," Scott said.
"Reinforce it. That family naturally draws down more trouble than any other I've seen."
"He's my son, Erik."
"So you keep saying, as if your influence alone would be enough to go against the nature of the beasts."
"Don't talk about my family that way," Scott said sharply. "James is one of the smartest and kindest people I have ever met. Bar none."
Erik let out a patient sigh. "Old prejudices." He barely broke stride as he started off again. "And I'm not the only one who feels that way, or you wouldn't have been hiding them so carefully for so long. If something were to change with the boy - no one would be able to say you hadn't done all you could."
"I didn't come here to listen to you insult my friends' memory either," Scott said, his tone rising. "I came here because, and I can't stress this enough, our boys like each other. Genuinely. I'm here for their sake, not your old prejudices."
Erik watched him for a long moment. "And that in itself could be a liability for both of them if the wrong person saw that to be true."
"I already told you that I'll talk to him," Scott promised. "And I'll keep an eye on things myself. You know I will. I'm not going to let anything happen to those kids. Mine or yours. That's just not happening, even if I have to come out and fight myself." He shook his head. "Do you think I want them to end up like my team?"
"I think, Cyclops, that in some cases, it's unavoidable."
"I think, Magneto, that if you're willing to accept that, you're not trying hard enough," Scott shot back. "The only one of my kids that I've had issues with on relationships is Rachel, and that's because she looks and acts so much like Jean. James, out of all of my kids, has been the most cautious. Careful. Protective."
Erik narrowed his eyes at that. "I'll believe it when I see it."
"You already have," Scott said. "Or did you miss that he was standing up for me because you were so caught up in the fact that he was standing up to you?"
"To be honest, he looks so much like his father, I didn't quite pay attention to what his trigger was."
"He'll defend Billy just as sharply as he defended me. He's not the one I'm worried about," Scott said. He shook his head. "You're slipping. Years ago, you would have known exactly what buttons you pushed so you could push them again and make Logan angry."
"Lets hope things resolve so I don't need to start looking on this one."
"You won't have to if you stay away from them," Scott shot back, though he was having trouble holding himself back when he knew Erik had already threatened James. His plan was to let Erik think he was vulnerable, but after years of trying to keep the kids safe, standing in front of the man who threatened them was itself an act of resolve. "I told you. They're staying small-time. Stop picking fights with my kids. You want to use the professor's name? Do some real good and fight the fights they're not ready for."
"We'll discuss this again later," Erik said dismissively. "Now, I'm sure you must be tired."
Scott let out a breath of a laugh. "I'm not too old to go a few rounds with you," he said. "But we'll be here for the week. I guess we can come back to it if you need the time to think it over." He smirked and looked around. "Are Kitty and Bobby still here? I haven't seen them since the kids were in elementary school…"
"Yes, they're around here somewhere," Erik said with a wave. "Wanda is more likely to be able to tell you where."
"I'm surprised you haven't asked them to join your crusade," Scott said dryly.
"I haven't asked any of the citizens here to leave for anything that isn't centered on Genosha."
Scott raised an eyebrow at that and then smiled lightly. "You know, that actually makes me feel better? Knowing you aren't raising an army?" He shook his head before he turned away again. "Guess things have changed. Nice to know Alex wasn't blowing smoke."
"I've become a bit more protective of those my daughters have chosen to marry," Erik admitted.
"Yeah. I know the feeling. Billy's been over for dinner every weekend, and Kate comes over all the time. The way things are going, I wouldn't be surprised if they get married young like Jean and I did."
"Let's hope not," Erik said.
Scott laughed. "Hey, can't stop love. Or didn't you know that?"
"It's a bit early to be calling it that," Erik bristled.
"You haven't seen the look on Nate's face." Scott waved a hand in his own direction. "I saw it in the mirror often enough. I know I'm sunk."
"Scott, please," Erik said.
Scott smirked and held up both hands. "Okay, okay. I'll confine our conversations to 'please don't get my kids killed' and 'yes, I'll look out for yours too'."
Erik made a tutting noise as he changed direction - by lifting off the ground. "Good luck finding your brother, Scott."
Scott chuckled and shook his head, though it didn't take him long to catch up to Wanda and the others on their tour, not when he just had to project to Rachel then follow her mental signature. "Can I ask you where Kitty is? Or Bobby? I was hoping to say hello while we were here."
"Of course," Wanda said, smiling up at him. "They were down by the courtyard a little while before you came. If they're not there, I'll send someone to find them."
"Thanks, Wanda," Scott said with a smile, heading down to the courtyard with his hands in his pockets.
Sure enough, Kitty and Bobby were both still in the courtyard, milling around and talking to each other - though when Kitty saw Scott, she nearly knocked him over with a running start and a grinning hug.
"Hey, Kitty," Scott said, shaking his head as he caught her.
"I can't believe I haven't seen you in person in so long," Kitty said, snuggling in and wearing a grin. "I've missed you!"
"It's good to see you too," Scott said. "Even if I got invited here because my son is dating Magneto's grandson," he added, shaking his head at the situation.
"That … so it sounded a lot weirder than it looked," Kitty said. "They were through here a little while ago and I have to admit .. they're pretty cute together."
"I know," Scott said. "Wait until you see Nate and his girlfriend."
"It's just nice to see them happy. I was so worried for all of you for so long … now it doesn't seem like it was necessary."
Scott nodded. "That's the whole point, right? Why do you think I've been gone so long? A whole childhood and high school parade of hanging on by my fingernails with these kids. I had Luke Cage breathing down my neck at one point and Spider-Man having anxiety attacks after that. It's been … busy."
"So they're wearing you down is what you're saying," Bobby said, smirking to himself.
"Hey, James has his parents' powers and K's sense of humor," Scott said. "Rachel has the Phoenix… and Nate is dating the cheer captain."
"So the worst possible trouble in every scenario?" Bobby said as he crossed the distance and bumped Kitty out of the way to wrap Scott up - more emotional than he'd let on before as he latched on to Scott.
"Woah." Scott took a step back and then hugged Bobby back just as tightly. "Hey, you okay?"
"I've missed you way more than should be possible."
"Sorry about that," Scott said.
"So on a scale of one to 'let's break out of this jail', how up to trouble are you?"
Scott smirked. "Where on that scale does 'winning Magneto's trust' fall?" he asked, dropping his voice at that.
"Seriously?" Bobby asked, wide-eyed. "Like … six points past the jail cell."
"Kitty said you guys were having problems," Scott said.
"Yeah, I'm not sure if it's senility or a late-life crisis."
Scott let out a breath. "How bad is it, Bobby?" he asked. "I know he's mad that everyone on the mainland is hiding their powers, but that's almost pedestrian for him."
"Yeah, well - the news from around the world isn't exactly all reaching the States then," Bobby said. "He's got spies in Latveria and a few other tiny little evil hell holes that are actually walking the line between detainment camps and open calls for no mutants."
"I haven't heard about anything like that," Scott said with a frown. "Things aren't ideal Stateside, but the Avengers have been shutting down anything that crosses the line into actual violence. They've been doing that around the world, too."
"Well, they've been missing a few spots. And the ones they've been missing are pretty substantial."
Scott let out a sigh and rubbed his eyes. "That would definitely get him angry. I'll tell the team, see if Natasha can dig into the worst places. She's usually on top of it, but she just had a little girl… and she's been busy digging into all the weapons programs watching the kids trying to defund them or distract them."
"Didn't know you kept so close," Kitty teased.
"Hey, Rachel joined the Avengers after she graduated, so we're in close contact. And, they helped me with the kids when a few people came looking for them. It hasn't been totally smooth sailing," Scott said.
"I thought Jean burned out all the trouble," Bobby said.
"She did. But you can't kill an idea," Scott said in a sigh.
"So okay. We can cover that later," Bobby told him. "How about a nice, private walk on the beach?"
"After you," Scott said, more than a little surprised that Bobby was being paranoid and careful - though that more than anything else spoke to how things really were on Genosha.
Bobby was quiet for a long while, even after they were on the beach. In fact, they'd walked until the main spires of the city were starting to look a little foggy from how far they were from it. "So. This can't keep going," Bobby said.
Scott turned Bobby's way. "Kitty said things were bad here, but … I don't think I've ever seen you get jumpy, Bobby."
"Yeah, well, spend years on the island of King Magneto and things change."
"You know you'd have been more than welcome with me or Ororo," Scott pointed out.
"That … would have required being allowed to leave," Bobby said. "And I've been caught at least half a dozen times trying to get out."
Scott frowned hard at that and put a hand on Bobby's shoulder, looking his friend over a little better. "Are you alright? I had no idea."
"Well of course you didn't," Bobby said. "Genosha isn't a vacation destination."
"That and Alex has come to see us a few times," Scott said.
"Well that's a little different," he replied. "Royal family has special privileges."
"Yeah, I'm getting that idea," Scott said, frowning the more he heard. "What about the rest of the island? The people who weren't X-Men, I mean."
"Yeah, they don't get to go anywhere either," Kitty said. "Bobby's right. This is like … the Hotel California for mutant kind."
"It must be bad if you're the one making jokes and Bobby's being paranoid," Scott said.
"Desperate times, buddy," Bobby said.
Scott shook his head, looking out at the beach as he thought it over - and caught sight of Billy obviously showing off for James with a few magically created waves that they could surf that took them on an almost-rollercoaster of water. He shook his head to himself and then turned back to his old teammates. "So. I think I can get close to him. I just wanted to be sure…" He let out a breath. "I want to be sure he's not salvageable. That's what the professor would do."
"Alright, but the professor didn't have to live with him for this long," Bobby said. "He won't listen to reason."
"I'm starting to get that idea," Scott said. "I'm still going to try - but that's partly because he expects that from me. He won't trust me if I don't disagree with him sometimes." He paused. "But I can get close. I know I can."
"So … is this you coming out of retirement?" Bobby asked cautiously. "Because if it's not you, I'm afraid we might have to call in Alpha Flight, and I'm pretty sure we'd rather just die of embarrassment first."
Scott scoffed. "We're not calling in Alpha Flight," he said. He held up a hand. "I'm not coming out of retirement. I'm just … helping some old friends."
"Well … we could ask the X-Men," Kitty said, doing her best to keep a poker face.
"We're not involving the kids in this," Scott said. "You and I both know Magneto is dangerous. We keep this between us."
"Yeah, well … don't be surprised if you find him shadowing Billy and his sweetheart while you're here."
"Yeah, I got that impression," Scott said with a sigh. "He's not happy about their relationship. He never did like Logan."
"I'm sure he thinks it's spiteful," Bobby added.
"Yeah, the universe has a way of rewarding stupidity," Scott said dryly.
"This has to be something awesome then," Kitty said. "What act of stupidity do you think he's paying for now?"
"Everything he ever said to Logan," Scott said. "Every last insult."
Kitty looked openly surprised by Scott's answer. "Well if that's the case, we ought to start planning the wedding because there is no way this is all he gets if it's for all that."
"We're hand-delivering karma for the rest of it," Scott pointed out, then let out a breath and looked more serious. "I'm going to start working on non-metallic weapons. Kitty, I need you to keep an eye on things and help me get on his good side. Don't hide that we're talking, either. Act concerned. I'm banking on him treating me like a desperate father trying to protect his kids, so if he thinks he can manipulate me, all the better."
"That ought to be an easy sell, all things considered," Kitty pointed out. "Since that has been exactly what you've been since you disappeared."
"Hey, all lies have truth in them," Scott pointed out. "But the point is: he doesn't trust you or he would let you leave the island or ask you to run missions with him. We can use that too."
"Alright," Kitty said with a nod. "We'll hold up our end. I know I don't have to tell you to play up his paranoia when he's already so wound up."
Scott nodded. "I'm trying to steer his paranoia away from my kids and onto better targets. I don't know if I can get close enough to stop him from lashing out just yet, and I'd rather he go after detainment camps than teenagers."
"That'll be fun since he's been careful about ticking off Latveria."
"Birds of a feather," Scott said dryly.
"More or less," Bobby agreed.
Scott let out a breath and then pulled Bobby into a hug. "Don't worry," he said. "We take care of each other, right?"
"We used to," Bobby said. "I'd like to again."
"When this is all over, come to Westchester."
"Is that a promise?"
"Hey, Warren and Hank would love to see you too," Scott said.
"So when this is over, you, me, and them can go down to Harry's, huh?"
"We'll see," Scott said. "You may be busy convincing my brother and Lorna to step up here since I'm assuming Wanda doesn't want to mess with it. If she did, Erik wouldn't be trying to groom Billy for the job - and he is too young to handle that. There's a whole island of people that will still need this place standing as a haven, and I'm sure Erik's going to knock me around when this does go down." He smirked. "This will be the one time you'll be less concussed and more eloquent."
"I'm still gonna need that root beer with you guys," Bobby said. "Never thought I'd miss the greasy burgers there …"
"The guys'll be thrilled."
"Hey. Not just them," Bobby said, poking him in the chest. "I've only been out of jail for a few months. I still need some hope here."
Scott let out a breath and then gave Bobby a tired smile. "Like I said, we'll see what happens. But sure, yeah. Harry's sounds good."
"Alright," Bobby said, though he wasn't really smiling at him. "I'm gonna hold you to that, Scott."
Scott nodded. "I'm going to go break up the love fest before James ends up egging Billy into something that will get us kicked off the island early."
"That might be what Billy's angling for," Kitty pointed out.
"He wanted James to meet his family."
"He wanted James to meet his parents," Kitty said. "From what I heard from Wanda, I wouldn't be surprised if the reason this got started between them was because Billy saw James yelling at Erik."
"You would have been proud," Scott said with a smirk. "He had every bit of Logan's anger - but K's creative eloquence."
"Oh man. How'd the old man take it?"
"Backed off fast," Scott said, looking proud.
"Nice," Bobby said, nodding his head.
"Yeah, those kids are something else," Scott said. "You'd be proud. I think they have a real shot at living up to the dream." He paused. "Not that they don't scare the hell out of me doing it."
"Then they're just like their folks, right?" Kitty said. "And the Dad that's been taking care of them the whole time."
"I raised them with stories of the professor's dream. I really shouldn't be surprised," Scott admitted, his gaze on the boys in the waves. He cleared his throat. "Anyway. I'll stay in touch. You just find me a way through Magneto's defenses once I'm in."
"That I can do," Kitty said. "We'll just need to stay in contact so I can disable everything. It's not the most advanced thing in the world, but it is maddeningly irritating."
"Yeah, but you'll handle it," Scott said, smirking her way.
"Oh sure, no problem," Kitty agreed, though her expression fell when Scott waved and headed to catch up with the boys.
"So," Bobby said over her shoulder, "you caught that too, right?"
"Oh yeah," she said, nodding along.
"Do we call it off?" he asked. "I mean, it's Scott talking like that…"
Kitty sighed. "I think … we keep a close watch on him. Do everything we can to make sure this doesn't turn out as a disaster."
"Good, because that…"
"Maybe we should talk to Rachel," Kitty said. "She could at least confirm if it's him being … him, or if it's something … else."
"Yeah." Bobby shook his head. "We never should've busted up the team."
"That wasn't really our call," Kitty pointed out.
"You could've run it," Bobby said with a smirk.
"Probably should have," she agreed. "I just thought he'd recover from it better than the rest of us."
"Hey, it took me a while to stop feeling like crap," Bobby pointed out. "I was part of the leadup to Logan snapping, remember?"
"So was he," Kitty said.
"Yeah. And then everything with Jean too. And we still don't know what happened to Charles…" Bobby rubbed the back of his head. "Yeah. I feel like we shouldn't be surprised."
"He just always seemed like he had it together the most."
"We'll just have to have his back until he gets it back, right?" Bobby said. "That's what we do." He smirked. "Looks like we're X-Men again, Kitty."
"Some of us never really stopped, popsicle."
Chapter 44: Two Princes
Chapter Text
While Billy was out cavorting in the waves, Tommy was soaking up the hundreds of questions from Wanda and Vision on how things were really going in Westchester. It's not that his parents hadn't been in touch - they had been. It was more that they wanted to hear how he was handling things on his own when they knew that he was pushing someone else's rules.
And maybe, they were a little curious on how he'd gotten into the younger Avenger's roster so quickly. They were pleased, of course, but … how the twins were presenting themselves meant a lot to both Wanda and Vision. They knew that Billy had been in close contact with Erik, right up until a few weeks before Spring Break, when he suddenly seemed too busy to answer Erik's calls. And that hadn't gone over too well with the old man, even if Wanda was secretly relieved.
She couldn't help but run her hand over Tommy's hair as he answered his father's questions and told them all about how things were going … not so much about his studies, but slowly, and mostly unintentionally letting them know that he … really was jealous that he couldn't find a way to get Mia to come with, too. Not as a 'Billy's boyfriend is here too' kind of thing, but because without being as overt about things as Billy was, Tommy was falling hard for the charming little Elf that lived in Westchester.
So it was good that Vision had more questions than Wanda - if for no other reason than she was stunned at how clearly smitten Tommy was - and how strikingly like Pietro he could be. Particularly when it involved matters of the heart. He kept his hand close, but it was so obvious to her that he was just as deeply head over heels as Billy was. It made her miss her twin in a way that made her chest ache, though that could also be from how bittersweet it was to see both of her boys growing up so quickly.
When Wanda seemed to lose her voice entirely, and the questions dried up from Vision, Tommy realized how much he'd actually said, which stopped him entirely. "So. I ah … I think I need a little fresh air," Tommy decided, nodding to himself as he stepped back from his parents.
"Do you think you can tell your brother that we'll be gathering up for dinner at seven?" Wanda said, even as Tommy was jogging backwards away from them.
Tommy held up his phone and waggled it. "Just text him, I don't want to walk in on anything." He grinned at his mother, who was already shaking her head an instant before Tommy was off like a shot. He ran to the northernmost point of Genosha before he glanced up at the guard on duty, winked theatrically with a two fingered salute and then took off at top speed due west.
It was stupid, he was sure, to even attempt the trans-Atlantic run without checking a few things first, but honestly … if he had to sit there for much longer talking and not doing, he was going to lose his mind anyhow. Why not challenge himself with rough seas if that was the case? The little stretch of Indian Ocean would be a fair warmup.
As luck would have it, it was pretty smooth for him, though. The big, rolling swells mid-sea were enough to get Tommy just a bit seasick, but at the speed he was travelling, getting soaked was a bigger concern as he could almost skip the tops of the waves more often than not. He realized just about the time that he saw land again that it might not have been the best idea to run across the Atlantic. Especially since he wasn't nearly as fast swimming as he was running.
I'm going to make sure I pick up a ziplock when I get to Westchester, Tommy thought to himself, then winced as he made landfall from the difference in impact. But now that he was on more predictable turf … he could really let loose. And hope that Billy has his cell phone on if I go in the water.
Mia, meanwhile had been trying to get into the spirit of Spring Break like her family usually did. She'd spent all day in the greenhouses with her mother as they tended to tender newly sprouted life for the massive garden they had planned out. Every year, the vegetable patch seemed to get larger and larger - well beyond what was required for the populace of the school. Especially when So many teenagers refused to eat their vegetables.
Not that it slowed Ororo down one bit. She loved a challenge, and she loved adding new varieties to try and soothe those from far-different cultures. Which was how Mia found herself talking to a patch of shiso. It was a particularly pretty strain of Japanese lettuce - or close to lettuce as far as Mia could tell. Already the leaves were a brilliant almost neon green that looked far more cheerful than most of the spindly seedlings around the greenhouse. She picked the biggest leaves off to carry inside.
Betsy was having an emotional sort of day and had insisted on the chef preparing a full Japanese meal for the following day, which, as she'd been told by an almost teary-eyed Betsy, required fresh shiso.
Mia just knew there was a story behind her tears, but now was not the time to ask. She didn't want to get emotionally invested in something that she couldn't relate to. Not when she just wanted to drop onto her bed and sulk. It was late, after all. And she'd been talking to sprouts all. Morning. long. But when she got up to her room - with streaks of dirt smudged across her jeans, she positively squeaked when she saw that her room wasn't empty.
"Hey. You think this will keep the water out if I fall in on the way home?" Tommy asked, holding up a freezer bag. He was wind-whipped, as usual, grinning crookedly, and reclined on her bed.
"Oh my God, you're insane," Mia giggled, then teleported over to steal a kiss. "Why do you need it to be waterproof?"
"I think there might be a storm on the way back. Waves were kinda big in the middle. I had to slow down so I didn't run through them."
"You're a maniac," Mia said as she curled up next to him, perfectly happy to steal whatever time she could for a few moments. "How long are you here?"
Tommy picked up his head to look at the clock. "Um … I've got a little time. I have to be back in time for dinner."
Mia looked out of her window.. "You're not really going to run in the dark are you?"
"It's … not that long of a run," Tommy defended. "So … not really, no. Genosha's only eight hours ahead. I just wanted to keep my track record up and give you a kiss goodnight before it did get too dark out to avoid hitting container ships"
Mia grinned wider. "How long did it take you to run here?"
Timmy shrugged, doing his best to look nonchalant in his answer. "Well … I couldn't go top speed over the oceans … and there was a whole area through Africa that really needs to be taken slow."
"To keep from falling off some tall, beautiful cliff?"
"Well … that and to keep from running face first into an Elephant."
Mia laughed delightedly then clapped her hand over her mouth, though Tommy was smiling wider at her as she tried to keep her amusement to a reasonable decibel level. Especially since it was her bed time. "Tell me that happened."
Tommy grinned wider and pulled her closer to steal another long kiss - and then tell her exactly how his first trip had gone. "I promise I'll time myself when I go back."
"Just don't fall in the ocean," Mia said. The two of them got comfortable again, perfectly content to steal away in Mia's room for a while.
"You can't stay at the tower," Warren said to Nate, then sighed heavily. It was a nice change of pace to step out of Westchester for a little while, but he somehow wasn't expecting his old friend's son to be quite so very little like what he remembered Scott to be as a teenager.
"But … it's more secure there, isn't it?" Nate asked with a crooked smile that was 100% Scott - but for entirely different reasons than Warren had ever seen Scott smiling like that. Or maybe not.
"I told you, if there's a mission the Avengers need you for, they'll come looking. I promised your dad that I'd stick to his list of rules since you got yourself grounded."
"Listen, Warren," Nate said as he dropped into the chair across from him. "You have to understand. I'm not failing because I'm bad at history."
"No, you're failing because you're trying to get your dad laid."
Nate's eyes widened - and Warren had to keep from laughing outright because that … that was most definitely a face he'd gotten Scott to make in his youth more times than he could count. And it was hilarious every single time. "That is not what I was - I mean. It was. But not like - It wasn't … it's not like that! Miss Hale isn't … she's not that kind of - why are you like this?"
Warren didn't miss a beat as he picked up his glass of water. "I'm a shut in, Nate. There's only so much I can occupy my time with." He paused and smiled crookedly to himself. "And I suppose that's part of why Scott asked me to look out for you." He leaned toward Nate and lowered his voice. "Betsy, your mother, and the professor all built up my psychic defenses. You're not going to pull one over on me just to get some alone time with your girlfriend."
Nate stared at him for a moment, and took a different route than what he would normally take with one of his father's oldest friends. "Is … that a challenge?"
"If it was a challenge, I'd notify her mother where your mind is at," Warren said with a grin.
Nate held up both hands. "Got it. Message received. I won't push. I was joking anyhow."
"No you weren't."
"No, I wasn't," Nate admitted with a sheepish grin and one hand at the back of his neck. "Are you going to nuke me if she comes over?"
"Nope," Warren said, shaking his head lightly. "Just stay in the living room and no overnights."
Nate sighed, but reached out to Kate to let her know what the deal was - and what Warren liked on his pizza. It looks like we're stuck with a chaperone, he projected to her. No to the tower. No to backing off on the angelic supervision. If I didn't know any better, I'd think he was enjoying torturing me.
Are you sure he's not?
He's just happy for a change of scenery, Nate replied. And a chance to relive his glory days of harassing my Dad. Must be the face.
It is a good face, Kate replied. That requires more kissing.
Please hurry. If we play our cards right, we might be able to get gelato after. Who knows. With a little luck, maybe we won't be stuck playing Scrabble with Angel.
I'll make sure Mom knows to call us if there's any trouble.
Mia and Tommy were very cozy - until Tommy got a text from his brother asking if he was in trouble.
Not yet, Tommy texted back as Mia giggled with her hand over her mouth and her tail swaying behind her - exactly like a cat that was ready to pounce.
Do you need me to wish you here? Billy asked. Since I know you're not home.
That's where you're wrong, Tommy replied. And I kinda wanted to time myself.
Mia had read every word, and though she'd fallen silent in her giggles, her smile had only grown on seeing what Tommy had written. She couldn't help herself from falling harder for him when he was being so sweet. Even if he didn't realize how sweet he was.
I'll give you ten minutes before I wish you here, Billy sent - his decision in place.
"That gives me five anyhow," Tommy said, grinning before he pointedly put the phone into the freezer bag then turned to Mia for one last makeout session before he had to go.
But finally, Tommy knew he had to get going - or risk owing his twin for pulling him away from Westchester when he should have been in Genosha. "I'll be back before you know it."
"I wasn't expecting this as it was," Mia said, then kissed the very tip of his nose. "Text me when you get there."
Tommy grinned and then slipped out of her window. She rushed to the open window to watch him climb down, then shook her head as he took off - with leaves and grass belatedly waving in the direction he'd run.
Dinner with the extended family and Magneto on the first night in Genosha was a little awkward. Tommy had come in almost late, which had his parents frowning at him, though the way he'd zipped in and dropped into his chair ready to devour anything he got his hands on was kind of a dead giveaway that he had been up to something. The windswept hair and devil-may-care grin was almost as good as a signed confession to attest that he hadn't been on Genosha nearly as long as anyone else that day.
The formal dinner ahead of them promised to be a long, drawn out affair that they all had gone into with their own coping mechanisms in place. James and Billy had obviously decided they would actively ignore whatever looks Magneto shot their way, but Rachel could telepathically hear Wanda getting frustrated with her father while she went out of her way to make sure James knew they wanted him there. The way that Magneto was acting had Rachel seething. James hadn't done anything to earn how Erik was treating him, and the fact that James had been going out of his way not to stir up trouble had her honestly concerned for her brother. Which meant Rachel wasn't very talkative, even belatedly answering questions when one was directed at her.
Vision rounded out the effort toward normalcy by trying to engage in a little small talk with Scott about the kids and their lives. It made for an interesting study in human psychology when the android was the one who kept things from being a total disaster, since Scott was more than happy to brag about James' degrees or Rachel's handle on her powers or Nate's grades and sports…
...though that fell a bit to the wayside when the news covered the X-Men again. Erik constantly had one screen or another going to keep him abreast of any developing situations. Apparently, Nate, Kate, and Mia were rescuing civilians from a protest rally that had turned violent.
The reporters on the scene had managed to convince the three of them to talk, and for the most part, it seemed like the kids were handling the attention well enough. Nate had taken a page out of his dad's book and was talking about the dream of the X-Men, but it was when a reporter asked Kate a question that things got interesting.
"So what's your story, anyway?"
Kate laughed and held up her hands. "Come on, guys. We wear masks for a reason. Secret identities are a thing."
"Right, but you're not a mutant, are you?"
Nate had unconsciously stepped in front of Kate. "What does that have to do with anything?"
"Well," the reporter said, "the X-Men are supposed to be a team of mutants, right?"
Nate looked like he was going to give the reporter a piece of his mind, but Kate put her hand on his arm. "I got this," she said softly his way, then turned to the reporter. "You're only listening to half of what we're saying. You're so caught up in the part where the X-Men want to show the world that mutants aren't scary that you're forgetting 'peaceful coexistence' too."
"No, I'm just pointing out that the X-Men have always-"
"Look," Kate said, cutting across him. "Catch up, would you? Do I have to spell it out? You don't have to be a mutant to stand up for mutants."
It was such a good quote that the reporter ran with it, already spinning it as the three X-Men teleported away to do a little post-mission celebrating, with the headline reading "Peaceful Coexistence?" and the pundits on the other side were already debating how safe it was for a human to be on a team with such dangerous teammates.
There was silence at the dinner table for a long time as the newscast continued.
"That's it," James said, breaking the weighty silence. "I'm sending her flowers."
Rachel snorted. "Wrong sibling," she said. "You know Nate's making out with her right now."
"No, no, it's 'congratulations on shutting down the reporter,' not 'hey baby, what's your sign,'" James said dryly.
Rachel burst out laughing at that. "Billy, please tell me that's how you two hooked up!"
"Oh yeah," Billy said without missing a beat. "Who can resist flowers and astrology?"
"She handled those questions quite well," Vision said, his head tipped to the side as he watched the broadcast.
"Yeah," James agreed. "And a lot of that sounds like Hawkeye the first."
"Like father like daughter," Rachel said, grinning brilliantly at Scott, who wasn't hiding his smirk well.
"Now if only the reporters could catch up," Scott said. "They just need to read anything the professor wrote to see where the team is coming from."
"I'll bet someone could have Stark's company slip that into somewhere easy to reach," Billy said with a smirk. "During an Avenger's statement."
"Or someone with reality altering powers could just poof them there…" Rachel teased.
"I didn't say who," Billy pointed out. "Or how."
Rachel smirked into her drink. "Sure didn't."
"What do you think the Old Gray Hawk is doing for her tonight?" James asked Rachel, glad to have something to talk about for the moment that wasn't their father bragging about them. He didn't think that giving Kate well deserved praise would be problematic.
"Throwing a party," Rachel said without missing a beat.
"That's taking it a step beyond the basics of Xavier's papers," James said quieter - his focus on Rachel as he said so.
"It's just the logical conclusion of the dream," Rachel said with a shrug.
"It's the most intelligent conclusion anyhow," James agreed.
"Preposterous," Erik said in a low, throaty tone, killing the jovial mood with one word. "I know you children mean well, but you don't know the first thing about it. What you learned was filtered through retelling, that isn't anywhere near what Charles wanted."
"Actually," Rachel said, "Dad kept a copy of the professor's works. There's a few at the school too."
"And I got a copy when I graduated the first time," James said, backing Rachel up. "Pretty sure Storm will let you read it. Again." He smirked at Billy for an instant. "Or, I'd be happy to get you a copy of your own."
"I don't need to read it when I was side by side with Charles when he wrote it," Erik said, his eyes flashing already. "This place, this was his dream - mutants out in the open, not cowering and hiding!"
"Grandfather, this isn't peaceful coexistence," Billy pointed out, which had Wanda raising an eyebrow at how he was standing up to Erik. "Not by any definition I've seen. That would mean humans and mutants were living in the same place at the same time. That's all. It's really not asking for much."
"This is a highly polished, segregated island," Tommy said carefully, perfectly annunciating each word as he ran one hand through his hair and gestured broadly with the other.
Billy nodded, pointing at his brother as both of Scott's kids smirked at the two of them. It was obvious that neither James nor Rachel had expected the twins to take that stance with their grandfather, and their relief on hearing it was easy to see. "Right," Billy said. "Separate but not equal."
When Erik got to his feet and looked like he was about to tear into the kids, Scott got to his feet as well. "If you yell at my kids for telling the truth, I will personally make sure you never speak again."
All of the kids' smiles dropped as they turned to watch the show, looking between the two men as Rachel and James were positively tensed and ready to spring, already telepathically reinforcing their plans on how to deal with an attack from Erik, should it come to that. Rachel was right on the brink with fire dancing at the center of her pupils and James was turned, waiting for her cue to neutralize Erik.
"You can disagree," Scott said evenly but without dropping his gaze from Erik. "But do not yell. At my kids."
"I've welcomed you into my home, and this is how you repay me?" Erik shot back.
"I didn't know your home came with a requirement for them not to think for themselves."
"Gag order's on the front door," Tommy called out, but that was one step over the line for Erik.
"Get out," Erik said. "All of you. Get out of my sight."
James was absolutely set to stay and back Scott up - at least until Billy pulled at his arm to get him moving. He didn't want to leave Scott alone with Erik, but he wasn't really thrilled with getting Billy in trouble either. When Rachel projected to him that their dad wanted them to clear out so he could talk to Erik without the element of Erik's family drama, James let out a sigh and got to his feet. When he passed Scott by, James was sure to squeeze Scott's shoulder - and dropped one of the new non-metallic bugs they'd brought with.
Scott waited until the kids were gone and the tall, heavy doors clanged shut before he let out a breath. "They're kids, Erik. They're young. I told you that."
"They're only repeating the propaganda they've been told," Erik said.
"I taught them about peaceful coexistence. That was the dream," Scott said evenly. "That was why we had the school in Westchester instead of hidden away. That was why the professor spoke out publicly. I'm not going to try and rewrite history just because the X-Men died with Charles Xavier."
"And I'm not going to forget what was done to Charles - to his team - or to my son," Erik said, sounding angrier with each word.
"You think I've forgotten?" Scott shot back, matching his tone with his own anger. "You think I can look in the mirror without thinking about it?"
"You still think that you can be peaceful with those that would have you dead and buried and celebrating it! Look at where that dream got you, Scott. You're a mutant in name only and you bear the scars of what exactly it is the humans would use us for if given even half a chance."
"I know!" Scott shot back.
"Then how can you stand by and allow this to continue? How can you let your own children believe that humans can be anything but cruel and opportunistic?"
"What do you expect me to do?" Scott said.
"Tell them the truth," Erik said. "All of it. Tell that girl why her mother held it back for so long when she could have so easily gotten all of you out without letting Charles die for nothing."
"Don't talk to me about what happened to him," Scott said angrily. "I was there when he died. It was one of the last things I ever saw with my own eyes."
"What was the final straw, Scott? What was it that finally tipped her over the edge?"
"We were all in shock," Scott said. "She was a ticking time bomb trying to hold it back so she could take care of me. As soon as we lost Logan and K, that was the last straw. You know it. You saw them when you got there. You know how recent it was. And even then, she tried to hold back because we didn't know where the kids were. She didn't lose it completely until Kurt got her out of the compound so the kids weren't at risk!"
"Jean Grey did more to save mutants in one night than your whole team could manage in years."
"The price was too high," Scott said. "She could have destroyed the world if Kurt hadn't stopped her. I won't ask my kids to cross those lines."
"Then you are condemning them to the same half-life that you had at your height."
"We were happy, Erik," Scott said. "Don't you get that? We had family. We had each other. And we were making a difference!"
"And because you refused to act against the men who wanted to use you to hurt more of your own kind, you brought that fate down on yourself."
"I won't let my kids become killers, Erik," Scott said.
"If you want them to survive, you will."
Scott shook his head. "No. I'd cross that line myself before I let them lose themselves."
"Careful, Scott. You're starting to sound like Wolverine, and you know how well that turned out."
Scott narrowed his eyes, leaning on the table with his hands flat. "Logan didn't die for his philosophy, Erik."
"No," Erik said with a sneer. "He didn't die for anything, did he?"
Scott narrowed his eyes for an instant as he tried to keep his temper, reminding himself that a fight wasn't really what he came for today. "I'm trying to keep them safe. Not turn them into weapons."
"And I'm trying to give them freedom."
"Then give it to them," Scott said. "But don't turn them into your pawns to do it."
"Until the humans are dealt with, Scott, then all of them are pawns."
"What are you planning to do?" Scott asked, his eyes narrowed to slits.
Erik smirked. "Set it right."
"You're going to get my kids killed for the crime of having human friends," Scott said.
"Not them, no."
Scott scowled for a long time. The truth of the matter was that if he'd had a weapon, he would have acted right then with a threat like that hanging in the air. But he didn't have anything that wasn't metallic, not in Magneto's home, so he had to play his cards carefully. "If you do this," he said slowly, softly, "you can't go after people like the kids that are trying to stand up with mine. There are worse people out there, ones that have actually hurt people."
"Agreed," Erik said. "Finally."
Scott held his gaze. "Alright," he said at last. "I can't stop you." He took a deep breath. "I still don't want my kids involved. But I can't stop you."
"I won't say that I'll avoid trying to get them to see sense," Erik said. "And no. You can't stop me, Scott. You never could."
"That's overstating things," Scott said. "When I had my powers…"
"You don't have your powers."
"No, but I still have some power or you wouldn't argue with me," Scott said with a quiet smirk.
"Not the kind you're aware of, perhaps," Erik admitted. "And I do have a special sort of pity for Charles' first student."
"I've never asked for pity," Scott said, his eyes narrowed.
"Yet you have it."
"I don't want it," Scott said. "I've seen three kids - three high-value target kids - to young adulthood with no powers of my own while government agencies were looking for them-"
"How can you admit that to me and still argue against their futures?"
"Because I want their futures to be better than the never-ending fight for survival we had," Scott said.
"Hiding like this, Scott," Erik said, letting his tone soften finally. "It will only end in misery."
Scott held Erik's gaze for a moment longer before he let out a breath and dropped it. "There's no sense in arguing with you on this," he said.
"Sooner or later, you'll either see things my way, or you'll meet the same end as your X-Men," Erik said as he turned to leave Scott standing there.
"That's where you're wrong," Scott said dully. "No one wants to kill me anymore."
"Is that why you're not using your name, Mr. Summers?" Erik called back. "Because you're so safe?"
Scott didn't say anything, though he did make sure that he timed it so that when Erik looked over his shoulder, Scott was seated again, this time with his head in both hands.
Chapter 45: Bugged
Notes:
As I tried to warn before, this one is kind of going at a crawl for the time being. My own fault for throwing up so much so fast. Oops. Just gives me more time to add more juiciness.
Chapter Text
Although all of the kids had ended up eavesdropping on Scott and Erik's conversation, they weren't entirely sure what to make of it. James and Rachel were sure their dad wasn't agreeing with Erik but… they didn't know half the details Scott and Erik had discussed on what had happened to their parents. And they knew their dad wasn't exactly doing well. But it didn't help them sort through what had happened and all that they'd heard.
The twins, who had been more tense than they realized, had listened half holding their breath - though Billy had been equal parts surprised, impressed, and bewildered that he'd been left out of the loop from even knowing that James had the tech to work around Magneto. But all of his questions fell to the wayside the instant that Logan's death was brought up. Especially when James didn't have a thing to say for the rest of the evening.
The kids had all scattered by the time that Scott would have been able to even begin looking for them. James had taken the short cut unintentionally as Billy simply wished him to his room before he'd stolen a kiss and promised to find him in the morning. When Scott poked his head in to check on James, he was already in bed with his back to the door feigning sleep as he mulled over everything that they'd overheard. And while Scott was glad to see that James was at least safe for the time being, he wasn't totally surprised when Wanda knocked on his door a short while later.
"It's starting to feel like most of my conversations with people start out by apologizing for my father's behavior," Wanda said quietly, even before Scott could invite her into the suite. "But I feel the need to apologize all the same. There is no good excuse for his attitude. I know he's twisted up the memory of the professor's dream and I have no excuse for him outside of senility."
"That really doesn't ease my mind, Wanda," Scott said, hoping that this wasn't going to turn into another fight.
"I'm sure it doesn't," she agreed before she took a seat and sighed heavily. "I hope you won't abandon the rest of this trip."
"Come on, Wanda," Scott said, forcing a smile as much as he was able. "You act like I've never dealt with your father in one of his moods before."
"Oh, I know you have. Outside of those of us sharing a blood tie, you're probably the most experienced in the world. You're simply out of practice."
"Yeah, but it's like riding a bike, right?"
"Still," Wanda said, relaxing slightly on seeing that Scott wasn't ready to leave yet. "I'll speak with him later. I wanted to check on you first and make sure that this isn't going to ruin things for the boys either. Billy never would have asked for you to come here if he wasn't head over heels." When Scott didn't have a reply loaded up and ready, Wanda continued. "And I'd hate to lose an ally in matters that have become much larger than Genosha already."
Scott watched her for a long moment. "You're worried about what your father is up to."
"I'd be a fool not to be," Wanda said. "And the fact that you're here … if this was just about the boys, we could have come to you to keep my father out of the middle."
"Billy really did want to show James where he's from," Scott said, almost surprising himself at his defense of Billy's motives. "But you're partially right. There's no way I'd allow James to come here without me with how things are politically in the world right now."
Wanda smiled sedately and then let her gaze drop to her hands. "I suppose it would be asking too much to have you help me to keep my father from going too far. Especially for as long as you've kept away from such matters."
"No," Scott said, shaking his head gently. "I just don't know that there's much I could do."
She looked up with the light flashing in her eyes very much like her father. "If he continues on this path, I don't expect the world to tolerate him much longer. It would be bad for mutants around the world if he goes back to his warmongering ways. Help me make sure that never happens again, Scott."
"If it comes to a point where he needs to be talked down-"
"If he could be talked down, it would have been done by now. We both know the only one who ever had any success in getting him off of the ledge was Charles." Wanda shrugged. "And my mother, but that … was even farther in the past." She let her shoulders droop. "I'm only asking that if there is a way to stop him without ending him that you take that route. As harsh as he can be -" Her sentiment fell to silence and Scott could see that they were more or less on the same page. "It would be hard on the boys - and Lorna's kids too … I know you have yet to see it, but they love him. And he is losing his grip on sanity."
Scott was quiet, though he nodded minutely, acutely aware that they might be overheard. He wasn't stupid enough to think that Erik hadn't bugged the suite anticipating any treason. "I don't want to see any harm come to your father, Wanda."
"Neither do I." Wanda frowned and then leaned toward him, her hands on her crossed knees. "I put the 'security measures' on a loop before I came in. Between that and a little spell that Lorna and I use often, no one listens in on me unless I allow it." She reached over to rest her hand on his wrist. "He's been pushing his luck. I'm simply trying to tell you as much. I swore to Lorna that I wouldn't interfere with our father, but … I would not hold it against you if you did so for the sake of the children, our old teams, and the fate of our kind at large. I only ask you try to handle him as Charles would, if it's even possible."
"Understood," Scott said, then smiled. "But … if that's the route you're discussing, then I'm going to ask that you get him to lay off James."
"Already working on it," Wanda promised, then smiled. "You did so well with James, Scott. It's clear he's holding his tongue and trying to be respectful. I know that's entirely for Billy's sake."
"Is that why Billy's being more open about speaking against him?" Scott asked, one eyebrow raised.
"Most likely," Wanda agreed with a smile. "The boys are protective of each other. Believe it or not, that's a new experience for Billy - having someone sincere enough to look out for him."
"Then it's a good match," Scott said as Wanda got to her feet.
"I'll make sure to keep my father occupied tomorrow. If you're not planning anything already, I'd like to find a quiet place to speak with you further. It seems our boys are getting serious after all."
Thankfully for the kids' sanity, the next morning Kitty caught up to Rachel while Billy and Tommy tried to get James to talk to them about what they'd all overheard. After all, not only was Wanda and Vision keeping watch, but Kitty was concerned about Scott as well.
Rachel, Kitty projected out to get her attention and then waved once she had it. "Hey! I don't know if you remember me… I'm Kitty."
Rachel's eyebrows shot up. "Yeah, of course I do," she said as she shook Kitty's hand - and then Kitty pulled her into a hug and did the usual gushing about how much she looked like her mom. "We've missed you."
"We missed you too. I'm still a little salty that I didn't get to keep your little brother. But, ah, I wanted to ask…" Kitty paused and then switched to telepathic communication - since she, too, was paranoid. Do you know why your dad's here?
Rachel paused. He said you were worried about Magneto, she admitted. And after spending some time with the guy, I don't exactly blame you.
He's been getting worse for a few years now. He's just escalating now that he has an excuse.
Rachel nodded. I see why you asked him to come, she said, then bit her lip, wondering if she should bring up the conversation from last night. And if she did, she wasn't sure where to start.
What's on your mind, Rachel? You have the same tells as your father.
Rachel couldn't help but smile. I guess, she said, then let the expression fall. James and I were eavesdropping on Dad and Magneto.
I thought you couldn't do that, Kitty replied, frowning in spite of herself.
Not telepathically, but James has a non-metallic listening device, Rachel explained. He dropped it on Dad at dinner before he and Erik started really yelling at each other and… She bit her lip. And it seems like Dad is ... he's… agreeing with him.
He's not, Kitty said. No way.
You didn't hear what I did, Rachel argued.
I don't have to. He's trying to get to him, Kitty told her. Keep it to yourself, but it's all part of the plan.
Rachel let her shoulders drop. That's actually a huge relief, she said.
You can tell your brother I'm going to want more of those bugs, if he has any.
I'll tell him. Hold on; he needs to know that and that Dad's not going to the dark side, Rachel said, holding up a hand to relay what Kitty had said to James. Hey little brother… Dad's playing a long game with Magneto, apparently, she told James.
He's what now? James asked, sounding anxious even though the telepathic link.
He's agreeing with him so he can get the guy's trust, Rachel said. He and Kitty have a plan.
You better be right, James said. The twins are kind of freaking out here. Over a few things. So if you need me, I'm going to be with them. Tommy has a spot to hide out, I guess.
I'm right, Rachel said. I'd know if Kitty was lying. If you want to be sure, we can ask Dad after we're off Genosha.
I doubt he'll tell us, James said.
You can at least tell if he's lying about agreeing with him, Rachel pointed out.
Yeah. Sure. In the meantime, I need to go over a few things with Billy and Tommy. Billy needs to hear why I didn't warn him about the bugs. Tommy wants to know why he didn't get one just for kicks. They hit both sides of everything, Rach. So … thanks for letting me know, anyhow.
Rachel let out a sigh and then turned back to Kitty. "We haven't even been here for twenty-four hours and already this trip has sucked."
"That bad, huh?" Kitty said, pulling her over by her shoulders.
"Yeah. Dad's been a mess since we debuted the team. And this whole thing with Magneto really hasn't helped."
"About that," Kitty said. "What's going on with him?"
"Um, I didn't study psychology?"
"No, because Summers are genetically afraid of that," Kitty said.
"Hey, I tried asking Dad to find a therapist, but then he told me about how the last person he asked for help was-"
"Emma."
"Uh-huh. So he shut me down pretty hard."
"If she's still alive, I want to kill her," Kitty said. "Phase her head into a wall."
Rachel nodded and let out a breath. "I don't know what you want to know. Dad didn't want us to be X-Men, and he's scared of losing us. And he's been … distant for a while now."
But that seemed to draw Kitty's attention fast. "Distant how?"
"He won't let me or Nate see what he's thinking and he's not talkative."
"That's really not good," Kitty said.
"I know," Rachel said. "But I don't know what to do about it. We've always been there for Dad and he's always been there for us, and we've never been this… out of sync before."
"How's your brother handling it?" Kitty asked.
"Which one? Because Nate's trying to set Dad up with his history teacher…"
"That's a long shot," Kitty said with a snort.
"That's what I said," Rachel said. "James is just… frustrated. He's kind of shutting down too. He's been a lot more withdrawn and quiet since Magneto threatened him in the lab. I know he's not afraid of him, but he also doesn't want to cause drama for Billy." She took a deep breath that wobbled a bit, suddenly realizing how emotional she was as it hit her all at once.
"Another not great sign, right?" Kitty said before she pulled Rachel into a tight hug. "You're okay if I hug you, right?"
"Yeah," Rachel said in a breath. "I just… I know Magneto is a problem, and I know you wouldn't ask Dad for help if it wasn't big, it's just-"
"Do me a favor and make sure you keep out of his way," Kitty said. "We're working on it. I promise. Bobby and I - we still consider ourselves on the team, you know."
Rachel smiled at that, wiping her eyes. "You should come out with us."
"If we can find a way off the island that won't tip off Erik that something is up? You're so on."
"Good." Rachel let out a breath. "You'll watch out for him, right? My dad?"
"Absolutely," Kitty promised.
That day, Erik was nowhere to be seen - which was good since Alex and Lorna had decided that the visiting Summers group needed to take a tour of the island - and get away from the palace to let Erik find a way to compose himself after the disastrous welcome dinner. Which was a good thing, all told. Scott needed to spend a little time with his brother like this on Alex's turf and playing with his niece and nephew in their comfort zone. Not to mention that watching Rachel and James with the two kids - both of whom had attached to James but were taking direction from Rachel - was a refreshing kind of entertainment in itself.
"You're all coming to dinner with just us tonight, right?" Lorna prompted as they got back to the palace after a long day of exploring the island and finally surfing with Alex on the beaches he knew as well as those of Hawaii.
"Sure we can-" Scott started to say, but stopped when he saw the expression James was wearing.
"Vision and Wanda wanted me to go with them tonight," James said. "I already agreed to it."
"Oh, yes, that's very important too," Lorna said, smiling wider. "Have fun - I know my sister's dying to get you away from everyone and get to know you better."
"You can still come though, big brother," Alex said as he dropped his arm around Scott's shoulders. "You need more time with little Chris and Suzie. And you know you want to."
"Really, Dad," James said with a crooked smile. "It's fine."
"Alright, but you need to make sure you don't cross Erik if he tries to talk to you again," Scott said, honestly concerned with how bady it could go. "You can't get away with as much here."
"Placate the king," James said - which had Alex nodding along.
"Pretty much," Alex said. "Though I doubt he'll even try talking to you."
Scott and James both gave him a dry look as Rachel slowly shook her head, though it fell flat when it was clear that Alex had no idea that Magneto had already threatened James. "All the same. I want to check in with you when you get back from Wanda and Vision," Scott said as he gave James a more serious look.
"Will do," James promised as they headed back to their rooms. "I'm not going to say anything to stir up trouble, Dad. Don't worry."
As it turned out, when it came time for the split, Scott and Rachel headed off to an entirely different side of the palace from where James and Billy had to go to spend time with Wanda and Vision. But it wasn't anything uncomfortable or unpleasant since Wanda and Vision had already decided how they felt about James. So this dinner was more trying to get him to talk about himself with a little more detail for Vision's sake while Billy and Wanda shared quiet smiles and caught up.
It was clear that Vision was excited to hear more from James about what direction Tony was taking with his tech - even if James couldn't get too in depth about it, considering how little he trusted the palace to not have microphones everywhere. Or for whoever was listening on the other end of those microphones to not be reporting every word to Erik.
But even with a censored discussion, James and Vision were quickly comparing notes - and theories on what was next. It was easily the most stimulating conversation Vision had had on the island in years. Which made Wanda incredibly reluctant to break it up. The two of them were getting into a good groove when James almost did a double take as Erik came in and sat down between Wanda and Billy.
Erik was quiet at first, and if James hadn't known better, it would have seemed as if Erik was a perfectly normal grandfather in how he responded to Billy and tried to very quietly engage him in conversation. Which had James nervous, if he was being honest. Not for his safety, more for what Erik would do to split him and Billy apart. And the more he let himself think about it, the more he was convinced that it was an eventuality. So it wasn't long before James' mood slipped out of the range of where he'd been at the height of their conversation before Erik showed up.
After all, James reasoned to himself, not like he couldn't do worlds better than me. But Vision kept trying to keep their conversation going - and away from Erik for as long as he could. Then again, Erik never would have shown up if he hadn't intended to break up the party.
"I know Tony Stark always has the finest minds working under him," Erik said at last when there was a pause in the conversation Vision was having with James. "Don't take offense, young man, but I wonder if he's bothered to educate you in all of the barbaric methods that were used to hunt our kind down." His tone was warm still - a total 180 from the night before- and James knew he was trying to bait him into .. something.
"Daddy, now is not the time," Wanda said, resting her hand on Erik's wrist.
"Actually," James said carefully as he held Erik's gaze, unwilling to let Erik insinuate that Tony had been anything but amazing to him. "Tony's been open with me on all of that outdated tech. From both sides."
But instead of the anger James had expected, Erik smiled. "Then I wonder if you wouldn't mind demonstrating Stark's level of honesty with you." Erik reached under his ever-present cape to produce a softball sized device and set it down on the table. "Did he bother telling you what this is?"
Billy and Wanda both were openly watching Erik, neither of them pleased with whatever game he was up to. But they weren't expecting James' reaction. As the rest of the Maximoff family frowned, James' eyebrows shot up in surprise at seeing the device. "Is that …." he paused and looked back up at Erik. "May I?"
The smile Erik was wearing held steady, though it didn't touch his eyes at all. "Be my guest."
James continued to hold his gaze for a beat longer before he tipped his chin down and picked up the device. It was a moody bit of tech. He knew that already from what Tony had told him about several of Erik's tech division's devices - hampered by the unstable magnetic field that surrounded Erik. James turned the device over in his hands a few times, silently examining it and trying to find a way to be tactful about what he could see already. "It never really did was it was supposed to, did it?"
"No," Erik said, shaking his head and losing some of the almost manic expression. "It never did what I needed it to without my hand to guide it."
James hummed to himself as he nodded and continued to inspect the device since that was something he could focus on that would draw his attention away from his emotions.
"What is it?" Billy asked, frowning deeply and looking guarded himself. It was clear though, that Wanda and Vision knew exactly what it was if the disapproving looks they were giving Erik was any indicator. But before they could intervene, James answered for them.
"It's a sentinel seeker," James said almost distractedly. "Or it was supposed to be." He glanced up at Erik. "Your guys wanted it to hunt down mutant killing robots and destroy them, right? I thought these never made it into circulation."
"They didn't," Erik admitted. "But I thought after hearing whispers of your technological feats for Tony Stark, it wouldn't hurt to see if you'd be able to find the root defect. For the betterment of mutant kind, of course."
James froze. It was a blatant test - and one that James was going to have a very hard time turning down. Especially when he agreed that the mutant hunting robots were a step over the line. Still. He had to be extremely careful in how he responded, which he supposed was another test in itself. James swallowed, then very suddenly took a hold of the device with both hands and cracked it open. Maybe if he didn't speak first …
But Billy wasn't amused at all, especially when there was no one but himself that could have told Erik much about what James was up to with Tony. And he didn't want to admit to his sweetheart that he'd reported back to Erik about him. Even if it had been early on. "Grandfather," he said, taking on a tone that James wasn't used to - one that held a bit of authority that Billy probably didn't like to use, but was necessary when dealing with Magneto simply to be heard. "James is under contract with Tony Stark and Stark Industries. He can't work on anyone else's tech or it would break contract. I'm very sure 'what happens in Genosha' won't be a sufficient excuse."
Erik looked supremely irritated, but before he could open his mouth, James calmly and patiently cut in. "I'm not working on it. I'm looking at it. Nothing says I can't consult if I don't do the work myself." That quickly earned a pleased smile from Erik, though Billy was openly shocked and didn't hide it as he stared at James with honest concern.
It only took a few more minutes before James started to put the device back together otherwise untouched. "The body of the device is made from the same metal as sentinels were, right? I'm guessing that was so they could go in under their sensors?"
Erik nodded, obviously pleased already. "Yes, they were made from old sentinels," Erik said, clearly amused with his own cleverness.
"That's fine, so - because of that, it would make it harder for their sensors to differentiate the seekers from the sentinels," James explained for Billy, preferring to clue him in on what was going on when the rest of the table already knew. And it was easier than speaking directly with Erik. "But the bigger problem is that they don't have the right programming to operate this without using them as drones. That wouldn't work though because the radio transmission to direct them would trip off the Sentinel's security systems. And that would be riskier than what the developers intended. Otherwise, to follow their model, you'd need sentient tech that could tap into machinery to scan the programming and decide on the fly if it was a threat or not without living people making the call." James set the device down carefully right where Erik had originally placed it, then met Erik's gaze. "There have been leaps and bounds in tech that could address that, but the newer, upgraded sentinels wouldn't be something these would be able to handle like they did for the giant robots." James looked toward Vision for a moment. "And though the technology exists to turn them into sentient devices- it's incredibly dangerous and far too prone to going wrong."
"Precisely," Vision agreed, heartily before he turned toward Erik. "Which is why I advised you to let this kind of project fall to the wayside."
But Erik barely acknowledged Vision while his focus was elsewhere. "James, I'd very much like to take you by my labs tonight. If your assessment is this thorough with a quick glance at outdated technology, I'm sure you'd be able to tell me if my scientists are lacking for anything with what I've provided for them so far."
James glanced between Billy and his parents, though he knew from the tone Erik was using and the way he was holding himself that it wasn't really something he could say no to, either. Not in the man's home, anyway. "I promised my Dad I'd meet up with him after this, but -"
"Wonderful," Erik said as he got to his feet. "It's hardly a detour between here and your quarters."
"O-kay," James said as he quietly got to his feet and followed Erik's lead. He glanced over at Billy - his silent apology clear before Vision nodded tersely to Wanda then quickly fell into step with James and Erik.
"I think I'd like to hear your assessment as well," Vision said with a stoic sort of smile as the three of them headed toward the labs.
The doors had barely closed though before Billy had turned to his mother with a note of panic. "What's he doing? He's going to wreck it for me, I just know it."
"Sweetheart," Wanda said, resting her hand on his arm. "I don't think James will be so easy for him to manipulate. You don't know it, but there is a lot of his mother in him."
"Did you know that he already threatened James in his lab?" Billy asked, looking somewhere between alarmed and angry. "James won't tell me about it more than to say he's alright - which he's not."
"No, he didn't mention that," Wanda admitted. "But I'll take care of it. He's changing tactics -"
"Like that's not a bad thing?" Billy asked, cutting across her. "Because it is. A very bad thing."
"I won't let your grandfather scare him off," Wanda promised before running her hand over Billy's hair. "I told you, I don't think James will intimidate that easily. I know you really like him." She kissed his forehead then met his gaze with one hand on his cheek. "And if he didn't feel the same, there is no way that he'd have come. Remember - he came even after he was threatened. He's here for you, and solidly enough that Cyclops is backing him up. That means more than you realize."
Billy sighed heavily. "I hope you're right. Thanks, Mom. I do feel a little better now."
Erik was trying to lay a claim to Billy's boyfriend, and Tommy was starting to think Billy could do nothing that their grandfather didn't think he could turn to his advantage. Which was an annoying enough thought that Tommy felt like going somewhere a little less… controlled.
Plus, he had promised to surprise Mia again…
It was upsettingly easy to slip away, too. Erik was so focused on his hand-picked successor and his boyfriend that nothing else seemed to matter to him. If Tommy wasn't also sure that his grandfather was still steaming about the X-Men, he might even have said Erik was distracted. And yeah, Tommy might not have gotten along with his grandfather, but seeing in living color how Erik was turning from ruling to obsessing was hard. Tommy liked Genosha; he didn't want it to get neglected the way he was forgotten at family events until he did something to get attention.
So rather than watch that happen, he opted for Door Number Two: kissing his girlfriend.
He spent the entire run to Westchester congratulating himself on his decision-making - right up until he went to Mia's room and made the fatal error of assuming the person he had seen moving in the room was Mia.
To his credit, his entrance would have been smooth. He climbed in through the window with a tropical flower and a crooked grin and had already called out a greeting before he got a good look at who he was flirting with.
"Gah!" Tommy said, backpedaling fast.
"Hello, Tommy," Storm said as the wind blew him right off his feet and into the air. "Won't you stay a while?"
Tommy flailed a few times before he accepted his fate and gave Storm what he hoped was a winning grin. "Can't be late for dinner with the grimy grandpa!" he sang out.
"Yes, I'm sure that's why you're here now when it's past usual dining hours in civilized society where you should be on Genosha," Ororo replied with a little smile. "How many times have you been back here like this during break?"
"Um …. Just … a couple of times," Tommy answered. "But believe me, if you were there now, you'd rather be here too. It's ridiculous what Grandfather is doing ... James is a mess, the Summerses are all pulling their hair out … and Kitty and Iceman are just … well. They're dealing as well as anyone could."
Ororo narrowed her eyes for an instant. "Perhaps it would be best if you told me what was being discussed and what was happening?"
"Oh, sure. I just … I kinda figured that Dadclops would have already told you what the plan was … you know. Especially since me and Billy had no idea that James was going to be bugging the dinner convo-"
"Tommy," Ororo said, holding up one hand. "I'm going to set you down, but I expect for you to remain here and tell me what it is that my old friend has neglected to tell me."
"Oh. So. All of it?"
"Please."
Tommy nodded to himself. "Alright. But … does that mean I'm off the hook for detention when we get back because -"
Ororo smiled to herself. "I'm willing to overlook a few indiscretions if you can manage to be more upfront in the future."
"Really?" Tommy asked with a crooked smile. "Yeah. Alright. I can work with you on that."
"You should," Ororo said. "If you plan on remaining an X-Man, you would be wise to consult with the old leaders."
Tommy grinned at that. "Oh yeah. Do I get to hear about it? The good stuff, I mean … I don't … really need to hear the bad stuff."
"Of Course," Ororo agreed. "But first, tell me what trouble you've been causing."
It was another hour and a half after dinner with Billy's family had ended before James did, in fact, get back to the suite that the Summers family was using during their stay on Genosha. He was so distracted by both the subtle and blatant fishing that Erik was doing, he didn't go directly to tell Scott he was back. Not that he really had to - not when Scott was waiting for him.
"Things must have gone really well with Wanda and Vision," Scott said with a crooked smile. "Or … very badly?" His smile slipped as he took in James' expression. "What's wrong?"
James opened his mouth, then closed it as he tried to explain how it had gone wrong. "Magneto dropped in at dinner," he said finally, and continued before Scott could ask anything. "I don't think I pushed any buttons, but I also think that was because he was testing me? Trying to see how far he could push me, and … checking my tech knowledge. I don't know if he is aware of Tony's plans for me, though. I never told Billy what Tony has in mind, and I don't think he's ever mentioned anything around Billy." He looked up at Scott and held up both hands. "I didn't fall for any of Erik's games, but I couldn't just … not answer him when he talked to me. He was doing this … fake calm and friendly thing but I could smell a change in the air."
Scott was quiet for a long time, though James watched his dad's frown deepen until it creased his forehead. "That," Scott said at last, "is a problem on multiple fronts. It tells me he's considering you on a better level than he did your parents, which would be good if he wasn't trying to make a play for you at the same time."
James sat down as he watched Scott pace. "Dad - I didn't give him anything to get fired up about," James said. "And I'm going to just … try to avoid him when I can. Billy had said he wanted to show me around himself tomorrow. That's one day that I think will be okay, anyhow."
"Yes, it's definitely wise to stay away right now," Scott agreed. He stopped pacing long enough to turn toward James. "Any other day, I would be proud when someone sees your genius and heart, James. You know that. But Erik has a way of treating people like pawns- and discarding them without a second thought. I'm not sure his attention is any better focused now than it was when he saw you as beneath him and Billy." He sighed. "That's reality with Magneto. It's always a chess game. Always. So please: be careful."
"I will," James promised. "I told Billy I wasn't going to rock the boat. But I'm not going to do anything to get you in trouble or screw over Tony either." James sighed and looked to his feet for a moment. "I know his opinion of me isn't going to change easily, if at all. This isn't a change of view."
"It is; he just thinks he's finding a use for you," Scott said, his tone making it clear how much Erik's outlook bothered him. He shook his head and finally stopped pacing to lean against the wall. "I'm glad you got to meet Vision and see Wanda again, but James…" He sighed. "Well, I don't have to tell you this is dangerous. I know you're looking out for everyone. Just don't forget to look out for you as well."
"I'll be fine, Dad."
Chapter 46: Just A Little Chess
Chapter Text
The following morning, the Summers family made their way to breakfast together. After the way the night had gone for James, Scott wanted to stick a little closer to both of his kids where he could at least feel like he could keep them safe by proximity. But overprotective father aside, the truth was that with the substantial time zone difference, the family was jet lagged. Jet lagged, but still adjusting quickly enough. The three of them sat down to coffee as a group with Alex and Lorna laughing at how wiped out they all looked, though even with that, it was clear that James was the odd man out of the Summers clan. Scott and Rachel looked unrested, but they had at least slept a little. James - was not entirely awake with his hair sticking up slightly here and there after having been up most of the night anyhow. He sat down next to Rachel and promptly leaned his head on her shoulder while holding his cup of coffee close to himself.
"Are you even awake?" Rachel teased.
"Trying to be," James muttered with his eyes closed, though that had Scott smirking to himself. If there was any area where James was utterly unlike his father, it was his preference to sleep in when given a chance. And he had no shame about it, either. It also didn't hurt that James leaning on his sister helped her to relax a little too. Just a bit of normalcy for them in a strange country.
"You're not trying very hard," Rachel said as she leaned her head on his. "What's the plan today?"
"I dunno," James muttered, eyes closed and his face just over his mug, inhaling the fumes. "Ask Billy."
"I was," she chuckled, prompting James to pick his head up and crack an eye open as Billy took the seat next to him then kissed his cheek.
"Just going to go to my favorite places," Billy answered, smiling at Rachel. "Are you going to work on your tan?"
"Possibly," Rachel conceded. "Though it'll probably be whatever Uncle Alex has in mind."
"Which is passing the buck on saying 'beach time'," James said, to which Scott grinned and nodded.
"I hope you'll find the time to discuss the laboratories with me, young man," Erik said, and when the Summers family looked up, it was clear that Wanda had tried to stop him from breaking up their quiet morning. "You've had time to think over all that you saw. We can talk over chess - I'm sure Scott has taught you the basics."
"Yeah, he taught me a little. Like the horse is a dumb representation of a knight," James deadpanned before he took a sip of coffee and Rachel managed to control her grin.
"James should get a chance to wake up before you start pushing for chess, grandfather," Billy said. "And we have plans."
"Nothing that would take up the rest of the week," Erik pointed out.
"I really don't want to play any games. It's not really my thing," James said, though he still looked as if he was half asleep.
Erik looked irritated, but simply turned his sights to Scott instead for the moment. "What about you, Scott? Care to show the boy how it's done?"
Scott looked toward James and Rachel, quickly weighing out all possible outcomes. He didn't want to play Erik any more than James did, but he also knew Erik wasn't going to let the kid out of it. He needed to redirect Erik away from James in any way he could. "It's been a while," Scott warned.
"Nonsense," Erik said with a smile. "Charles taught you well. I'm sure you'll do wonderfully."
Scott hummed to himself and squeezed both of his kids' shoulders as he stepped around them to keep Erik occupied. He knew James hadn't slept by how tired he was - and having him play him while he was only half awake wouldn't do any of them any favors. James' inner filter would be off entirely if he was tired - something he'd inherited from his mother that would only come back to bite them.
He sat down across from Erik with a tight sort of smile. "It's been years since I played," Scott said as he got comfortable.
"Yes, but I'm sure you remember the rules of engagement," Erik said, smiling more warmly. He gestured to the board, and Scott nodded once. It had always been this way for the Professor when the two of them had played chess as well. Erik preferred for someone else to open. The professor had explained it years ago … a simple tactic that was Erik's measure of how easy it would be to beat his opponent.
But Scott had learned from Professor Xavier long ago. He knew what Erik was up to. He knew his games, and he knew how Erik liked to play.
Three moves into the game and Erik was smiling to himself. "My boy, it seems as though you haven't missed a step in all this time."
"Hard to forget the basics," Scott said, then not two moves later, he purposely missed a vital move that might have won him the game outright. Erik had seen the mis-step and smiled to himself, though he didn't say anything. Not when he was so pleased, generally speaking.
James still looked asleep as he switched from leaning on Rachel, to leaning on Billy's shoulder to Wanda's utter amusement. The two of them looked content and relaxed, and the fact was that Scott had managed to distract Erik thoroughly enough that the boys were comfortable and holding hands - and Billy was openly tickled.
But Scott wasn't going to just let Erik win. That simply wasn't in his nature. He couldn't. So, he rallied, and he managed to get to a point that Erik had to work for it. Even then, the game ended in a draw. There was no clear way for either of them to win, and that seemed to entertain Erik almost as much as a win. "I can't say that anyone's been able to do that since … well, Charles."
Scott swallowed hard and nodded once. "I'll take that as a compliment."
"That is how I meant it," Erik said gently, then lowered his voice almost to a whisper. "Well done, my boy." Scott smiled tightly and blew out a breath as both men got control of their emotions. "Now. Send the boy over," Erik said to Scott.
"I don't know if that's the best idea," Wanda said, trying to redirect her father slightly. It was clear that she didn't want a game to happen between the two of them, and even Billy was looking tense at the idea of it.
"James," Erik said in a more stern tone. "The board is set, my boy."
Billy opened his mouth to argue, and James gave him a squeeze. "It's okay," he said quietly before he raised his voice. "I really don't want to play." But he was already on his way to where Scott had been sitting just moments ago. He looked down at the board, but didn't sit down.
"I insist," Erik said as James frowned at him and his chess board.
"You don't have to play him, James," Wanda promised - a sentiment that was plainly echoed by the remainder of both Billy's family and the Summers in attendance. Which was exactly the protective move that had James determined not to use the buffer they were trying to give him.
"No, that's fine," James said as he took a seat then looked across the board at Erik, irked that he'd pushed Scott into a game he didn't want to play either. "Little unrealistic, don't you think?"
"What's unrealistic about it?" Erik asked, frowning, though James didn't drop his gaze or blink.
"The fact that you want me to open. I don't start confrontations."
Erik looked shocked, but Rachel did a fine job of keeping her smile under control while Scott looked like he was holding his breath.
"Neither do I. All the same, someone has to open," Erik said, gesturing at the board.
James finished his coffee then nodded once. "If that's what you want," he said before he reached out to open with the most aggressive intro he could think of - a Danish gambit that resulted in Erik quickly capturing two pawns but also opened himself up to a wicked attack that James took advantage of.
Erik responded in turn, obviously pleased to have two crafty players to contend with, though he honestly hadn't had James pegged for a worthy opponent. The game moved quickly for several rounds, with Erik looking pleased as he captured more important pieces and was even prepared to chide James on his game … until he realized he was playing himself into a corner. All while James calmly kept pushing Erik into sacrificing one piece after another to protect his king.
As the game progressed, Wanda drifted over to watch with Billy - both of them becoming more entertained as they watched Erik get more defensive and flustered while James calmly kept up his steady assault. When Erik tried to quiz James on his role with Stark and the Avengers, James calmly and quietly told him that legally he wasn't at liberty to discuss the finer details - which seemed to irritate Erik further. Scott crossed his arms as he stood behind James with a proud smirk knowing that James had Erik moving exactly how he wanted him to. Which was about when the checking started.
"You're doing well for someone who didn't want to play" Erik said, moving his king after James checked him.
"It's really not a game I like to play," James said, then moved a bishop one square over. "Check."
Erik frowned, and took a moment to reroute his strategy. But it was already over. With every check, Erik got more desperate for a better move until James finally forced checkmate with the pawns he had left on the board and his bigger pieces still well protected and out of reach. There was no way out of it. James simply sat back waiting for Erik to admit defeat. The fact that he managed to keep a straight face after winning with pawns instigating the final moves had Scott smiling wider and Rachel trying not to laugh outright.
"It seems we've come to an impasse," Erik said slowly.
"That's one way to put it," James agreed, though he crossed his arms and raised one eyebrow waiting for the concession.
"Perhaps another game, then," Erik said instead of simply conceding that he'd lost.
"Do you want to try starting white this time?" James said in an even tone that managed to sound friendly in a way Logan never could have pulled off. "Might be more in your wheelhouse."
"Maybe later," Wanda said, reaching over to rest her hand on James' shoulder with a smile. "Daddy, the boys had plans for the day. I'm sure you can find time to play another game before Scott and his family end up leaving."
"Of course," Erik agreed, sitting back and frowning at the board, to the Summers family utter amusement even as BIlly pulled James away from the game and out of the palace.
Billy didn't bother stopping until they were in the courtyard. And then, he only stopped James long enough to steal a very involved kiss and break into a laugh. "You won with his least favorite pieces forcing him into checkmate." Billy was grinning broadly. "How far ahead did you plan that?"
"After the fifth turn," James replied. "Thought it might be funny."
"He'd be so mad if he knew your long game was anywhere near that long."
James' smile slipped. "Are you going to keep telling him everything about us?"
"I … haven't …" Billy stumbled on his words. "I didn't tell him everything… just … what was necessary to keep him at bay."
"For how long?" James asked, though to reassure Billy that he wasn't mad, he reached out to take Billy's hand.
"More in the beginning," Billy admitted after a long moment. "But I didn't say anything about where you live or what exactly you do at the tower … which … what does he have you doing?"
"I'll tell you all about it when we try out that new Kurdish place in the city," James said, then smiled crookedly. "If you want to go with me, that is."
"Are you sure you're not mad?" Billy said, almost cringing.
"No," James promised. "I'm actually kind of impressed with your spy skills. Has to be a better application for that though."
"So … does this mean you still want to go with me to my favorite spots on Genosha?" Billy asked quietly.
"Sweetheart, I still want to go with you to your favorite places anywhere," James said with a crooked sort of smirk. "Maybe we can find a few places of our own to make memorable in the process."
Billy started to smile. "I like the sound of that."
"Thought you might."
"So … if we're still on for just you and me today, then … why are we still here?"
Chapter 47: The Whole Truth
Chapter Text
It was the day the Summers clan was set to leave the island when Scott slipped into James' room and dropped the bug into his lap.
"How?" Scott said, only not raising his voice because they were in Erik's home, "How did you get this past his scanners?"
"No metal," James said, matching his volume and meter before he held his gaze for a moment and then turned to go back to packing.
"You bugged me."
"You've been shutting everyone out. We're all worried."
"You bugged me." Scott narrowed his eyes. "How long?"
"Just since the dinner with all the shouting. I turned it off remotely after that. That's all it was for. I didn't want to hear anything else."
Scott frowned at that and then ran both hands over his face. "James…" He let out a breath. "I told you I came here to see how bad it was. Whatever you heard…"
"Don't worry, Dad. I won't do it again."
"James, I wouldn't betray the professor's dream," Scott said.
"Okay."
"I just want you to know - whatever you heard-" Scott let out a breath when he realized James was giving him the same sort of flat expression Logan had given him countless times when they disagreed or when Logan didn't think Scott was listening to him. "I love you. I'm just trying to make sure this doesn't explode on you now that you're all X-Men."
"Maybe this isn't the right place to talk about all this," James said, keeping the quiet, flat tone.
"James, I've done this before. The cameras and mics think you're still asleep."
"Still. You're right. There was a lot that I really shouldn't have heard that we'll probably need to discuss at some point. But I don't trust the moody tech around here."
Scott let out a sigh. "James…"
James got to his feet and reached into his pocket to hand Scott a few panic buttons. "I thought you might want to give them to Bobby, Kitty, and Alex. All things considered. Billy's mom can handle herself just fine, and I don't think Lorna is in any danger."
Scott opened his mouth to say something and then closed his eyes and nodded. "Right."
James watched him for a moment before he took the last few steps to give him a hug, since it was clear he needed it. "This is all a lot harder for everyone when you don't talk to us. Especially when I can see and smell how stressed out you are."
"I'm sorry."
"No," James said. "I'm sorry for making you this stressed out. I've been dragging down a lot more trouble than I normally do for you and for Tony."
"James, no," Scott said. "This … I'm stressed because I've been a mess for years. This is not your fault. You and Rachel and Nate are old enough to make your own decisions, and I've always told you there's nothing you could do that would make me love you any less. That's still true. You know that."
"Maybe, but it doesn't help when you hate everything else more."
"It's just that-" Scott took a deep breath and let it out. "You kids are my whole world. I'm struggling to adjust to adult children, clearly. That's my fault, not yours. You can't not age."
James frowned at that. "I'm pretty sure that's not your fault."
"It's not yours," Scott said firmly.
"Are those the only choices?" James asked.
Scott almost couldn't help but smirk. "No. I think we can safely lay the blame at the feet of Graydon Creed."
James nodded at that and sighed heavily as the tension in the air really hadn't lessened at all. He clenched his teeth hard, then worked his jaw, grinding his teeth in frustration before he looked up at Scott. "Dad … I think it's time for the rest of that story."
Scott blinked at James as the realization hit and the memory of all that was thrown back and forth between himself and Magneto came rushing to the front of his mind. "How much did you hear?"
"Enough to know that I don't know what I should."
Scott let out a long breath, and when he spoke, his voice didn't hold even half of the volume or timber it usually did. "What do you want to know?"
James swallowed and frowned deeply. "I think … I think I need you to walk me through it. All of it."
Scott met James' gaze and then dropped it. "Alright," he said softly. "You're old enough now…" He took a deep breath to steady himself, though the shake as he did so was a giveaway on how unsteady Scott was to talk about it. Even after all this time. "It all came down to Graydon Creed. He hit the school while the team was gone. We weren't there to protect our families, and he killed Jubilee when she tried to shield you kids," he said, his gaze never leaving the ground. "You have to understand… that was the beginning of the end for Logan. Jubilee was like a little sister or a daughter to him. When she was new to the team, he used to call her his lifeline. And he meant it. Seeing her like that…" He closed his eyes as James frowned deeper on hearing the wording.
"Graydon Creed showed up with Mia in his arms. She was only a year old," Scott said, the anger still clear to hear in his tone at the memory. "If we didn't surrender, he'd kill you. All of you. What choice did we have?"
"None," James breathed out, wide-eyed at how quickly the story was spiraling downward.
Scott nodded, looking perfectly miserable. "Once he had us captive, he did everything he could to torture us. You know how Ororo is with small spaces… and your mother… she was just as seasoned as your father in being tortured, but we could hear her screaming and swearing in Swedish. They didn't stop long enough to let her think, which is why when Graydon sent her and Kurt to kill Magneto's Brotherhood, the best plan she could come up with to call Magneto for help was to kill Pietro. She knew it would get him running and that he'd tear everything apart to find us."
"I didn't know that," James said quietly.
"She didn't want Graydon to get his hands on Pietro," Scott said softly. "Graydon ordered her to leave one alive, presumably so he could use them down the road, and she didn't want the only one of that group with a shred of decency to get destroyed and tortured like we were. And he would have been. You have to understand - your mother had a knack for finding loopholes even when she and Kurt couldn't disobey orders."
"Or he'd hurt us kids," James finished.
Scott nodded. "He had a kill switch on Rachel," he said. "She was in Kindergarten." He let the statement hang in the air between them for a while as he tried to control his emotions before he cleared his throat to continue on. "Graydon was testing the rest of us to see our limits. He threatened to dry Bobby out and beat him to death if- if Logan didn't beat him down instead. It was the only way to save Bobby's life, you have to understand. If he hadn't done it, Bobby -" Scott broke himself off.
"You don't know that," James said, barely shaking his head no. "It was a threat from a lunatic."
"No, James," Scott said, his voice catching more than before, and then he leaned over, his head in his hands as he tried to get a hold of himself. "God, he ran the same racket with me," he breathed out. "He - James, he told me - I had to - but I couldn't bring myself to hurt the professor," he said, his voice sounding smaller with every word as his shoulders started to shake, and he was talking into his hands. "I couldn't."
Dawning comprehension lit up James' face as he held his breath listening to Scott. "Dad, no."
"They killed him. I couldn't - I couldn't save him and they-"
"That wasn't …. You couldn't have changed that," James said in a whisper.
"I could have done what Logan did," Scott said miserably. "Bobby looked worse than he was. It was all well-placed… Bobby walked out of that place, James. He lived because your father knew well enough on how to make it look bad. But I couldn't hurt the professor. I couldn't do it, and they killed him and -" He took a breath that hitched horribly. "And I barely had time to breathe before they brought Logan in. I couldn't even think until Graydon explained … He had you in the other room and Logan…" He shook his head.
"Wait. You lost your sight because of …" James stopped himself, unable to say out loud what he knew was the case, even as he rested one hand over his heart.
"I lost my sight because I couldn't hurt the professor," Scott said. "Graydon was clear on that much. I wouldn't use my powers for him, so he wouldn't let me keep them."
"But he didn't threaten to kill you for it."
"No," Scott said. "I never understood that. I don't know if he was trying to torture Jean when he was rightly afraid of approaching her directly or if he was building the misery on Logan making him do it so soon after he beat Bobby or if he thought it would be too kind to kill me…"
"Probably all of it," James said.
Scott nodded, almost numb by that point. "After that… I can only tell you what happened that I heard or that the others told me," he said. "He sent K and Kurt to capture his father - and that… that was the beginning of the end. Victor Creed … Sabretooth was a sadist, and he hated your father for being better than he was. He had been threatening to kill everyone Logan loved for longer than Logan could remember."
"Why hadn't Logan killed him?" James asked, frowning.
"They… were fairly evenly matched," Scott admitted. "There were times Logan would barely escape a fight. And the times he won…" He paused. "Logan lived and breathed the dream too, James. I know what the reports say, but he wanted to be better. And he was a samurai at heart. He tried to be merciful."
"No, I believe you," James said, deciding to try and give Scott a little peace of mind. "A while ago - right around my birthday, actually- Billy ran a spell for me. I was really struggling with … everything. It was kind of a gift. It - he helped me to remember whatever memories were just too … " James took a moment to try to control the shake in his voice that came when he'd think about those memories. "It was from when I was too little to remember it myself. And I saw how they were with me. You undersold it, Dad."
Scott let out a sound and then grabbed James to pull him tightly into a hug. "You've been so loved your whole life, James. I just wish you had them."
"Me too," he admitted for the first time since he was very small. "But I have you. And I don't know where I'd be without you."
Scott held on a little tighter, and the two of them stayed that way until Scott had a better hold of himself. "Right," he said, clearing his throat. "I'm sorry. I was… where?"
"Everything was awful."
"That's the whole story," Scott said, then nodded to himself. "But… Victor Creed was what tipped the scales. I've told you about carbonadium, right?"
James nodded. "Avoid."
"Creed had a carbonadium knife," Scott said.
"What?" James said, blinking at him for a long moment.
"He came to where we were being held with a plan in place. Graydon Creed might have captured us, but his father was the one to destroy us," Scott said.
"He …he had to wait until they were locked up before he even …"
Scott nodded. "Exactly. He came knowing none of us could stop him, and he let himself into your mother's cell first." He paused. "I don't know exactly what happened. I couldn't see it. But I could hear it and… James, she fought him so hard. And he … he did everything he could to make sure your father saw her suffer."
James was very still as he listened to the story, though his hands were in fists at his sides.
"Eventually, he killed her, and then your father reached through the bars when Sabretooth got close enough to him while he was gloating. Logan took his head off," Scott said almost dully.
"Good."
Scott nodded. "And if that had been all, that probably would have been the end of it," he said, slowly, carefully. "We would have mourned. Your father would have been a wreck. But he'd lost women he loved before … we'd lost people but-" He took a deep breath. "We'd never lost a child before. Victor Creed only managed to get a hold of your mother by telling Logan that his son was begging for him when he died." He looked up at James. "It wasn't a lie. They would have picked that up too fast. It was just a different son."
James was holding his breath by that point and very gently shaking his head.
"His name was Akihiro. From Logan's marriage before your mother. They didn't have a good relationship… Logan thought he was dead, but years later Akihiro came back brainwashed into hating him. We didn't even know he'd been caught, but Graydon had been using him to learn how to kill a healer. We think it was so he could learn how to kill his father." Scott shook his head. "It wasn't a lie. So… there we were, half of us still in our cells. Logan had just lost K and he thought he'd lost you and…James, the two of you were his whole world. In all the years I knew him, he was never as happy as when he had you two." He couldn't hold James' gaze and was trying to keep going, but it was obvious he was on the brink of breaking down. "I'm so sorry, James. If I could have seen him, I could have stopped him. I should have stopped him, and I'm so sorry."
"No," James said, shaking his head.
"That's what made Jean lose control," Scott said in a breath of a whisper. "Losing the professor… seeing me hurt and blinded… losing you, losing K, losing Logan … You were three years old. It was so senseless."
James didn't bother to wipe the tears off as he listened to Scott. He wanted to reply. He knew he should, he just … didn't know how.
"I couldn't get her back, James. I couldn't talk her down. She was so wrapped up in grief, even when she saw you were alive… it just made losing Logan so much more pointless and I couldn't … I tried everything. I tried to remind her of our kids, of you, of Mia… I tried everything and Kurt had to kill her when I couldn't and-"
James moved over to pull Scott into another tight hug. "If the tables had been turned, and it was you that had lost all of that and been lied to about Rachel and Nate… it's not your fault," James said in a hushed whisper.
Scott buried his face in James' shoulder. "I'm so sorry," he breathed out.
"Why are you sorry?" James asked, though he hadn't stopped crying either. "After all that - after everything, you took care of us. Alone."
"I had to keep you safe," Scott said.
"Yeah, but you didn't have to do it alone," James said, shaking his head. "I'm glad you did. I am. But you took on all of us - and you didn't have to deal with me. I know you didn't. One of the others would have taken me, and it could have been so much easier for you."
"You're my godson," Scott said. "There was no way I'd let you go without. I knew who would come for you kids. You couldn't go to someone who wasn't prepared."
"That's why you had Natasha around sometimes," James said. "Your security expert."
Scott nodded. "That's why I kept you away from the teams," he said. "I … I'm sorry. It was the only thing I could think of that would take you out of my protection…"
"I get it," James said. "Please don't apologize for that or anything close to it. You have always done everything you could to take care of us and keep us safe. We know that. I know that. But there's a lot that no one knows."
"I didn't want anyone to try to tear their memories down because they lost hope."
"And I did that myself," James said.
"I would have told you when you first started looking if it was anything easier to tell you," Scott said.
"No, when you didn't want to tell me, I knew it had to be bad," James said. "There's no good way to tell someone that their parents died in a murder and suicide. Especially when I was how they got there." He looked down at his hands as he finished his statement. "He had to have tried it before. To have gotten it done."
"I thought the same thing," Scott said. "And he had. I … looked into a few things while you were still young. I hadn't realized how much Logan had struggled with those thoughts. I didn't know ..."
"So that's something I need to know and be aware of," James said, then quickly held up one hand. "Just that he did it. Not … the details on how."
Scott nodded and scrubbed both hands over his face as he tried to get himself back together. "Yeah."
The two of them were quiet for a long moment as they tried to get control of themselves. "We heard what you said about what we meant to you," James said. "You have to know the reverse is true, too. Not one of us can stand the thought of anything happening to you, either."
"I'm sorry you had to listen to me talking to Magneto, then. That was-"
"That wasn't just talk," James said, shoring up his voice a little. "I love you, and you're great at a lot of things, but you're not that good of an actor."
"All lies are based on truth," Scott said. "That was the route Kitty and I knew would work. I'm a tired, worried father."
"At the very end of your rope, too," James said before he leaned forward to catch Scott's gaze. "Dad, if my working on this team is going to send you anywhere near where Logan was, I will quit right now and never look back."
Scott blinked at James and then grabbed him around the shoulders to yank him into a hug. "I love you too."
Once James and Scott had slightly better holds on their emotions, it was, in fact, time to head out, so they rounded up Rachel and the twins to leave. Scott made sure to hug Kitty and Bobby both on the way out - and leave them with panic buttons and bugs. But what they weren't expecting was for Erik to actually come to see them off himself.
"I hope you know that you're welcome back here at any time," Erik said, much more amenable than he had been before - though that in itself was suspicious and suggested he either thought he had the upper hand or had some kind of plan to gain it. "I enjoyed our short time together. Our chess games were incredibly insightful. I'd love to find a way to make it a more regular occurrence."
"That might be nice." Scott nodded, one hand on James' back as they boarded the jet. "You know, Alex has invited me back a few times too," he said.
"Perhaps you'll consider coming for the summer," Erik said mildly. "I would be interested to see all three of your children outside of the teams they're on."
Everyone paused at that, and even Wanda, who was giving Tommy one last, lingering hug stopped to watch Erik for a moment.
Finally, it was Scott who said, "We'll think about it," while pushing James slightly behind him in an entirely unconscious move. "It'll depend on Nate's football training schedule."
"And ... I have my Stark contracts," James said.
"I'm sure you'll find your arrangement with Tony Stark to be more flexible than you believe it to be, my boy," Erik said before he smiled warmly at Billy, who did a fine job of keeping Erik's mood even in spite of the threat hidden in Erik's words.
Scott nodded. "We'll consider it. If nothing else, I might come back for Alex's birthday." He smiled tightly. "Thanks again for your hospitality," he said, turning to leave with James, though it wasn't until they were in the jet that he said under his breath just for James, "You kids are not coming back. That was an invitation to stay permanently."
"Not surprised," James said softly. "Especially after his little lab tour. You shouldn't be coming back either then."
"I told you I'm working with Kitty. If I come back here, it'll be to put a stop to him. I'm not planning to stay that long."
"Just needed to clarify," James said.
"Love you too," Scott said quietly before he let out a breath and then went to where Rachel was to nudge shoulders with her and then pull his arm around her in a hug, showing a lot more life than he had on the way to Genosha.
James had managed to slip into the single jumpseat near the emergency exit and was already half drawn up on himself, which left Billy wondering what he'd missed as he gave James a little room to process whatever it was that had him looking like that. Even if he wanted to try and help somehow. But instead of upsetting him further, Billy turned his sights to the rest of the Summers clan for answers.
"You're waaay more fun on a mission," Billy said to Scott from across the way as he and Tommy found their seats - somewhat close to James for when he did finally look like he was willing to talk.
"I am?" Scott replied, one eyebrow raised his way.
"Seriously," Billy said, nodding with a grin. "This family is the best for ticking off Gramp-neto."
"Do you really call him that?" Scott asked, amused despite himself.
"He hates it," Billy said. "So yes. Sometimes."
"I thought you two were close. You seriously don't get along with him, do you?" Rachel asked, frowning, since she couldn't imagine not getting along with her family.
"We are close," Billy said, then shrugged. "It really is hard to defend him when he's being like that, though. He doesn't really get along with anyone most of the time, honestly," Billy said. "He can be amazing, sometimes, but most of the time it's just reminding you of what kind of a disappointment you are if you're not following his orders to the letter."
"Or - how much you look or act like someone else," Tommy said, waving the tips of his fingers. "He's called me 'Pietro' almost as much as he does 'Thomas'."
"Ah, well, that part is at least normal," Scott said. "I've almost called a few people by the wrong name myself."
"Anyone you want to fess up to?" Billy asked with an amused glint in his eyes.
"Not particularly," Scott said with a smirk before he turned Billy's way. "But for the record, you're not a disappointment. If he thinks so, he doesn't see what I see. Why do you think I'm glad you're dating James?"
"That … is an interesting question," Billy said.
Scott smiled and then took a few steps over to put a hand on Billy's shoulder. "Wanda, can I borrow your kid?" he teased.
"Oh, that … isn't as funny as you think it is," Billy laughed.
"Sure it is," Scott said. "Besides, we all know she could destroy me in a blink if she wanted, so she's not worried."
"She's pretty relieved, if you want to know the truth," Billy admitted.
"Really?"
"Sure. Good influences - get us away from the whole insistence that we're treated like royalty wherever we go?"
Scott smiled and ducked his head so their conversation was more private. "You're a good influence too," he said quietly. "James told me what you did for him."
"He did?" Billy said, whisper quiet, glancing over to where James was curled in on himself and looking out his window.
"Mmhmm. That spell let him see his parents for who they were … that's something I've tried to do for him his whole life. I can't tell you how important that was for him."
Billy blushed. "It seemed like the right thing to do."
Scott nodded, and instead of saying anything else, he simply pulled Billy into a tight hug.
Chapter 48: Stateside Fiascoes
Chapter Text
The instant that the jet landed in Westchester, Tommy was out the door like a shot. As far as he was concerned, he'd spent far too much time around his brother and his moody broody sweetheart. He would much rather spend time with his girlfriend - who was an adventure and a half all on her own.
He was already planning to run them somewhere remote so they could catch up - though he had to get past Storm first. And that lady was scary good at knowing when he was around. Tommy was sure Psylocke was helping conspire against his idea of fun.
He figured he'd talk to her first, conveniently not tell her where they were going, and kidnap Mia for some fun. Foolproof.
So, he zipped into Storm's office in the middle of what looked like boring paper grading nonsense - so of course she was glad for the distraction. He knew she was. "Hey, so, my grandfather doesn't like independent thought and totally invited the Summerses over to make them stop having it - are you gonna finish that?" He grabbed up the half-eaten sandwich and gulped it down. "Oh, and did you know Cyclops is playing some long chess game of mind tricks with Grandfather? Because he's kinda freaking us all out."
"I had wondered what the sudden draw to Genosha was about," Ororo replied. "Though to be honest, I thought he might have been considering moving there, finally."
Tommy shook his head. "No way. He and the ex-X-Men on Genosha are conspiring. My mom knows something too but won't tell us. Pretty sure they're getting ready to overthrow him, if you ask me." He shrugged. "Or try to get him to reverse course. Mom tries a lot - I mean a lot - so this may be some last-ditch stop-being-crazy scheme…"
"You can't use a term like 'crazy scheme' in conjunction with Cyclops; that's just not Scott." Storm shook her head. "But I can see him trying to help your mother get Erik to reverse course - if that is indeed what he's doing, it's not a crazy scheme. So … why don't you tell me what you've learned since the last time we spoke since it sounds like you are speculating."
Tommy grinned and dove into his update, telling her how the kids had all been watching what the adults were up to and wanted to help if they could. How he and Billy knew their grandfather was wrong about humans and were getting in trouble for it. How he was pretty sure he had witnessed Scott officially welcome Billy into the family with a hug.
"So, yeah. It's us versus Grampneto," he summed up. "Which, I gotta warn you, is gonna make this harder. If Grandfather thinks we're turning against him, I don't know if he can be talked down. He likes the family to fall in line." He rolled his eyes. "It sucks, you know that?"
"I know that far too well to deny," Ororo replied. "Thank you, Tommy, for telling me what my old friend may be up to. I do appreciate it." Ororo took a hold of his arm before he could zip off. "The curfew is still the same, Mr. Maximoff. The other rules are also still in effect. Please keep that in mind."
"No exceptions for the super spy?" Tommy grinned brilliantly. "Not even a little bit?"
"Half an hour past curfew," Ororo said finally. "And welcome back. I'm glad to see you."
"Good to be home," Tommy told her, completely missing the importance of his casual statement as he rushed off to say hi to Mia, even though Ororo caught it and was smiling despite herself to hear that Tommy considered the school home.
As soon as Billy and James had said their much more conventional goodbyes, the Summers family headed back toward the city in Scott's car. Rachel was in the front with her father and James was half-leaned over in the back, still deep in thought. And Scott was lost in his own thoughts as well, digesting all he'd seen on Genosha.
He didn't like any of what he'd seen, if he was honest. But seeing how Erik treated his James… he knew he'd have to step in. He needed to formulate a plan. He needed time. When he'd first agreed to work with Kitty, he'd thought this would be his last hurrah, one last play at being an X-Man, but after all he'd talked to James about, he was trying to be more careful…
All while shielding himself from all three of his kids. They didn't need to know what he was planning. Not the full extent of it. He still remembered how upset James had been over what he'd found about Logan's participation in X-Force. The last thing Scott wanted to do was give him another reason to think his parents were dirty - only this time, it would be Scott himself playing dirty.
So, the car ride was quiet, even if Scott could feel Rachel gently brushing the edges of his mind to test whether or not he'd let her in. Which meant that their loud greeting from Nate and Kate both was almost jarring.
"Oh my god, you picked the worst cockblocker in the world and we were only kissing you overbearing so and so!" Kate declared as soon as she saw Scott.
Scott smirked at Warren. "Nice job."
"I almost forgot how much I loved doing that," Warren laughed before he pulled Scott over for a tight hug. "Glad to see you guys managed to escape. Sure you weren't ready to take up the room next to Alex and Lorna?"
"And listen to Magneto butcher the professor's dream at every dinner? Sounds like a dream," Scott replied without missing a beat.
"Every one?" Warren said, cringing.
"Sometimes at breakfast too," Rachel put in helpfully.
"He stopped that pretty quick," James added as he handed Rachel her bag from the back. "He had to shut up to play Dad, after all."
"Sounds awful, but did we mention we spent the week with Moodkiller Supreme?" Kate said, jerking her thumb over her shoulder at Warren. "Because that bears repeating."
"That sounds awful. How did you ever survive?" James deadpanned just to get a rise out of Kate.
"We didn't. I'm dead. You're talking to a ghost, James," Kate said seriously, and Nate snorted.
"If that were true, I'm sure Aunt Nat would have been over to set Warren straight but … clearly, they weren't concerned about imminent death from not gettin' any," James said.
"If that were the case, Tommy would have died months ago," Rachel said with a smirk.
"Tommy has been sneakier than you know," Kate said, not spilling all the secrets when the adults were around.
"Yeah, but not as sneaky as he'd like to be," James said before he pushed her shoulder.
"Anyway, how was Genosha?" Nate asked. "You didn't get branded 'prince consort' or something, right?"
"You're hilarious," James said. "It was hot. And sunny. And you missed out on Alex's version of a tour." he shrugged carelessly. "Nothing notable, really."
"Darn. I was hoping you had nightmare tales of the grandfather cockblocker," Kate said dryly.
"Um … not anything worth repeating," James said, turning away from the conversation. "Dad's probably got more to say about that." He didn't feel much like sharing, and truth be told, he'd teased about as much as he could stomach anyhow. And he really didn't feel like talking about Magneto. At all.
"I'm not in the mood to comment on my sons' love lives," Scott said dryly. "Other than to tell Warren 'job well done,'" he added, smirking at his old friend.
"Cowardly," Warren said with a laugh. "And what sounds like an admission that you weren't thinking about that." Warren grinned wider. "Unless you thought Wanda wasn't going to get in Erik's face about being … himself."
"Okay, that's enough, thanks," James said. "I don't know if you're advocating or just trying to rile, but that's plenty."
"He's been in a sickeningly good mood by wrecking ours," Kate stage-whispered to James.
James gave her a dry look. "Who could ever have predicted that a guy that goes by 'Angel' would get his rocks off by forcing celibacy on teenagers? I am not shocked nor offended."
"Because he wasn't bothering you," Nate said, which had Warren grinning wider.
"I love this family," Warren said as he reached out to muss up Nate's hair. "See you guys Friday night, Kate!"
"Don't listen to him," Rachel advised. "And - I brought you both something since you missed out on the sand, the sun, and the magically enhanced surf."
"See, she likes me," Nate said, smirking at his sister and putting an arm around her shoulders. "What'd you bring me?" he teased, even as Scott said goodbye to Warren and Kate and Nate helped get the bags inside.
As Warren started to head home, Rabbi Cohen swung by to check in. It was clear that he hadn't been expecting them to show up mid-morning. "Scott!" he called out when he saw the two older X-Men parting company just outside of the front door. "Welcome home."
"Thanks, Toby, it's a relief to be back," Scott said before he and Warren shared a fond smile and Warren headed out with his wings strapped down tightly under his trench coat. Scott looked over his shoulder as the sounds of his kids getting settled in echoed out onto the stoop. Nate was being … Nate about not having been able to see Genosha - and Rachel was teasing him about having missed out. Clearly, she'd missed her brother terribly. "We just got in, Toby…"
"I was hoping I could pin you down for a time to chat," Toby Cohen said, smiling warmly at him as he came up the steps.
Scott was hesitating, looking like he'd rather be just about anywhere else - especially since he needed to keep his focus on the task at hand … and he needed to see how much intel he could get about Genosha before he made a plan. "Now … isn't the best time," Scott said finally, not even hiding how distracted he was.
"What about later this week then?" Toby asked as James stepped into the doorway just beyond Scott.
"I can't … I don't know what the week is going to bring," Scott said, and he would have simply ditched with all the chaos inside if it wasn't for James blocking him from closing the door with a muted apology. Scott looked between James and Toby as James came outside and sat down on the front step. "I need to stop your brother and sister." He glanced at Toby, sure that he'd meet a brick wall with James as usual and the kid would gloss over a few things for Toby's sake. "I'll call you."
With that, Scott slipped inside and Toby let out a sigh, his shoulders dropping as he did so. "I suppose you won't tell me much about the trip then," Toby said as he sat down with James. The boy wasn't great for conversation unless he had to be, but he would be polite.
"Not on the stoop, no," James admitted - but it was a clear invitation compared to how James usually reacted and Toby's curiosity was piqued.
"Where would you like to chat then?"
James drew in a deep breath and considered him for a moment. "I … don't really want to worry you," James started to say. "But … if you have time, I think I do need to talk to someone - and I would rather it was you instead of one of the Avengers or Dad's old team." He paused and corrected himself. "What's left of them, anyhow.
"Did something happen during the break?" Toby asked, his tone shifting to concern easily - especially since James, out of the three of the kids was the least likely to say anything, let alone open the conversation like this.
"Yes and no," James admitted, then glanced up and down the street. "I know it's paranoid -"
"Would you like to walk with me down to my office?" Toby asked quietly, though he was sure James was going to balk. So he was even more off guard when after a moment, the young man nodded slowly.
"Yeah. I'm just … let me text Dad. I'll bring him coffee when I go back."
Toby was nearly holding his breath as he watched James whip up the text to his father, but he realized as he watched him that he looked somehow more pale than usual … especially after seeing the glowing tans that Scott and Rachel were wearing. But it was such a big step, Toby didn't want to joke at the wrong moment and shatter whatever it was that was going on.
The two of them got to their feet and started down the road - James with his hands buried in the kangaroo pocket of his hoodie. He walked with his chin tipped down, but his eyes were watchful all the same. When they got to Toby's office, it took a few minutes for James to steel himself to open his mouth, and when he did, Toby was clearly not expecting any of what James had to say.
James started out by telling Toby that he'd been having trouble over the past few years, but he'd been trying to deal with it himself. He skipped over many of the details, but was sure to make it clear that for the longest time, James had been convinced that he was living on borrowed time. It was rare for him to talk that way at all, and it was clear that the admission had him anxious. But he was slowly pushing through what he thought was necessary information on him before he hit Toby with the pertinent details about his parents.
He told Toby about the twisted scenarios that had left Scott blinded and how his mother had caused a deeper rift between the team and Magneto - which he was sure was a point of contention now that he was dating Billy. James told him about his older brother that he didn't know had existed, and how that had facilitated how his mother had been murdered, and at that point Toby had to stop him and take a moment himself to process.
James folded his hands in his lap and swallowed hard as Toby got up and paced the room, covering his shock by starting up a pot of coffee and promising that he simply wanted ot make sure they had something to keep them going for a little bit. And the timing was good since James needed to reorganize his thoughts anyhow.
When the coffee was done - and both of them were holding a mug - James sighed heavily, and on Toby's urging, continued by telling Toby how his father had died after dealing with his mother's murderer. Before Toby could say a word, James looked up and held his gaze. "I know I was already high risk," James said. "And before you ask, no. I have never had a plan and I'm not tempted now. But it made everything sort of fall into place when I heard the full story."
"That doesn't make me feel any better, James. It only gives me more grounds to be concerned."
"I know," James agreed, both hands around the mug as he subtly drew in the steam rising up from the coffee it held as a means to soothe himself. "But I'm not done, Rabbi. I was there with Dad when Aunt Jean lost control. Apparently, I was what made her lose it."
"That's not true," Toby said. "It's just not true."
"But it is," James replied slowly. "I had no control over it, I know… I'm not delusional. But my being there put her over the edge, and she couldn't get it back after that. She might still be here if they had killed me." He kept his focus on the dark liquid in his mug. "I've seen Rachel panic. I've talked her down when she thought she was going to lose her control … a little. And knowing that sooner or later, one of those weapons programs will find me - and they will take me -"
"You don't know that they'd come, "Toby tried to reason.
"Yes, I do," James replied, looking up to hold his gaze finally. "I've seen the reports and the intel the Avengers have. They never quit looking. And there is a large number of them looking now. More in the past few months, actually. I'm not trying to argue probability though," James told him.
Toby sighed heavily and nodded gently. "How did spring break turn into hearing this story? If you tell me that Magneto told you-"
"Dad told me," James said. "Magneto just wants to keep me there so Billy won't want to stay here."
"And you're sure that's all Magneto wants from you?"
"I'm sure he'd figure something out … at least as long as Billy's interested. After that, though- all bets are off."
"I thought you boys were doing well?"
"I think we are," James said, then took a moment to set the coffee mug aside. "Rabbi Cohen … I don't want to be the cause of anything else falling apart. But it seems like it's just … going to happen sooner or later. I don't want my Dad to have to deal with it. I don't think he can - and I don't want my brother and sister to get caught because of me - or for Rachel to slip. Or Nate. He gets overlooked for how dangerous Rachel potentially can be, but Nate is not the weakest of the three of us."
"And what about Billy?"
James thought it over for a few seconds, keeping in mind the story Billy had told him about accidentally wishing his brother out of existence for a moment. "I think that Billy … might over react. But he's got a good support system-"
"So do you, James," Toby said before he reached over and rested a hand on his arm. James looked up at him and it was clear to Toby that there was more. "James …"
"I only found this out after Dad found the bug I planted on him."
"You're spying on your father?" Toby asked, sounding somewhere between surprised and impressed.
"Just the once," James replied quickly, one hand up. "And only because he's not talking to any of us. He's actively blocking Rachel and Nate from reaching him telepathically and we were worried about him."
Toby couldn't help the warm smile as it crept across his features. "He's worried about you."
But James shook his head at that. "No. It's more than that. He's trying to win Magneto's trust and he's not handling anything to do with us or him or … any of it well. I was mad to start, but-" he took a deep breath to settle himself out. "I offered to go back to how things were before we ... " he cleared his throat and tipped his head. He figured that Toby Cohen was smart enough to figure out who it was in the masks and uniforms, but he wasn't going to blow it on a technicality with his father or Natasha. Especially sine their strained approval was based on the kids keeping their identities secret. At least until they were busted. "I told him I'd do whatever it took if it made things easier for him, if it'd keep him from following in my father's footsteps." He held Toby's gaze for a long moment as the rabbi processed exactly what James was telling him.
"Do you think that's a possibility?" Toby asked quietly- carefully.
"I do," James said, looking entirely distressed about it, but then he hedged. "Maybe. I don't … after everything he went through to keep us safe, I don't …" He cut himself off again as he reached for the right sentiment, and Toby gave him the chance t find it without any guidance. "If he gives up, it'll be our fault."
"No."
"Yes," James insisted. "He wasn't this bad until we showed up with X-badges on our uniforms. It would absolutely be our fault."
"James," Toby said carefully. "I can understand how you would feel that way, but you can't hold the responsibility for someone else's choices."
"I know." He looked up to meet Toby's gaze. "Doesn't change how it feels though."
"True. But - now, we can start trying to talk through some of this. Starting with making sure that you are okay. I know you're not. You can't be after hearing those things. But you need to believe me when I tell you that none of that was your fault. On any level!"
James' mouth tightened up. "Rationally, I know that."
"But it's not about rationality," Toby agreed. "So. We know that you need to spend time with me … once a week?" James nodded almost reluctantly. "Maybe twice."
"If once isn't enough," James said finally - which had Toby smiling softly.
"If it was anyone else, I'd be asking for three, but I want to trust you to work on this. Especially since you brought it to me. That was very mature. So … we'll start with once a week and see how things go. We can meet here. Just like this. But I don't want you wandering around with those thoughts in your head and no tools to deal with them."
"That's why I wanted to talk to you," James admitted. "I wasn't okay on my own before all of this. I was hanging in there, but this … changes everything. I know my father fought with suicidal thoughts. And I know that explains a lot as far as how I've thought from time to time."
"I'm going to hope that knowing those things doesn't change everything in your perception, though," Toby said. "It doesn't change who you are. And it doesn't change the fact that your family and friends love you. So. Let's start there - and if, down the road, you want to bring one of them with you, we can do that, too."
When the news reported on an MRD attack against a mutant halfway house, the new group of X-Men didn't even have to discuss it before they'd grabbed their uniforms and met at the scene, not wanting to waste any time with a rendezvous when there were mutants getting pummeled like that.
"It's been forever since we did this," Mia said as she and Tommy were first to the scene and started rushing to get the people out. They weren't fully engaging the MRD - not yet - just trying to get people out of danger. So it was when the rest of the team arrived that the fight got interesting.
Nate and Rachel were working together to throw the MRD agents around - into each other and through walls. All to keep the MRD from any remaining mutants, and not at all because they were racist jerks that were asking for it both verbally and through the projected thoughts that the Summers kids could easily pick up.
Meanwhile, Kate and James were both working to coax a couple incredibly young mutants out of their hiding places - one was hiding under the stairs and another one in a closet.
When it was clear the kids weren't coming closer, James pulled his cowl off and relaxed his body language as he tried to coax the little boy under the stairs to come out. "It's okay, bud. We're not scary. I promise," James told him in a gentle tone and with a half smile in place.
The little guy looked up at James with a trembling lower lip. "I'm scared," he muttered into his knees.
"I'll bet you are. You know what? Me too," James said, smiling a little wider at him. He waved with the tips of his fingers. "I'm James. Wanna tell me your name so we can be friends?"
"I'm Ollie," the freckle-faced kid said quietly.
"Nice to meet you Ollie," James said as he offered him his hand. Ollie stared at it for a moment before he took James' hand and when he did, James was sure to gently shake it then let go. "This place is pretty scary. You want to go with me and get out of here, or would you rather say hi to my brother first?"
At that, Nate waved over his shoulder with a brilliant smile, and Ollie looked between them with a small frown. "Can you get my sister?" he asked James quietly. "I told her to hide, and she did, but I can't go without her. It's my job to keep her safe." His eyes welled up with tears, obviously scared of where his little sister might be in all this mess.
"I can find your sister for you Ollie. I'll make it my job to get her to you," James said, relaxing his shoulders more. "Do you know where she is?"
He nodded and pointed to a different room, close by where Kate was talking down another little girl. "She's in the pantry in the kitchen."
"Then I'll find her for you." James nodded and got to his feet. "Can you stick with my little brother, Ollie?"
"Uh-huh."
"Great," James said, reaching out to ruffle his hair. "Then I'll get your sister and you can both get out of this scary building."
Ollie smiled and then darted over to hug James. "Thanks," he whispered.
"No problem. We gotta watch out for our little brothers and sisters," James said as he returned the hug, sure to take a careful and deep breath to find the familial scent. Even if she was where Ollie said, it would help to find her faster. "You gonna be okay with my little brother, Ollie? He's kind of a dork sometimes." James said - if nothing else to be sure Nate had the kid's name.
Ollie nodded, but had a crooked smile in place. "I'm okay," he promised, and Nate picked him up and put him on his shoulders to get him out.
James smiled, but he didn't pull his cowl back on - not when he knew he was headed for another little kid. He waved at the little girl Kate was coaxing, earning himself a giggle from her then jogged down to the next room over and right away, he knew Ollie wasn't wrong. The scent of fear was thick in the air and it didn't take long to find the little girl hidden in a cabinet, peeking out of the door. He crouched down by the cabinet and knocked on the door, even going so far as to wait for her to open the door. She squeaked, but didn't close it and James tipped his head and smiled at her. "Hi," he said, doing what he could to sound friendly. "Are you Ollie's sister?"
The little girl nodded and as James reached for her, there was a deep boom that rattled the whole building, shaking the floor as bits of debris fell from the ceiling and a few things fell off the shelves. "Alright, come on, sweetheart," James said, holding his hands out to her. "Let's go find your big brother, huh?"
She was sucking her thumb, and it took a moment but she darted forward just a few seconds before a second explosion rocked the building a lot harder than the first. James curled around her as she let out a little terrified squeak and buried her face in his chest. "It's okay," James said. "I'll do everything I can to get you to your brother."
Nate had just set Ollie down outside when Kate came out carrying the little girl she'd coaxed out of the closet she'd been hiding in, and he grinned over at her. "That everyone?"
"Rachel's doing a sweep, but it looks like the little girl James went after is the last one," Kate said.
Nate nodded and turned to Ollie. "You gonna be okay with Hawkeye? She's alright, I promise."
Ollie nodded and took Kate's free hand, as Nate started back in the building to help the others deal with the MRD - only to get blown off his feet when the MRD tried to bring the building down with an explosion.
Nate let out a curse when he hit the ground, though before he could get his feet underneath him, a second explosion went off - and that one did bring the building down. Nate only had a second to cover his head and try to minimize the damage, but something hit him hard, and the next thing he knew, everything had gone black.
When the building came down, the X-Men were all trying to take stock of each other, and it only took Rachel a few seconds after the rumbling stopped to panic. She frantically reached out to find everyone, coughing and trying to see through the dust and debris long before it could disperse. The twins and Mia were okay… Kate was with some kids who were freaking out over the loud noises… James? Nate? Rachel was higher off the ground than she meant to be as she looked for her brothers. Come on; answer me, please!
When neither of them immediately answered, Rachel started to panic, flinging out one hand to start picking up the still-smoldering ruins of the building and search for the boys. Guys, answer me! she projected, unaware that some of the smoldering ruins hadn't been smoldering around her until she got close to them.
She lifted up part of the entryway and saw that her baby brother had been trapped underneath part of a wall. He was bloody, still, and covered in dust. Rachel touched down with panic and fire just behind her eyes, barely able to breathe until she found Nate's pulse. And then she nearly cried in relief. She was simply too upset to think.
Mia hit the button to call for Avengers backup and then teleported over to where Rachel was, her eyes wide. "Hey, um, you need to find James and also you're kind of on fire," she blurted out.
"What?" Rachel asked, and the fire behind her eyes turned tangible as she started to panic on realizing she had only found one brother. Frantically, she reached out searching for James.
Rachel, James projected out to her after she managed to break through his psychic defenses without meaning to. I'm okay. The little girl is okay. We're just pinned down pretty solid.
Oh thank God, Rachel projected back. Where are you? Nate's hurt. I - I'm freaking out, James.
Don't freak out, he replied, his mental tone calm even if it was strained. Everyone's safe, so just breathe and relax. I've got a beam and some debris on me. I'm stuck tight. I didn't get out of the pantry before it fell. So you're doing just fine.
I'm on fire! Rachel projected, clearly panicked.
So maybe think about not doing that or find me so we can roast some marshmallows. It would be good for this little girl, who is barely keeping from crying because she's playing with my face.
It was such an unexpected response that Rachel was surprised into a laugh - and that helped to calm her down at least enough that the fire was less intense and had pulled back to just her eyes. Right. Rachel smiled to herself as she reached out to brush the toddler's mind, entertained when she saw through her eyes how James was playing with her - nipping at her hand when she covered his mouth.
Seriously, Rach. Get some s'mores going. I can almost reach the graham crackers. But then I'd have to let go of this toddler, and she will definitely cry if I let her go right now. Pretty sure we're trying to avoid that kind of thing.
You're hilarious, she said as she floated his way, following his mental signature and the little girl's giggles until she found where the two of them were. It took some work to telekinetically move some debris and lift up part of the wall and the beam that was on them. But it was easier to cope when the toddler was oohing and aahing over Rachel's powerset, even before she could see her.
When she finally moved a section of brick wall off of a beam, and she saw how James was curled around the little girl, she couldn't help but gasp. Especially when she saw how hurt James was - and still somehow managing to keep the toddler in his arms safe and blocked from getting hurt or seeing his damage. "Ohmigosh."
"It's okay, sis. You didn't see anything," James said before he asked Liza to cover her eyes while he pulled himself free of where his leg had been stuck. "It doesn't count, Rach."
"Yes it does!" Rachel argued. "Are you okay?"
"I'm fine, it'll be fixed in no time," James said. "You know I'm fine."
"You crushed your leg!"
"And with the beam off, it's healing already," James said, even as the little girl held on tighter to him. "Buzzing like crazy."
Rachel shook her head and sat down in the rubble beside him, looking like her father as she ran her hands over her face to get a hold of herself - at least until the fires subsided a little. "That's never happened before," she breathed out.
"Yeah, what kicked it off?" James asked, grimacing as he made sure his leg was straight as much as he was able with the little girl clinging to him.
"Nate's hurt," Rachel said, looking up at James with panic but not fire in her eyes.
"So go check on him," James said. "Or ask Mia or Kate to if you're afraid you'll freak out again."
"I really am," Rachel said.
"Then reach out to check and stay here with me and little Liza."
Rachel nodded, closing her eyes and trying to find the center that Betsy had shown her when they'd trained together. "Kate's babying Nate right now," she said after a long moment.
"Is that some kind of code I should be worried about?" James asked.
Rachel snorted. "No, it means she's stopping the worst bleeders and crying on him and-"
"Powdering his butt? I don't want to hear that, Rach."
She laughed again. "That's a mental image I don't need."
"You're welcome," James said, already shakily pulling himself up to test out standing, though he looked sick to his stomach as he did so, and he didn't let go of the chunk of concrete he'd used to get upright, with one arm around Liza the whole time. "I think I wrecked my uniform, sis," James whispered finally. "Jan is going to be so mad."
"No kidding," Rachel said. "Mia called for the Avengers, by the way."
"Good. That was what we said we'd do," James said. "How are the twins?"
"Tommy and Mia were with the mutants they rescued, so they're totally fine. Billy and Kate were closer to the blast, so they got a little singed and cut up, but also fine."
James nodded, testing his leg again before he took a few shaky steps from where he'd been. "Let's get Liza to her brother. Maybe we'll get lucky and find their parents."
Rachel nodded. "You lead the way. I'm just… going to keep thinking calm thoughts and make doubly sure the Phoenix is locked up where it needs to be."
"Try coming up with a good reason Dad will listen to on why I don't have my mask. That would be great."
"Blame the toddler?" Rachel asked.
"I'm not laying that on a little kid," James said as he handed Liza the remains of his cowl to play with. "Even if it's true."
"Hey, we used to do it all the time to Nate," Rachel teased as Liza tried to wear the tattered cowl.
"Because it was Nate's fault."
"At least ninety percent of the time," Rachel agreed.
James tried to readjust Liza, who let him move her a little before she latched on and snuggled in - peeking at Rachel over his shoulder. Slowly, the three of them headed to where the other mutants who had been staying at the halfway home were staying clumped up, unsure of what to do - at least until the Avengers arrived and Hank got out first, obviously concerned and headed right for Nate.
Kate was relieved to see him and waved him over with hands that were covered in red. "I think I stopped the worst bleeding," she said in a tight voice.
"You did well," Hank said as he started working - much quicker and more efficiently than they'd realized he could. "If it makes you feel any better, cuts on the head always bleed much worse than they need to."
"That… that does, actually make me feel better," Kate breathed out. "It got pretty close to his eye…"
"He'll likely end up with a scar," Hank said.
"That's okay," Kate said. "He can rock a rugged look I can tease him about."
Hank smiled, but as soon as Nate was patched up, he picked him up to get him off the scene. "Who else was injured?"
"James got busted up, but he says he's fine - if you believe that," Mia said. "We're all okay, really. They were just super unlucky."
"I think you mean super lucky," Hank said. "Having a building come down on you could have killed every one of you in a blink."
The kids all paused when they heard it, the weight of it hanging over their heads - and reminding them of what their parents had been saying - before Tommy spoke up. "Yeah, well, it could have killed all these people who were just trying to live too. So… all's well that ends well, right?"
"Not exactly," Steve said as he joined the group, looking each one of them over carefully. "We're securing the scene. SHIELD will be investigating this, so I'm sorry, but you're going to need to stick around a little longer."
"Seriously?" Tommy asked.
"Not like James can go anywhere anyway," Mia pointed out with a giggle, gesturing to where James had both Ollie and Liza climbing on him and snuggling him hard with Billy close by - and highly entertained by the kids using his boyfriend as both teddy bear and jungle gym.
"Yes, really," Steve said. "They attacked a civilian building full of innocent people. Not all of which were mutants, either, by the way. We've been pushing. I thought that was clear. And since it was an official organization working outside of their given parameters … there are big consequences."
"Mess with the bull, get the horns, and all that," Tommy said.
"You all need to give statements," Steve said. "So keep your masks on and be patient."
"Oh yeah. We're really good at that," Mia said, smirking Tommy's way.
"You'll live," Steve said with a sigh, and not long after Hank and Nate headed off for better medical, the SHIELD agents arrived and started separating the kids to find out what happened. Just before the public and the press started to come out snapping pictures of the young heroes at work.
While some of the agents interviewed the young X-Men, others were working hard to get the kids paired back up with their guardians and others still were trying to stop bystanders from recording the young heroes. It didn't take long before the civilians were all being directed to somewhere safe to stay - though it took some serious convincing to get James' hangers-on to trust the agents enough to go with them and eventually James carried the kids rather than hand them over as he followed the agents to find their mother.
Finally, all that was left was the X-Men and Avengers, and the kids tried to look more composed than they felt as they boarded the Quinjet so they could catch up with Nate and Hank.
And somehow, the kids weren't surprised that, when they did get there, Scott was already there too - to make sure Nate wasn't too badly hurt. He looked shaken, but seeing Rachel and James seemed to bolster him, and he crossed the space in a few long strides to grab them both in a hug.
"We're fine, Dad," Rachel said, though she held on tightly. "How's Nate doing?"
"He's stable, and Hank says he'll be on his feet in no time," Scott said, sounding relieved. "It looked worse than it was." He stopped and cupped her cheek. "I saw what happened."
"We had gotten almost everyone out," Rachel said. "Nate went back in to help James."
Scott nodded. "Are you alright?" he asked. "I saw that too."
"I am now," Rachel said. "I think. I was scared for Nate."
"You kept a lid on it," Scott said. "I'm proud of you, Rachel."
"The teasing helped," Rachel admitted with a laugh.
Scott smiled and looked toward James. "That sounds right. Jean always did better with positivity."
"Wasn't teasing," James said. "I insinuated that I could go for a roasted marshmallow."
Scott chuckled. "That would be one burnt marshmallow."
"Got her to relax," James said. "Worth it."
"And what about you?" Scott asked, looking him over.
"I'm fine," James said. "Just tired. And starving. As you do."
Scott smirked. "Healing takes it out of you," he agreed. "We'll get you something high-protein. That helps."
"O-kay," James said slowly. "Are you alright? You seem amazingly okay right now and it's kind of freaking me out."
"You missed my entrance," Scott said dryly.
"Well yeah, I had a couple kids hanging off me."
"Yes," Hank said in a low whisper James' way, "and you missed the sedative I gave him. You must still have blood in your nose."
"Ah," James said quietly, matching Hank's tone and volume as he reached up to scrub his nose with the back of his hand. He'd thought he had done a good job of wiping off all the blood when he was holding on to the little girl. "Yeah. I do."
"It seemed necessary to prevent him having a medical episode himself," Hank said, and James reached out to rest a hand on Hank's shoulder before he stepped closer and lowered his voice.
"I think, before Dad burns that out of his system and before we go, if you could be real quiet about checking an x-ray or two for me, that might be good. To make sure everything is where it should be, especially since it doesn't feel … right."
"You were hurt more than you're admitting to. I am utterly un-shocked," Hank said as he nodded. "Scott, do you mind if I look over both of your other children?" he asked. "Just to be safe."
Scott let out a breath and nodded, sitting down by Nate. "Alright."
"Can you put that in his coffee?" James asked when they were in the lab, well away from Scott.
Hank chuckled. "It's not something I would like to do regularly, but he was in such disarray over Nate's injuries and Rachel's fire that I felt I had a duty to protect him."
"I'm glad you did," James said, then was quiet for a moment. "Does that mean I'm off the hook for losing the cowl?"
"I wouldn't bet on it," Hank said, raising an eyebrow James way. He let out a sigh. "Anyone who was on a team with Logan knew instantly why you did it, though," he admitted. "There were so many missions in which Logan or K would find the smallest people in danger. Logan rarely kept the cowl on if he thought it would scare them."
"There's good reason for that," James said.
"My advice would be not to bring it up," Hank told him frankly.
"Yeah, not gonna happen," James agreed. "But … okay. So. I had a beam fall on me and I broke a few things. They're healed … I just want to make sure it's okay. I got pretty sick when I stood up."
"Say no more," Hank said, already directing James to the X-Ray machine. "Let's take a look. Just tell me everything that was broken."
"Okay, but I'd rather you didn't have to re-break anything," James said.
"If I do," Hank said, "I will give you a collar and put you to sleep first. No reason to do that to you consciously."
"Thanks, I think," James said, relaxing a little as he leaned back and directed Hank on what he knew had broken.
Hank let out a breath when he saw the results and then gently handed James a collar. "When you wake up again, you'll be good as new," he promised.
James frowned but nodded, though considering everything he knew, he couldn't in good conscience ignore one important point. "You'll make sure Dad doesn't see in here, right? I don't want him seeing me in a collar."
Hank paused and his lips parted when he realized that James had to know the full story of his father if he was having concerns like that. "Absolutely," Hank promised gently. "He'll likely be asleep before we can get started anyhow."
James nodded again. "Okay. Yeah. That works." He blew out a breath and put the collar on with a click before he leaned back. A moment later, Hank took a hold of his arm gently and put in an IV and administered the proper medications.
It didn't take long once the shot kicked in for James to pass out so Hank could get to work. Which left only Rachel awake out of Scott's three kids.
Chapter 49: A Price To Heroics
Chapter Text
Billy stayed at the tower with the rest of his team until Hank was done re-breaking and setting James' bones that had healed improperly. He waited, trying not to draw too much attention to himself - or to James as he watched an obviously high Scott get protectively affectionate with Rachel to the point that Billy was wondering if he was going to be alright.
But he didn't get to stick around and wait for James to wake up - not when Erik was blowing up his phone expecting a call.
Tommy and Mia had already zipped off, so instead of drawing down fire at the school, Billy cast a spell to bring himself and Erik to a tiny island that they'd designated as a safe place for the two of them to chat. But Erik didn't look pleased to have been zapped to this little private hideaway.
"You could have been killed," Erik half-shouted once he'd gotten his bearings. "Where is your brother?"
"Hold on," Billy said, holding one finger up as he waited for Tommy to reply to his text … and moments later, the wind nearly knocked Billy off his feet when Tommy skidded to a stop next to him.
"What did I miss?"
Erik looked angrier as he looked between the two boys. "You both should be coming back to Genosha with me right now. Do you have any idea what would have happened to you if those neanderthals had captured you? Do you know what they would have done?"
"Grandfather, they never got the ch-"
"You would have ended up enslaved or dead just like the fools who wore that badge to begin with!" Erik bellowed, rising up off the ground. He hadn't meant to float up, but it just … happened sometimes when he was that angry.
The twins shared a look, and calmly Billy put his hands to his sides and floated up so he could see eye to eye with him. "They weren't trying to take us. And I have absolute faith that you or Mother would undo whatever damage they might try."
Erik deflated slightly, but it only served to illustrate to him how much the boys had relied on him if they were counting on Erik coming in to help even while they were defying him. "True as that may be, we won't always be there for you. If something were to happen to either of us - or if Genosha was under attack while you were being treated like an animal, what then? You need to be able to see when to attack preemptively."
But Billy held his gaze steadily. "We were saving innocent mutants. I thought that was the whole point of what we're doing."
"It doesn't change the fact that both of you should be in Genosha."
"We're in school," Tommy said thickly. "We're getting an ed-u-caaaaa-tion. Mom said. So … bye." With that, he zipped off, spraying both Billy and Erik down with sea water as he did so.
"You must be more careful," Erik said when once again it was just the two of them - and for the first time ever, he knew he didn't have an upper hand or a sneaky play to pull. Yet.
"I am, Grandfather," Billy swore, one hand over his heart. "But I am also enjoying being at school and seeing this country. We will finish school in Westchester. And not just this year."
"Then I'll see you again when the school year is over. There is no reason for you to stay and neglect your family over the summer."
Billy paused, since … he honestly hadn't considered how he was going to approach summer. Originally he was going to come back for the summer but now … "I love you too," Billy said finally, deciding to try and end it on a high note - and it did get the relieved sort of warm smile from Erik he'd been hoping for. "But I should get back. Tommy and Mia went back to the school already - and James will be waking up soon from surgery."
"Give the Summers family my regards," Erik said, then paused himself. "You were all very lucky to walk out of that building with no fatalities. Even your James could have been crushed to death."
Which, of course, had hit a little too close to what had happened. "We know we were lucky," Billy agreed rather than fight with him on it. "Please let Mom and Dad know we're okay and that I'll call her when I get back to the school."
With a quick hug, Billy stepped back and his eyes glowed once again as he worked the spell to send them both back. When he appeared in the recovery room where Hank was waiting for James to wake up before he pulled the collar, he let out a breath of relief before he pulled up a chair to wait it out.
He knew that the mission had been dangerous - after the fact - but it was the most fun he'd had since Genosha. He didn't know what had changed after he'd brought James and his family there for break, but James had been incredibly quiet since then. He was almost back to himself when they were playing with Ollie and Liza. And he enjoyed watching James interact with the kids. If it wasn't for the fact that he knew James was in pain at the time, he was pretty sure that James was back to himself.
Maybe he just needed a mission to run - or kids to play with. One or the other. Either way, it was a good look on him.
Billy was lost in thought when the monitors started to change their rhythm as James began to wake up. But he didn't hit the call button to bring Hank in. Not when he had a shot to see his boyfriend doped up on painkillers. "Hey there, Sleeping Beauty," Billy teased as James turned his way.
"Little Prince Charming," James half slurred out. "Where's my kiss? Not allowed to wake up until I get a kiss."
"Not quite how it works," Billy laughed, though he did come over to steal a kiss before James lost the collar and burned out the drugs.
"Sure it is," James countered with a sloppy, crooked smile. "Worked, didn't it?"
"I'd still prefer you didn't make a habit of this. I know Dr. Beast felt awful about having to break your bones again."
"S'okay. I'll heal," James said. "That's what I do, you know. That's all I do."
"Modest when you're high, too. Interesting." Billy said just before Hank came into the room to check things over. It wasn't any time at all though before James burned out the drugs once the collar was off.
But he smiled at Billy as soon as Hank left them alone for a moment. "You were worried," he said.
"I wasn't," Billy said. "Not really. I know you're fine. But I didn't want you to wake up alone."
"Yeah sure, love you too," James said, still smiling.
For an instant, Billy was clearly taken off guard, but he couldn't hide the growing grin as he leaned forward and kissed the sense out of James. "And I love you - but you beat me to it."
"I had to. You were taking forever," James said, though he didn't look like he was in a rush to move with Billy staying close.
"You did pick the slow twin," Billy teased, perfectly pleased when James moved over and waved Billy over to join him.
"Lucky me," James teased as the two of them got situated - even if it wasn't strictly necessary for James to stay in the medical wing. The rest of his family was preoccupied anyhow. They wouldn't miss him for at least a few hours.
He just hadn't expected it when Tony arranged for food to be brought in for both of them with a note that promised a long talk once Scott allowed him back to the tower.
For the weeks that followed the incident that kept the X-Men in the news for a whole slew of reasons, Scott became almost militant about James' schedule because he had, in fact, not been pleased about James being outed so early in the game.
And as part of that, he kept a much more watchful eye on the neighborhood, though he was surprised when the only change in patterns was the slight uptick in people walking past. All of them were neighbors, but none of them stared or stopped ... even if it was clear to Scott that they were milling around trying to catch James and likely Nate, too.
Toby had been pressing to have a chat with Scott, but he simply couldn't let his guard down enough to allow it to happen. And though he didn't know it, James had put himself in a bit of isolation as well - promising the rabbi that he'd catch up with him as soon as he was un-grounded, even using tutoring his brother as an excuse as to why he was unavailable.
But, as Hank had promised, Nate was back on his feet soon enough. He had plenty of makeup work to do at school in spite of the help James had offered. Scott had sent out an email to all of Nate's teachers explaining that he'd been in an accident with some friends, and they were all sympathetic and more than willing to give Nate time to catch up, even with as close to coming off of spring break as it was.
In fact, Scott was surprised by the personal response from Nate's history teacher in particular:
Mr. Mueller,
Thank you for reaching out. I was worried when I didn't see Nate in class, and I hope you know that your family has my prayers and support. I hope he and his friends recover quickly.
I wanted to reassure you as well that missing this time won't affect his grade too badly. He's been pulling his grades up quickly, and you'll be happy to know that if he keeps at it, he might even be able to manage a B in my class.
Please let me know if there is anything I can do.
-Annie Hale
Scott raised his eyebrows as he read over the email. As much as he hated to admit it, he was starting to see why Nate had tried to set him up with this teacher. Aside from being pretty and smart, if this was the kind of attention she gave her students…
He shook his head to himself. He really wasn't ready for that - not when he was waiting for a call from Kitty concerning the latest intel on Magneto's strongholds on Genosha, and certainly not when his kids were X-Men and were growing into risks that still took his breath away from the outside. He knew his team at that age had taken much bigger risks, but it was different when he felt as though his hands were tied.
He was honestly trying to come to terms with that. He knew the kids had their hearts in the right place, and there was a part of him that knew they were right. The world did need the X-Men.
He just hated that the world needed his kids.
In any case, Scott needed to focus. His initial plan to go to Genosha and simply deal with Magneto wasn't going to cut it when he had seen the look on James' face that morning in Genosha. He needed something solid, something with an exit plan.
It was still risky. It was. And he was making arrangements just in case - a pair of letters to Nate and Rachel that told them the story he'd already told James. He had instructions for who would take guardianship of the boys until they were grown with Tony Stark at the forefront of James' care so long as Natasha supervised and Warren and Betsy listed for Nate since he knew Warren would know how to deal with Nate and they wouldn't keep the kids apart anyhow. He also had written out an apology and explanation for everything he could think of - and every piece of advice he could think to write down from his days as an X-Man. Just in case.
Scott let out a sigh and sent off a quick thank you to Ms. Hale before he turned back to his plans. Alex's birthday was coming up, and that would be a good excuse to go to Genosha…..
Chapter 50: Public Opinion
Chapter Text
"Are you sure you're ready to head back to school already?" James asked Nate as the two of them headed down the street together to get a bagel and some coffee. Nate's healing had been moving along at a good speed, but James was pretty sure that his little brother was pushing himself a little too much, too soon.
"I'm going crazy sitting at home," Nate said. "And I really will be in big trouble if I don't get my history grade up enough for Dad to not have a stroke."
"Which is why we're taking your 'study break'," James said, complete with air quotes. "Remind me again why we couldn't get it delivered?"
"Because you need to leave the house for things not related to work and missions?" Nate said slowly. "I've been hearing complaints through Kate about the lackluster effort in your dating life and I can't even begin to tell you how much I do not want to hear about that - at all. Especially when I'm trying to have my own date nights? So … if you want to drop him, just drop him."
James stopped entirely as he turned toward his brother. "Are you nuts?"
"No, but I'm not afraid of Magneto either," Nate teased. "So, that could be part of it."
James gave him a dry look, let out a rumbling sort of low growl, then started walking again. "I'm not afraid of Magneto. Thanks. In fact, I'll thank you to keep him out of the same breath when you're talking about my love life, too. Unless you want me recruiting Clint to be worse when it comes to his descriptions and 'help' that he loves to give." He gestured widely. "Maybe it's time that Uncle Barney was tracked down to make an appearance and play overprotective guardian of virtue."
"I'm not the one suddenly dropping the ball," Nate pointed out. "So what's the problem? Show me if it's easier than talking."
"No," James said, shaking his head already and thinking of the many things he didn't want Nate to see … the thinly veiled threats in Magneto's research labs, the not at all veiled threats he'd made at Stark Tower, the challenge over dinner with Billy's family that Scott and Rachel hadn't seen … and the chess game and all that went with it … along with a dozen or more minor interactions over the course of the week that none of his family had been witness to. "You don't need to see any of that, really."
"How much was there?" Nate asked quietly as they stepped into the neighborhood cafe that the boys preferred.
"Let it go, Nate," James warned as he stepped into line and shoved his hands deeply in his pockets. He was scowling and frowning at nothing in particular, but Nate recognized the expression as one that told him he'd hit close on something - and if he was to connect the dots with his big brother, it was probably to do with Magneto more than anything.
Which would explain why James was distracted enough to miss the fact that three different tables of neighbors were smiling brightly at him. And not in the usual 'oh, look at the nice Mueller boys', but something a little … more. As James quietly waited, Nate reached out to brush the minds of those around them, and was utterly un-surprised when he found that pretty much everyone in the shop with a few minor exceptions knew exactly who his big brother was after he'd been busted out on camera… and they approved.
The accidental unmasking apparently wasn't all bad. Not if what he was hearing from their neighbors was any indicator. Nate smiled to himself as he started focusing a little more - to hear their individual impressions. From what he could sift through, it was pretty clear that his big brother had a following - not that Nate didn't know that. He and Kate had been tipped off to a X-Men fan forum that had been active nearly as long as they'd been on the scene … and though each and every team member had their own sections dedicated to those that were following them, James' had blown up since their last big mission … because now his face was publicly known. And that meant plenty of admirers in the city had been keeping their eyes open for him.
Of course, that meant speculation on Nate, too - and though so far, the speculation had been incredibly off base, people were trying to figure out who the rest of the team was underneath the masks.
It was a security issue … most of the time. And it wasn't lost on Nate that a whole internet full of people making posts on where his big brother had been seen was potentially a very bad thing. Right now, though? It was entertainment. Especially knowing that James hated being the center of attention. Which was so unfortunate for him when so many teenage and college age girls in the shop were admiring from afar and intimidated to approach the young Wolverine.
"Nate," James said, frowning at him, which made it clear to Nate that he'd missed the first two times James had said his name. "I know you're lost in your head, but come on. Do you want your usual?"
"Yes. Please. I'll find a table," Nate said, grinning wider at him for just long enough to James to really become convinced that Nate had lost it. A moment later, Nate turned away from his brother and looked around the cafe until he found a spot with a few hopeful looking young ladies who were projecting out how much they wanted the two of them to sit near them.
And who was he to argue with the masses of admirers? He took his phone out as he made his way over to the table nearest the two young women, though he had a hard time deciding which seat to take, ultimately opting to let his clueless brother sit nearest the girls. He was chuckling to himself as he texted Kate to let her know where they were - if she wanted to join them. But the show had already started.
James had made their order like he always did and pulled his wallet out to pay when the guy behind the counter grinned widely at him and told him it was covered. James paused, frowning before he slowly took a fifty out and put it in the tip jar then turned toward Nate, telegraphing clearly 'what is even happening?'
Which was about the very funniest expression he could have been wearing. So Nate was understandably entertained. "What's wrong?" Nate asked, grinning because he couldn't hide his amusement; this reaction was so different from what he was used to seeing from James when someone would flirt with him. Clearly, his brother had a lot on his mind.
"Nothing, I guess," James replied as he took a seat and the two of them waited for their order to come to the table. He settled in, more or less clueless at the broad grins the young ladies behind him were wearing. Grins that only got wider when he took his jacket off and set it on the chair next to him. Nate covered his glee by subtly snapping a few pictures of James minding his own business while the girls carried on. "What is wrong with you?" James asked - his tone and expression perfectly flat.
"Nothing. It's just a beautiful morning."
James frowned and narrowed his eyes at Nate's phone. "How long before Kate gets here?"
"Any time, I'm sure," Nate said, still smiling as the barista came over with their order, though at least he was more interesting than the girls at the table next to him. Nate smiled at the guy and thanked him, but he barely looked Nate's way. And still, James seemed to be willfully ignoring the people around him … at least until he saw the phone number and the note under the sleeve of his latte.
He took the note out from under the sleeve and frowned as he opened it. "What …"
Nate grinned wider. "If you were more open…"
James glanced up at him, considered letting his brother in, then quickly shook his head. "Just tell me."
"You were on live TV, oh, brother mine," Nate said quietly as the girls giggled behind James. "They like you. And the ones behind you want to see you in the stripes."
James straightened up slightly as he gave his brother a look of pure disbelief. "We should go," James said.
"Don't think it would help much," Nate replied, still smiling. "Kinda the same gist of what I was hearing on the street too. Just wait until the pictures start showing up on social media."
"I'm gonna need an inducer."
"Oh, come on," Nate said, laughing to himself. "I'm teasing." He raised his voice. "I'm sure most people know not to say where you are, or when."
As James gave him a dry look, the girls behind him caught Nate's attention with a double thumbs up and wide grins.
And then Kate caught up to them. She was quick to make her order at the counter and slid into the seat nearest Nate - pointedly shifting her seat even closer to Nate to make it clear who she was with so as not to disturb their fellow cafe patrons.
"Hi, Katie," James said, smiling tightly. "What are you doing now?"
"Just had to see my favorite guy," Kate said with a grin as she snuggled up with Nate. "And wanted to bask in how much you're appreciating the fan club."
"The barista gave him a phone number," Nate whispered into her hair before he kissed the side of her head.
"The cute redhead?"
"No," Nate said, smiling wider. "The blond."
Kate whipped around then grinned wider when she saw the cute boy behind the counter that was trying not to watch them outright. "Oh. Billy won't like that at all."
"I didn't do anything," James defended lightly. "All I did was order coffee."
"Yep, and then the guy refused to take his money," Nate said, smiling obnoxiously.
"You make it sound way worse than it was," James said, staring at his brother with an unspeakably dry expression on his features.
"Are you trying to say that he didn't totally want to shove his tongue down your throat?" Nate challenged - and it was shocking enough for Nate to approach the subject like that that James found himself staring at his little brother for a full beat. "I'll bet Billy would want to know about him."
"And I'm very sure it won't make a bit of difference," James said. "Because for it to make any difference, I'd have to be flirting with him, too. And I'm not. So stop trying to cause trouble."
"Is he the jealous type?" Nate asked with a broad grin, though James rolled his eyes.
"It's a non-issue, you moron," James said, then reached under the table to kick the leg of Nate's chair enough to jostle him.
"I know, I know," Nate laughed. "You two are usually so sickeningly sweet together. I was just trying to find out what changed."
"Nothing," James answered, frowning deeper at Nate as if he'd lost his mind.
"Okay but … that's not really the way it sounds when Billy's projecting how concerned he is about how quiet you are," Nate said.
James let out a long, weary kind of sigh as he rubbed his hands over his face, only to stop with one hand covering his eyes. "You're giving me a headache," he said finally. "Either you're amused with people ogling me or you're worried about how things are between me and my boyfriend. Pick. One." When he moved his hand from his eyes, he fixed Nate with a look and picked up his jacket, then took his coffee in one hand and the note in the other. "Now, if you'll excuse me, I've got to let this guy down easy."
"Oh, come on," Nate said with a smile, though his tone was down as James stood up and headed toward the now-empty counter, where the blond was smiling wider as James came up to talk to him.
Kate smiled as she leaned into Nate; he really was more fun to be around in a mood like this. But still, she couldn't help but try to ease his mind. She kept their conversation in whispers so they wouldn't be overheard as she said, "The Billy thing is a non-issue, by the way."
Nate was still too entertained to realize she was talking to him for a few seconds before he turned her way and kissed her forehead. "What, the jealousy or the everything else?"
"It's just not even a thing for drama, unless you count the fact that they're probably gonna end up getting married as drama."
Nate's expression shifted entirely, and he couldn't help but peek into Kate's mind, surprised to find that she was serious. "Wait, what?"
Kate smiled crookedly. "I know you can't peek in on him like you can with me unless he lets you, but can you really not see it?" she asked. "I've double dated with James or been at the tower for almost all of the girls he ever dated, and I've never seen him like this. He's smiling more when Billy's around, and it's like he forgets to have the world on his shoulders after five minutes with him."
Nate had his full attention on Kate by that point. "Kate, he was happy with the others, too. Especially May. Come on. Mayday?"
"Not like this." When Nate still looked like he didn't quite get it, she sighed. "Okay, fine. Don't believe the Hawkeye who has been trained by her mom since she was little how to read body language and pick out intentions from them."
"Kate…"
"I'm just saying: telepaths should be forced to take body language classes or something. You're terrible at this."
Nate shook his head and then kissed her, mostly because she looked so pleased with herself and he couldn't stand the idea of letting her think she was ahead of him. At anything. I still think you're exaggerating.
I could project to you the total melt that Billy did when he saw James with those kids. That boy saw James with a couple of kids and you could actually see the moment he decided he wanted that future.
That's Billy, though.
James looks at Billy like he can't believe he's lucky enough to have him.
Doesn't count. James has low self-esteem.
Kate rolled her eyes and hit Nate with the back of her hand. "Okay, fine. Look if you need to see what I've seen. But I'm telling you: your brother has it bad."
And just because Nate honestly thought Kate was seeing things that weren't there, he did, in fact, peek into her mind - and was taken aback by all the little things she'd seen. The subtle smiles, the quiet flirting, the way James always seemed that little bit more relaxed when Billy came to visit.
Well? Kate said when she knew Nate was done.
Okay, so you've seen a couple things I might have overlooked.
Is that your way of admitting I'm right without admitting you didn't see it?
Always gotta be right, huh?
Um. Yes. Have you met me?
If I say no, will we have to get reacquainted? Nate asked, grinning crookedly.
Kate rolled her eyes at him but kissed him anyway. One-track mind, Summers.
Like you aren't right there with me.
Your brother is coming back from talking to the barista.
He knows we're in each other's heads all the time, Nate pointed out, already moving into a psychic makeout session with her. James was uncomfortable enough that they were going to be headed home soon anyway, and he wanted to move on to better things than having to leave the fan club-filled cafe.
"That didn't take long," James said, shaking his head at how quickly Nate had gone from teasing him to getting lost in Kate.
"Nope," Kate said happily, giggling as Nate slid his arms tighter around her.
"You should find yours and do the same," Nate said, resting his chin on Kate's shoulder.
"In person," Kate teased, though James shook his head at her.
And that had Nate pinching her and projecting, You're getting dangerously close to revealing my powers.
Does that mean I'd have to pretend to be jealous of the groupies you'd immediately get? You already have some from sheer proximity to your brother.
Maybe you should be jealous.
Puh-lease. I'm a million times sexier.
A million?
Doubt me again and there will be no sex of any kind for you. Including telepathic.
Now there's a threat.
And not an empty one, either, Kate promised and then smiled at James. "Don't worry. He's been informed that he's getting nowhere if he doesn't stop being weird."
"I couldn't care less about where he's getting or not getting," James replied. "And if you wait for him to stop being weird, you'd be better off just moving on right now."
"Hurtful," Nate breathed out dramatically, one hand over his heart.
"Just can't take the truth," James said, then blew out a breath. "I'm headed back. You two … enjoy your date."
"What? You're not going to go meet up with Billy?" Kate asked, scrunching up her nose. "Because you should. He could use the pick me up."
"He's studying for three big tests," James said. "And he already said he doesn't want my help - which I think means he actually wants to study."
"So, what? You can't keep on track?" Kate teased.
"No, I can keep on task fine," James said. "He gets bored of the subject too fast when I help."
"Which classes?" Nate asked.
"Blue's Physics, Angel's Human Relations, and Jono's Calculus class." James shrugged one shoulder up. "He's probably with his dad, to be honest, so I'm not going to bother him."
See? Nate projected to Kate. Low self esteem. "Pretty sure he wouldn't think you were bothering him."
James tipped his chin up and turned to leave the two of them alone. "I was checking up on you to make sure you were alright. But now that I see you're in semi-responsible hands, I'm gonna go. Try not to get in the kind of trouble that needs a shotgun wedding solution." He winked at Kate, then left the two of them behind. Especially since Kate would be the one watching over Nate at school anyhow.
And besides, it was almost time for him to go talk to Toby. He'd skipped the last few weeks solely because he'd been paranoid and worried about Nate's health. Nate had gotten a small concussion when he'd gotten hit by a falling wall - a point that still had James shaking his head. His brother shouldn't ever get hurt. Especially not head wounds. They'd heard the trouble their dad had when it came to head wounds when he was a kid - there was no telling what could happen if a telepath suddenly lost the ability to control their powers. Not to mention that had been too close to Nate being severely injured or killed for James to not stress over.
When he got to the rabbi's office, he knocked on the door and quietly took a seat after talking to the rabbi's wife for a moment. She was smiling warmly at him the whole time, and James found himself staring at his hands.
"Ah, there you are," Rabbi Cohen said when he opened the door to his office, already waving him forward. "I was starting to wonder if you were too famous to continue our chats."
James let out a nervous breath of a laugh. "Yeah, that's what it is, alright." But that only had Toby chuckling to himself as James stepped into his office.
"I really am glad you came to see me," Toby said. "I've been a little worried about you and your siblings since the unmasking."
James sighed heavily as he sat down. "Yeah …"
"Do you want to tell my why, after everything your father did to keep you safe all these years, you took that mask off?" Toby held up both hands. "I'm not criticizing. I'm just asking why."
"That little boy was terrified of us," James said. "I couldn't get him to safety without getting him to trust me, and that wasn't going to happen with the mask on."
"Okay, that works to get him to go to you, but once he knew you weren't someone scary, why didn't you put it back on?" Toby was watching him with an open expression. "Once he saw your face, he knew you were a person. You could have put the mask back on."
For a long moment, James simply blinked back at Toby, at a total loss - and openly so. He could be glib about it and point out that there was another little kid, but the question was still pertinent. If Oliver could have coped, there was no reason his little sister couldn't have too. "It … never occured to me. I was focused on the kids, not hiding who I was, I guess."
"I'd say that's a good guess," Toby agreed. "But why is it, that after being raised with a deep sense of caution you did what you did for those kids?"
"Terminal genetic defect?" James joked dryly. "That's what it sounds like if I go by what everyone has said after the fact."
Toby smiled, but didn't laugh. "I would like to think that you didn't slip because of a self destructive impulse."
James quickly shook his head. "No, that's not what happened at all." Toby raised his eyebrows, waiting for James to defend his position. "I was trying to help. And I couldn't do that with a mask. I shouldn't have to hide when I'm helping. Not from kids." He opened his mouth, his lip curled almost into a snarl, but then he stopped himself from continuing. "Dad wasn't even that mad. Sure, he was mad, but he understood. It's fine."
"So this lockdown you've been under is self imposed?"
"Some of it," James said.
"How are you handling the extra attention?"
James nearly did a double take. "... what?"
"You can't tell me you haven't noticed that there have been more people being friendly around the neighborhood," Toby said. "I know you're more observant than that."
James smiled wryly. "I was taught that any attention is a problem." He held up his hands. "Not Dad's fault. A lot of that was Aunt Tasha, Tony, Steve …"
"Before you go too far listing off Avengers, just tell me you can see how many people there are that care about you," Toby said, smiling more warmly than before.
"I am trying to keep that in mind, yes," James agreed, though he stopped short of totally agreeing with him.
"I know you can't read minds like your siblings, and that you can't tell someone's intentions with your abilities-"
"You'd be surprised," James said, cutting him off, though that had Toby smiling to himself.
"Then I invite you to do a mental count of those intentions the next time you're in a crowd in our neighborhood." James considered him and then gently nodded in agreement. "So, knowing you don't talk about yourself too well - how did things go for your teammates, without naming any names?"
"Who do you want to know about?"
"Why don't you start with Cable and Prestige?"
James' shoulders dropped. "I talked her down, she was okay. But he never should have been … that was too close."
"Remind me again of who was injured and how badly."
"Just about everyone got a few bumps and bruises, that's par for the course. But he took part of a wall to his head," James said flatly. He ran his hand through his hair with a frown. "I've been working on something for Tony for so long, I didn't even think to worry about my team …"
"Were you hurt?" Toby asked. "Because it looked pretty bad. You had some suspicious missing pieces to your uniform, and there looked to be a lot of blood as well."
James blinked at him, then closed his eyes as he shook his head. "That doesn't really matter. I'm fine. I walked out with no trouble. Doesn't matter."
"You're wrong," Toby said. "How would you have felt if Cable had been in your shoes?" James paled and blew out a breath as Toby watched him. "That doesn't look like nothing."
"It's a sliding scale."
"Would he be here today if he'd been in your place?"
"Probably," James said. "Wouldn't do his football career any good though."
"James."
"I didn't get hurt trying to save him," James said. "I was caught up in the building when it came down with a little kid. It doesn't matter how I got hurt anyhow when I healed before someone could point it out."
"At the risk of opening a sore spot, I can't help but wonder if your parents would have done the same."
"If I go by what the Avengers, X-Men, and my Dad have to say - they absolutely would have." James held his gaze steadily. "So by that right, I'm keeping with the family tradition."
"And that's okay now?"
James considered it for a long moment, careful as always with his words when it mattered. "Yes. I think I'd be doing my parents and my dad a disservice if I didn't."
"And how is your dad handling this new outlook?"
"It changes from day to day," James said. "Today he was alright. He didn't mind when I took Nate to the cafe for a break."
"How much longer is he going to be out?" Toby asked, trying to figure out how badly Nate had been hurt.
"He's going back to school tomorrow," James admitted. "I wanted to see how he was, my mistake. He's fine."
Toby chuckled to himself. "Any reason you feel that way?"
'Before he had Kate crash the coffee shop for him, he was apparently amusing himself with people who recognized me," James admitted, though he didn't look amused in the least.
"So going back to the beginning of our session - you're not handling the extra attention well."
"I really hate when you do that," James said, then sighed heavily. "If I'm being honest, I think I'm suspicious of any of the extra attention because of what I was taught growing up. Okay, I'm anxious more often than not."
"Then we should discuss what you need to do to cope with that. How's Billy doing?"
"This weekend? Trying to study, mostly. But he's fine."
"The two of you aren't … there's no trouble there, is there? Because I can think of a dozen young people that would step in if you two weren't-"
"There's nothing wrong with Billy and I," James said, cutting across him just because it irritated him to hear it - especially twice in one morning. "But we're still teenagers. And he has school that he needs to do well in - and I have work to get done."
"Was any of that an obstacle before?"
"No, but neither was the fact that people recognized me," James pointed out. "And yes, okay? I'm being a little careful to make sure I don't draw down any more trouble for one of Genosha's princes."
"Ah. So this isn't wariness, it's more protectiveness. I really do think you're not going to have half the trouble you think is waiting for you."
"Alright. You think that and you can just be wrong. It's fine. I'm used to watching people be wrong all the time."
Toby couldn't help but shake his head at that. "Your dad's been very busy lately. Do you think you can tell him I'm still waiting to see him?"
"I can, and like I said before, if he wants to talk, he will. I can't make him do anything. That's like trying to stop the tides."
"And that's not in your powerset."
"If it was, I still wouldn't."
"Because you're a good kid," Toby said, smiling once again. "We have more to talk about, but I don't want to push today. It really was nice to see you for a moment, James. Please, don't be a stranger."
"I won't," James agreed, then got to his feet to head back to the house, sure that by now if Nate and Kate hadn't found a place to curl up together, they'd be back home. If they were smart, that's where they'd be, anyhow. He made his way to the crosswalk, and waited with the handful of people there, debating on if he should pick something up for Scott on the way back or not when he saw a young lady smiling broadly at him. He tried to ignore her for a moment, but when she took half a step closer, he turned her way to give her a curt nod. The decision was made for him. He was headed home - but not directly there. He'd go around the block and slip in through the alley instead of head-on. Maybe that would ease things a little bit for a little while longer.
Chapter 51: Meanwhile, Back On The Island
Chapter Text
Alex had always had an uneasy truce with his father-in-law, and he knew it. The fact that Lorna was his favorite seemed to outdo the lingering hard feelings that might have made things harder because of his past on the X-Men and his family ties, but lately, Alex wasn't sure even Lorna was enough to shield him from Erik's wrath, considering the glare Erik had on lately.
But a temperamental father-in-law would have been easy enough to deal with. The real worry was the way Erik was starting to get paranoid about the family he had remaining on the island. The real worry was the fact that Alex had caught Erik sending his minions to follow his and Lorna's kids even in the palace. The real worry was the fact that Chris had come home one night and asked why his grandfather had warned him against taking after his uncle.
Erik had always been controlling. But this? This was getting out of hand. The only problem, of course was that Alex didn't want to call in the cavalry if it wasn't necessary. And putting his human father in the line of fire where Magneto was concerned had to be a pressing affair.
Alex turned the small device over in his hands a few times before he decided he'd use the non-emergency setting first. That way, if Erik's tech picked up that he was reaching out, it would look like it was simply a social call … and since his birthday was coming up, it could certainly pass for that.
He couldn't help but smile though when it took a moment for Corsair to pick up - and he was even more amused to find that his now silver-haired father was still snickering and entirely too-wrapped up in his skunk-cat alien girlfriend. "Alex, my boy!" Corsair said, once he focused enough to see who it was that had come up. "What's on your mind, son?"
Alex's smile retreated just to the more polite setting that he found himself using with Corsair more and more as the years went on. "Just checking in, really," Alex said. "Lorna and I were talking about making my birthday into a family affair this year, so naturally, I had to see if you were anywhere near our sector."
"Well I'm not, but I could be," Corsair said, looking more serious as he looked off screen where Alex knew he was searching for whatever device Corsair kept in his cockpit that kept him up to date on the Earth calendar. "Yeah, I can be there on time. Where am I going?"
Here, Alex held his breath for an instant. He'd always done his best to keep Corsair away from Magneto, but in this instance, he also knew Scott was leaning toward returning to the island for other concerns, so for the second time in the whole time that Alex had been living on Genosha, he invited his father to visit there. "Genosha," he said finally. "Scott finally broke down and brought the kids over spring break and they seemed to enjoy themselves. So, we were talking about trying it with everyone that we have left, you know? Me, you, Scott … our kids …"
The years showed clearly around Corsair's eyes as he nodded and even Alex could see that he was sorry to have missed so much of his sons' lives. "Will there be a place for my crew?"
"We'll work something out," Alex said. "I didn't want to bring that part up unless I knew you'd be able to come."
"Of course, I'll be there," Corsair promised, though it was pretty clear that he'd caught something else by watching the anxiety on Alex's face. "Is your brother alright?"
"I mean … it's Scott. There's a certain level of what's to be expected with him."
"Yeah, he seemed on edge the last time I saw him," Corsair agreed.
"That was before the kids restarted the X-Men," Alex said dryly.
"They what?" Corsair said, straightening up with a thunderous look that Alex recognized from when he was very small.
"Talk to Scott," Alex advised. "He can fill you in on everything."
"I think I will," Corsair said.
"And I'll get in touch with the details for the birthday, alright?" Alex smiled to himself. "Chris and Suzie will love seeing everyone."
"It'll be nice to have the whole family in once place for a little bit," Corsair agreed with a sad smile. "Alright. I'll talk to Scott. Check in soon, huh?" The request was a quiet one, and Corsair was watching Alex closely with a look of concern that Alex understood immediately.
"I will. In the next couple of days."
Corsair's eyebrows shot up in surprise, and with a silent nod, it was clear he got the message: something was up and he needed more clarification. "I'll be waiting."
"Mister Mueller!" Toby called out, putting strong emphasis on the last name to be sure to catch Scott's attention. "You have been avoiding me for weeks."
"I haven't meant to," Scott said, gesturing openly as he glanced both ways up and down the street. He was only a few blocks from the house. Of course Toby would catch him in public. "It's been … complicated lately."
"Yes, we should talk about that, too," Toby said as he fell into step with Scott.
Scott frowned, noticing quickly that a few of the neighbors seemed suddenly interested in the conversation, and then waved for Toby to join him. "You're right. It's been too long. Have coffee with me, rabbi," he said — not because he wanted to talk but because he didn't like the exposure of attention.
"Yes, I'd love to," Toby said, as if this was perfectly normal and Scott hadn't been avoiding exactly this for so long now.
Scott sighed but led the way until they were back to his house. The walk for those last few blocks had been filled with small talk, so it was clear that whatever the Rabbi had on his mind - he was being smart enough to get hat out of the way before they made it to the house. Once they were through the front door and in his kitchen with coffee in front of them, an expectant silence hung over them until Scott set down the mugs. He'd expected Toby to blurt it out once they were in a safe place, but now? He could see that he was holding back.
"How bad is it, Toby?" Scott asked at last. "I know everyone saw James without his mask on. And I'd like to thank you for whatever you've been doing to keep us from being mobbed while the anchors are speculating almost every day."
"Would you believe it if I told you that our neighborhood can understand the value of giving someone their privacy when it matters?" Toby said with a smile.
Scott sighed. "Fair enough," he conceded.
"Besides, it's not bad at all, from what I've heard around the neighborhood."
"Yeah, I've been scanning for trouble," Scott said, tapping his temple near his eyes. "Had a few come from outside the neighborhood trying to get close to James, but they didn't make it to our block. Got too many people looking out for that kid." He leaned back slightly. "Which is good."
"I've actually had a little uptick in families looking for a meeting," Toby said with a little laugh. "For James, of course, but really - for all three of them again. But I'm not here for matchmaking, believe it or not."
"Good, because I don't know if you've noticed, but two out of three of my kids are starting to get serious." He paused. "As serious as Nate is capable of being, mind you."
"I think he's more serious than you realize," Toby said. "I've heard things, you know. And that kid hasn't picked up on the girls trying to get his attention at all. That has always been an indicator in my line of work — when they can't even see the other options." He gestured toward the living room. "The other one sees it but doesn't acknowledge it. I've seen that happen myself. But again … I'm here to talk to you."
Scott spread his hands wide and shrugged. "You know me, Toby. I can't help but talk about my kids."
"Deflect, deflect, deflect," Toby said. "We all do that sooner or later. But you, my friend, have been avoiding talking to me since you got back from Genosha."
"Toby, I've just been busy. I haven't been avoiding anyone. Or I've been avoiding everyone, I guess. It wasn't personal."
"If I hadn't called you out on the street, you would have dodged me." Toby smiled softly. "But I don't think it's personal. Not exactly. I think you just don't want to tell me why your famous son is so concerned about the state of things that he's been allowing me to counsel him. Don't worry, he agreed to letting me tell you as much. He even wished me luck at pinning you down to talk."
Scott's frown deepened, and he was quiet for a long time as he watched the steam from his mug. "Did he tell you what I told him on Genosha?" he asked at last.
"He did," Toby said. "And it opened a whole can of worms that he came to me to help sort out. Because he recognized that he couldn't do it for himself, and he couldn't put it on you knowing what you'd gone through."
"Because I'm too close to it," Scott said in a sigh.
"I don't think it was that. If it makes you feel any better, he didn't want to talk to anyone at work about it either. But I don't think it was for how close you are. He hasn't told his siblings or Billy either. In fact, I believe it has more to do with not wanting to worry you when you clearly have so much on your mind already."
Scott shook his head. "No, he knows I can't help him sort it out because I still haven't sorted it out for myself," he said. "And I appreciate you being the outside counsel for him when I can't."
"He's convinced that if something happens to you, it would be because of them," Toby said frankly.
A lot of the color left Scott's face. "No," he said at last, softly. "I don't… no, that's not —" He cut himself off as he tried to put his words together. "I don't know how to explain to him that he can't carry my mental health on his shoulders. I've tried." He glanced over at Toby. "Maybe you can."
"I'll be honest, Scott, it's incredibly hard to ignore his logic when he decides that's how it works out. It makes sense in a very simple cause and effect manner, but it ignores too many details for me. As in .. whatever it is you're planning or not planning, would you be doing it at all if it wasn't for the kid doing what he is — mostly behind a mask?" Toby tipped his head. "Or would you still be trying to live your quiet, hidden away life protecting them for everything you could?" He smiled sadly. "That's the kind of logic I need to work around … and from that angle ... "
Scott sighed again, his coffee untouched. "It's complicated," he said at last. "I can't answer for sure, but I do know Kitty would have reached out for help eventually. You've seen Magneto on the news lately. You know that's part of why I went to Genosha. And seeing him try to rule his family, I don't doubt he would have left that island to cause problems anyway — as soon as his grandsons left to go to school where they could be 'influenced' by Ororo and the others."
Toby nodded slowly as Scott spoke, and for a short while after. "That's a very good point," he agreed. "But I don't know how that could have worked out for everyone if you hadn't gotten the easy route in. What concerns me — and I'll save you the psycho babble and the long, winding route — because I don't think you have the patience for it. What concerns me, is that your boy has thought that story over. The story about his parents and how they died. About your wife, and so many of those you lost. It had to have been horrific. But … he's been thinking about his father's viewpoint in that, and he told me that he understood it. That boy is amazingly good at having empathy for others. He easily puts himself in their shoes and feels it profoundly. It's because of that … he's concerned for you because he recognizes the expression you're wearing because he's seen it in himself. He told me that before he heard that story, he had considered taking his own life. He promised that's not the case now, but he holds himself responsible for a lot of things he couldn't have had any real impact on. Now, where that kid got such an Atlas complex, I can't begin to understand, but he seems prepared to take the blame for every terrible thing around him."
Scott had by that time abandoned the idea of coffee for leaning on his hands, his expression nearly pained. "His parents were the same way," he said quietly. "I never could get them to see their worth and they always found ways to twist the reality of any situation to be their burden."
"Just his parents, hmm?" Toby challenged, and when Scott glanced up at him, he decided not to lob the ball quite so hard at this first meeting. "He's also convinced that it's just a matter of time before he gets picked up."
"Okay, that he got from me," Scott admitted. "I've been convinced of that since he was three. And we've come close enough times that he's got good reason to be paranoid."
"I sincerely hope you're both way off base there. Especially since he seems to have accepted it."
"You know that's the only reason I'm coming out of retirement. Trying to ease things for them," Scott said tiredly.
"That won't help them if you don't take care of yourself, too. I know that boy would give himself up if it was to help you. Or the others, for that matter."
"Don't say that," Scott said, slightly more sharply than he meant to - because it was a little too close to home.
"I'll take that as I'm right then," Toby said, sitting back in his seat. "I can tell you when he was on screen in that uniform, letting that little girl play with the mask, while most of our community took it as a celebration of how things should be, I was concerned that it was a self destructive move on his part. Like he's pushing to see if there would be a response. He denied it, of course."
"He wouldn't do that," Scott said. "If he was alone, I'd be worried about that, but he wouldn't do that with Rachel and Nate in consideration. He's too much like Logan to put them at risk with him."
"Then explain it to me," Toby said. "Because as his therapist, I'm having trouble believing it was just for the kids."
Scott sighed. "It was — at first," he clarified. "I know it was. Nothing else mattered to him but saving those kids. After that, I can only guess that he didn't think to put the mask back on. Not just because he was distracted but because he doesn't want it in the first place." He shrugged, his body language relaxed with the motion but his expression pinched. "I've heard the three of them talking about it, about how much they hate hiding. James … can be so much like his father sometimes. Especially when it comes to feeling like he shouldn't have to hide."
"I can tell you, the neighborhood was pleased with the team to begin with, but most of them took those kids as imitators — until they saw the clear resemblance that James has to his father. Especially with the uniform and with the mask off. I can't believe how many of them didn't see it before then."
"It's the height," Scott said, his smile returning.
"That's all? I didn't realize his father was short. He always seemed larger than life."
"Well, he also picked up some of my mannerisms," Scott admitted. "And to be honest, by the time he was old enough to match his father, it had been long enough that the only people who would have seen the connection were the ones that knew Logan, or people looking for us anyway because of me."
"That's a lot for those kids to carry," Toby said, then leaned toward him. "And yes, I can see who is who. I'm not discussing it with anyone, and believe it or not, your son has been consistent in refusing to acknowledge who is on the team. I'm waiting for people to realize he and Wiccan are an item. I know they've been careful in uniform."
"James is a good kid," Scott said, almost automatically, though he sounded both relieved and tired when he heard what Toby had to say.
"They all are," Toby agreed. "But at the risk of drawing down your wrath, those kids need you. For a lot more than you give them credit for, too."
"Toby, I already promised James while we were in Genosha that I wasn't going to follow Logan's path," Scott said, somehow sounding more tired at the admission than at any other time during their discussion.
"Good, good," Toby said in an encouraging tone. "I'm relieved to hear it. But you're less 'fine' than I've ever seen you. I can understand why the boy is concerned."
"It's been a long time since I was Cyclops," Scott said. "Even if I don't have my powers anymore, that's what I'm doing right now - working with my old teammates to stop Magneto."
"I have a feeling it was never just about your powers, Scott," Toby said.
"It wasn't." Scott got to his feet. "Well, rabbi, you can tell the suitors as gently as you can that the boys are taken, but I do actually need to get some work done. I'm expecting some intel from Kitty soon."
Toby nodded and got to his feet. "Before I go, I need to tell you one more thing — James said he's never made a plan to act on. You should know that. He doesn't want to make anything worse."
Scott let his shoulders drop. "Thank you."
"Why don't we do this more often?" Billy asked as he dropped onto the couch in America's rarely used apartment. "It's been forever since we got to hang out and relax."
"That's on you, chico," America replied, then took a seat on the back of the couch, looking down at him. "You've been busy with training and sucking face with that boy…"
"Not so much lately," he said. "His dad has him locked down pretty tight. All three of them, really."
"So magic him out - or magic yourself in," America answered with a wave. "Go get the princess out of the tower."
"It's not that simple," Billy argued as Kate took the seat on the other end of the couch with a bowl of ice cream and then put her feet up on his lap. "He's been pretty specific not to screw around with zapping into his room to keep things on level ground with his dad. It's been his one request, so … I'm not going to cross that line. Unless it's like … an emergency."
America raised an eyebrow and blinked once. "It's an emergency," she said in a flat, even tone. "How is he such a goodie two shoes? I saw him pulling all kinds of crap when we met. This is dumb."
"As tempting as it is to just zap him here, I really would like to spend some time with you two," Billy said.
"What's the problem?" America asked, frowning already. "He catch the same stupid his brother got?"
"No?" Billy said slowly. "I don't think so?"
"I can hit him for you," America offered, lightly knocking her fist into the palm of her hand. "Maybe it'll knock some sense into him."
"I don't think that's a good solution," Billy said.
"He can take it," America shot back. "I can be there and back and bring pizza on my way."
"Again, no," Billy told her. "We've just got our wires crossed. When he's free, I've been with my dad, and when I'm free, he's either on house arrest or somewhere with Iron Man. He still hasn't taken the time to explain why he's the favorite intern there."
"I mean, to be fair, he did grow up running away from people trying to use him for his genes and then took his mask off with live television reporting at the time, so, like, the house arrest is a real thing," Kate pointed out, because it was clear to her that Billy and James weren't really communicating as well as she'd like, and clearly, it was time for explanation.
"Yeah, I know," Billy said. "But I'm not crazy about keeping to that rule all the time. Kind of kills spontaneity when it has to be preapproved."
America nodded to herself. "Same family different stupid."
Kate shrugged easily. "Like I can talk. My mom's just about as paranoid as their dad."
"Ran a background check on me before we dated," America stage-whispered to Billy.
"Yeah, Kate's dad mentioned how irritated she was that she couldn't run a decent background check on me, too." Billy shook his head then turned to Kate with a crooked smile. "Your parents are so overprotective."
"I know," Kate said primly.
"I could probably make a joke about how Magneto is more trusting …"
"Yeah, um, excuse you, no, I was there for the magnetic burrito he pulled on James," Kate said, making a face.
"I almost forgot about that," he said, frowning to himself. "But I think Grandfather's over it, for the most part. Misunderstanding. They were pretty much getting along on Genosha. At least … as much as possible."
Kate gave Billy the driest look she could manage. "Uh-huh." When Billy blinked at her, she took it one step further, "So I guess he's okay with me now, huh?"
"Working on it," Billy said. "But … no. Not yet."
"Uh-huh."
"You should have heard the 'discussion' he had with James' dad after we were all kicked out."
"Did it involve your grandfather not trying to make everyone bow to his will? Or admitting he's racist? Or backing off of James?"
"Well … no. It was more about Cyclops laying down how it was."
"Yeah, Scott gets protective," Kate said, not at all surprised to hear it. "And I'd have paid to see his brand of protective hit your grandfather's brand."
"It was more entertaining to watch the chess games," Billy admitted as he got up to grab a soda - and America slipped into his spot.
Kate sighed and kicked her feet up so that her legs were draped over America's lap where they lounged on the couch. "I'm still not buying it, Billy."
"No, really. Scott played him to a draw, then James beat him with pawns. It was entertaining."
"And that cured the racism."
"It got him to back off of James," Billy said.
"Then set me up with a chess board and your grandpa, I guess," Kate drawled out, which got a snerk out of America.
"That'd be fun," Billy said. "Right up until you rebounded a Bishop off his forehead."
"Hey, the Black Widow taught me chess. I'd wait until I won before I played darts with chess pieces like my dad taught me."
Billy was grinning at her by that time. "Okay."
"Well, if you two are done setting up Katie's playdate with Magneto," America said, smirking when Kate hit her with a pillow, "I'm ordering takeout."
"She's only saying that because she isn't getting a playdate," Billy said in a stage whisper.
Kate grinned back at him. "That's because she has high standards and I'm a tough act to follow."
"Which reminds me," Billy said as he turned his whole body toward America. "Who have you been seeing?"
America shrugged easily. "Flirted with Eleanor, but would you believe Agent Coulson stepped in and got protective of Deadpool's kid? Because that's a thing."
"You let a SHIELD agent slow you down?" Billy laughed. "Why?"
"Because he dressed like an uncle and said 'please' while looking like he was going to murder me. It was amazingly hilarious."
"But now I want to see that. Before Kate starts marathon texting her beloved. They're working toward a shotgun wedding, you know."
"He damn well better not require a shotgun to get in gear if it gets to that point or there won't be a groom," America said. Her tone was casual, but she absolutely meant it.
"I think she's a little protective of you, Katie," Billy laughed.
"She threatened your brother the same way yesterday, so don't get too comfy," Kate pointed out.
"My brother earned it," Billy said with a shrug. "He was going too far with the 'locker room' talk for anyone's tastes. I considered going in detail about my own stuff just to get him to shut up."
"I've mentioned that I love you, right?" Kate laughed.
"I could stand to hear it now and again," Billy said. "Love you too, by the way." He was grinning on saying it too.
"And because I love you, I will order the takeout. America goes outside our dimension and then laughs when you get food poisoning."
"You gotta let that go, Princess," America laughed.
"I can just magic something edible," Billy pointed out with a wave. "Or wish her into a blonde." He turned to catch her gaze. "Guy."
"That would be novel," America drawled out. "I've never been that fragile."
"I'll do it for your birthday then. Just for the voice drop."
"I'll record it," Kate promised.
"Then we can hire a drag queen to jump out of her cake, too … for the full effect."
"Perfect." Kate whipped out her phone to start ordering food. "Now. I'm getting Korean."
"Of course you are," Billy said, then shifted to settle in a little better. "Did you try that new Kurdish place? The babaganoush and tava was amazing."
"I took Mia in her inducer so she could get out and try new things. She liked it so much she wants to bring your brother there," Kate said, smiling more. "He might be an idiot, but I'm so glad they got together. He can get her out of the house, even if it's into trouble."
"She needs a little trouble," Billy said. "All of you repressed kids do."
"Include yourself in that, Billy-boy. Prince in the ivory tower and all that," America teased.
"Different kind of repression," he countered. "Mine's more just … exposure to people that aren't mutants." He gestured to both of them. "Oh look! Progress!"
America laughed and yanked on his arm to pull him closer so she could kiss his cheek. "And we're so proud of you."
"Just have to get Kate to stop making that face at me every time my grandfather comes up," Billy replied, shifting to lean on America, too.
"Only when he stops making a face at my existence," Kate sang out happily.
"Fair - but I'm not the one earning the Kate face of disapproval. That would be like me insisting on making faces at you until your mom decided not to have me on her 'undetermined' list. Or whatever. Like I'm out to corrupt my sweetheart. Please."
"Well you are his first boyfriend," America pointed out, though she was clearly amused.
"I will try to control my face," Kate teased. "But only because I love you so." She tossed a pillow his way. "The things I do for you, oh Genoshan prince."
Chapter 52: From Radio Silence To Shock And Awe
Chapter Text
"You're sure you're up to a mission already?" James asked Nate as the team loaded up to go after a call from mutants in distress in one of the less tolerant boroughs of NYC.
"Wow. You really are worried about me lately. Are you okay, James?" Nate shot back, but when he got a more serious look from James he relented. "I promise, I'm all healed up," Nate said. "And I got a clean bill of health from Uncle Blue. Even Dad had to admit I'm alright."
James nodded to himself, but still took the copilot chair next to his little brother. "If something goes wrong — or you feel off at all—"
"I'm fine," Nate insisted. "Really. I just need to get out there and do something."
"Okay," James said, then leaned back in his seat, purposely not touching anything in the cockpit when he knew Nate really wanted to fly. "You know I have to check."
"Yeah, I know," Nate said. "But usually you leave it to Rachel."
"Rachel is going to be preoccupied trying to scan everyone for six city blocks to make sure that we're not going into a reporting zone," James pointed out. "And since the Avengers have been swamped with press and people wanting to know just who exactly we all are under the masks -"
"It's too late. They figured you out, big bro."
"Yeah, no kidding. I'm pretty sure that was a lost cause anyhow — trying to keep that quiet."
Nate smirked. "Dad talked with Rachel and I to make sure we know not to do anything like that."
"I had a good —"
"We know, we know," Nate said, waving him off. "It's just kind of funny to me that the one of us that was trying to toe the line the hardest and keep himself in the rules all the time was the one to break the biggest rule right out of the gate."
"Not the biggest one," James said, almost sullenly.
"Maybe, maybe not," Nate argued, since it really was unusual for James to bend the rules. Especially if it was a rule that Scott was honestly concerned over.
"Shut up and fly."
"How's the chatter on the dark web?"
"Shut up, Nate," James said, more serious this time.
"That bad?"
James sighed heavily and his shoulders slumped. "Kind of nonexistent, actually."
"Are you disappointed?"
"No, it's just …it's more likely that they have a plan to put into action, that's all," James said, turning his head to keep from giving away to his brother how concerned he was. "Natasha's keeping an eye open. Paranoia is high. Let's just … can we worry about that part later, huh?"
Nate nodded to himself as he got them airborne, and only didn't argue with any of it because Kate and Billy were cackling between themselves on their plans for the weekend. It was a rare kind of occasion in that Nate didn't have any sports to go to - and by default, Kate didn't have any cheerleading practice either - and because of that - and how paranoid their parents were after the accidental unmasking, both Summers boys had grudgingly agreed to go on a double date with their significant others for their first official outings after the busting. It was especially hard to escape after Kate insisted it was for 'Safety's sake' with wide eyes that never seemed to fail her when she was scamming Scott.
But while Billy and Kate were plotting and planning and giggling, Tommy and Mia were snuggling up and simply enjoying a few minutes that were relatively to themselves. Since she'd missed out on going to Genosha — which Storm absolutely forbid — Tommy had come back in full Prince Charming mode … at least his version of prince charming. It was obvious that he'd missed her in the week they were gone and he had been making up for time lost by spoiling her rotten.
They reached their destination quickly enough — and they'd been circling for a little while before finally, Rachel let out a breath. "Okay. I can't hear any honestly ill intentions toward us down there. Just the general hatred of mutants. Nothing specific or directed."
"Great, then we can get in, get the people in trouble, and get out," Nate decided as he headed for a clearing that would hold their mini-jet easily with enough room to keep it concealed.
As they landed, James double checked his panic buttons and Nate's — since it had become such a point of contention with the adults - before he got to his feet and got a quick kiss from Billy and a teasing one on the cheek from Kate.
"We just need to find the one in trouble," Rachel said. "Nate, Mia, and I can do that if you guys can hold them off."
"No problem," Tommy said, stretching out and making a show out of cracking his knuckles. "As long as these two can keep from starting a make-out session in the middle of the fight."
"No promises," James shot back, perfectly seriously as Billy grinned wider.
"You're trying to scar me for life," Tommy muttered, shaking his head as the door opened - and with a whoosh of wind, he was gone.
"So dramatic," James muttered — which was cue enough for Billy to show he wasn't going to be outdone by his speedster twin.
He grinned — and as his eyes lit up with a blue-white light, Billy floated up and out of the jet. The Summers kids shook their heads, but Nate, Mia, and Rachel grinned at James and disappeared in a swirl of purple-pink smoke leaving James as last out.
When he stepped out of the jet, he didn't see right away where the trouble was. It wasn't as overt as they were used to seeing. But the twins were already far ahead of him — and when he listened hard enough, he heard the muted bamf that told him where his siblings and Mia were. And he was pretty far behind the curve. So, James simply started to jog toward the sound of fighting. It was a little step the group had long ago agreed to — someone would be last in by a stretch to give them a back up in case there was a trap to be sprung, and this time, it was James playing last man standing.
As it turned out, the group of mutants in distress were surrounded by military looking troops and holding them at gunpoint. There were almost a dozen kids in varying stages of distress — most of them physically mutated, and half or more of those kids were clutching to an image inducer , shaking them — and as Nate and Rachel found out quickly enough — panicking internally at the unexplained failure. With a shared look, they looped in the rest of the team that was present so they could fight without openly telling the soldiers what they were up to.
The group had only done the team link up a handful of times, and Rachel was once again trying to control her inner sailor's mouth as she grumbled about James' lack of cooperation on that front. Like it or not, he was going to have to go along with it for situations like that. Even if she had to hit him - she was going to make him join in. It was outside of what they'd trained or planned for and with the soldiers they were seeing, it was a major problem for him to be out of the loop. "Stupid, stubborn moron," she grumbled out as she held up her hands to push the troops back from the group of captive mutants.
It gave the team room to move in and help — which was of course, jus what the larger, unseen group of soldiers was waiting for. Mia, Tommy, and Billy had moved in to free the prisoners. Billy was untying those that were restrained with rope while Tommy destroyed restraints and cage locks for a few of them and Mia picked the locks on the handcuffs. And as soon as the three of them were properly distracted, someone took a shot at Nate and Rachel using some sort of bolo that looped around them and tightened up the more they struggled.
A second bolo was fired but Mia disappeared in a swirl before it could wrap around her — though it did manage to catch Tommy — who was quick to start swearing and uttering curses at his displeasure. Not that it lasted with Billy there - instantly in a foul mood because of his brother's situation.
Kate rushed in to help Nate and Rachel — or at least cover them while Rachel burned the ropes off. Kate shot four arrows toward an advancing group just as Billy's eyes glowed and he began muttering something under his breath that had Tommy crowing about how screwed those soldiers were.
Meanwhile, James was four blocks from where they landed when he heard the rhythmic sound of marching boots — jingling in time together and obviously carrying some kind of ordinance with them. He frowned and turned his head toward the sound, but as he raised his hand toward the comm to ask for information from whoever was at the tower at the time, an explosion of blue light that could only have come from Wiccan caught his attention. He forgot all about the comm and rushed toward the center of the light that had blown all the windows out of a six story building only to be hit entirely off his feet when a massive guy tackled him from the side.
James turned his head — just in time to catch a fist to the face before he'd even hit the ground with the massive attacker still looming over him. He blocked the next hit without thinking about it, but couldn't stop the following two. Not without letting out a growl and going purely on instincts when he sent a handful of claws into the guy's shoulder then positively froze when his counterattack was answered with a bellowing roar and a slash of claws that hit James across his chest and one arm slicing him wide open.
James reacted without thinking — slashing his attacker across the face and neck with a snarl of his own - which was enough to knock the guy loose long enough for James to get on his feet to fight more squarely. "Who are you?" James asked with a growl lacing his tone thickly.
The blonde rolled his shoulders and smiled — or near enough to it as large bottom canine teeth protruded from his lip with a malicious looking grin. But the only answer from the stranger was a full frontal assault that gave James no time to do anything but fight back with everything he had.
The blown out windows were still raining glass down when quite suddenly, Billy's powers flickered and he fell four feet to the ground, no longer floating — and with no chaos magic to fuel him. "Kate," Billy called out, looking more nervous since he really hadn't practiced nearly enough without relying on his magic. "Do you have any extra toys to spare?"
"Just don't get grabbed," Nate said as he double checked the charge on his laser pistols. "I brought enough … I think."
The mutants that were to be rescued looked as if they were afraid to move — especially when they were very sure that the young X-Men there to save them were about to be captured themselves.
Tommy was more resourceful than he'd been given credit for though — and before anyone could stop him, he picked up a length of pipe and started swinging at soldiers that got too close to the captives. He was trying not to show his cards — which included a fair amount of panic on Mia's behalf since he didn't see where she'd disappeared.
Wisely, Mia had held tight to her perch high above the group. She'd tried to hit her panic button, but couldn't see if it had worked when the light wouldn't go on to show that it had been hit. And the precariousness of her perch had her holding on tight while her powers weren't working. She wasn't sure if her grip would work on walls if her teleportation was off … she'd never tried it and she wasn't about to do it now with soldiers everywhere.
Ad while most of the X-Men were fighting, Mia found herself shrinking away from the sounds over her head — Helicopters were coming in … circling … and they sounded a lot bigger than the news choppers and medical transports she'd heard in the past.
Of course, the fear of not being able to fight back what was in front of them disappeared when Billy's powers seemed to turn back on with a loud snap and another explosion of blue light. He must have been trying to do that this whole time, Mia thought to herself as Rachel's voice echoed in her head suddenly.
Get down to level ground, Rachel told her. These jerks have multiple dampeners with them. I don't want you falling at the wrong time. But she barely got her thought out before Mia was next to her, anxiously waving her tail behind her. "Just remember what we learned about hand to hand, okay? We've got plenty to fight either way."
Tommy rushed outside to find and back up James since he had been the only one missing for the duration of the fight and he knew if he didn't look with all those soldiers around them, Billy would be freaking out in no time. But he didn't have to go too far as he stumbled upon the big fight between James and the massive blond. Both of them were bloodied up pretty badly and James' uniform was a joke at that point for how shredded and bloodied it was, but somehow, more alarming than that was the fact that he was using his claws. That was something Tommy simply hadn't seen.
"I found him," Tommy said in his comm. "But he's not …okay, he's fighting some creep that's slashing him up pretty badly and there are reinforcements circling so … we need to -you know … save our idiot Wolverine who can't see what's going on around him. Oh, and by the way, he's using his claws. That is just … so weird."
"What?" Nate said, picking his head up and rushing for the door, though more than half of the team was echoing the same sentiment, even as they tried to wrangle the rescued mutants too. When they caught up to where they could see the fight, it was a shock to watch. James had excelled at learning every form of martial arts that had been put in front of him by Tony or Steve, and he'd always been an impressive fighter … but it wasn't enough against this guy.
The blonde wasn't even using much finesse in his attack - more like all claws, hard hits, and dirty tricks that clearly hurt. What's more — it seemed like James had all but forgotten most of his training the more angry he got and was just … lashing out in response to the attacks.
Nate picked up his rifle and tried to take aim — but the two of them were moving too fast and he didn't want to risk shooting his brother. Even if it was non-lethal. And he couldn't really see if James was anywhere close to getting the upper hand. He had full faith that James would … he always seemed to … but at risk of quoting Kate … this looked bad.
The blond had just swiped at James as the two passed each other and though James had hit him hard, the creep had also left James with five long jagged tears down his back. As James turned, the blond took a hold of James' wrist and swung him like a rag doll. James hit the corner of a brick building, and by the time he'd hit the sidewalk, the guy was reaching for him again. He picked James up by his hair and had his arm wrapped around his chest from behind - pinning his arms to his side, but as the blond started to take a few steps, Nate took a shot. The round hit the blonde in his shoulder - almost to his neck- but it wasn't enough to make him drop James and instead, he turned to use him as a human shield as he sought cover.
It was enough for James to get the presence of mind to take the opening and send a set of claws through the guy's stomach, though. The roar in his ear left him reeling, but he saw how dire the circumstances really were when he finally spotted the black-clad soldiers closing in from a few blocks out. On seeing them moving in — and knowing they were for him, James froze for an instant. He'd grown up knowing that black-clad soldiers would try to take him. He knew it wasn't an idle threat — but to see it in person, with his own eyes was honestly terrifying. He squirmed in the guy's grip and pushed back on him, trying desperately to get him to let go, but the massive blond had him outclassed, strength-wise.
As the soldiers started to fire on the X-Men from further out in an attempt to keep them back, James managed to focus enough to remember some of what Natasha had taught him when he was small. It wasn't much, and it wasn't something he'd been able to practice now that he was nearly as tall as Steve and Tony, but … none of the usual fighting tactics were working. Even his best hits weren't sticking for long on this guy, and when he finally saw that the blond was slowly dragging him closer to the soldiers in spite of all the hassle James was giving him, there was no doubt that if he didn't get away from them, that would be it for James. If he couldn't fight one guy off ... it was game over.
A helicopter overhead reminded James that most — if not all of it — might be broadcast, which meant that if it was, their Dad was more than likely watching. He needed to get away from this guy. Fast. Before he could overthink it - or the blonde could make more progress, James twisted his arm and got a hold of the guy below the belt - just to grab a handful of whatever he could and twist. Predictably, the blonde did not appreciate it, though instead of letting him go, he dropped, falling over James enough that he couldn't just shake loose of him. He could hear Tommy working his way closer - which was good. A few seconds with Tommy outside of a dampener would cure all the stupid this monster was dragging around with him, but … Tommy needed to get to him first - and the solders with their dampening zones were making that frustratingly difficult.
But then James got enough of an opening to make it a clear shot when he kicked the guy just above the outside of his knee as hard as he could. He was hoping that they were in one of the dampener zones when he did it — then he might have a chance to stop the guy. But outside of getting in a few good shots that made the creep let him go for a moment — and get a new grip on him — it wasn't enough.
The blonde caught James' fist when he threw a punch and James popped his claws through the guy's hand. The blonde started to twist his wrist — and it was enough to force James' arm out and away even though he wasn't holding James' fist. His free hand darted up and wrapped around James' throat as he picked him up and slammed him against the back of a pickup truck that was parked in the street. The guy was strong enough, that it both felt and looked effortless on his part as he slammed James a few times, chuckling low the whole time as he knocked James silly. And every time James hit his head, he lost a little more of his ability to do anything but try to pry the blond's hand off of his neck.
Rachel could barely see what was going on — and more scary than the fight itself to her was the sounds coming from the fight. At first, from her angle, all she could see was the two guys brawling. Terrifyingly, the growls and honest snarls were hair raising - especially when she knew her little brother didn't really do that. But … when she heard the cracks as James was thrown around … followed by the drop off of what she knew well enough was James' growls, she set their team to work to get rid of their idiotic dampeners. She couldn't risk her team - her family - and the only way to be effective was for them to be able to use what they had been born with to fight back an army.
Billy hated that Rachel was right, too … and it seemed like just about the time he'd get a spell well under way, a dampener would pop up near them destroying his spell and honestly pissing him off worse. But the group of them could get rid of the dampeners that were keeping them back from James. He just hoped he didn't have to do something drastic if they'd taken him by the time they got their job done.
Another hard crack echoed the street and James' growl fell off entirely. He was seeing double and he could smell and taste blood as he mentally catalogued 'massive head trauma' just to keep himself awake. The angle that the blonde had James pinned was an awkward one and it was everything James could do to hold the guy at bay. He was pushing with the arm the guy had a hold of, though he couldn't keep pressure up forever when the angle was so bad and his free arm was still busy trying to pry the guy's fingers from around his throat. James started to panic freshly when the blond's claws started to sink into his neck so he did the only thing he could and popped the claws on his free hand to stab the guy high in the chest.
The grip around his throat disappeared— fast enough to leave claw marks as the guy grabbed James' wrist before he could twist it or draw back and James leaned toward him to try and get some leverage to get loose. He never saw it coming when the blond shifted the arm that was pinned by his claws to simply snap James's claws clean off.
A small battalion of soldiers whistled and cheered as James couldn't stop the scream that followed a knee wobbling wave of nausea that had him losing what little ground he had. While he was still reeling, the blond reached out and repeated the action with James's other set of claws leaving him effectively weaponless while the guy manhandled him. And every movement the blond made was accented as he ripped into James' flesh with long, curved, razor-sharp lion's claws.
The soldiers were only a few buildings away and it was clear to all of the kids that they were set to recover. There were two different choppers coming in low, looking for a place to land and seeing them moving in had James more desperate than he had been before. He tried to rally, knowing he was losing, and raged, roared, and pushed as hard as he could, but when the blond had him by a foot in every direction, and James had lost so much steam … he honestly didn't have the strength. He could hardly remember feeling so helpless, and for an instant, he considered giving up. But only for an instant.
As he pushed hard to angle away from the truck, his opponent pushed harder until James couldn't stop the cry of pain as his wrists were crushed when the blond pushed him into another pin. It was rough and only worked by virtue of James just being done. He had no room to move and the hair on his neck moved from the simple action of the blond breathing. He was working hard to hold James, even if he had already essentially won, James wasn't making it easy on him to keep holding him. When James glanced up to meet the guy's gaze, the blond's lip curled back in a cruel sort of snarl inches away.
James frowned harder while the blonde smiled crookedly with a wicked sort of glint in his eyes that only looked nastier as James struggled to pull his wrists free, though he held his breath in a panic when he thought he heard someone talking through a comm that wasn't his. It was whisper quiet, even to James' ears, but it quickly echoed louder when the blonde rasped out 'that's it. Keep fighting …'m gonna tear your throat out.' James held his breath and his body went into autopilot. He wasn't even thinking, and he certainly wasn't planning as he went for the only move that was available to him to get blondie to back off when he was winning.
He wasn't growling anymore as he stared at the blond inches from his face. And since force simply wasn't moving the mountain, James blinked twice, thought about it for every bit of a tenth of a second, then tipped his head and kissed him hard, square on the mouth.
From there a few things happened very quickly. The blond startled back - shocked enough to let James go entirely - which was just enough time for James to register that Tommy had positively hit the ground nearby laughing himself silly in spite of the severity of their situation. James had glanced at Tommy with a frown, then gathered his senses up enough to kick the blonde back a few paces and an instant later the blonde had come completely unhinged and attacked him again - all claws and teeth and rage. His first strike knocked James into the pickup truck hard enough to move the truck almost entirely across the street with him. He felt several bones break with the impact, and he couldn't move his legs when he hit the ground after the truck came to a stop.
When James was unable to draw a decent breath … he knew more than a few things were definitely broken from the pounding he'd taken. He couldn't quite move from that last injury - and as the blond charged with a snarl with spittle dripping from his lips, there was a whole lot of blue light all around James suddenly and the blonde didn't touch him. James turned his head to watch what was happening since he had nothing to contribute in his current state. He could see that Billy was handling that situation neatly both looking and sounding entirely furious while James was overwhelmed from the sudden drop off of adrenaline and the sense that regardless of what these people thought, the battle was over now. Yes, they were still in danger, but Billy was doing his shock and awe thing while Tommy, Nate, and Rachel had the soldiers confused, and a moment later, Mia appeared just a few feet away from James to lay a hand on his shoulder ready to teleport him away if need be.
"What's broken?" Mia asked with wide eyes. "I heard something crack."
"Oh, I don't know," James said, then paused when he realized exactly how much was hurting or bleeding even as his body stitched itself back together. His claws were gone - lying on the ground bloody and within sight. His wrists had been crushed, his ribs and back ached when he breathed and he was pretty sure one leg wasn't operating right at all, though at least he was starting to feel his legs again. He touched his ear then cringed not only from the action itself, but when he saw he was still bleeding from his ears, too. Instead of his usual bluster, James sunk down onto the concrete. "Maybe everything. I just … I'm gonna just stay right here for a while."
There was another flash of blue light not too unlike lightning as Mia tried to rearrange James all the same. "I think your boyfriend is a little jealous," Mia said at a whisper. Which was exactly when there was an echoing, sharp-sounding snap and every mutant that the team had rescued -all of whom were still wearing a collar that Mia couldn't pick - dropped where they stood.
None of the kids seemed to realize what had happened for a moment, and it was Nate who cautiously reached out to one of the kids they'd helped this far. He paled a moment later and stared at his sister wide-eyed as the realization hit the rest of them.
But it was the worst move those soldiers could have made.
Billy's eyes glowed brighter and with a word that none of them quite understood, Billy closed his fist and every scrap of weaponry and communication device rocketed away from the soldiers as the men themselves dropped to the ground unconscious. It didn't matter what material it was made of - if it was a weapon or something capable of broadcasting or transmitting … they lost it.
The weapons all came to rest in a pile under Billy's feet, and though the act in itself was an impressive display of power, Rachel couldn't help but frown at one small section of metal that was covered in blood. Nothing else was bloodied … but that …
She took a few steps toward Billy as he scowled menacingly at the soldiers, hands still outstretched and searching for more from any hiding opposition. It wouldn't be hard for anyone to see the similarities between Billy and Magneto right then.
Rachel knelt down to look at the bloodied metal. "What is this thing?" she asked no one in particular before she started scanning the unconscious minds around her. She knew no one in their team would know. She didn't know if the men in unmarked black suits would would know either, so she tried those that seemed to have been the biggest key players - starting with a commander just a few hundred yards away.
"What do we do with them now?" Tommy asked as he kicked one of the soldiers that was starting to stir.
"Call in SHIELD," Nate said, looking worn for wear, but incredibly relieved that this fight was over.
"No," Billy replied, barely looking at Nate before he concentrated on one wave of soldiers and made them disappear. "We put them where they belong."
"Wait," Nate said, wide-eyed at the large swath of missing soldiers, but before he could say another word another platoon worth of them had disappeared to who knows where.
By that time, Rachel was kneeling next to the massive blonde and going through his mind with a frown the deeper she looked. Before Billy could fully turn toward them, she reached out to him telepathically. Wait. You need to see this. Since Billy wasn't following their usual protocols of discussion or permission, Rachel pulled his consciousness with her into the blonde's mind to see what the man had been thinking only to find that there was a massive void from several years earlier. The only thing in the blackness were a few muddied images of missions that he'd been on - but very little of that was lucid thought - and what was lucid thought was a panicked overtone as he did unspeakable acts to what looked like innocent mutants.
He's not in control of himself, Rachel told Billy as they left the blond's mindscape. We need to take him to the tower. Betsy can help figure out what's going on with him, but I'm telling you … there is no memory of what he was doing to James. Someone else was in control.
How? Billy asked, still livid, though tempered since he knew Rachel wouldn't lie to him.
I don't know, Rachel admitted. But I think it has something to do with that bloodied … thing. And that … that … might be the same kind of thing that killed those kids.
Not that her answer had Billy looking any less livid. Fine. I want to know who this guy is before I send him with the others.
"Um … quick question," Mia said, holding one finger up. "Where … are all those soldiers?"
Billy frowned, and the glowing light from his eyes finally faded. "Genoshan prison, of course."
"But … we're not Genoshan," Nate pointed out, looking past Billy at James, who was fighting to stay semi-conscious as he remained where he was, stretched out and bleeding.
"They attacked us," Billy said, then belatedly gestured to himself and his brother. "And it's the one place that will make sure they pay for their crimes."
"See? Totally jealous," Mia laughed in a whisper to James.
"Nah," James said, wincing as he tried to find a comfortable position. "He'd do that for anyone."
"Oh wow, you have some serious head trauma," Mia snickered, though there wasn't much joy to it when James was still that torn up. "You need a new uniform," she pointed out. "And clothes for the ride home."
James had his eyes closed as he tried not to move. "Explains why I'm cold …" He picked up his head and looked toward his feet, which were bare before he set his head down again. "Did he knock me out of my boots?"
"I hate to be the one to break it to you, but he knocked you all over the place," Mia said. "The claws were a … um … scary addition. When did you practice with them?"
"I didn't," James said, then tented one hand over his eyes. "Which is probably why I sucked so bad and got my ass kicked six ways to Sunday."
"That and that guy's a futzing wall," Kate said.
"At least I kept most of my mask this time," James said dryly in a weak attempt at a joke when there was very little else left of his uniform. Things inside were stitching themselves up, which meant there were still open, non-life threatening injuries that were bleeding. And his arm and hands were raw feeling for how much they hurt.
Just as they were turning their attention to each other, Tommy realized - and pointed out to the others - that the jet was on fire, which left them open and stranded. Even if it was just still in the city. "We need a new 'exit strategy' or something," Tommy said as Billy finally crouched down next to James. Billy still looked angry, but now it was tempered with concern over how injured James was.
"I can catch a cab if you're not done being impressive and all 'tremble, puny humans'," James said, then cringed sharply and sucked in a breath when Billy touched him.
"I can get you to safety better and faster than a cab," Billy said, though it was obvious he didn't know how to proceed when James was still in extreme pain.
"Just don't forget to magic that … thing to James' lab," Rachel said. "We need to know what it is."
Chapter 53: Explain Yourself
Chapter Text
Scott had never missed having a teleporter around as much as when Ororo had called him up, in a panic, telling him that the Avengers were getting real-time intel on the X-Men's mission and had confirmed a seven-foot blonde healer with claws attacking James.
He knew for a fact that Ororo would be flying to the tower, though she'd also be keeping herself out of sight as much as possible, and she had a longer distance to travel. So he had an even chance of getting there before she did. Possibly even before the kids got back.
And they were on their way back. That much he'd managed to get Natasha to confirm for him when he called her. But the facts on the ground were still changing, and there was so much they needed the kids there to confirm that the Avengers didn't have enough answers for Scott's liking.
Because the last damn time a Creed had been anywhere near his family…
Scott went right past Jarvis to where the Avengers were gathered, and already, he didn't like what he was hearing. James was hurt, and it sounded like someone with all the right know-how had made a decent play for the kids. One that could very well have worked, too.
Add to that the fact that the Avengers were shaken by the deaths of every mutant those kids had been trying to save, and Scott was starting to feel more and more like this story was way too familiar.
Scott didn't have too much time to get lost in the similarities before Ororo arrived, wearing almost exactly the same expression Scott was. This was, after all, exactly what they had been worried about - exactly why Ororo had been keeping the school as quiet as possible and why Scott had kept his kids out of the spotlight.
And, as luck would have it, Ororo arrived exactly as the kids did. Their jet had been trashed, so they arrived in different waves, with Mia, Tommy, and Billy getting everyone to the tower as close to instantaneously as possible - which meant Ororo nearly stepped into blue smoke when Mia teleported practically on top of her mom.
Billy had brought James and had been sure to magic him into a seat when he was still obviously concerned about the state of his boyfriend. Mia had teleported the remaining Summers siblings, which meant Tommy came in two waves, first carrying in Kate bridal style just so he could deposit her in Clint's arms and then he came back with a very large Creed, who was not so ceremoniously deposited.
"What happened?" Jan asked as she flitted forward, not to the kids, but to help the still-bleeding Creed as Hank rushed along side her - then passed her by to look over the kids when he saw that the Creed boy was unconscious. "And where did he even come from?"
"Jan!" both Scott and Tony said at the same time, in almost the same tone, which had them both sharing a look that only lasted as long as it took for Jan to roll her eyes at both of them.
"He is unconscious," she said with one hand on her hip. "What's he gonna do? Bleed on me?" She shook her head as she started cleaning him up. "If he starts to move, then you can panic. But right now? There are enough other kids that need help that I think you can deal with them, thanks."
"Pretty sure Katie has a concussion," Clint said, sounding stressed as he inspected where the blood had matted Kate's hair, even though she was trying to bat him away and point out that James had it worse - which wasn't a great argument to make when she couldn't heal or when Hank chose Kate to assess first.
"I'm fine," Mia said, trying to fluff up the section of fur on her arm that had been singed and totally downplaying the cut under her eye, though that seemed to be a theme as Tommy squinted out of a rapidly swelling black eye pretending like that was perfectly normal for him.
In fact, if anything, besides James, Nate and Kate were the worst off, which meant Rachel was already fretting over Nate and hissing at him to be more careful, since this was the second mission he'd gotten hurt on and there was no way he'd be allowed to play football until his head stopped looking like he'd been in a fight.
James was cringing away from being touched at all - especially when anyone tried to touch his hands or arms, all while muttering that he was fine and ignoring the blood at his ears - and just about everywhere else. He was just too hurt for them to believe and too young to believably blow it off like Logan would have, though he was still trying all the same. But that only had Hank gently trying to assess his other injuries first and handing him what he needed to clean up the blood from his nose, ears, and mouth. Hank was frowning as he watched James's hands shake as he concentrated on holding the supplies until Billy took over, refusing to let James wave him off.
So it really was a mark of how shaken Scott was by seeing a Creed that it took him several long seconds before he tore his gaze away from the unconscious blond - and Jan - and slipped over to where James was, wincing in sympathy before he'd even sat down. "What's broken?" he asked.
"I don't know at this point. A lot," James answered frankly, unable to keep the growl out of his tone for as much as he was hurting. "My claws are gone, too."
There was a full beat of silence from Scott as he processed that. "...gone?"
"He snapped them off," James answered. "I didn't even mean to use them."
"Snapped them…" Scott locked down his jaw, doing his level best not to pick his family up and move on the spot. Because, God help him, this was too familiar.
"Pretty sure they're trying to re-grow," James said. "If what it feels like is any marker. Just not the priority yet."
Scott's jaw looked like it wasn't going to come unlocked anytime soon, and even Ororo's eyes were starting to flash, so Rachel stepped in before either of them could get any more lost in what had happened to their old team.
"He was being controlled," she said. Then, when she caught both of them staring at her, she bit her lip. "I just… before you get too mad at him, you should know… I looked in his mind, and he was not the one pulling the strings." Something fiery flashed in her eyes. "He's the only mutant we managed to save today."
"He definitely didn't react like a normal person," James agreed. "He didn't - or couldn't - answer anything. All he could say was just the same threats over and over."
"Did anything he had to say give any clues on who was pulling the strings?" Steve asked.
James shook his head at that. "No, I think the boots on the ground in black were a bigger tip off." He turned to watch Billy, unwilling to be the one to say what Billy had done. "But I can't give you more than that. They had no indicators on who they represented."
"I'm on it," Natasha said and slipped out of the room, looking furious enough that no one was going to stop her even to offer help.
"Well, uh, Billy magicked them into Grandfather's prisons, so we'll proooooobably know more things soon enough," Tommy pointed out.
"They were asking for it," Billy said, entirely unapologetic.
James nodded, trying not to lose the even and serious expression. "Yeah, I saw the tear on the hem of your cape. How dare."
Scott pinched the bridge of his nose. "This is exactly what I was worried about," he muttered under his breath.
"Dad, we're alright," Nate said - his point belied by the fact that the bump on his head was getting steadily more discolored. "Besides, you're the one that taught us how to defend ourselves. Specifically if we ran into this kind of problem, too."
"Um," Tommy said, holding up one finger. "We obviously didn't get all the same kinds of classes in that. And I need the recording of that big brawl for my own purposes. To learn."
"I think I get it now," James told Billy quietly. "How that story happened that you were telling me about? Totally get it."
"You mean wishing him away?" Billy asked softly, and when James nodded, so did Billy, though he had to point out something important. Particularly since Billy was still mad. "You are going to have to apologize and explain yourself, you know."
James had just started to agree when the blonde took in a sharp breath and everyone nearest him jumped back away from him. The blonde scrambled backward, obviously terrified at the odd surroundings and unfamiliar faces. And amazingly, James leaned forward as he watched him scramble. The guy was believably terrified as he looked from one famous face to the next - then shifted his focus to the kids. Though he looked even more confused at that and he stopped outright when he focused on James.
"You. Why did you … why would you do that?" he blurted out.
"Question of the day from everyone, see?" Tommy said, starting to grin, even if the adults in the room were dead serious.
"Got him to stop, didn't it?" James shot back.
"Because no one expects to be kissed in battle like being beaten up is an aphrodisiac," Kate sang out, slightly louder than she meant to because the adrenaline comedown and the concussion was starting to show.
"Told you he has a thing for people that are more powerful than he is," Nate said to Kate, who rewarded him with a giggle in spite of the severity of the situation.
"Oh my God, I hate you both," James said, one hand over his eyes.
Scott turned to look at James, some of the lines gone from his face as a few different emotions warred for control of his expression. "You… what?"
James gestured openly. "He was taking me to a chopper. He just broke my claws- it was the first thing that popped into my head that I thought might work. So yes, I kissed him. To stop him."
Scott very nearly smiled as the rest of the adults all shared a knowing look. "You are, so very much, your mother's son."
"That … is a new one," James said, frowning at Scott.
"She had a way of thinking outside the box," Scott said with a wry smile. "And I've told you before - you've got her sense of humor."
"Okay. Fine. But now I'm never going to hear the end of it from those lunatics," James said, then turned back toward Tommy and Kate. "It was just to get away."
"They wouldn't have been allowed to leave with you," Billy said.
James' focus shifted to Billy. "You say that now. I didn't think anyone could get close enough to help." But their discussion was interrupted by Tommy.
"Kinda surprised we didn't have to witness a full on make out sesh after that save then. Power surge," Tommy sang out with an obnoxious grin. "You were so right, Kate."
"Shut up," James grumbled as Rachel turned toward the blond.
"Who are you?" Rachel asked as James made a face at Tommy and Billy kept splitting his focus between fretting over James and waiting for the blond to say the wrong thing so he could send him to his grandfather's prisons.
"No one important," the blond said, doing his best to look smaller than his seven foot tall frame could ever allow. "Just a dumb kid that got picked up for breathing. You know …"
"They picked you up for more than that," Clint said, shaking his head.
"I was leading a mutual group on a canoe trip," he said. "We were camping."
"A canoe trip?" Ororo repeated, one eyebrow arched high on her forehead.
"Yes. With other kids from my church." He held up one hand slightly. "My name is Tyler Creed, by the way. Is there any chance I can find out if my mom is still alive?"
Most of the others were still processing the phrases "church" and "camping" and "canoe trip" with a Creed, but Jan let out a little noise and darted over toward him. "Of course we can look!" she promised. "What's her name? I'll find her."
"Daisy Smith. I know, we don't have the same last name" Tyler shrugged. "It's a horrible story, and I'd rather not repeat it, if it's all the same. It's her story anyhow."
Ororo's mouth was pressed in a thin line. "We can guess," she said simply. Then, taking a step forward, she said, "But what we cannot do is guess what your story is. What can you tell us about how you came to be here?"
"Right," Tyler said, nodding to himself. "I don't … actually remember too much," he said. "One minute we were camping - and I thought I heard some helicopters, but it was dark and it never got too loud .. oh, my hearing is really good? But I still couldn't hear them very well. Anyhow … one second we were making s'mores and telling stories at the fire an the next … we had guns in our faces by these soldiers in black. They shot me and dragged me off - they took a few of the others too. I know that because … those people are horrible."
"Go on," Hank said, watching him with his arms crossed.
Tyler looked around the room, his gaze hesitating on the ladies among them. "It's not polite to say all that they did to me, but … it was awful. And when I wouldn't hurt people … they held me down and put something in my head." Tyler's face contorted at the memory. "I only remember little bits after that. Like I was watching through a TV or something, even though I could smell everything and I could hear people screaming sometimes ... "
"You don't remember anything after they took you?"
Tyler gestured to James. "That kiss was the first thing I've reacted to myself since they put that thing in my head." His hand drifted up to the back of his head.
"What are you talking about?" Tony interjected looking serious.
"I'm not sure what it was, but it was covered in blood," Rachel said.
"I sent it to James' lab," Billy said with a little shrug.
"Yeah, no," Tony said. "He's not touching that thing - whatever it was."
"I can look at it," James argued, but Tony looked a little too stressed out to argue with. "Or .. not."
"How'd you get it out, anyhow?" Tyler asked Rachel.
"That was me," Billy said, waving the tips of his fingers. "Reactionary spell just before I sent the soldiers to my grandfather's prisons." He looked over to meet Scott's gaze, his hands up when he saw the sharp expression Scott was wearing. "They has just killed those kids. I … lost my temper."
"That was not you losing your temper," Tommy said - always happy to bust someone out.
"Yes it was," Billy argued with a frown, but Tommy just laughed.
"If you'd lost your temper, you would have wished them out of existence," Tommy said, smirking crookedly. "Or did you wish them away and you're saying they're in Grandfather's prisons?"
"You can do that?" Tyler asked, wide eyed as he stared at Billy.
"Oh. You wouldn't have gotten off that easy," Tommy said, which had Billy joining James at giving him a dirty look.
"Don't make it sound so ominous," James grumbled. "You're exaggerating."
"Not really," Tommy argued quietly, though he left it alone for the time being. Obviously Billy's boyfriend was delusional.
"Well, however you got it out - thank you," Tyler said. "I just … I want to go back to living my life."
"That's … probably not possible," James said. "You're on their radar - they probably won't just forget you exist."
"They might," Tyler said, looking hopeful, but James shook his head slowly. "I don't think they even know what I can do."
"You're a feral," Ororo said. "The department has always prized those endowed with your gifts."
"No, right, I know," Tyler said. "But that's not all I do." He held up one hand and gently rested it on Nate's arm.
Scott began to rush forward, but Nate was quick to project loudly to him to wait. I'm keeping an eye on things, Dad. If he so much as thinks too hard about doing something he shouldn't -
You don't know …. That's Sabretooth's son, Nate.
And Rachel is watching too, Nate promised. Look at her.
Scott looked over to Rachel, who was on alert with fire in the centers of her pupils. But that wasn't exactly relaxing or reassuring to Scott.
A moment or two later, it was obvious that Tyler was concentrating, and for an instant Nate closed his eyes and ended up taking a step backward as the knot on his head disappeared. Tyler barely thought about it after he let go of Nate and stepped forward to offer Kate his hand. "That concussion won't take long to fix … and I can check to make sure you don't have anything else wrong while you're concussed."
"You heal," Steve said, looking shocked. "Not … just yourself … you heal others."
"Well, I thought my healing was pretty good," Tyler said. "I'm way faster than everyone else, anyhow."
"Good, then you can help my boyfriend after you trashed him," Billy said, waving Tyler over. "Just keep your lips to yourself."
"Yeah, not really my type," Tyler said with a smirk. "But it totally woke me up, so I guess … thanks?"
"Never again," James swore as Tyler rested a hand on James' shoulder and his other hand on his wrist, though James was still flinching at even being touched. But that fell to the wayside quickly when Tyler very nearly dropped James' arm.
"Wow," he said, blinking and already looking like he'd run a sprint. "That … you're like fighting a white water rapid."
"I don't know what that means," James said as Nate turned to his dad and said 'I'm starving.'
"It means … most people are like working with a trickle of water … something I can redirect and make heal faster than they're used to," Tyler said. "You? It's like trying to swim upstream in a class five white water river or … going against a rip tide." He blinked at James. "I've never seen anyone even close to that before."
"It's fine, I'll heal up on my own," James said as he squeezed Billy's hand. "Like I always do."
Tyler paused and offered James his hand again. "I could tell your medics what you broke though. If I'm fast."
"Please," Hank said, entranced with watching Tyler work, though once Tyler started on the list, he began to turn more and more red as he saw what kind of damage he'd caused.
What's the story? Scott projected out, not at all surprised that Nate and Rachel both were still listening for him.
As far as I can dig into his head? Exactly what he's telling you, Rachel replied. They were using him for … whatever, and though he can remember a few flashes, there isn't really anything that's useful to say what he did or what was done to him or what kinds of things they used him for.
I'll talk to him, Scott told her as he looked Nate over for any injury- though even some of the older bruises he'd been sporting seemed to be gone entirely. He needs to understand what he's facing.
And Kate could really use a buddy that can undo her Hawkeye-ness, Nate added. The three of them turned to listen to what Tyler was telling Hank - a whole laundry list of broken bones and injured organs along with his confusion on the claws in James' arms.
"It feels like there should be something there, but it's not," Tyler said, staring at James wide-eyed. "Is that part of your mutation?"
"You mean aside from not letting healers heal me?" James asked, then nodded. "Yeah. I know what you're missing. Based on what I know about my powerset, they'll grow back."
"Your bones?"
"They don't call it a 'regenerative' healing factor for nothin'," James pointed out. "It should grow back, and if not? Oh darn."
"Is there anything that's out of place?" Hank asked, gently re-directing Tyler's attention.
"I mean … some, but I could feel it moving as I was trying to look," he said.
"Then I'm afraid, Mr. Maximoff," Hank said as he stepped in and took a gentle hold on James' arm. "I'm going to insist that our young Mr. Howlett be redirected to medical intervention."
"It will heal-"
"I swear to you, James," Hank said in a growl. "If you tell me that it will heal on its own, I will pummel you about the head and shoulders. Do not impede my ability to perform my duties."
"Hard to do that when you're so quick about it," James said as he gave Billy a wry smile. "Come see me when you find out what the story is?"
"Are you going to apologize?"
"Deeply and sincerely. But I can't do that in front of an audience," James shot back with a troublemaking smile. "I'll get grounded again."
"Why are you like this?" Nate called out.
"Head trauma, according to the new guy," James called back, which left the rest of the team smiling as Tyler made his way around them all to patch them up.
And as soon as the kids were all being attended to - and had drifted away from Tyler, Scott made his way over to break the bad news to him.
"You're not going to be able to just go back to your old life," Scott told him quietly once he was away from the others. "They found you when no one knew you were a feral mutant. They used you successfully. They won't let this drop."
"They could …"
Scott shook his head. "They won't. But … we can help you to be more safe."
"But ... " Tyler looked more upset not that he was alone with Scott and Steve. "... I was supposed to go to college. I was going to try to get into medical school - you know, so I can learn how to help the things that my powers don't repair. I can't … I ... " Tyler looked visibly stressed as his voice cracked and he lost all of his bluster. "Can I please call my mom now?" he asked in a quiet tone. "I need to know if she's okay. Please."
"Of course," Steve agreed as he gestured for Tyler to follow him. "But Scott's right. You can't go back to your old life. It's too dangerous for your family. And as far as the schooling goes, we can help you figure something out. In the meantime … you'll need to find a place to stay."
"Like a halfway home for kidnapped mutants-turned-weapons?" Tyler asked, sounding as if that was a horrible idea. "I remember what happened to the X-Men. I'd rather not put a target on my back like they did."
The comment was enough to stop Scott in his tracks, and he shook his head before starting up behind the two of them. How was it that this kid - who was only a little older than Rachel - got it when his own kids were pushing to do more with the X-Men and painting the targets on their backs with neon, glow in the dark paint heavier and heavier every day?
Before Scott could form a thought in the kids' defense, Steve was already on it. "First of all, that's exactly why the kids re-started the X-Men. Because right now, there's very little stopping those weapons programs and others from doing to others what was done to you. And it needs to stop. It never should have happened to begin with."
"Okay, yeah, I can agree with that," Tyler said, looking almost sheepish for his initial outlook on the X-Men. There was a beat of silence before Tyler asked another important question. "I'm not going to be allowed to go to that school in Westchester, am I?"
Steve looked over his shoulder at Scott, then recomposed himself quickly. "We'll talk it over with Storm - she's the headmistress there - but I think until we figure out what's going on with that device, I think it's best if you stay in a more secure place."
"So… your'e going to lock me up," Tyler said, nodding slowly.
"No," Steve said, shaking his head. "We'll give you a room here - and we'll figure out how we're going to get you in school safely. We're actually pretty good at that."
"But first," Scott said, interrupting them. "You really should talk to your mother. It's possible she might need a relocation too."
Chapter 54: Keeping Secrets
Chapter Text
The soldiers that Billy had sent to the prisons of Genosha had been far more loose-lipped once Erik and his men got started on ferreting out their secrets - and when Erik heard that the men had been given orders initially to only grab James and Rachel, Erik hadn't been surprised in the least.
However … it seemed that their superiors figured out quickly enough who William and Thomas were after seeing what they could do with the team - and the twins were now close to the top of several secret government agencies watch lists. If it wasn't so damned dangerous for them, Erik would have been proud to hear it. But it posed a nasty problem that Erik needed to attend to sooner than later.
He needed his grandsons safe sooner than later by any means necessary, which meant he needed them home. And Erik was very sure he knew how to get at least one of his grandsons to turn his back on the world at large. He simply needed to approach things properly and use the proper bait.
He waited until he knew that the boy would be alone before he made his appearance. He was far more gentle this time when he peeled open the metal surrounding the windows of the high rise lab overlooking the city. As before, papers swirled and plants swayed in the wind until Erik re-sealed the glass magnetically, then barred the door so their conversation could be mostly private.
Mostly because young James Howlett was rarely alone these days as he worked in the admittedly impressive lab. Erik touched down and looped the end of his cape over his arm as he walked toward him. "Mr. Howlett," Erik said with a clearly put on smile. "I wonder if you might have a moment for a civil conversation."
James had sworn to himself when the wall cracked open, and then steadfastly went back to work, determined to ignore Magneto for as long as possible. "I'm not thoroughly convinced that any conversation that starts with someone removing my windows could be civil," James said. "But I suppose since you're already here .."
Erik did his best to keep his relaxed stance. "Yes, well, you'll forgive my entrance. I wanted to be sure I could speak to you one on one."
James looked up at him from the other side of his bench, barely slowing down as he kept working. "Must be something big if you want to talk to me this badly. I know you've got other, more conventional means of having a conversation."
"Yes, all of which would leave me without a reasonable way to see your reactions and leave you without the ability to know that I was telling you the truth."
James stopped what he was doing since he'd been pretty sure from the start that Magneto couldn't have cared less if James knew he was lying or not. "Alright," he said slowly.
Erik made his way over to the bench with a politically pleasant smile. "As I understand it, you had a rather rough mission recently." James didn't reply more than to nod his head in agreement, even if he knew there was no way Erik gave a damn about how rough he'd had things. "The soldiers that William sent were woefully uninformed of what they were walking into - both when facing your team and when they arrived in my prison."
"Can't say that I'll weep over them," James said, which was the right angle to take, since Erik seemed pleased to hear it from him.
"Good," Erik said warmly. "I was afraid you might have been under the influence of the Avengers for long enough that you might not recognize real justice when it presented itself."
James met Erik's gaze. "They tried to kill my team and they did kill the bait they'd used to get us there. They don't deserve pity."
Erik's smile widened slightly as he rested both hands on the bench, palms down. "James, my boy," Erik said warmly, though it sent a chill down James' neck. "The information I extracted from those soldiers will be on Ms. Munroe's desk tomorrow morning, but I could not wait for her to sit through it and come to her conclusions before I spoke with you about it."
"You know I'm not the team leader, right?" James asked, though he really didn't want Rachel to be forced to deal with whatever this was.
"Yes, I know," Erik said, smiling warmer. "But this isn't necessarily a team concern. This is about my grandson." As Erik expected, James had far to go in learning how to control his expressions, and it was clear in a heartbeat that James was alarmed to hear that any group might know something about Billy. "I know that you would go to extreme lengths to keep him safe, but he's not the only one I need to watch out for."
"If you think I'd let anything happen to Tommy either -"
"No, no, not Thomas. I know you'd do all you could to keep William's circle protected. And so will I," he said, holding James' gaze for emphasis. "Though I never would have seen it coming, for now, William has chosen you to stay at his side as his companion, and because of that, I would be remiss to ignore the tremendous target that you were born with."
"It never concerned you before," James said, not trusting for a second whatever angle this was. It also didn't miss his notice the wording Erik had obviously carefully chosen.
"That's simply not true, James," Erik replied in a rich tone, but his scent didn't exactly line up with a full truth.
"Still … new concerns and all … I'm fine."
"Yes, I'm sure. You're simply lucky that you have such protective friends. But … I should have been more clear years ago when I offered your father a spot on Genosha. All of you children would be far safer there away from these weapons programs that I can promise you - will not back down. For your own sake - and for my grandsons- see the sense in what I am offering."
"To be fair, we're not sure what they'd want any of us for," James pointed out. "But I do agree they are a threat."
"Ah. Well. I'm sure the Avengers are simply trying to shelter you from what those programs would like to do. It's all laid out, my boy. All they need is the mutant to fill the position." He produced a small tablet from under his cape and gingerly handed it to James - already keyed up with the scanned files that Erik had retrieved on what exactly several programs had in mind for him, personally. "At the rate you're all going, this is just a matter of time."
James glanced up at him, and on Erik's prompting, he started scrolling through the intel that he had - for the first time seeing the unfiltered version rather than that which Natasha had already okayed. And the details on what they had in mind was precise, down to a chart that they'd devised to guess with stunning accuracy how much James weighed now … and how much to dose him with to subdue him. From there, the details showed the kinds of controls and plans they had in mind for him. "What … what do you want?"
"To offer you safe haven."
James forced himself to look up from the tablet, the meaning behind what Erik was offering just starting to truly sink in. "You want us to go to Genosha to stay?"
"Yes," Erik said, sounding perfectly reasonable and relieved. "That is exactly what I'd like to see happen."
"All of us."
"Of course."
"But not Kate."
Erik blinked for a moment. He had expected James to be more single focused - like his father. Had that been the case, using Billy or his family as the carrot should have been more than enough. "I was more concerned with your family rather than loose friends."
"Kate is my family," James said. "We grew up together. She and Nate have been head over heels for each other for years. She's as much a part of the Summers family as I am. If she's not safe too, it's not an option." When it looked like Erik didn't know how to respond, James hit him with something he really wasn't expecting. "Besides, she's one of Billy's best friends. Honestly both Kate and America. Neither of them would be welcome in Genosha and that would be gutting Billy's circle of friends."
"You're missing the big picture, young man. You are without your primary defenses. Your claws are gone-"
"I didn't tell you that," James said, but Erik didn't slow down, and he didn't even indicate that he'd heard James as he cut across him.
"-you cannot expect to be of any use in protecting William if you can't even protect yourself! I will make concessions to keep you safe for his sake, but when I do, you will learn quickly to do as I say."
Erik had started to levitate, but James remained calm. "I think I do just fine protecting myself," James said. "The comms and panic buttons the team uses - the ones integrated into the uniforms … that was my work. Same with my brother's weapons."
"Perhaps I'm not being as clear as I should be to one who is supposed to be a genius. I've shown you what they have in store for you, but you're too stubborn to see how that could be advantageous to me as much as it would be to them. I'm trying to allow you to choose for yourself, but if they were to pick you up … instead of intervening, if I were to simply wait and allow them to proceed, it won't be them you'll have to serve. I will use that metal against you once it has replaced your bones. I know you're smart enough to know how this will eventually play out. But for now … I'll have to make do."
James was holding Erik's gaze when Erik held his hands out and then frowned to himself when nothing happened.
James however, tipped his chin up and put his hands in his front pockets as he watched Erik search out whatever metal he could find, but instead of challenging him in a manner that Erik was accustomed to, James took a different route entirely and gestured to the lab around them. "I'm an inventor. That is what I do, as I'm sure you already know," James said. "You didn't get a very good look at my lab the last time you stopped in. But since you want to discuss taking me out of here, feel free to take a look around. You did ask me where your labs were lacking on Genosha, and I regret to inform you that there isn't a lab in the world that will measure up to what I have here."
Erik was frowning deeper as he actively searched with his powers to try and isolate some metal - any metal - while he walked through the lab - at least until he saw the Iron Man armor James had laid out on a work bench and realized he couldn't move it. At all. In fact. The only bit of metal Erik found in the lab was a small piece of titanium that was part of a larger device on James' desk. Erik blinked to himself and then turned where he stood taking in the details he'd missed in his anger. On nearly every work bench were pieces of Avenger's uniforms and gadgets in various stages of completion. Falcon's wings were spread out on one bench with little more than an access panel to be closed - Stark's armor was the most involved with several circuit boards exposed, but Wasp's wings, belt, and helmet were complete and displayed on a model waiting to be used. And none of it contained anything that Erik could manipulate.
"I've made some improvements since you trashed the place," James said as he held Erik's gaze unblinking. "I do not want or need anything to do with adamantium in or around my body. Regardless of what anyone has planned for me."
But that had Erik turning on him, fuming far worse than James had seen before, practically growling when he spoke through gritted teeth. "You're giving the Avengers weapons to use against me?"
James stood his ground as Erik floated closer. "No. I'm giving them the means to be safe. The Avengers are my family, too. I'm pretty damn lucky to be able to say that Iron Man and Captain America are my uncles. They both taught me right from wrong alongside my dad, but don't for one second think that I'm turning my back on mutants."
"You are if you're arming Avengers to fight me," Erik said. "You should be standing with your own kind! Instead, you're choosing your own extinction."
"That's exactly the kind of talk I never thought I'd hear from a holocaust survivor," James said, though he'd have been lying through his teeth if he'd told anyone he wasn't scared of what Magneto might do in that moment. "You could unite everyone, but that isn't what you want. You just want to have the same power to use over others that was once used against you." The doors to the lab rattled, but James didn't look toward them. "Go ahead. You have a choice: you can pull the metal out of the locks in the door, or the structure of the building. I know I can't keep it away from you entirely. But if you do that, you will let them in. Or, you can say whatever it is you really want to say to me where no one will ever hear you. I won't tell anyone. Even Billy. So please, if you have something to say, or a specific threat to make - go ahead. I'll keep it between us."
Erik considered him as the pounding at the door continued. "The only thing keeping me from killing you now is my grandson," Erik said in an icy tone. "The moment he decides he's had enough of the novelty, I will personally make sure you regret every choice you've made in your soon to be very short life."
"But I'm the animal. For Billy's sake and yours, I hope your last days are happy and surrounded by family. I have no desire to see anything bad happen to you," James replied. "But in the event that things do end between Billy and I - when you come for me, you better bring back up, because I'll be ready for you and I won't make it easy. Even for an old man."
Erik sneered and turned to leave. "This isn't a game, young man. You cannot win simply by defending and hiding. The rules of engagement are not the same in life as they are a chess board."
"No, they're not," James agreed as Erik reached the windows. "But in this, you're the white on the board. There doesn't have to be a game at all if you don't start the attack." When Erik turned with a bemused look, James continued. "Believe it or not, I admire what you've done with Genosha. It was probably the right call at the time, but now? The professor's dream is the right call, and we all have agreed to fight for that."
For a moment, Erik held his gaze thoughtfully, then turned, once again removing the windows by the metal seals so he could exit the way he'd arrived. Though instead of replacing them as he'd done before, he slammed them back into place, shattering them and leaving James with a mess of broken glass and twisted window frames a moment before the doors unlocked.
Tony, Rachel, and America tumbled in ready to fight, but by then, James was already reaching for a broom to start sweeping glass. "I'm fine, thanks," James said. "Sorry for the mess. I guess I need windows again."
"And to move your equipment again," Tony said. "Is this going to be a recurring problem?"
James shrugged. "The way it's going? Probably."
"What did he say?" Rachel asked, watching James closely.
"Nothing special," James replied. "It was a direct approach with a buy line of 'move to Genosha now - or else'."
"I take it you said 'no'," Tony said, frowning at the hole in the wall.
"What on Earth would make you say that?" James said dryly before he sighed heavily. "Of course I said no. I didn't give him the why. Not his business unless things get more serious with Billy, and then it's going to be a matter of what Billy wants to tell him."
"Which right now probably means everything," Rachel said as she reached out to brush James' mind. She was wildly curious about what he was thinking and what had been said. But as had been the case lately, she was met with a brick wall that seemed sturdier now than it had been before, which meant that not only was he blocking her out naturally, he was actively blocking her, even after she'd made an incredibly iron-clad argument for him to open up to her. So she knew that whatever had been said had to have been bad. "James -"
"I'm fine, Rach," James said, one hand over his heart as he forced himself to relax. "Honestly."
"You're a terrible liar," America said.
"Thanks for that. Love you too, Chavez," James replied.
"Just keeping you in check," America replied with a smirk, though she was looking around the room, too.
"Did he take anything?" Tony asked when it seemed most of the room was in order.
"He's not a thief," James said. "But no. If he couldn't pick it up and carry it without having to hold it, he wouldn't likely be interested. And he couldn't pick up much here." James thought about it for a moment, and pointedly looked toward the tablet Magneto had left behind. "He gave me something actually."
"And?"
"He's a little in his feelings because I'm giving you guys non-metallic components. Accused me of making weapons when clearly - that's not the case yet. But if I'm going to be accused of it ..."
"I told you I could finish it in my lab," Tony said, but James shook his head.
"My idea, my project - all the materials and components were here. I didn't have a reason to think he'd be that touchy about my projects in my lab, and even if I thought he might, it's my lab, not his," James said. "It's fine, he is just under the delusion that … well, I'm not sure what. There was a lot of delusion going on. I'm not going to compartmentalize it."
Tony took a moment to stop James from what he was doing, then pulled the kid over into a tight hug that he didn't even consider letting up on until James returned the hug properly. "Hey. We're all here for you."
"I know. Love you too."
Tony rested his hand on the side of James' neck to make sure the kid focused on him. "You gonna tell me what went down?"
"He was just making sure I knew how much he wants to keep the twins safe."
"That's … a pretty big thing considering the last mission you ran."
"It's fine. We've got an understanding," James said, even if he couldn't force a smile.
Tony held his breath then nodded to himself. He could see he wasn't going to get it out of James when James was so clearly bending over backward to protect those around him. "Alright." He squeezed James' shoulder as he looked around again. "I'll get this taken care of. Probably a good time to take a breather."
"Are you sure?" James asked, looking around them. "Kinda feel like I need to finish up a few more of these sooner than later."
"I'll move them to my lab. I'll help you finish them." Tony gestured to Rachel. "Go on. It's fine. Pretty sure your sister wants to corner you for twenty questions, so if you don't choose to go, I'll have no choice but to let your dad know you're delirious and make sure Rachel drives you two home."
"Yikes, got it. See you tomorrow," James agreed as Rachel rolled her eyes, though she did look relieved to pull James along with her.
"Just go straight to my lab in the morning." Tony smiled as he watched them go, but America didn't leave, instead half-nudging the broken glass that was shattered across the floor.
"Why you pushing them out so fast?" America asked as Tony frowned, glaring around the room.
"No reason," Tony said before he headed for a cabinet in the far corner of the lab. It was one that James rarely used, and in fact, Tony had chosen it specifically for that reason. Inside, behind a few manuals and books, there was a small device that opened up to spit out a flash drive. Tony took it out and put a new flash drive in before he closed it up and put the books back in place. He started toward his lab with America on his heels. He was halfway there when he took out his cell phone and dialed Scott up. "Hey. Kids are coming home early. We had a Magneto issue here today. If you have a minute, I've got he video surveillance of what happened." He turned to America. "Don't suppose I could bribe you into getting Cyclops here, could I?"
"Usually I'd ask for payment up front," America said. "So you better be good for it."
"Look who you're talkin' to," Tony said, frowning at her as if she'd lost her mind. "I'll just give him a warning -"
"Too slow," America replied before she kicked a star-shaped hole into reality to usher Scott to them.
Tony held up the flash drive. "Hi, honey. I got surveillance on the Magneto attack that just happened. We both need to know what went down before we get actual time with that kid again."
Scott's eyes flashed. "Magneto?" he repeated, taking in the shattered glass and the otherwise normal state of the lab with new understanding.
"Yep, and the kid isn't talking - shocking no one." Tony waved Scott over. "This time though, I had surveillance wired to record if the windows were tampered with. They were alone, so no one to give us a run down like last time."
"Then it's a good thing you wired it," Scott said, nodding along.
"Let's see it," America broke in impatiently. "You two can bask in each other's overprotectiveness later. I wanna know how many bones to break."
Tony didn't argue it as he pulled up the file and let it play, relieved that nothing had happened to the tech or the recording device in the process. And it picked up from the moment the seals on the window were tampered with.
By the time the footage had played out, Scott's jaw was locked, and America had a slight glow to her eyes - her powers drew from emotion, and she was angry enough that it was spilling over. "I'll deal with this," Scott said at last, through his teeth.
"What are you thinking?"
"I've already talked to my brother about coming back to Genosha," Scott said. "Some of the old X-Men and I have been quietly keeping tabs on Magneto."
"What can I do to help?" Tony asked. "Tell me what you need."
"I need non-metallic weapons," Scott said without hesitating.
"That's been the kid's focus for a long time now."
"I know, but I'm asking you. I don't want something he's seen in this lab; I don't want him to connect it back to James if he sees it," Scott clarified.
"Yeah, I figured as much - just wanted to point out we've got plenty to work with. He's been working up new materials. I had hoped it was just an overabundance of caution. Didn't realize he was up to verbal sparring."
"I'd hoped things hadn't gotten this bad with Magneto," Scott admitted. "He and the professor always tried to work things out. For the sake of that memory, I'd hoped he'd get a grip."
Tony looked thoughtful for a long moment. "Any thoughts on how to deal with the kid? I already told him I'm moving his projects - and him - to my lab."
"I'll tell his boyfriend," America said simply, one eyebrow raised. "If you think a horrified, worried Billy won't keep James distracted while you two deal with the problem…"
"Which part would he be more horrified at?" Tony asked. "The part where grumpy grandpa is threatening the boyfriend or the part where the boyfriend is telling him to bring it?"
"Yes." America leaned against the wall with one foot kicked up. "What you boys fail to understand here is that this isn't the first time one of Billy's boyfriends has been threatened. In fact according to Tommy, every ex that did him dirty mysteriously vanished. Even the ones that didn't do him dirty. Put the clues together, chicos. It's not an empty threat. And Billy knows it; he just doesn't want to believe it without definitive proof." She gestured to the computer. "Which is what you have right there."
"We have proof of threats," Tony said. "As much as I hate defending Magneto in the realm of murder, we don't really know how to prove what happened to the exes." He turned back to Scott. "The older James gets, the more he's sounding like his parents when it comes to threats. But if you think you can open Billy's eyes ..."
"I think if we can show him the threats, he'll be smart enough to put two and two together," Scott said. "He's Vision's son."
Tony gestured openly. "Alright then. Miss America - you know Billy best."
"Great." America clapped her hands together, rubbed them, and then kicked another star-shaped hole in reality, yanking Billy and Kate out of their video game to join the three of them in James' lab.
"Oh, was there another burrito-ing?" Kate asked, wrinkling her nose as soon as she saw where they were.
"Hard to do when there was no metal within reasonable reach," Tony said. He waved both teenagers over. "Come on kids, we've got a little movie for you." As they made their way over, both of them looking a little confused, Tony set it up again then stepped back with his arms crossed over his chest.
Billy had one hand over his mouth, but Kate, to everyone's surprise, looked delighted. "Oh, look at him giving it to Grandpa Evil," she said. "I'm so proud." She nudged Billy. "C'mon. It's always fun to watch him work, isn't it?"
Billy shook his head, his eyes narrowed as he stared at the screen. "He didn't tell me it was this… blatant."
"Which one?" Tony asked. "Because James wouldn't. He'd try to cope on his own."
"He was trying to protect you," America said in an exasperated sigh. "He knows you love your family - even Magneto. He doesn't want to step on that."
"Yeah, but I love him too," Billy said, finally moving from shocked to angry as he gestured toward the screen. "And I don't want him dead - or staying with me so he doesn't get murdered."
"Oh, no worries there," Kate snorted. "You saw him."
"If he was intimidated, he'd have called it by now," Tony said. "Sounded to me like he's leaving it to you and prepared to face off if you tap out.." He pointed at the screen. "He's not afraid that he's going to get killed. I've seen that look enough. He's confident. Don't know if it's warranted or not, but he's confident."
Billy was floating slightly off the floor without meaning to before he turned to face Scott. "I need to check something," he said, his eyes literally alight. "But… you should know my grandfather wanted me to spy on you. And when I get back, let me tell you what he told me."
"If I'm not here when you get back, call," Scott said, knowing full well that James hadn't told Billy where they were actually living - still falling back on the safe house as 'home'.
"Fine," Billy said, then disappeared with a muttered, Backtomyroom. He had every intention of trying out a new spell he'd learned. He'd initially learned it so he could search for missing teammates. But now, he needed to use it to search for his exes. If they were even alive.
The lab was fixed up quickly enough, and Tony once again put his security system into place without James knowing - even going so far as to reinforce it better and add more, smaller cameras just so he had every angle now that he knew they worked.
The equipment was all moved back in, and several of them were humming along nicely again, but James wasn't giving them his attention at all. Not when he had so much coursework to catch up on. It was a point that Tony had brought up after the incident with Magneto - that he'd been ignoring the work he had to finish so he could secure the three masters degrees that Tony had strongly suggested he acquire ahead of the timeline they'd originally agreed to.
But between the time he was giving to the Avengers, the time he was investing in the X-Men, and the work he was doing for Stark Industries … he hadn't exactly fallen behind … but he wasn't keeping the pace he'd set for himself before he'd joined the teams. And Tony had used the incident with Magneto to remind him that he had a course set out ahead of him that Tony was relying on him to complete.
And that started with finishing his Masters in physics, mechanical engineering, and electrical engineering. It wasn't something that was needed immediately, but Tony had suggested that it would be a point to smooth things over when he was old enough to step in as more than just his lab assistant if he blew past Tony's own education record. It didn't help that Reed Richards was quietly suggesting he turn those into doctorates and add in some extra degrees in physics ASAP, either.
So, instead of working on some of the projects he'd been tinkering on - or solving some of the problems he was anticipating on the horizon, James was focusing on getting some serious study time in. Not that Tony was complaining one bit. In fact, he was delighted to see James taking the time to work. He'd been working on studying all day and the evidence was piled up around him, too … stacks of books, a couple of open laptops with reference materials showing on screen, several notebooks full of trigonometry and calculus - and one with doodles- alongside a few empty coffee cups and some crumpled up take-out evidence.
He was, in fact, waiting for dinner to show - since he'd told his dad he was wrapped up in a paper that Reed Richards had written about quantum mechanics that he simply couldn't stop partway through. Not long enough to go home, anyhow. It required focus and driving home, sleeping on it and driving back the next morning would be enough to make him have to restart it. A bite of pizza though … that would be enough to make sure he didn't get a migraine.
So when Billy appeared in the lab with a spell, James broke into a crooked smile when he saw him, though he barely broke from reading to flirt. "What great timing you have, little prince. Is this payback for distracting you from your test at midterms? Should I be prepared to be a disappointment to Tony?"
But Billy looked stressed as he made his way over to where James was studying. "You know, I don't even know how to answer that," he said as James finally caught wind of how anxious Billy smelled.
"What's wrong?" James asked as he put the book in front of him to the side.
"Oh … you know just …." Billy ran his hands through his hair as James watched, almost wide-eyed. He'd never seen him like this. Or anywhere close to it. "There's no way to do this easy …".
"You're breaking up with me," James said in a shocked but totally flat tone.
"What? No!" Billy said, looking almost as shocked as James had been. "No, that's …" He let out a sigh and ran his hands through his hair again."So … I looked into it and it turns out that my grandfather's been killing all my exes, and it's kinda freaking me out." James got to his feet and made his way over to try and pull Billy into a hug, but he shrugged his shoulders up - he wasn't done yet.
"Hey …"
"I know for a fact that he's been threatening you, too - and you're just letting him do it," Billy said, which was more than enough to get James to stop - clearly red-handed. "So can you please, please - please be honest with me about what's going on? Don't try to cushion it. Don't … lessen it because I just found out that he's been murdering guys I've dated - and I am freaking out. I need you to not hide things from me. Especially this."
"Okay," James said, his shoulders relaxed as he gestured to the couch nearby. "You deserve that anyhow." He took a seat and waited for Billy to sit down. He took the far end of the couch, and though both of them were sitting sideways and facing each other, Billy's foot on the floor was jiggling, a detail that held James' attention for a few beats too long. "I'm sorry. I was just trying not to … I know how important my family is to me, and I didn't want anything to get between you and your family. It's probably a shit excuse, but it's the truth."
Billy scrubbed his hands over his face. "Why didn't you tell me, though? Don't you think that it should be my decision - that I should know what he's doing? What he's said to you?"
"Alright, yeah," James agreed quietly. "But I'm tired of everyone feeling like they need to protect me." he half heartedly gestured to the mountains of books on the bench. "I let them anyhow, but it's wearing."
"Hey, you're talking to me, here. Remember how my mom literally sent us off an island so we wouldn't be stiflingly protected?" Billy shook his head, his gaze drifting to the stack of books. "It's just… I get that you're trying to protect me too, but it feels lopsided when I don't know what the score is."
James considered him for a long moment. "Fair."
Billy's shoulders relaxed only slightly, though he finally stopped jiggling his foot. "So," he said quietly, "I guess… so that's a thing. The, um, the dead exes. That you should know about."
"I'm sorry you can't rebound backwards," James teased with a little smirk.
Billy was surprised into a quiet smile and shook his head. "Like I'd want to."
James smiled a little wider in response. "Never know …. Especially since I can only tell you things that won't blow other people's secrets up. Like … that ... " he tipped his head toward the books again, but didn't turn away. "I am trying to finish my masters. Three of them … so Tony has an easier time when he gets ready to step down." He let his shoulders drop. "It's not going to happen for a while, but he's prepping me to take over the company for him when he retires to just inventing. But no one outside of the family knows that yet."
"Oh. Wow." Billy blinked a few times, not at all expecting that - though he almost couldn't help but think that it explained a few things his grandfather had been questioning about James' place with Stark.
He didn't think he'd let his grandfather in on that secret, though. All things considered.
"And aside from helping to raise me, that's why Tony's so territorial, and all of why I'm so wrapped up in studying so hard. If you want secrets ... I have one more thing that I can tell you. I didn't tell my siblings this, either," James said, looking a little more anxious. "So ...you know how I said I've been talking to Rabbi Cohen?" Billy nodded and James continued. "I asked him to be my counselor, just so I can get a viewpoint that isn't superhero influenced on my crap."
Billy blinked in surprise but then, as he thought it over, slowly nodded. "Okay," he said. "I think I get that. I mean, Mom sent me to a different continent for a new viewpoint, so…." He shrugged. "I didn't drive you to therapy, though, right?"
"No," James said, shaking his head. "Had nothing to do with you. At all."
"Had to check."
"You really don't need to worry about that. When I get to a point I can tell you about it without freaking myself out, I will. But part of it was that I needed whoever I talked to not to know where I came from. So ..what else am I neglecting to disclose that I can disclose? There is more I want to tell you, but I can't yet. Not without clearance from other people."
"Um, I think the death threats and therapy, and Stark Industries plans are pretty big ones?"
"Yeah, but I figured since you knew the death threats, that part wasn't worth repeating," James said. "If you need me to say it, your grandfather really doesn't like me." He looked thoughtful a he tried to shift the mood in the room. "But … if he went after all your exes, maybe it's not that personal."
Billy shifted guiltily. "Ah… it kind of is with you. He might have… sort of… specifically told me to avoid you when we first got here."
"I know, I was trying to get a smile or something. It's always personal. But he's not scaring me off, so that has to count for something, right? Even if it's tiny."
"Not that tiny," Billy said, breaking into a genuine smile.
"Little bit tiny," James countered as the door to the lab opened and Tony came in with a pizza in hand, and more than ready to pick.
"I thought you were studying, not studying," Tony said, before tipping his chin up toward Billy. "Hey, kiddo. You're staying for a little while aren't you?"
"Hey, you're hogging my boyfriend. And there's pizza. So… yeah. I'm sticking around," Billy said.
"You wanna stick around, you can - hell, if you can keep from distracting him too much from finishing his degrees-"
"That you and Reed keep adding to," James cut in.
"We are adding to them because you're so good at the things we set in front of you," Tony said, giving James a significant look, which got James to smirk to himself at how not-sneaky Tony was.
"I just told Billy what your big plan for me is," James said. "So … you don't have to worry too much about interrupting yourself talking about the evil plans with MIT."
Tony stopped, looked toward the two of them and grinned brightly. "Not a bad deal, right? He's doing the work as easily as if it was breathing. You should see what he's been coming up with for space travel … this place is going to be something else when the time comes."
"And I'll get to tease him about him being the one locked up in a tower…" Billy said, grinning.
"Billy boy, that has been the case since he started getting his tutoring up here," Tony said. "So come on - grab a slice or two and you can help me figure out how to tell his dad we're moving things up - publicly anyhow."
"You can just not do that so you don't kill him," James suggested. "There's no reason to announce something that won't happen for a while anyhow." But Tony was already shaking his head.
"Yeah, I mean, didn't he just recover from the shock of having a Creed dropped on his kids?" Billy pointed out - still not happy about how that had turned out, even if he couldn't really blame either James or Tyler for it. Especially after the Avengers and X-Men started telling tales about James' mother's out of the box thinking and on the fly problem solving. That impromptu mid-battle kiss had been James' equivalent of a knee-jerk reaction. Apparently.
Tony shook his head again, more impatiently this time. "Hey. You just said it. We just watched as a Creed got dropped on our kids - by a weapons program. Those idiots think they can snipe my kid? Nope."
"He's just like this," James said quietly to Billy. "He thinks making a public spectacle since I lost the mask will help cushion things."
"At the risk of starting something… that… kind of sounds like my grandfather's logic," Billy said, already wincing as he said it.
"Hurtful," Tony said, just before he took a bite of pizza. "But I'm not doing it in a 'bow down' angle - no offense. It's more of a 'don't touch the kid. He's got connections. And besides, Jan's been drawing up your wardrobe for the announcement. Keeps waffling between something casual and a suit.'"
"Your grandfathers are touched," James said - just to get Tony to react - and he did, coughing hard and nearly falling off his chair. "Both of them."
Billy grinned brilliantly as he turned toward Tony. "He has a point, Grandpa," he said, complete with fluttering eyelashes just to mess with Tony. He'd never called him that before.
It took Tony a moment to recover, and when he finally did, he was laughing. "Alright, but I'm keeping you if that's the way you want to play it." He snapped his fingers. "And I want to see Wanda's face when you tell her that."
"Before or after I tell my dad you're embracing our family with open arms?" Billy shot back.
"Yes," Tony said, nodding, and smiling wide enough his eyes were sparkling. "Whatever you want, kiddo."
"I think he's good with us," James said quietly, just for Billy to hear. "Your dad will probably be glad to hear it."
Billy nodded. "He likes having family. I know he wishes Grandfather embraced him and Alex a little more. Might as well have a better bond on this side."
"Careful, if you keep talking about him, he'll start building you a jet or something." James pulled the pizza box over just as Tony started gushing to Billy now that he could.
Nothing was too in depth, but he was more than happy to dive in to bragging about what he had in mind for James' schooling from this point anyhow. Especially since that was one area that James really hadn't talked about too much with Billy. Not beyond vague mentions of what had been done already.
"Those are just the plans he and Richards have suggested," James clarified- not wanting to let Billy think that he was leaving anything out so soon after their earlier discussion. "I'm not convinced the doctorate isn't overkill."
"Overkill? In our family? I'm shocked to find that there's gambling in this establishment," Billy said dryly.
"See? No such thing," Tony said. "Then your sweetheart can have a doctor."
"I can almost guarantee you I'll make playing doctor jokes every thirty seconds," Billy said, grinning widely.
James burst out laughing at that, then leaned over to steal a kiss. "Not that kind of doctor."
"So?"
"Alright, I can take a cue," Tony said, grabbing one last slice then left th two of them - cackling as he went.
James waited or him to leave before he leaned in to steal a long kiss with Billy. "Are we okay then?" James asked. "I don't want to screw this up over something stupid."
Billy nodded. "Yeah. Just… no more secrets, okay?"
"As soon as I can tell you anything else, I will," James promised. "Until then, I'll just be here … in my tower… I guess working toward a doctorate or three ..."
"At least I know where to find you," Billy pointed out and then kissed James as they settled in to finish dinner.
Chapter 55: The Harbinger Approaches
Chapter Text
Note: This chapter begins a crossover event which includes characters and events from our 714 Marvel Universe, particularly Volume 42, "Horsemen." If you don't want to be spoiled for what's happening in that universe, we suggest you skip over there and catch up before coming back here. If you don't mind spoilers, well, don't say we didn't warn you. You can still read this on its own; we will provide context. But the full experience encompasses both stories.
Chapter 55: The Harbinger Approaches
Meanwhile, in the 714 Marvel Universe
It was shortly after Apocalypse had gone from this particular universe, and Billy was still getting used to what was and was not in his reality - and definitely didn't have a handle on not interfering.
Apocalypse had been sure to show Billy the worst outcomes, the kinds of places and times that were sure to leave emotional scars. And one of them was this universe where Graydon Creed had killed so many X-Men and left lasting damage on others.
And, well, Billy might not have known where he was all the time, but he did know that universe wasn't the same as the one where he belonged. But he also knew that he could play a little interference, the way he had with Lily's universe when he had saved her from Sabretooth. He didn't think he could stay out of interfering anymore, not after what Apocalypse had done, but at least if he kept his interference to universes that he couldn't screw up, if he looked ahead and made sure it would be the right thing…
Then again, he still wasn't one hundred percent on reality even within a set universe. So, he'd promised Teddy he wouldn't go galavanting without backup. Which meant...
"Hey, Logan, I need to borrow you."
"What for?" Logan asked without looking up from his newspaper.
"I…" Billy shook his head. "I need to stop things from spiralling out of control for our friends. And yeah, this time I know it's not our universe. And I know I'm still figuring out how to help. But… but it's bad there."
Logan dropped the newspaper just enough that he could look up at Billy properly. "Is this one I can go like this or do I need my party dress?"
"Well, you're dead there, so you really shouldn't go into the fight. Especially since it's against Magneto? So… you're fine."
"If I'm not supposed to go into the fight, the hell do you want me for?"
"To make sure everyone comes back from the fight," Billy said, his eyes wide. "Because right now, it's a suicide mission."
Logan took one last sip from his coffee and set the mug down. "Let's get on with it," he said as he got to his feet. "You're sure you don't want me goin' to fight?"
"Very sure," Billy said as he started to float a bit in preparation for the jump.
Logan made his way over to him and looked up at Billy with a little frown. "What if I wanna? You gonna stop me?"
Billy gave him a dry look. "You're dead in that universe, Logan. And it took a long time to get past that."
"So I got the element of surprise. Sweet."
"Logan, it's Scott that's going in," Billy said, more seriously this time. "And with no guarantee of coming out again. So I really need your help stopping him, not Magneto. My grandfather's going to die in that universe no matter what we do; he's writing his own end. This is about Scott."
Logan let out a breath at that. "You really suck at lettin' people know what's up, you know that, right?"
"I'm still a work in progress, sanity-wise," Billy pointed out.
"Yeah, you're a work alright," Logan muttered.
"This Scott was there when you, K, Jubilee, Charles, Jean, and Kurt all died within a few weeks of each other. So… you can imagine how he's doing."
Logan let out a low whistle at that. "How the hell'd that happen?"
"Creed and his son. Nasty combo." Billy made a face. "They weren't even trying to work together."
"Musta been rotten there," Logan said. "Here, they couldn't ever figure out which way is up on their own - and together … well. Couple of raged-out crazies that couldn't get past their own egos."
"Yeah, well… it's been a while, and now that Scott's more or less raised James to a point he and the other kids are at school and their own peop- you know what, it might be easier to just take you there? Because there's a lot going on."
"Waitin' on you, princess."
Billy smirked at that. "That's right I am," he said before he simply snapped his fingers, and they both reappeared in a house in Williamsburg, Brooklyn. It was in a popular area, but it still felt quiet, and inside, Scott was the only one there at the moment. The other three major scents - Rachel, Nate, and James - were old.
Scott was testing and re-testing a nonmetallic weapon that Tony had designed so that he could smuggle it into Magneto's palace without raising any alarms while he poured over some intel, clearly lost in thought. Logan watched for a long moment as Scott worked, then glanced over at Billy before he silently made his way over to get a better look at Scott's layout of maps and plans spread out on the table. He stood a few paces behind him and simply looked it over, figuring out what it was that Scott had in mind. It looked like Scott was going for isolation and surprise in Magneto's own palace, and when Logan realized exactly what it looked like he was up to, he just couldn't stop himself. "Now that is a shit plan, Scooter," Logan rumbled out. "Probably the dumbest damn thing you've ever cobbed together."
For just a second, Scott froze, and then, he looked over his shoulder at Logan with an expression of open disbelief. "What the hell…" He was already scanning Logan with cybernetic eyes, but the scans showed adamantium, which wouldn't have shown up for a shapeshifter. But that wasn't actually possible...
"You're the one that's stoppin' at Plan 743 instead of whatever the hell you'd come up with to keep goin."
Scott blinked once and then got to his feet fast, with a long blade in his hand extended in Logan's direction. "Get the hell out of my house."
Logan looked shocked for a split second as he took in the treble scars across Scott's face, but he recovered quickly. With a chuff, he turned his back, headed to the refrigerator, and took a beer out of the back, then cracked it open and leaned against the fridge. "Make me." He couldn't quite come up with anything wittier when he was trying to figure out what the hell had happened.
"What is this, some telepathic trick?" Scott said, his eyes narrowed. That was the only explanation he could come up with when all of his scans showed that this was Logan.
"Yeah, cause that's my strong point," Logan said, shaking his head. He tried to refrain, but he ended up gesturing to Scott's face all the same. "The hell happened? Can't think of anything you coulda done to get me that ticked off. Not narrow enough for anyone else I know."
"Long story," Scott said, waving in irritation.
Logan narrowed his eyes and gestured to Scott's maps. "We got time. Especially if this is the best you can do." Logan paused, then offered Scott the beer in his hand. "You prolly need this more than I do right now."
Scott sighed as he took it. "I'm not sure what to tell you, since I'm not sure where you came from."
"Other-dimensional visitors," Billy put in, waving a hand. "Hi."
Scott finally seemed to take Billy in, and that started a whole new round of suspicion. "Billy?"
Billy grinned. "Not yours, but close. Hi, by the way. Again."
"Hello," Scott said shortly, still openly scanning Billy. "And what are you doing here?"
"Oh, I hop dimensions," Billy said, shrugging. "Yours can't do that. I mean, he can, but not… not the way I do it." He rubbed a hand through his hair; he used to be more suave and assured in his powers before Apocalypse messed with him. "I'm sort of like an interdimensional ambulance driver, I guess. Trying to fix what I can in universes where interfering won't make things even worse than they already are."
"He only comes out to play when someone's gonna do something irretrievably stupid," Logan said before he pointed to the table and Scott's plans. "Looks like you hit the jackpot."
Scott watched both of them and then decided against arguing his plan. He didn't want to get into it with Logan when he hadn't seen him in so long. Instead, he answered Logan's question. "I won't go into the details," he said, gesturing to himself. "But just know it was a choice between hurting me or losing one of the kids. We both agreed this was better."
"Those were the only choices?" Logan asked, one eyebrow raised.
"Yeah," Scott said in a breath. "It was a bad situation. We were removed from the guy who had James, so…"
"Cowardly little-"
"Yeah," Scott agreed. He paused, the words at the back of his throat pushing forward. "You should know I never blamed you." He'd been wanting to tell Logan that for years, had been carrying that around the whole time. Saying it out loud … it made his path forward that much clearer.
"Wasn't me, Slim," Logan said.
That didn't really matter to Scott. He'd never be able to tell the Logan that had been in his world anything close to that. He never got the chance. This was the closest thing he had. For a long moment, it looked like Scott couldn't decide what expression he wanted to have before he crossed to Logan in a few long steps and simply hugged him. Tightly.
Logan couldn't really do anything but blink a few times before he made a point to return the gesture. "Hey, come on, Scotty."
"Shut up and take the hug, Logan. You've been dead a long time."
"Must have been," he said, though he didn't let go of Scott until Scott was ready, thinking back to when he'd found Scott tucked away in a gingerbread-like cottage in Alaska. But this was a much more intense reaction, and Logan wasn't going to wreck it. Not when it was clear Scott needed this so badly.
When Scott did finally take a step back, he shook his head and gestured for Logan to take a seat with him. "I don't know what you know, but Magneto is out of control. Kitty and I have been working up a plan so I can slip into his inner circle. Bobby's causing trouble so he doesn't get suspicious. But he's jailing anyone who disagrees with him and threatening to kill them outright if they're not mutants. And that's just the problems he's causing for the general population, let alone my family." He paused. "Our family."
"So … situation normal," Logan muttered under his breath as he looked Scott's plans over a little closer.
"He offered me a place at his side after it happened. And we never re-formed the X-Men, so he'd believe it from me if I showed an interest in joining him there on that island. As far as he knows, I'm just a tired, de-powered has-been."
"So … you're gonna go in there and get yourself killed," Logan said, shaking his head. "Don't like it."
"Give me some credit," Scott said, rolling his eyes. "This is the best shot we have. I'm not trying to get killed, but no matter how this works out, he'll be dead too." He shook his head. "We can't wait much longer. He's already talking about getting rid of all the humans, and one of these days, he's going to hit the kids too. He's made threats on James when no one is around to hear it. He's just waiting for the excuse to kill him - or worse, he's promised to wait until a weapons group finds him and then use their metal to control James." Scott paused to let that sink in, not at all surprised to see Logan's eyes narrow and hands flex just slightly, like they always did when he was angry. "And it's not just our family. The kids have a human friend on their team, and Erik does not like it. Especially because Nate's dating her, and she's part of Billy and Tommy's circle of friends."
For a long time, Logan simply digested the threats Scott had laid out. He could understand it; he could. Anyone breathing down their kids' necks like that, anyone making those kinds of threats on James, couldn't be allowed the air to keep up those threats. But the method… "I didn't think there was a universe where you'd try to copy one of my mistakes," Logan said. "But here we are."
"It's not a mistake. It's the best shot we have," Scott insisted.
"Except you're missin' the part where you make sure to walk out the other end breathin'."
"It's fine, Logan."
"No it's not." Logan tapped on the paper. "Walk me through it. Maybe I can help."
"You can't come," Scott said, sharper this time, and almost automatically.
"I wasn't plannin' on it, but now I wanna," Logan said, turning his way.
"No," Scott said heatedly. "I'm not going to let you die again. And you will."
"Then come up with a better plan or I'm goin' with you."
"God, I forgot how much I hate when you do that," Scott said, pinching the bridge of his nose and leaving his hand there, kneading his forehead along the line of his scars.
"Then it won't be a problem if we go together. I'll keep remindin' you," Logan was smirking crookedly at him, especially since Billy was looking like he wasn't sure what exactly Logan was up to - and was wondering if he'd made a mistake bringing in Logan. He'd send him back if he had to keep an adamantium skeleton away from Erik, but…
Scott shook his head and tried a different tactic with Logan. "Do you have a K in your universe?"
"I do," Logan said, nodding.
"What about James?"
"Among others, yeah."
Scott visibly paused when he heard "others" but then shook his head to himself. "You need to go back to them."
"Sure," Logan said. "When I know you're gonna come out of this scrap alive."
"Hey, I kept my word. I raised three kids who want to be heroes, and I-"
"How old are they?" Logan asked.
"High school, mostly. Rachel's out of school. James is going into graduate work, but he'd be in high school otherwise."
"Then you can't take a chance like that," Logan said. "You gotta stick around to walk Rachel down the aisle and get that stupid look on your face when you hold a baby."
Scott gave him a dry look at that. "That's not the point."
Logan turned toward Billy and gestured toward Scott. "Billy, you wanna go get K for me? She's better with words and dealin' with this one."
"You're doing fine," Billy said, then paused, the stars in his eyes swirling brighter. "I… think. It's hard to tell when I don't speak… whatever language you two speak when you do this."
"English," both of them said at once.
"Case in point," Billy said, gesturing between them.
Both Scott and Logan looked like they couldn't believe what they were hearing from Billy, but Logan was faster to get back on track. After all, he had the advantage of coming into the situation knowing Billy was concerned for Scott, and he wasn't distracted seeing anyone coming back from the dead. "Come on, Scotty," Logan said in a low rumble. "What's it gonna hurt to walk me through it?"
Scott let out a long breath and rubbed his eyes with his thumb and forefinger. "Fine," he said. "Only because it's you."
Logan frowned a little at that, unused to Scott giving him that kind of deference, but joined Scott as he went over the plans, which were pretty sparse - even considering his usual ideas. "Whatcha got for defensive weapons?"
"Not much Magneto won't know about."
Logan gestured to the knife on the table. "Workin' with ceramics … that's a start. What about your electronics?"
"Kitty's handling that. She's our eyes inside."
Logan paused visibly, then shook his head at that. "No. I mean what you're bringin' in with you."
"Outside of these?" Scott gestured to his eyes. "I'm not."
"Why not?" Logan said.
"Because Tony Stark upgraded these. I can scan for threats; I'll know if any of his bodyguards are around, and I'll be able to disable his security, even the stuff he doesn't know I can spot. Don't need much else."
"Exactly. He doesn't know that," Logan argued. "You need to take it from his point of view. If you're comin' in like you're seeking sanctuary, you'd have something on you. Gonna stink of a set up if you don't. Walk in there with nothin' metal and he'll know before you get close enough to say hello."
"I didn't say I was going in with nothing metal," Scott said. "I've got Jean's locket, and I'm bringing a few other things in my bag."
"Very sentimental - and very stupid," Logan said. "But if you're hard up, I can give you a little metal to bring along."
"You're not coming," Scott said again.
"Sure I'm not," Logan said, obviously blowing him off. "You need a weapon with you. Not a locket."
"I'm bringing that knife-"
"No. You need a weapon he can find on you first," Logan said. "You're a defenseless, depowered ex-wrecking ball. You're not used to walkin' around without somethin' to cover your back. Tell me I'm wrong. It'll be a lie, but go ahead. Not like I'll know you're lyin'."
Scott let out a frustrated sigh, but he had to admit that Logan was right. The truth of the matter was that he was having a hard time planning for this, because he'd started with the plan to take Magneto on and take him down with him, get out of his kids' way and pave the way for them at the same time. But once he'd promised to stick around for James, he was having a hard time now not only with reconciling this mission with everything he'd believed as an X-Man but with honestly thinking straight when he was still furious over Magneto's threats against James. He was out of practice from the training he used to have that would let him lose his temper and still win in a fight, and so he had to plan this attack down to the letter. Which he couldn't do when even Billy's intel on Magneto was incomplete; the man didn't trust anyone. It was a bad situation all around, and yet he was still going in, because he didn't feel right handing it off to anyone else, either.
"I've got a gun I keep for emergencies - the kids know how to shoot too," Scott said at last.
"Course they do," Logan said. "Because you'd make sure they were prepared."
"For anything," Scott said. "But I don't want them to have to deal with Magneto."
"Who would?" Logan tapped his thumb on the table a few times, grimly and silently disagreeing with the vagueness of the plan so far. "So no extraction plan if it goes south on you … how's that gonna work out? Worst case scenario."
"I've got an extraction plan," Scott said, then hesitated. "As long as he gets there in time. Not sure how far out he is."
"Who?"
"Corsair."
"Now I know you got a death wish." Logan had shifted to cross his arms over his chest. "Come on, Scott. If you don't walk out of this lookin' like an action hero with explosions goin' on behind you as you strut out, those kids'll be there in a heartbeat."
"I'm not moving until I know I can make it a fatal blow," Scott said.
"Strategy like that, you might as well wait til' he dies of natural causes."
Scott rolled his eyes. "Give me some credit here. I'm not an idiot, even if I haven't been an X-Man for a long time."
"Scott, you've always been an X-Man from the day you put the badge on, even when you say you're not. It's part of you."
"I don't do that anymore," Scott said flatly, leaning forward, resting his chin on one hand, the end of his finger tapping the end of the longest of his three scars without realizing it.
Logan shook his head, though he didn't miss the motion and his gaze flitted to the end of the scars. "I didn't say you had to do it. I said it's part of you. It's not somethin' you just shrug off. Unless you gave up on Charlie's dream."
"Never."
"Then you're still an X-Man."
Scott shrugged, not wanting to argue it when there were other matters at hand. "Kitty's going to let Alex know the score as soon as I'm in place," he said to redirect the conversation, "but he's too close to Magneto where he is to know anything until the last second."
"Nice way of sayin' your brother's got a big mouth," Logan said half under his breath as he pulled the map closer.
Scott smirked. "He's my first choice to get me out of there," he said. "I know it'll be rough - Magneto hits hard-"
"So you're gonna break form and kill him," Logan said, frowning deeper somehow.
"There's not really another option here."
"You're not a killer," Logan said.
"I'm also not built to let a megalomaniac take control of my son." Scott paused. "Your son."
Logan blinked and looked down at the maps and photos again. "Where you plannin' to stab him?" he asked, blatantly not addressing what Scott had said when it was clear he was off his game.
"Honestly, the major problem is that his damn costume is designed to keep him safe," Scott said, glad for the excuse not to bring up what he saw as a verbal gaffe, even if, to Logan, it was just confirmation that he'd picked the right guy for godfather if that was how defensive he was gonna get in a situation like this.
"Can you show me?" Logan asked. There was no doubt in his mind that Scott needed to be walked through this in all the ways he never liked to practice things. Particularly where murder was concerned. Scott just didn't think of the best ways to kill. But Logan had no trouble with that kind of planning. He did not, however, like the settling sense of dread as he tried to give Scott a crash course in murder.
Scott nodded and flipped over one of the papers on the table to find one of the newspapers with Magneto in the headlines. There were plenty of them lately - from every angle, so it made remembering how exactly the costume was designed easy enough. "He's more paranoid than ever," he said. "And he's lashing out while insulating himself with every step."
Logan nodded again and took a moment to study the pictures, fighting every impulse he had to just go deal with Magneto himself, because Scott was not a killer - and Logan didn't want him to be. "Cover your ears, princess," Logan said toward Billy as he picked up a pen to start walking Scott through where he thought there were weaknesses, highlighting the anatomy of where the major vessels were, even if they weren't easy to spot. "Most of it'd work around the neck, but you're wasting your time if you don't hit the right spots there, too. Base of the skull would be quickest - those damn helmets never did go down enough to block his neck right. You can always go for the carotid - that's fast an' relatively painless, or just slash across the whole front. But your best shot is up through the soft part under his chin ... " Logan tipped his chin up and made sure to demonstrate the best angle with his hand and arm flat. "Good for the quick motion, put some power behind it." He turned the knife over in his hands a few times, testing out a couple of different grips, then set it down before he looked Scott in the eyes. "You need to practice the motion if you're gonna get it right."
Scott tipped his head back to look at Billy. "You brought him here because I'm rusty, didn't you?"
Billy had his head in the fridge. "No, I brought him here because the me in this universe is dating your son, and I'm not thrilled with the ripple effects of double-tragedy in both families."
"What kind of double tragedies?" Logan asked, half-glaring Billy's way.
Billy didn't move from where he was rooting around for something to eat or drink. "Well, if Scott and Erik kill each other, James can't handle it, and then the me in this dimension has lost his grandfather and his boyfriend, and Rachel and Nate have lost their dad and their brother. Kind of a race to see which of the three of them does more damage in their grief. I'd win, but it's not pretty from any of us, or anyone else for that matter."
"You really suck at disclosin' information, princess," Logan called out.
Billy straightened up with a bottle of root beer and saluted Logan with it. "I'm still working on sanity, okay?"
"Yeah, but findin' out you're a dirty cradle robber might have been a good lead," Logan said.
"We're the same age here," Billy defended.
"Uh-huh."
Scott was looking at Billy a little better. "Alright, now I'm wondering if ours is going to end up with galaxies in his eyes."
"No," Billy said. "It's sort of a … Demiurge-specific… it's a thing."
"It's better that way," Logan said. "Save you all the bad jokes about star-gazing."
"James would do that, too," Scott said, shaking his head.
"He would," Logan agreed with a sigh. "These timelines are somethin' else, Scotty."
"Then I'll refrain from telling you about the one where Rachel's your granddaughter," Billy teased, though Scott did a clear double take, even if Logan didn't look too fazed.
"You just brought my wife a daughter from another universe that's half Creed," Logan said flatly.
Scott narrowed his eyes at that. "Seriously?"
"Hey, she was three and tiny and scared, and Sabretooth was gonna kill her," Billy defended.
"I know damn well it wasn't anything K would've gone along with," Logan said.
"No kidding," Scott said, shaking his head and rubbing his eyes. "He killed her here."
"Killed her there too. Couldn't have been square."
"No, first his kid had her locked up and tortured until she couldn't think," Scott said, still rubbing his eyes. "It's no consolation, but you took his head off for it, if you're wondering."
"Not the first time," Logan said as he got up to take another beer out of the fridge. "Won't be the last. Seems to be the best way to deal with him, but I gotta admit, K has a few great suggestions. A lot of 'em involve inventive ways to light 'im on fire, but that might just be her idea of stretchin' before the big show."
"Sounds like her," Scott said with a small smile before he let out a long breath. "Alright. Let's go over this one more time."
Chapter 56: Master of Manipulation
Chapter Text
On the weekend of Alex's birthday, Scott woke up in a cold sweat.
He'd had nightmares on and off ever since what happened with Graydon Creed had decimated his family. They hadn't ever stopped. But this time … this time was different. This time, he had more concrete worries about his kids. This time, he'd dreamed that the department had sent another monster after them, that they had scooped them up and used them up until they killed them all.
And he'd lost all the family he had left.
It wasn't the best of mindframes to be in as he headed to Genosha with a gun in a small-of-the-back holster, Jean's locket, and three ceramic knives, not to mention a panic button. He knew the kids knew where he was going, and he felt bad about how worried they looked, but Magneto had been on the news just two days earlier on a spree, crushing several buildings belonging to governments around the world. And not all of them were clearly linked to anti-mutant programs. Some of them were destroyed just for their inaction.
He was putting a target on mutants, especially on Genosha. And that knowledge on top of the threats Erik had made against James were driving Scott forward.
Logan was right - he wasn't a killer. But he also couldn't ask anyone else to make the hard decisions when there was no other option. He had to know when to cross the lines in the sand - he'd learned that much when he lost his sight.
And if he couldn't leave his kids, if he couldn't give up, then he had to do something to keep them safe. Stopping Magneto would go a long way toward giving them a chance to breathe.
He and Kitty had talked it through a hundred times. Without the professor to stop Magneto, they had to fall back on a sharper plan.
Scott sighed and held on to the strap of the overnight bag on his shoulder as the ship arrived and Alex and Lorna greeted him there. At least that much had him smiling as his younger brother wrapped him in a hug and put his arm around Scott's shoulders, even if he was clearly disappointed that Scott hadn't brought the kids.
But that part of the trip? That part was some of the most fun Scott had had in a while. Lorna and Alex's kids were fun to play with - not to mention Alex himself showing off surfing and then preening about his kids and their own surfing talent.
It was when the day was over and Scott went back to the royal stronghold with Lorna and Alex that things turned more serious.
"Scott," Erik said, smirking to himself. "Have you finally come to your senses now that your children have gotten a scare or two?"
Scott stopped in the hall and then turned to face Erik. "I came to see my little brother, actually. Kids couldn't make it this time, as much as they wanted to. Rachel is on rotation with the Avengers, and the boys have some big tests they need to study for; otherwise, they'd be here with me to celebrate Alex's birthday," he said, trying to keep his tone in check when Erik had been one of the "scares" his kids had gotten. He wasn't going to forgive that. Or forget it.
"Yes, I'm sure that was the only reason you came," Erik said. "You're aware that the chatter from the less-than-savory groups has skyrocketed for two of those children, anyhow."
"I'm well-aware," Scott said. "James lost his cowl and Rachel lost her temper. An attempt was made on the team, and I'm already thinking of moving again in case anyone puts it together on Nate, too. He's still in high school; I'm not taking risks with him."
"So bring them here," Erik said, his tone richer and much warmer. "They're both welcome, and you know they'd be safe here."
"I don't know," Scott said. He didn't miss that Erik had only included two of his children in his offer of safety. But he had a plan; he needed to get close to Erik so he could catch him off-guard. And that meant trying to reason with him. Like the professor would have. "You know Genosha has a target on it now too, don't you? After those last governmental raids you ran?"
"I have always been acutely aware of the risks," Erik said. "But I also know the target is more on me than it is the island or the city itself. And I'm rarely here as of late."
"I noticed that too," Scott said.
"I can arrange for a comfortable home for you and your family," Erik said.
"You know I'd take you up on it if I didn't want to take Nate from his school," Scott said. He figured that was the most believable lie - and knew that Erik would give more consideration to Nate than to James. Even so, he couldn't help but test Erik's boundaries by bringing up Kate. "He's graduating in a couple years, and he really has fallen for this girl."
Erik scoffed at that. "Yes, I've seen the girl."
"She was upset when he got hurt," Scott said in a sigh.
"Teenage infatuation."
"If I tried to break them up, they'd only get more involved. You know how that goes." Scott shook his head. "I appreciate the offer. I really do. If you're serious… I might take you up on bringing them here for the summer and then going back for the school years. I'm honestly still considering options."
"It would be in everyone's best interests," Erik said. "And that would work well with Wanda's intention with the boys."
"I'm trying to let them be their own people, make their own mistakes-" Scott rubbed his eyes. "It's hard to do that and watch out for them at the same time." He glanced up at Erik. "If it was just me, it would be a different story."
"Come on, Scott," Alex said with a concerned frown as he stepped up next to Scott and put his arm around Scott's shoulders. He'd hung back as long as he could, but now, he couldn't fight the urge to get his brother away from Magneto. "You look like you need a break."
"I do," Scott admitted as Alex's kids rushed over to wrap him up in hugs that Scott gladly returned. "You guys go ahead. I think I'd like to take a little time alone for a while, if that's alright." When Alex and Lorna shared a look but nodded all the same, Scott let out a breath and headed in the opposite direction from the others, ending up on the balcony of his suite overlooking the seaside view of Genosha for a long while.
That part hadn't been planned, but it ended up being tactical all the same. Scott really did need a break from Erik's pushing so he could stick to the plan. The actual celebration for Alex wasn't set to happen until the following day, when Corsair would be there, too. Both Summers boys were anxious about their father being that close to Magneto. Humans that hadn't been taken prisoner hadn't been allowed on Genosha since Captain America and Iron Man had come to help after the X-Men had been gutted so many years ago. With all that in mind, Scott needed the opportunity to refocus.
That was how Erik found him, a few hours later, long after Alex had left. Scott was quietly sitting on a chair on the balcony overlooking the city and playing with Jean's locket, letting it drift between his fingers as he watched the ocean beyond the barriers of the city itself. He missed Jean desperately, especially in that moment. He missed her clarity. And despite his promise to James, he found himself wishing to see her again. He was so tired of doing this alone.
"You must know that I'm right about things concerning your safety," Erik said gently from the doorway. "Especially with how the humans have been handling themselves lately."
"Hello again, Erik." Scott didn't move from where he was seated. The years had gone by so quickly. And now, Scott could almost feel the moments as they rushed past faster and faster. But he could feel the weight of those years, too. "It's been so long," he said softly. "Watching it all happen again, watching the kids put themselves at risk while the world tries to shout them down, it feels like it just happened yesterday."
"Nothing has changed," Erik said, some anger slipping back into his tone, though it still remained soft. "They still hate us for the power we hold. You cannot expect that to change by hiding."
"No," Scott said in a breath. He finally tore his gaze from the ocean. "You're going to destroy them, aren't you?" he asked. His tone didn't hold any accusation to it - if anything, he sounded tired, resigned. "Until the world is nothing but mutants?"
"The initial leap into mutantkind was sudden. The extinction of the humans truly would be the natural course to take," Erik said. "Of course, I only plan to reverse the tables, not kill an entire species. The world leaders, the ones who lead the hatred and exploit mutants - yes. They will die. The rest … let them go to some distant place and stay there in exile."
"Give us the world and them Genosha," Scott summarized, one eyebrow raised. "Ambitious." He paused. "I'm asking because my son - he really has fallen for Kate. I want to be sure your goal isn't destroying the few who are standing by us. I know what's being said on the news, but the professor always gave you the chance to tell your own story. Maybe you're exactly what you say you are, and my kids and I couldn't be anyplace safer than right here. And maybe you're the genocidal maniac on the news. So which is it?"
"It depends entirely on who you ask, Scott. As you know well enough yourself."
"That's why I'm asking you," Scott said. "The same people who called me a terrorist not that long ago are still working today and painting you with the same brush. I'd rather know the truth - wherever it falls." He got to his feet and spread his hands out wide. "It matters to me - the truth. I don't care what you're telling the world or even what you're telling the people of Genosha. Be honest with me, please. Do you really think you can fix this and keep my kids safe and happy?"
Erik watched Scott carefully. "I'm sure there would be some complaints to start with," he said diplomatically. "But once they saw it was for their own good, yes. I think they'd be safe and happy. I've already looked into making sure all three of them would have all they need to keep themselves engaged in their passions should they come here."
"That's all I'm asking," Scott said, letting his hands drop to his sides. "I'm just tired of hoping the Avengers catch everything."
"That was always a waste of time and a perfect example of misplaced faith."
"I honestly think they mean well, but…" Scott let the statement hang in the air, then let out his breath and turned to Erik more fully. "You were right. The world still needs mutants to have a voice. I'm just trying to decide if I should step out of the way and let the new generation be that voice or if those of us that laid that groundwork still have something to give. They're the ones set to inherit the world. Shouldn't we let them?"
"Only when their time comes," Erik said. "Until then, it's our duty to handle it ourselves and clear the way for them. Not … pawn it off on those not yet equipped to handle it."
Scott smirked dryly and waved his hand in front of his face. "I don't know if you've noticed, but I'm not entirely equipped to handle it either."
"Not in the capacity that you used to," Erik said. "But to speak up … that could do a lot of good for everyone, if it was done properly."
Scott tipped his head, crossing his arms. "I'm listening," he said, knowing that simple statement would earn him more trust than anything else he could have said - and get him that much closer to ending this charade once and for all.
Erik smirked to himself. "Tell the world your story. Down to the most intricate detail. Show them what happens when humans are allowed to dictate the rules and how mutants are handled like pests. And do so with your children beside you. The world has seen one of their faces, and I know for a fact the world is frothing at the mouth to hear that story. Simply being there with you, they would demonstrate the lengths you've gone to all these years - to keep those children safe ..."
"That… could cause uproar," Scott said slowly. "I still have a hard time telling that story. There's a lot of power in it, and we both know it. It's the absolute worst of humanity."
"And yet, those young people were the smallest victims of a heartless captor." Erik let his tone drop quieter. "If you don't think that your story - and your children - wouldn't unite the mutants of the world, then you've lost your touch with how people think."
"I don't want to end up 'uniting' them into a frenzy," Scott pointed out. "I don't doubt my kids can lead. I taught them. I know they can." He let out a breath and ran a hand through his hair, completing the picture he was trying to paint of a harried father. "You're not wrong. There's a lot the world doesn't know - and they should know it. I just need to find a way to tell it that won't incite mutants against humanity itself…"
"I don't think that it's up to you to try and choose the impact of the story, Scott. But it needs to be told clearly and as it happened, and I'm very sure that for you, it's still fresh enough to make an impression. The others have let time erode the sharpness of their emotion in favor of letting those memories fade. You have not done so."
"The others don't look at Jean and Logan every day," Scott said.
"Yes, I suppose that's true enough," Erik said, his eyes glittering. "Which makes me sure that you should be the one to speak up. If anyone should hold a grudge ... " He gestured to Scott. "You have to look at two younger doppelgangers while staring at that scar every time you look in the mirror. It's a measure of your tolerance that you've managed to do as well as you have with the three of them and with so many reminders staring at you."
"I hate it," Scott said, letting some real anger out in his voice.
"So what will you do about it?"
Scott let out a frustrated sound. "Talking doesn't feel like enough!" he said, suddenly and sharply - and getting a surprised but pleased sort of look out of Erik.
"Of course it doesn't," Erik agreed. "Talking has never worked in the past. Just like talking has never worked to rein in rebellious teenagers. Tell me, Scott. What measures have you taken to keep an eye on your children? The world had advanced from when you were a young man."
"I've surrounded us with people I trust," Scott said. "And I have been surveilling the areas where we live. Stark's security measures have only gotten better with every new upgrade."
Erik chuckled. "You've been trusting the Avengers too much. Have you made use of all the resources available to you? I doubt that you have, somehow."
Scott gestured with one hand. "Enlighten me, then."
"One of your sons has been working for Stark - I thought for sure you'd have better surveillance than what he allowed you to use. Has the boy done anything at all to advance the safety of the group on his own?" He smirked to himself. "My own home has advancements well beyond what you've got on your building, and I don't have free access to Stark's endless resources."
"I also have two telepaths in my home who know exactly how paranoid they need to be to survive," Scott said.
"Yes, but for how long?" Erik asked, "Telepaths have become rather hard to come by, if you haven't kept up on the acquisition lists. They are nearly as rare as ferals are. Even here."
Scott's eyes narrowed. "Erik," he said slowly, every syllable sharp, "there is nothing I won't do to keep them safe. No one is getting those kids."
"Nothing you won't do except the obvious." He smirked. "And considering the way that those weapons groups are rallying, you sound naively optimistic."
"If you've watched any of the footage from the team's most recent encounter, you know they even sent a damn Creed. You don't have to lecture me about it," Scott snapped back.
"I interrogated those men that were sent to my prisons," Erik said in a low tone. "But that Creed would have succeeded had my grandson not stepped in. Those soldiers had plenty to say once they were here. And I am very sure your Avengers wouldn't have gotten anything out of them."
Scott's mouth was a thin line. "Look," he said, matching Erik's tone, "I wouldn't have even come here if I wasn't willing to do anything - anything - to keep them safe. And that includes hearing you out despite the way you've treated James."
"I haven't laid a finger on him," Erik replied, looking perfectly affronted.
"Is that how you justify wrapping him up in wires and scrap metal?" Scott asked.
"I told you before that I lost my temper," Erik said, shifting to a more placating stance and tone. "The boy was unharmed."
"I know." Scott took a deep breath and let it out through his nose, dropping his shoulders, too. "Their push to get James to start - let alone the others - has been ramping up, and you know damn well that I'm running out of options," he said at last.
"Yes, you are," Erik agreed, then gestured for Scott to join him. "I have something to show you. Perhaps it will ease your mind. Most of the time, it helps me."
Scott was watching for an opening as he followed Erik to a room, where there were several monitors - many of them monitoring threats, of course, but several dedicated to the kids. The school. The outside of James' lab. And several rooms in Scott's decoy apartment.
Scott felt like he couldn't breathe, though he heard himself ask, "How did you even get in my apartment?"
"You're hardly a shut in, Scott."
Scott shook his head, coming to the monitor closest to Erik to reach out and touch the screen where Rachel could be seen talking with Betsy as they worked on her control. On another screen, Nate was obviously enjoying Kate's attention even if he was still playing catch up in his homework. Tommy and Mia were stealing kisses instead of playing chess. Billy and James were hand in hand walking into the lab, back from a short break to grab some food together.
"You've been watching them this whole time," Scott breathed out.
"When I'm here, yes," Erik said.
Scott shook his head slowly, realizing that he was seeing Erik at the height of his paranoia. It just made the threats against James that much more concrete, knowing how much effort Erik had already put into preparing to act on those threats. And that - that was too much for him to ignore. Seeing his kids in the crosshairs - again - something snapped.
He moved exactly the way he'd practiced with the Logan from another dimension, but Erik hadn't quite been convinced enough to relax - not that he ever would have been with how high his paranoia levels were lately. So when Scott made his move, Erik stepped back just enough that Scott missed the fatal blow but still managed to sink his knife near Erik's collarbone.
Erik shot backward, away from Scott, but when he tried to lift his arm in Scott's direction, he simply couldn't pick that arm up high enough to do so. His confusion and disbelief at being that injured gave Scott the time he needed to close the gap again, rushing forward and ready to fight before Erik could gather his senses. Scott hit him nearly in a tackle, leading with the knife in his hand - in a rush to take him out. Though Scott's strike was true, the armor Erik was wearing was steady, and the ceramic blade splintered and broke when Scott tried to slip it between two panels. On seeing how close to a fatal blow Scott almost landed, Erik reached out toward Scott, expecting to find a steel knife. When he didn't find steel though, he let out a roar - thinking of the stockpiles of non metallic weaponry that James had in his lab - just before he took the only metal Scott had on him now. The locket and Scott's cybernetic eyes.
Scott couldn't stop his scream when it happened, either. He hadn't been expecting it, and he was reeling badly enough that he couldn't have possibly prepared for when Jean's locket came back toward him and ended up embedded close to his heart - and would have been right through if he hadn't bent over as he gasped in air trying to alleviate the pain.
The next thing he knew, the locket left his chest and wrapped around his throat. And that, finally, was such an urgent threat that he was able to think about more than just how badly he was hurt to remember one of the failsafes he'd brought. Fumbling and losing steam fast, he managed to hit a button on his watch that activated a small dampener there - and all at once, he could breathe again as the locket settled on the floor.
Of course, being denied access to his powers only infuriated Erik more, and he removed the first knife Scott had used against him, stalking forward with a low, dangerous, "I think it's past time you joined your team."
Scott was bleeding badly and massaging his throat, but he reached for the last of his ceramic knives and forced himself to focus as he settled into a fighting stance. "You act like I've never had to fight blind before."
"Rest assured you won't have to again." Erik was confident as he rushed toward him, but Scott was the one to draw blood first as the two of them fell into a viciously lopsided knife fight, slicing away at each other. With Erik bleeding and unable to lift one arm and Scott bleeding from his chest and face, they were already fighting less elegantly than they would have at their prime. But that didn't seem to matter to either of them. Not when it was abundantly clear that neither of them could hold anything back and survive the fight.
Chapter 57: To Me, My X-Men
Chapter Text
The Summers kids and their significant others, meanwhile, had broken into little groups almost as soon as Scott had left - and they'd all agreed to reach out if anyone got word from those on Genosha that something was wrong. Billy had even managed to come up with a spell that would tip them off if something drastic happened outside of the watchful view of Alex or Kitty.
But while they waited, there really was no reason to bunch up, and instead of holding their collective breath, the little group had paired off to wait. Billy and James in particular had headed out to grab a bite. Billy had hoped it would get James to take a step or two down from the honest-to-God raised hackles and super tense stance, but that alone … no dice. A few stolen kisses and a little quiet time, though … that at least had James settling down a little, but it was clear he was going to be tense until this Genosha thing was in the rearview mirror.
"I swear, I'm not trying to be a stress ball," James said when they'd gotten back to his lab at Stark's tower. "I just …so, the reason I took up therapy is that I learned some things from Dad after he busted me out on the bug on the island, and I'm a little freaked out by it, if I'm being perfectly honest."
"Okay, well, maybe I can help if you're finally going to tell me what's been on your mind," Billy offered. "You don't have to share details if you don't want to, but maybe I can… I don't know…"
James let out a heavy sigh as he dropped down onto the couch, realizing that Billy really did need to know all of it, too. Even if he was sure it would send Billy running. "Maybe. I got Dad to tell me the whole story of what happened with my parents and the X-Men."
Billy let out a low whistle. "That already sounds bad. I know you didn't know because it was bad, so, like… this is bad, right?"
"It is," James replied slowly. "But … believe it or not, I think I get it? Which is what's had me so stressed out."
"That actually doesn't make any sense, James," Billy said, leaning over to kiss his cheek.
"Yeah, because I haven't told you what I know. Like … for starters, did you know my mom killed your uncle? Because I didn't know that before Dad told me."
"Oh." Billy shrugged. "Yeah, Grampneto is still mad about it, actually."
"And did you know that Tyler's dad tortured and killed my mom in front of everyone after Logan blinded Dad? I mean … I suspected as much from the scars, but I didn't know why."
"Okay, that part I didn't know," Billy said, his eyes wide as he held his breath.
James's tone got much quieter, but it was because he didn't want to say the next part too loudly, not because he was worried about being overheard. "Sabertooth… told Logan in a very deceptive way that his son had asked for him before he died." James focused on Billy's hand as his thumb rubbed over the back of Billy's hand. "I didn't know I had a big brother - and he didn't register with Logan as a possibility. So, thinking I had died, Logan killed himself after he killed Mom's murderer."
Billy was silent for a long time before he whispered, "I don't even know where to start."
"I know. I haven't told Nate and Rach, and I've been blocking them both unless I was reaching out specifically, which I've been trying to avoid," James said. "But … after knowing how my parents were with me - and with each other? I get it."
"Okay, but now you're worrying me."
"I'm just saying … I understand it. I'm not looking to use it as a life model."
"Yeah, but, I mean, consider how it looks from my end? You're all stressed out, your dad's fighting my grandfather, and then you tell me the thing that's on your mind is murder and suicide?"
"He told me about all this our last day in Genosha. It's been on my mind ever since, and I've been trying to think of pretty much anything else." He let out a breath. "And I know Dad's right on the brink."
"But it seemed like he was having fun with the mission!"
"I think he was," James said. "But after he started telling me the story, he was slipping fast."
"It's a really bad story, James," Billy said, still speaking at a whisper.
"It is," James agreed. "And that …" He let out a heavy sigh. "So, my parents didn't know it wasn't me that Sabretooth was talking about right away, and Dad blames himself for Xavier's death … and everything else.… There were others that were killed before all that mess too... And I guess the idea that they'd kill a three year old was enough to make my Aunt Jean snap. That's what set her off. But she didn't totally lose it until she saw I wasn't dead. How's that for fun family dynamics?"
Billy stared at him for a long while as he held his hand. "You know it's not your fault, right?" He held up a hand between them. "I'm just checking, because… it can't be easy finding out you were a major player, and you know you were teeny, right?"
"I know. That's why I've been seeing a therapist since we got home." James looked up at Billy and forced a smile. "It's a bad story, and I didn't want to tell it to anyone, but I knew I needed professional help. But don't worry.… I wasn't a player; I was a prop. All of us were. They had Rachel wired, more or less, and were using that to make my mom do stuff. They were using all of us kids against the adults like that." He gestured widely. "Hell. The guy that was running it had me to force Logan to blind Dad."
"I'm so sorry," Billy said. "That… that just sucks. There's no way to spin it that isn't terrible."
"Yeah. I know. It is. But I can't change it." James let out a sigh. "I guess what I'm saying is, if I'd lost everyone I loved, like Logan thought he did … I get it. I understand why he did it, and I'm not mad at him anymore. But that's not a danger here. I still have the people I love. That's what's keeping me here, honestly."
Billy nodded gently and simply wrapped James in a long, tight hug, since he didn't know what else he could do, and that was all he could think of, trying to show him that it was alright, even when it didn't feel like it.
Just as James was starting to relax a little, Billy's spell went off with a shrill whistle that made both of them jump.
James stared around the room for a moment, ordering his thoughts. "I need to get there now."
Billy was wide-eyed as he nodded. "I need to grab - hold on -" he said, holding James' hand tight before he whispered his spell. First, IwantRachelandNatehere and then IwanttogotoScott over and over again until the spells took hold, and the next thing the Summers kids knew, they were in Genosha, in a room filled with monitors.
"Where is he?" James said, taking only a few moments to scan the monitors before he realized the screens weren't showing anywhere on Genosha. He took a few steps backward, closed his eyes to focus on the scents around him, and took off at a dead run following Scott's scent trail from where the fight he and Erik were in had started … and moved through the palace.
"Follow," Rachel said, pushing the two boys after James. "Fast."
James nearly skidded to a stop when he could smell the blood in the air when he got close to the fight that was still going on. Erik had a knife in his hand and his arm drawn back over Scott. Both of them were bleeding and slashed up from the fight they must have had before the kids could get there. But the part that had James off his game was all the blood around Scott's face … the fact that his eyes looked sunken in, like something was missing that would let him open his eyes when he was at such a disadvantage... All at once, as he realized what Magneto must have done, James didn't even feel the growl or notice it when he snarled - much louder and lower than any time before. He was mad enough that he didn't register that he was in motion, rushing to get in between Scott and Erik. And for a few moments, for James, everything faded out except the trouble at hand as, for the first time, he went into the red as he defended his dad.
The others didn't have a chance to step in. They didn't get the opportunity to help for as fast as James had been, so instead of worrying about helping him, the Summers kids rushed in behind James to try and get to their dad, with Billy trying to take stock of what to do.
When James blinked out of the red haze a few minutes later, it was to an almost deafening ringing in his ears, and he realized quickly that he had a lot of blood on his hands. His chest was aching deeply enough that it was hard to breathe - and every breath was more painful than the last. It took him a few moments to look down and realize that he was bleeding from the knife lodged in his chest near the center. His hands were bleeding too, and on seeing the blood dripping off his fingers, it was like the nerves in his arms and hands woke up at once and started screaming at him - which was how James realized that he'd used his claws. That in itself was shocking, since he hadn't known for sure if they'd even grown back after Tyler snapped them off. But the claws had already retracted, and on seeing and smelling so much blood, James was dizzy and a little sick to his stomach.
Nate and Rachel were already crouched down next to Scott, and James glanced around the room to get his bearings even as the world spun around him. He didn't even see Erik until he'd nearly tripped on him, and then, he slipped on the bloody floor and nearly lost his balance entirely. "Oh, no," James whispered out when he saw the slash marks and puncture wounds on Erik - perfectly spaced, three at a time. He half reached toward Erik, though that thought was abandoned when he saw how much his hands were bleeding, and he swayed on his feet.
"James," Nate called out when he saw that his brother was coming out of whatever that snap had been. His voice sounded shaky - not just from seeing James lose it but also from seeing his dad so badly hurt. "We found your dampener bracelet thing that Dad was wearing so … so um… don't touch that knife and try not to bleed out, wouldja? Powers should be coming back on now…" He was fumbling with the device as he said it, his hands slicked with their dad's blood as he and Rachel had been trying to help him.
Rachel, for her part, was trying to stop their dad from bleeding out, but she didn't know what was the worst stuff that she needed to stop. Even though Scott had still been conscious when they arrived, he had passed out by the time James came back to himself, and Rachel didn't know if the wound in his chest or the discoloration and blood on his neck or the long cut soaking his leg with blood was the worst problem.
James blinked at his family for a moment but didn't reply, still trying to figure out what exactly he'd done and quickly slipping into shock from the situation and the loss of blood. He stumbled back a few steps, staring at Erik in horror for a long moment and trying desperately to remember what had happened as he began to inch closer to hyperventilating in a panic attack. He knew the outcome, but he couldn't remember hitting Erik at all, and he didn't know how either of them ended up stabbed. But a low, soft moan of pain from Scott drew his attention. "Is Dad …"
"He's… breathing," Rachel said, though she was pale, and there was fire at the corners of her eyes as she panicked. "He and Magneto really did a number on each other. Oh, God…"
James wandered closer to them, clearly still in a daze and shaking as he dropped to his knees to join his siblings. He had no idea where to even start. Emotionally, he was numb, but his entire body ached, and once he realized that, he was sure the knife in his chest hurt more with every heartbeat. Without thinking about the consequences, and deep down knowing better, his hand drifted up to take hold of the hilt.
"Wait," Nate said when he saw the movement from his brother, but James couldn't hear him properly, and his body seemed to be working on autopilot. A moment later, James let out an involuntary sound of pain as he pulled the blade free before Nate could get close enough to stop him. Too late, Nate shouted at him as James dropped the blade, half-heartedly clutching at the horribly bleeding wound and not processing anything around them as the blood flowed.
Billy, meanwhile, was the only one who wasn't crowding a bruised and badly bleeding Scott — he was standing off to the side and staring at Erik, holding his breath and trying to get the image of his grandfather stabbing James in the heart out of his head. Erik's shift in target was smooth, focused, and seamless, and the expression on his face when he sunk his knife into James' heart was one Billy knew was going to haunt his dreams for a while. Not to mention the raw reaction James had when he let loose all those feral instincts was jarring to say the least. Especially since it wasn't until after Erik had stabbed him that James really lost his temper and the claws came out. He saw that James had tried just pushing him away from Scott first. Even when James saw Erik was trying to kill Scott, he wasn't pushing to do the same.
When Billy heard Rachel let out a muffled almost-sob, he finally snapped out of his daze and came close to where the others were. He was quietly crying, but he put a hand on James' shoulder and another hand on Scott's arm.
Iwantustogohome. Iwantustogohome. Iwantustogohome.
In a blink, all of them were back in the Summers home, appearing in the middle of the living room - though that didn't help the immediate situation with Scott when he was unconscious and in a bad way.
Except … a different universe's Billy was in the living room too. Along with a different Logan.
"I got it wrong," the younger Billy said in a horrified voice as Logan darted forward, shoved Nate and Rachel back, and started to triage Scott, swearing up a blue streak as he did so.
"No, you didn't," James said, though he didn't get to explain further as Logan pushed him back, too. That in itself was enough to stop James cold.
"Damnit, Scooter, you're not allowed to bleed out, you pig-headed pain in my-" Logan snarled out, only to be cut off mid curse.
"What the hell is even happening right now?" Nate blurted out, staring at Logan.
"Hey, hi, it's a long story," the older Billy said, gently pulling Nate and Rachel further back by the shoulders as James quietly took his Billy's hand and all of them stared at the newcomers. "We're here to help, I promise. Dimension-hopping helpers."
"Get Hank here now," Logan said. "Or whoever the hell's worth a damn for a doctor."
The older Billy looked toward Rachel, who was taking hyperventilating breaths and trying to keep the fire from spreading. "Avengers Tower?" he asked, and when she nodded, he teleported away with an Asgardian spell and then reappeared a moment later with a very confused Hank McCoy - who immediately swore when he saw the situation.
"Covered that already, Blue," Logan growled out.
"What happened?" Hank demanded. "Where did you come from?" he asked as well, though he was already diving in to get to work.
"That really the most important thing on your mind right now?" Logan challenged in a tone that spoke volumes on how upset he was watching Scott bleed.
"No, but when it's been over a decade, I'd say it's a fair question to pose!" Hank shot back, sounding just as stressed. "Get me some bandages. The magician who brought me here should have my bag, too."
"He can magic you a full flamin' ER if he gets his ass in gear," Logan barked out.
The older Billy startled. "Right," he said quickly, then snapped his fingers - and Hank had everything he needed right there in the living room, leaving the kids even more confused.
Hank didn't question it as he rushed to get Scott stable, but once Hank had everything he needed, Logan stepped back to give him room to work, though he looked anxious as he watched Hank.
"Okay," Nate said, one arm around a shaking Rachel. "But for real. What the hell."
"Different reality," Logan said as he tried to slow his breathing a little before he turned to the two of them. He narrowed his eyes and took a step forward on seeing Rachel still on the brink. "You doin' alright, darlin?" He held his hand out to her. "Let me see your wrist. This'll help."
Rachel glanced at Nate, who nodded in a silent promise to have her back, and then she held out her hand. "I'm trying to hold it back," she breathed out.
Logan took her hand gently and shifted how he was standing to get the right angle for the pressure points he was using. "Just breathe slow, close your eyes, and tell me when it lets up."
Rachel nodded, keeping her eyes closed, though neither of her brothers breathed until the fires finally faded, and then she sank into a seat on the couch with Nate still holding onto her tightly.
Logan let out a breath and then turned toward James and Billy, who were both in a heavy state of shock. "James, you need to clean up. Take Billy with you to catch your breath, and tell me about what happened when you get the blood out of your nose."
For a long moment, both of them just stood there in a daze, but when it was clear James couldn't bring himself to speak, Billy did it for him. "Is Scott going to be okay?" the younger Billy asked with a shaking voice.
"If he's not, I'm gonna have a new blue rug," Logan said - loudly enough for Hank to catch and give him a dirty look for.
"He'll pull through," the older Billy said from where he was magicking up a change of clothes along with all his younger self and James needed to clean the blood up. "Hank got here in time, and honestly, Scott did alright for starting with a framework he came up with when he wanted to die."
"What," Nate said flatly, looking up at the older Billy, who winced.
"Yeah… that's a whole discussion that I'm not the right person to go to if you want to have it," he said. "If it makes you feel better, he changed the plan so he did have backup and an exit plan, so-"
"Why the hell would that make me feel better about it?" Nate demanded - until Rachel broke out of her panic to pull Nate over and try to calm him down.
But James didn't move - still frozen to the spot and staring at Logan until Logan realized exactly how shell-shocked the kid was. Logan frowned as he watched James for a moment, and with a heavy sigh, Logan stepped toward James and reached up to rest one hand at the side of his neck and his other hand on James' shoulder, ignoring the mess there in a way the kids simply couldn't. "I promise I'll be here when you get back from cleaning up. I'll talk with you about whatever you want - answer any questions you might have as best as I can. I'm not gonna disappear on you." Logan held his gaze until James finally nodded, but it was clear he couldn't turn away from Logan, either.
"I got you," the young Billy said, slipping his fingers through James' and then giving his hand a squeeze. "Come on. We can come right back."
James followed Billy silently, though as soon as they were apart from the others, James pulled Billy to a stop, and everything bubbled up in a rush. "Billy … I'm so sorry. I didn't want to … I don't know what happened back there on the island. I just wanted to get to my dad - Scott - not … I didn't mean to… I didn't want to touch him, and I don't know ...I didn't want to hurt him, I just wanted him to stop."
Billy was surprised to hear it. "How can you not know what happened?" he asked. "You pushed my grandfather off your dad, and he stabbed you! He was trying to kill you when you weren't even going for a fight!"
"I don't remember it," James said, looking half scared at the admission.
Billy wrapped his arms around James. "It's okay. I've got you, okay? We'll - it was kind of intense. Maybe you just - blacked it out or - I've got you, okay?"
He nodded and returned the hug - though as soon as he had his arms around Billy, he really didn't want to let go.
Billy rested his head on James' shoulder, and for a long time, they stood there in silence before, quietly, Billy said, "So, I think that magician might be me."
"Yeah, looked like it," James said finally, his voice still shaking even as he tried to force some levity. "You were partially right. About the hair."
"Yeah." Billy took a deep breath and looked at James fully. "Your, um, Logan… that was… unexpected…"
"No kidding."
"Sounded like a good guy to have in your corner, though. In a pinch, I mean." James nodded, at a loss for words. Billy bit his lip and gave James another moment before a very big question bubbled up that he truly needed answered. "So … I'd suggest going to your room, but I don't know where we are."
"Ah," James' head popped up as if he had just realized they were in the real Summers house. "I wanted to bring you here sooner, I swear."
"So what about Kate's building?"
"That … is our backup," James said, honestly worried that he'd screwed things up too badly to even try to salvage. "I'm the worst boyfriend in history." He dropped his gaze to their hands. "I wanted to bring you here. But I was just trying to protect my family. I knew your grandfather was watching you .. and I didn't want him going after Dad. At all."
"You should have told me he was threatening you way sooner," Billy said.
"Wouldn't have changed anything," James replied. "I didn't let him scare me off, either."
"Are you sure you didn't stick with me to keep from dying?"
A smile tugged at the corner of his mouth. "He wasn't going to kill me. Might have wanted to, and he might have tried, but that wasn't going to happen."
"He killed all of my exes, James. Even the ones that didn't do anything wrong. He would have kept trying until he managed to kill you."
"Only if you got tired of me." James paused and glanced up at him. "It's okay if you don't want me, you know. I won't hold it against you. I screwed things up pretty epically. I murdered your grandfather. Your family is going to hate me."
Billy swallowed and shook his head. "I saw… I mean, I can see what he did to your dad, and I saw what happened when you tried to stop him from killing your dad, so, I mean, I'm not okay, but I'm not mad at you." He ran his hand through his hair. "If Grandfather hadn't - I mean, you saw, right? He… he would have killed you and your dad, and he was trying to do it in a way that hurt. I mean…" Billy shook his head, obviously still trying to process everything that had happened. Then, failing to find words, he just rested his head on James's shoulder - because he really needed James' rock steady presence just then when he thought about how much his grandfather was trying to make James and Scott suffer before he killed them.
The sound of the monitors in the makeshift living room ER shifted to a more stable rhythm, and James suddenly looked as if he just remembered something important. He took a moment and pulled his cell phone out and hit the second name on his favorites list. He was biting his lip until Tony picked up on the other end with a cheerful greeting.
"Hi, um… the news is about to get really busy," James told him. "And I promise I will tell you as much as I can, but I need you to please bring whatever you can to give Dad his sight. We're at the real house, and we can't let him wake up without his vision."
"What happened?" Tony asked, though James could hear him scrambling to gather up what was needed.
"I … Dad went after Magneto," James said. "Magneto took his eyes … it's a mess, but Beast is working on him."
"Does Cap need to launch a counter attack?"
"No, nothing like that," James replied quickly.
"I know you want to protect your boyfriend's family but Magneto isn't someone you ignore. He will counter attack."
"No, Uncle Tony, he won't," James said, losing some of his steam and all of his forced calm. "I … ah … I killed Magneto."
There was silence for an uncomfortably long moment, and James was just about to say something when Tony cut in, sounding serious but calm. "I'll be there as soon as I can. Call me if anything happens."
"Okay," James said, though he barely stopped himself from apologizing to Tony too. This wasn't the kind of thing Avengers did. That was one more area that he'd screwed up, and he didn't realize how much he didn't want to blow that until just then. He hung up the phone after Tony did, then stared at it for a long moment, half afraid to say anything at all. But the blood that was still wet and sticking to itself on his hands and body reminded him of what he was supposed to be doing. So, he swallowed thickly and cleared his throat.
"I should really ... " He gestured down at his clothes. "Yeah."
Billy swallowed and blushed deeply. "I could help. In a totally… just trying to help way. I swear."
"I'm not going to argue something like that, and I'm not going to put stipulations on what you can or can't do," James replied with a little smirk, because even now, in the middle of a disaster that had probably wrecked everything, it was easier to flirt than it was to figure out what had happened. "Especially if you're trying to take care of me."
Billy blushed a little deeper before he nodded, and the two of them disappeared into James' room to get him changed and cleaned up.
Scott has been dead before, so he recognized the sensation of peace and lightness that hit him when he reached the other side. And when he realized where he was, the first thing that registered with him was a wave of relief. He was done. He'd finally crossed the finish line.
The second thing that hit him was Jean Gray as she came rushing over to him and threw her arms around him in a tight hug. And as soon as he latched onto her just as tightly, it was like they'd never been apart. She pulled him into a passionate kiss, and he pulled her off her feet to reciprocate.
They didn't break too far apart when the kiss did break, and Scott rested his forehead against hers, drinking in her presence after so long apart. "I missed you," he whispered into her hair.
"Missed you too," she said and kissed him again. "I am so sorry. I couldn't hold it back."
"Don't apologize for the Phoenix," Scott said, shaking his head. "It wasn't your fault."
"I have to, though," she said. "I let it out. It's my fault things went so far. I knew better, and I did it anyhow. And look at everything I missed because of it." She smiled up at him and brushed his hair back from his face. "You are amazing."
Scott shook his head, still drinking her in. "And you're just as beautiful as I remember."
"Flatterer," she said before she leaned in and kissed him again.
"If there is one thing that I can always rely on, it's the fact that the two of you will forget every single thing that you ever thought was important while you are in each other's presence," Charles said in a warm tone - just to break up the reunion.
The two of them broke apart at last, though Scott kept a hand on Jean's waist as he stared at Charles. "Professor," he said softly.
Charles was smiling warmly. "Hello, Scott. I do believe you're early for this meeting, my boy."
Scott shook his head and cleared his throat. "I'm sorry," he said quietly. "You wouldn't even be here if it weren't for me."
"You did nothing wrong, Scott. The blame lies squarely on the monsters that did this to us. Not you. At all."
"I could have saved you," Scott insisted.
Charles shook his head lightly. "If you truly believe that, then do me a favor and ask the Demiurge what would have happened in that scenario when you go back."
"I don't think I've met the Demiurge yet," Scott said.
Charles let out a sigh, looking both amused and annoyed at the same time. "You met him not long ago. I believe you were introduced to him as the 'harbinger'," Charles said. "That is not his name or his title, rather a silly nickname that his Logan or K gave him." He stepped forward - walking on his own steam for the first time that Scott could remember seeing - and for a moment, he realized how odd it was to look Charles in the eyes on the same level. "But that's not nearly as pressing as the fact that you must go back, Scott."
Scott's grip around Jean's waist tightened, and his expression fell. "So this isn't a permanent visit," he said, sounding downright depressed to hear it.
"It doesn't have to be," Jean told him gently. "Hank's trying to save you right now."
Scott turned toward Jean, once more taking in every detail of her face. "Please don't ask me to go back, Jean," he said, and her eyes were shining when she heard his tone. "I just got you back."
"It's your choice, Mr. Summers," Jean said, and though she was aiming for a prim tone, it was destroyed entirely by her smile. She'd missed him, too, and being around him again, she couldn't stop smiling no matter the subject matter. "When you choose, it should be a informed decision."
Scott sighed and kissed her. "I'd rather stay here with you, Mrs. Summers."
"And I can appreciate that decision better than anyone, oh, husband of mine, but … you might want to listen to the other side of the story first. As much as I hate to admit it, there are some good points."
"Fine," he said without moving back from her. The truth was that he already knew what his decision had to be; he was just so tired, and he wanted to stay with Jean more than pretty much anything.
Jean didn't bother trying to hold back the laugh before she took his head in her hands and kissed him again. "I love it when you behave just to do it. Especially when you already think you have your mind made up."
"Love you too," he said, smiling.
"So," she said, arching one eyebrow. "Do you want to let Charles talk, or do you want to do this the fast way?"
"Oh, well, if there's an option that gives me more of your attention…"
"You and I have all the time in the universe, regardless of what you choose." She looked over her shoulder at Charles. "If it's all the same to you, I think we'll cover this part on our own. You can handle the wrap up - whichever way it goes."
"You know which way it needs to go, Jean," Charles said, but that only had her shooing him away.
"Like I said," Jean said as she turned back to Scott, "it's your life. Your decision."
"It's not really, though," he pointed out. "I know I'm needed, I just don't know how severely I'm needed..."
"You're not dead yet, but you're close to it - and when it's this close, it is your choice. So … let's go down your plusses and minuses list and see which way it works best for you."
Scott laughed outright. "I missed you."
"I missed you too," she said with a grin. "But I haven't been far from you - at all."
"I know," he said gently.
Jean curled into him so she could wrap him up and lean her head on his chest. "Good. As long as you know, let's get started. Column 'B' is to go back. Column 'A' is to stay. I'll list the B, you list the A - no matter how repetitive it gets."
"You're at the top of the list; Jean. You always are."
"Mr. Summers, be specific," Jean laughed.
"I thought I was already assigned Column A," he teased.
"Alright, that's fair. Okay … So … to go back … Rachel."
"The professor."
"Nate."
"Jubilee."
"Alex."
"K."
Jean's smile slipped. "James."
His smile dropped too. "Logan goes in yours, then. He'd never forgive me if I left James."
"Only because we already know where their heads are at," Jean told him. "I can show you."
"Do I want to know?" Scott asked, frowning.
"Which one?" Jean asked, rather than answer outright.
"That bad, huh?" He sighed. "Okay, show me."
Jean nodded, then took a moment to reach out and gently brush his mind, first and foremost - then led him through the sea of chatter to find Rachel first. She was barely holding on to herself and using every trick she knew to calm down and keep the Phoenix at bay as it whispered lies and promises to her, just like it had always done with Jean when things were hard to handle. It was everything Scott had been scared of for his daughter since the day she got her powers, and he felt all his breath leave him as he heard the Phoenix promising his baby girl that she could save her father, save everyone, if she let go of her control.
Scott hated that the Phoenix could use him against her so easily. He'd meant to give her relief, not give her another reason to listen to that firebird.
Jean let him soak it in and see where Rachel's mental state was headed before she gently redirected him to listen to Nate.
Nate, out of the three kids, had been the most outwardly calm … but on hearing his thoughts, Scott found himself shocked at how much more Nate's mind sounded like his own - tense and stretched on the edge of snapping while he put everyone else ahead of himself. Only, with Nate, the danger of letting go wasn't fire - it was psychically lobotomizing everyone for miles around him. There was no need to truly dwell on it … not when Scott was getting a clear impression of Nate's powers pulsing just under the surface and how destructive he could be if he lost his grip on his control by a hair. That was, essentially, why he'd had so much trouble keeping his powers under control. He was powerful enough that he used them without thinking about it. It just happened, so learning to stop it had been like learning to breathe in a new manner - and when he was panicking, his mind went back to the most natural setting. The one that didn't require him to restrain himself.
Scott wasn't sure how he could have missed that, since that had always been his problem - constantly trying to hold back a power that could destroy everything when it was always turned on. Nate had always played it down, always let James and Rachel take the brunt of his worry, because Nate wanted to be normal.
Scott wanted so badly to go back and tell Nate that he understood, that he could empathize more than Nate realized. He wanted to help.
He wasn't expecting the sharp shift when they went from the almost humming, swelling power of Nate's mind to James'. James was teetering right on the edge, convinced that everything leading up to that moment was the result of his mistakes. And he was sure that everything that he held dear was slipping away - a feeling that Scott was overly familiar with. Scott could feel the crushing guilt that James had taken onto himself, and he could see how the last year of being on the teams and everything else was starting to feel like the end that James had expected for himself since he was old enough to know how different he was from just about everyone else. James was sure his dad was dying and that his boyfriend was bound to drop him for having murdered Magneto (though Scott disagreed with that assessment entirely). Scott was surprised to find that the guilt just from Magneto was positively overwhelming for James. He truly felt horrible about killing him - regardless of circumstance. The other issues that stemmed from it were increasing in weight dangerously fast, from worrying about what the Avengers might say to half hoping that Wanda simply wiped him from existence.
The kid was on a fast track to destroying himself with all that building in his mind. And he wasn't even trying to hold back his outward distress - a fact that was only compounding as Billy tried to help him. And Scott couldn't let that happen. Not again. Not to his son.
Scott couldn't find anything to say when he and Jean came back from the peek into his kids' minds. He had known parts of what they were thinking, yes, but this was something else entirely. Seeing how close all three of them were to losing it…
He finally took a shuddering breath and covered his eyes with one hand, trying to center himself without losing his grip on his already frayed emotions after arriving in Heaven. "I'm so sorry," he managed to say at last. "I tried - I really did - to give them a better shot…"
"And you did," Jean agreed. "But they were always going to have their own challenges. That's not your fault. Blame genetics."
Scott picked his hand up to give Jean a dry look. "We never blamed genetics before."
"Yeah, well … it fits in this case," she said. "You forget, I've seen what you went through with those kids. And I've been in everyone's heads. Everyone's, Scott. I'm telling you. Genetics."
Scott shook his head, still shaken by what he'd seen and felt in his kids' minds. "You're right," he said at last. "The professor was right. They can't lose me. Not right now." At the admission, he found himself leaning into Jean, searching for support as he always did when they were together. Like they'd always done from the time they were teenagers in love, long before they got married.
"Yeah, I know," Jean said.
He sighed again and wrapped his arms gently around her, simply resting there as he tried to remember everything about her all at once, drinking all of it in and trying to burn it into his memory.
"It must be such a burden to be so loved," she said with a smile as she curled into him.
"You'd know," he said with a soft smile.
"Nothing like what you've got."
"You should have been there with me," Scott told her. "They'd love you too. They already revere your memory."
"Yeah … I did apologize for that, right? I would have loved snuggling with those three."
"I remember not accepting an apology, yeah," he said with a soft smile.
"Then I need to apologize again," she said, then popped up on her toes to kiss him again. "I will miss you… but … I don't want you to be miserable and just waiting. If you're going to live - live. Not just for the kids but for you, too."
Scott sighed as he took her face in his hands. "I guess I'll need to figure that out. I'm about to have an empty nest." He sighed again. "I don't know what I'll do then."
Jean smiled. "I'm sure you'll figure it out."
Scott smiled and stayed where he was for as long as he dared, at least until he started to once again feel like he wanted to stay there with her and with the family he'd lost. And once his thoughts turned that way, he straightened up, knowing he couldn't go down that road again. "Alright," he said softly. "Send me back, Jean Gray."
"Love you, Scott. I'll be here whenever you're actually done."
Chapter 58: I've Got You
Chapter Text
By the time that Hank had started to work a little more methodically and less frantically, Rachel and Nate were relaxing substantially more than before. Both of them were torn between worry for their dad and outright curiosity, too, and it showed. But just as Nate was ready to start asking the other-dimensional Logan a few things to elaborate, his phone went off with a text … from Alex. He took a moment to read it through, then turned to Rachel to be sure she was alright. Can you handle this guy for a minute?
Yeah, why? What's wrong?
Nothing, just gonna give Uncle Alex a call, and I thought I'd do it away from this guy. He was supposed to be Dad's back up. If he came to see Magneto and found nothing but blood …
Yeah, go … I'll let you know if anything changes with Dad. I just want to stay here and keep watch.
Nate squeezed her hand and couldn't help himself as he glanced Logan's way before he headed upstairs to make a phone call. He noted to himself that James' door was closed and all was quiet, so he kept going to his room. And he barely connected before Alex picked up quickly - freaking out.
"What's going on?" Alex asked in a near shout. "I went to find your dad, and all I found was Magneto … in the middle of his throne room in a pool of blood. Everyone is freaking out, his closest followers are calling for justice, Lorna's a mess, and Wanda hasn't said a word since we found out!" Alex took a few breaths that Nate could hear even over the phone. "Where is Scott?"
"He's here," Nate replied calmly. "We got him out; he's … well. Beast is working on him. He and Magneto were pretty hard on each other."
"From what I saw? That is a massive understatement," Alex said. "How did you get him out of here? I didn't see any crafts, and Dad was watching from orbit for trouble."
"Billy got us there and back, actually," Nate said, his ears burning red. "But … if you want to know what's going on, you'd probably be better off just coming here. It's … I don't know how well Dad's going to come out of this."
"Yeah, I'm on the way," Alex said. "Expect me and Dad at least. Might grab the kids and Lorna too. She's probably going to need to get out of here. See you soon - and call me if anything else goes wrong. Got it?"
"Got it. Thanks, Uncle Alex." Nate hung up the phone and then headed back into the room, where Rachel was focused on reading Hank's thoughts so she knew how worried she needed to be about her dad.
While Hank was working, then, no one was talking. They were all just… waiting to see how things panned out. Because at that moment, everything hinged on whether or not Scott survived.
"So," Nate said, the first to break the spell of silence that was hanging over the living room, "I have questions."
"Shoot," Logan said as he sat back down and cracked open a beer.
"You're from a different dimension, right?"
"Yep."
"So why come here?" Nate asked. "I mean, no offense, but you're dead here."
Logan thumbed over his shoulder at the older Billy. "Harbinger said it'd help if I came."
"That's not my name," the older Billy said dryly.
"Was it an end of the world situation?" Logan challenged, crossing his arms over his chest.
"Well, yes, but-"
"Harbinger."
"Okay, second question," Nate said. "Now I want to know about the end of the world situation. I mean… I have a guess, but…" He glanced at Rachel, who flushed pink.
"What's your guess?" Logan asked.
"He knows I almost lost it when he got hurt," Rachel admitted.
Logan let out a sigh of longsuffering. "Believe it or not, the universe ain't wrapped around Summerses. So you can relax about carryin' the whole world on your shoulders."
Rachel gave him a dry look as the older Billy snorted. "He's not wrong," he said. "I mean, there were a lot of ways this could go wrong. Sure, the Phoenix was one, but that's just one." He thumbed over his shoulder toward where his younger self and James had disappeared upstairs. "Second problem: if your dad had managed to get killed like he was expecting, there are ripple effects and a heartbroken Billy Maximoff who you do not want to see taking up his grandfather's crusade, okay? It's bad."
"There's an understatement," Logan muttered, looking totally unapologetic when Billy gave him a look.
"Okay, third question," Nate said, turning to face Billy. "You said … what, he did this on purpose?" He had started out with the bluster they usually saw from Cable, but the question tapered off into almost a whisper at the end.
"Not this," Billy assured him quickly - glancing over to Hank, who was watching the conversation as well and looking like he did not like anything he was hearing. "Honestly, it… well, it started that way, and then it sort of shifted? Went from wanting to take Magneto down with him to wanting to take Magneto down and hoping he came out the other end. But like I said, when you start out planning something with no exit ..."
"What." Hank had a growl to his voice that the kids had never heard before.
"Just keep doin' what you're doin', furball," Logan said. "I'll explain later."
"You'd better."
"I'll even share my beer with you," Logan told him.
"I wasn't aware interdimensional trips included your own case of beer," Hank said dryly.
"Trips across town include my own case of beer. How else was he gonna get me to sit here and wait when the action was somewhere else? An' I can keep it to myself if you're gonna be snooty about it," Logan replied.
Hank shook his head at that, though it wasn't much longer before he finally let out a sigh and then came to sit close to the kids, though he was watching Logan. "Well," he said, "he's lost a great deal of blood, and I'll need to see him again to take out his many stitches, but I can safely say our fearless leader won't be leaving us."
"For now," Nate said, his eyes narrowed as he looked toward the still-sleeping Scott.
Logan let out a breath on hearing the news. "I'll talk to him," Logan said.
"No offense, but you don't know the whole story here," Rachel said. "You died."
"Offense taken anyhow - you sure about what I know? I was by here not too long ago when he was makin' his crappy battle plan," Logan said. "Spent plenty of time talkin' him out of the worthless battle strategy he had laid out."
"He…" Rachel glared toward Scott. "We knew he wasn't taking it well with us being X-Men but…"
"He kinda got over that part," James said as he and Billy rejoined them - all cleaned up and in fresh clothes. "If he hadn't, he would have told me to quit the teams when I offered to."
"Then what the hell?" Nate asked, throwing his hands up.
"You offered to what?" Rachel said, spinning toward James, who gave her a significant look, though Logan was ready to disarm all of them.
"Cut your dad some slack," Logan said. "He's been stressed out for way too long. Even for him, that pushes you where you don't need to go." He looked between the four kids. "So. Who wants to tell me what they saw?"
The kids all shared a look before Rachel was the one to speak up. "Dad was fighting Magneto." She paused. "But I guess Magneto won. Dad was on the ground when we got there." She looked over at James. "James stopped him from killing Dad."
Logan turned to James and looked openly concerned. "What do you remember?"
But James just shook his head at that - which was enough to get Logan to head over to him and drop his voice to a level the others simply had no chance of hearing. "You did what you had to do to save the people you love," Logan said. "So you did the right thing. Scott told me what the story was before this went down, it was a lot worse than you probably know. Erik was off his rocker. It had to be done. I'm just sorry it ended up bein' you that had to get your hands dirty. I offered to go with, but your dad got too upset to even try arguin' with him."
"I'm not surprised," James said, though he really wasn't sure what to do with Logan. "He thinks he could have stopped you when you -" His breath caught in his chest. "- or the you that was here. The one that died."
Logan let out a breath and looked toward his Billy. "Yeah. Well. He's wrong. There's only a couple ways that coulda gone if I'd thought you an' K were dead, and considerin' the way the feds were allowin' this crap to go on here, neither of 'em would have been good for anyone."
"None of us could have stopped it," Hank said in a weary tone that seemed even heavier because he'd just been working to save his old friend and treat his once-again-bandaged eyes. "Once the events were set in motion…"
"I'm sorry you got left without your whole family - and I don't mean just me and K," Logan said. "Jeannie and Kurt … Jubilee ... they all would've loved to see the three of you grow up."
"It is what it is," Nate said, frowning as he got to his feet to let out some nervous energy and just walk around a little.
Logan watched Nate for a moment, but James drew his attention back - and a few moments later, Logan, James, and Billy were sitting off to the side having a quiet conversation about anything James could think of to ask his father as he seized on the opportunity to talk to him. And for Logan's part, he answered everything he could and made sure to reinforce his insistence that James not blame himself for anything that had happened when he'd slipped into the red. He was even sure to explain what James had experienced far better than even Hank had imagined was going on when that happened, how to process it when it happened, and how to control it.
There was a knock at the door, and James hopped up to get it, knowing who would be on the other side, though he'd entirely forgotten to clue in his siblings until they were both frowning after him and the front door was open. "I didn't have to rush," Tony said, holding a metal box in one hand. "Newest upgrade was just waiting for him anyhow."
James let him in, and the two of them started toward the living room with their heads together as always, where the others were waiting. "He needs to see when he wakes up," James explained rather than get into anything but the bare facts. And when Tony did a double-take on seeing Logan, James simply redirected him with a quiet but serious 'later'. "Uncle Blue?" James called out. "Can you take care of Dad's eyes before he wakes up?"
Hank let his shoulders drop, and some warmth came back into his harried expression as he nodded. "Of course," he said. "No reason to compound things any more than they've already been compounded."
Tony crossed the span quickly and handed the box to Hank before he turned back to the kids. "Alright. Looks like you guys have storytime to get through. Spill. What's the deal here?"
All three of the Summers kids shared looks and, without even a telepathic conversation, nodded as Rachel said, "Solved a problem."
"Uh-uh, no. You're not allowed to pick up his horrible story telling habits after a fifteen minute exposure," Tony said, pointing at Logan. "No. Come on."
"Are you asking as Uncle Tony or as a founding Avenger?" Nate asked slowly.
"Whichever one gets me a straight answer," Tony said as Logan chuckled, though it was clear right away that Tony wasn't actually angry as much as he just… hadn't expected to see him or anything like what he was looking at. "Is this you coming back or passing through?" he asked Logan, though he did a clear double-take at the older Billy, too.
"Passin' through, more or less," Logan said. "Different reali-"
"Yeah, yeah, X-Men drama, got it," Tony said. "Just as long as there aren't any killer robots following you."
"Not last I checked," Logan answered, then turned pointedly toward the older Billy. "That a problem I should know about?"
"Not in this reality."
"Alright then," Tony said, and Logan sat back and put his feet up. "Just you two, then? Or is there a strike force hitting the helicarrier while my back is turned?"
Logan scrubbed one hand over the scruff of his cheek and shrugged openly, knowing it'd get Tony anxious. "Never know."
Tony looked as if he couldn't decide if he should stay or go. He wanted to know more, but he also knew that if James could get even an hour with his biological father … or some iteration of him, Logan could answer things for him that no one else could. And he honestly hated the idea of stepping on that at all. "Okay. Good. Good talk. Logan, never thought I'd say it, but it's good to see you, circumstances notwithstanding. I'm just … gonna head out for now. Claim my deniability while I can. Just … let me know if we get any other inter-dimensional visitors." He paused to give James a one-armed squeeze on the way out. "I'm going to try and ignore whatever comes across the news until I can hear it from you - but I'm not going to get into whatever this is and interrupt it. Call me if you guys need anything. But I'll be back soon either way."
"I will," James promised. "Thanks. I'm sure it'll be sooner than later."
And thanks for giving Dad back his sight again, Rachel projected to Tony before he could leave - since of the three Summers kids, she was the one who remembered their dad in bandages after what had happened with the Creeds and losing the team. She might not have remembered everything, but that, she remembered.
He was sure to give her a quick, muted smile before he disappeared, leaving the group alone once again. And in no time at all, James was back with Logan and Billy, drinking in what he could and picking Logan's brain for stories and a lifetime of what he'd needed to know. Even if this wasn't his Logan, he still needed the guidance and this was as close as he was ever going to get.
While Nate was gravitating toward that conversation, Rachel had a more thoughtful look on her face as she watched Hank working on their dad again. She didn't speak her mind, and she was shielding her thoughts from Nate, but an idea was tugging at her. She waited until Hank was done before she got to her feet and excused herself, slipping into their dad's room, only to emerge about ten minutes later looking much more upset than before, with four different envelopes, one for each of the kids and one that simply had 'Avengers' on the outside of it. She'd opened that one to read it over and saw that it was a handwritten will asking that the Avengers take care of the boys and work with all three kids to decide what, if anything, to make public of the real story of what happened to the X-Men. And though she hadn't opened her own letter to know it, that story comprised the contents of the letters to Rachel and Nate, along with a personal note, while James just had a more personal letter, since he already knew the story.
Before anyone could react, Rachel had shoved the letter for the Avengers at Hank's chest. "We have to fix this," she said, sharply in a tone Jean had always used when she was about to go to war with the team.
"What is this?" Hank asked as he unfolded it.
"He left us letters," Rachel said, her eyes flashing with her power. "They were in a file on his desk that said 'just in case.'"
"You shouldn't read those," Logan said, trying to warn off the other kids.
Rachel spun to face him. "And what's your plan, huh?" she demanded. "He won't get help."
"Like hell he won't," Logan shot back. "If I gotta drag him there myself, I will."
"Yeah, but you haven't heard the story about Emma Frost crawling in his-" Nate started to say.
"I know all about Emma Frost," Logan said. "He'll get help."
Rachel narrowed her eyes before she scrunched the letters in her hand. "Good, because - because we can't lose him, okay?" she said, sounding both angry and scared all at once. "It's just been us since we were kids."
"I'll talk to him," Logan swore. "I won't go back until I make sure you're set."
"Set for what?" Scott asked in a tired breath, finally coming out of sedation after all of the work Hank had put in.
"Regular visits with Hank to dislodge my foot from your-" Logan started, then cut himself off and tried to start over, though he wasn't able to keep his temper in check. "You left them letters, Scott. What the hell."
Scott frowned as he tried to sit up a little, though he was too worn and too injured to do much. "Didn't know how it was going to pan out, and they had a right to know the truth," he said, then froze when he realized he wasn't in a hospital but in his own house - with the kids around him. And with new eyes, apparently. "What the hell…"
Logan gestured wordlessly to Billy but didn't break his gaze. "I am never listening to you again," he said, sounding more angry than he actually was. "You're not the one that's supposed to do dumb shit, Scott."
"Just tell me it worked," Scott said.
"You got help," Logan said. "That you didn't ask for."
Scott frowned at that and then looked toward the kids, who were all watching him. "Are you guys alright?" he asked, looking at James because he could clearly remember the snarl James had made when he had put himself between him and Magneto - though that just had Rachel rushing over to Scott to attach in a hug, not that the boys were far behind her when the emotions were running that high.
"Don't ever do that again," Rachel said sharply, hiding her face in Scott's shoulder, though everyone knew she was crying.
Scott had his hands full trying to hug all three of them at once - especially when James almost had to be coaxed into the group while he was trying to give Rachel room. Scott was already getting stiff and sore, and with the IV going - he just didn't have the range- but he managed it all the same. "You weren't supposed to - I meant to come back. I had a plan in case-"
"In case you decided not to," Nate finished for him. "Dad…"
"No more missions, I swear," Scott said.
"We liked that part of it," James said. "It was the bad end result …"
"Yeah, that's usually how this works," Scott said, reaching out to touch James' shoulder. "I … I already had the plan in place. I had Alex and Corsair waiting in the wings to get me out. This was not supposed to - after everything we talked about, I couldn't - James, I swear…" He let his hand drop along with his words and then closed his eyes. "No more missions like this, I promise. It's your turn to be the heroes. I'm stepping back. This was… just something … unfinished business."
"Yeah." James sighed on hearing it. "Alex wasn't close enough to help, Dad."
"I know," Scott said quietly. "I'm sorry, James."
"I'm … I'll be fine. I'm worried about you."
"I'm worried about you," he said. "All three of you. I told you Magneto is-"
"Not a problem anymore," Nate put in. "We kinda saved your life, so…"
Scott nodded when he heard it and then pulled all three of them tighter. "Of course you did. You're amazing. All of you. You're the X-Men."
It was the first time Scott had really said that in a tone that wasn't an accusation - and that just had the kids more attached to him than before, so the adults in the room stepped back to give them some privacy as a family.
"Billy," Scott called out over the top of the kids' heads - catching his attention before he could slip out of the room, "I'm sorry you had to see that. I really want to thank you for watching out for James." He tipped his head. "You don't have to stand on the sidelines, you know."
Billy didn't hesitate to rush over at the invitation, relieved and upset still and honestly needing the connection as he latched on as well. He was just so relieved that there wasn't one more loss that he couldn't do anything but hide in James and his family.
It wasn't until the kids felt like they were steady enough for themselves to let go that Rachel was the one to approach Logan.
"If you can help…" she said uncertainty, still clearly emotional about the whole thing.
"I'll be sleepin' on the couch until he gets his head on a little better. He will get some help if I have to pick him up and carry him there. But he needs the night anyhow to rest before I get after him."
Rachel nodded and wiped her eyes with the heel of her hand. "Okay."
"I'll keep watch. You kids just do whatever you need to and don't worry about anything."
"Yeah, my family is really good at not worrying," Rachel said with a dry attempt at humor.
"You know, in my experience, they all get tweaked out until they snap; then, they can't help but relax. For a minute."
"I somehow doubt that's what's happening with Dad."
"No, that's blood loss," Logan agreed. "Same effect, though."
She let out a small laugh and then bit her lip. "I'm glad you came," she said. "The way he talked about you… I think you could get him to listen."
"If you think I'm joking about carryin' him if he wants to fight, you're out of your mind." Logan shook his head. "Hell, I'll go with him."
"I don't think you're joking," Rachel said. "Dad said you'd go through hell and back for someone you cared about."
"Birds of a feather, eh?"
She smirked at that and nodded. "Clearly." She turned on her heel. "Thanks. For… Dad."
"I gotta thank him for James," Logan said. "It's just what you do for your family."
Chapter 59: So Many Summerses
Chapter Text
The only thing that Alex could say to keep his father from making a scene and landing a spaceship in the middle of Scott's neighborhood was that they'd get the whole family in even more trouble than they already were with a display like that. Which was why they were dressed in civilian clothes before Wanda magicked him, Lorna, Corsair, and herself to Scott's home - leaving Vision to watch Alex and Lorna's kids. It was a totally reasonable move, seeing as Alex didn't want them traumatized seeing their uncle in whatever state he might have been in after all the blood they found around Magneto. There was no way all that blood had only been from Erik - and Alex could see it easily.
Still, Alex hadn't been expecting to arrive at Scott's home to find a fully-equipped emergency room worth of supplies in the living room around his brother, who was on a gurney and hooked up to every monitor known to man.
He also wasn't expecting to see an older version of his nephew, Billy, talking with freakin' Logan.
"What… what is even…?" Alex stared around the house. "What the hell is even going on?"
"Huh. Sounds like Nate. That explains so much," Logan said dryly.
"Billy?" Wanda stepped around Alex, frowning when she saw another version of her son - the correct one - asleep with his head on James' chest and his arm across his stomach on the couch nearby. James had woken up when they arrived, but Billy had been sound asleep until he heard his mom call his name and he blinked sleepily with a raspy sounding 'Mom?' before he'd even woken up fully.
"Hi." The older Billy waved from where he was leaning against the counters and talking to Hank and Logan - but he only held the smile in for a second before he rushed over to hug her. "Hi, sorry. Hi, Mom. Different dimension. Still me."
Wanda still looked stunned, but she automatically returned the hug. "You… you must have brought Logan with you," she said at last.
"Mmhmm," Billy agreed as he held on tight for a few more seconds.
"Nice to see you, darlin'," Logan drawled out, though he didn't move.
"So… is anyone gonna tell me what's going on, or am I supposed to just … patch it together myself?" Alex said.
"Oh, right." Billy straightened up, cleared his throat, and launched into his explanation. "Hi, so, I can hop dimensions where I'm from. We had a recent experience with Apocalypse. The guy made me watch countless universes of terrible, unspeakable realities where there was no hope and very little chance to live outside of his rule. I wanted to stop yours from getting any worse than what I already had to see of what had happened already. So… I brought myself and Logan to save Scott's life after his fight with Magneto went, you know, about as badly as it could have."
Wanda nodded, then glanced over at Scott. "How bad off is he? And what happened - exactly?"
"Well, he's not dying anymore," Rachel said quietly when no one spoke up first. "But, well…" She glanced toward James, not at all wanting to make him feel worse than he already felt but knowing that Wanda needed the truth. "Magneto yanked Dad's eyes out, and-"
"I didn't mean to kill him," James interjected suddenly. "I can't remember it. I'm sorry - even if it doesn't help, that's all I can … I'm sorry." He was clearly upset about it, but he wasn't going to hide it from her, regardless of how she'd handle it. He didn't try to soften it … not when he was feeling so guilty about it, and not when he honestly expected her to simply whisk him off to stand trial in Genosha.
"It wasn't your fault," Billy insisted to James before he spun on his heel, one hand still on James' chest. "It wasn't his fault," he told Wanda. He moved to stand between his mother and James in a protective move that took James off guard entirely. "Grandfather - he - as soon as James got in between him and Scott, he stabbed James. Knowing there was a dampener in play, he stabbed him. In the heart, Mom." It was clear in his expression and tone that he was also still upset about what had happened, but for a completely different reason than James was upset.
"I was just trying to separate them," James said, sounding incredibly torn, though quiet. "That's the last thing I remember until after."
Wanda looked between the two of them before, slowly, she made her way over and rested a hand on each of their shoulders. She tried to pull them both in closer for a hug, but James resisted, stuck to the spot and wide-eyed. Billy, of course, all but melted into his mom, still grasping for support while he processed watching the attempted murder of his boyfriend and the actual murder of his grandfather, but James was shocked by her attempt and did not want to intrude on Billy and his mother. And he stayed that way until Wanda said, quietly, "I wish it wasn't true, James, but I knew this would happen. Maybe not the details, but I knew he was going to get himself killed because he didn't know when to stop."
"I'm so sorry," James replied in a breath.
"It's not your fault," Wanda promised. But when James still looked anguished over his actions, she leaned toward him, her eyes still shining. "I talked to Scott about this a long time ago. I'm only sorry he attacked you and forced you to be the one to stop him." She searched his expression and then pulled him to her with the free hand that wasn't holding onto Billy. "I'm so sorry, James."
At that, James melted into her shoulder and held on tight, completely off guard in her outlook. She should have been angrier. Or … something. Not consoling him. But to James, that only meant that now, it was down to Lorna to be angry. He wasn't stupid enough to believe she'd take things as well as Wanda apparently had. He stayed right there until Wanda moved slightly, and then, he finally loosened up his grip on her, even if she didn't let go of him yet.
"I'm pretty sure no one in this family can do anything that's not insanely dramatic," Alex said. "So you're continuing to fit in, kiddo … with both sides of it now, too."
"Case in point," Corsair said with his eyes narrowed, tipping his head toward where Scott was sleeping.
"Their conversation went south too fast to stop things or warn anyone," Lorna said suddenly.
Both Rachel and Nate turned toward Lorna with their whole bodies, mirroring each other as only siblings could do. "Wait," Rachel said, "you saw what happened?"
"Afterward, yes," Lorna said as she took in each of the kids that had been there, letting her gaze rest on Billy and James. "You don't really think that I wouldn't check the surveillance after finding my father dead, do you?"
"Honestly surprised there is surveillance," Nate muttered. "Dad's usually careful."
"Father has his own methods," Lorna said. "Or had. The fact remains, though, that neither of them were planning on that fight."
"Dad was, though," Rachel said. "He had ceramics… and letters… and…"
"Yes, he planned to fight him, but not at that moment," Lorna said. "He knew it would happen, but not just then, and not where he expected it." She held Rachel's gaze. "And no, I won't show you."
"I wouldn't have asked to see when things got… bad," Rachel said. "You could always project what you saw up to the start of the fight."
"Telepaths," Alex muttered over Lorna's shoulder. "Just like her mom."
"Yes, but that's my perception of it. Not the actual tape," Lorna said. "I could mis-remember the things said and misquote it entirely."
Alex snorted as he put his arms around Lorna from behind. "Got ya there, Rach."
Rachel rolled her eyes at him, but on the other hand, she was glad to have more people around that could help with their dad, so instead of rising to their bait, she gestured for them to join everyone else. "We're all waiting for Dad to rest before we do anything else, but honestly, I'm glad you're here," she told them.
"I can't think of why we wouldn't be," Lorna said.
"Yes, well." Rachel sighed and then went ahead and projected to the newcomers everything that had happened since they got home - including and especially the fact that she'd found a will and letters, just to impress upon them the new problem they were facing.
I am so insulted that he wanted Avengers to take over on my nephews, Alex projected to Rachel, sure that it would get a smile out of her.
Rachel did smile, though she also had to point out, You know that was his plan for if Magneto killed him, right?
Yeah, I know, Alex replied. I know all about Billy's exes too, Alex said. And how overly sensitive Erik was for his boys. There's no reason he'd allow me to take James in with a scenario like that.
Then you know if that had happened, you'd be dead too, because you're his brother. So, you know, that's why he asked the Avengers to step in.
You are taking my hypothetical sorrow and stomping on it - while also taking my hypothetical sadness and refusing me nephews.
You've met my dad, right? I've been told I take after him.
"Me? Nooooooo, never," Alex replied - out loud this time.
"Oh, good, he's being dramatic," Nate said dryly. "Got past the shock of Dad wanting to die faster than I thought. Hi, Uncle Alex."
"I believe you were accused of being my mini," Alex told Nate with a grin. "Lucky accusation." He clapped his hands together. "Going for a game of chicken on this … see who can be more ridiculous until you tap out or do I need to be serious-er for another minute?"
"If you're going to do that, I'm going to have to tap out now," James said with a deep yawn, ready to crash hard now that some of the adrenaline was fading off.
"I'll come with you," Billy offered with a quiet smile.
"You don't have to," James said, and a moment later, Wanda spoke up as well.
"I was planning on offering you some time at home, sweetheart," she said to Billy as she brushed his hair out of his eyes.
Billy looked between them both with a slowly growing smile. "See, that's the thing," he said, then gestured around the living room. "I was trying to figure out how I ended up here when I've never even been here before. And… I realized … I asked my spell to take us home." He smiled even wider at James. "I guess my home is your home."
James was at a clear loss for words as Billy squeezed his hand, both of them still within easy reach of Wanda. "That's the sweetest thing I think I've ever heard," Wanda said with a hand over her heart. "Will you be staying with James then, while we make arrangements?
Billy grinned at James and slipped over to put his arm around his back. "Yeah. I think I will."
"Probably best if all of you called it a night for now," Corsair said. "Go on, kids. I'm going to stay here with my boys and keep watch."
Wanda and Lorna hadn't stuck around for too long after that- just long enough to be sure that Billy was alright, really, and then the sisters had left to deal with the fallout on Genosha leaving Alex and Corsair to help look out for Scott and see for themselves exactly how bad off he was. For a little while, anyhow.
Hank didn't leave until he had left strict, crystal clear instructions on what was alright and what wasn't regarding Scott's care, though he swore he'd be back as quickly as he could if there was any backsliding in Scott's condition. With that, Logan insisted Hank go back to the tower and get some damn sleep. Which … was something Logan was willing to do for himself as long as Alex was around to keep an eye open for Scott.
"He's my brother, of course I'm going to stick around for him," Alex said. "Really, we've got it. You can just … go back to wherever-"
"Not your call," Logan said, crossing his arms. "When Billy says it's time to go, we'll head out."
"So … that's a thing in your universe too, then, huh?" Alex said, which had Billy laughing outright not only at Alex's presumption, but at the expression Logan was wearing.
"No," the older Billy said, though he was grinning. "We just share a daughter between us."
"Yeah, that totally clears it up," Alex deadpanned as Rachel got Logan to at least step into Scott's office to look through the incoming intel like he'd asked about before Alex had started being Alex.
It was an easy bait, too … the older Billy and Logan both really wanted to see what the news was saying and what intelligence people were picking up about the drama in Genosha. Logan to see what was on the horizon and for Billy to see that they were on the right path, since he seemed to think they weren't out of the woods just yet.
Which left the original Summers boys with their father.
Corsair had his arms crossed, looking not only uncomfortable with the setting, but anxious … and there was something behind his eyes that wasn't entirely familiar to Alex. At least, not with his father wearing that expression. If he didn't know better, he'd think it was because Corsair had regretted something… something he didn't consider until his oldest son was teetering between life and death on a hospital gurney.
Not that it was the first time for Scott to be in a position like that … he'd done that many, many times … but this was the first time that Corsair had seen it. The years of hiding away from his sons in space were finally starting to show on the old space pirate.
Alex reached over to rest a hand on Corsair's shoulder. "You can take a break, Dad. Get some sleep. I can keep watch over Scotty on my own just fine."
"I know you can," Corsair said, his voice constricted. "You two always have watched out for each other. I just …"
"I know, Dad. It's okay. You can take the second shift."
Corsair didn't know what to do, honestly, but he was grateful for the free pass to step aside all the same, so instead of acting like Scott or Alex would have - and insisted on staying with their injured kid, Corsair nodded to himself, thanked Alex, and headed off to find a place to crash for a while.
But that gave Alex a window to be able to talk to his brother when he woke up again in need of pain meds. So, Alex waited in the unsettling quiet that was only punctuated by the rhythmic beeping of the machinery attached to his big brother. He waited, turning the bottle of pain meds over in his hands slowly enough that the clicks of the pills against the plastic bottle weren't sharp enough to be distracting or a point of irritation. He waited, thinking to himself how very familiar this was to when they were kids and Alex did all he could to sit with his brother after the plane crash, crying and terrified while his big brother - his hero- couldn't wake up. He thought about how little time the doctors and nurses and officials gave him before they took him away from Scott, and how the last childhood memory he had of his big brother was of him lying in bed while the doctors, who thought Alex couldn't hear them, talked in the hall about how he would never wake up and how he was a lost cause.
He thought about a lot in those few hours in the middle of the night, but mostly, he thought about how even though they were grown, and even though Scott's kids were grown … he wasn't anywhere near ready to face losing his brother again. And he was so deeply in thought that he didn't notice that Scott had woken up again and was watching him.
Alex was so focused as he leaned forward on the couch, his elbows on his knees as he stared at the bottle of pills in his hands, frowning deeply at them, he didn't notice it as a few tears slipped down his cheeks. But that's what Scott woke up to …
"Hey," Scott said, his voice rough as he tried to sit more upright. "You okay?"
Alex sniffled and straightened up, the back of one hand already erasing any evidence that he'd been crying in spite of himself. "Shouldn't I be asking you that?" Alex said as he composed himself and sat back in his seat. "You scared the hell out of me, Scotty." As always, Alex had never seen the point in hiding his worries too much. "We saw the throne room … and the hall … and … I thought -" He cut himself off as his emotions got the better of him. "I thought I was supposed to help you. I was your back up and I didn't know. There wasn't even a way to tell me."
"Alex," Scott said, trying to slow him down, but the more Alex tried to stop himself from speaking, the more it all tumbled out.
"You didn't wait," Alex said. "You never wait. And I wanted to be the one to back you up and instead it … it was just like when we were kids and you were fine one minute and then you were gone. You were gone, Scott, and I was trying to figure out how that had even ... " He stopped again and tried to get it back together. "I know … you said your piece with the kids. And I understand it, but I gotta tell you, big brother - I can't take finding out from anyone that you died again. I did that once and I never got over it. I never will. I know I've been in Genosha all this time, and I'm not around as much as I should be - and I know you don't need me, and maybe it's selfish, but .. I don't want to be without my brother."
"Alex, stop," Scott said, his eyes wide. He tried to sit up better simply as a means to buy time for himself to think, then let out a long breath when he couldn't do that. "I'm so sorry. I wasn't trying to- It happened too fast, and I thought I'd have more time," he tried to explain. "I didn't mean to leave you out. Really."
"I know, Scott. I wasn't trying to … I just had to tell you what it looked like from my side. It really doesn't matter, and I know. I do. You just scared me, okay?" Alex sighed heavily. "Just forget it." He cleared his throat. "It's a little overdue for your painkillers."
"Yeah." Scott was quiet for a long time. "I'm sorry," he said again. "I screwed up."
"Yeah, you did," Alex said just as quietly. "But not the way you think you did."
The silence hung in the air between them for a long time as Scott stared at the pills Alex had given him, not ready to drift back off when his little brother was that upset.
Finally, Scott said, "You know, travel to and from Genosha should be a little easier now."
Alex snorted a laugh. "Really? That's what you took out of what I said?"
"You were the one saying you weren't around - which isn't true, for the record. You came over plenty."
Alex shook his head. "Take your meds, Scott."
Scott smirked, glad to see Alex looking at least a little better, then did, in fact, take the pills, leaning back as he waited for it to kick in. He was already starting to get drowsy after not too long, which meant he wasn't holding back his thoughts as he said, softly and with his eyes closed as he started to drift off, "I don't want to say goodbye to my brother either. Why do you think I couldn't leave a note for you?"
"Go to sleep, Scotty. I'm not going anywhere," Alex said.
Chapter 60: Two Families, One Crisis
Chapter Text
Rather than let Tommy hang, not knowing what had happened in Genosha, Wanda and Vision made the decision to go talk to him in person in Westchester as soon as they left the Summers home. For them, it had been a long day - one that the two of them were ready to close the books on and take a break from before handling the repercussions on Genosha. But before they could do that, they had to make sure that Tommy didn't find out what had happened from anyone but them.
Yes, there was all sorts of speculation, and Wanda knew that Tommy was smart enough to put the puzzle together on his own considering the players, but she still wanted to be the one to confirm family affairs rather than let him find out for sure via the world news sources.
She wasn't surprised in the least to find that Tommy had been up waiting to hear from Billy what was going on, so when she texted to tell him she was there in Westchester - in Storm's office - she didn't have to wait at all before he zipped into the room looking tense and anxious, and Wanda was sure to give him a moment just to pull him into a quick hug - because most hugs with Tommy were quicker. Especially when he was tense.
"I don't know what your brother has told you, yet," Wanda said as she started their talk.
"Next to nothing," Tommy said. "Other than he couldn't talk to me because he was staying at the Summers' house tonight - which … what?"
Wanda smiled sadly as she cupped his cheek. "That isn't what I came here to tell you, but that is something you should discuss with your brother." She took his hand and led him over to a chair where the three of them could sit and talk, even if every second standing still had Tommy more tense and his foot jiggling a little faster. "I'm sure you won't be entirely surprised to hear it, considering all that you know, and all that's happened in recent months, but -"
"Grandfather's dead, isn't he?"
Wanda's eyebrows lifted in surprise, and she nodded. "Yes. It happened just a little while ago on Genosha."
"Cyclops did it," Tommy said, nodding. "I thought he'd have to the way things were headed. That's why he went, isn't it? You knew what was going on, right? I know you had to."
"Yes, I knew what was brewing, but how long have you known?"
Tommy shifted in his seat. "It was pretty clear someone was going to have to do something after they came to Genosha. Did Cyclops survive? Is that why Billy's staying with them? This is bad, right?"
His questions were rapid fire, as always, but one thing that would always be a stark contrast between Tommy and Pietro was the simple fact that Tommy had waited to hear what had happened. He hadn't rushed off to the scene of the crime himself to see what had happened, or to decipher the clues for himself. He trusted his family to tell him and to spare him the misery that would have come from seeing it first hand.
"Cyclops lived," she said gently. "But Billy plans to stay with them while they recover from what happened." She rested her hand on his arm. "I was planning to bring both of you home while we make arrangements for the funeral, but considering how things stand for your brother, and how much I know you care for Mia, I won't force you to come home, though I would very much like you to. Just for a few days while we figure out how to move forward."
Tommy's foot jiggled a little more aggressively as Wanda laid out the more intimate details on what had happened, though the more he heard, the more plainly concerned Tommy was … for his brother. "Yeah, of course, but … can I talk to Billy first? I will come home for a little while, but … listen, I know he's all wrapped up in James right now, and okay, I get it, but he's going to need to get away from them for a minute too. We'll both come home for a while."
Wanda smiled more warmly, though the weariness of the last twenty four hours of worry and stress were showing at her eyes. She cupped his face and nodded. "Of course. I'll be looking for you both."
"I'll call before we head your way," Tommy promised, already determined to keep the rest of his family from falling into the same habit his Grandfather did when it came to taking care of Genosha. And if Billy wasn't going to be able to do it right when the time came, Tommy had no trouble stepping in .. but that was likely far down the road, he was sure. After their mother had gotten tired of being in charge of things and fixing all that Grandfather had twisted.
At the Summers house, the kids all woke up to the smell of coffee drifting up from the kitchen. Nate was the one who got downstairs first, just a few steps ahead of the others. Logan was sitting at the kitchen table with a newspaper and a cup of coffee watching over everything and waiting for everyone else to get moving. Alex was passed out on the couch, sleeping fitfully after being up most of the night watching over his brother, and surprising everyone, Corsair was sitting up next to Scott trying desperately to find something to talk about as the two of them waited for Corsair's crew to check in. They had to decide on where the pick up was going to be, though it was already leaning to Westchester for privacy issues.
"Oh, okay," Nate said, tipping his head to the side before he got a bagel out for himself. "Hi, Logan. That's still weird."
"Mornin'," Logan replied. "You got no idea how weird it is." He watched the three kids as they each got their own breakfasts started.
Rachel waited with Nate at the toaster, but as soon as Billy and James showed up, too, James simply poured himself some coffee - and then held his breath before he made his way over to sit near Logan. Everyone there, including Logan, knew that the kid was anxious about trying to talk to him, but they all ignored James' nerves since … he really needed the chance to get to know who Logan really was. As a result, the whole vibe in the kitchen was one of awkward, muted nerves with everything that had gone on. And since Billy had stayed over - James and Logan weren't the only dynamic that was a little off in the Summers home.
Rachel, Nate, and Billy were in no rush to make it to the table, and the three of them took a moment to chat telepathically about a lot, including the two ferals at coffee.
So I guess, if you consider where James is as 'home', it's high time we had the intentions talk, huh? Rachel projected, sure to have Nate in the loop with her for this little talk. The two of them had apparently gotten pretty serious very fast, and there really hadn't been a good time for Rachel to play her big sister card. But now? All the drama that had gone down in Genosha could easily sink them. Especially when none of them knew what the repercussions were going to be yet.
Yeah, probably as good a time as any, Billy agreed with a heavy sigh. He was expecting teasing for this kind of talk … not for it to happen when it was serious. Not when everyone was still freshly traumatized and Billy was still feeling as if his head was spinning from shock.
So … Rachel said. Are the two of you alright? I know he's just as much in shock as you are - for different reasons, but still. Did you two talk much last night?
Not really, Billy replied. But we didn't really do anything. I know he was exhausted but I don't think he slept much.
Okay, I needed to know that, Rachel said. But I was asking about you, too. Nothing about what happened last night is okay.
And we're not just hassling you over James, Nate added, though both Summers telepaths were leading the way to the table so they could sit down, eat, and continue their discussion. It's not just about being teammates, either. You had a different view of what we saw. Your focus was wildly different .. and considering everything …
Our dad, your grandfather, and our brother's whole … snap, Rachel said, making it clear they were still processing all of it too. We need to know where you are so we can help if you need it.
But we also want to know where things stand with you and our brother. Nate turned his head toward Rachel and smirked because when he'd looked up, both James and Logan were watching the three of them with nearly identical expressions. They're onto us, by the way.
Yes, I noticed as much, Rachel answered, shaking her head. Before we came to sit down, actually. And they're doing their own thing anyhow.
The boys glanced up jut in time to see that though it looked silent, James and Logan, were, in fact having a conversation … it was just too quiet for anyone else to hear.
Oh, I see how it is, Nate grumbled to himself, even if he was sharing with his sister and Billy. At least when we're talking telepathically, it's not that obvious that we're doing it.
But at that, Billy tried and failed to stop a full on snigger that drew Logan and James' attention. He looked up across the table, grinning and waved one hand. "Your brother … is hilarious."
"Yeah, okay," James said, frowning between them, though he took a moment to project to Rachel, too. What are you doing?
Don't worry about it. You don't know how long you're going to have with Logan - get past your nerves already and just … talk to him.
I'm trying, James replied. I don't know where to start.
So tell him that. He really does want to help you.
James once again looked between his siblings and Billy Just take it easy on him, would you?
Rachel scoffed - both mentally and telepathically, then turned her attention back to Billy and Nate while Logan drew James into a quiet conversation almost as if he knew what Rachel and Nate were up to.
"Okay, so … Logan, is it alright if my girlfriend comes over?" Nate asked suddenly as he broke away from the telepathic discussion when he heard the tenor of what Logan and James were discussing. "We were talking last night and she's kind of freaked too and we figured if you're talking to Dad, we'd just take a couple cars and go to Westchester…sounds like where Corsair and uncle Alex will be going anyhow. You know. For one to go to space, and the other to go back to Aunt Lorna. And … Billy needs to talk to his brother, too."
Logan shifted how he was leaning on the table and rested his chin in the palm of his hand as he watched Nate. "As long as you clear it with Scott, what the hell would you need to ask me for?"
"Well, Dad's still pretty out of it… "
"I said I wasn't goin' anywhere until I know he's got help lined up at least."
"Okay, well, I'll tell her to come over then. We probably ought to go to Westchester anyway because Kitty called Storm and everyone is kind of freaking out so… damage control."
"Why haven't they come by already, I wonder?" Logan said, smirking. "Or do you think that maybe - just maybe - Wanda and Hank already settled that out for you?"
Nate shrugged. "You haven't seen Storm get freaked over stuff like this."
"Like hell I haven't. You wanna speed things along with your dad, ask Warren to donate a pint."
"O...kay. I mean, other than the massive guilt trip of having Warren over to give him dirty looks, what's the deal?"
"Angel blood can heal other people. It'd speed Scott through the stitches and internal injuries, and I won't feel so bad if we start yellin' at each other."
"Okay," Nate said, one eyebrow raised.
"New guy would be faster and closer," James said, mostly to his coffee cup.
"Yeah," Rachel agreed. "But there's no way Dad would allow him to come here and he's not strong enough to travel if what I heard out of Uncle Blue is still true."
"Then I guess we're getting Warren," Nate said, still frowning. "Apparently."
"Just have 'im flutter his little feathers on over - won't take 'im half an hour."
"Um, it's a long drive and Billy's still worn out from all the spell casting he did last night," Nate said. "What, do they have flying cars in your universe?"
"His wings busted?" Logan asked.
"No, but he's kind of conspicuous, and we're really just starting to get the X-Men going, you know?"
Logan frowned deeper at that. "No, I don't."
"That's kind of the whole point of the school? People who can't control or hide their powers can go there for sanctuary - or Genosha, I guess, now that Wanda and Lorna will be running it - and that's why Rachel and James and I restarted the X-Men. You know, so people can stop thinking mutants are dangerous and everyone can start living again?"
Logan closed his eyes and just started rubbing his temples. "Yeah. Alright. Man, you guys got screwed over here."
"Yeah, well, we're trying to fix it, okay?"
"Not a criticism," Logan said. "Just … hate to see you havin' to deal with so much stupid in one place."
"Hey, it's kept us alive," Nate said, feeling like he had to explain it. "It's stupid, but I mean, Dad and the first X-Men weren't going to come back after all that, so-"
"Again, not criticizing, mini-Slim."
"Seriously?" Nate looked down at himself. "I'm finally bulking up!"
"Have you looked in a mirror?" Logan countered, raising one eyebrow.
"Just because James went straight to muscle-bound when he got his powers-"
"No idea where that came from," Logan said straight-faced. "Almost like you take after your fathers or something."
Nate rolled his eyes but didn't say anything further to Logan - especially since it looked like he and James were very quietly chatting again. The doorbell rang and Logan smirked as Nate rushed to get it.
"Ohmigosh it's all over the news," Kate gushed, flinging her arms around Nate's neck as she tumbled through the door and kicked it closed behind her. "Are you guys okay? Is your dad okay? What the heck is even happening? I've heard, like, five hundred rumors already! Tommy and Mia were blowing up my phone all night as the news came in! Billy hasn't been returning my texts! I had no news!"
Nate shook his head. "Hi, gorgeous," he said. "It's a long story. Billy stayed here last night. We're all okay and we're just having breakfast right now. I gotta warn you about the other-dimension James' birth dad-"
Logan stared for a second at Kate - and then positively fell apart laughing to the point of tears as he held one arm across his stomach.
"Um, James, your other-dimension birth-dad is insane, did you know that?" Kate asked, scrunching up her nose at Logan as he kept right on laughing.
"Mmmm… I think it's just because you're funny looking," James said with a smirk - entertained just from how hard Logan was laughing, which was enough to get Logan to at least try to get it under control … not that it helped much. But it was just more confirmation of the memories Billy had shown him, so James was drinking it in.
"What's going on?" Scott asked - waking up from the fog Hank had put him under with all the painkillers because he hadn't heard Logan laugh like that in far too long.
"Logan took one look at Kate and fell apart," James called out to Scott - which had Logan losing the battle to keep it under control all over again.
"I don't even know what's going on," Kate grumbled. "Hi, Scott."
"Hi, Kate. He probably knows a different version of you."
Logan was nodding at that - then took a chance and dove into an old code the team used before Scott had even left for X-Factor to clue him in on his reality's Kate - and who she was married to, snickering the whole way through it.
Scott froze and then started to snicker along with him. "Really?"
Logan was grinning broadly as he nodded. "Same age as my Billy."
"Good because otherwise I'd have to have a word with him."
"Oh, there's still a helluva age gap," Logan said low.
"You're on his case?"
"Nah, not too bad. It's only a little bigger gap than me and K." He grinned at Scott. "But K argues that it's a bigger proportionate issue."
"It definitely is."
Logan was still snickering about it as Nate and Kate stared between the two of them. "You know what the old excuse was," Logan said. "Parentage and all that…."
By that point, Scott was openly chuckling to himself, which made it hard for the kids to want to break it up - even if they had no idea what was going on.
"So." Nate looked between them. "We're going to go get Warren? You guys just… do whatever this is."
"Oh, man, he doesn't even know what it's like to laugh. What the hell, Slim?" Logan teased.
"No, you don't get to put that on me. You just showed up at a bad time. You missed the part where he was purposefully failing history to set me up with his teacher," Scott said.
"History?" Logan said, though he wasn't sure if he was going to start laughing again or not as he stared at Nate in open disbelief.
"Hey, I got my grade back up," Nate defended. "Dad won't let me live it down."
"You. You were failing HISTORY?" Logan stared at him for a moment then fell apart even harder than before.
"On purpose," Nate insisted. "What the heck is even happening right now?"
"I'm gonna die here," Logan said between breaths.
"Don't you dare," Scott said.
Logan was wiping the tears from the corners of his eyes. "Don't be so serious Summers. It's just air. I can live without it for a while."
"Sure you can."
"Holy hell," Logan said as he looked over at Nate, still wiping the tears from the corners of his eyes as he tried to keep from laughing. "You got any other hilarious surprises for me?" He let his voice drop to a whisper. "Failing history. How the hell…"
"I don't know why my whole life is so funny to you, but I'm just going to go now," Nate said, pointing at the door.
Rachel shook her head as she tipped her head for James to join them and projecting to him: They need to talk. Alone. For an instant James looked crestfallen, at least until Logan quietly nodded and whispered just low enough for him to hear it as he encouraged him to go with them - and promised not to leave while he was gone. James still looked reluctant, but he simply agreed to go with Billy while Rachel made sure to kiss Scott's cheek. "We'll be back soon, Dad," she promised, then projected to Logan, Thanks for whatever this is that's making Dad laugh, because it's been way too long since that happened.
In response, Logan smiled her way then focused enough to project the image of who Kate was in his universe - and who Nate was, too. It's hilarious, Logan told her.
Time traveler failing history… yeah, I see it now, she laughed.
Go on. I'll make sure he eats something and gets his meds, Logan promised.
Thanks, Rachel said before ushering the others out the door - not that they were ready to leave, but they really wanted Logan to talk to their dad, since they were kind of getting desperate for ways to help him.
As the door closed, Logan got up to refill his coffee - and didn't ask before he brought one for Scott, too. "You got some damn good kids, you know."
"I know," Scott said. "Every one of them is amazing." He looked toward Logan as he took the coffee mug. "James is a genius. I don't know if that's true in your world, but we got him tutors, made sure he got in the right programs-"
"Yeah, he's a genius in ours too," Logan said, nodding. "Got plucked up and tested by Stark when he was little. The two of 'em get along way too well." He let out a breath and shook his head. "Course, mine's goin' through a knothole right now. Nice to see him smiling a little here."
"Billy has been great for him," Scott said. "They really are good together."
Logan nodded at that. "The one in my reality … well. He had a great girl. They were head over heels. Totally devoted. And up until not too long ago, he was ready to propose."
Scott frowned. "What happened?"
Logan lifted his coffee cup just as he answered. "Sinister. Apocalypse. Shadow King, too, but he likely doesn't remember that part. Same old story. He's pretty convinced he picked up my curse by how she died."
Scott winced. "I'm sorry. We haven't heard from Sinister in almost twenty years, and there's not a day goes by I'm not glad he's gone."
"I'll have Billy look into it when he comes by again," Logan said. "Just to be sure. James isn't in a good place back home at all. Had his girl die in front of him, barely saved his big sister and your son before Sinister took him right to Apocalypse." Logan shrugged. "Walked right into it. No way to get out, nothin' left to fight with… and because of it, he ended up with an adamantium skeleton and a death spore in his head."
Scott stared at Logan. "I… 'sorry' doesn't even start to cover…"
"Not somethin' for you to apologize for," Logan said. "We got him back. Rachel went full fire bird and between Lorna and Doc Strange, they got the spore out."
"That's Rachel's greatest fear," Scott said in a whisper. "That she'll end up like Jean - consumed and unable to stop it."
"You talked her out of it," Logan said pointedly. "K and I both couldn't do a damn thing. Half dead at the time."
"Well, Apocalypse," Scott said, though he was frowning hard the more he heard.
"You and I killed Apocalypse and now, I'm doing everything I can to get my James on track," Logan said seriously. "His healing was burnt out and he made a damn good attempt on himself when it was all said and done. If we didn't have a kid on staff that can heal people, I know damn well I wouldn't have him anymore." He looked up at Scott. "I'm a little sensitive about that crap right now."
"Logan, I know how it looks, but I swear, this was just - it went south on me-"
"I know," Logan said. "The trouble's that you even entertained the thought of it. Once you do that, it gets easier to keep that in your back pocket as an option."
"I can't hurt the kids," Scott swore.
"That's great. Glad to hear it. But what happens when the kids are grown? You gonna fall apart again?"
Scott pressed his mouth into a thin line and leaned back where he was propped up. "No."
"You're still way over operatin' levels of stressed out," Logan said. "I meant it when I told your kids that I'm stickin' around until you find some help." He pointed one finger at Scott. "And don't you dare try to bring up Emma Frost as an excuse not to."
"Look," Scott said, "I'm not putting myself in that situation again. Last time around, I asked for help and got an affair instead."
"You need the damn help. Try someone that's not a damn telepath for a change. Or better yet, someone who's actually a shrink."
"I'm fine, Logan."
"Like hell you are."
"I'm fine," Scott insisted.
"Then I guess I'll be stayin' for a lot longer than I thought. Better have Billy bring me my wife and the little ones. We can let both of our James' compare notes. It'll blow your Billy's mind." He leaned back and kicked his feet up with a laugh. "Might be exactly what you want."
Scott pinched the bridge of his nose. "You - no, you need to go take care of your James."
Logan waved a hand. "Billy'll bring me back within a few hours of when I left."
"Who the hell am I going to ask for help anyway?" Scott shot back.
"Look in a damn phone book, Scotty. Pick one."
"The phone book isn't going to tell me which one of those shrinks is going to tell an agency about my family."
"Do you hear yourself? You're panicking on what ifs. Pick out a few. I'll run 'em down myself and see if they're alright."
"It's not just a distant possibility, Logan. We almost got picked up because of a school nurse. I'm not taking that risk just because I got messed up in the line of-"
"Damnit, Scott. Pick half a dozen and I will check. Them. out."
Scott stared at Logan for a long time before he let out a frustrated noise. "Fine," he said. "Fine. I don't care. You pick one. I don't care."
Logan got up and found Scott's phone book then brought it over to sit down next to him. The two of them shared a look before Logan cracked open the book to the right section and started flipping through the dozens of pages of therapists with Scott looking overly smug at the vast number of options.
Logan was already getting irritated since … yeah. Sure. The sheer volume was an issue, but when he flipped the pages back to start at the beginning, he stopped about half way through and stared at one little ad on the page. He frowned, read it again and then tapped the ad. "That one. That's the one."
Scott waved him over so he could see the name on the add. "Craig Hale? Never heard of him."
"Yeah. That's the one. Call him."
"I don't know who he is where you're from, but you have no guarantee-"
"Just … call him." Logan shook his head. "You gotta follow your gut sometimes. That's the one."
"If your gut gets a weapons program called down on my kids, so help me God-"
"This guy won't have a damn thing to do with anything like that," Logan said.
Scott frowned Logan's way and then drummed his fingers against the phone book. The truth was he didn't want to call - and he didn't even know what to say.
"I swear to God, Summers. I'll make the damn appointment for you."
"Gimmie that phone. You will not," Scott said.
Logan tossed Scott the phone. "I will if you won't."
Scott rolled his eyes at Logan but dialed the number anyway, surprised when even in the city he got a very deep Southern accent on the other end of the line - though considering that Nate's teacher had one that deep, and so did Rogue and Remy, maybe it was just a pattern of holding onto it.
The man seemed perfectly polite as Scott tried to explain himself. "Just… dealing with some stuff," he said. "New patient, looking around…"
"Fresh trauma, PTSD, major depression …" Logan said in a tone loud enough that Scott was frowning at him.
Scott shook his head. "No, that's - just whenever is good for you-"
"TOMORROW IF THERE'S AN OPENING," Logan called out.
On the other end of the phone, Craig Hale paused. "Who's that?"
"An obnoxious old friend."
"Your guardian angel," Logan muttered quietly for Scott to catch and smirk at in spite of his insisted irritation.
Scott was shaking his head as Craig rustled some papers on the other end. "My earliest appointment tomorrow is at 11. Can you come in before that?"
"I'll carry you over my shoulder if I have to," Logan warned quietly.
Scott gave him a dry look for that one before he nodded into the phone. "Will 10:30 work? I don't want to take up too much of your time."
"Make it 9:00. I try to leave myself wiggle room in case things run over."
"Alright," Scott said. "I'll see you then." He hung up the phone and then shook his head at Logan. "There. Are you happy now?"
"I'll be happier when you get through the whole appointment." Logan smirked at him. "I'll drive ya."
"I can-" Scott stopped and looked down at his IV. "Fine."
"I'm sure Billy'll be back to keep track of the kids while you're down there, too."
"Logan, really, I can handle it," Scott said.
"I'm makin' an effort here, Slim. I'm gonna see it through."
Scott let out a sigh and covered his eyes with one hand. "I'm torn between frustration and how much I missed this. And don't you dare tell the version of me that you've got I said that."
"Like you'd ever believe me."
"I might if you said you'd been dead nearly fifteen years and I was there for it."
"He'd probably ask if he was the one to do it."
"He's not entirely wrong," Scott said.
"Yeah, that ain't it." Logan let out a breath and leveled with Scott. "Not too proud to admit it, but I've tried before. Plenty of times. I'm telling you: you couldn't have stopped me- and it wasn't anywhere close to your fault."
Scott gestured to his face. "There was a buildup of misery. And yes, if I'd seen it, I could have at least warned someone. Jean could have stopped you."
"Lets get something straight - that might have worked for a minute, but I doubt even Jeannie could stop me if I'd decided that was what I needed to do." Logan let his shoulders drop. "You said I thought my whole family was gone and that I'd been forced to torture my team. You would have had to have shown me James before you knew. You did all you could."
"James stopped me," Scott said.
"Good."
"He said he'd quit the team if being on it meant…" Scott let out a breath. "The team means too much to them to ask them to do that."
"But you thought about it."
"I did."
"And that boy would have done it. For you."
"He's a good kid," Scott said with a quiet smile. "But I'm the one who raised him. It's my job to give those kids the lives they deserve, not ask them to give up what they believe in because I'm a wreck."
"So fix your wreck. You'll enjoy 'em a helluva lot more."
"I already made the appointment, Logan."
"Yeah. That's step one. And if it wasn't so damn early - and you weren't on painkillers, I'd Irish up that coffee for you."
At that, Scott finally did smirk. "Next time."
"You're on," Logan agreed.
Chapter 61: Thicker Than Water
Chapter Text
The kids had started their trek to Westchester as a group - and they did, in fact, need to break into two cars to get everyone there. Kate and James both had cars to drive, and while Nate and Kate were holding a telepathic conversation between them, the Summers boys were all piled into the Jeep. Which left Rachel, Kate, and Billy to chat on the way there.
No one had expected James to relinquish the keys of the Jeep to Corsair, but … a pirate captain needed to be in control, as it turned out - and even his adopted grandson wasn't about to argue with him on the matter. They'd barely been in the driveway for thirty seconds before it happened, and both Kate and Billy had been highly entertained when Corsair turned to James with a raised eyebrow look and his hand out waiting for the keys. After maybe only a second or two of consideration longer than what Nate, Alex, or Scott would have done, James held his gaze before he caved just like any other Summers boy would do. He wordlessly handed the keys over before opening the door and climbing into the back with Nate - leaving Corsair and Alex in the front.
"So much testosterone in that poor little Jeep," Rachel said in a sigh as she stretched her legs out on the backseat of Kate's beetle. "Poor lambs. Just think of them all scrunched up … long legs everywhere. And a pirate at the wheel."
"I just can't believe your family defaults to 'follow Corsair'," Billy said. "James hasn't said more than a passing word or two about him."
"They … haven't really gotten along too well," Rachel said. "Corsair doesn't fully understand why Dad adopted him when he had his hands full with us. James thinks Corsair is all hot air. But he's also part of the family, so he does what we would do. For the most part."
"Do you default to follow the space pirate too?" Billy asked.
"No. I default to being female and related to him; therefore, I am a pure mystery that he cannot hope to comprehend."
"So … like every other boy in your family?" Kate giggled.
"More or less," Rachel said dryly. "They try so hard. All of them."
"No one is complaining," Billy said, though his voice was a little rough and he was clearly still exhausted from the last twenty-four hours. So much of it had gone by in a rush; so much of it was still foggy in his mind's eye. The details were muddled, and he needed to focus on the details, because he was on his way to talk to his twin - and he knew he needed to remember everything he could for Tommy's sake.
As if on cue, his phone chimed, and Billy grabbed his phone out of his pocket to check his texts. Naturally, it was Tommy - and naturally, he was bouncing off the walls wondering what was taking them so long.
"Is your brother okay?" Rachel asked.
"So far, yeah," Billy said. "He's irritated that I didn't bring him along, too. But … I don't know. Nothing about the past day has been okay. I'm glad he wasn't there. But if he had been? At least I wouldn't have to tell him about it secondhand."
Rachel considered him for a long moment, staring at the side of his head from the backseat.
"Someone has a solution," Kate half sang, then looked up at the rearview mirror to see Rachel staring back at her. "Your brother is just as bad about leaning on his telepathy as you are. I know what you're thinking, mkay?"
"It's just a thought," Rachel defended. "Everyone would have to okay it, and honestly, considering the source material? It might be best if Betsy did it - not me."
"What are you suggesting, exactly?" Billy asked, turning in his seat to face her better, but Kate answered before Rachel could.
"Telepathic mindshare. It would save you the words. He could see it all from your point of view - you know, unless your point of view involves too much of looking at your boyfriend's butt-"
"Not while - not during, anyhow," Billy managed to tease back, though for as worn out as he was, it wasn't an entirely normal level of teasing.
"It's not a bad idea," Kate said. "Even for non-flirting things, I guess."
"I just thought it might help when the emotion is so heavy," Rachel said. "It's not necessary, but I know how Tommy wants the fastest possible means. And honestly? That would be most private - but you both would have to agree to it."
Billy shrugged lightly, his focus more on things far away from where they were. "I'll do it if he will."
"Then I guess we'll just have to bring it up to him when we get there," Rachel said, then reached forward to rest a hand on Billy's shoulder before she leaned forward to wrap him up from behind in as good of a hug as she could manage from the backseat. "Hey. Team or not, we're all here for you. You know that, right?"
Billy covered her arms with one hand and tried to hide the smile. "Thanks," he said quietly, though words were failing him at the moment. He was busy thinking of how he'd begin to tell Tommy anything about what had happened when he was still having extreme trouble processing it himself. All of the kids that had been on the island and seen it happen were having trouble with that.
They'd all seen fights, and they'd heard about innocents killed, but none of them had crossed that line, and none of them had watched someone die - that they could remember, anyway.
In Westchester, at the school, Tommy was pacing a line as slowly as he was able, though that was still pretty fast for most people, and Mia was getting tired watching him.
"They'll be here any minute," Mia said, though she wasn't going to leave him for an instant if she could help it. "And until then … you know …"
Tommy paused just long enough to steal a kiss that did seem to slow him down a little. He was at a loss for words, mostly from nerves waiting to see his brother and make sure he was alright, but he still had to hear how Billy had been involved - in his own words.
He was worked up enough that even with Mia doing her best to distract him, Tommy was still bouncing on the balls of his feet until his brother finally showed up. Once he knew they were at the school, he zipped over to them, confused at first to see two cars - and an entirely wrong Summers at the steering wheel of the Jeep, too. But when he saw that Billy wasn't in the Jeep …
"Weird," Tommy said to himself before turning his attention to Kate's car. "What took so long?"
"I think I'm burnt out," Billy said as he held the door open for Rachel to climb out too. "Or I would have been here last night. I'm sorry. It was just …"
"You have to tell me everything," Tommy said sternly. "Everything." Even though he was obviously upset, he still sounded more worried than anything else, which had Kate and Rachel glancing at each other.
"We were talking about that," Rachel said. "It would be faster and more complete if you just saw it," she suggested. "I'm not sure I can do it myself right now, but …"
"Let's go see Psylocke then," Tommy said without looking away from Billy. "Are you okay?" he demanded of his brother.
Billy gestured openly. "Yeah, I mean … not entirely."
Tommy frowned, and crossed over to his brother, resting a hand on his shoulder before he picked him up and zipped off to find Betsy, leaving Mia with her tail twitching behind her with the Summerses. She waved her fingertips at Alex and Corsair. "Hi."
"Hi," Alex said, smiling more easily as he pulled her over into a bear hug that Mia adored. It had been far too long since she'd seen the blond elder Summers. "Are you going to take a turn coming to see me before I get old and gray? I'll bet you'd love surfing, too."
"Maybe someday," Mia agreed, glad to have Alex to snuggle with for a moment. At least until Corsair cleared his throat waiting for Alex to introduce him.
"You haven't met my dad, Mia," Alex said, steering her to face Corsair, but in a way that wouldn't force her to let go from the snuggle.
"Hi," Corsair said, though it was clear he was trying to decide what he thought of the young lady. But Mia made his mind up for him with her greeting .
"Hi, Grandpa Space Pirate," she said, which had Alex snickering and Corsair rolling his eyes, though since Nate was reunited with Kate already, Corsair went for the closest kid, who happened to be James.
"I suppose this is your doing?" he teased.
"Sure, why not?" James replied automatically, though Rachel was more than happy to step in.
"No, we all call you that. You know it, too," she said as she took his arm. "Come on. You have some time before your crew gets here. Why don't you give me a few minutes, huh?"
"That would be my pleasure," he said with a grin. "You're probably the one that will be watching over Scott anyhow, huh?"
"Pretty sure that'll be a group effort too," she said. Rachel peeked over her shoulder to Alex, who had snagged James under one arm and still had Mia curled up with the other as he directed them toward the greenhouse.
"You can come find me when you're ready to leave," Alex said to Corsair. "I'm going to take this one to see Storm. Try not to torture Rachel too much."
While Corsair monopolized Rachel's time, and the twins started their mental share through Betsy, Kate and Nate were left standing there together to catch up as well. "I'm so glad you didn't go with," Nate told her quietly. "The whole thing had gone to hell before we showed up, too."
Kate sighed and leaned into him, knowing for a fact that none of the Summerses had processed things and knowing from the tenor of the mental conversations they had how stressed he was. "You wouldn't let me go to Genosha, so it's not like there was much choice," she pointed out. "But I do wish I'd been there, because it sounds like you needed someone level-headed around."
"Wait. You mean you're admitting that I get to say you can't do some things? SInce when?"
"Since this one time when you and my parents and Storm and Cap all threatened to take away all team privileges if I risked my life provoking Magneto on his own turf?"
"When has that ever stopped you before?"
She shrugged. "Since I realized you get just as stressed as your dad if you think you're gonna lose someone," she said. "And with your dad going out there, it just… didn't feel like an option if I wanted to keep everyone from having a nervous breakdown."
"If you weren't so close to right, I'd argue that," Nate said, then pulled her a little closer to bear hug her properly. "So … let's find a quiet spot and not talk, huh?"
"Wait, you admit I'm right and then take words out of the equation so you don't have to do the full admission?" she teased. "Shameful!"
"I am traumatized, Kate." Nate grinned. "Clearly I don't know what I'm saying."
"Nope, no take-backs," Kate sang back to him. "I was right. And you admitted it. So there."
"Katie, I'm not trying to take it back," Nate promised, one hand over his heart. "I just want to recharge with my sweetheart before it's time to go back home and dive back into all the stress we left behind." He picked up her hand and kissed the back of it. "You are absolutely right. Okay?" And I said it out loud and everything.
Kate grinned steadily wider. You're perfect and wonderful and now - now - we can forget about words.
Tommy had walked a couple circles with his hands in his hair after he'd seen everything through Billy's point of view. Then, he'd sat on a few different surfaces, walked a circle again, and then finally dropped backwards onto the couch. "So, that sucked," he said at last. "All around."
"Yeah." Billy watched him, half holding his breath as he could see Tommy working through his thoughts. "I keep thinking how it could have gone differently…"
"Yeah, I mean, just coulda sent me in there and things would've been less dramatic, but hey, you need your fill of soap opera or you're not Billy," Tommy said, waving his hand, though when Billy glared his way, Tommy sighed and zipped over to drape his arm around Billy's shoulders. "No, but really, you know Grandfather was absolutely not going to stop until something like this happened anyway, right?"
"Yeah, I kinda figured that out."
"Easier to see when you're not the favorite heir," Tommy said - and didn't quite hide the bitterness in his voice. He shrugged. "But hey, that still sucked. So, like, I don't know. Slow down? That's what people keep telling me? Maybe it works for you?"
"I'm nearly stopped," Billy said. "How much slower do you want me to be?" He raised an eyebrow. "In case you missed it, I was pretty much just transportation. How is that dramatic?"
Tommy turned with his whole body to better face Billy. "Oh no! My boyfriend is a ball of nerves! Let me set up a spell for ultimate drama in case his dad is in trouble! Then I can get us there white knight style with his siblings and be the hero!"
Billy gave him an incredibly dry look. "That is not what I was trying to do."
"Uh-huh." Tommy leaned back again and put his hands behind his head. "Well, you're gonna need to figure out how to explain it in words, because technically, you're still Grandfather's pick for who he wanted to replace him, and all of Genosha knows it, so…"
"I'm pretty sure his pick doesn't really matter at this point," Billy said.
"Matters to more people than you'd think."
"I wasn't thinking about that," Billy admitted. "But Mom's handling it, I know. You and I are both too young to even think about that realistically. We're not even out of high school."
"Good point. I almost got caught up in your drama," Tommy said, grinning crookedly. "Wrong twin!"
Billy rolled his eyes and then grabbed Tommy's arm and yanked him into a hug - which finally got Tommy to stay still as he hugged Billy right back.
While the Summers kids and Billy were gone, the only people in the Summers house were the older Billy, Logan, and Scott - and since Scott was still sleeping hard with the pain medication Hank had given him, that meant only Billy and Logan knew it when America climbed in the back window, made her way down to the living room, and stopped to stare at Billy with her arms crossed and her eyebrows raised for a good, long time.
"You look older than you do in the stars," she said at last, shaking her head with her arms still crossed. "Guess I missed a lot."
"The stars don't really do much for color or shading," Billy teased.
"True." America smirked and stepped forward to put her hand out. "America Chavez, by the way."
Billy grinned and took her hand long enough to pull her into a tight hug. "I know who you are. You're one of my best friends."
America looked caught off her guard for only a split second before she pulled him into a spinning hug and grinned to match him. "So I found you eventually, huh? Or is that another me? I've gotta know."
"You always do," Billy said. "One way or another."
"I'm just good like that," America said, tossing her hair over one shoulder. Then, with a glint in her eyes, she leaned forward. "You got a James in your dimension or am I trying to keep you from heartbreak over there?"
"You do that in every dimension no matter what," Billy told her. "But the James in my dimension is much younger and wasn't even born until I was already married." He grinned. "My husband and I are ridiculously happy together."
"Good." America hugged him again. "It's so good to see you."
"Love you too, Miss America."
America's grin was threatening to split her face. "Well. I'm impossible not to love, right?"
"This is entirely true," he agreed.
She laughed. "So, you staying long?"
"Not too long," Billy said. "We need to get past the trouble here, and it could still all fall apart. I want to see them get past it."
"I noticed," America said, her smile dropping - but only slightly.
"You can help, of course," he said. "Just be ready to talk this me out of the trees. Oh … all the time."
She smirked crookedly. "Yeah, already doing that."
"Of course you are. You're amazing."
America grinned and gestured for him to come sit with her on the couch. "I meant to find you, you know. But the you here… he needs me. And there are some hot girls too."
"The me here is going to need a lot of help for a long while," Billy said. "But you .. are totally going to be set for eye candy. Forever."
America leaned forward, her expression totally troublemaking. "Just tell me I get the one I'm eyeing."
"Don't you always?" He was teasing, but he did take a moment to concentrate, letting the galaxies spin as he looked through the possible outcomes, then grinned wider. "I guess that depends on which one you're leaning toward right now."
"Oh, is the dark-haired bird still an option?" America asked delightedly.
"Not really," Billy said, shrugging lightly. "She's … very hung up in most of the outcomes I've seen here."
America snapped her fingers. "Drat. But I totally get her in other dimensions, right? We worked."
"Oh, absolutely," he agreed, nodding his head. "She even gets you in a few."
"I'm suddenly very jealous of the other mes."
Billy's smile slipped into more troublemaking as well. "But … this one … I think you'll be pleased. You don't have any psychopaths on the horizon anywhere I can see - but that probably has more to do with excellent screening processes. And no idiot boy teammates that you were just bored enough to go there."
America pulled a face. "No way. I only go for pretty birds."
"Yes. Pretty birds." Billy was nodding slowly.
America laughed and then leaned back on the couch. "Okay. Tell me everything about it. The moment you got your powers. What was it like? I want to know it all."
Billy got comfortable as well, leaned back, and started up with a few stories he knew she'd appreciate.
When the kids came home later that afternoon, they brought Warren with them - and were greeted by Scott and Logan, who were joking around while dinner cooked.
Warren let out a breath of disbelief. "They said you were visiting from a different dimension, but it's still so wild."
"You alright, flyboy?" Logan said.
"Better than you are here," Warren shot back.
"You're awful scrawny," Logan said. "I asked the kids to get you to donate a pint, but looks like you could use a few yourself."
Warren waved a hand. "I'm fine," he said. "Just been inside for too long is all."
"What're you making?" Kate asked, hopping up on the counter.
"Venison with cherries," Logan said. "Pretty sure Slim needed a break for what passes for food according to teenagers."
"It smells amazing," Kate said, even as Warren was snorting at Logan's explanation.
"I didn't know you were a chef," Rachel said.
"I'm not," Logan said. "I just know how to cook."
"Well, add that to the list of things we're learning," Rachel said. "We didn't know Angel could heal either."
Warren shrugged with both palms outturned. "Not exactly common knowledge, and it's not like we've had reason to show it off."
"Where I'm from, he figured it out when a doctor contacted him after he'd donated," Logan said. "The patients they'd given the blood to were healing at an accelerated rate. The doc was a little excited, if I remember right."
"That's a nice change," Nate said dryly. "Last time we had a doctor that wasn't Hank get into our blood…"
Warren nodded as the kids gathered around the table, picking Logan's brain for more stories and tidbits about their X-Men family while Warren came over to where Scott was hanging back and staying off his feet. "Well, you look like crap."
"Thanks, Warren. You really know how to give a guy a pep talk," Scott said dryly.
"I heard you went a few rounds with Magneto?" Warren shook his head. "You seriously had to come back with a bang?"
"This was really just… a one-off thing," Scott defended.
"What's wrong, you think you could do better?" Logan said as he made a pass by the two of them.
"Probably could do it without requiring a visit from another dimension," Warren shot back.
"With the shape you're in?" Logan scoffed and turned back to the kitchen to get a drink. "Sure. Keep tellin' yourself that."
Warren rolled his eyes. "Yeah, and Scott looks so much better."
"Thanks, Warren. Really," Scott said dryly.
"I'd say you're about even right now," Logan replied before he tossed a beer at Warren.
Warren smirked as he caught it - and then Scott laughed outright. "You're trying to get me drunk intravenously through Warren!"
"Don't know what you're talkin' about," Logan said.
"Yeah, lighten up," Warren said as he snapped the beer open.
"Besides, we gotta heal you up so you can have one yourself," Logan added.
"Fair enough," Scott said, which had the other adults in the house smirking as Warren got settled in to donate.
"Seriously, you look terrible," Warren said once the blood was running.
"In my defense, I think we were pretty even," Scott said. "Magneto wasn't walking away from that fight; he just threw me off my game yanking my eyes."
"Wait, what?"
"Didn't have anything else metal for him to use, apparently."
"Scott."
Scott shrugged, obviously uncomfortable. "It's fine."
"Scott. You shouldn't have gone in alone," Warren said. "I'm not talking about having back up nearby, I'm talking about going in to him alone."
"I wanted his guard down," Scott said.
Warren gestured with the arm that wasn't hooked up at the moment. "And you couldn't think of anyone that might have convincingly wanted to go?"
"Warren…"
"I'm just saying, Scott, you didn't consider getting help."
"I had help," Scott defended. "Kitty and Bobby were backing me up, and so was Alex once we brought him in."
"I heard the plan. I'm just saying I would have liked to go in with you. In his face."
"I wasn't going to risk you," Scott said quietly.
"Did you think that maybe it could have stopped you from getting this bad? From losing your eyes again?"
"It's over now, anyway," Scott said, trying to shrug it off.
Warren narrowed his eyes. "Alright. Well. I'm not going to try and guilt trip you for not thinking of one of your oldest teammates."
"Uh-huh," Scott said, rolling his eyes at that. "Sure you aren't."
"It would be pointless," Warren continued.
"It would be," Scott said. "Because I already said I wasn't going to risk anyone else. Bobby's already been in and out of Genosha's prisons-"
"Even though none of us wanted to risk you and it would have been our decision if we wanted to take a risk."
"I haven't been part of things for a long time," Scott argued.
"Neither have I," Warren said. "Not really."
"So here we are," Scott said, leaning back with a sigh.
"Here we are," Warren agreed.
Scott was quiet for a long moment before he let out a breath. "Thanks for coming. The kids needed a way to help, and getting you..."
"Everyone needs a way to help, Scott."
"That why you're here?"
"Of course it is. What do you think I do - what I have been doing for the past … forever now?" Warren said. "I can't help the kids there - because all I could do before was to teach them to fly, and even I'm not allowed to do that anymore. So outside of writing checks … what have I got?"
"Yeah." Scott let out a breath. "We should have kept the team going. I'm sorry you've been trapped this long."
"I don't think anyone thought it'd go this far."
"I guess no one wanted to be the one to bring up the team again," Scott said in a sigh.
"Nothing we can do to stop it now."
"Don't I know it."
"They're doing great," Warren said, smiling at last at the mention of the new team. "Better than we did our first few times out."
"It helps that they have better backing than we did," Scott pointed out. "They grew up on stories of what not to do, they got Avengers training, and they have emergency backup we never had."
"True," Warren said. "But I'm just saying … they're good."
Scott smirked and looked toward the kids joking around in the kitchen. "They really are. Of course they are. They're the X-Men."
"Wow. Keep talking like that and you'll need to borrow Kate's pompoms," Warren laughed.
"Hey, I'm trying to be a supportive father here," Scott defended, though he was smiling all the same.
"So does that mean you need a bumper sticker? My kid saved your kid?"
"Like that wouldn't bring down every agency in the world," Scott said, shaking his head.
"If it wouldn't, you'd have your car wrapped with it."
"Sure," Scott said, though the fact that he wasn't denying it had Warren laughing that much more.
"Dinner delivery," Rachel said, bringing a couple plates over to the two of them, though she projected to Warren, Whatever you're doing, I haven't heard Dad laugh this much in a while, so… thanks.
I'm happy to do whatever I can, Warren said. I've missed this, too.
We told Kitty and Bobby they were welcome to join the team we're re-starting, Rachel said. Door's open for you too, you know.
We'll see how it goes, Warren replied. Much as I hate to admit it, Logan's right. I've been out of it for a long time.
Don't have to join us tomorrow, Rachel teased.
No, but I will have to get it past Betsy.
Oooh, good point, Rachel said. She paused. She misses it too, you know. And she hates seeing you trapped.
Then maybe I've got a shot.
Rachel smiled at him and then waved at the two of them. "I'm going to try to rescue Logan from Kate. She's trying to get him to teach her all his tricks."
That'd take a lot longer than she realizes.
Anything she can think of to get one up on Nate, Rachel teased.
"You'll know if she gets on his nerves," Scott said with a quiet smirk. "He won't be quiet about it."
"Pretty sure he doesn't know how to do that," Warren said. "When he's irritated."
"Oh, he definitely doesn't," Scott said, raising his voice slightly so he knew for sure that Logan heard it. "And he's always irritated."
Logan didn't even look Scott's way and instead took a moment to show Kate how to disarm an opponent in an entirely different way than Clint and Natasha had shown her, ending the demo by whipping the knife and making it stick in a cabinet across the kitchen.
Kate was laughing delightedly, though Scott was just shaking his head. "Showoff."
"Not yet," Logan replied with a smirk.
"Besides," Nate said, "she needs all the help she can get."
"Oh, shut up," Kate said, throwing her wadded-up napkin at him.
"There's better ways to get to him," Logan said quietly.
"Not in public," Kate said without missing a beat.
"That just lets him too," Logan said. "But if you like bein' second place …"
"Um, no," Kate said, sounding perfectly insulted.
"I dunno, you seem pretty happy there," Logan said.
"Let's get something straight," Kate said, pointing an accusing finger his way, "I never settle."
"If you say so," Logan replied with an easy shrug before he turned his head to flat ignore Kate and chat with James and Billy instead.
"Oh no you don't," Kate said, grabbing his arm. "You, me, and whatever tricks you've got. Let's go."
"Hey, pushy, that ain't how to get me to do what you want. No," Logan said. "You've got Nat to learn enough from. Ask her. I taught her when she was little."
"So you're the perfect source to learn more," Kate insisted.
"Sure. But I'm tryin' to talk to my son from this reality and his sweetheart. Take a number."
"James doesn't mind if I borrow you for just a little while, right, James?"
"My time is limited, Katherine," James said, catching on fast. "Sorry, not sorry."
"James!"
"Hey, I'd help you if I could, but we all know this isn't long term, and I really want to know my dad," James said as Billy started to crack up.
"Oh, for crying out loud, Logan," Scott said, though he was laughing too. "You're going to give her a complex."
"I'm already responsible for a few complexes here," Logan said. "What's one more?"
"Stop twisting her up and just show her, would you?" Scott laughed.
"I don't even know where to start," Logan said.
"Then take the team. They probably need the help too," Scott pointed out. "I'm fine here. I'm literally attached to Warren."
"Where the hell'm I supposed to take 'em?" Logan asked. "And do what with em?"
"I've got a key to the roof at my place," Kate said brightly. "Dad taught me his best tricks up there. We could do a little sparring; Tony has a hologram up so we'd be hidden."
"Did he teach you how to fall into a dumpster or aren't you advanced enough for that one?"
Nate snorted. "That was last week, right, Kate?"
"Oh, shut up. Not all of us can fly," Kate said, rolling her eyes his way.
"Those of us that don't fly just try to not do dumbass stuff like that," Logan said.
"So - roof?" Kate said.
Logan let out a breath and looked over to James and Billy. "Your call."
Billy shrugged. "I'm good either way," he said. "I'd kind of like to see what the original Wolverine could show us, to be honest…" As he spoke, Logan could see a lot of the kid he'd met in his own universe, trying not to geek out and to play it cool and not at all playing it as close to the vest as he thought he was doing. "... but James is right, too."
"Don't suppose you got a spare holo-program layin' around," Logan said. "I've been sittin' around here for a few days. Gettin' rusty."
"We've got something at the tower," Kate said, "but then that's a whole thing with you being dead here and everyone wanting to see you…"
"Same thing goes for just findin' an army that needs a spankin'," Logan said.
"Oh, well, that's easy," Nate said with a shrug. "There's a few all up in arms from Magneto stirring up the hornet's nest. The Avengers have been dealing with them too."
"How about you stay close," Scott said, one hand over his eyes. "God, Logan, I just got used to them running small missions. Don't do that."
"Small army equals small mission," Logan said with a frown.
"Not for my kids," Scott said. "Keep it small." He paused and smirked. "Think Avengers small."
Logan nodded slowly. "Ah. Beginner beginner level."
Warren was snickering as Scott nodded. "Yep."
"Okay," Logan said, looking like he was thinking hard. "So. Where's the playground?"
"Um, the roof," Kate said. "Were you not listening?"
"I think he meant actual playground," James said with a smirk.
"Oh come on."
"Which roof?" Logan asked. "Because if it's one over Tasha's head …"
"It is," Nate said, grinning madly.
Logan almost cringed. "Don't know if you'll get what you want, but … we can try it."
With that, the kids headed out with Logan - obviously thrilled - and Scott was laughing the whole time, since it had really been too long since he'd seen a bunch of X-Men carrying Logan off like that.
The little group of new X-Men weren't on the roof for more than fifteen minutes before their session was interrupted - by a string of Russian swear words when Natasha came barrelling toward Logan and nearly knocked him over.
And then promptly snuggled right into him.
"You gettin' soft, Tash?" Logan teased.
"Where did you - how did you come here?" she asked, not about to let him go.
"Different dimension's Billy," Logan said, wrapping her up - which really had her curling in better. "You alright, darlin'?"
"I missed you," she said.
Logan couldn't really return the sentiment very well, since he had plenty of chances to spend time with her back home, but he knew she needed something, so he took a second to kiss her temple. "Love you too, kiddo."
Natasha smiled and stayed positively curled up where she was, and Kate was just watching the whole thing and blinking slowly. Mom … has never… done that, she projected to Nate. Ever.
Um … obviously she has, because he doesn't look surprised at all.
Well, I have never seen that. Holy cow.
You know what the story is? Or is this a big question thing later?
She always talked about Logan as her 'little uncle' so… Kate shrugged. I guess I need to ask for more stories.
Alright, but can you ask her later? I was actually learning stuff.
Yeah, so was I, Kate said. But I'm also not getting in the middle of him and my mom so… I guess we let them hug it out.
"You gonna hog all the time we've got left?" James called out.
Natasha looked up at James and then let out a sigh. "Two more minutes," she said, completely unapologetic.
"One."
"Fine." Natasha snuggled Logan for a bit longer and then finally let out a sigh and stepped back - then kissed his cheek. "I'm glad you're here," she said. "Teach them like you taught me."
"I'll be goin' back soon," Logan said. "Won't have much time to teach."
"You didn't have much time with me either," Natasha said.
"Tash, I had you for two years - almost entirely just us."
"You can't stay that long?" she asked, her eyes sparkling with trouble.
"I got kids home to deal with, too," Logan told her.
"Multiple?" Natasha asked, her voice softening.
Logan nodded. "My daughter, Sadie, has been your best ballet student."
Natasha let out a noise. "Oh. That's perfect."
"We've got a few," Logan said, smirking at her.
"I'm glad. You were never happier than when you had your family."
"You too," he told her.
Natasha smiled and finally stepped back, letting the kids get Logan's attention again - though she couldn't stop smiling as she watched them work.
Chapter 62: Long-Overdue Therapy
Chapter Text
Morning came early, and Scott had to frown when he saw that Logan was already awake before him. It seemed like he was perfectly serious about driving him to that appointment.
Scott shook his head as he got his coffee. "You know I can drive myself," he said. "Transfusion helped. I'm on my feet."
"Yep, but I'm followin' through on what I promised you," Logan said without looking up at him.
"You've got plenty of other things you could do while you're here."
"Like what?" Logan asked.
"James could use your advice," Scott said. "He just killed someone after going into the red for the first time."
"We went over that," Logan said. "Couple times. And we'll hit it again before I go, but it's on his time."
"You could help the kids-"
"When I'm done drivin' you," Logan said.
Scott covered his eyes with his hand, though before he could argue it, there was a flash of light, and the other-dimensional Billy reappeared, this time with K.
Logan lit up with a bright grin and pulled her over to steal a kiss even as Billy started to give K the quick rundown, mostly ignoring the PDA as he explained, "So, like I said, Logan's looking out for Scott, and you're with the kids so he's not worried about them being on their own so soon after a trauma."
At first, K didn't acknowledge what Billy was saying, but after the kiss met its natural end, she stepped back and nodded. "Babysitting kids that don't know me. Perfect." She turned to see Scott, and her smile fell only a hair when she saw his obvious scars and how tired he looked before she went right over to wrap him up in a hug. "How's my hero?"
Scott finally managed to break out of his shock to hug her back. "Hi, K," he said in a breath, not at all prepared to see another friend back from the dead, especially not when his mind had been on the appointment he was dreading. He had a sneaking suspicion the other Billy had pulled K in not just for the kids but to throw Scott enough off his game that he couldn't talk his way out of going.
As for K, she didn't let go of Scott, instead snuggling in more. "You doing a little better with my sweetheart irritating the crap out of you?"
"I'm fine," he said without letting go of her.
"I know, I know. You're always fine. I didn't ask how you were like that. I gave you a simple yes or no, because I know better."
Scott let out a breath of a laugh. "I missed you too."
"I'm sorry you had to miss either of us," K told him softly.
"Not your fault," he said in a whisper.
"I just hate to see you upset," she said.
"I'm fine."
"Well, 'Fine'," Logan said, stepping close enough to the two of them that it was as close as he'd come to breaking them up without physically getting in between them - and only because he'd been around long enough to know how desperately Scott needed people around him like K who built him up. "You're gonna be late if you keep sayin' you're fine."
Scott rolled his eyes as he stepped back from K. "Your husband thinks he's my parole officer."
"He also thinks it hasn't been more than a few hours for me while he's been here, and he's impatient and spoiled."
Scott frowned at that. "I don't want to take him away from you."
"Didn't you hear me? He's been here with you for … um... however long, but I just noticed he was gone. To me, it's only been a few hours. He's the one that thinks it's been days." She shrugged. "Considering how spoiled he is."
Scott shook his head at that. "Seriously, I can handle myself, let you two get back to your lives…"
"So … you two go handle you," K said. "You know as well as I do that if he wasn't worried, he'd be back home already." She kissed his cheek. "When you get back, I'll let you look at our kids if it cheers you up."
Scott shook his head and gave her another quick hug. "Might be fair, since you'll be watching mine."
"They'll be safe," K promised.
"I know they will be," Scott said - and meant it.
But then, with his kids taken care of and everyone looking expectant, Scott had no more excuses to put off the inevitable. So, he let out a breath and headed for the door, not all that happy about the fact that Logan seemed to be holding tight to his promise to make Scott go to this appointment.
As soon as the two of them were gone, K turned and got herself a cup of coffee and then started looking in the fridge to see what she could come up with for breakfast. "Billy," K called out. "Is there anything you can think of that we should do while we wait for those two to come back?"
"Well, these kids have never had a mom before, so I'll defer to your expertise," Billy said.
"You think I can fix that in one morning?" K asked, one eyebrow arched high. "Such faith you put in me."
"Well, no, but they just realized their dad wanted to die, so I figured some momming might help?" Billy held both hands out to the side and shrugged. "I'm kind of winging this. My foresight isn't as good as it used to be, remember? Still a work in sanity-progress?"
"That's alright. I'll see what I can do," K assured him as she started pulling things out of the fridge. "Think you can find me some lingonberries and whipped cream?"
"Sure thing," Billy said, disappearing and then coming back about a minute later with some supplies. "Thanks again for letting me steal you for this. I promise I'll bring you back to the same time I took you."
"I think I needed to clear my head anyhow," K said. "My boy is doing better, but he's half afraid to put himself out there still. But I don't know what to do here so … this sounds good to me."
"Oh good," Billy said, giving her a quick hug. "This whole universe is pretty rotten, but they're finally starting on a path to something less bleak, and I really want it to work out."
"Any surprises I should know about?" K asked as she started mixing up her batter.
"Umm, Rachel and Nate are teenagers… Nate's dating Kate… that one seemed to shock Logan, apparently…"
"Cable is dating my big sister?" K said, doing her best to look scandalized.
Billy smirked. "Yep."
"Sweet time skipper stepped it up," K said, shaking her head.
Billy snorted. "They're highly competitive. Couple of sharp-shooters."
"Oooh, I wanna play too."
"Of course you do." Billy kissed her cheek. "This is why I love you."
"I love you too," K said, smirking at him. "It sounded like everyone was pretty beat down, if Scott is any kind of measuring stick."
Billy sighed. "You, Logan, Jubilee, Jean, Kurt, Charles … you all died."
"So all the fun people died."
Billy nodded. "It was pretty brutal. It was torture and manipulation the whole way."
"It'd have to be brutal to take all of us out," K said. "Tell me what I need to be careful of so I don't trip anyone off, okay?"
Billy nodded. "Alright," he said, sitting down at the table as he started to go over the story while she worked. He was only partway through filling her in when she slipped the first plate of pancakes under his nose and went right back to cooking, nodding now and again as he gave her the quick version. But even the "quick version" was a lot to get through, and by the time he was done, Billy looked downright tired. "This was one of the universes Apocalypse showed me to drive me nuts. I just want to help now," he summed up at last in a hoarse whisper.
"You are," K said, not leaving any room to dispute it.
"Yeah. Logan helped get Scott's plan a little less…" Billy made a motion with his hand. "So he's alive. That's already helping."
"Oh. Who're you?" Rachel asked, alerting Billy to the fact that the kids were starting to trickle in. She was standing in the doorway watching the two of them with a slight frown.
K smiled at her and gestured to the folded-over crepes. "Hi, Rachel," she said. "I'm K. Grab a plate; get some berries and whipped cream. You missed your Dad. He and Logan left a little while ago."
"K?" Rachel looked honestly surprised. "Dad needs two … he's that bad?"
"No, of course not," K said, scoffing. "He needed some Swedish pancakes, and Billy knows that in all the universes, I'm the best. So. here I am."
"She so is," Billy laughed.
"It's nice to meet you," Rachel said, not sure what else to say in the face of that kind of introduction.
"Entirely mutual," K said as she smiled up at her. "Go on. Billy will show you how it's done."
"Okay," Rachel said, though she clearly had no idea how to deal with this.
When Rachel had finally sat down and was still looking wary, K made her way over to her and squeezed both of her shoulders from behind. "I promise I'm not here for bad things," K told her quietly. "Or to offset them. I'm just Billy's favorite."
"It's just… we almost lost him and …"
"Rach, don't worry about the almost or you'll miss the right now," K said. "Right now, your dad is probably going nuts because Logan's fussing over him. But he's doing something he's refused to do for years. It's good. I promise it is. Considering all the wreckage he was hit with years ago? He's on a definite upswing, and I can promise you that if he hadn't had you three, it would have been a done deal for him too, way back then. I'm very sure of that." She kissed the top of her head before Rachel turned to face her. "And now, the four of you are all here to anchor each other. And he knows it. Don't get twisted up on the almosts."
Rachel finally relaxed a little and then reached out to hug K. Everyone's worried about him, she projected to K.
Of course they are, K replied, sure to wrap her up warmly.
James talked him out of it.
Excellent, good for him - for all of you.
Rachel let out a breath. "That… smells really good," she said, obviously doing the same thing her dad often did and pushing her worry aside for a new topic of conversation.
"Just let me know if you want more," K told her.
"She's using me as instant grocery shopping," Billy said with a smirk.
"Ooh, that reminds me, you should go get some of the good coffee," K said. "This stuff Scott has is like … survival grade."
"On it," Billy said, disappearing in a flash of light.
Rachel laughed. "Our Billy doesn't do that."
"Your Billy isn't the same power level," K said. "Ours is the only one that gets the 'favorite stargazer' title. Or whatever he calls it."
"That's kind of a shame. I think our Billy would love to be able to do wordless spells like that."
"I think he'll be able to as he gets more powerful," K said, tipping her head as she tried to think about it. "You know … ours worked with Doc Strange for a while to hone his skills and … wait. Yes, yes. A whole bunch of ladies ended up pregnant from his accidental wordless spell. Yeah. He'll be able to do wordless drama."
"Wait. What?"
K chuckled at that then smiled at Billy when he reappeared holding a bag of her favorite brand of coffee. She gestured toward him as he poured out the old coffee. "He and his husband wanted kids, but the adoption people kept dropping the ball. He was pining for babies. I was already pregnant, so … it didn't bother me, but every other woman of age that was married ended up getting pregnant at the same time." She let out a wistful sigh. "If my daughter hadn't been so sweet and come out a girl, I was going to name her William the Strong just to screw with him."
"Oh wow." Rachel turned to point at Billy. "Please tell me that's not going to happen to me with this one."
K was chuckling at her. "You never kno-o-ow," she sang out.
"Hey, this one is dating James," Billy said, smirking K's way.
"Good for him," K shot back. "He should have little kids flocking to him by the time he gets wistful."
"Ex-actly," Billy laughed.
"They really love him here, too ... so I guess we'll just… see how it goes," Rachel said, smiling to herself as she thought of all the little kids that seemed to seek James out.
"Does your brother have a code name?" K asked, smirking Billy's way as she started up the fresh pot of coffee.
"Honestly, we talked about it, and he decided to take up Logan's, since everyone would call him that anyway," Rachel admitted. "He's not wrong."
"That's beautiful," K said, smiling. "Not the brother I was asking about, but ...how sweet. Does Logan know?"
Rachel nodded. "Yeah, he spent some time with the team."
"And what about your itty bitty baby baby brother?" K asked, though she'd already caught Nate's scent as he got closer, and she knew he was near enough to eavesdrop.
"Cable," Rachel said. "And I'm using 'Prestige'."
"Oh, good. I always liked that one better," K said, nodding as she set up another plate.
"So… K?" Nate asked as he poked his nose in, knowing he was busted anyway.
"You cheated and asked your sister," K said without looking his way.
Nate shrugged. "Hey, there was someone new in our house. We always check with each other."
"I get it. You were scared. I'm flattered," K sang before she slid him his plate, ready to go. "I'm too little to threaten anyone."
"Like that matters," Nate said. "Aunt Jan can take anyone down."
"Almost," K said, though it was purely to get a rise out of him.
"Mmm, no," he said. "She's the only Avenger who helped us debut the team."
"Ah, there's the modifier," she said. "Avenger. You're biased."
"We literally just started the X-Men again," Nate pointed out.
K reached up to pat his cheek. "You are so much like your father, tiny time skipper."
"Yeah, I'm getting that a lot lately," Nate said.
"Must be a reason for it," she said as she leaned against the counter, watching over them as they got into their breakfasts.
It wasn't long before James and Billy came down too, with Nate and Rachel smirking at each other over the fact that they came down together, though neither of them said anything out loud. They knew James and Billy were hanging onto each other to try to recover from the trauma they'd all been through, but hopefully, spending the night would be good for both of them to remember they were good for each other for more than staying sane.
"Give me two minutes and I'll have breakfast for both of you," K said without turning to look at them. "The coffee your dad had in here was almost as bad as what they had in that rotten facility in Saskatoon."
Of course, James stopped fully and blinked at her for a long moment as Rachel reached out to fill him in, though after Billy's spell, it really wasn't necessary. He was just frozen as he stared at his mother for the first time in his active memory.
"Nice to meet you," the younger Billy said with a small smile, waving at K with the tips of his fingers. "I guess I get to meet James' parents after all."
"And you're already one of my favorites," K told him when she turned their way. She set her mug aside and crossed the kitchen, then looked up at James. She barely beat him to it when she wrapped her arms around his neck before he scooped her up in a bear hug and held on tight.
"They both needed that," the older Billy whispered to Rachel. "She's been having a rough time too."
"Sorry to hear that," Rachel whispered back. "She seems okay."
"She likes to play house to relax, and she's happy to see this James happy. Hers hit a rough patch about a year ago. He's doing better now, but he's still struggling."
"How rough?"
"Yours is about a hundred times better adjusted."
"Wow, William," K said over James' shoulder. "You make me sound like a neglectful parent."
"I'm pretty sure they're all old enough to know you can have a loving family and still have issues not related to that part of your life," Billy pointed out.
"Still," K said as James finally set her down. She looked between the two boys and then gave the younger Billy a bear hug too. "You leave out how he got to be so screwed up. Just like you forgot to tell me this sweeter, younger you is dating my oldest son."
"They're pretty darn cute together, huh?" the older Billy said with a grin.
"Yes. Yes they are," K agreed with a troublemaking smile. "He makes you look good, Billy."
"Hey," the younger Billy said. "We both look like movie stars."
"It's not a pick at you, my precious little stargazer," K promised before she kissed his cheek. "Come on. You both need something more civilized for breakfast than the Pop Tarts that were in the cabinet."
"Yes, please," Billy agreed fervently.
K led him over and kept an arm around both boys as she told them what they should do before she slid them each a plate that was ready to go, leaving the older Billy simply grinning over the scene as the kids all enjoyed themselves.
Once they were all eating, K sat down next to James with her coffee and waited to see what their plan was and to answer any questions they had for her while they waited.
It was pretty clear that James was deeply enjoying the morning with his mom. Even if she was from a different reality, she was enough like the one he'd seen in his memories that he couldn't stop looking at her, though for the life of him, he had no idea what to even ask her or what to say. So instead, he just decided to bask in her presence.
And K could see how deeply this James missed out on having a mother. Naturally, she didn't press him on anything and instead stuck close and did the same thing he was doing, even if it was seriously tugging at her heartstrings. They were thoroughly enjoying their quiet coffee time together when the doorbell rang, and K was on her feet before the boys could beat her to it. "I've got it," she promised. She waved Rachel off as she passed her by. "Seriously. Relax."
"It's okay," Rachel said, but when K projected to her, Rachel backed off. Especially when the message was that she expected all four of the kids that had been involved to spend the day recuperating.
K took just a moment to smooth her shirt over her stomach as she always did, then opened the door with a pleasant expression, though she wasn't expecting to see a rabbi standing there looking as if she'd already thrown cold water on him. "Hello," she said, then smiled warmly. "Can I help you?"
Rabbi Cohen took a moment or two to get his feet under himself before he could answer, though K didn't press him on it. "Yes." He looked past her to see Rachel sitting on the stairs, waving her fingertips at him. "I don't mean to intrude. Scott and I have a standing appointment for coffee, but if he's occupied-"
"He's not in right now," K said, but that only had Toby looking more surprised.
"You can come in and have coffee if you like, Rabbi Cohen," Rachel offered, and K turned to look at her long enough to nod her head once and then open the door wider to let him into the house. "Dad won't be gone all day, and I know you'll like the coffee that K made better than the stuff Dad makes."
"It's really good," James agreed from the kitchen table with Billy.
Toby stepped in, bewildered that Scott had left his kids alone with this tiny, attractive stranger.
"Come on," K said, closing the door behind him and then leading the way to the kitchen. "I was just feeding the zoo. You're welcome to join them."
"I'm not sure I should," Toby said, though he was smiling in spite of himself when he saw the way the kids were so comfortable around her already.
K looked over her shoulder and then turned on her heel to face him even as she picked up her mug from next to James and headed for the coffee maker. "It's kosher. You're fine."
"Alright then," Toby agreed, taking the seat nearest Billy and watching the whole scene for a long moment. "I'm sorry, but I'm afraid I'm at a disadvantage here. I know I would have remembered Scott saying something about a friend coming by."
"It was a surprise visit," K answered as she worked up more crepes. "He hasn't seen me in a long time." She set up a plate for Toby as Rachel grabbed a cup of coffee for him, and as soon as K handed him the crepes, James straightened up with a little smirk as she sat down with him.
All of it had Toby in a state of shock - but the kids were comfortable with her, and she seemed perfectly at ease with them, so naturally, he started to wonder as he had his breakfast what the story was there. And how much of that story he could figure out before he got to talk to Scott.
Meanwhile, Scott had arrived at Craig Hale's office, irritated further when Logan went with him. "You don't have to hold my hand," he grumbled.
"You want me to wait in the car like a dog?" Logan challenged, knowing it would rile Scott.
Scott pinched the bridge of his nose. "Obviously not."
"Then what are my other options?" Logan asked. "Cruise the downtown pickin' up chicks to introduce you to?"
"No," Scott said.
"Drink at the bar? Start a fight … well. Maybe that one."
"Fine. You can just... Fine." Scott shook his head as they waited, though it wasn't long before Craig came out to introduce himself.
His Southern accent was as strong in person as it had been over the phone, but seeing his bright smile in person as well as his brown hair and slightly plump size… All at once, Scott realized that this therapist and Nate's teacher must have been brother and sister to look so much alike. "Oh hell, you're all conspiring," Scott muttered to Logan under his breath.
Logan was chuckling at him by that point. "He's a good guy," Logan told him low enough that Scott barely caught it. "And I'm pretty sure he won't try to seduce you. But who knows."
Scott gave him a ridiculously dry look even as Craig introduced himself to Logan as well. "You must be the friend from the phone call."
"You bet," Logan replied.
"He's a professional pain," Scott said.
"He only says that when he knows I'm right," Logan said with a smirk.
Craig nodded. "In that case, why don't you tell me what you're right about? I've found that if someone's loved ones are concerned enough to push for a meetin' like this, it's good to ask."
Logan turned to Scott and held his gaze. "It's time," Logan said. "He's been struggling for years. Lost a lot of people that were important to him at once and ended up raising three kids alone because of it. He never got the chance to cope. So … it's time."
Craig looked between the two of them and nodded before he invited Scott back. "Well, I just want to take some time to get to know you and see what you need. We'll set up a schedule for future visits once I've got my bearings, alright?"
Scott let out a breath and then followed Craig back, leaving Logan to wait for them to get done.
A couple hours later, Craig was actually the first one to leave the room - though Logan could see into the room that Scott was seated still and had his head in his hands. Without a word, Craig crossed to Logan and then pulled him aside, his expression urgent.
"You can't leave him alone," he said. "At all."
"I know," Logan said.
"I'd recommend hospitalization if I didn't think it would make it worse."
"Can't do that to him," Logan said, shaking his head.
"No, isolation would be devastating for him," Craig said. "Which is why I'm talking to you. You can't leave him alone, and I need to know that you have the resources to do that or if I need to get involved."
"He's got a good support system that he's been ignoring this whole time. I'll make sure he isn't alone if I gotta handcuff myself to him to do it."
"Good." Craig shook his head, looking just like the Annie Hale that Logan knew as he worried his hands through his hair. "Every morning at this time until further notice."
Logan nodded at that. "He'll probably try to go quiet on you," Logan warned.
"Yeah, not my first rodeo," Craig said.
"Well saddle up," Logan said.
"Who do I need to talk to to get clearance for whatever happened?" Craig asked, then held up a hand. "I've treated plenty of soldiers with PTSD. I know when someone's holding back details because they hurt and when they're holding back because it's not something they can reveal."
Logan gestured to Scott. "He's the guy. If he's holding back, it's because he's waitin' for me to finish lookin' into you to make sure he can open up without backlash."
Craig nodded at that. "It's a good thing he's got a friend like you."
"That's part of the problem," Logan said. "But once you hear more, you'll understand."
Craig nodded again as Scott finally decided he had enough of a hold of himself to join them. "Alright, Mr. Mueller," Craig said, "you've got a standing appointment every day at this time except Sundays. My sister and I go to church together Sunday mornings." He pointed at Scott. "But if I think you're slipping, I'll make an exception."
"I don't think it's necessary-"
"It is," Craig said.
Logan was doing a good job of keeping his expression under control as Scott did exactly what he knew he would as went quiet. "We'll make the arrangements," Logan said. "Don't be surprised if you get a rotation."
"I'd be happy to see it. Support systems matter," Craig told him honestly.
"C'mon, Slim," Logan said, dropping his hand on Scott's shoulder.
Scott let out a breath but knew he couldn't argue without making Craig more determined, somehow, so he headed out with Logan, still shaking his head to himself. "You knew he was related to Nate's teacher, didn't you?" he asked once they were in the car.
Logan stopped and turned his way. "Nate's teacher?" he frowned as he thought it over. "The one he's flunking history with?"
"Yeah, I told you about that stunt," Scott said, shaking his head.
"You didn't tell me what her name was," Logan pointed out.
"No, but you must have talked to Nate," Scott reasoned. "You were so convinced just from his name."
"I've got my reasons, and not a one of 'em has a thing to do with Nate."
Scott turned to face him fully. "Okay, tell me what you know."
"No," Logan said, shaking his head. "Figure it out yourself."
"You obviously trust that family," Scott said. "And I know what a high bar that is."
"So don't question it," Logan said.
"I just want to be sure this family is the same in this universe," Scott said.
Logan held up both hands. "I … will have K do the digging."
"Because Craig told you not to leave me alone," Scott said dully, his expression going blank as he turned toward the windshield again.
"Because K can get into their faces, and they won't know who she is," Logan said. "She can blend in anywhere and you know it."
"Fine."
"You rather she stuck with you and babied you while I ran it down?" Logan asked. "Because all I gotta do is tell her what he said …"
"No," Scott said, holding up a hand. "And you really don't need to spend all this time…"
Logan sighed. "Our Billy - the one with universes in his eyes - he's the most powerful being there is. He can drop us exactly when we left. It's not an issue, and since we don't really age, no one will notice if it's a few weeks or even longer."
Scott let out a breath. "I'm fine, Logan. I'll go along with this whole thing; you know I will. The kids need me to do it."
"And I'm telling you: he's not wrong," Logan said, shaking his head. "What's it gonna hurt to admit that you need a little help to get you back on your feet? Or would you rather lay it all on the kids?"
"No, of course I'm not going to do that to them," Scott said. "I just meant I can handle it so the kids won't have to worry."
"You can't do this alone," Logan told him.
"I thought that was the point of going to go see this guy."
"It is, but it's not just that, Scott." Logan shook his head. "Yeah, don't listen to me. That's okay. It's not like I've been locked up in a loony bin before to tell you what the story is."
Scott let his shoulders drop at that, and he scrubbed a hand over his face. "I'm just…" He sighed. "I'm sorry," he said, which wasn't something Logan was used to hearing from him.
"You got nothing to apologize to me for,' Logan said. "All I'm trying to tell you is that you're close to gettin' locked up if you don't do something stupid to yourself. You do not want to do that if you can avoid it. As much as you like a schedule, you don't want to be treated like an invalid, so just … do as this guy says and let your old team help."
Scott was quiet for a long time before he let out a loud, long breath. "I'm trying," he said at last.
"I know."
"I'm not ignoring you either. It's just… this is difficult for me," Scott clarified.
"I know," Logan said again. "You think I've ever been the guy to talk about my feelings? Come on, Scotty."
Scott smirked at that. "Fair enough," he agreed, falling silent for the rest of the drive home.
When they got back, Scott was already pretty worn out. It was exhausting just talking about all that he'd been trying to shoulder - and if he was being honest, he'd only given Craig Hale a peek into everything that had happened. He couldn't just … open up to someone like that. Not without knowing everything about him. So he was looking forward to seeing if this K was as proficient at digging up dirt as the K they'd lost so many years ago.
In a paranoid move Scott had missed seeing, Logan sent him in first as he decided to take a sweep around the neighborhood … just to check things over. Which left Scott both staring after him for a moment and trying to shake the realization of how much that Logan used to do that he'd taken for granted. So he was entirely off his game when he stepped into his house to find Toby grinning at K as if she'd brought him the answer to the meaning of life.
"How'd it go?" K asked as she got to her feet and headed over to pour up more coffee.
"It … was alright," Scott said as she slid the mug to him. "I'm going to need to talk to you privately about that."
"Just tell me when," she said with a nod, then tipped her chin toward Toby. "You forgot to cancel your coffee date." Scott looked over at Toby and shook his head as K continued on, already back to James with her mug in one hand. "But now that you're here, I'll just take my favorite boys to chat and leave you to … whatever it is you usually do."
"Thanks," Scott said on his way to the table, where Toby was grinning wider. "Have you been here long?"
"Just long enough to meet her," Toby said, gesturing toward K as she and James headed toward the living room with Billy on her opposite side. "Honestly, Scott, if I knew you had someone like that coming around, I wouldn't have kept trying to set you up."
Scott couldn't help the grin when he saw K stop cold and whirl around on her heel. Toby had no idea what he was bringing down on himself.
"It's clear the kids love her already, so when can I perform the wedding?" Toby asked with an unrestrained grin.
"What?" K said, though she'd only taken one step back toward them and was still halfway between the kitchen and the entry. She met Scott's highly amused grin and shook her head. "No." She shook her head, dipping her chin down almost to her chest as she stared between the two of them. "No … I … no." She took a few steps backward, nearly bumping into James, though as he reached out to avoid the collision, several things happened at once.
Scott broke out laughing, Toby looked as if he clearly had no idea what had just happened, and Logan came in with a crooked smirk on his face to look between the gathered group. He took one look at K and how she was clearly beyond words, tipped his head to the side, then looked toward Scott as he took a hold of her elbow. "What the hell'd you do to break her, Slim?"
Scott was still laughing as he shook his head. "Not my fault she has terrible taste!"
K narrowed her eyes and pointed at him again. "My tastes are just fine. I would break you." As Logan took K's coffee with one hand, he pulled her over to steal a kiss, just to get her to return to her usual sassiness - and it worked perfectly, as evidenced by the fact that as soon as the kiss had ended, she turned toward Scott with one finger pointed his way. "So far out of your league, hero."
Which Logan found hilarious. As did James and Billy. "I thought you were on board for buildin' his ego back up," Logan teased.
"That - no," K said, turning on Logan. "Too far." She went through a full body shiver as Scott laughed harder. "Ugh. You'd be worse than him with the kids thing."
"No," the older Billy said. "Stark would be worse."
K and Logan both turned toward him, though Logan was smirking as he pulled her closer. "You're really not funny, Harbinger," K said.
"He's just throwin' down a challenge, way I see it," Logan teased quietly. "We can prove 'im wrong."
"Just telling the truth," Billy said, his galaxies swirling brighter. "Small army of super geniuses."
"I can't decide if you're on his side or if you just want me to kick you," K said, which had the younger Billy laughing to himself.
"That's where you get the lack of fear, huh?" he laughed under his breath to James, who nodded with a muted 'mmhmm'.
Scott was still clearly in a good mood - something he'd sorely needed after that chat with Craig Hale - as he put a hand on Toby's shoulder. "Old friends," he explained.
"Uh-huh," Toby said, frowning as he looked between the newcomers. "Are you going to explain why I'm seeing double?" He had assumed some sort of familial relationship with the version of Billy that had silver in his hair, but the older version of James was too much to ignore.
"Different universe," Scott explained as casually as he would any other development in their lives. "Older Billy… and that…" He paused, his expression softening. "That is Wolverine and K."
Logan paused as he watched Toby for a moment, though K blew what little sneak he had at the first opportunity. "My beloved wants to know who your neighbor is," K said to Scott, half holding Logan back with one hand. "So talk fast if you don't want the third wheel."
At that, Logan gave her a dry look, then shooed her off with the boys so he could dive in with Scott and Toby - invited or not. "How close are you two?" Logan asked.
"We have coffee a couple times a week," Toby answered.
Logan turned to Scott for verification, and when Scott nodded, he turned back to Toby. "You up to helpin' him out?"
Toby leaned forward, already nodding. "What's the problem?" He knew there was more going on than a simple visit, seeing as Scott wasn't even fully healed yet from whatever had him looking so rough - but he'd been so tickled to see K that he hadn't gotten around to asking yet.
"He needs people watching out for him that won't believe the crappy 'fine' line that he's gonna pull when he's havin' a hard time." Logan crossed his arms. "Can you do that? Call him on his crap?"
"Why do you think I come over as often as I do?" Toby pointed out, though he was frowning hard. "What's changed, Scott?" he asked seriously, all trace of his earlier good mood gone.
Scott shrugged and let out a long sigh. "I dealt with the problem."
Logan frowned deeper at that, then reached over to poke him in a sore spot hard enough to get a good reaction. "With help, no plan, and by the skin of your teeth."
Scott glared at Logan before he shook his head and looked away again. "James dealt with the problem," he corrected himself.
"Yeah, that's not the part that's got me checkin' into your friends," Logan said. "It's the half-assed plotting you did ahead of time - with an even sloppier backup … that you never told when to be in place." He held Scott's gaze for a long while. "Your brother's lookin' for a place to stay nearby that'll give you a little breathin' room."
"My brother has more important things to do right now, considering the mess of things on that island right now," Scott said impatiently.
"Wanda has most things covered by the sound of it," Logan said. "Oughta be a public announcement soon. For now, though, Alex is runnin' interference with Lorna and still kickin' himself on why he didn't push to make sure you were set before this went down the way it did."
"Happened fast," Scott said, his gaze beyond both of the others at the table.
"Uh-huh," Logan said, nodding slowly. "You know … that'd work comin' from just about anyone on the planet but you. Your backups have backups, and everyone knows where they stand. Try again."
"It did," Scott said stubbornly. "I went in to give him one last chance, and he blew it, and I had to move. That's it."
Logan simply raised one eyebrow. "Fine. You need Warren, Betsy, or 'Ro to move in - or should I tell Alex the boys can bunk up to make room for him?"
"No one's moving in. God, Logan, who asked you anyway?" Scott snapped back.
"You're right. I'm free for a while," he said, stepping past him to get more coffee. "Billy can get us back whenever we need to go. No rush."
Scott leaned forward and rubbed his eyes before he glanced up at Toby. "Ignore him. He's a professional pain."
"Alright … but what's he saying that's wrong?" Toby asked. "You do always have backups and redundancies and extra options on everything. Why don't you tell me what happened? What really happened? And don't say you did already, because things changed after you went with the kids this spring. And it got worse after that military thing went down, too. And professional pain or not, it's pretty clear your friend is concerned for you. Concerned enough to come from another universe? That's not just because you forgot something."
"I like this one," Logan said, then turned toward the fridge with a line that would get Scott worked up. "How old do the kids gotta be to buy beer here?"
"Shut up, Logan. You know damn well you're not buying them beer," Scott said irritably, rubbing his eyes again before he met Toby's gaze and sighed. "It went sideways, alright? I didn't get a clean hit because I'm rusty, that's what happened. And the kids came to get me because Billy had me… I don't know. 'Magically wired in case of emergency' is strangely the only way to explain that."
"Smart kid," Toby said. "I guess that makes sense. No good way to practice for something like that."
But that had Logan laughing into the back of his hand. "Not without askin' for help, anyhow," Logan said. "Still have trouble believin' you'd lose a fair fight with Buckethead. Even blind," he added, which had Toby raising his eyebrows. "Never stopped you before."
Scott rolled his eyes. "Damn, Logan, is this how you treat the retired heroes in your universe? They must feel great about themselves."
"Nah, I'm takin' it easy on you," Logan said flatly. "Cause the ones that've retired haven't tried to take themselves out of the game like that."
Toby didn't say anything at first, but he did hold up one finger between himself and Scott as he gathered his thoughts. It took a good couple of minutes for him to decide on the right path to start, though Scott hadn't said a word to defend himself from what Logan had said.
He drew in a breath, then sighed, only to repeat the quick, audible motion. "Do you know what that would have done to those kids?" Toby said softly.
Scott sighed. "Toby…"
"Scott. Honestly. What do you think each of them would do? How would they react to that kind of news at this point in their lives?" He kept an open expression, trying to get Scott to get back into his usual habit of thinking a dozen steps ahead or more. "Start with Rachel."
"Toby, it didn't happen that way," Scott said almost gently.
"No, but you had to have considered how they'd take it if it had." Toby reached over to rest his hand on Scott's arm. "And you didn't have your million different brilliant strategies in place to prevent it. So … that made it a more likely possibility. So … Rachel." When Scott only locked his jaw down tighter, Toby let out a sigh. "Fine then. Let's go the other way. Nate."
Scott's lips were pressed into a thin line before he let out his breath and shook his head. "I left instructions-"
"That's not what I asked. That's admitting you had a plan for the worst on how to provide for them. But that doesn't tell me how they'd handle it," Toby said.
Scott pinched the bridge of his nose. "I swear," he said. "I swear I went in with every intention of coming back out. This is getting blown out of proportion."
"Except your brother didn't know about the first opportunity, right?" Toby said. "It's not blown out of proportion if I can't even get you to answer simply what your kids would do if you hadn't been able to make it out."
"I promised James I would, Toby," Scott said, and he'd meant to shout it, but it came out at a whisper. He let his shoulders drop. "I promised," he said again, still feeling like he'd failed on so many levels, not least of which being the one thing he'd done right since he lost his team - being a father.
"Yes, I'm sure you did," Toby said. "And I'm glad to hear that, but I'm not asking about him, and I'm not going to ask about the other two again either. Not when I can see you know what the answer is and it's worse to you than actually not coming back." He forced a small smile. "Let me help. Wherever I can. James is still showing up twice a week. Now at least I have a heads up on what we need to discuss, too." Then, he tried for a bit of levity. "Another shock, Scott? How long has Billy been coming over here?"
Scott shook his head and almost managed a smirk. "Guess it took a transdimensional visit to get him here," he joked, even though he'd heard Billy ask to come home and was prouder than he could say that Billy's home was with his family.
"See, you say things like that, but Scott, it's not normal," Toby teased. "I'm not even sure I know what that means."
"Welcome to the X-Men," Scott said dryly.
"So," Logan said, leaning on the counter. "You want in on the rotation to get him to therapy? Or do I need to make sure whoever's drivin' you has enough juice to make you go?"
"He'll go with me," Toby said calmly. "And of course, I'd be happy to join the rotation."
"I'd like to see that," Logan said with a nod. "I'll talk to the others before the next appointment."
While Logan and Scott were making practical arrangements for the near future and how to get Scott the backup he needed, K had decided after watching Billy be nervous for the last ten minutes that it was time to go get a drink from down the block. She made a point to give both of them a kiss on the cheek, then got to her feet. "I'll be back. Just going to get a little fresh air, watch the perimeter … you know how it is."
"Not yet, but I'm learning," James said, which earned a pleased but proud smile from her before she headed for the door.
"All the same, you two need a moment alone. Stay here; be adorable. I'll be back before you know it."
James watched her go but was still shell-shocked from the time they'd been spending with his other dimensional parents. But Billy had things that needed to be done, too.
"So," Billy said as he took James' hand and drew his attention back to him. "I need to go back home with Tommy. I don't know how long it will take, but I know that I can't - and don't want to - miss it." He looked anxious as he readjusted how he was seated with James, who very suddenly didn't look like he could quite look Billy in the eyes. The guilt was that easy to see.
James wanted to reply with something more reassuring than what he had to offer. The simple "I'm sorry" that had been said over and over just … it wasn't enough, and because James had been the one that had dealt the fatal blow, there was no way that James could have gone with Billy to pay his respects. It didn't matter how horribly he felt about it; it would ring hollow and only serve to hurt Billy and his family, as far as James was concerned.
The very real threat on James' life was inconsequential to him at that point in time, and the fact was that James honestly felt like he deserved it. In trying to preserve his father's life, he'd taken the patriarch of Billy's family.
"I'll be back as soon as I can," Billy promised. "I don't want to walk out on Mom or Aunt Lorna before they're okay, though."
James nodded his agreement and swallowed, staring at their hands before he ran his thumb across Billy's. "I'll just be here with Dad. And Logan and Mom." He finally looked up to meet Billy's gaze. "I wish there was something I could do…"
Billy reached up to rest his hand at the back of James' neck before he leaned toward him to rest their foreheads together. "Just try to remember that I don't blame you, okay? Neither does Mom or anyone else that matters."
"Well, I blame me," James said. "Does that mean that-"
Billy leaned forward the rest of the way to steal a kiss and stop him from finishing his sentence. "You know what I meant."
"Yeah," James breathed out before he pulled Billy over to wrap him up in a tight hug. "I'm still sorry for everything."
"And I'm still just glad you're alive."
"Love you too."
Chapter 63: Royal Succession
Chapter Text
News was finally starting to leak out of Genosha just before the state funeral that Wanda and Lorna had planned for Erik. All of the official things had been taken care of, and for all intents and purposes, legally speaking, Wanda was now officially in charge of Genosha. The ceremonial part would come later as a means to ease the people of Genosha into their new era with Wanda at the head.
But none of that was the real focus just then. Most if not all of Genosha had turned out to pay their respects to Erik. His most radical and devout followers had tried to step in, offering to carry the casket, but Lorna had decided that wouldn't be the best message to the people of Genosha. Instead, she alone handled the task by levitating his coffin to the open-air auditorium where everyone would be allowed to pass by to send him off by before the ceremony started.
Crowds filled the seating and lined the streets, many of them weeping, though no one was going to speculate if they were tears of sorrow or joy, since Magneto had been ridiculously heavy-handed in keeping Genosha exactly as he wanted it and refusing to let those that weren't coming to live there even visit. Much of Genosha was sorely missing family who had long ago only said goodbye as a means to keep their mutant members safe. Not everyone had hateful family, after all.
The royal family was in their finest, looking perfect right down the line - even Alex had gotten a fresh haircut to Lorna's liking and was spending every spare second that he wasn't snuggling one of their kids holding on to her and showering her with situationally appropriate affection in the form of little kisses when she'd lean toward him or reassuring squeezes while their daughter held onto her.
Wanda looked every bit the monarch where she stood with Vision and the twins - steady, even, and collected - though the family knew how anxious she was about taking the public stage when it had looked for so long as if Erik would simply hand things over to Billy when he had felt he'd had enough of being a statesman. She was entirely unprepared in many ways but still far more prepared than Billy could hope to be at such a young age.
Before the prayers started, Wanda made a point to reach out and take a hold of both Tommy and Billy's hands with Vision a step behind them as they made a unified front for the crowd and the press.
Steve and Tony had made the trek to Genosha - the first non-mutants allowed publicly in years - to pay their respects and, more importantly, support Wanda when she needed the backup. Near them was also representation from the X-Men in the form of Bobby, Kitty, Angel, and Storm with her family. Mia was doing her level best not to look too wide-eyed at the magnificent sparkling city around her - or the vast number of physically mutated individuals that set the tone for not one person staring at her in the crowd.
No one from Scott's family had attended or even honestly entertained the idea of doing so. Information had managed to leak out to Erik's most rabid supporters about how the old king had died, and already, they were calling for blood. They knew that Billy had been in attendance but had taken the stance that the boy had been forced into helping them, so both Scott and James were on the top of their list. Already, there were rumblings from a few that both Scott and James should be tried and publicly executed in Genosha for their crimes. Not that Nate or Rachel had been seen as entirely innocent either. By virtue of their being there, they had people looking for them for the crime of tampering with Billy's mind. They seemed determined to overlook the fact that Billy and James had been dating for a long while. The conspiracy theories flying were elaborate and not at all flattering to anyone in the Summers clan.
But the ceremony itself was lovely, and not at all the over-the-top affair that Magneto's followers had wanted to see. It was tasteful, respectful, and outlined Erik's greatest accomplishments, glossing over his most maniacal moments to focus on the man that his daughters and grandchildren knew best, finally exposing him to the world as the family man that he was. It was a side of him that few people knew about - and those that did were almost exclusively his family.
There wasn't much of a lull between the end of the funeral and the start of Wanda's coronation. The royal family had changed clothes, of course, as a means to illustrate the difference in mood. For Erik, they were mostly in black, but for Wanda, everything from their color schemes to their mood was lighter as she went through the understated ceremony that was performed mostly by Lorna, though Billy and Tommy both had their roles, along with Alex's kids. It was a little thing that Lorna had suggested - that all of them attest in front of a crowd that they supported Wanda in her rule as a means to stop any trouble before it started.
As soon as the ceremony was over, the group headed into the palace for a quiet celebration that was well attended by the royal family, the X-Men, and the Avengers that were more than happy to try and tread the line between respectfully acknowledging Erik and outright celebrating Wanda.
But it was also a once-in-a-lifetime chance for Tommy to show Mia around his home. He'd wanted desperately to take her there, and yet, he hadn't done it sooner, having known that bringing her there when his grandfather was still in power would have been a massive breach of trust with her mother. For as deeply head-over-heels as Tommy was for Mia … he didn't want to screw anything up. And he hadn't wanted Mia to be subject to his grandfather's insanity, either.
He couldn't quite focus on the what ifs or much of anything else over dinner - which was far less formal than the dinner the Summers family had in welcome to Genosha. Not when all he wanted to do was to take Mia to his favorite place in Genosha and show her what he loved best about his home. It was the first time he was nervous about showing someone around. So he didn't know what to expect when he got her up to the top of one of the mountains near the hydroelectric dam just before sunset and then immediately couldn't stop bouncing on the balls of his feet as he waited for her to react.
Mia smiled as she looked around, taking in the view - and waiting slightly longer to say anything than she would normally purely because she knew Tommy was about to come out of his socks waiting for her opinion. But then, with her bright yellow eyes sparkling, she spun to face him and threw her arms around him in a hug. "It's beautiful here," she told him. "I feel like you can see everything all at once."
Tommy grinned brilliantly. "That's what I like about it. Anytime things get too dramatic, I end up coming up here to remind myself, hey, I live on an amazing island that would be a prime vacation spot if it wasn't a one-way ticket for anyone I'd brought." He kissed her and then grinned again. "Plus, can you imagine if it snowed here?"
Mia laughed. "I take you sledding one time and you're addicted."
"That's because it was amazing."
Mia laughed again and kissed him for good measure, which really just precipitated a longer non-discussion on the privacy of the mountaintop.
Not every tour of Genosha was hitting the highlights, so to speak - since almost as soon as the funeral was over, while Wanda brought Steve and Tony under her protection, Bobby lead his fellow X-Men to Erik's prisons - which were, the X-Men quickly noted, bigger than they'd expect to see relative to the size of the populace. And considering how often Bobby had been there, he had a pretty good handle on who was there for disagreeing with Erik's policies and who was there for actual crimes.
Kitty had already been there a few times to make sure Bobby was alright, but for Warren and Ororo, the extent to which Erik had been imprisoning his people was physical evidence of how far he'd fallen from his missive, a fact that Bobby emphasized as they walked further in. "I mean, Magneto added a wing or three the last few years, but they didn't exactly get cozier. C'mon, I'll show you where the original wings were. There's still some people there for, like, long-term stuff. Most of it's deserved, but Remy's been back there since forever…"
Ororo paused, looking down the aisles and hallways as if evidence of her old companion would materialize out of thin air. The prison itself was made of metal, but a lot of it was old and dark and not at all pleasant. "Why didn't we come here immediately?" she asked. "And what did he do?"
Bobby shrugged with both hands outturned. "Okay, so, the stuff he stole was definitely just to irk Magneto? But then it just kind of…"
Ororo's shoulders dropped. "He was making bombs again, wasn't he?"
"Well, he sort of got in the most trouble for the attempted prison break. My idea, his know-how - just kinda got caught."
"His bombs," Ororo said, though she started striding down the hall all the same. "He's been here this whole time?"
"At first, he was kind of in and out like I was? Mostly causing trouble because Magneto said we couldn't leave? But then the last, oh, five years? Ish? Once Magneto started getting super controlling again and paranoid, our little prison break scheme got Remy a life sentence, and I only got out because Kitty had my alibi."
"If he's dead, I'm going to arrange to have Magneto raised from the grave so I can kill him myself for locking both of you up at all."
Bobby shrugged with both hands in his pockets. "Kinda what we do, isn't it? Do the right thing, try to help people speaking truth to power, get locked up for it and then do it all over again?"
"It seems as if the pattern is changing," Ororo said, and though she was being as positive as she could, she was still furious - as evidenced by the gathering clouds far above the prison. "Lead the way. If we can't find a key, I'll have to let him out myself."
As they traveled through the prison, they saw a few familiar faces - and all of them looked entirely downtrodden and weary for the time they'd spent there. And Bobby was on friendly terms with even those the other X-Men didn't know. Storm's eyes were flashing with every casual story Bobby dropped, like, "And she organized a protest to get human family here - didn't work, obviously" and "He was the mastermind behind this great push for holiday visits. Most creative signs I ever saw made out of bioluminescence…"
"Get all of them out," Ororo said, her voice shaking ever so slightly since, this was the first time she'd been around a prison at all since the whole team had been caught up with Graydon Creed. "No one spends one more minute in this hellhole."
Kitty and Bobby shared a look and Kitty started working to set as many of them free as possible - all while Ororo kept a steady, determined stride deeper into the prison. She had a goal - and she wasn't going to stop until it was met. When they got to Remy's cell, naturally, the keys were nowhere to be seen, and before Bobby could even start to look for they key, Ororo started picking the lock. She couldn't even see Remy, but Bobby swore up and down that the corner cell in near-black shadows was where Remy had been locked up that whole time.
"Whatsa matter?" Remy drawled out from inside sounding weak and weary. "You forget how to use a key? What kinda slow fool they get to bother ol' Remy now dat can't even work a key?"
"Don't have a key, but I brought Storm," Bobby called back, grinning. "That work for you?"
There was a beat of silence before Remy spoke again. "You best not be makin' up stories again, Rober'."
"Would I lie to you?"
"Yes, you sho' would."
"Okay, would I lie to you on this, the day of Magneto's funeral?" Bobby asked, grinning somehow even wider because he knew the news hadn't hit the prisons.
"Who finally kill de ol' battle axe?" Remy asked with a bright chuckle. "I know he ain' gon' die from old age and comfort."
"Would you believe a combo of Scott and James Howlett?"
"No," Remy said, sounding perfectly scandalized. "Dat boy ain't old enough to go causin' trouble wit' ol' fearless." He let out a scoffing sound. "And besides. Dat is not de kinda ting that Slim do."
"Remember how mad he used to get when anyone threatened the kids?" Bobby leaned back. "Magneto wanted to kill James."
"Stormy if you truly there," Remy called out. "You closest. Hit him for me - just for old times, would you? I cain't reach him yet."
"Hey, I didn't do anything!" Bobby laughed.
"Just spinnin' tales, is all," Remy accused.
"'Ro, tell him I'm not lying," Bobby said.
"I'm not telling either of you anything while I'm concentrating on this ridiculous lock," Ororo said. "Both of you can be quiet for a few moments."
"Stormy," Remy said, the smile apparent in his voice. "You de prettiest 'ting ol' Remy seen since comin' to dis here mess of an island."
"You can't see me yet," Ororo said, shaking her head.
"Don' matter none when I'm right."
"He is," Bobby put in, just to get a huff out of Ororo.
"You're both terrible," Ororo said half of a beat before the last tumbler fell into place and she gave the door a pull. Remy was inside, shackled and chained tightly enough that he had no hope of getting his hands to meet. He was filthy, scrawny, and obviously uncared for entirely if the long, matted hair and full tangled beard were any measure of how utterly abandoned he'd been - outside of basic care to keep him alive.
"Remy right still," he said, then twisted his hands as much as he was able to show his palms up. "Don't suppose you got it in you to handle mebbe one or two more lil' ol' locks?"
Ororo nearly dropped her picks as she stared at the state of him for a long moment, then rushed across the cell, swearing to herself under her breath in every language that she knew as she tried to keep her touch on the tumblers light, even if she wanted to jam the picks through the stupid cylinder.
While Ororo worked, Bobby stepped through the door too, and winced when he saw the state of affairs. After all, he'd have been in the same situation if Kitty hadn't somehow convinced Magneto that he'd been (badly) flirting with her instead of plotting with Remy. "Told you I'd get you out. You know. Eventually. You look terrible, by the way."
"Better'n dead," Remy replied a moment before Storm got one of the shackles open. He reached over to try and help only to get his hand slapped away.
"If you were capable of getting out of it before now you would have. I came all the way here and through this blasted prison to get you out… I am not going to spend one second more here that I don't have to," Ororo said, sounding entirely short at his attempt to help. Which was about when Bobby realized that Ororo simply hadn't been around any prisons.
"Hey," Bobby said quietly, taking in their surroundings more carefully. "I'm sure Remy can unlock himself if you want to make sure Kitty has things under control. He really just needed a free hand and a pick."
"I'm almost done now," Ororo said, though it took her a few extra seconds before she did, in fact finish picking the lock. As soon as the shackle fell open, she threw her arms around Remy in a tight hug. "You are coming home."
Remy smiled and pulled her in tighter in response, though his strength simply wasn't anywhere near where it should have been. "Miss you too, Stormy."
Once the hug broke, Bobby slipped in to help Ororo get Remy on his feet, directing the way out. He wasn't exactly comfortable down there either, but it had to be pure torture for Ororo to be in the dark, underground prison and to be reminded of all that had happened. And really, Kitty and Warren were handling freeing the prisoners just fine, so Bobby didn't mind going straight to the fastest path to sunlight anyway.
As soon as they were out in the open air, Bobby let Ororo and Remy find a spot to sit and then thumbed over his shoulder. "So, I'm gonna grab some food and stuff," he said, more as something to do than anything else before he left.
"If I had known you were being treated like this," Ororo said, shaking her head as she let the sentiment fall. She didn't know what she would have done, but she knew she wouldn't have ignored it.
"Not a way you coulda known wit'out bein' right dere wit' us," Remy assured her with all the warmth he always held for her.
"I still feel as if we should have done something," Ororo said as she reached out to get his hair out of his face. "You need a trim. And likely a decontamination."
"What, you mean ol' Remy don't look dashin'? You must be seein' tings."
"Perhaps after you've had a sandwich. And a shave." She smiled to herself. "I'll buy you a gym, too."
Remy chuckled. "Cain't say no to dat," he teased. "Prolly should look more like my usual self 'fore I see how much yo' lil Mia growed up."
"You'll need to do it quickly, then," Ororo told him. "She's here, with me." She gestured toward the center of the island. "Or, with her sweetheart, more like."
"Oh?" Remy leaned forward, suddenly more engaged. "And who dat be?"
"Tommy Maximoff," Ororo replied evenly.
"Ah," Remy said, nodding sagely. "Well, you know what dey say 'bout funerals happenin' in pairs."
"I thought it was in threes," Ororo said. "Which, I believe if anything were to happen to Tommy, she would hunt down who did it. So … three."
Remy shrugged easily. "Ah, but she gotta catch Remy first."
"She could catch you as easily as Kurt always could."
"Now den, Stormy, you jes get me outta dat prison to hurt me so?" Remy teased.
"I've missed you more than you know," Ororo told him. "If I don't pick on you now, how will you know how much I love you?" She squeezed his arm. "Come on, you do need to get cleaned up. You can tell me how you found yourself in such dire straits - and I can tell you how we came to visit Genosha."
She pulled him along, not taking no for an answer as they headed off toward where the family was staying. "Mia won't be back until much later," Ororo told him. "So we have time to catch up."
"Good, 'cause you been sorely missed too," Remy said, still smiling at her. "'Course, 'twere probably a good ting you missed out on the ol' man's jails. Cain't imagine you'd've taken dem any better'n Bobby, and he jus' bout lost his mind de first time he t'rown in."
"I imagine that if I'd been caught by him or his servants, I'd have likely fried them with lightning before it had gotten that far," Ororo replied. "But you're right. I would not have done well to go back into a cell of any kind. I had wondered how Bobby managed to handle it enough to joke about it - even with his sense of humor."
"Practice," Remy said simply. "De first time he come out…" He shrugged lightly but was frowning as deeply as she'd ever seen him do. "Me an' Miss Kitty do what we can to keep him out, y'know?"
"You didn't seem to do too well on that front yourself," Ororo pointed out.
"Man tried to say ol' Remy cain't go to Mardi Gras, Stormy," Remy said as if that was the height of insult.
"Remy Etinne LeBeau, please do not tell me you found yourself in chains over Mardi Gras," Ororo said with a sly smile, since she knew that wasn't the case - but she wouldn't rush him into the story without teasing either."
"Okay, den, I won't tell you dat," he teased right back.
"Then it was likely a girl."
"Both de princesses, yeah," Remy said, his grin turning more troublemaking.
"Ah. That would do it," she said, nodding to herself. "And likely why Magneto's penalty for dating the royal family escalated."
"Don't need to worry 'bout Mia on that count," Remy pointed out. "Dat is if Iceman's tales are true."
"His story is true," Ororo said. "But according to Tommy, there were quite a few hopeful young people that ended up dead because of Erik's overprotective streak."
Remy sighed. "Sounds right," he admitted.
Ororo took a few moments, inspired by a little time with Logan, to give Remy an abbreviated version of events. "Erik made a few threats in the wrong direction and ended up expiring quite suddenly as a result. Wanda's coronation was earlier. Both the funeral and her ceremony were lovely."
Remy laughed outright. "You mean to tell me he was tellin' de truth?"
"Hard to believe, but yes, yes he was."
"Dat puts lil James wit Billy, den…" Remy laughed. "Alrighty den."
"I thought you'd appreciate that," Ororo said with a sly smile.
Remy grinned even wider. "Not many prospects in a cell. Gonna have to make up for lost time, me."
"I'm sure you will be overrun with options as soon as you're back to your charming self."
Remy nodded, drawing himself up. "Sandwich and haircut and you gon' see 'em line de streets."
"I'm sure they'll be just waiting their turn to catch your eye." She leaned toward him to give him another hug. "And not just on the island."
"You did say we goin' home," Remy pointed out, wrapping her up warmly.
"I did. And I believe a cup of chicory coffee will be waiting for you there."
"Knew you love ol' Remy," he teased, wrapping her back up - and the two of them settled into an easy back and forth as they caught up on everything that had happened.
Things had been overly busy in Genosha - for most everyone in the Maximoff family. Wanda was swamped in details as she stepped into her new role as leader and in the wake of Magneto's funeral, she was doing everything she could to keep her head above water.
Tommy was not so discreetly spending every second he could with Mia -and a lot of time he technically shouldn't. But no one was going to touch that when he was so happy.
And while Vision was spending his time close to Wanda as always - watching for security threats and analyzing everything and everyone - Billy found himself with more spare time alone than he'd anticipated.
He'd been able to push back a lot of what had happened by staying busy. He didn't have to think about how his grandfather had died if he was helping his parents. Or keeping Tommy out of trouble. Or watching Remy try to be both the snuggliest uncle to Mia and the most intimidating uncle to Tommy. Or any of those things.
But the thing was… when he was by himself, he started to think about the little things that were sticking in his memory. Like the fire smell that lingered in the air around Rachel when she was so close to losing it. Or the way blood that hadn't dried yet felt sticky on his hands. Or the sound that his grandfather had made when he was stabbed. Or the unnatural way Scott's eyes had sunken in. Or… or any of it.
And he knew - he knew -that Tommy had been teasing and upset and worried and all the things that Tommy always was when he said that there would have been less drama if he'd come along, but what if Billy had actually thought that far ahead? What if he'd gotten Tommy there to end the fight fast and help him get everyone out and to help?
His grandfather would have been furious, of course, and would have kept coming after Scott and James and probably Rachel and Nate too, if Billy was honest. But they could have done something different, right?
Billy sighed and ran his hands through his hair again. Even his mom had seemed resigned to the fact that her own father was putting himself on the path of his own destruction, but Billy was sure he could have done something. He knew his mom had told him about her old mistakes and made him swear not to change people when he changed reality, so he couldn't have changed Erik but… but still…
"Don't. Please."
Billy looked up, surprised, to see that the older version of, well, himself was standing there. And for some reason, the first thing Billy thought to say was, "I thought you weren't coming to Genosha. Weren't you sticking with James and Scott?"
"They're doing fine with Logan and K," the older Billy replied. "I came here, not just for them, but for you, too."
Billy shrugged and looked down again. "I'll be okay. It's just a lot, you know?"
He nodded, looking exactly as Billy'd seen himself do, which was a little odd, but that was to be expected. "I do know. And I know what happens if things don't work out right - which, I hate to say it, but this … this was the best case scenario for most everyone involved."
"Really?" Billy gave his older self a dry look. "The version of this where James hates himself, his dad is barely keeping himself going, my grandfather is dead, and everyone thinks I got telepathically forced into helping them do it - that's the best version?"
The older Billy waved one hand. "The people saying that stuff won't hold anyone's attention for long - and yes, this is still the best outcome." When his younger self didn't look convinced at all, Billy sighed, though he knew it was coming anyhow. "I can tell you what happens in the other scenarios. It's more or less the same with minor differences here and there, but I'd rather not show you unless I have to. It's ugly."
"There's got to be one where I thought to bring Tommy and James didn't have to kill my grandfather," he said softly.
"There is," the older Billy agreed. "And James didn't kill Magneto. But Magneto did kill James. And Scott."
Billy narrowed his eyes. "What? But that's not-"
"The dampener was on before anyone showed up. Tommy couldn't speed in there any faster than anyone else, but the distraction was enough that Magneto pulled the knife out of James before he could hit him back." He shrugged. "So the Summers kids got to watch and Scott got to hear him die, just like he heard James' parents die."
Billy kept shaking his head. "No, there's got to be… there's got to be a way we figured something out without anyone dying in that room."
"Sure, but James still died when Magneto decided he was too much of a liability, and so did Kate Summers for marrying a mutant - which … Magneto made illegal. There's another one where James lives a little longer, but in his attempt to get back to you, he gets picked up by Hydra. You're still going to want to watch out for that anyhow. He doesn't have the experience to resist all the horrible things Viper would do if she can get a hold of him."
Billy bit his lip but nodded. "It just… feels like … I mean, he was my grandfather. I should be, I don't know - shouldn't I hate James or something? Or … I feel like I can't figure out what to do."
"If you weren't there to see it yourself - to know that it went down the way it did and to have seen the hatred Magneto had for James, yes, you would hate James for what happened. But you saw what happened. Magneto had been escalating and he fully intended to kill James sooner or later. Just like he killed all the others. You know it wasn't a malicious thing on James' part, but if you do decide to break it off, be sure you really think it over, and that it's really what you want to do."
Billy frowned and shook his head. "No… that's just it. I don't want to do that, but I feel like I should, you know?"
"That's your grandfather talking," the older Billy said gently. "He was grooming you for most of your life to follow in his footsteps. And it's still up to you on how you go forward."
Billy let out a long sigh. "Any chance you could give me a hint? I'm still trying to get my feet on solid ground here."
"What kind of a hint do you want?" The older Billy smiled. "Because … if it's relationship advice …"
"Just… tell me if me and James can work even with all this crap, because I don't want to make things worse if we're headed for a crash and burn," Billy said earnestly.
"Is that what you want? To stay with him?"
"I think so?" Billy closed one eye.
"It's not a trick question. Really. I just don't want to influence you one way or the other before you have your mind made up."
"Then… yeah. Yeah, I think so. I'm… I'm about ninety-percent sure on that one, yeah."
"Then yes, it can absolutely work out." He broke into a teasing smile. "Of course, there's one version of events where you split now and he more or less becomes just like Tony Stark. Don't hope for that one. That leaves a wake of broken hearts with vendettas."
Billy couldn't help but laugh. "Oh. Wow. That's strangely specific." He smiled and leaned back. "But I'll take it. Thanks."
"You're welcome," the older Billy smiled softly. "And honestly, you don't have to decide right now. You can take some time first. Talk to a professional - either one that doesn't know who you are, or one that's not intimidated by the crown. It would do you some good whether you stay with James or not." He shrugged. "In fact … if you don't want to talk to any of the ones that the Summers kids know, or the ones that Jan might suggest, I have a great suggestion for you." With a flourish, the older Billy produced a business card out of thin air and handed it to his younger self - with the information on how to make an appointment to talk to a psychologist by the name of Rebecca Kaplan.
Chapter 64: Support System
Chapter Text
K didn't take hardly any time to run down Craig Hale … and everyone and everything he held dear. When she was done, she made her way over to Scott during coffee and dropped her pristine dossier in front of him so he could comb through it himself, effectively distracting him from the news coming out of Genosha. "They're clean. All of them. All of them, all their friends, family, the whole group of them are all pro-rights for all and your picture perfect example of classic southern morals - the good ones. Not the redneck light a torch kind," K told him.
Scott blinked in surprise. "That… paints a picture," he said, already opening the file to get into it.
"I try to paraphrase in a way that both summarizes neatly and makes you want to know more," K said sweetly on her way to grab a cup of coffee.
"Well, mission accomplished," Scott said, shaking his head as he tried not to react too much. He'd missed this too.
K pulled up a chair across from Scott, though she was very sure that he hadn't noticed she was blocking the exit as she settled in for coffee with him and the kids. It wasn't something she normally liked to do - stick around while someone read her work, but … she figured that Scott would probably think she was just worried about him and wanted to stay to clarify. Especially since that's pretty much what everyone else had been doing thus far.
And while she was there, keeping track of Scott with a fat folder of intel, Logan had gotten his Billy to take him over to the institute to have a word with the headmistress and her staff. The group of them had just returned from Genosha, and they gathered up as soon as Storm had asked them to. Even Bobby and Kitty had made it there, glad to put Genosha behind them and to let Wanda run things there - but before they could get into the marathon of the same questions everyone asked, Logan held up a hand to stop them.
"Short story is that I was brought here to help. That's all you really need to know about me," he said. "I know you all went through the wringer, but it's high time you got together again for a bigger cause."
"Bobby and I already told the kids we'd join up in the new team," Kitty said, though she was staring at Logan like she wanted to drink in every second she could see him.
"I'm not talkin' about the team," Logan said, smirking crookedly at her. "Though I'm glad they'll have you to whip 'em into shape, half-pint."
Kitty smiled a little wider when she heard it. "Missed you."
"Love you too," Logan said, then shifted his focus slightly since for him, it was a lot harder to see Kitty smiling and brightly ready to dive into the fight. "Scott needs your help and the damn mule won't admit it."
Bobby seemed to straighten up at that and then leaned forward. "It's that bad?" he asked, thinking of how Scott had been talking on Genosha.
"Yeah," Logan confirmed. "By some miracle, I got him to talk to a doctor, but he needs to get there every day - same time until the doc says it's time to ease up. You can imagine how well ol' Fearless took that."
"Not well at all," Warren surmised, though he wasn't surprised at the news after he'd gone to donate some blood.
"I drove him there, hung out, waited for him to finish, and I got a talkin' to from the doc informing me he can not be alone under any circumstances. At all."
"I didn't realize the situation was so dire," Ororo said, looking crestfallen.
"You know as well as I do if he wants to hide it, no one'd know how bad it was, Ro," Logan said. He paused and turned her way fully. "When we're done with this, I needed to talk to you anyhow. Other matters."
"You know my door is always open to you," she said with a fond smile.
Logan nodded and again, spread his focus across the group . "I need to know who can take the time to help him. There should be some kind of rotation figured out to keep him around people. Even for as little as I've been here, Rachel keeps tellin' me to keep doin' what I'm doin' - and I'm tellin' you, he's not that reactive to whatever crap I throw at him, so those kids? They're used to him acting a lot worse than we're seein'."
"Rachel's been worried about him," Betsy said quietly. "For a long time."
"She's been scared to death she's gonna firebird all at once, too," Logan agreed. "But I think that might lighten up if she isn't so worried her dad's gonna off himself."
"He was thinking of doing it on Genosha," Bobby said in a quiet tone no one had heard from him before.
"Yeah, and James talked him out of that before he showed up to do in Erik," Logan agreed. "He's gotten a little better but he's still right on the edge."
"And some guardian angel brought you in to get us all involved," Betsy surmised.
Logan held his arms out wide. "What can I say? It's my secondary mutation."
"Of course we'll help," Ororo said. "We couldn't possibly turn our backs."
"Good," Logan said, nodding to himself as he let his shoulders drop. "I think I've got it for today - or part of it. You need to figure out who's goin' back with me to start up though."
"I'll go," Ororo said, her tone leaving no room for argument. "Kitty can make a rotation in the meantime."
Logan nodded again, and looked as if he wanted to say something, but couldn't quite get a grasp on it yet. But before he could quite get going, Kitty was the one to break form and then all but tackled him in a hug.
"I missed you so much," she breathed out.
"Missed you too," Logan replied just as quietly as he held onto her tighter than she was expecting, fighting to keep his composure.
Kitty frowned but decided not to ask him why he had any reason to miss her, instead holding on tight until she finally, slowly, peeled herself off and wiped her eyes. "I just… thanks," she said. "For everything, okay? I never got to say it enough, and I just love you, okay?"
Logan was shaking his head at that. "Goes both ways. You made me proud of you every time I turned around."
Kitty nodded and sniffled before she latched on again - which set off a round of hugs from everyone there who really had missed him. It took Logan some time to finally get past them so he and Ororo could head back to Scott's house in Brooklyn.
Ororo's eyes were still shining as she smiled Logan's way, though she hadn't said anything yet, simply drinking him in.
"So you know," Logan said as they headed off. "It's not just Scott I'm worried about, Ro."
"Oh?"
"James was the one that had the final blow on Erik. He doesn't remember a bit of it either," he told her quietly. "I've talked to him about it while I've been here, but you know … you know how that hits a person. You've seen it enough. Kitty too."
"Yes, he told me as much just after it happened. You know that I'll watch out for him," Ororo promised.
"Rachel needs a light touch," he told her. "She's so stressed out about what might happen if she loses control - you know that's a recipe for disaster."
"I know," Ororo told him. "Betsy has been working closely with her, and Nate and James both have been wonderful with her in the few scares she's had."
Logan shook his head. "That's not all, Ro. She has to learn to harness it or when it finally does decide to come out, she won't have a prayer."
Ororo let her shoulders drop, but she nodded along quietly. "I know. I've talked to Scott about it, and I know that they were working together before the X-Men debuted and Magneto showed his face again."
"Don't tell her to hold it all in all the time. I know you're all layin' low for now, but she needs to start small so she can build up the mental muscle to handle it when it's bigger."
"There hasn't been anywhere safe to practice," Ororo admitted. "The school is watched closely."
"Then tell Stark to make a place. If you can't, I'll sic K on him before we go."
Ororo smirked at that. "As entertaining as that would be, Tony Stark has actually been one of our best allies. He still feels guilty about what happened, and he's done everything in his power to help us when we ask."
"Then he can work something out for you," Logan said. "He can see potential. That means he can see the potential wreck this will be if she can't handle it when the time comes."
"I know," Ororo said in a breath. She leaned back. "We've spent so long in the shadows, Logan."
"Time to step into the light," Logan said.
"Those kids are leading the charge," Ororo said with a fond smile. "I know they have their own issues, but Logan, I'm proud of them too."
"They're good kids," Logan agreed. "So teach 'em everything you can. I didn't get much time, but I tried to go over a few things with them. You could do a helluva lot better."
"Believe me: I've been hearing the same thing from Mia," Ororo said. She sighed. "It's just difficult to change when we've been living a desperate attempt to keep history from repeating itself. I know it's time, and Bobby and Kitty both have agreed to come onto our staff as teachers specifically to help us build the school back to its old splendor." She smirked. "As strange as it sounds, they're 'new blood'. Living on Genosha as long as they did, they've been using their powers much more than we have."
"Gonna have to get back into it, windrider."
"I do miss it," Ororo said with a smile. She reached over to rest her hand on his arm. "We are stepping into the light, my dear friend. I hope you won't worry too much about us. I believe we really have turned a corner."
"If things go too far south again, I'm sure Billy'll bring us back to help."
"As much as I love your presence, I'll try not to let it get that bad," Ororo said, letting her smile fall. "Especially if it means risking our fearless leader. I knew that he was struggling, but I don't think anyone thought…"
"You know if he's showin' any signs at all it's bad," Logan said. "He'd always hide it otherwise."
"Yes, but you didn't see him at the time it happened," Ororo said.
"No, I didn't," Logan agreed.
"I don't mind telling you, Logan: that was the lowest I have ever seen him."
"Good thing it can't happen again like that," Logan said.
She nodded. "It changed all of us," she admitted. "But it changed the world as well. Even though we retreated… I think Mia and the others have a point. Losing the X-Men showed the world what we were truly doing. I have to hope that means the path will be easier for them, even if they are starting out essentially where we were."
"They'll do fine," Logan said, covering her hand with his. "They got you and Scott."
"And they will have both of us for as long as possible," Ororo said fiercely. "I won't lose any more friends."
"No more like that anyhow," Logan said almost sheepishly.
Ororo sighed and then squeezed his arm. "This is different," she said. "You're only a visitor. I'm happy to see you, but you're not the same man we lost."
"No," Logan agreed. "I have my wife and my kids."
"I'm glad," she said. "You deserve to be happy."
"We do what we can," he said, smirking at her. "And you're one hell of an aunt to them."
"I am a goddess," she pointed out, smirking right back.
It wasn't long before they pulled in to Scott's house and Logan gave her one last look while they were alone. "I doubt you'll get as much of a fight out of him as I do."
"He needs you sometimes too," Ororo said. "I hope you keep yours in line."
"We're doin' alright," Logan said. "He's white-haired in my reality."
"Please tell me that's because he's much older and not because he stressed himself into it."
"It is," Logan said, smirking. "But it could be both. His son and my daughter are married."
"No." Ororo broke into a laugh. "That's beautiful."
"They grew up together, and were more or less goin' back and forth with crushes their whole lives."
"Then it was meant to be," she decided, then leaned over to squeeze his arm. "You're so lucky."
"Don't I know it." he pulled her closer to the door. "No tellin' what we're gonna find in there. I left 'em with K 'in charge'."
Ororo laughed outright. "Oh, so she's teaching them Swedish and how to draw and quarter their enemies."
"Likely," Logan agreed with a chuckle, and when they stepped inside, K had the kids and Scott around the table playing some ridiculous card game where they all had a card stuck to their foreheads - and she was, as Ororo had predicted - insisting that everyone only answer in Swedish to get their points. And Scott was right behind K in points.
Ororo couldn't help but grin when she saw it - especially when she saw that every single person at the table was laughing and enjoying themselves. "Oh, I've missed this," she said.
"Great, let's join 'em," Logan said - quick to slip into the seat directly across from K. Scott caught his breath enough to look between the two of them and shake his head.
"Oh no. They're going to cheat off each other if we let them," Scott said, even as K and Logan didn't bother looking at anyone else at the table - already going through their miniscule cues and prompts.
"Like Nate and Rachel aren't already," James pointed out, shaking his head and enjoying every second well enough that he wasn't really thinking about how guilty he'd been feeling.
"I didn't realize you were coming," Scott told Ororo as she sat down at the table on Rachel's other side.
"As you can see," she said tipping her head to either side of the table where K and Logan were clearly giving each other cues, "we can't keep them here forever."
"No, of course not," Scott said. "They've got their own kids to get back to. I know."
"I forgot how much flirting went on all the time," Ororo laughed.
"It's been nonstop this whole time," Scott said with a grin. "Explains why they apparently have a small army just on their own back home."
"As if our Logan and K wouldn't have done the same given the chance?" Ororo said.
"I know they would have. They were already having a 'discussion' about having more," Scott said.
"Did she show them to you?" Ororo asked.
Scott nodded. "She's got pictures on her phone - which, by the way, is way more advanced than anything I've seen, so they're pretty far ahead of us, timeline-wise."
"I'm not surprised," she said.
Scott nodded, then turned her way and let his voice drop a little. "So, what did Logan tell you?"
"That he needed to go home - possibly to work on another one by the look of things - and that you could use the support system."
Scott nodded at that and let it drop, not about to say anything more if he didn't have to volunteer more information. "Thanks."
"You're welcome, Scott," she said, then leaned over so the kids couldn't hear - particularly over the laughter and calls of 'no fair' from Rachel and Nate as the ferals showed them how cheating was done right. "One of your friends will be there with you every step of the way. Starting with me."
Scott let out a breath. "I'm sorry to take you from the school…"
"The school can survive a day or two without me," Ororo said. "I want to be sure the same is true for one of my dearest friends."
"I'm not going anywhere, 'Ro," Scott said softly.
"Good," Ororo said. "Then I get to spend some time catching up with you." She rested her hand on his wrist. "I have missed you, Scott."
"I'm sorry about that too," Scott said. "Maybe I should spend more time in Westchester."
"I'd like that," she said. "We can always find openings for those that want to teach."
"Maybe when the new school year starts up," Scott said. "I'll think about it."
As promised, Ororo went with Scott the next morning to his session with Craig Hale. Theoretically, since K had run down the man's background, Scott should have been more relaxed, but what actually happened was that he was steadily quieter as they got to Craig's office. Everything K had done told him he could tell Craig the full truth - now the only thing holding him back was the simple fact that he didn't want to talk about it.
But he had promised to get help. And to try to get better. He'd even promised Jean to go back and be there for their kids.
Still, he was dreading it.
If Ororo could tell that he was already ready to back out if not for the promises he'd made, she tactfully didn't say anything except to walk with him and wait in Craig's waiting room as Logan had done. And though Scott wouldn't admit it, having someone there waiting for him also cut off another avenue of avoiding this particular conversation; he couldn't just walk out.
The session started pleasantly enough. Craig asked about Ororo, since she was a new face and he was glad to see that Scott had multiple people in his support system.
At first, Scott gave the same answer he always did, that she was an old friend and ran the private school two of his kids had attended. And then, knowing Craig had follow-up questions to the story he'd already heard bits and pieces of, Scott tried to put it off that much longer by giving Craig the truth about something else: "Storm," he said softly. "Her name was Storm. Back when we were X-Men."
Craig raised an eyebrow but then started to smirk. "I thought I recognized your friend yesterday."
Scott shrugged openly. "Long story."
"Well, I've got time. It's not often a dead man brings a client to my doorstep." When Scott turned his way more fully, Craig kept an even expression. "I'm a therapist in New York City. If you think I haven't helped people through the fallout of Avengers, X-Men, Defenders, and every other battle this city has seen, you haven't been paying attention to the way this city keeps itself standing."
Scott very nearly smirked. "Fair."
"So, why don't you tell me how Wolverine brought you here, and we'll go from there."
"That isn't the long story," Scott pointed out. "He's visiting. He'll be back in his own dimension soon."
Craig leaned back and rubbed his eyes with his index finger and thumb. "Lord help us," he muttered. "That's the short version, huh?"
"More or less."
"So he's not the same Wolverine you lost?"
Scott's smirk fell, and he leaned back slightly. "No," he said, barely resisting the urge that had been more insistent lately to touch his face. He'd done that a lot in the immediate aftermath of everything Graydon Creed had done. Even if the scars were healed, they were still there.
"Then how about I do my job and listen to this story?" Craig suggested. "If I need clarification, I'll ask, but I don't know how to get started unless we start. Then, when we're through, if we have time, you can introduce me to your friend. I'd like to meet your back up."
"She probably wants to meet you anyway."
"I'm going to bet that's going to be a recurring theme," Craig said. "How many people will you be rotating?" He held up both hands. "I'm just assuming there will be more if the first guy isn't going to be available long term."
Scott shrugged lightly. "You'd have to ask them."
"After you tell me your story."
Scott sighed. "Right," he said, though he still didn't know how to start, which meant Craig was waiting patiently for a long time before Scott finally decided to approach the story the way he'd done with James, his gaze on his hands as he told Craig the whole thing at once - no details, just facts. He didn't raise his gaze, and he gave even less of the story to Craig than he had to James, explaining who had died and how as well as why he'd taken James in as well as his kids when he knew James needed quiet and safety.
Of course, Craig had questions. Like the significance of certain players, since he didn't know the backstory on anyone and he wanted Scott to talk about the ones he was tying to avoid. And he wanted to know Scott's story behind the scars - especially when Scott kept touching them when he spoke about Logan - but he wasn't going to ask that just yet. Not when it was clear that even saying the names was enough to set the man back. So he had to try a different approach.
"Why now?" Craig asked after a long moment of silence. "You've been coping for all these years. Not well, I'm sure, but you've been coping. What happened to change that? Was it that your son has been ousted publicly for who he is?"
"No," Scott said, shaking his head gently. "No, it's…" He sighed. "The international news doesn't have the full story out, but Magneto is dead."
"And you know the full story …. How?"
"My son killed him - after Magneto almost killed me." It wasn't an admission for himself; he just didn't want Craig to think James was a cold blooded killer.
"I think I might need to hear that story too."
Scott nodded tightly. "Some of my old teammates were on Genosha; they were able to tell me what Erik was like at home as well as when he was attacking people off the island." He paused. "If the professor was still around, he would have talked him down."
"And I'm going to take a guess here - you tried to do that in his place?"
"I did," Scott said in a sigh. "I was willing to give him every chance … until he threatened James' life."
Craig frowned at that. "I don't understand what …. Or why Magneto would want to threaten your son," he said, then shook his head to refocus as it was apparent that Scott was magnificent at gently shifting the subject. "How did you go from trying to talk him down to your son doing him in?"
Scott let his shoulders drop, rubbing the back of his neck and leaving his hand there. "My son knew I was going to face Magneto. And he knew … he knew what the man was capable of. He asked his teammate, Wiccan, to cast a spell to take him to me if my life was in danger." He gestured with one hand. "I haven't been Cyclops in a long time. I've practiced and kept up my defenses, but I hadn't been in a fight for a long time, and it's different. Especially blind. I haven't done that in a while either."
Craig drew in a deep breath. "Blind?"
Scott paused and then stopped himself from reaching for his old scars. "I have cybernetics in my eyes," he explained tersely. In his mind's eye the sound of James calling for Magneto to stop was exactly the same as a young James demanding his dad or Scott on the other side of a wall in his memory moments before he lost his vision and his powers.
"And Magneto …. Made use of the metal in the circuitry." Craig nodded quietly to himself for a long moment. "I think, Scott, that you are extremely blessed to have the people around you that you do."
"I know," Scott said.
"Did anyone else know about the spell that Wiccan cast?" Craig asked.
"I didn't even know," Scott said.
Craig had his hand tented over his mouth as he thought it over. "Then maybe you can tell me how close your friends are to you? Physically, that is. Clearly, they are like family to be taking turns already to try and help."
"We always said that the X-Men were family," Scott said softly.
"Alright, but is that morning coffee family, Sunday dinner family, or just write at Christmas and Easter with a card on birthdays?"
Scott shook his head and met Craig's gaze. "You have to understand, for most of us, the X-Men were all we had. We were more than family."
"I do understand that," Craig said gently. "I've treated my share of mutants that had been rejected from their families because they were born with a gene that their parents thought was wrong. But that's not what I'm asking, and I promise you, I'm not judging. How close are you to them now?"
"Well, I don't live in Westchester anymore," he admitted, frowning. "We live in a quiet neighborhood in Brooklyn."
Craig shifted how he was seated to square up with Scott better. "Your family and friends clearly care deeply for you and want to help. You have experienced a recent trauma that is triggering old ones - and I know none of that's news to you. But, see, my problem is that if you were anyone else, I'd be strongly advocating for an in-patient program. You should not be alone. At all. Not until you're past this. Now … I'd consider your children as a good source of help, because it's clear that they care for you, but …" here Craig took a moment to reorganize how he needed to present this. "For one thing, I don't feel right asking anyone that young to watch out for their parents unless there is no other option."
Scott's jaw was locked as he nodded wordlessly. He knew Craig was right; the kids were too young. He was just waiting for the other shoe.
Again, Craig paused, watching Scott carefully for his reaction as he continued. "Honestly, just as concerning … your son would clearly do anything for you. And I believe that includes trying to spare your ego and your reputation with the rest of your family." Scott looked up at him, but couldn't argue it when it was so plain that Craig was right. "I asked about the rest of your family because you really should be around people that know this story and understand what you've been through and what you've seen. And you should be around them 24/7 … not forever, but until you can process all this without carrying it so heavily." He tipped his head, knowing he had another ace up his sleeve. "And to be honest, it would probably help the kids through the fallout from their stresses as well for them to see the rest of the family rallying to help you. It may help them see they don't have to carry it all themselves. They can reach out."
"They're already ahead of you," Scott said, almost smirking as he thought of Logan and K at his house. "I've been informed they're on shifts."
"Good. I'm glad to hear it. So … who will be staying with you first?"
"Ask Storm."
Craig nodded and got to his feet. He quickly crossed the room and left the door open as he went out to quietly ask Ororo to join them. Once they were in his office again and everyone was seated, Craig posed the same question to Ororo after a quick explanation on what he thought needed to be done first. Which was, of course, keeping someone with Scott at all times that wasn't under his care.
"The kids can't be included in the rotation - to start," Craig said. "Even the oldest is too young to handle this now. They can make their own appointments or come to his appointments, if Scott's alright with that, but they can't be considered the responsible adult to keep an eye on all of them." He turned to Scott for a moment before Ororo could answer. "And by the way? All three of them should be seeing a therapist as well. I don't know how Genosha will handle things, but I have to imagine your son should be prepared to face murder charges there at least. That isn't something to gloss over, even if it was justified as an act to protect you and defend himself."
"I'll speak to them about it. James is already talking to someone," Scott said.
"Good," Craig said, sitting back and looking a little more relieved. "Now … I'm sorry to interrupt myself there, Ma'am. Do you have a plan in place?"
"We do," Ororo said, frowning toward Scott. "I'm only sorry to hear how necessary it is, but we do have a plan."
"To be honest, that is my policy for anyone who's been through something even half as traumatic - to have someone close at hand," Craig said. "I'm afraid even the older teenagers aren't adult enough to handle things properly all the time."
"I completely agree," Ororo said. She smiled warmly at Scott. "Besides, our family has always come together in defense of each other."
"Wonderful," Craig said. "I'm sure Scott can fill you in on what we've discussed. I like to encourage my patients to talk to their family after sessions if they can. Same time tomorrow Mr. Mueller?"
"That's the plan," Scott said. He got to his feet, and seeing that Craig wasn't going to add anything else, he nodded to himself, letting out the breath he didn't realize he was holding before he slipped out the door.
"Ms Munroe," Craig said. "If I can borrow you for just a moment - there are a few things I like to give patient's families for reading material and some things to consider."
Ororo stopped and then nodded, though her frown had deepened the corners of her mouth. "Of course."
Craig pulled her aside and though he was pulling together a whole stack of pamphlets and flyers, he also made sure to point out a couple of things that he'd seen that looked like red flags as far as showing stress from the traumas - and reliving those traumas each time. Like the way Scott was touching the scars - though he was sure she'd seen that herself. Or the way he would hold his breath - not a full breath like he was weighing out answering a question … more like halfway between breaths as if he was trying to keep from being seen or if he was bracing himself for something horrible. Or how he was staring at his hands. All of those things were clear markers to Craig .. and he was sure someone who knew him well would find more.
Ororo listened silently to everything he said, nodding quietly. "He's been far from home for too long," she said at last.
"Then maybe you can work toward fixing that, too."
"It's time," she agreed. She tipped her head toward his pamphlets. "And these?"
"Maybe you'll find something helpful. Maybe they'll just be something to give you an excuse to have walked away for a few minutes."
Ororo smiled more warmly at that. "Oh yes. Logan was right about you."
"I don't know what he could be right about," Craig said. "He was only here while we had our first session."
"He picked you out," Ororo said.
Craig looked honestly confused. "I'm sorry, he did what now?"
Ororo smiled kindly. "I doubt he'll explain himself, but I have always trusted his judgment when it matters. I don't know if he knows you in his world or if he researched you, but he found a therapist sympathetic to mutants who thinks tactically and has treated trauma cases before. He was right to choose you." When Craig simply looked flabbergasted, Ororo smiled. "I look forward to seeing you again, Mr. Hale. I wish you luck."
Chapter 65: Deep Breath
Chapter Text
Meanwhile, the Summers kids were still enjoying their extra-dimensional visitors. James was plainly soaking up every moment he could in a way that had Rachel and Nate doing the same, though the two of them were enjoying watching James as much as they were enjoying taking in things with Logan and K.
The Howletts were like no couple they'd seen before for how affectionately close they were at all times, regardless of who was around them. And the attentive way they both took care of each other - and James … and Nate and Rachel and Billy and Kate, too - as if it was effortless was kind of hard to look away from. K was constantly leaning into Logan and he was endlessly wrapped around her - only breaking apart during meals when they were out of coffee, and more often than not, Logan handled it before K could consider it herself.
He'd just sat down with her refill when there was an insistent knock on the door and before he could move, she stole a quick kiss and was on her feet, insisting that she had it covered before the kids could get to it.
K was almost to the door when she heard the complaint from the other side. "You're taking too long, kiddo, come on," Tony said, and that was enough to get her to hesitate. She didn't want to set him off - and she wasn't sure where this universe's K stood with Tony before she died. And she'd seen a few alternate realities already. She knew that her feelings for one person or another really didn't matter in any of those worlds. So, she took an instant to take a breath before she pulled the door open.
"Keep your shirt on," she said as soon as the door was cracked open. Tony had turned toward her - ready to say something snappy, but he froze when he saw her. He had his mouth half opened and one hand at chest level, so when he stopped, K really didn't know which way he was going.
Until of course, Tony let out a disbelieving sort of sound and stepped forward to wrap her up in a tight hug right in the doorway. "Woah, easy. It's okay," she said, though at that, she returned the hug almost as tightly. "Tony. What's wrong?"
"I was not expecting to see you," he said quietly, and on hearing his tone, K snuggled in and even turned to kiss his cheek.
"Were you utterly lost without me? Couldn't stand to go on?" K had to tease just because she'd had to hear it not too long ago herself when she was triaging her reality's Tony after a near Death experience.
"Yes."
K squeezed him a little tighter for a moment. "Yeah, love you too." She gave him a few more moments to pull it together before she drew back slightly with a smirk. "Don't suppose you'd want a cup of coffee with me, would you?"
When Tony stepped back, K took his arm and let him lead the way, at least as far as where Logan was waiting for her with a smirk. "You know she's comin' back with me, right?" Logan pointed out.
"Yeah. That just … You two disappeared too fast on us."
"Wasn't us," Logan pointed out. "Not really."
"Yeah, I know how interdimensional travel works, thanks," Tony said as he finally stopped staring and got himself a cup of coffee. He barely got a sip before he was shaking his head with an appreciative smile. "Yep. Really is better when you make it."
"James is learning," K promised. "He can't go back to whatever you people had told him was good coffee."
"I really can't," James agreed, though he was frowning slightly at Tony. It was just perfectly fitting that he couldn't hold back his questions to Tony, even if he still hadn't gotten a good handle on asking anything of Logan and K. "Why are you … what is the story with you two?"
"He likes to torture himself with unattainable things," K said without missing a beat, with Logan nodding along next to her.
"Same in every reality I've seen," Logan agreed, then looked up at Tony. "Why are you here, Stark?" He was clearly irritated, but he had been doing his best to be tolerant when he had been enjoying the morning up until then.
"You really can't share for even two seconds, can you?" Tony said, shaking his head as he set his mug down. "I'm here for a couple things. Number one …" he turned toward James. "You were supposed to tell me if you got any other interdimensional visitors."
James gestured between Tony and K. "I didn't realize you had a thing for my mom? So I'm not sorry for not telling you about her being here. But also ...now that I know that, I can't un-know it and it's messing with me."
"No excuse. Gotta toughen up, kiddo," Tony said. "And … as lovely as it is to see K again." He paused and tipped his head to give her a once over like he always did before. "Looking exactly as I remember…"
"Thank you," K said primly, which got a wide grin out of Tony and an understated grumble from Logan.
" … we need to talk about a few things. Like how I need to know what happened in Genosha. All of it."
James hedged. He didn't want to discuss it, and he didn't want to relive anything that he could avoid, either. But K gave him a little smile that totally disarmed him and in short order, James was telling as much of the story as he could remember - not only from his recollection, but from what he'd been told, too.
Tony didn't interrupt him through the whole story, and instead simply listened to the end before he asked a few questions to clarify the finer points. When he'd heard all he needed to, he nodded to himself, set his mug back down then leaned over to kiss K's cheek. "Maybe I'll see you later. Before you go back."
"If not, try not to forget me, huh?" K replied before she shifted to give Tony another long hug. Logan tactfully ignored the display as K took a moment to whisper her thanks for all Tony had done for James, which just had Tony holding on a little tighter until he had control of himself.
"Alright," Tony said finally, stepping back from K and trying hard not to look directly at any of them, though that in itself was a dead giveaway for how emotional he was. "Tell Scott I'll catch up to him later. We have things we need to discuss … you know … when you're not … meeting your parents."
"Thanks, Stark," Logan said in a warm, genuine tone, though that seemed to do more to crack Tony's control than K did and a moment later, Tony was rushing back out to leave James with his parents for whatever time they had left together.
"Damn," Logan said low, drawing the attention of all the kids there. "Guy's damn near got me feelin' sorry for him the way this is goin'."
"He married Jan," James offered. "He's fine."
Logan smirked at that and nodded at how quickly James had gotten on board to pick on Tony. "Sure is."
For a long while, Logan and K answered the kids questions while they waited for Scott and Ororo to return from seeing Dr. Hale, and when the kids didn't have any more questions, they started asking for stories, though those were hard to navigate when they didn't know what was similar and what wasn't between the two worlds.
When Scott did finally return, he was actually in reasonably high spirits, all things considered since Ororo had done a magnificent job of lifting his spirits on the way back. He took a look at the group as they were gathered up, and just as he was finding himself wishing there was a way for James to get … just a little bit more time … Logan spoke up.
"You got a minute, Scotty?" he asked, and Scott nodded without even considering it.
"Of course. What's on your mind?"
Logan redirected Scott and the two of them headed toward his home office, then closed the door behind them. "How're you feelin'?" Logan asked.
"I'm going to daily therapy half against my will and I'm never without my oldest friends lately. I'd say about as good as I've been in years."
"Great," Logan said, then looked over his shoulder as if someone would sneak up on them through the closed door. "I think I need a little longer to make sure James is alright."
"What's going on?"
"He's not processing it yet. Any of it," Logan said, shaking his head. "When it hits, I wanna make sure he'll be alright. It's not … I know he feels guilty. This is more than that."
"What are you suggesting?" Scott asked with a frown - since worrying about someone else was always going to be a thousand times easier than facing his own issues.
Logan blew out a breath and put his hands on his hips. "I'd like to get him out of the city for a few days anyhow. K wants to make sure he knows where a few of our old cabins are so he has a place to go when it gets overwhelming."
"Which is more often than he'll admit to."
"He's young," Logan replied. "He'll grow out of that."
"So … you want to take him camping?" Scott asked with an odd mixture of confusion and amusement warring for supremacy on his features.
"Well if you wanna boil it down to bare bones, yeah. Pretty much. Fresh air will make it easier to shake off the guilt."
"As long as he's up for it and you take all the precautions -"
"I've got precautions you've never seen, Slim."
"Yeah. Too bad you don't know if they'll work on anyone in this reality."
"We'll make sure it does," Logan promised. "Just a few days - let him see how we reset and see if it helps him, too."
"Then - if he agrees, I think that might just be good for him."
James was both nervous about heading off into the wilderness with his parents and excited for it. He had no idea what this trip was going to be, and even though he knew all about camping and basic survival skills from his dad, he just knew this was going to be something else entirely. He just didn't know how different it was going to be.
The older Billy took them to Logan's favorite cabin to make sure no one could follow them. The cabin had fallen into disrepair over the years left idle and empty. It was a scenic spot the likes of which James had only seen in photographs, and much like the first time K had seen that spot - with the Canadian Rockies looming nearby beyond a massive crystal clear lake - James froze and just stared for a moment as Logan and K started getting their plan in place. They didn't push him to react or to respond to anything. Not when they knew he needed to process.
After all, there was camping … and then there was camping like Logan and K preferred to do.
Both Logan and K watched James out of the corner of their gazes as he silently processed where he was. They both felt badly that he had clearly missed out on this - and all that he could have learned if their equivalent in this universe hadn't died and left him without their guiding touch.
What they didn't know was that James was experiencing a severe flashback. They couldn't possibly know that he'd dreamed of those mountains since he was little, or that he couldn't explain to Scott for his whole life what it was that he was dreaming about.
Even when Rachel could easily se his thoughts and dreams, she couldn't place where those mountains were, and between the two of them, they'd thought he'd simply dreamed the place up - or imagined it. But … that wasn't the case.
When James finally turned away from staring at the mountain range and the glassy lake, he pushed down his emotions and headed over to where Logan and K were working together to patch up the aging damage to the cabin.
"This alright with you?" Logan asked, half distracted as he fought with an inner door that didn't want to close properly.
"Yeah. It's … kind of perfect," James said, then blinked twice before he came over to give Logan a hand. He was quiet as they worked, watching Logan with a little more thought now. They worked together, with Logan coaching him on how to fix the little problems that the cabin had going on while K took a quick zip out into the woods to find something to feed them with, which left James and Logan plenty of opportunity to talk about what both of them had on their minds.
But as was the case with most Howletts, in most universes, both of them seemed mostly unable to break the ice, at first. Once they were in a comfortable groove of working together, though, James decided he needed to say something.
"I remember this place," he said quietly, though it was plenty for Logan to catch.
"Yeah? What do you remember about it?" Logan asked, though he kept working and did his best to look nonchalant about how incredibly significant he knew it was if James was bringing it up.
"Just … the mountains. The lake," James answered, then drew in a shaky breath. "I think I remember roasting something over a fire with you?"
Logan smirked quietly to himself and nodded. "Sounds right to me," he said, then paused as he considered everything. He knew the kid was finally reaching out, and that he needed something from Logan. It was just harder when Logan knew it wasn't really him that had been the cause of so much upset for the young man. Still …
"It won't mean as much, I'm sure," Logan said after a while, when the two of them had finally secured the cabin and James had just gotten to his feet. "Not comin' from me, since it wasn't really me that left you." James turned his way with a perfectly open look that Logan simply wasn't used to seeing on any of his kids. "The me that was here ... "
"It's alright," James said. "I get it now. I didn't before, but now that I've seen you two together … losing her-"
"It wouldn't have just been about losing her," Logan said. "I've lost women I loved before." Logan leaned against the side of the cabin and broke away from James' gaze. "My James …" It was obvious that Logan was having trouble discussing it, but he also needed this James to understand things. "He tried to kill himself about a year ago when his healing was shot."
James straightened up as his heart fell, but he didn't get a chance to come up with anything to say before Logan continued.
"We had someone nearby that healed him up enough to keep what he did from stickin', but if he hadn't been there …" Logan looked up at James, and it was plain to see how emotional he was thinking about almost losing his James. "If he'd have managed it, I'd have ended up followin' him."
James stared at him for a long moment. "What about Mom?"
He shook his head. "I was too caught up with my head up my ass to think about what it could do to her, or the other kids," Logan admitted thickly. "It would have been a mess, though, I'm not stupid enough to not admit it now."
After a long moment of silence, James had to speak up again. "I guess I don't … I mean, I understand it, but you have other kids. And you have her."
"And about a hundred years or so of murder and dirt on my hands," Logan said. "I was convinced that I'd screwed him up by bein' there."
"No." James' tone left no room for argument, and it was, in many ways, the same kind of flat, end of discussion tone that Scott often used when he'd just had enough.
"I'm just telling you what I was thinkin'." Logan waited until James turned his angry, hurt expression back to him. "It's not what I think now. The me that took the easy route here - he was wrong. I was wrong, and though it doesn't mean as much, I am sorry for that."
"I don't know what to do with that," James admitted after a few moments, emotional again at how wild this ride was from just a simple discussion.
"Be better than I was," Logan said. "You already are, but just … be better."
Their quiet moment hung in the air for a long while, though it was broken when both of them had to turn their attention toward whistling that was echoing from deep in the trees. As soon as James identified what it was in his mind's eye, the whistling shifted to soft singing in Swedish, and again, he just stared into the trees until he saw K walking out of the woods with three partridge in one hand, singing some old tune to herself as she came up to the little clearing.
"C'mon," Logan said, breaking the spell gently. "She killed 'em, we get to finish the job."
"Is that …"
"Just how we work," Logan said. "I'll take you hunting tomorrow."
"I'd like that," James replied, even as he and Logan started toward K.
The three ferals were in the woods for nearly a week while Billy and Tommy spent some much-needed time at home with their family in Genosha and Rachel and Nate got their fill of fussing over their Dad. But, once it was clear that they'd had some good time as a family to mourn together, and move on together - because though Erik did love them, he had terrorized them all in small ways that none of them quite realized until he was gone and no longer able to manipulate - Billy's mind was wandering more and more as he wondered what was going on with the Summers family. It was early morning in Genosha … but in New York it was still the night before.
James hadn't been answering his texts, which was worrisome, but not too worrisome when he knew from Kate that James had been with his other-dimensional parents doing something. Surely, though, he had to be back home by now.
Tommy had gone back to Westchester just a little while before to get a date with Mia, and Billy hung around just a little bit longer since he was feeling a little guilty himself for not having handled everything differently, even in spite of what his older-other dimensional self had told him. Some things were unavoidable.
But once he'd had time to assuage his conscience, Billy found himself in a rush to get to Brooklyn - back to James so he could get a feel for if he was making the right call to try and stay with his sweetheart. The anticipation was enough to make him think he was going the right way, but … he was still second guessing himself while he was in Genosha.
He appeared in a flash of light in the Summers' family living room, but the only people around were Kate and Nate - apparently he'd shown up shortly after Scott had left with Kitty to go to dinner, just to shake up the monotony of only leaving the house for therapy. Nate swore at the intrusion, one hand up over his eyes as he tried to recover from their makeout session being interrupted so thoroughly.
"Sorry, not sorry!" Billy called out before he made the dash for the stairs. He only made it up a few of them though before Nate shouted from the living room couch.
"He's not here," Nate said before he sat back and recomposed himself.
"Then … I'll just go to his room and wait for him to come back and leave you two alone," Billy replied, laughing still at the curses Nate had let fly. "At least for another twenty minutes."
"No," Nate said in a groan, even as Kate fell apart giggling. "He's not here, as in he's not in the city right now. I'm not even sure where he is, if you want the truth. He left with Logan and K to go … I dunno. Howl at the moon or whatever it is that they like to do in the woods."
"Still? Well … okay. I can just … go to wherever that is," Billy said slowly. He frowned to himself, then finished heading up to James' room just to grab a few things that he could borrow, considering that he wasn't entirely sure what to wear, or what they needed … but he was very sure that a flannel shirt and a fresh t-shirt would be in order anyhow. If it was anything more than that, he'd just have to wish it into being.
He took a moment to focus, then closed his eyes as he tried for as specific a spell as he could muster to go to wherever James was - and hoping he wasn't in trouble.
When Billy reappeared, it was in the center of an old log cabin, and he was entirely alone. For a moment, he didn't move since he'd heard stories about how some of these old cabins had been booby trapped. Maybe he didn't think this through properly.
He heard a splash outside that didn't sound like it was from too far away, and before he really thought it through, Billy headed for the front door and stepped outside to see that James and Logan were knee deep in the water, pulling in fish at about the same time that he realized the scope of where they were. "Oh, okay. Wow," Billy half whispered - but that was enough for the ferals to hear all the same. He'd never seen anything like these mountains covered in lupines, or the sparkling water and snow capped mountains at this time of year.
James and Logan shared a look before James broke into a bright grin and headed for the cabin at a jog while Logan handled their fishing gear. "Hey, stranger," James said, looking relaxed and at home in the trees, though some of that faded off as he considered everything. "You found me. Wasn't sure that you'd want to, though."
"It's almost like you forgot who you're talking to," Billy said before he pulled James over for a kiss that started easy and stretched out into a more appropriately Howlett-influenced 'hello'.
"Hi," James said quietly. "I'm glad you're here."
"Much better," Billy replied with a growing smile. "This is your …"
"Logan's," James replied. "They gave me a list of cabins and villas and hideouts the two of them had all over the world for me to use when the city gets to be too much." He smiled brightly.
"Is that why you haven't been texting?"
James' smile slipped. "No signal. Sorry. I thought Kate would fill you in."
"Kate is a little bit wrapped up with Nate right now - and I didn't think you'd still be out in the wilderness."
"Well … as it turns out, my birth-dad has a thing for places with a view, too."
"I noticed," Billy said, grinning widely again.
James paused, then turned toward Logan, who was still at the shoreline of the crystal clear lake. "So … we weren't exactly ready to come back just yet … are you going to stick around with us?"
"Can I?"
"I would hate to take you from this view so soon."
"And I'd hate to interrupt if whatever is going on is getting you so relaxed."
"I really don't think it would be interrupting anything," James said. "We've just been hunting and fishing … cutting wood … and they've been telling me stories about themselves."
"Anything interesting?"
"Mostly family background, more or less," James said quietly as he led Billy toward the birch trees behind the cabin. "This is a whole lot different than what you're used to. If you don't want to stay, I get it."
"Are you kidding? It's beautiful here and I get to see you relax and maybe get to see if your timberwolf story is true? If I'm allowed, I am totally staying with you." Billy thought about it for a moment. "Unless you don't think Logan and K would be okay with it-"
"No, they're fine," James said, cutting across him. "Mom said you're her favorite stargazer, and Logan hasn't tensed up when talking about anything close to you and I the whole time. I think they'd be fine with you staying here."
"The cabin is small-"
"Yeah, guess we'll just have to bunk up." James kept a straight face for all of a few moments before he broke into a troublemaking smile.
Billy couldn't help but grin right back at him. Sure, he still had a moment of doubt, a moment when he heard his grandfather in his head insisting that he should run far away from a traitor to Genosha… but it was easier to ignore this time, now that his older self had identified the difference between his thoughts and his grandfather's teachings.
And now? Now, he was in the middle of nowhere with no expectations other than to relax with a gorgeous guy.
He hadn't realized how badly he'd needed to get away from it all until just then.
So yeah. He definitely wanted to stay.
Now that the full weight of the former X-Men and even a few Avengers in the know had come to bear in the rotation of helping Scott, and Logan and K had returned from their impromptu camping trip with Billy and James, there wasn't much of a reason for Logan and K to stick around outside of wanting to spend a little more time with the Summers family. And they did want to spend more time. Especially since Billy was completely enamored of Logan and K and wanted to know every bit of advice he could get for helping James with his powers.
They all knew it, but they still weren't quite ready to say goodbye without a whole new round of hugs over K's well-made coffee that last morning, a few days spent making sure the rotation would work, and one final night spent just being with the kids and Scott.
It was an early morning for everyone, since Scott still had his standing appointment, but they wanted to have enough time for a goodbye. And because Bobby was taking his turn that morning, that meant he arrived early too - and he made sure to wrap Logan in one final farewell hug.
"You feelin' alright, popsicle?" Logan asked, frowning to himself at Bobby's reaction, though he didn't try to stop him, and even had somewhat reciprocated.
"Yeah, I'm fine," Bobby said. "Just didn't get long enough when you were getting mobbed at the school." He stepped back and let out a breath. "Don't know what you know of the story, but you saved my life. So.. thanks."
"Don't know it, don't wanna know it," Logan said. "Not the fine details anyhow. Besides - I thought you knew I'd do whatever needed to be done."
"Yeah, but it still … I could just as easily have not walked out of there. So just take the thank you, okay? Didn't get to say it before."
"Alright, alright," Logan said with a wave. "You got time for coffee before you two head out?"
"For K's coffee? Yeah. I woke up early for that," Bobby said, grinning as he slipped over to rest his arm around K's shoulders and kissed her cheek. "Hi. Thanks."
"You're welcome," K said, leaning over to kiss him right back.
"So you're headed back soon, right?" Bobby asked.
"Yeah, you guys will be better long term if you don't have us for a crutch. Even if you still don't know how to make coffee," she told him.
Bobby grinned. "Hey, I still burn water."
"I will never understand that."
"It's a gift," Bobby said as he sat down next to Scott.
"It's something alright," Scott said under his breath.
"Can you have coffee before you go?" K asked, already pushing a cup his way.
"Yeah, it's not like it's a medical appointment," Scott said dryly.
"Some of them are more strict than others," she said with a shrug.
Scott chuckled and shook his head as he saluted her with his coffee. "I think being followed around to the point that my kids are sharing my room is strict enough."
"They adore you. Enjoy it."
"Never said they didn't."
"Oh, he must be feeling a little better," she said to Logan. "He's doing that thing. You know the one." The two of them shared a look and Logan nodded silently.
"He does a lot of things," Bobby said.
"He does," Logan agreed, refusing to elaborate, if nothing else to not rile Scott.
"Well," Rachel said slowly, looking toward the older Billy, who was sitting on the counter watching some other reality with spinning galaxies in his gaze, "I guess… I guess we have to see you off, then."
"Yeah," Logan said as he sat down next to James. "Had to happen."
"It was nice to meet you," Nate said. "Put a face to all the stories."
"It was a nice break," Logan agreed.
"Sounds like we all needed it," Rachel said. "I'm glad we could help you too."
"You're all wonderful," K said as she gave the younger Billy a kiss on the cheek.
"And you're just like Dad said you were," Rachel told them with a smile.
"Sorry about that," Scott said dryly.
"Truth is the truth," Logan said, totally unconcerned.
"Some things never change," Bobby said, rolling his eyes.
"Oh, never," the older Billy agreed as he jumped down from the counter and came to stand by Logan and K. "Okay, we should head back."
"Yeah, just need one more hug and a kiss," K said, slipping off to wrap up James. They'd been over everything a dozen times, and both Logan and K had been sure to do all they could to try and reassure him that the attack on Erik was needed, considering how out of control he was. And of course, when they hadn't been watching over Scott, they'd been with James and Billy.
Just about the time they were about to let up on the hug, though, Rachel and Nate both came rushing over too, and Nate yanked Logan's arm so that all three kids had the two of them in a hug.
Thanks for helping Dad, Rachel projected to both of them.
We can't turn our backs on him, Logan answered.
Yeah, we love him too, she replied as the kids finally let up on the hug.
James took one more moment to give Logan a hug alone before he stepped back - though Logan didn't quite know how big of a deal that was for him.
"Love you too, Scott," K sang out. "In case you forget, you have witnesses now."
Scott shook his head at that. "I think if you ask my kids, they'll tell you the feeling's mutual. Obviously."
"I'd rather hear it from you, but I'll take it," K said.
He let out a sigh and shook his head before he got to his feet and pulled her into a tight hug that took her off her feet. "Love you too," he said as he set her down.
She didn't let him get back a step before she popped up to kiss his cheek. "I know."
"You just like to hear it," he teased.
"Everyone does," K said. "All the time. Even if they act like it doesn't matter."
Scott smirked. "Then I hope Logan makes sure you hear it," he said, looking over her shoulder at Logan. "Often."
"He's pretty relentless about that, actually," K said with a shameless grin. "He even learned Swedish for me."
"Good," Scott said, then paused and stepped over to hug Logan too, even if it wasn't an off the feet affair. "I'm glad you've got your family, Logan," he said low.
"Yours ain't too damn shabby either, Slim," Logan said. "You've done great with 'em."
"They've got a lot of their parents in them," Scott said, looking over his shoulder with a fond smile at the kids.
When the hug was over, Logan stepped back to K and Billy. "Don't make us come back here for anything bad."
"Don't worry," Scott promised. "Good luck."
"You too," Logan replied, and with that, they disappeared in a flash of light.
Chapter 66: New Business
Chapter Text
It had been a few weeks, and Scott's session that morning had been a good one. He was a little anxious, as always, after having talked about himself so much; he was looking forward to just being with his kids for a little while. Seeing Logan and K - even for a short time - had been therapeutic in its own right, but being back with his kids was far more centering.
And he'd mostly forgotten that he was supposed to be with someone adult at all times too. Until he came home to find that the kids were with Tony Stark.
There was no way this was entirely for his mental health.
"So … what's the story?" Scott asked as he and Bobby came into the living room.
"Why don't you have a seat," Tony suggested, though the look of apprehension on James' face was all the tip off Scott needed to know that things were off.
"You look way too serious," Bobby said as he and Scott both found a place to sit down.
"Yeah, well … serious business. And it's not something I can do without talking to Scott first," Tony replied, then waited for Scott to urge him to spill. "I have a proposal."
"Dude, I hate to break it to you, but you are so not his type," Bobby said before Scott could react.
"No kidding," Tony replied, scrunching his nose up as he half glared at Bobby. "This is about the kid."
"You're not his type either," Bobby said. "Way too old."
'Oh my God, Icicle," James said, shaking his head. "Not helping. At all."
"Says you," Bobby said, tipping his nose up with a grin. "I've been slowly dying, and now I can tease. Life is good."
"Anyway," Tony said, turning toward Scott. "I've got a plan to protect the kids, but I need you to sign off on it."
"Why?" Scott asked, returning the frown. "If it's to protect the kids, why would you need me to sign off?"
"Because," Tony said, resting his hand on James' shoulder. "It involves making my intentions for the company known well ahead of schedule in a very public way."
"I thought you said he had to be twenty-one?" Scott shot back after a moment, looking more stressed by the second. "Eighteen at least."
"To actually give him a title and a spot on the board, yes. But I'm not talking about that." Tony held up one hand, the other still resting on James's shoulder possessively. "Hear me out before you panic. We have to face a few facts. Even if Wanda isn't allowing any kind of prosecution against anyone that was there with Magneto when he died suddenly, Magneto's old Acolytes and Brotherhood members are still out for blood. Natasha's tracking them, of course, and if they push too hard, I know she'll be taking out a few frustrations on them. Now ... I know that there are a lot of people that don't want to cross me for one reason or another. Public opinion tends to fall in my favor, and … I want to make it clear that the kid is off limits for everyone."
Scott didn't look entirely convinced. "Public opinion means nothing when it comes to weapons programs."
"True. But I'm prepared to pull contracts on anyone that even attempts to cross that line. Including the United States military."
Scott stared at Tony, but James was the one to speak for both of them. "You would literally sink your company if you did that," James said, not sounding at all like he liked any part of this plan.
"Look at you, already worrying about making sure the company is in good shape," Tony said with a smirk as he jostled James with his arm around him still. "No, that's not what's going to happen at all. See ... I'm going to make them prioritize. Do they want you badly enough to risk losing access to the top weapons on the planet? Do they want to be second place in the arms race? Is it a reasonable trade off? Anyone with a brain will say 'no' and leave you alone. Honestly, if they have any brains, they'll leave all of you alone. Knowing you're not only being covered by the Avengers but you're under my protection officially, publicly, etcetera - they wouldn't be able to get away with it. And though I know you don't put much weight in it, public opinion is very much against using anyone as a slave of any sort. As much as it pains me to say it, that's exactly how they treated your folks and others." His tone shifted. "If we can show the world how good this kid is …all of the kids… we can give them the full public backing they deserve… no one will think it's acceptable to touch them."
"That's quite the leap," Bobby said, looking serious.
"That would blow the reasoning behind the masks, too," James said. "For everyone. And that will wreck things for you whether you know it or not. Especially when everyone figures out who we all are."
"Kid, everyone knows who you are. Especially after your multiple unmaskings - though they had an idea of who you were before that," Tony pointed out dryly. "What they don't know is that you're mine."
"Creepy possessive is not attractive," James said in a flat tone.
"And you know what I mean," Tony replied looking entirely unamused.
"Do it," Scott said suddenly, surprising James into turning his way fully.
"Wait, what?"
"He's not wrong," Scott said, then had to keep from smiling when Rachel projected to her father 'but is he right?' "Keeping you on lockdown at this point isn't really much of an option anymore, and honestly, anything that helps keep you three safe, I'm up for."
"And … it should shift the narrative on how mutants are viewed, too," Tony put in. "It's been commonplace for people hiring across the country to discriminate … maybe it'll help set an example."
James turned toward Tony with a dry expression. "Is this you admitting that I'm your affirmative action hire?"
"Shut up," Tony said, scrunching his nose. "You know that's not the … no." He shook his head hard and held up one hand. "You're missing the point, kid."
"Don't think I am," James said, though he was still trying to process the idea that his dad was on board to let him go public with all of it.
"It'll be for everyone's benefit."
"It'll be exposing me," James said.
"Yes, but you'll be exposed with full protection. There is a difference between what I'm saying and what you're halfway into anyhow." Tony paused. "Besides … public outlook on both of your teams is incredibly high. This will only reinforce it. Especially since we'll be controlling the narrative." He looked toward Scott. "That's something your dad here never was allowed to do. Until now. Nothing will go to press without you looking it over, Scott. We are talking about a minor, after all."
"Pull it together. If that's the angle you want to use, you'll have to move on it before the Brotherhood or anyone else puts out something nasty enough for the public to believe," Scott said.
"I'll let Pepper and Jan know we're going forward, then," Tony said with a nod before he turned to James and smirked crookedly. "Here we go."
"Right," James replied quietly as Tony jostled him one last time.
"I'll let you know what the next steps are," Tony said to Scott, then got up to leave them to discuss things as a family.
The front door closed echoing through the house and James looked a little self conscious as he shrunk in on himself where he was still seated on the couch. Not that he got any time to process what had happened with his siblings there to dive in.
"We're going to need to hire bodyguards for you," Nate teased. "Wonder if I qualify."
"Sure don't," James shot back without thinking about it.
"Yeah, I'll bet Tony's got that covered anyhow," Rachel said, though she was smiling at her little brothers all the same.
Scott let them go back and forth for a moment before he turned to Bobby. "Why don't you order out for everyone while I talk to them, huh?"
"Sure thing. Bobby's choice," Bobby replied as he sprang to his feet and headed for the kitchen to dig through delivery menus, glad to have the excuse to not be caught up in the Summers family drama. He loved everyone there like family, but he did not envy how much Scott had been dealing with on the mainland.
"As entertaining as all of that is, we have other things we need to discuss," Scott said to his kids, and instantly, all three stopped teasing, sat down, and turned his way, giving him their full attention - just like they always had.
"Something wrong, Dad?" Nate asked as all three of them watched, half holding their breath.
"No, not wrong… I need to talk to you all about this … arrangement."
"Oh, are you going to tell James he can't have sleepovers with his sweetheart now?" Nate teased, though that only had James rolling his eyes and shoving his brother sideways.
"No one's going to get pregnant if we're just having popcorn on the couch, Nate," James shot back.
"Says you. Magic."
"That is not how it works," James said dryly, though Scott was shaking his head at how easily they were getting off track.
"Are you sure?" Nate shot back with a grin.
"Guys," Scott said. "Actual conversation going on. Focus."
"Sorry," Nate said, losing some of his smile.
Scott took a deep breath to reorganize his thoughts. "It's not exactly fair to have everyone come here all the time for their rotation with me," he said. "And … it's probably already drawing attention from more than just our neighbors."
The kids shared a look, though none of them looked surprised at all, and it was clear they were just waiting for Scott's word to grab their things and move on - as they had done so many times before.
"We're not selling the house," Scott clarified, reading their expressions. "This will only be temporary. With a little luck, maybe just a few months."
"Wait … this isn't just a pack up and run thing?" Nate asked. "Then … what about football?"
"And Kate," Rachel said with a fond smile, not teasing him too hard because she knew there was no way their father would consider any kind of move at this point if it meant that his kids had to suffer for it.
"James will still be going in to work - obviously - and I've still got appointments to make," Scott said. "There's no reason the two of you can't coordinate schedules so you can keep going to practices on the days it doesn't line up for me."
James and Nate shared a look, then nodded without any further conversation. "And you want to come back?" Nate asked.
"Believe it or not, I enjoy our space," Scott admitted. "The four of us … or six, if I count Kate and Billy... I don't want to lose that part of our lives. Not permanently, anyhow."
"So what are you saying we're going to do?" Rachel asked. "New house? Move into the tower?" She purposely avoided saying anything about the school, since she knew that was really where he was thinking of going and didn't want to throw him off the idea.
"Not the tower," Scott said. "I thought it might be good for everyone if we went to the school. It would give you three a chance to learn some solid tricks from the old team, since you've already got down just about everything the Avengers can teach you."
"So … I have to move away from my girlfriend for the summer … and James gets to move closer to his boyfriend," Nate said with a frown. "Why can't I just move into the apartment?"
"Because magic is a much less likely way for me to become a grandfather," Scott said dryly. "You two can share a room - like you used to. You can keep each other in check." When both of the boys looked less than amused, Scott couldn't help but smile. "School can't manage private rooms unless you're teaching, too. Short on space."
"Can … I … teach football?" Nate asked slowly with a growing grin.
"You know … it might not hurt to have a flag game or two with the kids there," Scott said, though that had Nate grinning.
"Silver lining," Nate replied.
"When do we leave?" James asked, cutting across Nate's joking.
"As soon as you guys are ready. But probably not until after Tony does his announcement and school for Nate ends for the year," Scott said before he turned to James. "It won't be a bad thing to get you out of the city when that news hits."
"Any reason we aren't doing it sooner?"
"I would prefer that it wasn't an exodus," Scott said. "Especially since I want to keep the door open for coming back. It's just for the summer. Really."
"We'll start packing, then," Nate said, and his siblings nodded in solidarity, leaving Scott breathing a little easier at how quickly they'd agreed to going with the simple plan.
Tony had lied. It hadn't taken him more than a few days to make the arrangements for the press conference, and what was more, James knew for a fact that no one at Stark Industries or the Avengers had breathed a word about it until that morning - but still, he couldn't avoid the fact that every major news agency was running complete coverage even well before the conference was set to start.
It was no surprise, then, that James was a ball of nerves. A well-controlled ball of nerves, but definitely anxious all the same the closer they got to Tony's press conference. The buzz was in the air, and the gaggle of reporters from around the globe were pulled in and ready to soak up whatever it was that Tony was announcing - and so far, by some miracle, it had stayed under wraps.
There had been speculation, of course, but nothing from a reputable source, and the consensus among those in the press was that this was an Avengers announcement … which was partially true. But it didn't exactly cover all of it. It didn't help much that James could hear them through the doors much easier than everyone else in the staging area. He was focused on the buzz as Jan checked him over one more time - even taking on a vain attempt to tame his cowlicks. Even if they weren't as pronounced as his father's were … it was hard to mistake him for anyone else's kid.
Except of course, the fact that Jan had him in a dark blue suit with a yellow silk tie. He found himself looking down at the yellow and half holding his breath. It was one of those things that he'd tried to avoid to make sure that no one was reminded too often of Logan, since it had been so hard on them.
"You look amazing," Jan promised. "The yellow is great on you."
"Thanks," James said softly as she popped up on her toes, kissed his cheek, then reached up to wipe off the non-existent lipstick mark.
"Seriously. So proud."
James took a hold of her wrist and pulled her over to wrap her up in a tight hug that Jan melted into. "And you're sure he's not like … going senile early or something?"
"You know, if I thought he was acting crazy, or wrong about this, then I'd be forced to look into it, but …" Jan shrugged easily. "I think he's right. So. Keep calm. Stay on script as much as you can. Stick to the facts and follow his lead, okay?"
"So … like always."
"Exactly." Jan tapped the end of his nose. "You got this."
Tony came over as Jan bopped off, going to peek out at the crowd. "I'm going to take a few minutes before you come out. Try not to look like the world is ending, alright?"
"If only they made anti-anxiety meds strong enough to do anything for me," James said, and Tony smirked crookedly.
"Just think of them like a few of those one-star generals that follow the four-stars around. You outrank them."
"I … don't think that's how it works," James pointed out.
Tony chuckled and headed for the doors, leaving James a few minutes with his family and Billy, all of whom looked absurdly proud while Pepper handled being the warmup for Tony, talking up the progress that the company had been making finding the very best possible people to continue the level of excellence that Stark Industries had been enjoying with Tony at the helm.
This is not helping, James thought to himself.
No, but most of that's on you, Rachel projected to him. He'd been sure to keep his mind open for her, convinced that something bad was going to happen. Of course, that only meant that Rachel and Nate could hear every one of his fatalist-leaning thoughts. You know Tony's got you covered. You know Dad is on board, and you know we're all watching out for you. Tony's right - you're perfect for the job, whenever he gets done teaching you and steps back. At least as far as the brains and the ingenuity.
This is a trial by fire, James replied.
Leave those to Rachel, Nate teased. All you have to do is go out there and look good. And you know … even if you're no Summers by blood … you're probably not entirely repulsive.
Lies, James shot back.
If you could hear what your sweetheart was thinking, you wouldn't think that, Rachel told him as Nate nodded along with her.
He's biased. No idea why, James grumbled goodnaturedly. The pattern was still holding true … if Billy was around, James was more likely to relax. He turned toward Billy, who looked somewhere between perfectly pleased and a little inconvenienced. Which was exactly the kind of thing that could draw James' attention before he had to go make a spectacle of himself. He reached over to take Billy's hand. "Okay. What's wrong? I'm pretty sure if I switched to a red tie now, I'll be accused of trying to lean Steve's way with the whole … red, white, and blue spiel."
"No, don't change the tie," Billy said, smiling a little more now that he was getting a moment. "Jan's right. It looks good on you."
"Okay, then … what?"
"It's nothing, really," Billy said, though his smile went crooked as he reached up to adjust James' lapels. "I was not consulted on Tony marking his territory, and I feel like there might be a dispute."
"Oh, there's no dispute," James replied, looking serious. Billy held his gaze for a moment, then had to smile when James leaned forward to steal a chaste kiss. "He knows he'd lose that fight."
It was clear Billy had something to say on the tip of his tongue, but Scott cleared his throat, and instead, Billy grinned. "I'll be the dark-haired prince waiting for you backstage - in case you get lost out there."
"Not likely to happen," James said, though it was clear he was still tense as Scott came over and rested his hand on James' shoulder.
"You okay?" Scott asked - and the tension was easy enough for James to see and smell, rolling off of his father in waves. "I know Tony went through a lot to get here, but you can still tell him 'no' if you want."
"Do you want me to?"
"I want you to be safe," Scott said. "And the closer we get to this -"
"The more you don't know if it's the good move Tony thinks it is or if it's a giant misstep," James finished. "Yeah. Believe me, I know." He looked at his hands and compulsively rubbed his hands on his slacks. "There's not any news out there about it - so there's no opinion either way - no reactions to preemptively prepare for …"
"We'll know right away if it was a good move or a bad one," Scott said. He paused, then cheated only a little as he switched modes in his cybernetic eyes to see exactly how stressed out James was - and he wasn't surprised at all to see that the kid's blood pressure and pulse were right up there. He was scared, but he was covering better than Scott had ever seen him do. Maybe a little of Logan and K had managed to rub off in a good way.
Scott took a calming breath as James watched him, waiting for some kind of cue. "You know, James," Scott said. "There are a lot of things I can't explain properly, but I'm going to try and have some faith that in this - in dealing with the press and the public opinion of you - this is something Tony has to be right over."
"Dad."
"He has to be right about it - not because it's what he wants - but because he was groomed to read the room from a young age. And I'm trying to trust that he wouldn't bring it up like this unless he knew what the end result would be."
James bit his lip and again turned toward the doors as the crowd got worked up. "Yeah, I know, but you know he has faith in the wrong things sometimes too." He turned back to Scott. "The generals and military contacts I've been around … I've seen the way they look at me when I meet them, Dad. They know. They've known for a while, but it's like confirmation at first."
Scott frowned on hearing it and dropped his voice low enough that James almost had to concentrate to hear him. "And after that?"
"It usually takes a visit or two, but most of them don't look at me quite like I'm what they've been looking for on sight. After they see what I do with Tony, it usually shifts to more like 'what has the kid come up with now'."
Scott frowned. "I'm not sure which side of the argument you're taking, son."
"Neither am I," James admitted, then let out a shaky breath. "I just know it can fall either way."
Scott turned to glance at where Tony and Jan were taking one last moment - with Jan triple-checking that Tony looked good - in a dark gray suit and red tie. Scott's scanners on Tony showed him nearly the exact opposite of what his scan of James had shown - moments before stepping out in front of the world, and Tony was perfectly calm. "You damn well better not be wrong, Stark," Scott breathed out - just because this would be the worst possible thing for Tony to be entirely wrong about.
But it also fit the bill for the kind of thing that Tony would blow. Especially when he wasn't the one whose neck was on the chopping block of public opinion.
Pepper announced Tony, and then Tony stepped out to a nearly deafening, rapid-fire clicking as the cameras took pictures at high speed and reporters started shouting questions at Tony, who held them off with a cocky smile and a barely raised hand as he shushed them.
Jan zipped over to Scott and James and took a moment to check James over one more time and squeeze them both at the elbow. "It'll be fine. They're going to love you."
"Dad, help, Jan's on drugs," James said just loud enough for Scott to hear and loud enough for Jan to catch and get all kerfuffled over.
"Oooh, if I wasn't so happy to hear you teasing, you would be in so much trouble," Jan whispered as harshly as she could manage. She winked at Scott, then took James' arm and led him closer to the doors. "We'll be right here watching on the monitors. Show them confidence. Knock their socks off." Again, she popped up on her toes to give him a little peck on the cheek and one last once-over before she stepped back to let him wait in peace as Tony continued his speech about the direction the company had been taking - laying the groundwork out for them to understand before he even got to introducing James that this had been his plan for years already.
By the time Tony got around to saying James' name, the cameras were flashing quickly, and James wasn't listening to his loved ones at all anymore - too focused on keeping his focus and looking relaxed as he stepped out to join Tony.
The mood backstage was tense, too, and Jan broke it by nudging Scott's shoulder with an affectionate smile. "I know he didn't get that poker face from you."
Scott let out a disbelieving scoff. "Really, Jan?"
"What?" Jan blinked at him innocently. "Like you can hide anything, blue eyes."
"Oh yes," Scott said dryly, "of the two of us, I am the open book."
Jan smiled more brightly and shushed him with one hand, looking toward the feed on one of the televisions backstage with them as Tony finished answering questions about his big announcement with James at his side. And Scott couldn't help but smile when he saw how proud she looked - not just of James but of Tony. She'd found someone she adored, and Scott was always happy to see that look on her face.
Of course, then, it was James' turn, and Scott nearly held his breath as James stepped forward, looking like every movement was controlled. As he fielded questions, James was polite and careful, as all of his kids were, but then… then, one reporter asked him where he'd been hiding for so long, and Scott could actually see the shift in James as he turned his full body toward that reporter.
"I was in school," James said slowly in a tone that clearly wasn't as polite or professional as he had been - highlighting exactly how stupid the question was. Particularly after Tony had already made a point of informing the press corps about what James had accomplished. "What were you doing by my age?"
For a second, everyone backstage was surprised by the shift in James' tone - but then, Scott started to chuckle, absolutely recognizing James' mother in everything that came out of his mouth after that point. It was like watching K dealing with J. Jonah Jameson all over again - or mouthy teenagers. Or anyone else who needed to be knocked down a peg.
And that, more than anything else, was enough to convince Scott that James was going to be okay. If he could weather something this big, with this many eyes on him, with his mother's sense of humor, he'd be just fine every other time.
And while Scott was relieved, he could hear both of his other kids snickering through their mental connection with him as Rachel informed him, It's just … he's not even thinking of witty things to say. They just come out like that!
We should do this more often. Free show, Nate agreed.
Who can we turn him on next? Rachel teased, just to get Nate to laugh - but mostly to get Scott to laugh, since she knew he needed it.
Scott laughed under his breath and sat down, watching the rest of the show with his chin resting on his hand and a smirk trapped at the corner of his mouth. "Well, damn," he said softly. "Stark might just have been onto something."
You gonna be okay? Nate asked. Big admission and all?
You're hilarious, Scott replied dryly.
Hey, he's doing alright, and neither Rachel nor I can sense any immediate or realistic danger, so… cautious optimism, right?
Scott couldn't help but smile at the familiar phrase, since it was one he'd drilled into the kids often. "Hope for the best but plan for the worst" was their motto of cautious optimism, and he was proud of the way they'd learned how to be better than he was at sticking to that idea.
The show went on for a little while longer, until Tony decided enough was enough and that the reporters that were being willfully stupid were veering dangerously close to a real correction on how idiotic some of those questions were - especially when the bulk of the reporters out there were honestly making up for that stupidity with solid questions that just made the dumb reporters look worse. And Tony wanted to be sure that the narrative didn't end up slipping into how his hand picked successor was browbeating idiots with common sense.
So Tony stepped up with James and the two shared a silent conversation before Tony held up a hand, announced that the Q and A was over. As the reporters protested, Tony and James stepped back from the microphone to allow a few pictures of the two of them to be taken before they headed backstage again while Pepper once again stepped forward to handle clean up. It was seamless, and in typical Stark fashion, they left them starving for more.
James' composure held until they got backstage entirely, where Tony had quit trying to hide his cackle at being proven so right. And while Tony was gleefully enjoying himself, James couldn't stop the epic eye roll as he tried to shake it off. He never lost his poker face, but he had obviously reached his limit, and he hadn't built up the tolerance to hide it yet once he got half a chance to breathe. And Nate knew that even with the free-flowing sass, James had somehow held back - and he wanted to see him let it out.
"You gonna be okay dealing with them for the rest of forever?" Nate teased.
"If not, I'll make you go with me and play Pepper," James shot back.
"Can't. Not pretty enough."
"You can make them think you are," James pointed out.
"True, but if I'm doing that, why not just erase all stupid questions from their minds so I don't have to play Pepper in the first place?"
James stared at him with his best incredulous look. "You mean to tell me you could have done that this whole time and you've been holding out?"
Nate was grinning widely. "I'm a terrible, horrible excuse for a brother, I know."
"As long as you're not feeding them stupid questions," James said, then pointed a finger his way. "Don't you dare."
"But I wanna now," Nate said, purely to rile his big brother.
Scott rubbed his eyes with his thumb and forefinger. "Boys."
"I challenge you to come up with something stupider than that guy did on his own," James said.
"Boys," Scott said, louder this time. "It's not a competition." He shook his head and then, just to get them off their conversational back-and-forth, made his way over to James and pulled him into a hug. "You did even better than I expected. Well done," he said warmly.
"Thanks, Dad," James replied quietly, more than happy to shift away from the teasing for the time being.
Scott smiled more genuinely with a whispered "I'm proud of you" that would have had him more emotional if Billy hadn't rushed over the second they stepped back from each other to kiss the sense out of James.
"Marking your territory?" James asked with a smile when the kiss broke.
"Yes," Billy replied, riding high after the performance he'd just watched. "You'll need to keep up the same level of sass for your debut in Genosha, too."
James' smile went more crooked and he chuckled low before he pulled Billy into a tight hug now that the pressure was off.
It really was the best possible way to get James laughing again and set the mood for Tony to redirect them to the tower to celebrate - and watch the news happen live as analysts broke down what they knew, what they had for information now, and what this meant for everyone involved.
Chapter 67: Family, Friends, And Admirers
Chapter Text
After the latest daily session with Craig, Hank, and Scott headed back to Scott's house for one more bit of business: packing the place up and securing it for a few months. The truth was that it really was far easier for the X-Men to keep a constant eye on Scott if he was in Westchester - and more than that, they were making the case that it was beyond time for Scott to rejoin the family.
With two telekinetics and Billy on their moving team, it didn't take much time at all to get everything packed up. The boys would be moving too, and it was decided that James would drop Nate at his school for football practice on his way to his internship so that Nate didn't have to change schools when he'd worked so hard to get on the football team and he really did like his high school.
James was fully on board for the temporary move as he had been struggling already to keep out of the public eye since Tony's unveiling. He'd had a few interactions with perfect strangers on the street in Manhattan that he'd called 'sketchy' though Nate insisted they were amazing for how wildly enthusiastic some of them were - but neither of them would elaborate for Scott or Natasha. As a result, James was once again wearing an inducer more often than not when he wasn't in the house or at the tower.
What Scott wasn't expecting about the move, though, was the reception once they got to Westchester.
Most of the X-Men -old and new - were there to help Scott and his family move in, but he hadn't even gotten through the door before Kitty had rushed over to hug him, knocking him back a couple steps before he hugged her back. "Woah, hey," he said. "What's the deal?"
"Just … really happy to have you home," Kitty said.
"Says the girl who's been living on Genosha," Scott said, shaking his head, even as he wrapped her up a little better.
"Alright fair, but … who came home first?"
"Hey, I had kids to worry about," Scott defended.
"Kids that would have been horribly threatened around other kids." Kitty rolled her eyes. "Even though the kids here think they're big fat superheroes. And they are."
"Don't forget, one of those superheroes tried to set me up with his history teacher," Scott said. "I'm convinced that's a big part of why he doesn't want to leave his school. That and the football team."
"I'm pretty sure that there's no rule that says that he has to go here."
"There isn't and he's not," Scott said. "He's sticking with his school come fall, even if my therapist doesn't want to give me the all clear by then." He shrugged. "It's an inconvenience for the boys," he said, his tone making it obvious he was bothered by it. He hated the idea that his issues were affecting the kids, even with something as simple as making them commute short term.
"Scott, even though it is just for the summer, they'll love it here," Kitty said, shaking her head at him. "And you know it. We're totally going to spoil them rotten."
Scott smirked lightly - but it was hard to argue it when the other X-Men were making such a show of welcoming the Summers family to the institute. Still, the smirk fell when he looked around the place. "It's different," he said. "Being here."
"It's home," Storm said, announcing herself to the two of them as she arrived as well. "And it's been too long, Scott."
"Thank you for letting us come here," Scott told her.
Ororo smirked, especially since it hadn't been Scott's decision in the first place, so there was no reason for him to act like he was imposing. "You've always been welcome," she told him before she wrapped him up in a warm embrace, then stepped back with both hands on his shoulders. "Now, let's get you settled in."
With Ororo's arm around Scott's shoulders, they headed over to unload Scott's truck as well as James' Jeep. The older X-Men were stretching a little with their powers to make the move-in section go a little faster.
It was strange for Scott to watch, because it reminded him of all the times that he and the team had rebuilt the mansion, and for a moment, he was caught in the past - until he heard the boys bickering beyond him.
"No, you can not drive the Jeep in for practice tomorrow," James told Nate. "I already promised we could stop for coffee, and I'm not letting you wreck it. Especially not on the first day." The two boys were carrying the last of their boxes up to their room. "Besides, you still stall it every time you try to shift."
"Hey, I need the hours to get my license, and I'm not gonna learn if I can't practice."
"So get them with the truck," James said. "With Dad or Rachel. You know you need someone over 18 with you for official time anyhow."
"Oh, come on," Nate groaned as the boys continued up the stairs and Bobby slowed to a stop, watching them pass.
"Okay, that is gonna take some getting used to," Bobby said, laughing as he rushed to help Scott with the box of his things - the last thing from the truck. "Kid looks like Logan but reasons like you."
"Hey, I raised him," Scott pointed out. "What did you expect?"
"Yeah, yeah. And it's great," Bobby said, letting it drop as the two of them watched the boys go. For a moment, the air hung heavy with the past as both of the first X-Men felt the weight of the years and the loss, and yet … that, more than anything else was enough to prompt Bobby into unloading what was on his mind. "So… we're getting the team back together."
"Looks like."
Bobby watched Scott for a second and then let out a breath and decided not to push like he'd originally intended. He was still kind of freaked out at how bad off one of his best and oldest friends had been around any discussion of the team that they'd started out on together, so Bobby decided to back off - but he was pretty sure if they could get past this, maybe they could get back to the way things felt back then too.
Yeah, a lot had changed in Westchester. Yeah, there was still a shadow over all of them that were missing so many of their old team. Yeah, it was really hard to see Rachel and James and not call them Jean and Logan. Bobby really didn't know how Scott had been managing all this time. But … none of that was something that could be helped. And it wasn't important anymore. What was important was that everyone was home.
Hydra had been aiding and assisting the MRD that had been so thoroughly decimated when Jean had gone on her rampage. The MRD itself had seen massive funding cutbacks after that fiasco - especially considering that so many mutants had simply run to Genosha for safety. There had been little need for a whole government agency … so Hydra had stepped in to help eliminate the problem. They'd been quiet at first, but everyone in the mutant community knew that the MRD was nothing more than a legitimate front for Hydra.
Which, was always destined to put them on the Avenger's radar. But Hydra had been careful, quiet, and subtle in what they did around anyone that didn't outright disappear. At least … they were until Tony made his announcement with James. Now they were stirring up anti-mutant sentiment and trying to turn the racist leanings against Tony and his Avengers, though Tony insisted that was an uphill battle. They were in the minority - but it was a very loud and violent minority that was growing in membership with every passing, hateful rally.
The first wave of Avengers against Hydra was the 'A' team, of course. They were most familiar with the opposition, most prepared to deal with the energy weapons when wielded by someone who could actually aim, unlike the rioters and idiots that the kids were used to facing.
It was for all intents and purposes, a wonderful teaching moment for the Avengers to teach their young roster about Hydra, while letting them get their toes wet by playing clean up. The raid on the big, supposedly abandoned factory by the river was big enough, too, that there really was a big presence of Hydra … and SHIELD was having trouble keeping civilians far enough back with as little time as they had to prepare for this particular conflict.
It started … exactly like nearly every one of Tony's missions started - with a few armor-assisted missiles announcing their intentions by blowing out the entrance before he circled around to do the same with all the exits - effectively trapping the evil-doers inside until the Avengers and SHIELD could get to them.
But there were plenty of windows and just over ground level options for the baddies to come out and fight. Clint and Natasha were doing a fine job picking them off, but that nly lasted as long as it took for them to mobilize.
And though they'd planned on the massive warehouse being problematic … they hadn't known that the building next to it - that had been handling produce as far as the local officials were concerned - was also housing extra forces for Hydra to protect their investments.
As the Avengers got down to business at the main target - knowing that there were labs sublevel that didn't show up on the official blueprints - both buildings flanking their target opened up and let out scores of Hydra to cut off the lead Team's reinforcements.
But the reinforcements were more than happy to dive in and get some real action. Just Cable would have been terrifying on his own as he let his abilities off the chain. Before the others could react, he had hijacked fifty soldiers and turned them against their own side. Even Prestige had to look his way with a disbelieving scoff before she turned her attention on levitating the more dangerous looking ones before they could take a shot on either the Avengers or the new Avengers line up.
Tommy was quick to let a bark of a laugh slip out as he darted into the crowd that Rachel had levitated, working his way through it to find the leader. He was obviously having a blast, though partway through his controlled destruction, Mia teleported over to him. "Hey. Hold back a little."
"Yeah, I know. I am," Tommy promised with a bright smile before he demonstrated as much by cracking a Hydra officer in the mouth. "I could have hit him in the throat - but I didn't. See?"
Mia smiled, shaking her head at him before she teleported off with the officer in question to let SHIELD handle him. "All yours!" She called out, dropping the officer from several feet in the air and then disappearing before his unconscious body hit the ground.
The SHIELD agents had been slowly getting more comfortable with the kids on the team - though it was clear that some of them still held tight to the same outlook that much of the NYPD held: The kids and the Avengers were stepping outside of their jurisdiction by going in to deal with matters like this, though … SHIELD at least had proven that they weren't capable of doing anything on their own in the past over and over again. And the idea of the police stopping them alone? Laughable.
But that was day to day troubles. During an actual fight both sets of authorities were content to stay back, keep watch, and catch anyone that slipped past the Avengers' line or hold anyone that was explicitly given to them.
Between the teams, though … the more seasoned Avengers were trying to show the kids how it was done. They kept the fight above the board, and it wasn't lost on the young heroes, either. They paid attention to things like the cameras in play … both those that belonged to the press and those that belonged to private citizens and even street-level traffic cameras. It all added up - and it wasn't unusual for footage to get leaked. And the Summers kids were taking bets on which angle was going to be the culprit this time.
Explosions were becoming incredibly commonplace as Tommy continued to zip through the Hydra agent's ranks and set off the percussive grenades they had as part of their personal arsenals … while they were still attached to the uniforms.
Billy was helping him along as best he was equipped to do, which, considering how close they were, it should have been no surprise to see that Billy was finding ways to keep the paths clear for Tommy - and to direct traffic of more soldiers right into his brother's zone of destruction while stemming the flow of soldiers from leaving the building faster than the Avengers could keep up. And since that was a pretty simple affair for him, he could do that almost half heartedly while trying to put to test some of what his mother had taught him to make his spells more efficient.
James was batting clean up on those that were trying to take out his teammates - keeping guard for his siblings and Kate in particular since Billy, Tommy, and Mia were in their own groove and the most mobile out of the whole crew. His siblings had to concentrate, after all - and the more physical aggression gave James a chance to let out a little pent up frustration on some cocky Hydra and MRD creeps that had taken exception to the young Avengers in attendance.
Midway through the fight, Mia had taken a high vantage point with Kate and the two of them began working together to find the best, most insanely hard to reach spots for Kate to shoot from. When she found a perch that suited her, Mia split her efforts at playing dashing rescuer to SHIELD agents and Avengers alike. She wanted to be more aggressive in her role on the team, but after years of being the youngest in the group and having her mother warn her so harshly against getting too deeply in trouble, Mia was still working her way up to full confrontation against people that were actually trained instead of just angry civilians causing riots.
They were making a solid front, truth be told. The soldiers had weaponry, but that didn't do them a whole lot of good when Tommy and Billy were completely disrupting their ability to use those weapons … and what little got past them was handled by Nate and Rachel, though once they got the word from the adults that they needed help inside the building watching their backs, the two telepaths were more than ready to dive in and offer support. Mia and Kate shared a look, and in a heartbeat, Mia had pulled Kate and the two of them had joined Nate and Rachel- gleefully.
Kate was kind of the cherry on the cake, too - using trick arrows to suppress all sorts of large machinery and weaponry … gleefully shooting EMP's that whistled past any time she spotted Tommy slowing down or Nate slipping from his floating position. Neither option was acceptable as far as she was concerned.
"You three going to be okay out here?" Nate called out to James and the twins, not surprised one bit when Tommy was the one to answer.
"They're the ones that need to be worried. We're great."
"Yeah, okay, sure," Nate said. "Something goes wrong - tell us. We'll keep an ear open."
While James was pounding on a guy that could have given Tyler a run for his money, and the twins were wreaking havoc on the lowest level of Hydra, Nate reached out to find the mutants that they knew were hidden deeply in the complex. Rachel was watching his back as they rushed in, but the truth was that many of the more slippery Hydra agents in the building had disappeared into their snakeholes, and they needed to find the right one to follow. She pulled him along telepathically, and as he often did when he was concentrating hard, it wasn't long before Nate had gone from a floating lotus position … to an upside down floating lotus position. And Rachel was shaking her head at him. "Do you have any idea how much of a dork you are?" she asked.
"Hush. I'm trying to concentrate," Nate shot back, though he was smirking to himself.
Rachel looked over her shoulder at her brother and let out a sigh of longsuffering. "Hey Hawkeye - you got us covered?"
"Don't I always?" Kate called back with a grin, waggling her eyebrows just to get a reaction out of Rachel. And it did … at least, she gave Kate the same dry look that Scott always used when he was less than amused.
Looks like we're all consolidating, Rachel projected to Kate while around them, their more physical adults were, in fact, pairing up to protect while their more cerebral members were trying to sneak a peek deeper. Mia had switched to pure nerves … almost dancing in place and shaking her hands out as Steve, Natasha, and Clint met up with them - waiting to hear where they were headed out of the half dozen options ahead of them.
After a few precious moments, Nate flipped right side up and tipped his chin in the direction he knew the holding cells were from the minds of the men inside.
"Alright, we've got this," Steve said, holding up one hand to keep the kids from thinking that it was okay to follow. "No reason for you to see what's going on in there."
"Except … we're actually the ones trained in talking to traumatized mutants," Rachel pointed out. "Yes, you're good, but … are you holding cells full of terrified mutants good?"
"Oh, look," Natasha said with a proud smirk. "The X-Men are marking their territory."
"That's not …"
"It is, and you're right," Natasha said. "Let us lead in case it's worse than we thought. Please."
Rachel crossed her arms. "That … is reasonable, I guess."
"Think of your dad," Steve said. "He'd murder us if we gave you more for your therapy sessions."
"Like we're not in therapy anyhow," Nate grumbled, since - surprisingly, out of the three Summers kids, he'd been the most resistant to it since Genosha, and considering that he was a telepath, there wasn't a single trick any therapist could pull that he wouldn't know about going in. And he really didn't appreciate anyone telling him he needed more help - so he played along, but didn't actually actively participate.
Focus, Rachel projected to her little brother, since she knew he was a little touchy about the subject … and they still had plenty they had to do
Yah, yah, Nate grumbled. I just don't like waiting around. He was shifting from one foot to the other while the Avengers pressed into the room. Kind of our wheelhouse, right?
In their defense, we haven't seen much of experimented-on mutants, Rachel pointed out.
No, we just rescued a whole bunch of them just to watch them die in front of us, Nate said, sounding bitter before he drew in a breath, squared up and walked in after the Avengers anyhow.
Steve glanced over at the group of young heroes as he turned toward his communicator. "James, if you can get to a console, we can use a little help. Tony and Natasha are working in here, but it looks like these cages can't be accessed from this station."
Outside, things were starting to simmer down a little. But just a little. James had finally seemed to have gotten the brawling out of his system and had fallen back closer to where Billy was floating and continuing to disrupt the flow of Hydra to a point that SHIELD could manage it on their own - with Tommy's excellent help.
James had work of his own to do after all. He'd just agreed to help the group inside - if he could find a console that would give him access, that is. And if someone tried to get too close to either James or Billy while they were working and actively covering each other's backs … well, that was their mistake.
It wasn't long, though, before James was entirely transfixed on the task at hand - breaking through pathways into the programming and working hard to project to Rachel and Nate what he was finding and what they needed to do on their end to open up the cages, because of course it was a two-pronged approach to open those cages. And when the coding got to be too complex and in need of breaking on both sides, Rachel reached out to Billy to watch James' back as Nate projected to James what they were seeing on their screens. James found himself giving Nate the direction he needed to break in on his side while he was still breaking through things outside, too. It was working, but James was entirely distracted as an end result.
On hearing the suggestion, Billy turned to take in the scene around them that was rapidly shifting. It wouldn't take much to derail James' concentration, and that would be enough to hold up the rescue efforts inside - but he still didn't think anything was going to happen … until someone rushed toward them, gun drawn and aimed at his Wolverine.
It was nearly a wordless spell that sent the Hydra soldier into a hellish-looking spiral of black flames and what looked like chaos magic, but it was enough to give James a little something to see as he finished helping Nate with the hack. A smile tugged at the corner of James' mouth as the Hydra idiot wished he'd reconsidered going after Wanda's magic-wielding mini-me.
But James and Billy were still trying to keep their relationship on the Q.T. in public, so instead of the flirty tease James wanted to let slip, instead, he managed to keep it to a much more sedate, "That was so hot."
"Shut up," Billy replied quietly, though he was smiling all the same as the blush bloomed up high on his cheekbones.
"Almost done … hold please," James said. "Just need to finish up a few little presents for the team."
"Uh huh," Billy said, shaking his head to himself while James started humming. He couldn't really respond to anything, after all … not when they were on the job, anyhow. So instead of rising to the bait, he turned to watch that no one snuck up on them, floating slightly higher as his eyes and hands glowed - even doing a passable Magneto impression for how angry he was trying to look.
But James couldn't let it stand at that. He glanced up as he waited for his last commands on the console to take effect and couldn't stop himself from a little more teasing. It was too easy, after all. He shifted so he was blocking himself from any cameras that might have caught him for the rest of his gentle teasing. "You are so flippin' impressive," James said quietly with a crooked smile … just because he really had to.
"I thought you wanted to keep it quiet," Billy said, losing most of his put-on angry expression.
"Yeah, well … not like there's a big crowd yet or anything - and we're far enough out that I should be able to complement my own teammate, right?"
"Oh my God," Billy laughed, then tried to focus on the task at hand again. "You're going to blow your own sneak."
"Mmm … remains to be seen," James almost sang out as he went back to work.
To preserve himself from the teasing that would have Billy breaking form and flirting back, he drifted away slightly and focused once again on the Hydra men around them who were trying to slip closer to stop them. He'd just found what he thought was a higher up lieutenant trying to slip out when there was a sharp, arcing sound of electricity crackling in the air and a flash of light that lasted only a few seconds before James fell back from the console with a heavy thud. For an instant, Billy thought there might have been some kind of defense mechanism on the console that James had somehow missed when he saw a familiar young Acolyte rushing toward James.
Billy frowned as he started back toward where James was down and the Acolyte was working to contain him. "What are you doing?" Billy demanded - his tone shocked and livid, though it didn't quite carry the same outrage and power his grandfather threw around regularly - as the handcuffs were closed around James' wrists.
"Dealing with a traitor and opening the gates for our kind faster," the young man said, then almost belatedly put on a hard smile and swept into a falsely sincere bow. "Your highness."
Billy scrunched his nose and furrowed his brow before deciding now was the time to start a spell. He raised his hands, then let out a sound of pure displeasure when the gathering light faltered and he fell from the air as his powers sputtered out. He hit the ground hard, failing to catch himself properly when he simply wasn't prepared, and before Billy could gather his senses enough to demand an explanation, someone stepped up behind him and slapped a collar on him. He spun, angry and ready to fight hand to hand, only for the guy who had trussed up James to grab his hand and for the two assailants to get him on the ground too.
What's more, before they pulled him to his feet, one of the men put something on his head, too - and when Billy tried to project for Rachel or Nate, he was rewarded with a splitting headache and a sharper pain at the center of his forehead.
James was smoking from the electrical charge that the first Acolyte had hit him with, but before he could rouse, they gave him what had to be an identical device - clearly meant to stop telepathic interference in its tracks.
"Don't worry," one said over Billy's shoulder as they started dragging James and pulling Billy along as well. "We're taking you home, where you belong - away from the telepath's influence. You'll be free soon."
"I don't want to go-" Billy started, his lip curling around the words for how angry he was. "I belong here." All he could think of was how much he was going to make sure every single one of his grandfather's old Acolytes were going to suffer for pulling this stunt. Clearly, they didn't realize how Magneto himself would have handled it. He pulled hard and tried to get his hands loose - making it difficult for the Acolytes to drag him and sure that Tommy would destroy these idiots the moment he saw what they were up to … until he saw that they'd already managed to snag Tommy, too.
All at once, Billy was torn between scared about what was to come at the hands of these fanatics and so indescribably angry that he was swearing in Romanian … just like his mother often did.
"Did anyone manage to find the others?" A deeper voice asked, and the tone and timbre of the voice had both twins sharing a look at the familiarity. For just a second, they got a glimpse of him as they were dragged toward a stolen SHIELD transport whose edges were shimmering.
"Not yet," another replied. "The only reason we got close to the one was because the others were in the building. We'll leave someone behind to ambush."
The second speaker shouted out in pain as Tommy made contact - kicking the guy hard between the legs - then crumpled over, moaning and no longer in control of himself, though the man in charge looked pleased to see the fire … and that was enough to connect the dots for Billy.
It had been years since Billy or Tommy had been this close to Fabian Cortez, and for as devout and sociopathic as he'd been then, Wanda had been sure to keep the boys far from him. Still, Billy knew the guy had been lurking for years, following Magneto and scrabbling for whatever scraps the old man would throw his way as far as keeping people invested in the Lensherr dynasty. But he looked a lot older than what Billy supposed he should have, even at his age. Now, Cortez was white-haired, scarred up, and not nearly as burly and imposing as when Billy had last seen him up close.
But what was sticking with Billy now was the fact that even Magneto had kept the guy away from his precious princes. Nothing about this could possibly be a good thing.
Of course, that was about when Cortez turned toward Billy. "Don't worry, my princes," Cortez said as he followed them into the transport. "We'll make sure you're thinking straight again in no time, and then, we'll deal with all of the traitors that had a hand in murdering our king." An explosion sounded on the far end of the compound the Avengers had been infiltrating. "But for now, it's time to get you far away from that building before the Avengers destroy it and murder all of those mutants inside."
"The Avengers aren't going to destroy it," Tommy said. "What's wrong with you?"
Cortez turned his way with a pleasant smile. "No, they aren't … but that's what we're going to tell the world when it goes down. If any of those little miniature Avengers are caught up in it, all the better." He glared down at where James had been dropped on the floor of the transport. "I would have preferred the other two murderers were going with us, but the outcome should be the same."
Billy and Tommy shared a look, silently conveying not only the emotion both of them were dealing with but encompassing an entire silent conversation before both of them doubled down on the fight to get loose - after all, they only needed to get the collars off. The Acolytes hadn't quite gotten Billy into the plane as he threw himself around as viciously as Tommy was. Tommy was doing his best to be a pain, even going so far as to bite one of his captors, and as Cortez stepped further onto the plane, he unintentionally kicked James, paused to look down, then purposefully kicked him again - much harder.
Billy let out a wordless shout of anger, drawing Cortez' attention, then saw it for just an instant when James' eyes opened. A second later, James let out a deep, rippling snarl and swept Cortez off his feet with a well-placed kick. He kicked out again, twisting himself up to launch the guy into his own men - half of whom were half scared out of their mind at the snarl that had neatly filled up the fuselage, but Cortez wasn't phased. As soon as his men had him halfway on his feet, he dove at James and simply started pounding him bare-fisted. It wasn't a fair fight, and clearly, James had not thought it out at all, since his hands were firmly behind his back. Once Cortez had climbed over him, all he could do was struggle to move out of the path of his fists, try to throw him off - and do his best to bite him.
"Oh, okay, we're moving now," Mia said, bouncing in place for a beat before she burst forward to be right on Nate's six as he went into the room where the captive mutants were.
When they got inside, Nate only made it a few steps before he stopped short at what they found … scores of cages - cages that had clearly been meant for animals, not people - every one of them holding at least one mutant in varying states of disarray. Most of them were wearing flimsy hospital gowns that were stained with old and new blood. Very little of their appearance was hopeful - and every one of them looked either terrified out of their minds or so resigned to all that had happened to them so far that they were impassive.
"Nightcrawler," Natasha said, turning and stepping into her line of vision. "You should probably go outside."
"Take Hawkeye with you," Clint added.
'Okay, bye Dad.' was right on the tip of Kate's tongue, but when she saw how still Mia was … "Yep, let's see how the boys are doing outside. You definitely have a need for Speed right now."
"Oh, wow, yeah, that was bad, Katie-Kate," Clint said thickly.
"And considering how bad most of his jokes are," Nate said, letting the sentiment drift off.
"Okay, bye!" Kate said, then took a hold of Mia's arm, and the two of them teleported away.
Billy's attention was still on the fight on the floor of the aircraft where James and Cortez were fighting hard … the tide had shifted but not turned when James broke his hand to pull loose of the cuffs - and then immediately started trading blows with Cortez, even if the guy was drawing his power from more powerful mutants around him. The guy seemed perfectly content with the idea of beating James to death if he could.
There was a muted bamf followed by an echoing twang and Billy barely closed his eyes when he saw the blinking mechanism on the arrow shaft. Seconds after the beeping started, a shockwave washed over the inside of the plane. There was no flutter or flash, but everything electronic in the vicinity was suddenly shut down - from the cloaking mechanism on the jet to the inhibitors on the captive princes.
The instant that Billy and Tommy had access to their powers, the fight with the Acolytes and their attempted kidnapping was over. Tommy rushed to make the rounds, punishing whatever acolytes Billy didn't flatten with a shockwave that only seemed to affect those that were standing against the X-Men - harmlessly washing over Kate, Mia, Tommy, and James. Before Cortez could hit James another time, though, he'd gone stock still mid-strike, his arms hovering over his own head as Billy focused on him before, very suddenly, Cortez was simply gone.
"What are we doing with the rest of them?" Tommy asked, looking every bit as livid as Billy but more like their grandfather, if for no other reason than the fact that his hair was white.
"Can you warn Mother that the prison will have some new guests - and tell her what they did?"
"That's what I was hoping you'd say," Tommy said with a nod. "Be right back." From there, Billy turned his attention back to the Acolytes that had attacked them and waved a hand - not realizing that he was achieving the spells wordlessly when he was that focused and angry.
Kate made her way over to where James was still lying down, bloodied, half out of breath, and focusing on making sure his nose was straight before it healed up. She sat down and crossed her arms over her knees as she leaned forward. "So … your siblings are on the way up, So you know."
"I am not surprised at all," James said, then a hollow, grinding crack filled the fuselage as James broke a few bones back into place and covered half his face with both hands.
"What happened?" Kate asked, shifting to prop her chin up on the palm of her hand and not at all being sneaky as she projected everything to Nate.
"You know, I'm starting to think it's just the usual … and that maybe I was right, and that it's a mistake to do this whole … team thing," James said, shifting to a more upright position and making an effort to keep his siblings out of his head again. He wasn't entirely sure himself if he was joking or not, but he knew he didn't want to clue them in before he knew how serious or not he was. "Hardly worth all the effort Jan puts into the uniforms if I'm going to go through them like this, too."
"To be fair, this one's lasted you at least three missions," Kate pointed out, half smiling. "Looks like it's still good for one more anyhow."
"You can just say you intended on the extra hip holes," James said. "No one wants to see holes on mine."
"Okay, James. You tell yourself that," Kate said, rolling her eyes. There is no way your brother is that dense to the fact that he has a following, she projected to Nate.
You underestimate him, Nate replied. We're on our way. Really - is everyone okay up there? I mean … I can see James is being … himself, but the doubt is a recurring thing I don't want to see right now.
He's just anxious. Billy can talk him out of any stupidity he might be considering, Kate pointed out. But it might be good to talk down the twins. Sounds like it was an attempted kidnapping - looked like one, and I'd know what that looks like.
Yeah, I know. Everyone in Hydra wants you.
A few moments later, Nate and Rachel had met back up with the rest of their team just as SHIELD started to make a more aggressive effort to contain Hydra - and though the seasoned adult Avengers members were included in that push, the special agents coordinating were making a point to try and keep the kids out of it. Especially after seeing how they'd nearly managed to let them get kidnapped with no SHIELD backup.
But that left the kids slightly removed from the action and marginally closer to the growing crowd watching the events unfold behind a police line.
Billy still hadn't come down from his rage, and was trying to pull back the look on his face that had James watching him with an expression that clearly conveyed some apprehension. It wasn't that he was honestly scared of Billy in any way, he was just … concerned that he might slip the wrong way if enough bad things happened. It wasn't something that James normally thought about, but when Billy was doing such a great job of looking like his grandfather, it wasn't something he could ignore.
"Oh, look," Nate said quietly to Rachel and Kate. "He might actually have finally realized I'm right about the whole … powerful dangerous attraction angle."
"Shut up," James said, halfway glaring at his brother. "Not even close."
"I'm just saying … this one's on a better path. The older one was what happens when it all goes wrong."
James rolled his whole body as he turned away from his brother and headed to the medic to get some things to clean himself up. He was healed - dizzy, but healed - and he wanted to try to get the blood out of his nose. Everything felt like it was where it should be, but if they needed him to follow a scent, that wasn't something he could pretend through.
He was halfway through - and looking a lot more presentable with his cowl off and his face cleaned up when Mia came over to check on him. "Wiccan might maybe need to be talked down, still," Mia said quietly, knowing that the SHIELD agents nearest them wouldn't be able to hear them when she spoke so low.
James looed up at her and nodded. "When we go, I'll try."
"Try, he says," Mia countered. "You better do more than try , seeing as the reason he got so mad was half you."
"Yeah, shoulda seen that idiot coming," James said, covering for her well in case anyone was reading her lips or caught that on camera to analyze later. They were just turning to head back to the rest of the X-Men when Mia stopped, frowning outright at the crowd behind James. On seeing her expression, he started to pay a little better attention and turned, following her gaze to see what it was that had her upset.
What he saw was of line of civilians just beyond the police line straining to see what was going on. Many of them were wearing Avengers gear - a couple of them old t-shirts from Xavier's … and one of the young ladies there was being pushed back by the cops. James frowned and tipped his head slightly to try and focus on what was being said before he made his way over, and what he heard from the group generally was how much they wanted to see if the X-Men really were the X-Men.
She didn't look like she was a whole lot older than Rachel … maybe five or six years tops, and she was incredibly emotional as she begged the cop not to make her leave. "I'm not doing anything wrong!" She said, her voice wavering. "I just … I need to see-"
"You need to go home and stop getting all worked up about a buncha muties," the cop said, which was enough to get James to bristle.
"Hey, Nightcrawler, why don't you go tell my sister what's going on," James said. "I'm going to go make a bigot uncomfortable for a minute."
Mia smirked to herself and teleported off as James rolled his shoulders, ready to tear this cop a new one if he had to. He cracked his neck and started toward the commotion, not surprised when the cop didn't see him coming until he was nearly on top of them. "She do something wrong, officer?" James asked, and the cop turned with a scowl, though he startled slightly when he saw it was James and not one of the others, though the rest of the X-Men were trickling over slowly.
"None of these people need to be here," the cop said, to which James nodded.
"Did she push on the barricades?"
"What are you, her lawyer?"
"Do I need to be?"
The cop held his gaze, but James wasn't blinking or backing down. "You people-"
James started to growl, cutting the cop off, and before it could escalate, his partner took him by the arm and pulled him away. "Why don't you cover the spot Gino had?" the second cop suggested. "He did have to arrest someone for tryin' to push through."
James watched the cop go, then turned toward the little group that had stuck tight. He'd meant to ask if they were alright, if there had been a problem …. But before he could do that, the woman that had been being harassed launched into a teary-eyed explanation explaining how she'd been saved by the X-Men when she was just a kid … not long before the mansion had been destroyed and so many of the X-Men killed.
Partway through the story, Rachel and Nate caught up - both of them still hiding their identities as their father had requested, but unable to miss the story, from how strongly she was projecting it - even if they'd missed hearing it directly from her at the start.
"I know I never would have been able to grow up if it hadn't been for the X-Men," she said as she concluded her story. She looked over at Rachel, her eyes wide. "Up close, even with the mask on … you look like her. You smile like her."
Rachel looked entirely caught off guard, but smiled all the same, with no response to something that had taken her by surprise.
The young woman had been looking between all of the young X-Men, drinking them in and making her own conclusions on who was who. "They were all so kind to me," she said. "And it's not … I've seen the Avengers … they do their job, they save people too, but … the X-Men cared and kept me safe, not just saved me. They cared about everyone they helped, and treated the people they saved like family."
When she started to cry again freshly, James' shoulders dropped and he took a step closer and wrapped her up in a hug that had her letting out a breathy, disbelieving laugh as she held on tight. "Oh. You hug just like your dad," she said in just over a whisper, which only had him holding on to her a little tighter.
When the hug had met its natural end, James was sure to keep a hand on her shoulder until she could pull herself together a little better … but then it became a small thing as some of the other people closest to her started coming over to get hugs, too - or shake their hands and tell one or another of the kids a story of their own, or just how happy they were to see the X-Men going again.
Eventually, the crowd petered out on stories and the cops came back to break up the fun - though having had a chance to see the kids up close, the young woman that had kicked it off didn't argue or fight with anyone before she simply turned and left as the cops reestablished their line. The kids drifted back to the action - or where the action had been - since it was just about time to wrap it all up and the adults were starting to gather up. Clint had been standing off to the side and simply watching as the kids finished up and came back his way.
The Summers kids were, understandably, solemn as they returned to the Avengers, but Kate was feeling great after a successful mission, a successful save of her best friend and almost brother, a successful interaction with normal people at street level … all she had left to check off her list of successful things before getting into a very successful makeout session was a little bit of teasing.
"Oh. My. God," she said before they'd made it more than a couple paces from the barricades. "You," she poked James in the chest, "are a giant hug magnet."
"What's that supposed to even mean?" James asked, not sure if it was time to rise to the bait or not.
"It means, my friend, that people are clearly tripping over themselves to get a hug from you! I thought it was just kids, which … I mean, that is totally a thing, but I didn't realize it was true for adults too."
"Kate," James said easily, half smirking her way. "I think you need your eyes checked. I hugged her first. Not the other way around."
"Yes, but - it started a chain reaction. They could have hugged another X-Man first if they were just in need of snuggles, but they were waiting for turns hugging you." She was grinning brightly. "She missed the hugs that Logan gave her … and you hug just like he does. Apparently."
"Did you miss your shot at a hug from him when he was here?" James asked quietly.
"Yes. Because he was too busy hugging you. And … my mom and most of Westchester, too."
"Maybe she and this girl should start a support group," James deadpanned.
"Only if you're going to be there to hand out hugs when it's over," Kate shot back. "It'd be your new full time job from the sounds of things. 'Sorry, Uncle Tony, you'll have to find a new future CEO. This one has decided to hand out hugs instead.'"
"Sure, Kate," James said before he bumped her shoulder. "It must be really amazing in your head - with all the fiction and drama."
When they got back to Clint, Billy and Tommy were standing with their heads together talking quietly and sure to keep their backs to Clint to ensure it remained private.
James bumped Kate's shoulder then stepped over to the twins. "Guys, you done deciding the fates of a bunch of jerks?"
"Not our call," Billy said, though he was trying to relax. "That's up to Mom."
"Oh, okay," James said in an almost perky tone. "So they're dead now."
Tommy broke into a grim smile. "I wouldn't bet against it."
"Then we should probably get away from the crowd and do the walk with the old people," James said, which had both twins relaxing a little more as they headed toward the transport … which was easily in view of the gathering crowd.
But what no one expected was that as the kids got closer to the jet, a smattering of applause started up, then grew quickly to whoops and cheers … but not until after the big-name A-listers were on board. Most of the kids didn't know quite what to do, but … all they needed to do was follow Billy and Tommy's lead - which only had the crowd and the press going nuts.
"We are so going out once we get changed," Nate said over Kate's shoulder.
"Yes. Yes we are. That's so overdue," she giggled, and unlike Billy and James … they had no trouble with a little PDA for their adoring fans to gush over.
Chapter 68: Meanwhile, Across The River ...
Chapter Text
"Do you realize," Craig said after a long and successful session with Scott, "that when we talk about your life and what you do in your spare time, all you talk about is your nearly grown children?"
Scott blinked at him, clearly not expecting the conversation to go in that direction. He'd thought they were simply winding down their session by talking about something a little less shocking than the truth of what the X-Men had been through. Working through the details of that was still hard, and he still hadn't come around to talking about what had happened with the professor and with Logan in that room - though he was willing to talk to Craig about who Charles and Logan were before they died and why they had been so important in his life.
So yeah, he'd been happy to talk about his kids. Who wouldn't be?
"They keep me busy," Scott said, shrugging. "They're amazing kids. The X-Men, the Avengers, James' position in SI, Nate's games…"
"I don't mean that you're simply being proud of them," Craig clarified. "I am genuinely interested in what you do for yourself."
Scott frowned, blinked, and rubbed the back of his neck. "Well, I… I've been so busy… Keeping them safe has always been a full-time job. Searching for threats, keeping an ear to the ground, going to after-school things - being a single father isn't easy, you know. And there have always been weapons groups coming after my kids, since they were young."
"Again, I wasn't asking what you've done for those kids. And I wasn't downplaying it, either. You've done an amazing thing looking out for them all this time, knowing what you did about the dangers facing them. But what do you do?"
Scott opened his mouth once, then twice to answer Craig, but he found he couldn't actually answer the question. He hadn't even considered anything but keeping his kids safe in so long… the last time he'd really done something for himself had been when he and Jan had been dating.
Craig leaned back and let Scott flounder in his own lack of an answer for a long while before he finally spoke again. "So you can see my dilemma, can't you?" Craig said quietly. "I'm trying to give you the tools to live your life, but you can't conceive of a life outside of your children - who are grown and about to leave you with an empty nest."
"It's not like they'll be far-"
"Scott." Craig let out a heavy sigh and shook his head. "That's not the point."
Scott shook his head. "Craig, I'll still be looking out for them even when they're grown. That's what I did with the X-Men. That's what we always did."
"So you're planning to return to the X-Men?"
"What? No."
"I asked you what you do for yourself, and you talked about the X-Men."
"I was just trying to explain-" Scott pinched the bridge of his nose and sighed. "I've been an X-Man since I was sixteen, Craig. I'm not on the team, but as a friend of mine recently reminded me, that doesn't mean I ever stopped believing in Professor Xavier's dream. My years on that team defined me. So yes, I brought them up to explain why I'll always be looking out for my family, no matter where they are. We had each other's backs even when we were all grown and married, too."
Craig smiled lightly. "It's always nice to hear you talk about your old team," he said. "I can tell they meant the world to you. And the public didn't get to hear any of this."
"No, they didn't," Scott said, leaning back. The loss of his team weighed on him heavily still, even in therapy. There was so much he had to explain to Craig just to build up the foundation of knowledge of what the team had been before he could even begin to think Craig would understand what the team had been - and what he had lost. The team had died in secrecy while they were still branded terrorists by the government. No one knew them like Scott knew them.
Craig allowed Scott to sit in his thoughts again while he considered how best to explain his own point. Then, he leaned forward, his hands clasped in front of him. "My problem," he said at last, "is that you've built an identity for yourself with an expiration date. And it's hard for me to give you the tools to stay in this world when the moment Nate graduates, you will have lost your purpose and your identity. You'll be there for them if they need you, of course, but who is Scott when he's alone? You don't even know."
When Scott was shocked into silence, Craig continued, "You told me that you promised James you wouldn't follow Logan's path, but the problem is you've been working toward an end date since the day you lost your wife. The only reason you've been able to function without addressing the trauma and loss you went through has been your self-appointed mission to keep them safe." He held up one hand. "I'm not saying it wasn't a necessary calling. Lord knows those kids needed someone who knew what they'd be facing, and you couldn't have asked the Avengers to look after them, not when they didn't live through the anti-mutant fervor you did. I understand your choice. But you made it your only purpose in life, and the closer Nate gets to graduating, the closer you edge to feeling like you're finished." Craig leaned back again. "Please, tell me I'm wrong. I don't like to think any patient of mine believes he has an expiration date."
Scott stared at Craig, unconsciously shaking his head. "I don't… That isn't…"
"Scott, that's exactly what your problem is. I don't care what promise you gave to James; you can't live a life without a purpose, and you can't enjoy a life without an identity."
Scott shook his head. "I… do things," he said, though even to his own ears, the excuse sounded powerless. "I have coffee with my friend Toby. And I see my brother and his family more often now that Genosha isn't completely cut off with Wanda at the helm."
"That's a start," Craig said, then got to his feet, signalling to Scott that their session was coming to an end. "But Scott, I need you to decide who you are outside of your obligations, outside of your relationships. My worry is that you've defined yourself and your whole life by your family - whether they be the X-Men, your children, or your blood family - and you're completely unprepared to be alone." He sighed. "I'm not saying you shouldn't be with your family. In fact, it's healthy for you to spend more time with them. But please, find something you enjoy. Take a knitting class. Play a damn video game. Take that teaching job Ororo offered you at the school. Because you're never going to dig yourself out of this hole until you can be a whole person regardless of how old your children are."
Scott shook his head even as he shook Craig's hand. "Right. Well. I'll see you tomorrow, then."
Craig smirked. "It's alright Scott. I'm your therapist. I'm not doing my job right if I'm not making you face uncomfortable things."
"Uh-huh." Scott shook his head again. "See you tomorrow," he repeated, still quiet as he slipped out of the room to where Hank was waiting in the lobby, his head in a good book, as always.
Hank looked up as Scott put his hands in his back pockets and led the way out. "Ah. I take it things went well?" he said mildly.
Scott shot him a dry look. "It's fine, Hank."
"Of course it is," Hank said in a rich, deep tone. "When is it not? It's been 'fine' since the day I met you … that was a charming evening, if I recall ..."
Scott couldn't help but smirk Hank's way. "That's not the word I'd use."
"Balderdash," Hank chuckled. "It is exactly the word you use. It was only a self proclaimed villain trying to steal nuclear secrets. What's not fine about that, my dear friend?"
"We were fine after the fact," Scott defended, rubbing the back of his neck, though his smirk had turned into a smile.
"Exactly my point," Hank said, grinning wider.
"Then yeah, I'm fine," Scott said as they headed out together bound for Westchster.
It was a Friday night, which meant Kate insisted on taking Nate somewhere fun, all but pushing him into her car (not that he was trying that hard to stop her) and informing him that they were going for a night on the town. The whole Summers family was still getting used to the new normal, so Kate wanted to get out. Go have some Korean - that always reminded her of when she was tiny and Tony took her to get Korean food when she was still small enough to feel overwhelmed by the sudden change in her life. To Kate, going out for Korean was a kind of security blanket, and she was extending that to Nate, too.
Outwardly, he seemed like he was doing better than the others in his family, but Kate was in his head too often to believe he wasn't tense as one of her bow strings, so she was sure this was the remedy.
And as it turned out, it was. By the time they were done and looking for a place for dessert - trying to decide whether to go totally the opposite way from dinner and go super-sugary-American or stick with the international theme - they were completely relaxed, engrossed in each other, and being teenagers. Normal teenagers.
Well, except for the part where their makeout sessions were telepathic.
Mostly telepathic.
They were starting to progress in their levels of PDA when they finally decided on a frozen yogurt place. Neither of them cared much about the dirty looks a few of the patrons were giving them over the fact that Nate's hand was on Kate's back under her shirt or that they were giggling, stealing kisses, and sharing looks that read all kinds of trouble. They didn't plan to stay any longer than the time it took to get dessert and take it on the road.
Kate was perfectly pleased with herself, too. Nate kept leaning over for more kisses, and she had purposefully gotten plenty of frozen yogurt and lots of toppings. And she was eating. Every. One. Individually. Just for the look on his face.
Finally, Nate was done waiting for her and simply grabbed her yogurt cup and took off running. She had been expecting him to break and pull something, but she hadn't expected the grab and dash, and she let out a laugh before she ran out the door after him, giggling madly and knowing he was going to kiss the sense out of her once she caught up.
She got out the door just in time to see him turn the corner - she was sure he did that on purpose - and took off running. She was just so glad to see him loosening up and grinning that it hadn't even occurred to her that they were both far too distracted in a public place - up until she turned the corner and ran nearly right into a green-clad man's chest.
All at once, it was like a switch flipped, and everything her parents had taught her clicked in, starting with a knee to the guy's groin and a spinning kick when another one tried to circle around her. Someone grabbed her around the waist, and she flung herself backward in a bend her dad would have been proud of, until her hands touched the ground and she could use her weight to kick up, once again dislodging his grip. It was immediately obvious who had trained her - but that just made them more determined to get their hands on her.
She absolutely would have gotten away from them, too, if a side door in the alley - an employee exit from a nearby restaurant - hadn't opened at exactly the wrong moment. Some poor kid taking out the trash had stumbled his way into a Hydra fight, and when Kate had to switch focus to push him back inside so he didn't get caught up as a human shield or worse, that was enough of a distraction for someone to get a gun in her face.
Up ahead, Nate was still smiling, ready to scoop her up as soon as she caught up, but when she wasn't on his heels like always, he let out a noise from the back of his throat. "Come on, Katie. It's time to get going. Really." But still, even after a minute or two, not only had she not shown yet, but it was oddly quiet for the city, too. His smile began to slip and he started to walk back the way he'd come, half expecting her to jump out of some alleyway to try and scare the crap out of him - it had happened once or twice.
The further Nate went back the way he'd come, the more convinced he was that she was either really screwing with him … or something was off, and considering how life had been lately - and knowing that they'd ticked off Hydra in their last big mission, Nate decided to play it safe … just to see. The worst that could happen if she was safe would be her accusing him of being in a rush … which … who wouldn't be?
Nate found a dark alley to get out of sight from passer by's and then took a slow breath to center himself before he started searching the area … glossing over busy minds that hadn't seen Kate or himself … nothing seemed too out of place. Until he found the first Hydra soldier … and the second … third … He looked up, his eyes glowing as he realized this was really not okay. But instead of taking the time to hit his emergency button, he started running toward the mental signatures, then reached out for Kate. Where are you? Can you see anything? Because there are like four vans here and I don't want to wreck the wrong one.
Oh, hey, sexy. Um, no, can't see which van, sorry. There's a guy in here with a limp and one who's bleeding, though. Does that help? Kate offered. Recognize their voices.
Okay. Tell me when yours moves, then, Nate projected out before he picked up a Hydra goon telekinetically and threw him into the first van. An engine started up, and then, just because that had ticked Nate off, he tore the wheels off all of them before he'd turned the corner to get closer. This was the kind of thing that Natasha and his Dad had warned about … so, Nate reasoned, subtlety was out the window.
On seeing the wheels fly, a whole lot more Hydra guys started trying to circle around the vans - and Nate was no longer even entertaining anything but finishing the job and moving on, so as they raised their weapons his way, he froze everyone around him for a three block radius and started reading their minds beyond the immediate 'kill the mutant'. As soon as he saw what they were planning - and what some of them had been daydreaming … that was it. He lost his temper spectacularly and every Hydra agent around him and Kate simply crumpled before he ripped the doors off the vans - and let Kate out of the mental paralysis.
"Sorry. It was kind of a blanket thing to stop them."
Kate smiled tightly as she sat up and looked around. "I missed the epic fight?"
"There was no epic fight," he said.
Kate frowned and looked around, suddenly realizing that there were no signs of struggle…. "You shut them down?" she asked as she crouched down by one, took his knife from his side, and handed it to Nate to cut her loose.
"I froze them first," Nate said as he cut the ropes off. "I was just going to get you out and let them try to figure out where you went … until I read their minds and maybe lost my temper a little bit. No one got hurt that wasn't Hydra and we can still walk out of here before I un-freeze everyone."
Kate shook her head. "You know, sometimes I forget how powerful you are," she said softly. "It's pretty hot, you know that?"
"Is that why you were more interested in ice cream than stealing kisses?"
She let out a soft laugh. "I like making you suffer?" she offered.
"Fine by me," he said, smiling crookedly. "Ready to go? Or did you want a trophy?"
"Nah, I'm okay. I've been getting jumped by Hydra since I was four and they realized Tony was my godfather. Mom and Dad were a little better at hiding it than he was."
"Yeah, I know, but now I'm going to have to keep an ear open for these morons." He kicked one of them with the tip of his shoe. "Well … not these particular morons. You get the point."
Kate's smile widened, and she stood on her toes to kiss his cheek. "It's really hot when you lose your temper and get all territorial, you know that, right?"
"Um … I do now?"
"Well it's amazing. Totally unnecessary, but sexy," she teased.
Nate's smile lost some of it's teasing quality. "I respectfully disagree," he said slowly. "And I maintain that I held back."
"Oh, I know you could have lobotomized every one of those guys in a blink," Kate promised. "And you could have done it while flying us home and shielding us from anyone even noticing your dramatic rescue. You hold back all the time, babe."
And I would really really like to go somewhere away from these losers before I reconsider.
You're really bothered, Kate said, genuinely surprised - because she was so used to Hydra being a problem it didn't feel important enough to get Nate this bothered.
Yeah, I am, Nate admitted. Because I read their minds and it pissed me off.
Kate slipped her arms around his shoulders and kissed him. It's fine. Mom would've strung them up by their jewels the second she heard what happened. The last guys that tried to kidnap me? Dad tied them up with Christmas-themed bows and gave them to Barney for target practice.
Your mom would have killed them. Nate gave her a raised eyebrow look. So would your Dad, and so would my siblings.
Kate frowned and pulled back to look Nate in the face. … oh. But… really? It's usually… I mean… oh….
Yeah. Oh. He took just a moment to kiss her forehead. "Let's go, please. I'll sleep on your parent's couch so you don't have to drive back in the dark alone. Dad will be fine with it."
"Uh-huh." Kate nodded lightly and hooked her arms around Nate's neck again, still thrown off by the experience. She didn't know why. It wasn't like she didn't know men could be creeps and hadn't dealt with problems like that in her life. It was just that Hydra had always been… Hydra. They were after her parents and she was bait and that was how it went. Even when she was an Avenger, she was a way to get to Tony or Clint or Steve or Nat - usually Nat or Steve, really.
When she seemed like she was still shell-shocked, Nate let out a patient sigh to catch her attention before he scooped her up to carry her out. "Kinda quiet, Hawkeye," he said into her hair. "Your parents are going to think I did something horrible to traumatize you … unless that qualifies as horrible."
She shook her head quickly. "No, you were dashing and sexy as always," she promised. "Just mentally recalibrating my completely rational hatred of Hydra to include more visceral swear words."
"Please don't take this as a defense of them, but it was individuals thinking that way. I didn't want to mess around though. I don't think the higher ups would care."
"No, they wouldn't. I just…" She let out a strange-sounding laugh. "Okay, this is gonna sound weird, but like… the Hydra goons have always seen me as a kid so like… it's almost like a weird acknowledgement I'm not?"
"Katie. You know you're amazing and beautiful. You've seen yourself, right?"
I do own a mirror, yeah, she teased him lightly. Not what I meant.
I know. Just trying to ease you out of your head. A little.
You know the funny part is I think if it was Strucker he might even have been mad about it cuz he likes to have all the cards, and he'd be pissed if he contacted my mom and I was already in a fit state. Which is now a thought that I have in my head.
You are not making it any easier not to lobotomize them. I don't need to be an Avenger … and … from what I've read, X-Men … slip. From time to time.
Awww, there's the possessive - I mean protective - streak I love so much, she teased.
So are you looking for the puffed up proud or the 'aww, shucks, just doin' my job, ma'am'?
Only if you do it in a bad accent, she teased. Out loud.
Is there any other way? Nate asked before he did, in fact put on the very thickest, worst faux Southern accent he could manage as he repeated it.
Kate burst into laughter and pulled him into a long, lingering kiss. "Okay, take me home, Andy Griffith."
"I was shooting more for John Wayne? But I'll take it."
"Barney Fife?"
"Not on your life."
"I mean, compared to your brother-" she started to say just because she knew it was a button to push.
"Oh, come on."
"Traumatizing fair play?" she offered, fluttering her eyelashes innocently. "C'mon, sweetheart."
"Hey, if it's got you joking around? I'm all for it."
"Aww, love you too," she said and kissed him again, then let her shoulders drop. "Okay, let's go let my parents know Hydra wanted their attention."
"Nice and easy or should I just … project it all to them at once?" Nate asked with a smile tugging at the corner of his mouth.
"Um, Dad's trying to talk Mom into another baby, so let's not give them heart attacks, please?"
"Okay, fine. Am I driving or are you? I'll just … let Dad know what the plan is. You know, because he doesn't need a heart attack either. He's delicate you know."
"I'll drive, since you're reaching out to everyone, and you might need to concentrate if you're preventing heart attacks," she teased. And then, just to get back to the good mood they were in, once they got to the car, she took her hair down, leaned over, and kissed the sense out of him first. "Okay, now we can go."
"Hi, Mom, I'm home," Kate called out when they got into the apartment. She tossed her keys on the table near the door as Nate closed the door behind them. "So … some things happened, and we are harboring a Summers tonight … unless you really, really want him to go home - but I don't think you'll mind when you hear what happened."
"Does it have anything to do with the platoon full of Hydra operatives that SHIELD found in the park twenty minutes ago?" Natasha asked, one eyebrow raised.
"Um … yes," Nate said.
"I'm listening," Natasha replied, crossing her arms over her chest. Of course she knew about the attack. Of course she knew they were involved … what she didn't know was what it was that the operatives had done to incite that kind of a response from Nate. But considering the players, Natasha had a few educated guesses. She just wanted to know what exactly she was going to end up doing with the men that had been arrested by SHIELD.
"It's okay, Mom. Nate handled it with exactly the level of oomph called for, I promise," Kate said, her fingers laced tightly through Nate's. "Attempted Hydra grab. Nate got me out, and I'm absolutely in need of snuggles to get past the creeps."
"You don't really think that is enough of an explanation, do you?" Natasha asked, one hand on her hip. "Because I thought you'd know better than that, Katherine Barton."
"I'd rather not repeat it, honestly," Nate said, and when Natasha raised an eyebrow his way, he continued. "I can project to you what happened, though, if you want to see it."
"Please," Natasha said before she headed over to sit on the couch so Nate could get to work.
He let out a breath and centered himself before his eyes began to glow, and he pulled Natasha into his mindscape to show her what had happened from the moment he'd realized that Kate wasn't with him. He didn't hold back on any of it, not bothering to filter his gut reaction to all of it as it went down, up to and including Kate's reaction when she realized what Nate had done. He did, however, stop short of showing her the quick makeout session just afterward.
"I purposely kept them down until SHIELD could pick them all up," Nate told Natasha. "All of them - including the ones that weren't in the immediate area. For those that were further out, I suggested to a few SHIELD agents where they might want to look for them."
Natasha considered him for a long moment, trying to decide who to hit first, even if she had a plan in place to interrogate those that were captured anyhow.
Nate looked between Natasha and Clint. "So … is it alright if I crash on the couch? I promise I won't do anything but sleep. I just didn't want her to drive home on her own, and I can totally just … text Billy for help or something."
Natasha and Clint shared a look that held an entire conversation that was borderline telepathic for how well in-sync they were. "Sorry, kiddo; you're gonna need to call your future brother-in-law to get you home. Rule is no sleepovers without supervision, and we're gonna be busy tonight."
"Okay, first of all … they're too young to be that serious, and second … no problem," Nate said. "I really just didn't want her driving alone if the Hydra morons were looking for her." He took his phone out with one hand as he watched the family interact, then after he sent his text, he looked over at Kate. "I'm very sure your phone is about to get lit up with a jillion texts assuming the worst."
"Yeah, America is probably gonna come over-"
"No sleepovers," Clint put in, and Kate stuck her tongue out at him.
"What about Billy?" Nate suggested. "No danger there and he'd nuke anyone that screwed with her."
"Hey, look at that," Clint said, shouldering Nat. "Cramping everyone's style but ours."
"That is not what I was getting at," Nate said dryly.
"Uh-huh. I also have an older brother."
"Is he more or less reliable of a help than Billy?" Nate asked with a crooked smirk.
"Depends. Want someone dead…" Clint turned with his whole body toward Natasha. "Hey! Think Barney would want to kill some Hydra goons who tried to mess with his niece? He hasn't gotten out in a while."
"I nearly killed them," Nate said. "Sounds like a no-brainer for Uncle Barn."
"Perfect." Clint clapped his hands together. "Alright. Billy's babysitting and sending the boyfriend home, Nat and I are going on a date, and Bucky gets to lose to me in a shooting competition. Wins all around." He saluted Nate with two fingers, though Nate could hear the discord between his easy jokes and the fact that he was all but projecting murder over the whole thing.
Nate took a moment to give Kate a quick, chaste kiss just as Billy came in. "Sorry, beautiful. I know you don't need the backup for you, but you need the back up with the kids around."
"Yeah, I get it," Kate promised. "We'll pick up where we left off later."
"Yes. Absolutely.”" Nate turned to Billy with a smirk. "So. You get to zap me to Westchester … and stay here. Surprise!"
Billy blinked a few more times than necessary. "Wait. That wasn't the deal."
"Deal changed," Nate said easily. "Katie has Hydra creeps wanting to get in her pants, so …"
Billy spun toward Kate, who waved with the tips of her fingers. "Hi. I'd make a bad joke here, but my parents are already going to go break Avenger rules, so… hi, Billy."
"You're needed here to help," Nate said. "Pretty sure James won't mind - you know … except for the part where they're beating down creeps without him."
"Yeah…" Billy shook his head. "Alright. Hard to get mad when it's for a good reason. Sure you don't want me to wish them out of existence for you?" he offered, but Kate shook her head.
"I promise whatever my mom is going to do to them is a hundred times worse." She gestured toward Nat. "Besides, she needs to let off steam."
"And she's going to get the order of who's in charge of who, too," Nate added. "Can't do that if you just disintegrate them or whatever."
"But you're sweet to offer," Kate said, patting the seat beside her on the couch. "C'mon. Dog Cops marathon?"
Billy smiled and came to sit by her. "Hard to say no to that."
Chapter 69: Stop The Presses!
Chapter Text
The team was doing what it could to lay low for a little while considering that Hydra had made a play for Kate - and Magneto's old acolytes had made a play for not only the twins, but for James, too. There were credible threats floating around with a lot more frequency and honest threat than they'd been used to seeing in years. But that didn't mean that it was possible for them to batten down and hide entirely.
The team still had work to do - people to save, kids to rescue, and in James' case - outings to show up at as part of his responsibilities to Tony's company. So far, his interactions with the press had been positive, and he suspected that it was in large part due to the relationship that he had with Tony. He just didn't have any proof since the only time he'd been talking to press was when he was with Tony.
Both Tony and Jan had framed it to sound like it was a matter of training him on how to act around the press when he was the one in the spotlight, but he knew it was them protecting him and trying to ease him into it. And because that's what he knew for sure, he wasn't pushing to get out in the spotlight without him.
But that plan was never going to work out long term. And the short-term outlook was pretty not-too-hot either. Which was why James was making sure to have someone with him when he stepped out in public. He'd tried to make sure it was always a friend - or someone that was known to be at the tower, but as soon as Rachel realized what he was doing, she decided to step up and spend some time with her little brother the next time he wanted to go out for five minutes.
"Rach, no," James said as he tied his shoes to head out. "You shouldn't be seen with me."
"Why not? You're not that ugly," Rachel said in a teasing tone that only big sisters were capable of harnessing.
"If you say so," James said. "But that's not what I meant. You look as much like your mom as I look like Logan. You specifically shouldn't be seen with me."
"And like my mother, not only do I have the Phoenix backing me up, but I am also unburdened by the pressure the men in my family try to put on me. I'm a big girl, little brother. I can handle myself and anyone that comes after you." She reached out to screw up his hair, though that was becoming harder to do the longer he let it grow. "You need a haircut. You know that, right?"
"I'll think about it," James said, batting her hand away. "You know … I really don't need anyone going with me."
"Ha. Nice try. Tony wants you to have someone with you, and more importantly, so does Dad, so just … quit trying to protect me when I'm the one protecting you." She smiled as she stepped back so they could get moving. "Unless … you're re-thinking keeping it quiet publicly with Billy…"
"I am not risking Billy like that," James replied with a sharp edge to his tone.
"Okay, okay," Rachel said, smiling to herself. "I'm just looking forward to when you do make it public knowledge. All the crushed hearts the two of you are going to leave in your wake..."
"You're evil, sis."
"I know. So evil."
James sighed, but knew there was no way he'd be able to win this fight with Rachel, so instead of being overly stubborn - which he could do- he decided to run with it. She was right … she could handle herself.
They headed out together, trying to hold a mostly meaningless conversation while telepathically conversing about what really mattered - which, at the moment was consisting mostly of Rachel making sure her brother was alright. The anxiety that went with being in the spotlight was still high and diametrically opposed to how they'd been raised to keep their heads down and avoid attention of all sorts … and that was a hard habit to break. Even if Rachel could see that when it was positive, it was doing James some good.
They were a couple blocks down from the tower - on their way to pick up a few items that they needed for game night when the first camera flash went off and James tried to ignore it - even as Rachel looked toward the photographer. It was clear James was taking Tony's coping mechanisms to heart - but Rachel hadn't been coached in that yet, and she quickly discovered that making eye contact was as close to an invitation as reporters and paparazzi got. Not that they wouldn't dive in to try and get the pictures or soundbites they wanted anyhow.
The first question came along with a rapid fire camera clicking - but it wasn't the usual stuff that James was used to hearing asking about the business or the Avengers. "How many of the original X-Men are on the team again?"
James smiled tightly, but didn't answer, following Rachel's lead to the little corner market they preferred to shop. Thankfully, the reporter didn't go inside, which likely meant they were more legitimate, and the two of them were quick to grab the items on their list - with Rachel teasing him telepathically the whole time.
When they stepped out again, the reporter had picked up a few colleagues and the questions started freshly. A bright eyed young woman led the charge, asking questions about the X-Men and how he was handling being on both teams and working with Tony.
That's the girl running the fan site, Rachel told him with a muted smile.
So she's a friendly, James projected back to her, then took the time to try and answer the girl as they continued to walk, even managing to answer a few of the other reporters' questions in the same fell swoop, streamlining it enough that they all seemed pleased to get something.
By the time they got to the parking garage where James' Jeep was, they'd picked up a few less than legitimate or friendly types, and though the questions still hadn't taken on a tenor that was anything close to the thinly veiled racist accusations Scott had been forced to field years ago, they weren't anything close to professional either.
These new idiots did cross the line into forbidden territory - and they asked him all the same kinds of things that they used to ask Tony … before he married Jan. Most of them were laughable - or just dumb, and James found himself entertained by the way the young fan-site administrator was utterly repulsed by the things being said, but even she perked up and held up her phone when one of the paparazzo asked: "Who's the redhead?"
James glanced at Rachel, who was trying to decide how to respond as well … she couldn't say they were teammates since she was the only redhead on the team that was masked - and that would have their Dad in fits. Likewise, saying anything about their sibling relationship would have people digging.
"You guys have a good night," James said, trying to move on and get out before they speculated anything further. Especially when Rachel didn't have any bright ideas on how to handle that question either. I'm telling you … this would have been better for you if I'd gone alone.
If you'd gone alone, you'd probably have a Hydra moron trying to put a bag over your head right now. They're around and I'm a deterrent whether you like it or not, Rachel replied, though she'd lost her smile as they tried to move quicker to the Jeep.
And that moron would be regretting everything, James replied. These questions are getting dumber.
The thought had no sooner left his mind when the idiot asking about Rachel really out did himself. "She looks kinda familiar … you two been dating long?"
James lost a step and lost his grip on his expression, though Rachel wasn't far off from the same. But the best he could manage was "No. Damn what's with the dumb questions?" Which, James wondered even before he'd closed his mouth if that was too much … or enough of a tip off … or … I'll run him over if he tries to block the exit, James promised Rachel.
If it wasn't on video, I'd erase that from his mind.
Can you erase it from mine?
No. But only because I can't erase it from mine, Rachel replied as James shook his head. They were climbing into the Jeep when one of the legitimate reporters made the connection.
"Hey! Miss Summers!" He called out, and Rachel's head snapped up on instinct just before she swore to herself for reacting like that. "Are you trying to hide your identity because of the crimes your mother committed?"
When James glared at the guy with a flat, entirely unamused expression, he dropped the loud, pushy tone and shrugged, leveling with the two young heroes. "Hey, now that I see it, I can't un-see it. She looks just like her mother without the mask on. You sure you two aren't … you know …" The reporter was grinning crookedly as he gave Rachel as much of a once over.
There was a moment where James just stared at the guy, squinting and trying hard not to just walk away and leave the question open before he spoke up in an unbearably flat, dry tone. "Very sure," James said, then flat refused to say another thing to any of them - looking entirely livid at how such a simple walk had turned on Rachel.
"Does that mean the X-Men don't allow dating between team members?" the paparazzo asked, and again, the young woman reporter looked entirely disgusted at the guy's questions.
"Obviously not," another reporter chimed in from the back. "Have you seen Hawkeye and Cable? Or Nightcrawler and Speed?"
I … would vouch for you to Dad and Tony and anyone else if you were to run them over, Rachel said. This looks like a really solid self defense case to me.
Just … I guess let's see how long it takes for Dad to call. There's no way in hell this isn't making the rounds fast. James fired up the Jeep and the cameras began clicking again - enough that Rachel found herself subconsciously sliding down to get out of sight as much as possible. Those not taking pictures moved out of the way and let them pass. They weren't on the road long before James spoke up. "Well that was scarring."
Rachel was quiet as she looked out of the window, actively scanning the people around them and making sure that they didn't get recognized on the road. She had to think over how she wanted to say it because James kept looking her way with his most irked 'you have to admit it' look that he could manage. "Okay. Maybe I should have let Dani walk with you instead."
"Dani's already got two warnings on her from the cops," James said. "Both of them from getting idiots like that away from me. One more and I gotta do something big as a thank you."
"And America definitely doesn't need any more cops bothering her over beating up people that are asking for it," Rachel said, trying to think of someone that would have done a better job. "The only other person around was May…"
"Yeah, no," James said. "Bad move. She's still not speaking to me even in groups."
"What? She's mad?" Rachel scrunched her nose up. "Why? Because you're a hero now?"
"More or less," James said. "She holds a grudge. I shouldn't be surprised." Finally, a smirk tugged at the corner of his mouth, though he kept his attention on the road. "You know what they say about redheads."
Rachel's mouth dropped open and she let out a noise of pure irritation before she hit him - hard, and just like that, their usual teasing started up with the awkwardness in the air gone with a laugh.
During the course of the drive to Westchester, where the Summers family was still staying, Rachel and James found a way to start planning and plotting their way back to a more normal ride 'home'. From the joking around, they shifted to discussions on what would be the best way to cover the team in case of dampeners and EMP's … since the current plan of attack James had in place was to make sure they all had EMP's to disrupt dampeners if they found themselves in a pinned down spot … that would make sure they could use their abilities, but it would fry their panic buttons. But frying the panic buttons was an automatic 'no' from all of the adults involved.
James was working on insulating the panic buttons - or interweaving an automatic trigger for the EMP's that would send out a panic signal before killing everything else electronic, but so far, the signal wasn't long lasting enough to show the way for help to come to them.
They were pretty wrapped up in their strategizing session by the time they got to Westchester, the events of Rachel's outing more or less swept under the rug when they had much more important things to discuss. They continued bouncing ideas off of each other as they gathered up their things and headed inside - still chatting about options they had to consider.
They were barely shifting to what the plan was for game night with their dad when they were greeted by Nate and Bobby - both of whom were clearly looking for some kind of excuse to get started, but neither Rachel or James were willing to make it that easy on them.
"Technically," Nate said, grinning obnoxiously, "it doesn't count as incest if you're not blood-related, but still. What's wrong with you two?"
"I am going to murder you," Rachel growled out.
"Ooh, incest and fratricide. You're on a roll today!"
James took a slow deep breath and straightened up as he cracked his neck and flat out ignored the commentary from the peanut gallery in favor of doing literally anything else. Especially if Nate and Rachel were already making it worse. In that moment, though, it was unpacking the things they'd picked up in the city and blatantly ignoring Nate.
"I don't even know where to start with you - and you know that's the dumbest thing you've ever said," Rachel shot back at Nate. "And that is impressive."
"He's technically correct on every point, though," Bobby said, barely talking through tears of laughter. "Oh man. I haven't seen that look since … I think since Kitty locked Scott in his office and Jean had to go get him. Except yours is even better."
"Don't you have anything better to do?" Rachel asked, irritated that when she wanted to flout a little fire, it wasn't coming to her easily.
"And miss the show?" Bobby grinned.
"If the show is Nate making an absolute ass of himself…" She let out a frustrated sound and threw her arms up. "I don't even know why … Ugh!"
"Bobby just thinks it's funny because of the resemblance," Scott said, announcing his presence in the doorway with the kind of glare Bobby's way that used to reflect in brighter light off his lenses.
"Bobby thinks it's funny because it is the most hilarious thing that's happened in a month," Bobby said.
"Bobby's gonna get roasted when Rachel stops blushing," Nate said, more than happy to build up the show from either side.
"I am not blushing you …. Horrible, rotten, miserable excuse for a brother."
"Your face is red…"
At that, though, James reached out and swatted the back of Nate's head hard, still sticking to silence.
"Nice defense of your … um … what do you preferred to be called, sis?" Nate laughed.
Scott pinched the bridge of his nose, ignored his youngest son, and then turned toward Rachel. "What happened, Rach?"
"I don't know," she said, looking flustered now that they were in a safe place to go ahead and speak freely. "One minute, they were being incredibly obnoxious with James and the next … I don't know." She threw her hands up again and ran one hand through her hair.
Scott hadn't moved. "You don't usually trip up like that."
"He called her by name," James said, though he wasn't adding any more to it, not knowing what made the air and what hadn't.
"I heard," Scott said. He let his shoulders drop. "Rachel, I get it. It came out of nowhere, and it just happened. But you're usually so careful."
"I know - I still don't know how … I can't believe it," Rachel said, looking honestly upset.
A lot of Scott's own anxiety left him when he realized how deeply bothered Rachel was - and not just because of Nate's teasing. He sighed and stepped forward to pull her into a hug. "Probably a reporter who covered the old team. He guessed right, that's all."
"Yeah, that's pretty much what he said," Rachel admitted.
Scott pressed his mouth into a thin line. "Be careful," he said tightly. "They tripped you up once; they'll try to get more out of you by guessing again."
"I'll ask Jan to help me," Rachel said. "I thought it would be a lot simpler thing to step in and help … I don't know. I guess I just thought they wouldn't pay attention to me? They were so focused on screwing with James ..."
"Jan will definitely help," Scott agreed. "She's been texting me since it aired to offer."
"Oh, God," Rachel said, covering her face with one hand. "I really thought they'd just bother James like they always do when he's with … you know. Anyone. I probably should have had Jan and Tony coach me sooner."
"Don't feel bad, Rach," James said, trying to ease her worries. "You can blame it on me for losing your cover. You wouldn't have lost it if they weren't following me."
"No," Scott said in a sigh. "We've always assumed it would happen sooner or later, given the family resemblance."
"Yeah, but how long has she been walking in and out of the tower with no one pestering her until now?" James asked. "Proximity was a factor."
"Bobby, if you say out loud what you're thinking, you will get knocked out," Rachel said, and Bobby broke into another laugh.
"He's just like this," Scott said, though even he was having a hard time getting too mad when it had been a long time since he and Bobby had been home and doing exactly this sort of thing - down to the teasing and the angry Phoenix, too.
James looked between Bobby, Nate, and Rachel, then decided to try and leave the situation if he could manage it. "I'll have an image inducer for you in the morning," he told Rachel, then turned to his dad. "And I'll buy a different car."
"They'll follow you anyway," Scott pointed out, then smirked. "Besides, I like the Jeep. Get a new car for the tower, but let's not get rid of that one."
"Yeah, I wasn't going to ditch the Jeep," James said. "I just figured if that's the angle they want to run with, I'll just make sure Rachel can look like someone else on the way in." He looked over toward Nate. "I'll do the same for him, too. Because I can see him trying to get busted to lose the mask." James kept his expression neutral, but he was sure to project to Nate. You get what you get.
Love you too. But not like that.
Please, don't ever start drifting that way. I already promised Dad I wouldn't hurt myself, James shot back. Do me a favor though - lay off Rachel and I'll let you pick the car.
Done.
Thank you, James said, finally relaxing a little since at least now, Rachel could try and breathe. Just for that, I won't even put stipulations on it other than pick it tomorrow.
You're the best, you know that?
You just really need a hobby. James turned toward Scott. "I'm guessing the night's shot then? You guys can do the games … I'll just go get to work."
Scott let out a long breath and nodded. "Alright," he said - though James didn't miss that Scott hit Bobby upside the head once James was only almost out of sight as the party finally started to break up.
"I really am sorry," Rachel said quietly to Scott. "We were just trying to get our game night set up … we were trying to do something good."
Scott reached out to pull her into a gentle hug. "It wasn't your fault," he said. "It was a reflex. You're allowed one or two of those." He paused. "And … maybe we can pull James into a game after Bobby and Nate cool off a little more. I think as things are, someone's going to end up getting stranded in the Danger Room."
That'd have to be Bobby, Rachel projected to him. James already bribed Nate to back off. She turned pointedly toward Bobby and Nate. Note the smile but the lack of participation.
And that, Scott said, smirking, is why James is a genius.
He's just learning how to work everyone, Rachel replied. And being sneaky about it.
I'm aware of that too. Scott shook his head. "So, what games did you bring?" he asked.
Rachel blinked innocently. "All the ones Nate sucks at."
Scott laughed outright. "Good call," he said, steering Rachel toward the living room with his arm around her shoulders - genuinely looking forward to a game night after all the stress lately.
"So … I need to know what kind of budget I've got to work with," Nate said as he dropped down at the table across from James. "You said no stipulations, so I need to know how much I'm allowed to work with."
James glanced up at his brother from the teasing he'd been taking from Billy over the gossip news concerning James and Rachel. "What are you thinking?"
"Something fast," Nate said with a grin.
"Okay, this is my not surprised face," James said, not shifting his expression at all.
"Yeah, but … there's 'pick whatever you want' and then there's 'pick whatever you want'," Nate pointed out. So … can I pick something new, or does it have to be domestic … or …"
James sighed. "Nate. Pick whatever you want."
"That's … really? You're not going to give me any stipulations?"
"Gotta be able to carry at least one passenger," James said after a moment of thought, before going back to his coffee and waiting for the verdict from Nate.
"And it's gotta be something useable now?" Nate asked, almost wincing.
"Yeah, that was the plan," James agreed. "Why? Whatcha got in mind?"
"Well if it wasn't an immediate need thing, I'd say we could find one to work on."
"We can still find one to work on for if you ever get your license," James said. "But I said if you were picking it'd have to be done today."
"I just thought you'd go on another quest …."
"Nate."
"What are you planning?" Scott asked, frowning as he looked between his sons.
"Tony's been after me to upgrade the 'to work' car for a while anyhow," James said. "So I figure now that there's more reason than 'Tony said so' I'd play ball. But … I want better taste than Tony's advice."
"What did he suggest?" Nate asked, honestly curious at what Tony thought James should have.
"He was trying to push me toward an Audi," James said. "Not really my flavor, and I figured you'd go about as far from that as possible."
"What do you like?" Scott said. "Since you're buying it, you should like it."
"Generally, Nate and I pick similar stuff as far as cars go," James answered, neatly stepping around the question.
"Well … if he's pushing for German … we definitely need to go American," Nate decided. "Mustang. No doubt."
James turned back to his brother, doing a fine job of keeping an even, steady expression. "You sure?"
"Oh yeah. Totally." Nate's face lit up. "Have you seen the new ones on the road?"
"Haven't seen them open up," James said. "But I haven't really been looking either." James pushed back from the table then turned to Scott. "Are you busy today?"
"After my appointment, no," Scott answered. "Why?"
"Is it okay if I take you to your appointment - or does it have to be an 'adult'?"
"Craig wanted to talk to Storm, but-"
"No, that's fine," James said. "I'll just hitch with you and we can pick up a car before we come back."
"Wait," Nate said, frowning at his brother. "You're just going to buy one? Like you're picking up a loaf of bread?"
"I do get paid. I can handle it," James said. "And I need a different car, so yeah. Dad can help me pick it."
"And if you don't see anything you like?" Nate challenged.
"Then… Storm can bring us back and I'll try again tomorrow." James turned to Scott. "If she's okay with that."
"Go ahead and talk to her. I'm sure she won't turn you down."
For the first time since he'd started therapy, Scott was in a bright mood, ready to get through it so he could see what, exactly his middle child was up to. Yes, James' job made it possible for him to pick up pretty much anything he wanted on a whim, but this was a little out of James' usual coping methods, and Scott was wondering what exactly he was up to if this was how he was choosing to handle things. He simply didn't buy things for himself.
But of course, Craig had noticed things were different - and that Scott was a little distracted. "I suppose it would be best if we cleared the air right off the bat," Craig said as he sat down. "I saw the news last night and again this morning. That was your daughter on the news, wasn't it?"
"Yes," Scott said, "that reporter caught her off guard - it was a reactionary response and she's kicking herself over it pretty badly."
"So that's two out of three that are openly known to the world," Craig said. "How are you handling that while it's still fresh?"
"Like you said, it's still fresh."
"Is that why your son is waiting with Ororo today?"
"Yes and no," Scott said. "He's got his own things to do today, but it's a direct result of what happened last night."
"Alright. Why don't you tell me what you're thinking, Scott. I don't mind opening up our conversations from time to time, but I do need you to tell me more than yes or no answers and I can tell by your expression that you're a lot more stressed over this than the matter of fact answers you've given so far."
"What do you want me to say?" Scott said, sounding like the stressed out and worried father that he was. "She's been doing good. They all have. She's been an Avenger for a couple of years with no one really pushing to figure out who she was other than passing 'who is this new mystery hero on the Avengers'. And now? Instead of leading asking her about her latest rescue or big heroic feat, they're asking her about her mother's crimes."
Craig nodded. "And you feel as if nothing has changed."
"It hasn't," Scott said. "Not really. The minute she was recognized as Jean's daughter everything good she did is gone. They don't care. They're still mad about what the Phoenix did, and for a lot of people that were affected, I can't even blame them. I still can't even think about how many innocent people died from those fires. But that's not on Rachel."
"It's early," Craig said. "If I recall, there was some similar blowback when your son stepped on that stage with Tony Stark. It blew over quickly enough."
"Maybe in the press," Scott said. "But not anywhere else, I'm sure. And Rachel doesn't have the same buffer that James does. She's an Avenger, sure - but she's not covered by Stark's blanket protection."
"No, but does she need it in the same way? She is, by everything you've told me about her so far an incredibly competent, capable, talented, and compassionate young woman. She has a power set that is practically designed to give her an early warning system against anyone that might want to do her harm. She's probably better equipped than you are in many ways."
"That's not…." Scott sighed, then reached for his scars - diverting to rub his eyes at the last moment when he caught himself reaching.
"Scott - I need you to put a little time in looking at all of the positive things that are being said about your kids in the public. I know you've always looked for the threats, and I can appreciate that, but you need to see the good things being said about them by the people they're helping and the people that are watching them help others, too," Craig said. "What those kids are doing … it's good work, Scott. They're making a difference in a very big way."
"I'm just …" Scott held his breath as he tried to find a way to frame it that didn't sound like he was outright telling Craig that he was missing the picture. "... I'm concerned that they're not able to handle it if the pressure really kicks in. Rachel was at the verge of tearing her hair out over that ambush last night. That was just one reporter. What happens if they manage to get more than just a confirmation on her name?"
"Is it just Rachel you're worried about in that capacity?"
"Of course not," Scott said. "It's just a matter of time before Nate gets drawn into it - and for as good as James has been so far, he's still a kid - and he's dealing with things no one his age should have to juggle."
"Do you think they don't have the support they need?"
"Yes. No. I don't know. I- they all have their own ways of coping."
"Maybe you should bring them with you," Craig said. "I'd like to check in on them and get their outlook on how things are going."
"Fine."
"Then let's start with the one you brought with you today," Craig said. "Seeing as someone - and now a large part of the city - thought he might be sleeping with his sister-"
"They're not. No one knows she's his sister," Scott pointed out.
"No, they don't. I did notice that they managed to keep that to themselves even after Rachel lost control of keeping her name secret."
Craig got to his feet and started toward the door as Scott smirked to himself. There was some truth to that … they did put a stop to things once they knew for sure it had gone too far.
Partway through Scott's session, as James was surfing on his phone and texting with Billy, Tony, and Nate, the door to Craig's office opened and Craig stepped out, doing his best to look welcoming as he smiled over at Storm and James. At first, James didn't pay him any attention - not openly anyhow, and it wasn't until Craig cleared his throat that he even looked up at him.
"You must be Scott's son," Craig said, and in a blink, James was on his feet - his phone in his pocket and a hand offered to shake - just as Scott would have expected of him.
"James," he said in response. "Nice to meet you."
"If you aren't too busy with whatever you're doing on the phone, your dad and I would like you to come and join us for a little bit."
James frowned. "Is he alright?"
Craig smiled a little warmer. "We're working on that. But we could use you with us for a few minutes - since you're here anyhow."
James glanced at Ororo, but didn't argue it one iota as he walked ahead of Craig to take a seat next to Scott. The look James gave Scott as he sat down was a clear, silent check in to make sure Scott was okay before James would pay attention to anyone outside of his dad.
"Thank you for joining us," Craig said, still looking warm and approachable. "I'd like to talk to you for a few minutes, if you don't mind. It can be difficult on children when they see their parents in need of help from a therapist. Considering the way things have been going for you in the last few months, I think it'd be reasonable to touch base … not just for your father's sake, but for yours as well."
James frowned slightly, then shook his head. "I'm fine," James said - and the expression Craig gave him was nearly accusatory for how dry it was - and for how often he'd heard the same kind of line from Scott. But James read that perfectly, too. "No, okay … I'm not 'fine', but I've already got a therapist. We're working on it."
"How often do you see your therapist?" Craig asked, notebook in hand.
James opened his mouth, then looked almost distracted as he glanced between Scott and Craig. "Twice a week since we moved."
"Really?" Scott said, turning James' way- obviously out of the loop on that front.
"Yeah," James said, turning fully to face his dad. "He said since he couldn't check in at coffee randomly, I needed to make more of an effort. I think he just wants his gossip, to be honest, but I'm going along with it anyhow."
"How are you handling being in the public eye so heavily after keeping a low profile for so long?" Craig asked, pleasantly surprised when James turned back his way - keeping an open posture and not blocking himself off.
"It's an adjustment," James admitted. "But I have a lot of help and a lot of coaching from Tony and Jan - and others."
"What about yesterday's impromptu interview?" Craig asked.
James kept an even expression and Craig could almost see the wheels turning as he decided on the direction for his answer. "I'm going to assume you're not fishing to ask if I'm actually sleeping with my sister," James said dryly. "For the record, I'm not. I've got a way to handle the temporary interest in the people I care about. So … I'm not happy, but it'll work out soon."
"Even the most experienced people have trouble predicting what the media will go for and what they won't."
"They follow a pattern," James said. "And I know what they want to report on."
Craig nodded to himself. "If you find that you need a different outlook-"
"I'll keep you in mind," James said. "As long as you don't slip on helping my dad."
"I won't," Craig said, doing a fine job of hiding the smile at how openly protective the kid was with a stranger. It wasn't that he didn't know - but it was still a nice thing to see in person. "Now, unless you had anything specific you wanted to address with your son-"
"No," Scott said, shaking his head quickly.
"Then, Scott, I think we've covered some good ground today. You know what you need to work on, and I'd like to hear some progress when I see you in a few days," Craig said. "If you're planning to do something with your son, then I won't keep you too long."
Scott blinked in mild surprise, but since Craig had just that week backed off to every other day for sessions, he figured this simply fit the pattern of needing less time. That in itself was nice to see, because it was a tangible way to show that he was making progress.
So, he didn't look the gift horse in the mouth. "Right. Thanks, Craig."
Craig smirked as he took a step back toward his reception area. "Remember what I said about broadening your pool of intel," he said - which had Ororo shooting Scott a questioning look, considering the warning. But Scott simply shrugged in response, still not convinced Craig was right about what to look for.
They left the appointment quietly, and as before, James climbed into the backseat without prompting, though now, at least Ororo knew what his plan was so she wasn't going to press for details that she knew already.
She and James had discussed it while Scott was in his counseling session, and Ororo was incredibly amused and pleased with James' plan of action. So naturally, she helped him find the best way to implement it. Before Scott could pull himself out of his thoughts, they were pulling into a dealership with a whole line of shining new Mustangs.
"You're really going to do this, aren't you?" Scott asked as they came to a stop near the line.
"Hey. Don't look at me. Nate picked it."
"Yeah, but you're paying for it. Pretty sure you should get a say," Scott said. "On your car."
James shrugged and the two of them started to walk down the line, looking at all of them and taking in every detail that they could find … all of them were new, so none of them had any defects to speak of. But it wasn't until they reached the center of the line that they found two options that both of them were interested in, and by that time, the salesmen had started to come out.
The sales team offered the two of them a test drive before one of the salesmen recognized James … and within moments, they were getting an entirely different kind of level of attention. Suddenly the sales staff knew that they wouldn't be rolling the dice with someone on financing - not with what they'd seen about the kid in the news. Just like that, James and Scott were trying not to look too amused as the salesmen suggested that they look at the cars they had in the building - protected from the elements and obviously the ones with the most features, gadgets, and toys.
They test drove three of them before James looked over at Scott, who was starting to have trouble holding back the smile. "What do you think?" James asked. "I'm down to the Cobra and the black one."
"Definitely the Cobra," Scott said, finally allowing the smile to peek through, and with a nod, James turned toward the salesmen and they started up the paperwork. It only took a few phonecalls to arrange for things, and by the time the ink was dry, Scott was listed as the owner since legally, James wasn't quite there yet.
Ororo was outright grinning when she saw the two of them pull up next to her in the shining deep blue car - and Scott was matching her grin. "Try not to race too much," she advised, then turned toward James. "Don't worry. I won't say a word to anyone."
"Thanks, Aunt Ro," James replied before Ororo left them to get back on their own. James only drove far enough to stop and fill up the tank properly before he tossed Scott the keys. "Your turn."
"You sure you're ready to share that fast?" Scott asked, though he got out to change spots with him.
"Well … technically, it's your car."
"On paper, sure," Scott said. "But so is the Jeep."
"Yeah, but … this one won't be transferring to me on my birthday," James said.
Scott frowned at that. "James, tell me you bought this for yourself."
"I bought this for myself."
Scott watched him for a long moment. "I don't believe that."
"Belive what you want to believe," James said mildly. "I did buy it because I needed something a little zippier for going to work for a while."
"Uh huh."
"Why don' you just … see what this thing can actually do?" James suggested. "Please? I haven't finished the evasive driving course Tony has me going through and he wasn't amused when I told him I could just baja the Jeep straight through the middle of the track."
"How far are you on powerslides?" Scott asked dryly.
James closed one eye and held his hand out palm down and shook it lightly "meh. I can get more slide if I applied myself."
"Was that the day Stark was carrying on about burned out tires?"
"Maybe." James smirked. "But …I've been holding on to that to scare the crap out of Nate? So …"
"Yeah. Don't do it on the open road, okay?"
"Not unless I have to."
"'Have to' means if you're actively evading a weapons program, James."
"Fine," he said in a heavy, put upon sigh that made it difficult for Scott to keep from smiling.
Scott was chuckling under his breath as he reached over to turn the radio on, fiddling with it until he found a station that he liked, though that only lasted a song or two before the news broke in - and Scott nearly ran off the road as Jameson came on defending Rachel.
"There is no reason that in this day and age in this great country that we should even be considering discussing holding an innocent young woman responsible for the actions of her parents. Rachel Summers, as far as we know, has apparently been a card-carrying Avenger for a number of years. She's worked along side Captain America for cry-eye, and my competitors are alluding to some kind of inherited guilt? That is not the foundation on which this country was built. You cannot hang an innocent person for crimes that they haven't committed. Now … I know what my competition has to say about mutants and the X-Men in particular, but has anyone taken the time to actually think about is being said and spread around like gospel? Mutants are dangerous - sure, but the ones living in this country anyhow are supposed to be protected by the same rights that the rest of us have."
Jameson's rant paused, just long enough for the host of the show to ask a question that had Scott pulling over to listen.
"We have to register weapons," the co-host said. ''Many of these mutants have untold power that can be dangerously used against innocent people. Don't you think they should need to account for that?"
"Listen," Jameson said, and the building heat was apparent in his tone. "There is no doubt that there are some potentially dangerous mutants out there, somewhere. But when was the last time that a mutant purposefully commited a crime that you heard the outcome? I'm not just asking about the crime itself. I mean the trip through the justice system afterward. Every time a mutant is so much as suspected in this country - and not of a crime, either, just suspected for being a mutant - every time, the MRD is called to the scene, usually after the police apprehend them on trumped up charges, or worse still, no charges at all. And every time the MRD takes a mutant into custody, we never hear a word about it afterward. They disappear. There's no trial, no judge or jury - they just vanish."
"Prosecution of the crimes can take time-"
"Then they have a right to a speedy trial, not a right to sit in purgatory in some cell that no one knows the location of or the conditions they're being held under. These mutants are American citizens. They have rights. You and I and every red-blooded American have our rights outlined for us in the Constitution, and rounding up people based on a single mutated gene and locking them away in camps or prisons out of sight and against any of the laws we uphold in this country is the kind of thing you'd expect out of Nazi Germany, not our country. It's bigoted, ignorant, and un-American. And I'll tell you something else, too ...the world never knew all that the X-Men did, and they've been gone for too long."
"Wait. You covered the original group yourself. They were terrorists-"
"My god, what do they teach you to get a journalism degree these days?" JJ interrupted. "Do your own damn research, kid. Anyone with an ounce of talent can search the public record for a glimpse of what that team was doing. Search the record of the Friends of Humanity investigation. My office sent a slew of FOIA requests and even with only half approved, you can see for yourself what that team was doing - and why they were targeted. I even printed a damn retraction, not that anyone remembers that when it doesn't fit their narrative. No journalistic integrity, the lot of you."
"I wasn't trying to suggest-"
"The hell you weren't. Don't come on my show with half the facts again. Do your homework. And once you've got your background, then you can talk to me about the new group. These kids - the kids of the original X-Men - and we don't know for sure which ones are which outside of the two who have now been unmasked - they're filling a gap to protect innocent people from their own government, and they're doing it within the boundaries of the law - more so even than their parents did, considering their official Avengers status and connections to law enforcement through that team. Don't you dare call what those kids are trying to do anything but what it is."
"There's some debate on that, Mr. Jameson. Some people are calling them the same things they called their parents."
"Consider the source," Jameson cut in. "The people calling them terrorists are the same ones running and profiting off of the MRD. I've been watching these new X-Men since they made their debut, and you know what I've seen? Let's start with the girl in the news this morning: Prestige - that's Rachel Summers for those of you just tuning in. That young lady and her teammates have been protecting life. Not just mutant life, but human life as well. In fact, my team has been keeping tally, and what we've found is that the X-Men have been protecting humans at a ratio of nearly two-to-one when compared to the mutants they've been saving. On the other hand, our own police force has been ignoring violent crimes up to and including murder against mutants for decades."
James and Scott were staring at the radio as Jameson continued - and he did, for nearly fifteen minutes.
"What do you suggest as a reasonable course of action, Mr. Jameson?" the co-host asked in a clearly irritated tone - a challenge that Jameson rose to beautifully.
"I'm no authority on how to handle public safety-"
"Here we go," Scott said under his breath.
"... and there are some who would say it's a crazy idea, but maybe, just maybe, we can stop treating everyone different from us like they're the damned enemy. Whatever happened to innocent until proven guilty? How can you take that - one of our most basic principles - and twist it against kids working to protect innocents missed by the Avengers and others by accusing them of being terrorists? Do yourself a favor and look - and I mean really look at what the original X-Men did. And not just what my office put out. You don't get an easy cop out piggybacking off of my work alone. You'll see a lot of reports on property damage and fighting against unlawful arrest by the MRD and others, but you'll also see a lot of stories of lives saved in dramatically impossible circumstances."
"But the Phoenix-"
"Let me remind you that one of the X-Men sacrificed himself to stop the Phoenix from killing all of us," Jameson said hotly, cutting him off. "If the MRD had an entity like that at their fingertips, they'd let the mutants and everyone else burn out of sheer arrogance and bigotry. The Friends of Humanity had records on what they wanted the damn thing for too if they could figure out the right way to pressure Jean Summers. There are years of records on that thing. I'm getting tired of repeating myself on the state of journalism; you can't just waltz into a story like some doe-eyed…" From there, the hour turned into JJ's lecture on the laziness he saw in the new generation of reporters.
"Dad," James said quietly when the program shifted to a rant and still, Scott was staring at the radio. "Are you okay? What just happened?"
"I just … I … did you hear all of that or did I just have a stroke?" Scott asked, which was enough to get James to crack a smile.
"If you had one, I did too, and we are super in sync if that's the case … shared hallucinations and all."
Scott nodded, almost numbly.
"Do you want me to drive?" James asked, but that seemed to prompt Scott back into moving.
"No, I've got it," Scott said, then pulled himself the rest of the way out of his thoughts by peeling out on his way back onto the road. They stopped in Salem Center to pick up pizza, though since it was Bobby's night to cook and none of the Summers kids ever really did more than taste whatever Bobby came up with out of courtesy before hitting pizza anyhow. To finish the last leg, Scott tossed the key fob to James. "You should drive it."
"I will," James agreed, and as soon as they were settled in, he repeated the same move Scott had made getting on the road earlier, which amazingly had Scott laughing to himself as they burnt out.
When they got to the school, however, Nate was the first out of the door in pure disbelief. "You did not just go buy this thing!" he said, gesturing at the shining sportscar. "You even got it in blue! That's so not your color!"
"Oh, yeah," James said casually, turning to look at it as if he hadn't noticed that it was exactly Nate's favorite shade of royal-navy. "It had the features I wanted. Color didn't really matter much."
But that had Scott turning toward him fully. There were four other mustangs on the lot with exactly the same features, but this was the only blue one that was there. And he knew James was up to something, but he wasn't going to bust him if it was what he thought it was.
"Wanna test drive it?" James asked, holding up the fob for Nate, who snatched it out of his hand in a blink.
"Be back in a few," Nate called out to Scott.
"Don't get pulled over," Scott said as the boys climbed in. "You still don't have your license."
"I won't," Nate promised, grinning broadly. "We're just going to go down the road and back." He started the car and just began laughing at the roar of the engine. He was clearly enjoying himself as he ran his hand over the wheel and revved the engine. "Really? You're going to let me drive your new baby?"
"Hey. You picked it out. You should drive it," James said, and before he could renege, Nate put it in drive and the two of them headed off with Nate laughing delightedly all the while.
Both of them were grinning as they drove, and Nate was obviously soaking it in with every turn and take off. James didn't interrupt Nate as he soaked up his drive, and because he didn't interrupt him, it wasn't until they were back at the school before Nate had to shake his head. "This is the coolest car ever," Nate said.
James tipped his head with one eye closed. "I wouldn't go that far."
"Well … you said to buy now and drive now," Nate said. "If it was ever it'd be a classic."
"Again … though that has some truth, this still isn't the coolest buy now drive now."
Nate frowned. "Then why'd you go with my pick?"
"I told you you could pick it," James said simply as Nate turned off the engine looking perfectly vexed by his big brother, then dropped the fob in his hand.
"Well what would you have picked?"
James smiled. "I'd have gone with a McLaren," he said, grinning at him just before he got out and then leaned on the roof, watching Nate's shocked expression. "But this will work for now."
"Nuh-uh, wait. You never said it could be a super car."
"I never said it couldn't, either."
"Oh, come on!" Nate shouted, jogging to catch up to where James was already, smiling to himself, though when he caught up to James at the door, he was grinning again. "If you get that, you have to let me drive it."
"We'll see," James said, laughing as they got into the house. "I just bought this one, after all."
"Yeah, and you're sharing."
"Needed something good to share," James said. "Maybe you'll step back enough to get all the time you need for your license now."
"Hey. I've been busy-"
"Yeah. I know. The teams and football practice … and soon school will start, too. You're running out of time to work on it."
Nate stared at James for a moment. "Please tell me you didn't buy this just so I could get my license."
"No. I bought it because I need something else and you needed motivation to get your license."
"You dorks missed out on the pizza," Rachel said. "All because you were playing with cars."
"Oh darn, we'll have to go get some more," Nate said, then held his hand out to James. "I'll drive."
"Fine by me," James agreed, which, though Nate was smiling, he was also watching his brother a little more suspiciously.
"Is this the part where you let me really enjoy it then won't let me touch it at all once I get my license?" Nate asked.
"No, this is the part where you get to drive more because you've been pushing to," James said.
"I thought I'd just get time in by using the Jeep," Nate said, but that got a full stop out of James.
"Absolutely not," he said seriously. "You're not touching the Jeep."
Nate turned, looking totally dumbfounded. "Wait. You'll let me drive the brand-new Mustang, but you don't want me to touch your rattle trap rust bucket of a Jeep? What?"
"Fine," James said. "You cant drive the Mustang either."
"That is not what I was after!" Nate said as the two brothers headed off with Scott and Rachel smirking after them.
"Do you know what he's got planned?" Rachel asked Scott.
"He didn't outright admit it more than what he just told Nate, but I think I've got a pretty good idea," Scott said. "And when you consider that I've driven it more than James has already - and in about ten minutes, Nate will have probably driven it more than him, too … I think we know what the story is."
Rachel smiled and shook her head. He's totally going to blindside him … even if it's obvious.
Nate's been picking up cues from James on how not to want things, Scott told her. Or at least to appear as if he doesn't want things. There's no way James didn't buy that car not intending for Nate to have it eventually.
Yeah, I know, Rachel agreed. He asked if I needed a car not long after he started getting checks from Stark. He said he didn't want me stuck.
Scott smiled mildly. He's just trying to take care of you two.
And you, Rachel added. I know he's been 'upgrading' your truck when he pushes the Jeep on you.
Yeah. But now he's escalating, Scott pointed out. Do me a favor and keep an eye on his generosity. I want to make sure he's not … I want to make sure he's alright.
Chapter 70: Oh, Hello.
Chapter Text
As summer started to come to a close, the football team met up for more frequent pre-season practices, and the Summers family began discussions on when it was appropriate to head back into their home in Brooklyn. Scott wasn't quite cleared to go back to just living with the kids, but he was eagerly looking forward to it all the same. He missed the time he had with his family.
Nate was flirting with Kate as they waited for Scott to come pick them up from a joint football and cheerleading practice. Nate had been getting in a lot more driving time with his dad in the Mustang, but he was still just short of what he needed to drive himself, and he was glad for the highway driving available to him going between the city and Westchester.
But at the moment, Nate's focus wasn't on football or driving - and Kate didn't miss the crooked smile on Nate's face when he spotted the team's volunteer waterperson for the day. She came in with a bright smile and a deep Southern accent, cheerfully greeting both staff and students alike when she came to help the varsity team with food, water, and Gatorade for the duration of practice. He didn't even pretend he wasn't peeking into Ms. Hale's mind to see if she was still interested in his dad or not. And from what he saw, she was; she just thought Scott either wasn't ready to date or hadn't noticed that she was interested.
Nate smirked to himself as he realized, too, that Craig Hale, the consummate professional, hadn't given Annie anything to indicate he was working with Scott in a therapeutic capacity. So as far as Nate was concerned, everything was still a go and he was back in the matchmaking business.
It probably helped, too that Kate was already projecting exactly that his way. Along with a Fiddler on the Roof song, because she thought she was funny.
Nate made it a point to stay by the water station when it came time for his dad to pick him up after practice, so Scott had to go to him, smirking when he saw Nate talking with Kate and thinking that was the reason he wasn't waiting at the parking lot like usual.
"Lose track of time?" Scott called out.
Kate smirked and leaned over to kiss Nate before he called out, "Sure."
Scott shook his head but came to stand beside the two of them all the same. "Alright, you're not saying goodbye forever," he said. "Hi, Kate."
"Hi, Scott," she sang out happily. "We're planning and plotting. Give us a minute, okay?"
Scott chuckled and shook his head. "I'm pretty sure you don't need any more plots, Kate."
"Um, of course I do. Like, for example, did you know America finally admitted to having a crush? She's just waiting for the lucky girl to get through some family drama."
Wow, Kate. Way to give it away.
Oh, whatever. You know I'm right. Your sister won't relax enough to even look at dating until you're all on solid ground. Especially now that half the world thinks she and James are doing the deed.
So you're just gonna lay that on my poor dad, huh?
Motivation, Nate. It's called motivation. Here, Scott, your daughter has prospects she's not related to. Please move on with your life so she can move on with hers.
You're insane, you know that?
And yet you still love me. Weirdo.
Scott shook his head, smiling to himself at the familiar silence of telepathic conversation. "Don't mind me," he said as he went to fill up a plastic cup of water - and nearly stopped when he saw Nate's history teacher, Ms. Hale, coming back from a trip to her van where she was putting away some of the coolers to give to the next teacher that would be helping the team.
"Oh!" Ms. Hale stopped and then broke into a smile. "Mr. Mueller. It's good to see you."
Scott barely resisted the urge to look toward Nate, though he did project a quiet, I know what you're doing, his way. Still, he smiled at Ms Hale as he filled one cup and handed it to her and then filled one for himself. "I hope my son isn't giving you a hard time loitering here, Ms. Hale."
"Please, call me Annie," she said, then shook her head, smiling a little more as she hid behind the see-through plastic cup and drank the water in it.
"Then I'm going to have to ask you to call me Scott." He smiled a little to himself before he gave Nate a warning look, hoping he'd go easy and get the hint to gather himself up and get ready to go. But instead, Nate seemed to settle in for the show - pointedly taking a slow drink of his water as he held his father's gaze. "How did you get wrangled into bringing water for these troublemakers?"
"We all volunteer to help. Half of the social studies department are coaches, and the other half chips in where we can." Annie smiled a little more warmly at him.
"Must be a tight group," Scott said, blatantly ignoring the fact that he could see Nate and Kate grinning at whatever they were projecting to each other.
Annie smiled widely. "All the faculty tend to look out for each other."
"Yeah," Scott said. "I know the feeling."
"Oh? What is it that you do?" Annie asked conversationally - not at all prepared for Scott to pause over such a simple question.
"I… haven't worked in a while. Retired early to take care of my kids."
Annie's smile warmed, though she pointed out, "You don't half look old enough to retire."
"Well, I didn't get benefits, so I suppose that wasn't the right …" He shrugged. "I've been lucky. Wealthy extended family and a very generous will…" He let the sentence hang there; usually, that was enough for people. As always, he had a set response to the questions he was used to getting.
"Well, I think it's wonderful that you're raising them," Annie told him. "I already told you last time I saw you: Nate speaks very highly of you." She smirked. "I have nieces and nephews. I know what a full-time job it can be."
"It's not that intensive anymore," Scott said.
"No, Nate's the youngest, isn't he? He speaks highly of his sister and brother as well."
"Yes, he's the youngest," Scott agreed, though he hadn't expected her to have been paying attention to the kids that closely. Most people didn't.
Annie flushed when he looked surprised. "I … well, I like to keep up with what my students are doing."
"I noticed that last year, actually. I just didn't realize it reached that far beyond the classroom. It's refreshing."
Annie's smile lit up. "My family and my students mean the world to me."
"They're lucky to have you."
"Thank you." Annie flushed but tried to cover for it by tucking her hair behind her ear. "So, if you don't mind my asking, what does a stay-at-home father do when he's facing an empty nest?"
"I … have no idea," Scott replied honestly, thinking of his recent conversation with Craig. He somehow wasn't surprised that the man's sister thought along the same lines.
"Don't want to go back to your old job?" she asked sympathetically.
Scott hedged. "Not exactly," he said. "A lot has changed since I was involved at my last job."
"I imagine," Annie said. "If it's anything like teaching, we're always getting new curricula every year, it feels like."
"In some ways, it's very much like that, and in others … it's the same old tune."
Annie nodded, then started to very slowly smile as she set her cup down. "So…mechanic?" she guessed. "I'm not getting very many clues here. But cars are always updating and always the same somehow."
Scott tried and failed to find a reasonable way to answer her - especially since to date, no one had pressed this far into the conversation before. "I … can't really talk about it until things are solidified," he said finally. "I hate to be so vague …"
"Mmm." Annie nodded, losing some of her teasing smile. "It's alright. My daddy was military." She gestured to her own face to mirror his. "I know that heavy look."
"Still, it doesn't help with conversation," Scott said, his hand on the back of his neck for a moment.
"That's alright," Annie assured him. "I'm the opposite. Can't stop talking about the job…" She tucked her hair behind her ears again.
"I don't mind hearing about it."
"Oh." Annie blushed again. "Well, then, that's nice."
"Are you going to be at the next practice?" Nate called out.
Scott shot Nate such a look, especially when Annie turned an even more delicate shade of pink. Still, though, Annie said, "Oh, well, I can stop by…"
"I just … I finished that book you loaned me," Nate said, grinning broadly.
At that, Annie did break out of her nervousness into a smile. "Oh, did you like it?" she asked earnestly. "Hercules Poirot is my favorite."
"Couldn't put it down," Nate answered, still grinning from ear to ear.
"I'll have to recommend more, then. That one's the best known, but honestly, the little one-shots are better mysteries. Less drama, more detective work."
"I don't know if I can handle less drama," Nate said with a quiet laugh. "But I do love putting clues together."
"Oh, well, if you want more drama, same author, I can do that too," Annie said, her eyes twinkling.
"Great," Nate said. "I'll bring it for you next time if you'll be around."
"Perfect. I'll bring And Then There Were None."
Scott shook his head at the pair of them, perfectly aware of what Nate was up to, though he didn't say anything until he'd said a polite goodbye to Annie and dropped Kate off at home. He was even shielding his thoughts from Nate so the kid didn't know what punishment to expect.
The whole way back to Westchester, Scott kept trying to decide where to even start, and several times, he opened his mouth to say something, then got irritated and stopped - sure that if he said what was on his mind just then, he'd have to pull the car over. So it wasn't until they were through the door all the way back in Westchester that Scott turned Nate's way. "You," he said slowly but sharply, "are a terrible liar."
"I … read the book," Nate answered, wide-eyed but grinning in spite of himself.
"One week," Scott said. "One week of home and practices and that's it. No dates - single, double, or group. No visits."
"Does that include Avengers practices?"
"That depends on what Steve says when I tell him you lied to my face," Scott said dryly.
Nate held his arms out wide. "What did I lie about?"
"From the start, I asked why you weren't at the parking lot," Scott said.
"Um … it is hot. I needed water, Dad."
"Uh-huh." Scott shook his head. "Stop trying to set me up, Nate. That poor woman is going to think I'm only talking to her because of you."
"What did you try this time?" James asked as he headed past them to grab some popcorn to go with the movie he and Billy were watching. For as desperate as Nate and Kate were getting to make the very most out of every second, James and Billy were getting downright comfortable. "And how badly did it blow up in your face?"
"I didn't try anything," Nate said, though James snorted out a laugh at that. "It's not my fault that Dad actually kept talking to her. On his own. Without prompting."
James frowned at Nate, then turned toward Scott for confirmation. He didn't say anything as he looked between them, but Scott wasn't confirming or denying squat.
"She kept asking questions; he kept answering … and complimenting her," Nate said. "Polite adult flirting. Seriously."
Again, James looked between them, and when he saw the look on Scott's face, he shook his head and reached into his pocket to hand Nate a fifty with a sigh and not a word spoken.
"James." Scott said sharply as he looked between his two boys. "Really?"
"Hey, I said you wouldn't carry on with the pretty history teacher," James said.
"I wasn't carrying-" Scott passed a hand over his face. "I have one friendly conversation…"
"Hey Dad?" James said, and he waited just long enough for Scott to look up at him. "Nate's not the only bad liar."
Scott shot James the driest look he could manage. "Shut up."
"Love you too," James called back, simply headed back to the living room, popcorn in hand where Billy was trying hard to keep from laughing too loudly while still thoroughly enjoying getting more comfortable with the Summers family.
Nate was sure to have the book Ms. Hale had loaned out to him ready to go at the next practice - even before he'd gotten ready to go all the way. He had set it down and picked it up at least half a dozen times in the course of prepping to go, and then he went out of his way to show Scott that he had the book. He threw his pads in the trunk of the car, and tried hard to keep his foot from jiggling all the way there - constantly checking the clock and watching traffic as he drove.
Scott watched him with a hint of amusement, even if he still wasn't happy with the little trick he'd tried to pull last time. But when they finally got to the field, Nate hopped out and grabbed his bag from the backseat - then ran back to grab the book - then ran back again to hand the keys to his dad.
"I'll see you after practice," Scott said, shaking his head as Nate grinned and rushed for the field. Scott shook his head and got in the car to head off. He wasn't about to sit around and watch practice when he knew Nate was trying to keep him there to make Ms Hale uncomfortable, so instead, since he had a little time on his hands, he headed back to the house in Brooklyn. He'd needed to spend some time there anyhow - make sure everything was still in order and that nothing was tampered with. It was still their home, after all.
He parked the Mustang out front and walked into the house, thoroughly scanning it the whole while, and when he looked around, there was plenty that needed to be picked up. It wasn't that they'd left the place a mess when they left at the beginning of summer … they just hadn't been as meticulous as Scott would have liked in the big rush to go to Westchester.
So, to ease his mind and give himself something to do while Nate was at practice, he started to clean up the kitchen. He needed the time to think anyhow. Rachel was coping well enough with nosy reporters, though Scott wondered if she'd simply redirected some of them telepathically - which would be trouble if that was the case. On top of that, for as cozy as Billy and James were when both boys were in Westchester, James was in the middle of prepping for his trip with Tony to go overseas. So much was changing … and with everyone preoccupied with their own lives, he found himself thinking over all that his therapist had been suggesting.
He was partway through scrubbing down the sink - just to do it - when he got a text from Rabbi Cohen asking if he had time for coffee. With a smirk, Scott agreed and started prepping for a nice, long coffee talk. He'd given himself exactly half an hour to clean up before Toby said he'd be coming over.
He really should have expected the phone call from Nate.
"Dad, I forgot my knee pads. Can you please bring them for me? I don't have time to come back for them and-"
"Nate, you're not subtle."
"Dad, I'm not kidding! I was so busy making sure I had the book, and focusing on my freeway driving on the way and just … anxious about this practice … I forgot my pads! I'm serious - and I'm okay without them for warm ups, but I can't be late to practice."
Scott sighed, pinching the bridge of his nose as he listened to Nate plead. "Where are they?"
"In the trunk. I know I put them in the trunk before we left Westchester. I'm … 95% sure."
There was a shrill whistle in the background before Scott could hear the coach shouting at Nate to get in line for warmups. "Alright," Scott said. "I'll be there as quick as I can."
"Thanks, Dad!" Nate called back before he hung up, leaving Scott grimly looking at the phone. There was no way that this wasn't intentional. He turned toward the entry, half grumbling to himself already. If he was wrong, the kid would have earned the laps the coach would press for.
Scott headed down the front stoop and popped the trunk to the Mustang, where, lo and behold - the pads were there in Nate's big mesh bag. Scott shook his head, double-checked that they were all there, then pulled it out of the trunk. There was no way he'd make it through traffic at this time of day.
He checked his watch, and as it turned out, he met up with Toby at the corner. He gestured to the bag and shrugged. "I have to get this to Nate," he said with a shrug. "Raincheck?"
"Please," Toby laughed, though the sparkle in his eyes betrayed the rabbi's amusement all the same. But Scott honestly didn't have time to get involved in Toby Cohen's teasing, even if he missed it more than he'd admit to. He actually did have to get the gear to Nate. Especially when he knew he was on a timer, too. He just wondered if Nate had managed to convince his teacher to show up at the start of practice or not.
After a short trip on the subway and a few blocks of rushing to get to the football field, Scott found himself running to meet Nate at the sidelines - and Nate did look believably relieved as he took the gear and quickly started putting it on - with Scott helping him just to rush it along before the coach could start getting after Nate. He would have earned it for letting something so big slip his mind …
"Hello, Mr. Meuller," a now familiar voice rang out.
Then again … Scott knew now for sure that it was no slip of the mind, and he took a moment to project to Nate, An extra week - and no date this weekend.
It really was an honest mistake, Nate argued.
Focus on your game, Summers, Scott countered, though he was smirking for more than one reason - and their exchange had only taken less than a second. "Hello, Ms. Hale. I hope you're not being held up too much by my son's antics."
"I only just got here," Annie replied, smiling to herself. "It's nice to see you still dropping everything to help him out."
"It's my job," Scott replied with an easy smirk. "I thought he'd grown out of forgetting vital things though."
"Not if he was worried about his sweetheart waitin' on him," she shot back. "I did happen to notice that the cheerleaders are havin' a practice of their own this mornin'."
"Yeah, I noticed that too," Scott said, shaking his head.
"They really are sweet, if you're concerned. I know the other teachers will complain about the physicality, and honestly, they are a bit young by most folks' standards to be that involved, but they are very sweet with each other," Annie said.
"His sister would have put him in the ground by now if he was thinking about her in the wrong way," Scott said, smirking at his own joke.
"Well, I don't think he'd be stupid enough to say anything, even if he was off base. But it's pretty clear it's not just a physical thing. He's smitten. He doesn't have that look, you know? LIke he's waiting for the next new thing?"
"Believe me, I know," Scott said. "Any of my old friends who knew me at his age have been helpfully comparing us."
"Oh, have they, now?" Annie asked with a little smile. "Were you a quarterback, too?"
"Ah, no. But I met his mother when we were in high school." He shrugged softly. "I know what that look means."
"That's sweet."
Scott nodded quietly, not sure what to make of how genuinely Annie cared about the kids she taught, down to their personal lives. "Yes, well, it would be sweeter if I didn't have to come down here after they got caught under the bleachers again."
"Honestly. I thought they'd have found a new spot by now. That's just askin' for trouble." She tipped her chin up and gave him a side-long glance. "Or attention."
"Knowing Kate, it's probably a little bit of both. She's just as likely to find trouble on purpose as he is."
"Her parents seemed involved," Annie said. "I didn't think she'd be the one to ask for trouble with them."
"She walks a fine line between being in trouble with her mother and making her father turn purple," Scott said, smirking.
"Her favorite color for a few reasons then."
"I used to live in the same apartment building as her parents. I heard every one of the excuses." He shook his head, smiling. "That does make it easier, though - knowing her family. She won't cross the red lines in the sand, even if she'll joyfully waltz as close to them as she can."
"And Nate?" Annie asked with a smile.
"Like I said - his sister would kill him before I did. Her first serious date went home with a limp when she realized what he was thinking." He smirked. "My kids know how to give and demand respect."
"Sounds like they had a strong example to learn from. Maybe a few." Annie smiled warmly but didn't mention the fact that she recognized Kate's parents. Both of them. She'd just kept that little nugget to herself, even from the other teachers that hadn't been invested enough to pay attention once their tenure was in. Those kids deserved a normal life, no matter who their parents were, and she was glad to see that at least one of them had found a way to do that with Scott's family. "Lucky kids."
Scott nodded his agreement, letting the conversation lull long enough that he could feel Nate giving him a telepathic side-eye. He responded with a dry look, but on the other hand, he knew for a fact Nate would keep this up until there was at least some movement one way or another. And considering that Scott didn't want to shut her down, he decided on his direction and let out a quiet breath. "I don't suppose you'd be open to coming to the first game of the season with me."
"Well, Mr. Meuller, that's just right around the corner. Are you sure you won't be making it a family affair instead?"
"His brother and sister both have plans, though I'm not sure if they'll both be going to the game. At any rate, if they do, I'm very sure they'll be relieved not to have a chaperone," Scott said dryly.
"I suppose if you're advocating contributing to delinquency, I might have to think it over, but if it's not just that … I'd like to see the game with you."
Scott couldn't help but chuckle. "Then I look forward to watching our team trump the Knights."
Annie was smiling brightly. "They sure will." She looked over her shoulder, clearly looking for a way to exit gracefully. "I suppose I can leave that book for Nate with you, can't I?"
"I'll make sure he gets it," Scott promised, glad for the polite excuse as well.
"Hey. Come on, kid, we're on vacation," Tony said, reaching over to close James' textbook, and then went so far as to pull the laptop away from him too.
"I thought this was a tech conference," James countered, to which Tony more or less waved him off.
"Same thing," he said. "But your papers are almost finished anyhow, and you have plenty of time to get them in to beat me out, age wise." Tony blew out a breath and tried to get James to follow his example. "Take a break."
James smirked. "I think I'd rather finish my paper when it's relatively quiet."
"And I think that's the wrong attitude to go into your first international tech conference with me after our big announcement."
"And I'm telling you that working on something that feels concrete will have me much further away from a panic attack than ruminating on the fact that I'm going to be with you in the spotlight the whole time."
"Learn to strut," Tony said. "It'll make your life easier."
"I highly doubt that."
Tony reached over to absently pat his arm as he looked out the window of the jet. "It's alright. You're allowed to be wrong sometimes. Like now."
"I'll keep that in mind for when I am wrong," James replied, though he did acquiesce simply because he trusted Tony and knew that the only times he'd ever asked James to stop studying was when James was in danger of getting more tense than he should be.
Pepper and Happy were just across the aisle from the two of them, not far from where Jan was working on some design work … and near her was Peter Parker, who had fallen asleep within the first ten minutes of the flight. But James … wasn't relaxed enough to do the same.
"Kid. It's a long flight. Try to relax for it," Tony advised. "Plenty of time to be a stress ball later."
"Sure, I'll just turn it off," James said thickly, which at least got Tony to laugh.
"Your Dad's rubbing off on you," Tony said as he settled in, loosening up his tie. "You'll be alright though. You're my kid too. I got your back."
"I know," James said, then let out a breath as he did as Tony advised and put his laptop and books away. A few moments later, after a little more joking and teasing from Tony, James had his feet kicked up in the chair next to him as he twisted himself sideways in his seat with his back against the fuselage. "Happy now?"
"More happy, yeah," Tony agreed, then reached over to clap a hand on James' shoulder as he took out his phone to text Billy.
Tony smirked to himself after he saw that James was finally relaxing after a little while and he got up to sit with Jan while the kid was doing alright. He knew James didn't want to feel like he was being watched all the time, but … he was going to need to get used to it. Even if he hadn't been on deck to step into Tony's shoes until well down the line, he'd stepped out as an X-Man and an Avenger … it was just a matter of time. And that was without factoring in that he was involved with Genoshan royalty- which … that was going to be a massive headline when that finally broke. Especially after the incredibly off-base articles of speculation ran regarding James and Rachel. Tony was also happy that the kid had fallen into the wise habit of trusting him when it mattered and had learned how to handle the press like Tony and Jan had taught him.
He was, however, grateful that James had the paranoia that Scott had fostered in those kids down to a science, though for how far James took it, he wondered if some of that wasn't genetic as well. Tony himself had never had much use for anything close to propriety when he was James' age, and to be honest, Tony still wasn't sure how it was that the kid had kept his actual love life under wraps for the press. Both of those boys seemed to be naturals at knowing when to keep it professional - mostly.
If anyone in the paparazzi had seen the display Tony had heard about from the other X-Men when Billy got bent out of shape over Tyler Creed or if they had any idea of what was going on during the failed kidnapping … that would have made the papers in a heartbeat. But they were lucky there. They wouldn't be the next time something threatened one or the other. And Tony knew James would get just as riled up if it was Billy in danger.
But until then, Tony planned to continue quietly teaching the kid how to handle the press and the public, and everything that went with it. He thought James was doing pretty good, all things considered. Especially when he factored in that James had been, in fact, doing the exact opposite for his whole life.
But Tony had faith that the kid could adjust. He just hoped he adjusted quickly before the news picked up on his involvement with Billy because that … he knew that was going to be something to draw public interest. He also knew that eventually, it was coming, and both boys better be ready when it hit.
For now, though … the weekend was looming with a tech conference, and though Tony was sure most of it would be a little boring for both of them, it was also something that needed to be done - get him out there, get him talking to other geniuses and people at the top of their fields … and get the buzz on his favorite genius rattling around the science community. Jan gave Tony's knee a little squeeze, silently telling him it was going to be great. It was just one weekend - they could do one weekend.
And while James was in Europe working the tech circuit and making headlines with Tony, Billy turned his attention toward Kate and America. America was always up for a good time, and in their own way the three of them formed a little support group … even if America didn't want to admit it. She was entirely preoccupied with trying to get Rachel to see sense, after all.
It was just so … obvious that she was hooked. Which was all kinds of good teasing material for Kate and Billy. Even if America didn't find the humor in the t-shirt Kate had printed for her with a star-spangled Phoenix. Or the insistence that she join their little clique group-therapy style and state her name and how long she'd been hung up on a Summers before she was allowed to grab a slice of pizza.
But Kate's little siblings thought it was hilarious. And so did Clint. So in the spirit of teasing, the kids were cleared out to give the support group room to air their grievances. Or pine. One or the other.
"If you two are just going to be loco all night, then I'm going to find better things to do," America said, not at all appreciating the effort that her friends had gone through to tease her.
"Better things like Rachel Summers?" Billy asked with a straight face that only lasted as long as it took Kate to break down laughing.
"She's had a breakthrough! She's going to go for it!" Kate laughed along with Billy - the two of them holding each other up for support as America glowered at them.
"I'll just go-"
"Please don't," Billy said, smiling as he wiped a tear from the corner of his eyes. "You can't go because I have to and then you'll leave Kate here … all alone and sad since her Summers is still grounded."
"Wait, I thought we were going to do a thing," Kate said, losing some of her smile. "What happened? Did you crack and decide to magically appear in James' room?"
Billy pointed her way with his eyebrows raised. "Not a bad idea. Don't tempt me. No. I promised my parents that I'd come see them before the semester started. They've been really busy with everything … new head of government and all that … but they don't have time to leave, even if Mom made it clear she thought we were better off here for now."
"There an uprising?" America asked, suddenly interested in the politics of the tiny island nation.
"More like a few vocal people who are surprisingly charismatic that want to keep with my Grandfather's outlook," Billy said. "They don't have anywhere near the following my mother has, though … and if they tiptoe any closer to that line, I'm sure she'll handle it. But right now, after we screwed up their kidnapping, she wants us to be where they are not."
"Hate to break it to you, but they tried to capture you here," America pointed out.
"Yeah, but now they're being monitored and most of them are trying to win Genosha first," Billy said, then shrugged. "As much as I hate to admit it, it's right back to a very big, high stakes game of chess."
He'd barely gotten the words out of his mouth before the front door rattled with the force of a gust of wind. A muted giggle followed the shave and a haircut knock and Billy pointed to the door. "Tommy and Mia."
"She was who I was waiting for," Kate said before she popped up from her spot on the couch and headed for the door. "I didn't realize that meant our support group was being broken up."
Billy smiled her way and gestured widely. "Well … technically, I don't know if I qualify for the group … my guy isn't an actual Summers, after all." He grinned at America. "He totally is for the purposes of getting you to admit your big fat giant neon sign crush though. And most other things … but …"
"But we have places to be," Tommy finished, then smiled at America tightly. "You can get Mia home later, right?"
"Oh sure," America said, rolling her eyes.
"Mia doesn't neeeeeeed your charity, Miss America," Mia said before she kissed Tommy then teleported over to drape her arm over America's shoulders. "But I appreciate the offer."
The twins shared a look and after a silent countdown, both of them disappeared - one by zipping out of the door and the other with a spell that left the three girls alone with a large pizza and the living room to themselves.
"So," Mia said, tipping her chin up and looking more like her mother as she drew upon her most regal expression. "How tight is your babysitters schedule? Or am I too young and not powerful enough to throw my hat in the ring to save you from Hydra guys … or girls? Whatever. I didn't ask that part." By the time she'd finished her teasing question, she'd dropped onto the couch and grinned up at Kate like the honest troublemaker she was.
"I don't need a babysitter," Kate replied, rolling her eyes, though she did drop down next to Mia.
"Could have fooled me," America teased, glad to have some footing to pick on - finally.
"It's not like it's the first time Hydra has tried and failed to kidnap me," Kate said, tipping her nose in the air and doing her best to look entirely above it all. "And honestly Nate probably over reacted a little bit but … can we please talk about what's important?"
"More important than protecting your virtue?" Mia asked. "Because by the way you and Nate talk about me and my romantic life, you'd think that chastity and virtue are the most important things in your whole world."
"That's because you're a sophomore this year," Kate said. "And he's with me in our senior year. What happens if he decides to go to college?"
Mia looked irritated as Kate started her argument, but by the time she'd finished, she broke down laughing after just a beat or two. "Then I should say the same thing to you about your innocent little Summers that you're corrupting! He's got another year left, cradle robber!"
"Not even close to the same thing. But nice try," America said with a smirk before she turned back to Kate and grabbed another slice of pizza. "You excited about your last year in school?"
"Ohmygosh. So ready for this year," Kate said with a grin, shifting gears in an instant - at least for the time being. America always seemed to intuit how best to direct Kate so she could gush about what she had on her mind. " This is going to be the best year ever, and even though I am totally looking forward to my last season cheerleading, and watching my hunk of a sweetheart be amazing, I am even more ready to just … graduate already and go fight Hydra full time."
"No college?" Mia asked, looking disappointed.
"Um … not at first anyhow." Kate looked up to see her dad giving her a look in the kitchen. This had been an ongoing light argument and on seeing that he was eavesdropping or at the least, lipreading, she had to straighten up and pull together her best, most hard to fight argument. "I mean ... it's not like colleges are going to have classes that will be useful when I'm a full time superhero anyhow. I don't remember seeing anywhere that lets you major in being Awesome." Clint gave her a dry look from the kitchen. "But … maybe I'll take a class or two here and there or just … go online for them, but I've been waiting forever to be able to train full time with my parents and bust bad guys and hunt down the Head of Hydra so I can stick an arrow in places." She drew in a deep breath and grinned with her eyes closed just before letting her breath back out in a big woosh. "… I need this, America."
"My mom says there's a college for everyone if you want it," Mia opined. "You just have to find it."
'Oooh, hey, maybe that's what those Hydra creeps were really trying to do," America teased. "Maybe they want you for Hydra Technical College. You can major in Creepin' and falling in dumpsters."
Kate gasped and hit her in the shoulder. Hard. "You are so not funny!"
"You love me, princess," America teased, laughing as Kate smacked her. "In that case, you're right. You can't major in being an Avenger if you're in Hydra." America grinned wider. "Probably why they wanted you. So you can't be awesome against them."
"That's more like it," Kate said, crossing her arms.
"So … are you staying to be an Avenger," Mia said slowly, "or are you just using that as an excuse to be close to Nate until he graduates?"
"You … don't even get to try to pick that fight," Kate said, pointing a finger her way even as America chuckled. "You are entirely too serious about your prince charming."
"As if you're not just waiting for yours to turn eighteen and propose," Mia shot back.
"Don't project on me!" Kate shot back, then shifted focus again.
"I'm just reading the room," Mia said, her tail swaying as she and Kate prepared to play verbal volleyball.
"As long as no one has a reason to need to get married at eighteen, how about both of you maybe not be so stupid, hm?" America said. "You're both young! Live before you get yourself tied down to some drama factory."
"What's that supposed to-" Mia started, but America cut her off.
"How long you think your boy gonna live if you end up pregnant before you even graduate, chica?" America challenged, and when Kate looked delighted at the jibe, she turned on her too. "Same goes for you. How long you think this would last if you got yourself all stuck with a Summers before he's even tested out for his driver's license?"
"He's sixteen, he just hasn't finished-"
"Not my point," America said. "Just don't get pregnant. Either one of you."
Mia was silent for a long moment, and when she had nothing more clever to say, she shrunk in on herself. "Well that escalated quickly."
Kate had already waved America off in favor of offering Mia some big-sisterly advice. "You don't have to worry about me," she said dismissively. "I'm covered. But you … I mean … serious moment before we pelt America with pillows and get some frozen yogurt … the twins do have a crazy amount of drama around them … and considering that I am seeing a Summers, that's really saying something that I can admit it's a lot of drama."
"It's not that bad," Mia defended.
"Okay, yeah, but … they are literally dealing with global level political drama. Are you okay with that? It's a lot. Like a lot a lot. And even James is a little wary of stepping in it and he's out there on the daily news with Tony."
"Most of the time. Sometimes it's about him stepping out with America's sweetheart," Mia said, just to rib America.
"And still … he's cautious," Kate said, keeping on track. "I'm serious. Those boys pull down so much drama. Dating a prince looks like some pretty complicated and enhaced drama."
Mia drew herself up importantly. "Yes. But I'm a goddess, so it balances out," she said, smirking in a way that had America nodding along with her.
"She has a point, chica."
Kate rolled her eyes. "Fine. Then maybe you can tell me more about Tommy's super secret spy work that he did for your mom…"
"Because -"
"For reasons related to me single handedly defeating Hydra for Uncle Steve! Think of how happy that would make him!"
Mia fell to pieces laughing at that, though. "Well okay, but first I have to tell you how he even got recruited to be a double agent," she said, settling in on the arm of the couch for what already looked to be a dramatic retelling.
Scott's counseling sessions had tapered off to a much more relaxed and reasonable level … from daily sessions (except for Sundays) down to twice a week and though Scott knew he'd been moving forward, he had to wonder what it would be that would get the official green light from Craig to move out of Westchester so he didn't have to worry about his two teenage sons making the two-hour drive every day.
School was just around the corner for Nate, and for a moment, Scott thought maybe that would help his case before he waved it away mentally, knowing that unless it was something that was likely to be entirely detrimental to his mental health that he'd move the family back anyhow. He felt as if he'd inconvenienced everyone more than enough already.
He checked his phone on the way into his appointment … still no word back on when Nate could finish his final driving test. He'd more than logged in enough hours. A message from Rachel to remind him to come to the tower afterward … a photo from James to let him know he was boarding the plane to come home … and an email that Storm had sent to make sure Scott had it as proof of the offered jobs available at Xavier's school. As he opened the door to Craig's waiting room, he silenced his phone and put it in his pocket. As usual, Craig was at the reception desk double checking his roster for the day ahead as coffee brewed in his office.
"Good morning, Scott," Craig said, looking up at him with a pleasant smile. "I take it the kids are busy with their own schedules?"
"Yeah. As usual," Scott agreed, falling into his usual small talk with Craig just because it was easy for him to remember to open up when he had a way to start talking. "Rachel's at the tower and Nate's at practice already. I'm sure the press is reporting on James if you're curious."
"I may have seen the tech and entertainment section of the news this morning, yes," Craig said with a smile. "Hard to tell when one ends and the other begins lately."
"Pretty sure it's always been like that with anything regarding Tony Stark," Scott pointed out, drawing a quiet laugh out of Craig.
With a silent gesture for Scott to lead the way, the two of them disappeared into Craig's office, and within a few minutes, the two of them were seated and settling in for the session. The two of them did their usual run down as Craig arranged his notebook and got comfortable, and once they'd discussed the kids - which was a given subject - and how Scott's extended family was handling things, he finally dove in to the matter at hand before Scott could drop another hint on how much he wanted to get moved back to where life was easier on the kids.
"So, before we can discuss going back to you alone with the kids, I need to ask what your plans for yourself are. Have you put any thought into what we discussed last time?"
"Quite a bit, actually," Scott said with a sigh. "I know there are a few options - and they all involve going back to what I used to do … in some capacity or another." Craig nodded, and Scott spoke up again before he could pose another question. "I'm considering everything, but to be perfectly honest, I can't decide in a few days what I'm going to do for the rest of my life. I'm looking at things to try, I'm keeping an open mind, and I'm not rushing into anything. I want to be sure about what I'm doing before I commit to a half-plan."
"That's a reasonable response," Craig said. "But can you tell me, for my own peace of mind what one or two of those options are - so far?"
Scott sighed, but he'd been expecting this. "Believe it or not, I was considering the possibility of getting a teaching certificate. I taught before, but it would be nice to have the official credentials rather than just life experience."
"Well that's a good start," Craig said, looking surprised. "Would you be going back to Xavier's, then?"
"Most likely," Scott admitted. "There will always be a need for someone to walk those kids through how to handle their reactions to friendly and unfriendly non-mutants just like they'll need math class."
"That is a needed position,' Craig said. "But I wonder if other schools might benefit from having someone on staff that had that kind of first hand knowledge."
"I think you're a little optimistic on how far we've come," Scott replied with a rueful smile, then gave Craig one more thing to consider. "In the meantime, while I try to figure it out, I'll be doing some guest lectures at the school over the course of the year. To see if I can still handle it."
"That's a good intermediate step," Craig said, smiling a little to himself. "So … I know the new school year is about to start, and I can only imagine that things will get to be a little busier for you and your family."
"In some ways, yes, and in others -"
"You'll need to be closer to school for their own safety," Craig said. "And I have to say, you've been making leaps and bounds in your progress … but we're not done yet and this transition - going back to the place you lived before when everything went south on you while stepping back from living with your chosen family… you can't miss any of our appointments."
"Am I going back to daily sessions?" Scott asked, unsure how much progress he was making if Craig was upping his time in the office.
"Of course not - unless you find yourself needing it. You have been making progress. And you need to move forward with your life, I just don't want to see you backslide from being in the same situation you were when it all started to really slide."
"So … we keep on our same schedule," Scott said slowly.
"Yes. Unless you need more time," Craig said, then paused as he closed his notebook. "Oh, and Scott … I'd like to meet your other children before they get too lost in the school year."
"I'll bring Nate with me next time," Scott promised.
"Perfect. Then it seems as if we're done for the day. Are you filling your time waiting for football to end?"
"He needs an appointment to take his final driving test," Scott said. "And I'm going to start prepping the house."
"Good. Then I'll see you in a few days - Thursday look good for you?"
"I'll be here - with Nate," Scott said before he got to his feet and left Craig's office behind him. When he left the office and took a seat in the car, he had to let out a breath. He was both relieved to hear things were going according to plan and freshly-stressed with the task of moving. Again.
But before he let himself get lost in the self-imposed, yet necessary to-do list, he headed for the house in Brooklyn to take stock and make a few phone calls while Nate was at practice. That kid was going to need his license soon enough.
Chapter 71: Dog Days of Summer
Chapter Text
The Summers family was packing up their things in Westchester, diligently working away, though there were a few differences from one family member to the next.
While Nate was uncustomarily throwing everything into whatever box was nearest, James was taking his time … in large part because Billy was helping him and the two of them kept getting distracted. But neither of Scott's sons were prepared for Alex to burst into the door with a bright grin.
"Well that's three out of four nephews accounted for in one room," Alex said just before he grabbed Nate by the shoulder and pulled him into a bear hug. "Heard you guys were headed back to Brooklyn. Thought you might need an extra hand."
"Yes, please," Nate said, gesturing to James and Billy. "He's so slow today. Light a fire. Please. I wanna get this done with."
"You want to get back to a more frequent schedule for sucking face with Katie," James said.
"No, I'm just tired of having to witness you two being … you," Nate argued, which had Billy doing his best to look entirely insulted.
Alex was still grinning brightly, even as James intervened. "We're doing fine, Uncle Alex. Dad might want some help though."
"Oh, I don't know about all that," Alex said before he dropped down between James and Billy, then threw an arm over each of their shoulders and winked at Nate. "I need to check in with you two. Especially after the rumors about you and your sist-"
"Alex, stop," James said, but Alex was already laughing. "That joke is already worn out and old."
"I'm just saying, you're doing really well to keep your circle small … I mean … you're both my nephews …"
"Ah, now I see," James said, nodding. "I forgot that the whole world revolves around Uncle Alex."
"That was the first mistake," Billy agreed as Alex laughed and pulled them both into a hug.
"So if you're going to be a fixture with my side of the family," Alex said to Billy, "does that mean you'll be joining us in Hawaii for Christmas break and surfing?"
"That'll be up to Mom and Dad," Billy said, totally unsure of how to even answer that. "Are things settling down at home?"
Alex cringed. "I mean … things are up in the air for some people but we've got people on it. Catching Cortez and his crew was both good and bad for getting things to settle down." He made a noise from the back of his throat. "Hey. I am not the guy to talk politics with. I'm the fun uncle, remember?"
"Not a whole lot of other contestants," Billy pointed out.
"When you put it like that, he's also the worst uncle," James said.
"Alright, alright. Message received. I'll just go bother my big brother," Alex said before he got to his feet.
"I'm totally riding with you," Nate told Alex as he grabbed a full box. "Even if James is hogging the Mustang."
"I let you drive it more than I do," James laughed.
"No, no, it's fitting that you take the sports car to haul your clothes," Nate said, rolling his eyes. "I'm going to get things loaded so we can just get on with it."
"The car has a trunk," James defended. "And a back seat."
"And that still doesn't come close to Dad's truck," Nate said.
"More room than in the Jeep," Billy said helpfully, but Nate rolled his eyes and headed off with Alex, leaving him alone with his sweetheart. "You really are dragging today. You know I can get there in a blink, so what gives?"
"It's mostly to irritate Nate," James admitted as he set down the box in his hands and dropped down on his bed. "Normally I have this down to a science."
"Like everything else then, hmm?"
"I like things to work efficiently."
"Except when you don't." Billy settled in next to him for a moment. "Remind me again why I don't just wish it back to your house."
"Be-cause that would be an abuse of power or something," James said. "And it would get Nate into a great mood if he didn't have to do this kind of work."
Downstairs, Alex had rushed to help Scott pack up the truck with Ororo supervising. It wasn't that there was a lot to move, but over the course of the summer, they'd all managed to slowly trickle in things they liked to have on hand.
"So," Ororo said as Scott made sure the boxes in the back of the truck were taped up. "You'll be back to lecture once a week, then - to start."
"Wednesday morning," Scott agreed.
"I can't believe it's taken you this long to go back to teaching," Alex said. "Wow. This place can finally get back up to snuff."
Ororo tutted and shoved Alex as he laughed good-naturedly. "As long as you aren't looking for a job, we'll be perfect."
Alex rested a hand over his heart. "Hurtful."
The boys came down carrying a few more boxes, and Ororo turned their way with a warm smile. "It's been nice having you all here at once," she said, only waiting long enough for them to set their boxes down before she pulled them over one at a time for a long, tight hug. "Don't be such strangers," she said before she gave both of them a kiss on the cheek. "If you do, I'll have to recruit you into working with the students." She smiled warmly. "They all want to be X-Men now."
"Blame Kate," James said without missing a beat. "She was the one that organized the final push."
"And I would believe that if I didn't know any better," Ororo said, then kissed him again. "Take care of each other and check in soon."
"We will," the boys answered at the same time, which only had Alex grinning.
"How you got them to do that," he said to Scott, gesturing to Nate and James.
"They did it on their own," Scott said. "Just about as soon as Nate could halfway mimic James."
"And they still do it," Alex said with a sigh. "Just like the twins when they were small."
"Oh, come on," Billy said, looking entirely unamused.
"Hey. I don't even need to hold back on either one of you. It's amazing," Alex said, then grinned at Nate. "Why don't you ride with your dad? I'll work your brother over for you."
"Who am I to refuse such an offer?" Nate teased. "We can order pizza tonight. Kate has this great place-"
"Sure it won't be cutting in on your Kate time?" Alex asked. "Because I need some Kate time, too."
"How long are you staying, Alex?" Scott asked with a grin, especially since Alex was acting very much like a broad, sweeping bomber hitting everyone in his path.
"I figured a week anyhow," he said. "More if my non-Summers nephews need some more intense supervision."
"Perfect," Scott said, smiling somehow wider. "We'll have to see if you can beat Angel's record with the kids."
"Oh, come on," Nate groaned, even as Scott redirected him. Things were looking up with the kids, even if both of the Elder Summerses were considering how bad it might be elsewhere.
The team had been working hard even during the Summers' move. There had been ample time for them to spend pushing down support stateside for the so-called New Acolytes that had sprung up in the wake of Magneto's passing. The group had raised him to martyr status - particularly since it was never publicized how he'd died … and the rumor mill had been swift and creative. Particularly since the path out of Genosha was suddenly open for people to leave as well as to stay. It was keeping the team busy, and every time they heard a new rumor, James and Billy in particular refused to respond to anyone or answer any questions. In fact, they left all commentary on Genosha to Rachel, who had found a clever sound bite to cover them that both supported the people in Genosha and offered their sincere condolences on the royal family's loss: "Let's not sensationalize loss when people are still mourning, huh? If you want to talk about legacies, talk to the Genoshans working toward a future for all mutants, regardless of who stays on the island or not."
It had been a busy week of dealing with press for James and wanna-be Acolytes for Rachel, so both had been looking forward to some down time away from strangers. Rachel in particular had truly been excited for her big date with Illyana, but … instead of spending a romantic evening, Rachel came in just before dinner, not even an hour into her date - and nearly threw her purse across the room as she took her shoes off.
"Something wrong, sis?" Nate asked with a lazy grin. Grounded or not, he'd had a great day. He wasn't in the public eye, so he was allowed to live normally - and he'd managed to talk James into taking a run with him... with James in an inducer so he could avoid interactions with strangers. And it had been a long time since the boys had been able to do that together. It was also a step above the normal grounding Nate was still suffering through for the crime of wanting to make his dad happy. "You look … less than pleased."
"Shut up, Nate,' Rachel shot back in a tone that was so much like their father it was almost laughable. Except for the fact that she was that mad. That was not funny at all.
"What did she do this time?" Nate asked, shifting to actually try to help, since he knew Rachel was putting pressure on herself to find someone she liked … and right now, who she thought was her most promising prospect was playing games.
"It's not...," Rachel ran a hand through her hair. "It's not like that. We're just not seeing eye to eye. She has her issues with wanting to be with her family and she can't decide if she wants to be here, or there, or … she even suggested that she might go to Genosha." Rachel dropped into the chair next to Nate. "The whole … queen of the underworld thing or whatever isn't all that great either. Our date was interrupted … by actual demons."
"I don't know … that could be fun if you handled it right …" James said as he leaned against the counter with a glass of water.
Rachel waved him off and continued on. "It wasn't enough to be interrupted … when she got done doing her whole half demon thing, Dr. Strange showed up and the two of them zipped off to who knows where with barely a 'I have to do this thing'," Rachel said, frowning. "I'm not saying I don't get it, but the way she talks down about everything on earth and everything we deal with compared to her whole Magik thing … I'm just tired of feeling like she thinks we're being childish by wanting to live and be normal."
Nate looked sympathetic as he took a hold of his sister's arm. "We were raised by a highly traumatized single father who made keeping us safe look easy while the world has been hunting for us. We're mutants trying to earn the right to live, you're host to an intergalactic world-destroying firebird, we're Avengers and X-Men being heroes in our spare time and we're not even old enough to drink. Nothing can be normal for us."
"Right, but it's not anything compared to 'I grew up in limbo after the X-Men let my big brother down before he abandoned us and everyone else to go live on Genosha.' followed by 'maybe I'll go live in Genosha, too'."
"She doesn't care that he left Genosha?" James asked. "You know … after travel lightened up, obviously."
"I think she keeps bringing it up because she holds Dad responsible for Piotr leaving the family."
"Yeah … your girlfriend is crazy," Nate opined.
"We knew that before," Rachel said, then let out a breath. "I'm going to break up with her."
"Yeah, okay."
"No, I mean it. As soon as she gets back from the tea party in Hell with Strange - or whatever - I'm letting her know I'm done. I just …I can't deal with someone that tries to make me feel small because she thinks her mission in life is so much more vital than everyone else's."
"Are you okay with that?" James asked, knowing full well how hard on herself Rachel was when it came to her romantic interests … especially considering how anxious Rachel was about stepping out with a girl.
"I mean … if I don't split with her, she'll just run me over," Rachel said. "And I need to stay on top of things to deal with the Phoenix and keep my control in check. She might be saving Limbo, but I'm trying to keep our planet from being consumed by the Phoenix. We all have our problems and Illyana doesn't seem to realize it's not a contest."
"It's because she's the youngest," James said as he came over and kissed the top of her head. "Nate and Tommy both do it, too."
Rachel snorted at the look on Nate's face. "I thought the twins were the same age?"
"I mean … likely. It's even possible that it's Billy that's younger, but it irritates Tommy to think he might be in second place, so I run with it," James said before he handed her a glass of ice water.
"Nate doesn't do that anymore," Rachel said with a small smile Nate's way.
"Not to you, no," James agreed. "But he doesn't have anything to complain about. He's been catching up on his required driving time and winning money off of me for weeks."
Rachel's eyebrow lifted and her smile made a reappearance at the subtle shift in conversation. "Oh, has he now?"
"Sure has," James said with a smirk. "I've been betting on Dad not following the matchmaker."
"Oh really?"
"I told you they're a good match," Nate defended. "She's smart and funny and pretty … and she genuinely cares. A lot."
"Yeah, we gathered as much from her checking up on you mid-summer," James said as he sat on Rachel's other side as she snickered.
The three of them were getting into fine form, picking back and forth when Scott came in, smiling to himself when he saw all three of his kids in good moods together. That had been happening more and more often since the incident in Genosha, to his surprise. It was enough to lift Scott's spirits, even if Rachel had been hyper aware of Scott's moods to the point that he was sure she was barely holding back from slipping through his defenses - and only because she didn't want to upset him by barging into his mind to check on him.
The boys had been concerned, too - but they showed it in different ways. Nate had been pushing to spend more time with Scott, and James had been keeping out of both of his sibling's way while also trying to pretend like he wasn't still fighting with the trauma of that trip to Genosha - pretending to be fine so his siblings could get the help and attention they needed first.
Billy wasn't at the house for his standing date with James yet, but he had nearly moved in now that he knew where they actually lived and earned an open invite from Scott. Scott hadn't been entirely on board to start with, but he'd seen early on that Billy had been wildly helpful when James started having issues with insomnia and vivid nightmares about killing Magneto and all that went with it. And even now, months later, Scott would catch James staring off at nothing and absently rubbing the spot where Magneto had stabbed him in the heart, so in spite of the fact that his middle child was going to regular therapy and throwing himself into his work in every aspect, Scott could see that the stress was getting to him from everything surrounding the Genosha incident and Stark's announcement. So Scott was watching out for him in any way he could - and that included being a little more liberal about James' time with Billy.
So moments like this - when it was just the four of them with no one else around - were rare and welcome.
Scott sat down across from Rachel with a smile as the boys got started bringing dinner to the table for a quiet family meal … just the four of them before school officially started and changed everyone's schedules.
The first day of school couldn't have been more perfect. The sun was shining, the temperature was still warm enough for shorts and short skirts and Kate was in a great mood going into the first day of her last year of high school. Everything was looking up. She was an Avenger and an X-Man, after all - fully and totally confident in how awesome she was with some mad skills that anyone would be jealous of. And it totally didn't hurt that she was dating the hunkiest guy on the football team either. Or that said hunky football player was carrying her bag and telepathically making plans for after football practice.
Ten minutes in the school and the day was looking great. Already she had a date lined up and her classes were with her favorite teachers all day long. It was going to be a perfect senior year.
She and Nate parted company with a not-quite appropriate kiss before they separated to go to their respective home rooms, and as she slipped into her homeroom - that was being led by the coolest math teacher in the school - she smiled the teacher's way then headed over to find a seat near the windows. She'd dropped her bag and slipped into the desk - smiling at her fellow cheerleaders nearby, but before she could pull out her notebook to doodle, a new kid met her gaze with a cocky smile and headed right for her.
He slipped into the seat behind her, and though she had no plans to talk to him, he broke the ice first.
"I take it you're not new," he said, leaning toward her with a crooked smile.
"Nope," Kate replied, turning in her seat so she could see who she was talking to, then she extended her hand to him. "Kate Barton. Welcome to our happy little borough."
"What makes you think I'm not local and just changing schools?" he asked, grinning at her.
"Call it a hunch," she said, even if she didn't tell him what she knew - that his upper crust accent didn't match the people around them at all. She raised an eyebrow waiting for him to introduce himself too.
"Not a bad hunch," he said, but didn't offer his name as the bell rang and the teacher started his welcome speech.
Kate turned in her seat, a little irked that the boy didn't know basic manners, but it wasn't like she had long to wait for his name when the teacher started calling attendance. She didn't turn to watch him though. And because he looked like the type that wouldn't speak up … just raise his hand when his name was called, Kate watched the reflection in the window to discover exactly how cool this Daniel DuBois thought he was.
Like she suspected, he didn't speak up … and she was feeling pretty smug that he'd done what she'd thought he would do. What an idiot, she thought to herself, deciding that anyone that wouldn't bother to introduce himself to her properly probably wasn't worth her time.
So when she was listening to Mr. Rodriguez go through the finer points of what to expect their senior year, she was irritated when the new kid started pestering her by tapping her shoulder. She shifted in her seat, trying to make it clear to him without openly acknowledging him that she didn't want to talk to him, but that wasn't enough to get him to back off, so when he did it again, she shot him a withering glare over her shoulder before turning back forward.
"Hey. Kate," Danny said. "Katherine." No answer. "Katie." An irritated shift as she crossed her arms. "Kitty. Kit-Kat."
"Mr. DuBois," Mr. Rodriguez said, which got him to stop and also got everyone but Kate to turn his way. "If you have a question, raise your hand. I would have thought that you'd know that by your senior year."
Snickers erupted around the classroom and Kate smirked to herself as the new creep got called out.
"Sorry, Mr. Rodriguez," Danny said. "I was just trying to see if Miss Barton could direct me to my next class. I don't know where I'm going."
"If you need directions, bring your schedule to me when the bell rings and I'll help you," Mr. Rodriguez said, then directed the conversation back to the plans for the Homecoming game and the dance that was to follow.
When the bell rang, Kate was out of her seat like a shot, her bag over one shoulder and her notebook held to her chest in an effort to get away from the new kid and to her next class before Danny DuBois could be a bother. And she thought for sure History was going to be great because it was one of the few classes she had with Nate.
As usual, Ms Hale had set up a seating chart, and Kate checked it, with Ms Hale smiling at her all the while … which is when she saw that she and Nate were seated next to each other. She smiled up at Ms Hale brightly. "I knew I liked you."
"The feeling's mutual," Ms Hale said, shooing her to go sit down - and Kate did, nearly skipping over to sit by Nate, who was grinning at her. The two of them did their best to look nonchalant while they dove in to a telepathic conversation recapping how their home rooms had gone … and as she was telling him about the new creeper, said creeper stepped into the classroom. He paused as Ms Hale directed him to his seat - two rows over from Nate and Kate - and when he saw Kate, he smiled crookedly at her.
I think the new guy has a crush, Nate teased.
He's awful, Kate projected back. And probably a stalker.
He couldn't have picked out the homeroom, Nate pointed out. And I doubt he got in this class on purpose.
You don't know that, Kate answered. My mother would have a problem with your outlook.
Do you want me to peek at him?
If you think I can't figure it out on my own.
I would prefer to just get it out of the way and be done with it so we can focus on more interesting things than the new guy with a crush. Nate gave her a troublemaking look, but it only lasted for a few seconds before he frowned lightly and glanced over at he new kid. "Okay…"
"What?" Kate asked quietly, leaning toward him.
"Nothing," Nate said, but then projected what he knew. I can't really … it's like there's interference when I try to read him.
Okay that is weird. Kate frowned, looking toward the front of the room as Ms Hale started to pull class into session. There wasn't much to say - it wasn't normal for Nate to have trouble, so either Mr. DuBois was a mutant with some kind of blocking ability, or he was wearing some sort of tech that kept him from being infiltrated by telepaths. And considering how powerful of a telepath Nate was, that … didn't make any sense.
Ms. Hale called the class to order and in no time, both Nate and Kate were doing their best to feign attentiveness as they listened to her lecture on the start of the industrial revolution. But … after History class, Kate realized quickly that Mr. DuBois was again following her. This time to French. And again after that class to English. In fact … outside of the huge break where he ended up in a different lunch hour (and class directly after) the kid was in every one of Kate's classes, and as the day wore on, he became more bold in how close he was sitting with her. Except of course, for Gym class in last hour.
She'd been looking forward to a last-hour gym class … especially since she had fencing club directly after and whatever passed for High School required athletics ended up being a decent weak warm up for a Hawkeye on two super hero teams. Thankfully, the boys and girls were split for gym class, but … after school? The fencing club was small enough that the boys got to try their luck against the girls.
So it was just Kate's luck that the DuBois kid chose her to be his sparring partner. "You don't mind fencing a gentleman do you?"
"Not at all," Kate said brightly. "Have you seen any around here?" She smiled brightly before pulling down her guard, then took up position, ready to start. She wasn't expecting him to give her a decent fight though.
They started out formally enough, and the first few points were lobbed back and forth easily enough, but after his first halfway dirty move, Kate dug in to play dirty herself.
It wasn't long before their sanctioned match shifted to a much less regulated affair moving well outside of the boundaries they needed to remain inside of. The teacher was shouting for them to stop, but neither one of them was willing to give it a rest at all. Not until there was a clear winner.
If DuBois hadn't been such a pain all day, Kate would have been impressed. She was pulling out moves that the fencing instructor definitely hadn't taught anyone - they were her dad's. And DuBois matched them. His style was so similar to hers that neither of them could get the upper hand, which meant whoever taught him was good.
So yeah, she would have been impressed if he wasn't a total tool.
They danced around each other, matching footwork and placement and blows and completely ignoring the instructor until, at last, Kate thought she saw an opening. She lunged and scored a touch - at the exact same time he got under her defenses during the lunge for a touch of his own.
For a long time, they stared at each other, chests heaving, neither removing their blades, neither blinking - until the instructor physically got between them and chewed them out. Not that either of them was listening. They still hadn't broken eye contact.
DuBois had a crooked, cocky grin on that Kate wanted to wipe off his face. And for her part, she didn't realize that she was giving him a look that, if anyone knew Natasha, showed exactly who had raised her.
"You know, I think your doctor may be on to something," Ororo said as she and Scott sat in traffic after a session with Craig Hale. "But not how he thinks. I know he's been a good person to talk to, but I don't know if he realizes what precisely it is that you face."
Scott took his gaze off of the road to turn toward Ororo. "Alright, I'll bite," he said slowly. "What's he right about this time? He already had you doing a full rotation on me over the summer. And he's pulled the kids in more than once for each of them."
"He thinks you need a new purpose, but what if that's not what you actually need?" Ororo asked. "I think rather than search out something derivative, you need to go back to your roots."
Scott smirked, unable to resist the tease after a long session of talking about exactly that. "Well, 'Ro, if you think I should be a space pirate…"
"If you think you can pull off the boots, I encourage you to try," Ororo countered. "But I was thinking more down to earth and far more essential."
Scott understood her implication all too well and turned his face forward again. "I don't know," he said quietly. "I can help; you know I'd be willing to do whatever you and the kids need me to do even beyond the lectures. But Graydon Creed took the part of me away that was useful for that. I can't do what I used to do."
"I think, Scott … that perhaps you may need to take some time to think about what you used to do that didn't require that particular ability."
He gestured with one hand. "Like I said, I'm willing to help. I already gave the kids every bit of advice I could think of, and I'd even be willing to run some sims if Forge is done upgrading the Danger Room again."
"Good. Then there is one area that our young X-Men need severe training in that you excelled at. But I don't know that sims would be helpful considering it would require field work, and lots of flying."
Scott couldn't help but smile. "Oh, you need a taxi pilot?" he teased.
"In a crude manner of speaking, yes," she agreed. "Children in need of relocation … the numbers are only going up."
"Ah." Scott nodded slowly, finally understanding. He was quiet as he thought about it, already nodding his agreement before his conscious mind had caught up to his decision. "You're right. They don't have experience with that. Not after spending their whole lives in secrecy."
"James seems to be learning with trial by fire, but I believe at least right now, he'd attract attention that wouldn't be helpful at all right now. Even if he is as much a natural at gaining trust that his parents were." Ororo smiled. "The others, though …"
Scott drummed his fingers along the dashboard. "Alright," he said slowly. "Alright. I can take them in turns on pickups. That much I can do."
"Good," she said, nodding to herself. "I know they'll appreciate your methods once they learn them."
"I did learn from the best," Scott said with a quiet sort of smile, thinking of how he and Jean had often accompanied Charles when he would go speak to a new mutant when the team was fresh.
"And you taught all of us," Ororo pointed out.
Again, Scott was quiet as he considered her proposal. "It would be nice," he said at last, slowly, "being Cyclops again." He hadn't realized how much he missed it when the possibility of returning hadn't even been a glimmer in the distance, but this brought that dream right back to the surface of his thoughts, when he was a kid and trying to make a difference, like his own children were now.
"Then, I'll leave it to you to decide when you want to tell them," Ororo said. "Or if you'd rather you can always simply show up and lay down the law."
Scott laughed. "Why don't we wait until a call comes in," he suggested. "And I'll take whoever is available. Can't schedule these things, if I remember the rushing around right," he added, smirking her way.
"You'd be surprised at how close we're getting to be able to," Ororo laughed.
"With Rachel and Betsy working together, I feel like I shouldn't be."
"You shouldn't," Ororo agreed, smiling at him and relaxing slightly knowing that she might yet get her old friend back.
The crowd for the first football game of the season wasn't as full as it had been in years past - largely in part to the fact that there were still other sports being played that had some parents attention split - but that meant it wasn't the rowdiest of crowds for Scott to meet up with Annie. It was only going to get more loud and busy with every game, so this really was the best case scenario for the two of them to get a chance to spend some time without any real pressure.
Scott didn't see his kids there - Nate was in the locker room, and James wasn't likely to show - even if he did, it would be in an image inducer from here on anyhow. But Scott knew Rachel had already arrived. She was on a blind date Mia had suggested after Rachel had split ways with Ilyanna, so Scott hoped for her sake that things went well. They were both trying new things and trying to open themselves up - and they were sadly too similar in this particular aspect of their lives. Neither of them were good at dating.
In Scott's defense, his excuse was that he'd found the right girl early on and hadn't needed to do this kind of thing when they were in each other's minds nearly from the word 'go'. But that only meant that everything that had to do with flirting or dating was that much harder to manage. He'd never really learned how to translate the subtle flirting cues very well.
But Scott somehow wasn't surprised when he found Annie to see that she'd been delayed meeting up with him because one of her former students had run up to her to hug her and chat with her. But that also meant that when he did approach them, he had a teenager giggling as she flounced away to tell her friends that Ms. Hale had a hot date. So that was new.
"Oh, ignore them," Annie said, even if she was nearly as pink as he was. "You know how teenagers are."
"I do," Scott said. "Can't say I've personally experienced the scrutiny of students for being with a favorite teacher in a football crowd, but…"
Annie blushed brightly, then cleared her throat. "Did you want to find a seat near or away from your kids? I know they're probably here to root Nate on. He was talking about them earlier."
"James isn't showing and Rachel is on a blind date, so I think she'd rather not have her dad in the same county, let alone in the same game." He smirked lightly. "She'll reach out if she needs a ride home."
"Alright then," she tried to hold back the smile, but failed spectacularly. "Lead the way."
They were able to find good seats that weren't too close to some of the loudest fans, though Scott cheated a little and did a few quick scans to see which attendees had brought alcohol in with them along with his usual scan for weapons or other trouble. There was a small group toward the front with a girl wearing an inducer, according to his scan, but they all seemed to be keeping to themselves. And while it was perfect for quiet, Scott also found himself drifting that way because, well, he had been talking about the team with Craig lately about the possibility of rejoining the staff as more than just an occasional guest lecturer. So, he was starting to get back into old habits there, too.
"So have you decided yet?" Annie asked.
Scott blinked. "Sorry?" He'd been watching the crowd.
"You'd said before that you weren't sure what you were going to do once Nate graduated," Annie explained. "So I was wondering if you'd made any progress or gotten any ideas since going back to what you did before doesn't sound like it was too attractive a concept." she smiled wider. "So … have you come up with any ideas? Anything I can help with?"
Scott almost laughed, considering the one option he had pursued. The woman was intuitive. "I… have been guest lecturing, actually," he said, rubbing the back of his neck.
"Oh?" Annie said almost airily. "Are you going to be a motivational speaker, then?"
Scott very nearly laughed, though he kept it back because he knew Annie didn't have the history to know why that was funny. "Not really, no."
"Then how about you let me in on the joke?" she was smiling along with him and trying to gently engage him in a little discussion. Even if he did find her hilarious over nothing.
"I'd very much like to," Scott said. "But the joke depends entirely on you knowing the kinds of lectures I used to give, and we're in public. And like I already told you, the old job isn't exactly something I can share with the whole world."
"Maybe later, then. Or another date- day. Another day." She straightened up and tried to hide the growing blush that threatened to quickly overtake how pale she'd gone at her slip.
But Scott couldn't help but smile. "Maybe."
Annie was blushing brightly as she turned her attention to the field. "Your son will probably have scouts looking for him before long," she said, trying to shift the subject to something more safe, since she was slipping up and amusing him - likely in all the wrong ways.
"He'd love that," Scott said. "I'd be interested to see what team he picks."
"Is he considering playing college ball, then?" Annie asked, seizing on the subject.
"He's still trying to decide what he wants to do," Scott admitted. "There's several options."
"I did ask him, but he keeps saying he wants to be like you, then flounces off."
Scott almost smirked and barely caught himself before he said that meant Nate had picked a team, but he could see how desperately Annie was trying not to steer into private jokes again. So, instead, he simply nodded. "So you're telling me that he wants a future of jobs you can't talk about and awkward conversations with people you don't want to be awkward with. Poor kid."
She shook her head at him and pushed her hair back behind her ears. "I should let you pick the subject, then."
Scott fell silent, considering how best to backtrack. He wasn't entirely sure how they'd managed to get stuck like that, but he was sure that he actually wanted to talk to her. So, as he usually did when he was trying to ease tension, he went for a little truth, hoping that Annie wouldn't feel like he was completely shutting her down. "Here," he said, drawing her attention before he switched the settings on the cybernetic eyes. Almost every setting kept them the same blue color, but there was a nearly-green setting that had night vision as well as a feed of information. Most of it fed into his visual cortex, but when he used it, it looked like his eyes were glowing slightly - albeit green instead of his old red.
"Oh." Annie said in a soft tone, then nodded slowly. "Yes. Well. I can understand the need for secrecy."
The crowd swelled with a collective gasp as whistles blew all across the field when Nate lost his focus from the game with all the eavesdropping he was doing - and got himself hit pretty solidly because of it.
Nathaniel Christopher-
Yeah, yeah. Nate's mental voice sounded strained; it really had been a rough hit.
If you're going to be eavesdropping the whole game-
If I say yes, will you take her somewhere private?
Nate.
Warn a guy before you drop a bombshell - just saying!
Nate, keep your mind to yourself and get back that yardage.
I'm working on it.
"Oh, I hope he's alright," Annie said, leaning forward with her hands clasped underneath her chin.
"He'll be fine," Scott said. "He's just distracted."
Misunderstanding what Scott meant, Annie looked toward the cheerleaders and saw Kate leaning partway over one of her friends to check on Nate. "Oh, he has it bad, doesn't he?"
Scott smiled to himself. "He sure does."
"I hope you're prepared," Annie said, not bothering to hide how amused she was.
"Not at all."
"Well, at least you're honest," Annie laughed. "I'd have laughed if you said you were. I don't think anyone ever is, really."
"I've got three that seem to be racing," Scott said. "No one can prep for that."
"I don't think I've heard too much about the other two, really. I know Nate talks about his big brother being in love and doing big things, but he doesn't say much beyond that. When he does talk about his brother and sister, it's always glowing, though. You can tell he thinks the world of them."
"They're good kids," Scott said. "And they've always looked out for one another."
"I can tell," Annie said. "They must have learned that from you."
Scott cleared his throat, red-faced and without a response - until he realized that Kate had missed a cue when she was supposed to jump to the top of a pyramid. She was looking their way and grinning, and even though she did, belatedly, get in place, Scott knew instantly that Nate was broadcasting what was going on to her.
He shook his head. "I think Nate and Kate are spying on us," he told Annie, gesturing toward Kate - who blatantly waved their way, knowing full well she was caught.
"I'm not sure how," Annie said. "But if they're distracting you, maybe we should take a raincheck. Or … just call it. You have your hands full with those two."
Scott shook his head as he got up and offered her his hand. "They're the distracted ones," he said. "And I'd hate to let their hijinks ruin a night out. Why don't we grab something to eat and get away from the crowd instead?"
"Are you sure you'd be alright missing some of the game?"
"I'd rather Nate focus on his game and avoid a concussion," Scott said.
Annie tried and failed not to laugh. "Alright then. They're probably going to win anyhow."
"Yeah, we have a good team this year," Scott agreed, smiling as Annie took his hand and they grabbed some popcorn to eat far beyond the crowd. He blatantly ignored the fact that there were teenage couples looking for privacy as well, instead projecting to Nate how grounded he was and warning him to keep his head in the game before cutting him off with a strong telepathic shield.
He was going to have to talk to Nate when they got home. Especially since he wanted to invite Annie to another game to try for a better impression, and he didn't want Nate getting hurt again because he had his mother's penchant for peeking.
"Sorry about Nate," Scott said, rubbing the back of his neck.
"You don't have anything to apologize for," Annie said with a bright smile. "It's not your fault he's overly distracted by his girlfriend."
Scott decided not to correct her as he sat down with her on one of the benches beyond the fencing. "Like I told you before, they're both trouble," he said. "But at least we got out of the crowd."
"We did, didn't we?" Annie said, her eyes sparkling. "Maybe next time, we can go somewhere just the two of us so you don't think you need to censor yourself or watch out for your distracted little boy."
Scott turned her way with one eyebrow raised and an almost disbelieving smirk at the corner of his mouth. "Next time, huh?"
"Mm-hmm."
Scott smirked fully as he watched her smile. She really was pretty. "You're the one working full time. What night works best for a quiet dinner, then?"
Annie broke into a full grin before she leaned forward and stole a kiss Scott had almost been expecting but was still surprised by. "So, Wednesday night?" she asked, blushing bright pink but smiling even wider than before.
"I'll be there," he agreed after a much longer silence than he'd meant to give her; he was still a little surprised, since he'd actually meant to kiss her. So, he leaned forward to kiss her back.
All things considered, Nate knew he was absolutely grounded, and Scott took him straight home after the game, outlining the whole time how he expected Nate to stay out of Annie's head and not take advantage of her lower defenses to spy on their date when Scott shut him out. He was sure to make it clear how it was not appropriate to loop in his girlfriend for said spying, either.
"But … I was right," Nate said. "So that should count for something, I'm pretty sure."
"Nate, that only counts for so much when you couldn't even focus on your game because of your spying," Scott shot back.
"It was the first game of the season," Nate reasoned. "No one was focused."
"Uh-huh." Scott gave him a dry look.
"You're just mad because I was right."
"Nate, I'm mad because I can't even take the woman to your games because you're eavesdropping and distracted!"
"But you are going to take her out, aren't you? I didn't peek for that part - she was broadcasting."
"Yes, we're going out again."
Nate threw both arms in the air. "Then I was right! Worth it!"
"Go to your room, Nate," Scott said, pinching the bridge of his nose as he threw his keys on the kitchen counter.
"Oh, come on," Nate said, unable to stop the smile. "This is big news. Like … really big news."
"I'm glad you think so. You're still grounded."
"What happened?" James asked from the living room with his feet kicked up since he'd stayed home with Billy for another movie night. Even after a year, Billy claimed he wasn't caught up on the good stuff yet. "Did you make out with the fifty yard line again?"
"Nate thinks he can get away with eavesdropping on my date," Scott said. "Using someone else's mind without her permission when it's not an emergency is bad enough."
"Creepy," James said, sounding perfectly unbothered.
Scott gestured wordlessly to James and then pointed at Nate. "Room. Now."
"But he hasn't heard how it went," Nate argued, still grinning as he stood next to Scott facing his brother. "And there are big points to be discussed."
"Like what?" James asked, shifting to sit more upright, even as Scott looked more irritated. "Did that big linebacker finally do something more than slapping your butt? Don't need to be a telepath to read that look." he said, and Billy snerked loudly.
Scott smirked. "No, but Nate tried to add another concussion to his record while eavesdropping during the game."
"Hawkeye is rubbing off," James pointed out.
"She better not be for her dad's blood pressure's sake," Billy whispered loudly enough everyone still heard it.
"Uh-oh," James sang out. "Too late."
"Yeah, that's less important than Dad willingly admitting to someone that he's a mutant," Nate shot back. "Just so he could talk to her more openly, too," he added, grinning wider with every word.
James stared at both of them for a moment ."Nuh-uh."
"He absolutely did. Didn't you, Dad?" Nate grinned triumphantly.
Scott shrugged, one hand on the back of his neck. "Not in so many words, no."
"Shut up," James said.
"He so did, so pay up," Nate preened. "Called it!"
James looked between Nate and their dad with an expression of disbelief, then half-grumbled as he took his wallet out. "No freakin' way." He was shaking his head to himself as he opened up the wallet and counted out three hundred dollar bills, folded them in half, then handed them to Nate with Billy and Scott both frowning between the two brothers.
"Ah, don't put that away just yet … we're not done," Nate said as he pocketed the cash.
"Oh, come on. What else?" James asked, blatantly ignoring the look that Scott and Billy were giving them.
"For starters, she's a huge flirt," Nate said.
"Not much of a bet when I don't know her," James said, even as he pulled out a twenty, though to Scott, James' expression was overly familiar to one that Logan used to wear often when he was up to something.
"That's your fault for taking the bet, isn't it?" Nate pointed out with a grin. "But … she totally kissed him first. And I called that."
Scott stared between the two of them as James shook his head and counted out more cash. "You're betting on ..."
"I bet on you," James said, though Scott saw that this time, the cash in hand wasn't as heavy as it had been for the first bet. "He said she was old-fashioned. I figured that meant you'd make the first move."
"I knew better," Nate said, before he darted up the stairs to try and avoid more time on his grounding.
"You shouldn't be betting on any of this!" Scott pointed out, shouting up the stairs after Nate.
"Dad," James said flatly. "No matter who wins these bets - you're winning anyhow. No one's betting you'll stop seeing her. It's harmless."
"Have you two been betting since …"
"Since the first practice you went to," James said.
"How many have you won?" Scott asked, but James shrugged openly, trying to ignore the question. "How much money have you lost, James?"
James looked up at him with a perfectly flat, unreadable expression … then simply arched one eyebrow slightly, but refused to answer as he stared back. But that was just another incredibly familiar expression that Scott hadn't seen in years.
"James. You can't … that doesn't really-" Scott cut himself off with a weary sigh. "Stop betting on my relationship."
James continued to stare at Scott, but didn't respond one way or another until Scott grumbled and left, leaving James and Billy to finish out their movie in relative peace. But Billy had gotten curious, too. "You know those bets are entirely lopsided, right?" Billy said quietly as he set the popcorn down on the coffee table.
"Yeah, I know."
"And you know he's probably cheating somehow."
"He can't get into Dad's head unless Dad lets him in," James argued, then tapped his temple. "Strong defenses."
"Yeah, I know, but not … she doesn't have strong defenses."
"True."
'And you've never even met her."
"Also true."
"How many bets with him have you won?"
James turned toward Billy with a crooked smirk, sighed, and kissed him. "Don't worry about it."
"This is very much not like you," Billy said, frowning at James, but James just pulled on his hand. "What happened to the highly competitive thing you have going with him."
"Hey. Let's go somewhere."
"Where?"
"Somewhere private." James gave him a raised-eyebrow look. "So we can talk."
Billy wrinkled up his nose. "Why are you trying to-"
When James saw Billy wasn't going to be distracted until he knew something, he pulled Billy into a kiss, then kept him close so he could whisper to him. "Don't make a big thing out of it, okay? I know what I'm doing."
"If you want to give your brother money, you could just give it to him."
"If I did that," James whispered just loud enough for Billy to hear as his lips nearly brushed his ear, "he'd take it as an insult and I want to be sure he can afford to get Katie the ring she deserves."
Billy blinked and then broke into a slow grin that kept getting wider. "If she ever realizes you did that…"
"She won't. Because you won't tell her."
Billy held up a hand in a gesture of peace. "I'm just saying… if Nate figures it out, you can bet Kate will know, and she'll kiss you full on the mouth and I might die of jealousy or something."
"Or something is more like it. That would never happen. Ever. Anywhere. Even if she lost her mind momentarily, that'd be like Tommy kissing you."
"Eww, why'd you put that mental image in my head?"
"Because you put Kate kissing me out there. Turnabout is fair play."
Billy rolled his eyes and then settled in beside James, then pointedly shoved a big handful of popcorn in James' mouth. "I can't even look at you right now."
"That didn't take long," James mumbled, though he pulled Billy in a little tighter. "Ready to scope out the new talent already?"
Billy laughed and tried to keep his gaze on the television. "Yeah, just gotta find someone perfect again. Should be easy."
"I mean … your bar is low."
"Lies. I have high standards. The very highest."
"You're wrong, but I'm okay with that."
"Yeah, go ahead and think I'm wrong, but when you're the prince's consort and the sexiest man alive at the same time…"
James shook his head and shoved a handful of popcorn in Billys' mouth. "Hush."
Billy grinned around the popcorn as best he could. "Mmf," he said, which was completely unintelligible, but enough to get him a smile and a kiss on the cheek as they re-started their movie.
Chapter 72: Young Mutant In Trouble
Chapter Text
Summer was shifting into fall and still, James hated the attention that Tony's press conference had brought him, even if Tony had been amazing in supporting not only James, but the young group of X-Men that hadn't been unmasked as a whole as well. From one hour to the next, it was as if the whole world not only knew who he was with absolute certainty that was entirely off base, but the public and the press all thought they had permission to approach him, talk to him, and touch him.
It was a steep learning curve after a lifetime of avoiding exactly that. And while it hadn't been doing his anxiety any favors, his studying had been more focused since he and Billy couldn't exactly step out for dates without consequences so they'd kept their dates inside, home, and away from people all together. Especially after Magneto died, they didn't want to leave speculation open as to Billy and Tommy's possible infiltration to Stark through James. Which meant that he was actually ahead of where Tony and Reed had projected he'd be on his masters theses. He'd even taken it a step further to start up on a dissertation after he'd sent in the files and applications to finish up the three degrees since Tony and Banner were bubbling with enthusiasm over the idea that James could nail down a doctorate. And at the rate he was going, he'd have one easily before he was old enough to actually take a spot on the board.
The fact that he two of them were so excited … that was the kind of enthusiasm James hated to tamper with, so he was seriously considering moving forward so as not to let them down. But first … he wanted to get the masters out of the way, so he'd pushed to finish that and make sure that his submissions were ready by the first week of September ahead of Nate going back to school. Just because he could.
But now, the fall semester had already started and was well under way. His brother was back in school and busier than ever. It had been almost a week since MIT had unofficially gotten everything from James according to his department heads, and he was starting to wonder when he'd hear back from them. He should have gotten an official confirmation that they'd received them by now and word on if they'd accepted them to move forward, or if he'd missed something. Even considering that there were three theses in play … he thought for sure he'd have heard back on one.
He was taking the morning to go with his dad to the therapist, so he had some time. He waited until he was alone while Scott took Nate to school to log in to his student email, only to find that he couldn't access his account. Which was odd. He'd never had any trouble in the past. So, he closed out the browser, waited a little while and tried again only to end up with the same results.
He had a sinking feeling in the pit of his stomach, but he honestly didn't know what to do about it. But rather than bring it to his dad or Tony, James decided to do the first step himself - and he took a moment to sit down with a pad of paper and a pen next to his laptop as he called up his department heads at MIT to see what he was missing or if he was just being antsy.
He frowned deeper as he was transferred from one department to the next, and he left messages with every single voicemail box that his phone calls ended at. By the time he was done getting the run around, he had a sinking feeling that there was a big problem. James didn't want to bother Tony with anything. Yet. If it was something minor, he didn't want to let Tony get all fired up. But he wouldn't be able to determine that until he found out more - and he wanted to give the faculty a chance to talk to him before anyone got bent out of shape.
So instead of saying anything, James closed the notebook and closed out the webpage he was on that had been showing him an error message every time he tried to log in to the student's system for the college.
There was work to be done, after all, and he needed to give the department heads time to respond to his messages. He was just trying to ease his mind - to find something else to focus on when Scott came in from dropping off Nate.
"Done surfing already?" Scott asked with a smile as he hung his keys up. James quickly got control of his expression before Scott came into the kitchen to grab a cup of coffee before his therapy session. "You find what you were looking for on there?"
"Not yet."
Scott nodded and the two of them settled in. "You sure you're okay?"
"Working on it," James replied. They had only gotten through half of their coffee before there was a knock at the door and James frowned and got to his feet. "You expecting someone?"
Scott frowned, scanning ahead of James and ready to call him back until he saw who it was on the other side of the door. "Oh, no. I forgot Toby was going to take me in today."
"Wasn't like you knew I'd have the morning off," James pointed out before he opened the door, then turned his attention to Toby. "Hi, Rabbi Cohen."
Toby smiled broadly at him. "I didn't realize you'd be here this morning!" He stepped in and wrapped James up in a quick, tight hug. "Are you going with us today?"
"Actually, I thought I was taking him," James said, following Toby into the kitchen where Scott was smiling at the two of them.
"Good. Then you're going along," Toby decided. "We can chat while your dad's in his session."
"Oh … kay then," James said, giving Scott a look, but Scott just shrugged.
"You're driving, then?" Toby asked, smiling crookedly.
"Wouldn't you rather I took the back?" James asked.
"Nonsense," Toby said. "Both of you are taller than I am. And it's your car. You should enjoy it."
"Right," James said, then took care of his coffee cup since it was clear that the rabbi was waiting for them to get moving.
"I really did forget to tell him not to swing by," Scott said quietly.
"It's fine, Dad," James replied. "It'll save me a trip later. I was supposed to see him this afternoon, so maybe this is how he gets the time freed up."
"Somehow I doubt it's just that."
The three of them headed out and Toby cheerfully took both of them through small talk, then surprised them when he suggested they go inside when they got to Craig's office. "You're too recognizable," Toby said in his defense. "If we go inside, it won't look like a drug deal in the parking lot."
"Oh my God, Rabbi Cohen, no," James laughed.
"What? Like I don't know what drug deals look like in our neighborhood?"
"Apparently you do," Scott said with a laugh before he led the way for all three of them. When they got into the office's waiting room, Craig was there - like always, doing his last minute prep and checking his schedule. But when he saw the entourage, he did a full double take.
"Is there a new problem I'm not aware of that we need to discuss?" Craig asked, looking between the three of them.
"No, I just double booked my ride," Scott explained, though Craig glanced over to James and Toby.
"And we have a standing appointment for today, so since we're double booked, I decided now is a good time for us to have our chat - while you're chatting with Scott," Toby explained brightly. "You don't mind me using your waiting room while you're in session with his father, do you?"
"No, that's ... " Craig looked between James and Toby. "You're James' therapist?"
"And Rabbi," he said brightly.
James thumbed at Toby. "He wants me to convert. Standard with a hello from him." But that only had Toby chuckling good-naturedly.
"Alright then," Craig said, gesturing for Scott to join him. "I may have a few questions for you before the session is over, James."
"I'll be here," James said, gesturing openly, though that only had Toby smiling wider.
Scott followed Craig into his office, and as soon as the door was closed, Craig had to ask: "Are you going to be able to concentrate on your session while your son is doing his session just through the door?"
"He initiated talking to Toby after spring break," Scott said. "And Toby tried to talk with him well before then. I know he's in good hands."
Craig nodded, took a moment to reorganize his thoughts, then cleared his throat as they started their session - mostly working on how things were going with his attempts to find a life for himself outside of his kids.
In the waiting room, things were a bit more serious. James had been dealing with a lot of building pressure from many angles … and with every new thing that came up, Toby was becoming more concerned that the old heroes around the boy were treating him more like his biological father than they were treating him like his own person.
The murder in self defense had been a real turning point for James - one that came too soon after finding out everything about his parent's deaths. He hadn't even gotten his feet under him when Stark thrust him into the spotlight, and James had admitted that though he knew he was in love with Billy - Billy had been showing a few familial quirks when his temper was up that took James' breath away in all the wrong ways. He wasn't afraid of Billy, but he was afraid that Billy might slip if things went too far south.
To Toby, it was almost like everything that Scott was shedding - James was picking up. And that didn't even approach James' concern that weapons programs were actively searching for a way to … well. Toby wasn't even sure what he thought James believed in that aspect. But to his ears, it sounded a lot like paranoia.
They hadn't made progress, either, when Craig opened the door to his office and invited both of them in. "If you don't mind," Craig said. "We've covered all we need to and I wanted to check in on how things are going with all the press."
And while James looked like he was ready to pass, Toby spoke up for both of them. "Is Scott concerned with that aspect of things?" Toby asked, and Craig nodded quietly. "Good. Maybe the boy just needs to hear another perspective on things."
"I guess that's a yes," James said, getting to his feet. He glanced over at Toby, who looked perfectly pleased as they stepped into the now-crowded office. James took a seat next to Scott, who tried to look encouraging.
"First of all," Craig said, "are you alright discussing things with all of us, James?"
"Sure," he agreed easily. "I don't keep secrets from my dad, and the rabbi knows pretty much everything."
"Just pretty much?" Toby teased.
"Don't push it," James said, though that had Toby smiling to himself.
In short order, Craig dove in - hitting matters that Scott was clearly concerned with, but was unsure on how to approach the conversation. It had always been easy for Scott to talk to James, but … things had gotten complicated in the past few years with all the normal changes that came with growing up. And everything that had happened since spring break had only complicated everything.
So just about every time that Scott thought he had a good angle to open a conversation and check in on his son … something else had come up to throw a monkey wrench in things. And though he was glad that James had started therapy with Toby … he couldn't help but take it as a hit anyhow. His son didn't want to burden him - or maybe he didn't want to confide in him. It was hard to know for sure when he didn't know the depth of what was discussed or where James stood on some of it. So this … this was just as much about getting Scott some peace of mind as it was for Craig to make sure that Scott's family really was stable enough to help support him without imploding.
But James answered everything Craig asked - and all that Toby asked - more or less the way they wanted to hear it. None of them had a solid way to advise him on the press - and as both he and Scott pointed out, Tony and Jan were the finest coaches that one could hope for when it came to that subject anyhow. As far as the stuff from Genosha - he didn't want to discuss it - both because he didn't know how to approach it and he didn't want to make his dad uncomfortable considering that Scott had set out to murder Magneto himself.
Yet, Scott saw the mild improvement in that realm when James explained it not as 'I didn't mean to kill him', but 'it was in self defense'. The tone at which James said it was cold and almost detached - and something that was like a blast from the past for most of the times Scott had ever questioned Logan about something like that. But it was the truth, nonetheless and at least he was telling the truth. There was power after all in saying it out loud, even if he didn't fully believe it yet. And that was enough to ease Scott's mind on that front for the time being.
"Would you be open to allowing the rabbi and I to discuss your case considering that I doubt neither of us are quite able to advise anyone properly?" Craig asked James, and for a long moment, it was clear that James had to think it over.
But, he couldn't help but keep in mind that it could be helpful to his dad's progress. And he didn't have any problems with Scott knowing things if he was on the mend. He was pretty sure he had things more or less going the right way. "Yeah," James said after a few moments to think it over. "Anything you need."
"It's not just for him," Craig pointed out.
"Okay, sure, but I'm saying okay for his sake. I'll be alright."
"Of course you'd say that," Craig said half under his breath, then turned to Scott, who looked almost amused at Craig's reaction. "We can keep to the same days, if that works for you."
"It works for now," Scott agreed. "I'll let you know if my schedule changes or if I need to change to a different time."
Scott and James got to their feet, and Toby and Craig took just a minute to decide when they'd get together before Scott's next appointment, but that gave James and Scott a moment. Nothing was said, but the very male, bracing arm across James' shoulders was enough for both of them to relax a little.
There wasn't anyone that knew Nate who didn't know the moment he got his driver's license. He was jubilant, excited, and before he'd gotten the chance to properly celebrate, he was already looking for a car to call his own. He and Kate were curled up - Kate halfway in his lap for how close they were - and looking at the sales flyers to find something fitting when James came in from the tower and flipped his image inducer off as soon as the door closed.
"Hey- you've been playing with cars, right?" Nate called out. "I mean … not as much with the Mustang I'm sure, but still … you're still playing mechanic aren't you?"
"When the mood strikes," James agreed, then took off his shoes and jacket before he headed to the living room where they were. "What's up?"
"Well … I found a few prospects."
"This for the classic restore you want to do?" James asked, looking more interested with the promise of a challenging project.
"Ah, well I do have a few thoughts about that, but I'm looking for something that might be a little less … you know … big of a project."
"Not sure we have time to just restore cars for kicks, little bro."
"Probably not, but I do need my own wheels. Janice isn't always as reliable as Kate likes her to be."
"Hey," Kate said, playfully thwacking his chest. "She does her job."
"Mostly," Nate said. "But she did decide to die just after school started, too."
"Fluke thing," Kate said with a wave as Nate turned his sales book to show James what he was thinking.
James took the book o look at what Nate had circled, reading the ads as Nate explained. "I don't have enough saved up to get anything like your car, but I can get something if it doesn't need too much work."
But James shook his head. "What about the Mustang?"
"James." Nate gave him a dry look. "I'm not going to just drive my brother's car."
"Why not?" James asked before he tossed the fob to Nate, who caught it without thinking about it. "I have been."
Nate frowned as Kate looked between the two of them quickly. "What are you talking about?" Nate asked.
"Wasn't ever going to be my car," James said. "I'd never pick blue for a car for myself."
"Shut. Up," Nate said, frowning deeper somehow, though there was a smile fighting the corner of his mouth.
"Fine," James said, holding up both hands as he stood up again. "But it's still yours. Mine's getting worked on."
"What are you doing to the Jeep?" Nate asked as Kate slid into her own cushion and Nate got to his feet to follow James.
"Nothing. Not right now, anyhow. It's running, nothing's busted."
"Then what do you have getting worked on?" Nate asked. "What did you do?"
James smirked. "Tricked you into picking out your dream car so I could buy it for you?"
"No. Really."
"Really."
"Oooh, if you're playing Santa, I'd like a pony," Kate teased, laughing her way over to drape her arms around Nate's neck and kiss him out of his shock. How are you surprised by this?
I just … didn't expect him to do this for no reason?
Pretty sure it counts as your birthday and Christmas for a while, Kate pointed out.
James had poured himself a mug of coffee, tactfully ignoring the fact that he knew his brother was in the throes of a telepathic conversation and make out session when Nate finally blinked back from his chat with Kate and rushed him. He barely set the mug down without spilling it on either of them as Nate wrapped him up in a hug. "You're just …"
"Yeah, love you too," James said. "Just don't get any tickets, okay? Dad would have fits if you did."
"Does he know?"
"I think he suspected," James said. "But I didn't tell him outright."
Nate couldn't stop the broad grin as Kate stole James' coffee. "I'm not getting you a pony," James told her, then leaned on the kitchen island with a troublemaking expression on his face. "But I would like to borrow Janice for a little bit."
Kate grinned, recognizing the troublemaking gleam for what it was. "Why's that? Just because you gave your brother your ride? Can't go back to the rusty jalopy of a Jeep?"
"No," James said, smiling crookedly. "I want to give her something new. Considering that you've got Hydra breathing down your neck I thought you might want to make sure Janice could be your secret weapon."
"Oh? What have you got in mind?" Kate asked, mirroring his posture and grinning widely.
"Classified," James said, which had Nate snickering. "Just know that if I can reintroduce myself to Janice for a few weeks, she'll come out less like she was and more like Herbie crossed with .007."
"Can it neuter a creep in three seconds and go from zero to sixty in that time?" Kate asked, her eyes gleaming.
"And take away what you could do?"
"Dad says I'm getting rusty on my swordwork and might take four seconds," Kate said straight faced - totally lying but still grinning.
"Uh-huh. I'll put it on the list of tricks I want to put into it."
Kate laughed delightedly and then kissed his cheek. "Almost as good as a pony," she teased.
"I can change the horn to a whinny if it makes you feel better."
"Lone Ranger theme."
"Does that make Nate Tonto?" James teased.
Kate turned toward Nate, bit her lip, tipped her head to the side, and then giggled. "I've seen him shirtless? And no."
"Oh, come on," Nate deadpanned.
"Give him a few years," James said.
"Ab workouts, Nate," Kate said, her grin getting more troublemaking.
"Yeah, Nate. You clearly need to work out. Your girl thinks you're slacking."
And she also knows some good workouts, Kate said, her grin getting more obnoxious. To break in a new car.
This is a fine point, Nate replied. "With that, I think it's high time we had a date, coach."
"Just remember the title's in Dad's name until you're old enough to take it yourself," James said as he headed out of the kitchen. "It's yours but you still have to answer to him about it." He turned and held up one hand. "Keys, Kate."
Kate fished in her pocket and tossed James the keys. "I expect a Bat-ladder and Bat-shark repellant."
"Naturally," James agreed. "Just give me a few days before you come see me in the shop. It'll be at Tony's until we finish playing."
"Oh, I guess I'll go bug my godfather on my way to you."
James grinned. "I came up with a few things he didn't think of. He's excited. It'll be done fast."
It's a good thing you're hot, Nate, because your brother is so dang good to me, Kate teased - purely to push his buttons.
Too bad he probably wouldn't notice you fawning, Nate shot back with a grin. You're not carrying enough evil DNA.
Kate snorted out loud. I mean, my bio dad was into something bad enough the Phoenix killed him. That counts, right? I don't know how bad it was, but...
But was he into supervillain level things? I doubt it … there's a bar, Katie.
I was three? I have no idea. Never looked into it. Kinda want to now just for the sake of the argument.
Anything less than Viper at this point is just a bump.
Kate burst into a laugh, hanging onto Nate for support. "Bye, James. Your brother is into goodie-two-shoes and I gotta see if I measure up."
James shook his head, but didn't slow them down any more than the hand off had so far, though he had to hit on a parting shot. "Don't go off and get pregnant now."
"Ugh. You're so much like your dad," Kate said, sticking her tongue out.
"So I'm right," James laughed. "I'll let the betting pool know."
Kate rolled her eyes and grabbed Nate's hand. "C'mon, gorgeous. Let's leave the joykill behind."
He's just trying to get in your head, Nate told her. He's just like this lately.
He needs to get laid more often.
I really, really don't want to know anything about that, Nate replied dryly. Ever. I'm just watching what he's doing for spending. He's been doing something for just about everyone and I doubt that has anything to do with how much action he's getting or not.
Kate bit her lip. At the risk of standing up for your brother? When I age into my biological family's inheritance, I'm absolutely going on a spending spree. When you have money, you use it on the people you love, right? That's why Dad bought his building.
I hope that's all it is, Nate said, more than a little wary considering how everyone in their family was hitting therapy. But … I think we need ice cream to celebrate … as a start.
Banana split. For sure.
Scott had chosen the location for his mid-week date with Annie, so Annie hadn't known what to expect when he picked her up after work in the Jeep. So to say she was happily surprised when they went to a cafe attached to a bookshop was an understatement. This was exactly the kind of place she would have picked out for herself.
"You have good taste, Mr. Mueller; I'll give you that," Annie said, smiling as she looked around. There weren't many people there; most were browsing the bookshelves, and the only other person at the cafe was a teenager bent over her laptop with a few textbooks stacked beside her coffee and sandwich.
Scott smiled as they sat down together. "A history teacher who loves mystery novels… I took a guess."
"Good guess."
Again, Scott smiled, glad that this date was getting off to a better start than their last one as they settled into comfortable small talk until they had their food. Annie's classes were going well, and yes, Scott was guest lecturing weekly.
Annie was watching the ice in her sweet tea after Scott told her he was thinking of adding more to his schedule of lectures, and she seemed to be weighing something out. He didn't know her well enough to place her expression before, slowly, she said, "I don't suppose you remember the first X-Men, do you? It was a while ago…"
"Yes, I do," Scott said carefully. "Very well."
"I thought so," Annie said, smiling warmly. "I just can't figure out which one…" She glanced around. "Oh, which one was your favorite," she said, though that obviously wasn't the real question by the way her eyes were sparkling.
"There weren't many people picking out favorites," Scott teased, before he smiled to himself. "Which one do you think I liked?"
"I've been thinking about it since Friday night," she admitted, watching him with a smile still stuck on her lips. "There aren't many that fit your… style."
"Im going to have to agree with you on that." He didn't bother trying to hide the smile at his own little joke.
"I'll admit it's hard to hazard a guess," she said. "The only mutant I know personally, you wouldn't know he's gifted by looking at him. He's stronger than your average elephant, but he keeps it to himself. So you never know by looks alone. And I thought I had you pegged, but…" She blew out a breath that moved the bangs in front of her face. "Now I'm not sure. Maybe your style is more telepathic…"
"Definitely not a telepath."
"Alright then," Annie said, nodding slowly. "Then maybe you're like my niece. Her favorite is Iceman. I think he was on the news after all that hubbub with Genosha, and Leslie Ann took an instant liking to anyone who can make snow days."
Scott smiled wider. "So close, and yes, he's gotten off Genosha. But he's not my favorite. Sorry."
Annie looked like she was enjoying herself as she tried to puzzle him out. "You see," she said slowly, "I had a hunch before Friday night, but my hunch had nothing to do with green."
Scott looked openly surprised. "Do you mind if I ask why green would throw you off?"
"Well, I thought your favorite might be Cyclops." She gestured vaguely toward her face in the same place his scars were. "But after our last night out…"
"As a friend of mine once said, you really should follow your gut."
Annie looked surprised, though she also looked pleased. "Oh!" Her food was long forgotten as she smiled at him. "Well then. That would make the most sense, yes. I just don't understand your penchant for green, then."
"It's a long story."
"I hope you'll tell me someday," she said, still smiling.
"It's not really the kind of story that is easily retold," Scott said. "But … maybe one day."
"I won't push," she promised gently. "I grew up an Army brat. I know how some of those stories can be."
"I appreciate that," Scott said. "Maybe you can compare stories with me anyhow. My Dad was an Air Force pilot. Spent a lot of time on bases as a kid."
Annie's face lit up. "Oh, really?" she asked. "Mine was in the Army. We traveled a lot when I was younger, but he retired before I got into high school, since I was the youngest. I actually got to go to the same school from freshman to senior year; drove my sisters absolutely wild with jealousy."
Scott smiled. "Sounds like a good way to grow up to me," he said. "It was a little more complicated than that for us. Long story short, I ended up spending a few years in an orphanage. Before I went to school at a gifted institution."
"I'm sorry to hear that," Annie said, reaching out to put her hand on his arm. "I can't imagine being without my brother and sister - and my mom and dad visit at least three times a year from Memphis."
"I get to see my brother fairly often," Scott said. "It's been close to three times this year, honestly. He managed to get adopted right away, so it took us a while to even catch up again."
"Then I'm glad you reconnected," Annie said, with her hand still on his arm. "I can't even imagine. My brother and sister both live in New York; I'd be lost without them."
"Well, I've got my kids."
"You do," Annie agreed. "And they're amazing - from what Nate's told me of his brother and sister, I mean. I hope my nieces stay as close when they're grown as your kids have."
Scott tipped his head, trying to find a way to continue the conversation without causing any irreparable damage to their date. It was way too early to tip her off to even a fraction of the trouble that he was used to dealing with - or why the kids had been as close as they were for good reason. "I'm sure they'll stay close if you give them the kind of attention you pay your students."
Annie flushed with pleasure. "I sure try," she said, tucking her hair behind her ears. "They're both sweet girls. Craig and I spoil them rotten. That's my brother," she added, not at all realizing he already knew that. "He looks out for me since I've got a place on my own."
"Sounds like your nieces already have a good example to work from, then," Scott said.
She blushed again. "I hope so. I try to be," she mumbled and then suddenly took an interest in eating her food until her blush was back under control.
The two of them spent a little time, trying to share their experiences and enjoyed the time they were spending. They were both getting caught up in each other and losing track of time in all the best ways when Annie's phone started to go off. First it was just one text … then three … then the phone calls started as the texts blew up her notifications.
"Is … everything alright?" Scott asked with a frown. Clearly whoever was trying to get in touch was desperate for Annie to answer. Now.
Annie frowned and held up a finger. "It's my sister - hold on. I told her I was going out tonight, and she usually just leaves a voice message if I don't pick up, so if she calls twice…"
"...then it's probably important," Scott finished for her, nodding.
Annie bit her lip as she called her sister back. "Evie, what's wrong?" she asked as soon as her sister picked up.
"It's Leslie Ann," Evelyn said on the other end, and Annie's eyes went wide as she held the phone a little tighter.
"Is she alright?"
"Not … really. I mean, she's not hurt, she's just…" Evie was uncharacteristically stumbling over her words. "I already called Craig. Leslie Ann has some kind of… we're not sure what happened, but all the plantlife for a block around us … you'd really have to see it for yourself, Annie, but she's freaking out, and the neighborhood is up in arms trying to figure out who broke up half the sidewalk and the roads with the plant roots breaking through concrete and ...!"
Annie glanced over at Scott, who was leaning forward himself, unable not to hear Evie when Annie's sister was panicking so loudly. "I'll be right there," Annie told Evie and then quickly hung up. "I'm sorry. I need to go."
"I can drive you," Scott offered.
"Are you sure you don't mind?"
"Easier than catching a cab," Scott pointed out. "And I don't mind."
Annie nodded, gathering her things. "I can give you directions… I'm so sorry. Anton's been worried about something like this as she gets older… I know you get it… I just… the timing…"
"Don't worry about it. You can't plan around these things ... she'll be fine," Scott said as he helped her gather herself up, then gestured to where he'd parked the Jeep. "Just tell me where we're headed."
Annie gave him directions once they headed out, apologizing again for having to break up the date they were enjoying, no matter how many times Scott promised it was okay - though she really didn't have to direct him much when he saw the trail of destruction Annie's niece had left behind with the start of her abilities kicking in: sidewalks were broken up and vines had overgrown the buildings in the area. It was a wonder no one else was there yet.
"Do you have a plan in mind?" Scott asked quietly to try and get Annie to engage in something other than worrying and apologizing.
"Anton and Evie talked about it when they first had kids," Annie admitted. "Anton's been able to hide his mutation; to be honest, they were hoping for something similarly easy to learn and hide… this is much harder to brush over than super-strength, though."
"It's rare to be able to reliably guess a direction on mutations," Scott told her quietly. "And though it doesn't seem like it right now, this could be a whole lot worse. She'll be alright."
"Scott, I know the X-Men are back, but you know as well as I do that drawing attention like this…"
"The school never quit," Scott said. "And the purpose of it was to help kids control their mutations while keeping them safe. Your sister might have to move, but they can all be safe."
Annie nodded. "I know. I just… I only have those two nieces and I worry about them, you know?" She seemed all at once to realize what she'd said. "Oh, of course you do."
"I do, I understand the concern. The kneejerk reaction isn't one you can stop. And if you want, I can help."
"Please do," Annie breathed out. "That would be wonderful, thank you."
"I'll make a call," Scott promised. "Maybe we can do this without a production. You should probably go calm your family down if you can. That'll help your niece more than anything else right now." He tipped his head toward the damage. "This … what you see, is a panicked reaction. That's all. For most mutants, emotion builds into what they can do and this … is just panic showing its face."
While Annie headed in to try and help calm her niece down, Scott took out his phone to make a few vital calls - first and foremost, to Storm since she'd be the one to know if there was a bigger problem headed their way. He knew there was some stress in Queens, he just wasn't sure how close it was to this particular neighborhood.
"You're ahead of us," Storm told him. "Rachel just alerted us to what's going on."
"Then we can probably get ahead of the problem," Scott said. "I'll get her out quietly if I can."
"Good luck," Storm said warmly. "It's like riding a bicycle, isn't it?"
"We'll see, I guess. I'll call when I'm on the way," Scott replied, then hung up and started to head to the front door. The plants around the house and halfway down the street were still moving slightly, growing much slower than they had to have to disturb so much so quickly, but it wasn't going to be an issue for them as long as they could get ahead of the authorities. With a bracing breath, Scott knocked on the door and waited for them to answer. "I'm with Annie," he said through the closed door. "I'd like to help, if you'll let me, but we really should move on this sooner than later."
He could hear the murmur of voices inside before Annie must have convinced her sister and brother-in-law, because the door opened to reveal a tall Black man… who instantly recognized Scott.
"You've gotta be kiddin' me with this," said the man Scott quickly recognized as Officer Wright from James' run-in after he'd stood up for Cassie and the many encounters America still had with him. "Annie, what the hell - you know this guy has a kid who beat the hell outta a sex offender? Your date's a half-sussed-up hero-in-training's worrywart father!"
"He's mostly grown now, actually, with some good back up," Scott said. "But thanks, for watching out for America, too."
"That girl doesn't have a lick of sense - you know that, right?"
"Oh yeah. But her heart's in the right place."
"Yeah, yeah. Tell that to my overtime check," Anton grumbled good-naturedly before he stepped back to let Scott in, only waiting until the door was closed to ask, "How's our Wolverine, by the way?"
"Trying to lay low, and not on duty right now," Scott said, then gestured openly. "How about your daughter? The chlorokinetic. What scared her?"
"Better question is what riled her," Anton replied. "She didn't panic until after she'd been reamin' out a couple of boys who didn't seem to know what the word 'no' means - then got scared when the plants got mad too."
"So you're sorry it's not my son and America today," Scott had to tease.
"Oh, sure," Anton said, nodding along with a crooked smile. "They coulda batted cleanup after my baby girl did exactly what I taught her to."
"They would, too." Scott matched Anton's stance. "But, you know we need to do something before the authorities show up. Can you talk to me about this? We need to get her somewhere more secure."
Anton nodded, losing his smile. "Honestly, Evie and I had talked about that school upstate if we couldn't figure things out on our own. Hate to send her away, but I know how hard it can be for us."
"Xavier's is the safest place for her," Scott said. "And I can get her there quickly if we move before the MRD comes in. Even if she doesn't stay there, it's a good first step while you decide on a plan."
Anton nodded. "Yeah, I've worked with the MRD a few times. Makes your blood boil."
"I'll bet," Scott said. "This should keep your cover in place, too. I can give you my number - and the number for the headmistress there. She knows I'm here, by the way, so you don't have to concern yourself with a jet coming in to land."
"Might as well, for all the fuss," Anton said dryly. "But I appreciate it. I know you're boy's doing good work, and we're all watchin' that new team, but keepin' cover works best for most of us still. So yes. I'd very much appreciate the help."
"They're doing their best. But … if we're going to go, then as quick as she can get moving … you can bring her more of her things later on. Storm encourages family that wants to be involved." Scott took his wallet out and removed the business card for the Institute he kept on him, then flipped it over and carefully wrote his cell number on the back with no name. "Give us half an hour after we leave before you call me. We'll need that much of a headstart to get out of the city."
Anton nodded and straightened his shoulders. "On it," he said, already going into motion with a clear-cut task ahead.
He made his way into the next room over to introduce himself to Leslie Ann. He relaxed his shoulders and took a moment to give her as much of a smile as he could. "Hi. I'm Scott. You must be Annie's niece. Nice to meet you. Before we do anything, you need to try and breathe, take a moment and let go of all that tension. I can get you to safety, but you need to relax first. Alright? I know it's not easy, especially with everything going on around you - but you can do it."
The little girl with tightly-curled hair in poofs on either side of her head gave Scott a dry look from behind her knees. "Oh, sure. When the earth stops moving."
Scott smiled a little wider. "It'll stop moving when you can relax a little. It's got to be a lot harder when you can move the environment. I could never do that, but I was stressed enough without moving the ground, too."
Leslie Ann frowned, then glanced up at Scott a little better. "Well, what can you do?" she asked.
"Nowadays? Drive. I can drive and get you out of trouble."
This time, Leslie Ann glanced toward Annie, who nodded encouragingly. "I can come too, if you want," she promised. "But I promise, he's one of the good guys."
"Leslie Ann, baby, this is Wolverine's dad," Anton explained with a quiet smile. "Best of the best, just for my girl."
As Scott looked stunned, unable to quite come up with a response, Leslie Ann looked like she was finally warming up to him as, with a crooked smile, she said, "Oh, you mean that punk who beat down a pervert?" she said in what was obviously a line from a well-rehearsed tale as Annie sort of blinked at Scott from across the room while the pieces all fell into place and Scott looked almost apologetic.
"Yep. That's the one, baby girl," Anton said as Annie started to smile in pure disbelief.
"Think you can take a drive with me, Leslie Ann?" Scott asked. "I want to get you to safety and make sure your parents don't get in any trouble, too."
"I don't want them to get in trouble," Leslie Ann said, her eyes wide.
"The Avengers will be here by the time the MRD is," Scott said.
"Oh. Okay. Wow."
"Your parents can come visit in a few days - and maybe by then, you'll all have a good plan in place - one that isn't rushed."
Leslie Ann nodded, though she was still holding on tight around her knees. "Can my Aunt Annie come too? Please?"
"Absolutely," Scott said. "I'll answer any questions you both might have on the way."
"Then…" She took a deep breath and settled her shoulders. "Okay. I definitely have questions, too."
Scott nodded and turned toward Anton to offer him his hand. "No one will touch her. My next call is the Avengers so they know. They'll send someone on the team here to keep the MRD from going too far. They've been doing that for years, too."
"Thank you," Evie said, poking her head in from where she had been packing things for Leslie Ann. She looked like Annie, but with more gray in her hair.
"Least I can do," Scott said.
In short order, Leslie Ann's parents got her packed up and ready to go, and she seemed to be much calmer now that she wasn't focused on how afraid she was of her powers. Even though the plants outside climbed the walls a little more when she tearfully hugged her parents and told them to please be safe - still a little too panicked to not think that she'd gotten them in trouble somehow, despite what anyone said - nothing big happened as she followed Scott and Annie out to the Jeep.
Scott helped her in, and waited for both Leslie Ann and Annie to get settled before he put it into gear and took the most direct - and most damaged route out of the neighborhood while he made a phone call that sounded like it was in code. He kept his calm in place as he navigated out over the busted up roads and overgrowth, thankful that James hadn't gotten rid of the Jeep, even if this wasn't what he'd intended it for. Scott stayed quiet and focused while he scanned the roads around them. They made it halfway out of the city before they saw the first MRD unit moving to where they'd headed out - but, since Leslie Ann had hunkered down low in the back - and Annie was afraid to say or do much, Leslie Ann had no idea until they were well out of the city and on the way to Westchester. And it wasn't until they'd hit open road that Scott started to put on the speed - having kept it legal and unremarkable in the city itself.
"You can breathe a little easier now," Scott said once he'd put it into high gear. "The worst is going in the wrong direction from you." He looked up into the rear view mirror for a second, then shifted his gaze for an instant toward Annie. "You have questions …"
"Yeah," Leslie Ann said, though she had turned around as if she could see the trouble going in the wrong direction. "Are my parents going to be okay?" she asked first and foremost.
"Yes," Scott said. "The first call I made when we left was to the Avengers. They aren't allowing anyone to harass people like your parents. And since it was me making the call, I'd bet that it was probably Black Widow and Wasp that went out to stop anything bad from happening."
"Wow," Leslie Ann said quietly. Then, after a beat of silence. "I was gonna ask about that too… the whole… you know the Avengers? Is it because of Wolverine?"
Scott nodded with a quiet 'mmhmm', though it didn't quite encompass which Wolverine she meant.
"So how come you know who they're gonna send?"
"I don't … really get involved anymore if I can avoid it," Scott said. "I've been taking care of my kids. Wasp and Widow have helped me keep out of trouble because of it."
"My dad doesn't have Avengers helping him with us." She paused. "I mean. Not until today, anyway."
Scott smiled at her in the mirror. "He'll be alright."
"Yeah, Dad always knows what to do," Leslie Ann said, nodding to herself. Then, after she had lapsed into silence for a long while, she asked, "So, are you a mutant too?"
Scott let out a sigh and nodded. "I am."
"So's my dad. He has super strength," Leslie Ann said.
Scott nodded, and then, because it wasn't another adult asking, he answered what she was skirting around by gesturing to his face. "I can't do what I used to."
"Oh." Leslie Ann bit her lip and didn't bother trying to hide the fact that she was watching him closely and trying to figure it out. "I wondered."
"Everyone does," Scott said, then went the extra mile to try and smile a little, though he knew it came across as more grim than he'd have liked. "I used to be on the team."
"You did?" All at once, Leslie Ann wasn't shy anymore. "You were, really? I mean, really? That's so cool."
"I was the first," Scott said, though after he'd said it, he had to take a moment to let the weight of it rest on his shoulders. "I went by Cyclops."
The stunned moment, of course, was broken up by, "Did you know Iceman?"
Scott broke into a surprised laugh. "I sure do. He was the second on the team, and he's one of my best friends, still."
"That's so cool! He's my favorite, you know. I saw him on the news, and I think it's so cool to just ice skate everywhere."
"He might be able to help you learn some control," Scott said.
"No way, really?" Leslie Ann looked like she couldn't possibly have been any happier.
"Really," Scott said, smiling to himself. It wasn't common for people to pick Bobby - but when they did, it was always a treat.
"That's it," Leslie Ann said, almost bouncing in place. "I'm gonna love this place."
"If I'd known you liked him that much, I'd have led with that," Scott said with a laugh. "He just got out of Genosha not long ago."
"I saw that on the news, too. Daddy said it was good Magneto wasn't scaring people anymore. I think Dad was stressed about it."
"He was pushing his luck, that's for sure," Scott agreed. "But his daughters are fixing things on the island now."
"Well that's good. Maybe one day I can see it."
"I'd wait until they say it's done," Scott said hesitantly. "There are a lot of changes that will take some time."
"That's okay," Leslie Ann promised. "I'll hang out with Iceman."
Scott shook his head, still smiling, though he finally looked toward Annie. "He's going to spoil her rotten."
"Good," Annie said, having significantly relaxed now that the immediate crisis was past. "She deserves it."
Scott settled in, and continued to answer small questions from Leslie Ann, though most of those were related to Bobby, not the school. But when they got close enough that they could actually see the school, Leslie Ann got quieter, staring out the window in awe.
Chapter 73: Just Like Riding A Bike
Chapter Text
"The headmistress is waiting for us," Scott said, to break the silence that was ringing out in the Jeep. "She'll walk you through everything and then arrange for a tour."
"You're not gonna come too?" Leslie Ann asked, her eyes wide.
"No, I'll go if you'd like me to," Scott said. "It's just … it's kind of a tradition for students to lead the tours."
"Oh, okay, I guess that makes sense," Leslie Ann said.
"But I won't leave until you're ready for me to," Scott promised. "I'm sure Ororo has already texted my boys. They won't wait up for me."
"And I'll be here too," Annie promised.
Leslie Ann smiled shyly. "Oh, good. I'll have a procession," she teased lightly.
Scott smiled to himself as they parked since it really was like going home - especially with a scared newly discovered mutant in tow. And the school was as safe a place as it ever had been - more so even, so he could breathe easy as he turned off the engine and they started piling out in front of the school. Scott led the way, and he didn't even knock on the tall oak doors before he let himself and the girls in, closing the door behind them as they got their first look at Storm's rebuilt Xavier's Institute. He gestured with one hand toward the main hallway. "Her office is just down that way. Let's not keep her waiting."
"Oh wow," Leslie Ann breathed out - not that Annie was any better. Both of them were still caught in the entryway, looking around with little smiles on that showed how they were related.
Annie finally seemed to remember herself, though, and she nudged Leslie Ann with her shoulder before the two of them headed further inside.
They didn't make it all the way to the office before Ororo came out to meet them looking honestly relieved to see that the three of them had made it safely. "Scott, you were quicker than I thought you'd be."
"Leslie Ann here was excited to see the place," Scott said with an easy shrug. "And you know I hate driving slow."
"Yes, I remember," she laughed as she turned her attention to Leslie Ann and Annie. "Welcome to Xavier's School for Gifted Youngsters … and a few older, more troublemaking individuals as well." She spared a glance toward Scott, looking entirely too amused as she introduced herself both as headmistress, and as Storm … just for the name recognition that always came with it.
"Oh, you were my dad's favorite," Leslie Ann said, her eyes lighting up.
Ororo smiled warmly. "It's always nice to hear that," she said as she offered Leslie Ann her hand. "Why don't we go to my office and you can tell me about how you came to find yourself here."
Leslie Ann couldn't stop staring as she looked around Ororo's office. She'd never seen anything like some of the artifacts hanging on the walls, and the flowers alone were enough to have her nervous, since she didn't want to make them spill out of their pots or something when they were so perfect where they were. "I… I guess I can control plants. Apparently," she said, finally tearing her gaze away from a rare orchid. "Not on purpose!" she added quickly.
"Not yet, anyhow," Ororo said with a smile. "You'll learn to control it."
"Oh good, because I totally ruined our sidewalk," Leslie Ann said. "And… a lot of other stuff, actually. It's kind of a mess back home." She shifted, obviously embarrassed. "I didn't mean to mess things up that badly."
Ororo's smile only warmed more. "Everyone has growing pains when they first start. I accidentally started a religion when I was your age making it rain during a drought."
"Oh wow," Leslie Ann breathed out.
Ororo leaned toward her and let her volume drop to just over a whisper. "I had no idea how to make it stop. But I learned well enough." As she liked to do, she straightened up then held out a hand to form a tiny raincloud over the orchid Leslie Ann had been staring at earlier. "It takes practice, and it helps when you have people around you that can help."
"I hope I can do that someday," Leslie Ann said. "That orchid is beautiful."
"You'll be able to do more for it than I can," Ororo promised.
"Right now, I could only make it grow until it's taking up half the room," Leslie Ann muttered at the floor.
"Then I suppose we'd need a bigger pot," Ororo said.
Leslie Ann was surprised into a giggle. "Yeah, maybe. "
Ororo looked up at Annie. "I suppose we should sit down and discuss what we can do for your lovely daughter. And while we chat, if she's alright with the idea, I have a guide who would be happy to show her around to see if she'd like to stay. And of course, if there's any trouble at home, we have room for you as well."
"Oh, no," Annie said, holding her hand over her heart. "As much as I'd like to claim her as my own, she's my niece. Her parents stayed back - I … well, I was with Scott when it happened."
Ororo turned toward Scott with such a look that Scott was already doing damage control and holding both hands up. "I go on dates, 'Ro. It's not newsworthy."
She looked like she might say otherwise, but slowly turned away from him. "And I thought you were just that good. It turns out it was sheer luck."
"Let's get something straight," Scott said, one finger pointed at her. "I am that good."
"We'll see," Ororo said with a grin. "Will you be supervising the tour or continuing your date over oh-so-romantic paperwork?"
"We promised Leslie Ann we'd stick with her as long as she wanted us to," Annie put in.
"Fair enough," Ororo said, then took a moment to send a text. "Meet your guides. If you want to do the official work after the tour, I will be here."
Before Leslie Ann could have time to react, blue smoke filled the room, and Mia teleported in with Tommy, grinning and bouncing on her toes. "New student!" Mia gushed. "I love your hair, by the way."
Leslie Ann smiled reflexively. "Oh. Um, thank you. I like your… your tail." It was clear she hadn't met anyone physically mutated before, but she was handling it fairly well, likely because there was so much to take in at once.
"Since when did you start helping with tours?" Scott asked Tommy.
"Since I started dating the tour guide," Tommy said easily. "Besides, I'm amazing at tours. Here's Storm's office. Down the hall, you'll find classrooms. Oh, and here's the kitchen. Ta da!"
"Leslie Ann, this is my daughter, Mia," Ororo said. "And her sweetheart, Tommy. Try not to listen to him too much."
"That's what she tells everyone," Tommy said confidently. "She still listens to me, though."
Ororo was still smiling at Tommy as Mia started her intro - clearly well rehearsed and a solid break down of how the day to day life worked out for those at the school, so that by the time Mia offered to take Leslie Ann around, Leslie Ann was confident and comfortable enough that she didn't ask Annie and Scott to come with her, caught up in all the teasing going back and forth and honestly excited to see more of the troublemaking secrets Tommy kept promising he knew about the place.
So, while the kids were doing what kids did at the school, Ororo walked Annie through the more official side of things - and the kinds of protocols and measures they kept in place for the safety of the students. She briefly outlined the fact that Tony himself was on top of keeping security measures in place for protection, and that he regularly found himself at the school checking things over and over and constantly upgrading what they had available to them for security.
Annie was finally starting to relax when she heard the lengths everyone was going to for the kids, though she couldn't help but look Scott's way when she'd heard everything Ororo had to say. "I don't know why I'm surprised," she said. "You used to run things here, didn't you? Everyone here has the same … tense protectiveness you do."
Scott nodded at that. "Well I didn't run things. I was a close second place, though."
"He was second in command by title only," Ororo corrected. "Yes. He ran the school, taught, managed pick ups for children in need, and ran the team as well. Don't let him downplay anything."
"I won't," Annie said, her eyes sparkling. "I only just got him to admit he used to be Cyclops, and then this happened."
"Then I look forward to getting to know you better," Ororo said. "That is a secret Scott doesn't share lightly."
Scott was rubbing the back of his neck, even as Annie laughed and tried to give him an out. "Oh, well, I figured out most of it, honestly. And it wasn't hard with the scars and the way he doesn't talk about his 'old job'." She shrugged. "My brother's a therapist and my daddy was in the Army. I can spot PTSD easily enough, and he isn't military, so…"
"You're easy to read, Scott," Ororo teased. "Why don't you take a moment to show Annie around while I call Leslie Ann's parents? You know where the tour ends."
Scott shook his head at her, but he couldn't help but smile when both she and Annie were in such good moods. "Come on, Annie; Ororo wants me to show off her gardens," he said, smirking at Ororo. "And later, you should tell me how you got to be on such good terms with Tommy when he's trying to get in trouble with your daughter all the time. Don't think I haven't noticed that."
"He was my spy on Genosha," Ororo said with a smile, knowing that would throw Scott off his game more than any lie could. "He appointed himself this spring."
Scott blinked. "...really?"
"He kept running back to spend time with Mia while his family was preoccupied with 'drama' as he put it." Ororo's smile widened. "And he was kind enough to give me daily updates."
"Huh." Scott shook his head slowly. "So they were both playing spy."
"Yes, yes they were," Ororo said. "He was a little upset when Billy didn't bring him along, too." She gave Scott a significant look. "For Alex's birthday."
Scott swallowed. "He didn't need to see the mess that left behind," he said quietly.
"I agree, but that doesn't change the fact that Billy thought of your children but not his own brother. He's fine," Ororo said. "He insists he was up to more important business."
"I'll talk to him," Scott said. "Or Billy. He really was thinking of keeping our family together, not trying to make it a family affair."
"I know," Ororo said gently. "I've spoken with Billy, but you have to admit, he's attached to you all. And unless those two are more serious than I understand them to be, you may need to rein them both back."
"Like I said, I'll talk to Billy," Scott promised.
"Then I won't interrupt your date any further," Ororo said, turning back to Annie. "Scott's not wrong. The gardens are lovely, but I think the lake might be more to Scott's style."
"You've lost your subtlety over the years," Scott teased her.
"I could be more blunt if you'd like," Ororo called over her shoulder.
"I think I'd like to see the lake," Annie put in before Scott could reply to Ororo, then laughed when Scott turned her way. "I was the one to break the date with a family emergency. You took me someplace I liked; let's turn the tables."
Scott of course, didn't argue, and gestured for her to join him as they headed for the front door, but they didn't get very far before a blur of red hair turned the corner and attached herself to Scott.
"Dad! Oh my God, are you okay?" Rachel said as she hugged the stuffing out of Scott. "I was so worried …"
"I'm fine, Rachel," Scott said, hugging her back just as tightly. "It's not like it's the first time I've gone to help get a kid out of trouble."
"Well, yeah, I know, but still - it's been a long time," she said, finally letting up on the hug and belatedly looking toward Annie. "Hi, Ms Hale. Sorry to interrupt. I just …" She thrust her hand out for Annie to shake. "Nice to meet you finally." Rachel glanced at her father, blushed, and did her best to cover both of their tracks. "Nate talks about you often … and Dad must think you're nice or he wouldn't even consider a second date."
"Very helpful, Rachel, thank you," Scott said, shaking his head. "You and 'Ro are quite the tag team."
"I know, we're pretty great," she agreed.
"It's alright," Annie said, tucking her hair behind her ear. "Nate talks about his family all the time. I knew you'd be close."
"And gossips," Scott said Rachel's way, and she smirked.
"He is," Rachel agreed, and that got a quiet chuckle out of her father.
Annie looked between the two of them, bit her lip, and then tried to make things easier for them both. "Besides," she said slowly, "once Scott admitted he used to be Cyclops, I knew you had to be his. I didn't realize Wolverine was as well, but a few of Anton's stories are starting to fall into place after this crazy day." She tucked the few hairs that had fallen out of place back behind her ear. "The only thing I don't know is what Nate can do. Gossip seems like a strange mutant power to have," she said with a dry smirk.
"You know him. He's supernaturally good at it," Rachel said as she broke into a crooked smile and turned Scott's way. I'm never ever going to admit that Nate was right about anything out loud, but…
Scott shook his head at that. It's one date, Rachel.
She's making jokes and taking your secrets in stride. And this isn't the first date.
Your brother isn't subtle. I'm surprised between him and Officer Anton Wright knowing James we weren't busted earlier.
You gonna be okay? Rachel bit her lip. Toby and Craig are the only ones outside the life you've told this kind of thing to.
Scott took a deep breath and held it. We'll see, he said honestly.
Rachel reached for her dad automatically and rested her hand on his arm. "If you're sure you're okay…"
"Hey, I might be rusty, but talking about the dream comes like breathing."
"It does," Annie put in, though she was blushing high on her cheeks. "I was there."
Rachel raised a single eyebrow Scott's way, and he absolutely, resolutely refused to meet her gaze. And that just meant Rachel was caught between her dad and Annie, watching both of them blush. Rachel smiled between them, bouncing on her toes for a moment. "Okay. Well. I'm headed home for an early weekend. I'll make sure the boys don't burn the house down. But you … take your time. I'll see you there." She popped up on her toes to kiss Scott's cheek, then waved at Annie with the tips of her fingers and headed off to grab her keys and head out.
"Like I said," Scott said quietly to Annie as they started out the door, barely pausing when Rachel headed down the driveway. "It's been a while since I've been doing this kind of work. The kids aren't used to seeing me work like this."
"That's a shame," Annie said, lightly brushing his arm with the tips of her fingers as she reached for him. "You become an entirely different person when you slip into that role."
Scott rubbed the back of his neck. "Oh. Well, I… I'm sorry about-"
"No, no." Annie shook her head, turning slightly pink - even more so than before. "It's not a bad thing. It's… you seem more like yourself. It's…" She looked away. "Anyway."
Scott found himself blushing deeply as well. It had been so long since he'd shared that part of his life with anyone, let alone someone he was dating. He cleared his throat and gestured vaguely. "I don't suppose you'd like to see-"
"Yes." Annie turned bright red. "I mean, yes, if you'd like to… it looks so nice…"
"Well, I used to give the tours when I was Mia's age," Scott said and offered Annie his arm, glad for the excuse to talk about something else.
In short order, the two of them were strolling down to the lake where the swans were lazily swimming on the far side of the water setting a picturesque scene. And like they always had available to them, there was still a bench at the end of the dock that extended into the water.
Annie sat down and then gestured for Scott to join her, smiling softly as she looked out over the water. "You know," she said quietly, "I think my sister is going to want to visit all the time. It's beautiful here. It must have been a nice place to live."
"It was the best place I can remember living," Scott agreed. "Ororo encourages supportive family to come by as they please, though admittedly, that's not usually the case."
"Believe me, I know. I teach high school. The kids that are mutants either have brave parents or none. There doesn't seem to be much room for error for those kids."
"There isn't. But it's slowly getting better. It was a lot worse when I was their age," Scott said. "The professor took me in when I was nearly old enough to age out of the system. I got lucky. I know a lot of kids aren't." He let out a weary sigh. "So… I'm sure you have questions, now."
"I do, and there is a lot to ask that's come out tonight," Annie said. "I just hate to talk shop with such a lovely view." She smirked his way. "I did ask to come to the lake for a reason, you know."
Scott was openly surprised, but tried to catch up. "Well I didn't want to assume anything."
"We were on a date," Annie said, laughing before she leaned over to kiss his cheek. "You can reassure me that you won't let an eleven-year-old on any teams before she's ready and much older. My sister will grill Storm more thoroughly than you can imagine anyway."
"The team knows to keep their size small - no one's joining that isn't ready - and right now, they have to be Avengers first." He smirked in spite of himself. "You know … training wheels."
Annie laughed. "Oh, it's like that?"
"It is," he answered with a broad grin. "Always has been."
Annie grinned even wider. "I think I like the overconfident look on you, Mr. Mueller."
"It's not bragging if it's true," Scott teased.
"Oh, and there's Nate," Annie laughed delightedly.
"He had to get it from somewhere," Scott agreed, still smiling her way. This was a lot easier than he'd remembered.
Scott didn't get home until nearly midnight, and when he came in, the house was dark and quiet. At least until he closed and locked the door - then the lights in the living room popped on to reveal all three of his kids sitting there, ready for bed - arms crossed and half-glaring at him.
"Do you have any idea what time it is?" Rachel started off - which was great since she was the one most likely to come in late.
"You guys didn't really wait up for me, did you?" Scott asked.
"You were supposed to stay in Queens. That's where you said you'd be. Do you know what it was like to get a phone call from Ororo telling us that you were cavorting all the way out by Salem Center?" Nate continued … taking up the distance issue since he and Katie had been busted the last time they went out before Hydra hit.
"Guys. You're not funny."
"And then to top it off, you're revealing your secret identity to near perfect strangers? Has Natasha had a chance to run them down?" James said - since that was certainly his biggest error in dating.
"Your mother did when she was here," Scott said dryly.
"And you think that's enough for Natasha?" Nate challenged.
"Always was before," Scott said, resigning himself to the fact that his kids were ready for payback for all the many, many times they'd broken curfew or left the radius they'd been designated … with people that hadn't been cleared specifically by Natasha, apparently.
"You … what are we even supposed to do with you?" Rachel said, crossing her arms and giving him her best disapproving face. "You know the rules, Dad. You made them."
"Is this Annie person a bad influence?" James teased, just because it was one more point that had to be hit. "You go for years with no trouble - no rule breaking and then boom."
"The second time you go out with that seemingly sweet Southern woman, you're out breaking every rule you put in place," Nate finished.
"We should call her parents and let them know the kinds of shenanigans you two have been up to," Rachel said, though she barely kept a straight face, and as soon as she'd said it, she broke down with giggles.
"I just want to know if you have another date," James said, and in an instant, Nate's focus had shifted and he was grinning expectantly - waiting to hear the good news.
Scott's shoulders dropped further. "Not that it's any of your business-"
"Dad, it totally is," Nate said, still grinning.
"We want you to be happy and if she does it-" Rachel said, but Scott cut her off.
"Yes, we have another date lined up."
Nate didn't bother hiding his glee, punching the air as he leapt off the ground with an exuberant 'yes!'
"Go to bed, Nate," Scott said flatly.
"Hey. We all would have been in bed hours ago, but we were worried about you," Nate said, one hand over his heart as Scott started turning off the lights and the whole group of them started up the stairs.
"I should have known you three wouldn't let this pass."
"We're glad to see you enjoying yourself," James said. "Kind of exciting to see you starting to do things you love for a change."
"What makes you think I don't love what you three are up to?" Scott asked, just as they got to the top of the stairs. Scott stayed on the main floor but he still liked to see that everything was in order for the kids … especially when he knew Billy might pop in, and by extension, Kate may sneak in.
"Not the same, Dad," Rachel said before she kissed his cheek. Don't worry. I'll keep an ear open for anyone trying to sneak in. You can relax, your boys won't be causing trouble tonight.
I'm pretty sure if Billy was going to be here, he'd have been waiting to grill me with the three of you, Scott pointed out, then kissed the top of Rachel's head. "Love you all." Which was answered with a chorus from the three of them repeating the phrase.
Chapter 74: Superhero Perks And Pitfalls
Chapter Text
Nate had driven Kate out to Tony's garage away from the tower where Tony and James had been working on Kate's car. As always, the garage had Tony's usual fleet along with a few that neither Nate nor Kate recognized parked close to Kate's little purple beetle. And as usual, Nate had to work to hide the smile as he looked around the garage loaded down with classics, muscle cars, hot rods, and even a racecar and a supercar that looked way too new.
"Katie … are you ready for the new Janice?" James asked from under the hood of her car … clearly there were already a few adjustments she hadn't been expecting by the look of it … For one thing, the glass looked different, the details were way more shiny, and it looked as if there'd been a brand-new coat of clear put on the car itself with some understated, but still sharp looking pinstriping that whispered out an arrow motif.
"You said you were giving her upgrades, not … a whole makeover," Kate said, though she was smiling all the same.
"Goes with the turf." James didn't bother closing the hood yet as he waved her over. "I doubt you care about the details with the mechanics, but … I upgraded your engine a little bit back here - and added an electric one in the front bay and on both axles, too. Just in case you need it for a burst of turbo. You should be able to blow Nate away at the line in a drag race. Officially, though - this way, if Janice decides she needs to take a little break, you won't be stuck hoping Hydra won't come after you."
"Sounds like you had to make sure she could keep up," Nate teased, and James smirked at him before he continued.
"As far as other tricks go …" James opened the driver's door for her to climb in. "All the gadgets we talked about are tricked out and ready to go - the little stickers on the switches should guide you easy enough. You've got a turret outfitted with basically what you have for trick arrows - controls are behind the radio. The new paint job and glass are to hide the fact that with the windows up, it's entirely bullet proof now - and I needed a perfect surface for my last little trick."
"Is it the bat-shark repellent?" Kate asked with a grin.
"Hit your hazards, Katie," James said, smirking with his arms crossed. "Just hold the button down for a few seconds."
Kate was nearly bouncing in her seat as she did just that, and a moment later, Nate swore outright, laughing as he spun a circle where he stood.
"What did you do?" Nate asked, still laughing as he walked around the beetle with Kate trying to look out of the window to see what Nate saw.
"You know, Natasha was worried about such an easy to spot car, so … I started thinking about how some of us have been getting around when the heat's up, and decided that the best thing I could do is to apply the image inducer tech to a car." James looked perfectly pleased with himself, smirking crookedly as he watched Kate jump out to see that her Volkswagen suddenly looked like a black Porsche. "She's got five different identities now … full witness protection level stuff paired with an anti-theft system that'd make Gambit cry." He shrugged as he gestured to the car. "Mostly because it'd knock him on his ass if he tried to break in."
"I can't wait for some Hydra loser to come begging me to try out my new toys," Kate said before she tackled James in a hug. "You take such good care of me!"
"Yeah, yeah," James said as he hugged her back. "Love you too, bratty sis."
"I can't believe you've been spending all your time tricking out an old beetle," Nate laughed.
"Oh. I wasn't spending all my time on that," James admitted. "I've been working on my car, too."
Nate spun on the spot, looking around the garage. "Okay, but you know disguising the Jeep to look like a hotrod isn't a great idea, right?"
James' smirk stretched out - clearly he'd been waiting for Nate to ask. "No, first of all, the Jeep isn't a car. Secondly, Jeep's still home. I've been adding a few features to my new car like… removing the batteries and replacing them with an arc reactor," James said, then held up the key fob. When Nate stared at him with an expectant look, James hit the unlock button and the nearly black-red McLaren chirped behind Nate. "It's still gas powered, but I figured I could cut some weight down and give it more of a boost if I got rid of the clunky batteries."
"Oh. I need to drive that," Nate said, openly grinning as he headed toward the car.
"I still need to finish the relays on the arc reactor," James said. "It also has an image inducer, but … I want to get my power system backed up and perfected first."
"Okay, but when can we drive it?" Nate asked, bouncing in place.
"When it's finished, I'll take you to the track," James promised. "After Dad gets a ride." He gestured to Kate. "But for now, don't push Katie for a drag race. I'm not entirely sure who'd win, but I do know I'd catch hell for it either way - even if Natasha approved of why I wanted to upgrade Janice."
"Does … this mean you're going to be upgrading Dad's car, too?" Nate asked.
"So he quits driving the Jeep, yeah," James agreed. "That's fine just how it is."
"Wow. The blinders," Nate said, shaking his head, though before the brothers could get too wound up, Kate was bouncing on her toes.
"I'm so going to blow you away on the line," she said, pointing at Nate. "Try not to feel too bad!"
"You don't know if you'll blow me away or not," Nate argued. "Or … if I'd let you win."
"Keep telling yourself that," Kate said with a grin.
Now that the car projects were pretty much out in the open, James had been waiting, as patiently as he knew how, to hear back from MIT on the thesis papers he'd sent in, his account … all of it. He'd given them a few days to respond before he started tenaciously pushing to find out what the problem was and why he was locked out of his student email, since … that was absolutely what had happened. He knew because he'd gotten impatient and had broken into their system just to check the status on his, and a few other people's, accounts as he tried to find out why he'd been locked out.
But, it had been another week before he'd finally heard back from one of the department heads, who had promised him that he'd be getting a letter soon to notify him of what the situation was - though he declined to tell James anything on the matter. Apologies or not, James wasn't exactly at ease over it … and he wasn't the most pleasant person to be around while he waited to hear, either.
It didn't help his mood much that Friday afternoon as he headed home early that when he got into the house, there was a letter from MIT sitting on the kitchen table - and Scott was trying to not smile. Likely, he was expecting good news - but by that time, James wasn't. At all.
He dropped his keys on the table and picked up the letter, scowling before he even got it open, and when he did finally sit down as he read it, he didn't try to hide his reaction as he slipped from irritated to disappointed and angry shock since the letter was from the Office of Student Conduct, not any of the departments he was involved in.
"What's wrong?" Scott asked with a concerned look, though James didn't answer as he shook his head and slipped the first page of the letter to Scott so he could read for himself to see that after all this time, suddenly MIT had decided that maybe James' tests and papers weren't all his.
It was well written and concise, and entirely infuriating. They suspected that James had committed plagiarism or gotten someone to help him write them. Someone had called the validity of his enrollment into question right down to questioning if he was even eligible to be a student there, let alone a graduate. All of James' upper level work was under review from his theses back to his admission to the graduate programs, with a whole paragraph informing him that, if he were to successfully prove that his work in the previous years was actually his, the theses that he'd just finished would still be unacceptable since they weren't done under the supervision of their staff … and therefore, he couldn't be credited as the sole author.
That in itself was a violation of their Academic Integrity policies. It didn't matter that those guidelines weren't in play fo anyone else at the school, either, and James knew it. Because of their suspicions, and the timing of the completion of his theses, the papers weren't eligible for him to use for his upper level degree work. Which meant that if he was allowed to remain as a student in the programs he'd been working in, he'd have to redo all three theses at minimum.
At the end, the letter made mention of how long it would take for them to make their decision, and that until it was was completed, James was considered on academic suspension, which was the same as if he'd been failing all of his classes.
The letter went on to note what his rights were, and that the college was requesting all records and other evidence to support his defense as soon as possible with a warning that computer forensics would be in play to ensure that those records weren't tampered with. It all boiled down to the worst kinds of accusations the college could make against him: falsifying data, claiming work that was done by someone else, plagiarism, and misrepresentation. And he had no idea where the accusations had come from.
The second page, which James was slowly going over outlined how he needed to proceed if he wanted to defend himself rather than simply back off and accept whatever was decided - and who, if anyone, could join him when he went in to face the charges. But one thing had James frowning at the page in his hand, which was clearly a simple print out that probably shouldn't have been put in the envelope if whoever was behind this push wanted to hide the fact that they knew the charges weren't valid …
James' mood shifted from depressed and insulted to focused and getting angrier again - because they'd gone out of order of their own disciplinary procedures. They'd skipped the part where he was supposed to address the charges before the inquiry started up. And he wouldn't have known that had it not been for the throwaway looking page that outlined the basic procedure. But knowing that things were already stacked, James responded to the letter by reaching out to one of his professors who had always gushed when they'd spoken or met. James didn't say anything to Scott as he sent his text, insisting on an immediate response.
The man was quick to reply, and it only took him the time that James needed to re-read the page in his hand before the professor had arranged for the first available time - first thing the following Monday morning.
But by the time James looked up to see Scott's reaction, Scott was already hot. He had his phone out, clearly pissed off - and James knew who he was calling before he could ask.
"Tony, we have a problem."
James let out a sigh and gently pushed the second page of the letter to Scott. "They went out of order," he told Scott quietly, though Tony was already jovially asking what the trouble was. But that only pissed Scott off more because obviously, the problem wasn't James' work - it was his genetics. And it was all there in black and white.
"Your idiotic alma mater has decided that James is on academic probation for a whole laundry list of bullshit charges. It all boils down to them being bigoted, exclusionary, self important sacks of-"
"Whoa, easy big guy," Tony said, cutting him off before Scott could finish. "What are you talking about?"
Scott drew in a breath to start in, but James got there first. "I'll send you scans of the letter," James said. "I need to pick up my laptop before I head up to Cambridge Monday morning."
Scott frowned and Tony sounded off guard. "Why are you going to Cambridge?"
"Because like Dad said, MIT is doing an academic investigation. They asked for my laptop, and I'll let them have it - but they won't get to walk off with it. I'll stay with them while they look at my research."
"Is this a joke?" Tony asked, though he knew it couldn't be for as ticked off as Scott was.
"No. They're saying that they're not sure if my work is mine - and my guess is that they suspect you did it and put my name on it - which is why you can't go with me."
"You're not going alone," Tony said.
"Yeah, I think I am," James replied. "I can't bring anyone outside of their approved list for the meeting, and I won't bring you since retaliation will sink me before I can even defend myself. So please, let me deal with it."
"They were just petitioning me for another grant," Tony grumbled.
"That's your business," James said.
"So are you!"
James got up and took the letter from Scott then snapped a few pictures and sent them to Tony. "I need to take care of this myself. I'll bring a panic button, I'll be fine," he said.
"James," Scott said, still hot under the collar, but shifting quickly to caution since he should not be alone for this. At all.
"Dad, there's not a thing anyone can do about it until Monday morning, so … let it go for now. You've got a date to get ready for."
"I can cancel."
"Don't you dare," James replied with a growl. "We literally can't do anything but get ticked off. I'm not going anywhere tonight. There is no reason for you to cancel your date and miss Nate's big game. Come on. I'll be here. Probably just gonna be wrecking my punching bag."
"Don't you have a date too?" Scott countered, though James held up his phone.
"I am calling to cancel. I'm not going to be any good to be around. For anyone."
"It's probably not best for you to be alone with this," Tony suggested, as the line was still open. It didn't matter if he was right, James didn't want to admit to either of them that he didn't need to be alone when he wanted to.
"I need to come up with an alternate plan if this doesn't work and they decide not to listen," James said patiently. "Until now, all my alternates hinged on other colleges accepting me. If MIT puts it on my record that I'm out due to academic integrity … I may not be able to go anywhere with a good reputation."
Without saying a word, James could feel how angry both Scott and Tony were at the truth of that statement. "I need time to think, and people around me will only distract me," James said, but Scott reached over to snag James' phone out of his hand.
"You're not going to be alone tonight," he said. "If you expect me to go on my date, then you should at least have Billy here with you. Your brother and sister have other plans."
"Everyone going to the football game doesn't count as 'other plans', Dad," James pointed out.
"You could come with us," Scott said. "You know they'd want you there."
"That would involve an inducer and not snapping at people," James countered. "You know I love Nate, but I don't have the patience to be in a crowd tonight. I've already got a headache brewing - if I go into a crowd, all that noise?" James shook his head hard. "Not gonna be pretty."
"Then order take out and spend some time with your sweetheart," Tony said. "Or come here."
James rolled his eyes hard as Scott agreed with Tony - a sure sign of trouble if ever there was one. "Yeah, no. I'll be fine tonight. Sorry about the fuss, but I'll see you when I get the laptop, Tony," James said before he reached over and hung up Scott's phone.
Before James could argue with his father, Scott took a moment to call Billy for him. "Hey, Billy, do me a favor … don't let James cancel on you tonight," Scott said, earning a look of pure betrayal from James. "He got some bad news this afternoon and I told him it was either keep his date with you, or Rabbi Cohen is coming over to hang out with him tonight."
"I'll be right there," Billy promised as James frowned at Scott. "I was on my way anyhow."
As soon as he hung up James' phone, James called him out. "You didn't say anything about the rabbi."
"Well that's how it was going to be," Scott said. "I can call Toby over, too. Might be good to supervise you two."
James gave him an incredibly dry look as Billy arrived, popping into existence in the living room before he made his way over to stand on the other side of Scott. "Okay. What happened?"
James wordlessly gestured to himself. "The usual wrong."
Billy smirked. "You and I have very different opinions on what 'wrong' means."
James gave him a dry look, but as soon as he was close enough, he pulled Billy closer by his belt loops for a quick kiss. "You're hilarious."
"But you're glad I'm here, so ... " Billy looked past James to Scott. "Why aren't you ready for your date yet?"
"Things came up," Scott said, and the next thing he knew both Billy and James were pushing him to go.
"You don't stink," James said. "So you can just go now and share popcorn with Annie while you watch Nate eat the thirty five yard line."
"It's … I can be late," Scott argued.
"Sure, but you really shouldn't be," James countered. "You know they'll be sending scouts to watch Nate and they'll look for his family in the stands. You should be there to keep that in check. Especially when you know I'm just going to be here. Just … don't tell Nate or Rachel until after. I don't want him getting distracted."
"Alright," Scott agreed, though he didn't look too pleased.
"I've got it," Billy promised Scott as he put his arm around James' shoulders. "We'll be here - in the living room the whole time."
"Should I be relieved that you're promising to keep it out of the more adult situations, or suspicious about what you've gotten away with already?" Scott asked.
"Dad," James said flatly. "We're seventeen, and we've been dating for a year. You were all about grounding me when I was going too far with Mayday and giving Natasha fits with the girls I was picking up. Do you really gotta ask if we're-"
"Message received," Scott said, holding up both hands. "I don't want to know."
"Have fun," Billy laughed, settling in to figure out what he could do to help his guy. But not until after James settled down a little bit.
Scott still managed to drag his feet on the way out of the door to go to Nate's football game. Nate and Kate had stayed behind after school to prepare. There was a lot of fanfare around homecoming, after all, and as soon as they'd had half a chance to leave for a short break between school things and showing up early for the game, they'd gotten a quick date in to grab a bite to eat together. Which really just meant Scott didn't need to get Nate to the football field. He'd be there all on his own.
But that didn't stop Scott from being distracted all the same. He almost cancelled. He wanted to. If for no other reason than he knew how stressed James was and he didn't want to leave the kid to stew. Not when he'd done nothing to deserve this kind of treatment. So maybe he got changed for his date a little more aggressively than he normally would have … if it was a normal kind of date anyhow. And maybe he was obsessing on how to handle things by the time he had gotten changed and back to the living room.
But a lot of his stress slipped away when he saw how well Billy was defusing James' frustration. The boys really were good for each other, and even for as much teasing as he had to give his kids for being so serious, he could see that those two were becoming a more solid unit all the time. Even with the concerns and stresses James was dealing with - both real and self imposed.
He could even see echoes of their parents in both of them. James had clearly fallen completely and unapologetically… just like his father and his unwavering devotion, but he could keep it quiet publicly - something Logan was incapable of while K excelled at it. And Billy had all of his mother's tender heart and passion paired with his father's innocent, yet still level-minded outlook on most things. Or at least, that's what Scott was seeing just then.
He also knew that James had his mother's lack of a filter when someone or something was just too stupid for words, and the fact that the kid hadn't torn into someone yet over the idiocy of the situation with the college was nothing short of a miracle. Of course … he did want to go to the meeting alone. That could not happen.
"Please," James said just as Scott was playing with his keys and lingering a little too long in the doorway. "We'll be fine. We won't go anywhere. Please don't let me screw up your date with this woman."
"I'll be back as soon as the game is over."
"Take her out for coffee," James suggested.
"Or ice cream," Billy said. "Don't worry. If he gets too into his own head, I'll text you before I wish us to Genosha."
Scott shook his head at that and waved with one hand as he stepped out of the house, though he couldn't get the scenario out of his head at all. He was thoughtful and quiet all the way to the game, ad the sound of the crowd was easily discernible even well over the ambient sounds of the city and traffic. The kids were in celebration mode, and everyone could hear it. Everyone. Scott was scanning the crowd and the traffic so intently, he almost missed the spot that he had agreed to meet Annie at. But as soon as he saw her, he diverted course toward her with an attempt at a smile.
When he got to her, he took just a moment to kiss her cheek, watching the crowd around them and trying to be tactful and careful while she was in the middle of a crowd of her students. He remembered well how teenagers could be when it came to seeing their teachers involved in PDA's - and he wasn't about to cross that line any more than they already had at the last football game.
"Are your other kids coming tonight?" Annie asked looking past him for a moment.
"Rachel will be here before kickoff, but James won't be showing at all."
"That's too bad, I thought for sure he'd want to be here for his brother's big game. I know Nate thinks the world of him," Annie said as she took his arm.
"He planned on it, but something came up," Scott said, though he didn't elaborate.
"I'm pretty sure the kids tried to stage an uprising to vote your junior homecoming king, to be honest."
"Wouldn't surprise me," Scott said, though he didn't have his usual joy about him when talking about his kids.
Annie hummed to herself, but led Scott toward a more quiet section. Everywhere was loud, but some places still permitted the notion of conversation in favor of the raucous cheering and stomping going on near the 50-yard line. The game hadn't started yet - and it wouldn't … not when there was much fanfare to be had, anyhow.
The crowd was filling in nicely and the volume level was getting higher before, finally, Scott heard Rachel when she reached out telepathically to let him know she was there.
It was almost a relief. Almost. Except for the fact that she had to point out that he was projecting. That did not help his mood at all.
Rach, do you need the same warning Nate did?
No one no needs that much of a warning, Rachel countered. I just wanted to know that I'm here, as a blonde, and if you want to tell me what's eating you, I'll be around.
Later, Scott replied. Aren't you on a date?
Not tonight. I'm trying to do my own thing.
Good.
I'll make sure Nate gets home. You just try to have some fun. You've earned it.
Scott sighed to himself, but of course, Annie had been paying a lot closer attention to him than he'd thought. "Is everything alright?" she asked.
"Just … yes," Scott said, then paused, knowing that he'd never been very good at lies to begin with … and that this certainly wasn't the right time to lie to the woman he was interested in. "No. I'm sorry, that's just not … everything here is exactly how it should be."
"Does this have anything to do with your other kids not being here?"
"Rachel's here somewhere," Scott said, in a light defense. "James-"
"I know, it has to be hard for him to keep his head down when his face is plastered on all sorts of newspapers and magazines now," Annie said.
"That's not it," Scott said, then paused. 'It's part of it, but that's not-" He sighed again and reorganized his thoughts, deciding that somewhat clearing the air would at least let her understand where he was. When he spoke, his metered tone made it perfectly clear how he felt. "James is having a hard time with his college because some people there are holding his genetics against him in spite of his intelligence."
Annie looked troubled as she watched him. "Are you sure you don't want to be with him tonight?"
"He's being taken care of and all but kicked me out of the house," Scott replied, then turned her way. "It's not like what they're doing with him is unusual."
"No, it's not," Annie said, falling quiet for a moment, searching for a way to redirect him. "Leslie Ann loves the school, by the way." She watched him out of the corner of her gaze, trying to see if she could reroute him with some good news. "She met your friend and hasn't come down from cloud nine since. Apparently he promised her a snowball fight."
Scott couldn't quite stop the smile. "All he's ever needed is either an accomplice or a victim," he pointed out. "Guy's a big kid."
"And good for kids trying to adjust."
Before Scott could respond, the crowd got louder and the music started to announce the impending entrance of the football team. The cheerleading squad came out first, and though Kate wasn't the peppiest one in the group, she did look like she was having the most fun. She wasn't as worked up and serious about it as many of the other girls, but she was definitely the ringleader in fun and games.
She joined the group in the tunnel as the announcer named the football players, and she clapped politely for those that were friends, and of course made a huge deal when Nate came through. It was enough to get a smile out of Scott if for no other reason than he was entertained at how the two of them made such a show out of everything.
That kid was in trouble, and there was no way to deny it.
"I hope you're on good terms with her parents," Annie said. "Because those two …"
"Yeah, no kidding," Scott said with a laugh. "We're good. For now. The way those two keep going though …"
"I hope to go to the wedding," Annie teased, smiling to herself and hoping that Scott could keep a little of his upswing going.
Nate was so vibrantly in the moment, too, that Scott got caught up watching him strut. He had no idea where all that confidence came from, but it was enough to pull a smile out of him. It was a lot like watching Alex, if he was honest with himself, but Alex didn't sell it like Nate did. No, that … that was Corsair's genes coming through.
Which made watching Nate handle the field and flirt with Kate all while playing to the crowd honestly entertaining. Enough so that when the action on the field was good, Scott managed to sit back and enjoy the game, more so when Annie quietly reached over to rest her hand on his. He turned her way with a surprised, yet pleased smile on his features that stretched out into a more broad, genuine one that crinkled the corners of his eyes as the game went into half time.
The cheerleaders were well into their halftime routine while the football team was in the locker room when Kate's stalker Daniel started whistling her way and grinning obnoxiously. "Looking good, Kit-Kat!"
Kate did all she could to keep from bristling too much. Especially since he seemed to think he was chummy enough to give her a nickname- uninvited. When the routine ended, the girls bounced off the field for the marching band to take over - and when they did, Daniel tried again to get Kate's attention.
"I heard you know your way around the backside of the bleachers, Kit-Kat," Daniel said, grinning obnoxiously. "Want to try for a rematch without swords this time?"
Kate turned his way with a malicious grin. "In your dreams," Kate replied sharply. "Why don't you go under the bleachers by yourself and choke?"
Before it could get more heated, one of her friends on the squad pulled her away, laughing to herself at how aggressive the back and forth had been getting - particularly when Nate wasn't around. They had yet to repeat the fencing duel, but Kate was more than ready to. She still didn't know how he was keeping up with her and she really wanted to know who taught him so she could wipe the floor with him.
But naturally, that hadn't been figured out yet. Yet.
Kate turned her attention to the crowd, then grinned widely when she saw Scott sitting with Ms Hale … Nate was totally right. And he was never going to let it go. Ever. When Scott caught her gaze and gave her a raised-eyebrow look, she waved their way then bounced off to the sidelines to wait for the chance to cheer on her hunky boyfriend.
And soon enough, though she never did spot Rachel or James - not that she expected she would when both of them had to wear inducers to get around crowds like this, the football team came out again to loud cheers from the crowd around them.
"I know I haven't been great company tonight-"
"You've been a lot better than I'd be if it was my niece going through it," Annie said, then squeezed his hand.
"If it's not too late, after the game is over, you wouldn't consider going for a cup of coffee, would you? Or …" Scott smirked to himself and had to see which of the boys might be right. "Something sweet that's not at the concession stand?"
"I think that might be good," she said. "Unless you need to get home."
"Nothing I can do about it tonight," Scott said. "And I would like a little time with you that's not wrapped up in teenage drama."
Annie rearranged herself, drawing herself up as primly as she could manage. "And what might you have in mind, Mr. Meuller?"
"Like I said … coffee, or something that won't keep you up all night. Something sweet…"
Annie tried to hide the smile for just a fraction of a second before she gave up entirely. "I think that would be lovely. You did such a wonderful job picking out our last date …"
"This time, it's up to you," Scott said. "Ladies' choice."
"Then somewhere quiet where scores of celebrating teenagers won't invade."
Scott smiled crookedly. "Please."
Chapter 75: Preparing For A Counterattack
Chapter Text
Early Saturday morning came a little too early and too brightly for the kids in the Summers house. Scott had been up for at least an hour before dawn and he'd tried to keep to himself as long as possible before he finally had to go through the living room to get James and Billy up from where they'd spent the night on the couch half wrapped up in each other. He started out by first subtly starting a pot of coffee … and then by outright starting to try and talk with the two of them. It didn't take James long to get the hint before he stretched out and stole a quick kiss from Billy.
"I'm gonna take a quick shower. If you want to grab coffee before zapping off to wherever .."
"That sounds like the right way to start the day," Billy agreed, then watched as James jogged up the stairs before he turned to Scott. "He's upset, but he's got this … like … low key ticked off simmer happening?" He closed one eye. "It honestly seemed like he could get a lot more angry."
"That … doesn't really surprise me," Scott said, glancing toward the stairs. It was familiar in that both Logan and K used to do that same thing whenever they got in a frame of mind to make someone really pay, and that only compounded what Scott was concerned about once the kid got into that room with the people in charge. He didn't want him to lash out and put them in their place unless the situation was irredeemable. Especially when he thought of how much of a rush James had been in to get his schooling done and over with.
"I won't keep him out for long," Billy promised. "I just want to get a coffee with him before he gets in his head too much."
"Enjoy the morning," Scott said, though he was already projecting to Rachel and Nate that they were going to have a little family time after breakfast.
James came down a short while later, all cleaned up and with his image inducer in hand. "Alright," he said, holding the device up for a moment before he handed it to Billy to play with. "You get to pick what I look like today, handsome."
"My vote is just how you are, but since we're trying to be low key and you have a following…" Billy grinned before he stole a quick kiss and fiddled with the settings. When he turned it on, James no longer looked anything like himself - with short blond hair and no where near as muscular as he really was. "Criminal. Let's get coffee, stranger."
James took Billy's hand and glanced over at his dad. "I won't be long."
"Take your time," Scott said. "I'll be here when you get back."
"Right. We need to talk," James agreed, then snatched his keys as the boys headed out to the coffee shop down the block.
Their walk was silent, and when they got their order, they sat down outside. The air was crisp enough that they could watch the steam rising easily in the chilly morning air, and aside from simply spending time, there wasn't much either could say to discuss anything. Not in public, anyhow. They'd talked it all over the night before anyhow.
Still, they were just quietly enjoying coffee, half curled into each other when first Kate, and then America sat down with them.
"Billy, you can do so much better," America teased. "This one looks too skinny. Throw him back."
"See?" James said before he kissed his cheek. "Your adoring fans have spoken."
"Oh, shut up," Billy laughed.
"Was this a planned thing?" James asked, not looking surprised at the least.
Kate grinned. "Yeah. Your sweetie texted me this morning and said you two were going to take a long drawn out 'see you later' before you had to do important family strategizing."
"Ah. yeah. Not much to strategize," James said. "Not without knowing what has to be done and how that looks. So …" He smiled crookedly before he gave Billy a less than polite kiss. "I'll call you later. Have fun."
With that, James picked up what was left of his latte and headed out, not even taking a moment like usual to screw up Kate's hair, as was their tradition - which, if Kate hadn't already gotten the cliff notes version already? She would have been concerned.
Billy turned toward Kate and America, then put on a weary sort of smile. "We don't have to stay here. We just came in for coffee - he's going back to his family for what I can only imagine will be a synchronized freak out session."
"More like a convergence of generals," Kate said as she picked up her latte and put her sunglasses on. "There's a cozy spot I like that does brunch not far from here - it's down by the park so we can watch the water if you want." She smiled at America. "We kind of need to encourage Miss America to approach her Summers."
"She told me she was taking a break from dating," America said as they got up and headed down toward the other cafe. "After having a freak out about pushy people. I'm not gonna get boxed into that corner. She'll come around."
"I noticed that the telepaths are particularly oblivious to things like this," Billy teased.
"Um … yours wasn't much better," Kate defended.
"Low self esteem all around," America said. "But yours is an idiot, princess."
"All three of them are," Kate countered. "Just … in different ways."
The group fell silent until they'd gotten to the new cafe and sat down, though it was hard for America to ignore how distracted both of them looked by that time.
"So do you think anyone should check on them?" America asked, unable to simply sit in silence with her two pining, worried friends. "I know they're probably being all … tense, but I could fix it so you two can go back to making everyone sick with how sweet you are in two, three seconds tops." She popped her fist into her palm once.
"I'm trying to be reasonable and listen to what he wants to do," Billy admitted, rearranging the pillows on the couch they'd chosen to settle into. "Even if I wanted to just … fix it."
"Yeah, that can't be the best option," Kate said. "Yet."
"It'll be the best option when her sibling is obsessing," America said to Billy. "Give it a few minutes."
"At least mine is obsessing with something sweet like hooking his dad up with a Southern teacher," Kate said.
"Do not try to act like that's anything but an attempt to get his dad laid," America said. "We all know the truth."
"There's a ripple effect," Kate said. "Dad relaxes, the kids relax, suddenly we get laid." She smirked at America. "Those of us who have our Summerses anyway."
"Right before you end up stressing him out worse when you announce the baby …"
"You understand that I'm on birth control, yes? That this is not in my life plan anywhere to be a teen mom?"
Billy and America shared a look, then both fell apart laughing. "When has that ever been in anyone's plan?" America asked. "Who wakes up and says 'you know what? I think I'll just purposely forget my pill and see what happens.' It's not enough. You gotta be smart too!"
"You were more fun when we were dating and calling me smart."
"There was zero chance that either of you would have gotten pregnant," Billy pointed out. "And no one said you weren't smart. We know you're dazzlingly brilliant."
"And hooked on a football player," America said.
"He's pretty smart too," Billy said.
"Billy's my favorite now," Kate said, dramatically draping her arm over Billy's shoulders. "He stands up for me."
"He also knows how wrapped up you get," Billy said. "You both have points, but I'd like to think that Nate isn't going to be stupid. It takes mistakes on both sides."
"Considering he doesn't want his dad to have a stroke, he's actually more paranoid than I am so…."
"Then you're both golden," Billy decided. "And America needs to step up. No dark chocolates. House rule put in place by Rachel."
Kate giggled delightedly. "Go get your bird, America. You have a type."
"Is it the type that are out of her league?" Billy had to tease just to rile her.
"Yes. Yes, I am out of her league," Kate said, sniffing and doing her best impression of snooty.
"I know," Billy said, grinning widely. "But look at the insulted expression …"
"See? Favorite," Kate said - which prompted America to lob a pillow at her hard enough to actually knock her back a step. "Oh, it's on."
When James got home, both of his siblings had clearly been fully updated and Rachel was reading the letter that James had left on the table with a frown. "I've got it," James said.
"But you don't know what triggered this," Rachel said, and as James looked past her, it was clear both Nate and Scott were in the same headspace.
"No, but before I can worry about that, I need to do what I can to bat clean up before it's a total disaster," James pointed out, then headed to the kitchen to join them, still trying to work his way through a coffee that should have been a comfort. "I can figure out where it came from once I get an idea on how to fix things in the immediate future."
Rachel shook her head and slipped the letter to Nate. "I should go with you," Rachel said.
"Oh yeah, I'm sure a known telepath won't be seen as a threat for a meeting like that," James said dryly, though at least Scott seemed to appreciate that James got that much of it right.
"Okay, then I'll go with you," Nate said, then held up both hands. "I'm not known."
"You also have school to go to," Scott said. "We already decided I'm going with."
"And I'm saying a telepath would be a better start," Rachel said, kicking off an entire strategizing session on what was the best approach and why.
James, for his part, simply sat back and watched them like a tennis match, drinking his coffee and listening … mostly because he knew they needed to get it out … there was no outlet for them otherwise, and he knew for a fact that if one of them was dealing with something similar he'd be doing the same thing. But James didn't feel as if he had enough information to really make any kind of a plan - and the most he thought he could do was to wait and follow his gut when the time came. But for now, it wouldn't hurt to listen to the three of them come up with contingencies on top of redundancies and try to talk through every single scenario under the sun. Even if he was sure that it was going to be a futile discussion.
One shared look with his dad cemented it - this was simply something that gave the strategists a chance to blow off some steam and feel as if they were making plans. Even if most of the plans they came up with would never be useful. And Scott knew it as much as James did.
Annie always went to church with her brother and then had Sunday dinner with both of her siblings. It was a longstanding tradition that meant the Hale siblings stayed in touch.
That particular Sunday, however, she wished she had a different brother. Because the second her therapist of a brother saw how preoccupied she was, he leaned over before the service started to ask, "What's going on?"
Annie waved him off. "It's nothing."
"You're making the same face you made the first time someone called Evie names for marrying Anton. It's not nothing."
Annie scrunched up her nose and kicked him sideways under the pew. "I hate when you do that. You know that."
"I do. So, what's going on?"
She let out an affectionate huff, but when Craig didn't let the subject drop, she sighed and leaned forward, resting her elbows on her knees. "I'm seeing someone," she said. "He's a widower. Incredibly devoted to his kids. It's endearing, really."
"But…" Craig prompted, giving nothing away.
"But his son is having issues at college because-" She paused and looked around at the other churchgoers. "For the same reasons Anton has trouble."
Craig nodded slowly. "And you want to help."
"I do," she said. "I can see how it's eating him up worrying about his son. He can't do anything to help - and neither can I - but Lord, I wish I could." Her accent was starting to get thicker as she got worked up. "He's already been through so much."
Craig didn't say anything, though it was a near thing. "Annie, you do this every time-"
"It's different this time," she insisted. "He's different."
Craig leaned back against the pew. "Uh-huh."
"He is. He's sweet and attentive and downright fun when he remembers to be. But the second hid kids need him, he drops everything for them. He's a good father and a good man."
"You're in deep, Annie," Craig said, shaking his head. He considered his next words carefully before he added, "Just make sure you're as much of a priority for him if you get serious, okay?"
"I can take care of myself, Craig."
"And try to take care of everyone else while you're at it," Craig said dryly. "I know. Still. Let me look out for my baby sister." He paused again, weighing it out. "Tell me if you get serious, please?"
"Craig, I see you every Sunday. I'm pretty sure you'll know."
"Annie."
"Fine." She shook her head and bumped shoulders with her brother. "Thanks for talking with me."
"You were working your way into stress baking the way you were going."
"I stand by stress baking. Mom always did it."
"Yeah, I know." Craig smiled and kissed the side of her head. "But … just… let me give you some big brotherly warnings if things go much farther, okay?"
Annie smiled at him as the preacher got up to the pulpit. "Love you too."
James was up early Monday morning. It was still dark out when he crept downstairs, intending to just … go on his own, but before he could get his shoes on, he heard Scott coming down the stairs shortly after him. He waited for his dad to meet up with him because - obviously, he intended to go with him. "You don't need to go," James said. "You won't be able to do anything and you'll just end up wasting your day."
"Considering that they have no logical reason to be pulling this crap, yes, I do," Scott said. "You don't know if this is their board being morons, or if there's someone else pulling the strings - but I can tell fast enough if someone has something on their person that could be problematic for you."
"So … you want to go to play bodyguard, not worried dad," James said flatly.
"If that's how you need to frame it, then sure," Scott said.
"What about Nate-"
"He knows he needs to go to school, and he knows how to get up on his own."
"You told him you were going with me."
"I sure did," Scott agreed before dropping his hand on James' shoulder. "Let's get moving. I know you need to get that laptop on the way."
James sighed and pulled his shoes on quickly, then grabbed the keys off the hook. The new car wasn't ready quite yet as he hadn't taken it on the test run, and the Jeep didn't need to travel that far if he could avoid taking it, so his Dad's truck was the only real option without making Nate complain.
The ride to Stark Tower was nearly silent, and it wasn't until Scott pulled into the parking garage that he even spoke up trying to get a response. "Do you want me to grab some coffee while you get the computer?"
"If you want. I'm not in the mood for anything though, thanks," James replied in a muted tone, then paused, realizing he wasn't filtering his reactions very well. "Maybe afterward."
"If you're sure."
James nodded and hopped out of the truck. "I'll be right back. No reason for both of us to have to answer the same questions." He tapped the open window frame and sprinted for the entrance. He was back inside of ten minutes, having evaded anyone that might be awake at that hour. James had been working on being more stealthy, after all. He climbed back into Scott's truck without any comment, and as soon as he was buckled in, Scott started the engine and the two of them headed out.
Scott watched out of the corner of his gaze as James stared straight ahead - far more anxious than James realized he was admitting to being. Once they were out of the city and Scott thought enough time had passed that James might be reconsidering not getting any coffee, he asked if the kid wanted to stop, but it was clear he wasn't going to be okay with that at all. Not for himself anyhow.
"If you want something, that's fine, but I don't need anything," James told him.
"I'd feel better if you had something with me," Scott said, hoping that might work, but for the first time in a very long while, James turned him down.
"Go ahead, Dad."
Scott sighed, but decided to try and get James to at least have a cup of coffee … even if he didn't want it. It was going to be a long, tense drive otherwise. But if he could get him to talk to him a little bit...
A quick pitstop later, and even with coffee, James was quiet and only answered Scott's questions with minimal responses. When they got close to the college, James went nearly still and silent.
"I'm going with," Scott decided.
"Not inside the meeting," James said, though Scott didn't look as if he appreciated that at all. "My physics professor is angry about the charges, too. He agreed to be my official faculty contact or … however it's worded."
When they got into the building, Scott wasn't sure how to react to the half-dozen excited, pleased professors that met them there, more than happy to shake hands and inform both Scott and James that they weren't on board for this at all- though they fell silent at the entrance to the room where the start of this nonsense was going to happen. The Dean didn't look as if he'd expected either of them to show, and James gave Scott a raised eyebrow look before he disappeared inside with his professor - and what looked like a reasonable chunk of other staff that were trying to show solidarity with James.
But that left Scott with nothing to do but scan the area and wait. And ignore the dozen or so rapid-fire texts from Tony, who was irked that James had taken the very first available open time and slipped off without him.
The meeting seemed to go on for far too long, as far as Scott was concerned, and he spent the better part of the morning, watching the clock and waiting to hear something. But even for as long as it was going on, he was pretty sure that the length meant that it had to be good news. If it was negative, or they were being totally unreasonable, then it would have been in and out in no time.
The morning had passed, and Scott still sat until just past noon before the doors finally opened and the Dean slipped out first looking almost green as he resolutely avoided looking Scott's way. He was followed quickly by most of the other staff members that had shown up - though most of them seemed to be upset to one degree or another. When Scott stood up and looked into the room, James was quietly packing away his things and looking far too serious. His physics professor next to him looked riled up, though, and when it was all said and done, James tucked his laptop under his arm, shook the man's hand, and turned to meet Scott at the door. "I'll tell you about it when we're away from here," James promised in a low tone.
Scott nodded in silent agreement as the two of them headed for the exit. They were barely back on the road when Scott gave James an expectant look. "Well?"
"If I want my degrees, I'm going to have to attend in person. Starting next week." James let the statement hang in the air for a moment. "They're not going to accept any of the three theses. At all. They're holding tight to making sure I didn't get any help on them, so … if I want to finish them, I need to do it under supervision."
"What."
"Yeah, but that's not all," James said. "They want me to re-take all of my exams before I start the official work. It's not enough that I took the exams here - they want me to re-take them. Which - fine. It wasn't a problem before, won't be a problem now. Just … something to try and discourage me, I'm sure."
James took out his phone and started scrolling, also ignoring the texts from Tony outside of sending a quick one to tell him they were on their way. "So. I need to find somewhere to live."
"Are you sure you don't want to think about it?" Scott said after a few moments.
"What's to think about?" James asked. "If I walk away, this will stand on my record and definitely leak to the press. If I don't do this, it'll look like I did cheat. That would blow up everything Tony and Bruce and Reed have done for me. I have to come and finish it up if I'm going to meet up to Tony's level for the company- and you know I'm not going to be able to just meet it. I have to blow past it or the board will try to block Tony from handing it over the way he wants to when the time comes. I can't just be good. I've got to be better than any non mutant they'd consider. And when I think about the time I'll have to put in, if I want to sleep at all, I'll need to live here."
Scott frowned at that. This was entirely different than the kids going to Westchester. This was, as it seemed, exactly the opposite of going to Westchester. "I'm sure we can find a way-"
"I am not asking Billy to lower himself into being my instant transportation," James said. "And that's the only way to do it otherwise." He was frowning to himself as he set a text to Billy - he needed to know what the story was, after all. And this wasn't what they'd expected. Not really. But it also wasn't something he wanted to say over a text. Are you free tonight for a little while?
There was just a moment before Billy replied. Of course. What happened?
I'll tell you when I see you after school's out. I'll be the one in the flashy car.
So you're breaking it in?
Might as well. See you in a few hours.
James looked over to his dad finally. "We need to stop at the tower. I have to let Tony know what the plan is and I will do better in person with him when I can see his expressions. Also … I'm picking up my car before I try to explain this mess to Billy."
"Not the Jeep?"
"As much as I love it, I don't trust that it won't break down between home and there … not just home and Westchester. I mean home and Cambridge. I'd like an option that can get me out fast if I need it, too," James admitted, then sat back and stared out of the window. He didn't like any of this, but he didn't see a reasonable alternative where the school didn't turn around and start accusing him (again) of insisting on special treatment because of his 'genetic status'. Maybe this was a mistake. But it was one he had to make just to finish things and be done with it.
"What are you thinking right now?" Scott asked after he decided that James being quiet for that long couldn't possibly be a good thing.
James looked at his dad for a moment, though before Scott could meet his gaze, he was back to staring out the window. "I … am thinking that I'm done with school once this is over."
"Were you considering more?" Scott asked, honestly out of the loop since James hadn't truly discussed that with anyone in the family, even if he'd more or less decided to move forward on the PhD's.
"Doesn't matter at this point," James replied. "It's not a possibility to consider. I'm done. Just gotta see if I can walk away with the ones I'm trying to do now. It'll have to be enough, I guess."
"James, we can find a way to make it work if that's what you want," Scott insisted. "I saw the people who came to support you. We can find other schools once you've finished these degrees. I'll put in the legwork researching them. You don't have to let them chase you off of your potential because they're too damn racist to believe you're smarter than they are." He started out softly, but by the time he finished, he was speaking through his teeth.
"I'm surprised I made it this far, honestly," James replied in an understated tone. "It's fine."
"James…" Scott shook his head. "It's not fine. You're smarter than those idiots by a head and shoulder measure. You have so much to offer this world. And to hell with anyone who stands in your way."
"Dad … I just want to get through this."
Scott waved his hand in irritation. "You will. I know you will. Your plan is sound. It's draconian to put you through all these damn bigoted hoops just because they're intimidated by their own inferiority, but yes, you'll pull it off."
In spite of himself and the situation, James was doing his best to keep from laughing. "Love you too. And you're not at all biased, right?"
"It's my job to be biased about my kids. They don't get the same pass," Scott said, though he'd lost a lot of his fire when he saw James trying not to smile.
"I'm sure Tony will have thoughts, too … and yeah, I'll push to get it done fast. Right in their faces," James said. "Looked like it was mostly the moron at the top, anyhow. They barely looked at my research, too."
"Yeah, to hell with him." Scott paused, then took a deep breath. "On the other hand, that's almost an improvement. Wasn't too long ago it would be the whole board against you, plus the faculty."
"Small miracles," James replied.
"Thanks to the X-Men," Scott said.
"Yeah, you guys did a lot of work," James said, looking out the window. "Oh. Hey. This is going to mean it's just you and Nate for a while …."
"I meant your team and you know it," Scott said, not about to let James belittle his accomplishments. "And Nate will be fine. If anything, this will mean he'll try even harder to push me and Annie Hale together. Bored minds. Idle hands."
"Yeah, but you won't need to get Angel's help to screw with him though," James pointed out, happy to change the subject.
Scott smirked. "I did think about how much harder it would be for him to become a teenage father, yes."
"Well … he does need some attention." James tipped his head. "And I haven't finished the module for either of your cars …"
"The attempt to keep me busy is admirable, but I'm still going to want regular check-ins. You know that, right?"
"Oh, yeah. I wouldn't think there'd be a chance in hell that daily check ins won't be part of things."
"As long as we're clear." Scott let silence ring between them for some time before he puffed out his breath and turned toward James. "Before you go, let's grab a bite. Just the two of us."
James nodded to himself. "Sure. Might be a nice switch before it all goes to hell."
As it turned out, the discussion with Tony didn't take nearly as much energy out of James as he thought it would … and the fact that Tony had moved the car to the tower to put on the finishing touches just meant one less trip for anyone to make to get James from point A to point B - and freed Scott up to do whatever he needed to while James headed for Westchester to clear his head.
Scott hadn't actually seen James' new car until he followed James to Tony's section of the garage specifically to see it. "No, that doesn't look like trouble at all," Scott deadpanned, which was finally enough to get a real smile out of James.
"I've only had it on the track so far," he said. "But you can drive it before I head out to school if you really want to."
"On the track or off?"
"Your call," James said as he climbed in. "I'll be back before curfew, okay?"
"Just this once - don't worry too much about it. Unless it's going to screw up Billy's schedule."
James looked down at his hands for a moment. "Thanks. I won't be too late." Even after James had closed the door, it took him a few moments to center himself enough to start it up and put it into gear.
Scott didn't miss that the glass was darkened to a point that the kid didn't need to wear an inducer while he was in it, either. Which was probably the point. And on seeing it, Scott realized exactly how far they had to go to see Charles' dream actually work. James had been fine as long as he kept quiet, hidden, and unremarkable to the world at large.
But the moment that he stood up and showed the world- not only that he was an X-Man, or that he was Logan's son- but that he was smart, and remarkable enough to have the favor of the Avengers and their allies … he was being punished for stepping out of the box they'd decided was big enough for him. He wasn't what they'd expected from his parents or his upbringing- and because he was a mutant, too, it wasn't acceptable. He wasn't allowed to be that smart. Or to be acknowledged for being that smart.
Scott knew that the same tight boundaries applied to every one of his children, and all the kids that passed through Ororo's school. But none of them had stepped out quite so publicly before.
Yes, some people were more tolerant of mutants, but those in charge of how the world ran weren't any more accepting of mutants than when Scott was young. They were just smarter in how they showed it, and it was incredibly disheartening.
But James wasn't thinking about any of that. His train of thought was a lot more concerned with dealing with the immediate problems he was facing rather than the bigger picture. He was concerned about moving alone with very little warning to his family and Billy to somewhere he had yet to find. And to make matters more pressing, he knew that he needed to get that lined up fast - and that he would need to move as soon as that was secured, which meant even the vague idea of getting a few real dates in order before he rushed off to college wasn't even likely. But he was pretty sure that Billy wasn't going to be happy to hear it.
Naturally, James found himself in Westchester in record time - not that he'd meant to speed. When he got to the school, he pulled around the back and parked out of sight, then simply sat there, trying to decide where to even start. And while he waited the last fifteen minutes or so for school to end, he looked at his messages from Tony and Jan.
Jan had already found three or four likely prospects for places to live and Natasha was already headed to Cambridge to make the final choice and outfit it with a proper security system. Which meant that the Avengers, at least, had skipped over their outrage for the time being and dove in to problem solving. The vengeful Aunts would come later. So that was one thing he didn't need to consider.
He was just texting his sister to try and give her his take on things when Billy simply opened up the passenger door and slipped in - surprising a smile out of James. "Always one with an entrance," James said before he leaned over for a quick kiss.
"Says the guy showing up in a racecar. Dramatically. On a Monday afternoon."
"Thought I'd try to distract you with something shiny."
"Why would I need something shiny?" Billy laughed. "The meeting not go well?"
"They didn't kick me out yet," James told him. "But … I … need to move to Cambridge."
"When?" Billy asked, his eyebrows high since that wasn't even on James' radar when they'd talked last.
"This week?" James replied with one eye closed. "Weekend at the latest. I have to start retaking all my tests next Monday if I'm going to re-do all of my theses. They won't accept anything that I've done on them. I need to start from scratch. So ..."
Billy blinked at him for a few moments. "Do you know where you'll be staying or are you going to be terrifying some poor room mate in the dorms?"
"No dorms," James said. "No way would that not draw down trouble on the other students and that would be a good reason for them to kick me out on my ass."
Billy barely seemed to think it over before he came to a decision. "Okay. Then I'm moving in, too."
James smiled reflexively, then schooled his expression when he realized that wasn't likely something that would happen. "I'm pretty sure your mom would skin me alive if you screwed up your senior year on my account."
"What's to screw up?" Billy asked. "I'll stay with you, we can spend the night, curl up, lots of cuddle time in the ridiculous winter you people here seem to enjoy, and then I can just … wish myself to Westchester before first period starts."
"And … what about your mom? Or Storm?"
"As long as I don't slip in my work, I don't see why it should bother anyone," Billy reasoned, then grinned crookedly. "If you're not totally swamped, you can tutor me if I need help."
James laughed in spite of himself, then leaned over for a much more involved kiss than they'd shared so far that day. "I love your problem solving, but if you're banking on that, sweetheart, we're both going to fail and we'll be in deep trouble before the first week is out."
"I know. But it'll be fun and I'll get lots of one on one time, so I'm game."
James couldn't stop the smile. "I really wasn't expecting this kind of a reaction."
"Why not? I'm at your house as much as I'm in Westchester - or in your lab - oh. Hey. How is Tony going to cope without you being there all the time?"
"He's not thrilled, but he wants to see me blow them out of the water."
"So do I." Billy smiled crookedly, and again, James found himself unable to get his expression under control.
"Have I mentioned how much I love you?"
"Not today, and that can always bear repeating," Billy shot back.
"Can I take you to dinner before we move in together?" James asked, getting back some of the teasing tone.
"I hope so," Billy answered, then started to laugh under his breath as James started the car up and the two of them headed off.
Chapter 76: Scattered Again
Chapter Text
Nate and Kate were out and trying to enjoy a little time alone, in spite of the fact that both of their families were all riled up over MIT's sudden and extreme change of heart. Natasha was working hard, and Clint was covering her back while Jan stayed with the youngest Barton kids. And Scott was shifting gears fast while coordinating with Natasha and trying to anticipate what they needed to do next, since as far as he could tell, James was right … he needed to live there.
But the Summers family as a whole was concerned about James being on his own before he was ready, and Scott in particular knew that the kid had always had issues dealing with feeling too alone. This was primed to be incredibly isolating for the kid. And distracting for Scott. He'd never been able to concentrate on anything but the kids when he didn't have them close at hand, or at least he had to know that they were safe and comfortable. This would be neither of those things in spite of what measures Natasha was coming up with.
And all of it had Nate stressed out. Sure, he'd gone to Xavier's … so had Rachel. But Nate in particular wasn't sure what life would look like with Rachel living at Xaviers most of the time and James four hours away. He'd never been without both of his siblings. One at a time, sure … but not both at once.
Not to mention …. He had to wonder what kind of impact this would this have on their team.
Nate was overthinking and not entirely focused as he and Kate sat in the park eating ice cream … but the instant that he started to float, Kate leaned across him and kissed him back down to the ground.
"Head in the clouds, Summers," Kate teased. "Everything will be fine."
"I'm not worried."
"Yes. You are."
"We're going to be down one on the team, sweetheart. I'm trying to figure out how to compensate for that."
Kate shook her head and kissed him back into the grass for his amazing attempt at deflection. "You don't need to. Billy can get him to us whenever we need him."
"So he's not going to be graduating from MIT again?" Nate teased, abandoning his ice cream in favor of kisses.
"You're hilarious. It'll all work out. Don't worry so much."
The two of them fell into their familiar pattern of head-first into the makeout session - which was enough for the time being to distract Nate, at least until they got back to the house. James had returned from his date, and Billy had joined him to help in going through what he was bringing with him to Massachusetts once Natasha had given the all clear and Jan had sent furniture in.
But that didn't explain why they weren't looking as if their drama was being threatened … and it was being threatened.
Without thinking about it, Nate reached out and brushed Billy's mind, only to turn to Kate with a dry look on his face once he saw what the guy was thinking. Your best friend is an idiot, Nate told her. And my brother is a moron.
This is not a news flash. On either count. Kate smiled his way, since at least he was sounding more like his not-stressed self. What are they being dumb about this time?
Billy thinks he's going to just … go move in with James. In Massachusetts.
Kate kissed him and blinked up at him as innocently as she could manage. He needs his beefcake, Nate. It's about to get cold. He barely survived last year.
You're really not funny. They're way too young to start playing house.
And you're missing the point. They're finding a way to make it work. You know they're serious. So what if they're a little young? Kate pulled him off into another room. You don't know how your brother phrased things, but if I know him, it probably wasn't anything that took what Billy was dealing with into mind. Just … this is what it is and you'll have to cope. Or something. You know I'm right.
He'd only do that if it was something he had to do.
Now you're making him sound like Illyana.
That's not fair.
Neither is making a big choice without discussing it with someone you love. He rushed off to find out what the college wanted and made his mind up to go along with their stupid without bringing anyone into it. Not even your dad.
Nate sighed. You know the reasoning is sound.
Um … only if you don't figure into it that Uncle Tony would throw an absolute fit publicly and call them out for their stupid. Or did you forget that your family has an incredibly influential public figure on your side?
I … honestly hadn't considered that angle at all, Nate admitted. But neither did anyone else, I don't think.
See what happens when Summerses only talk to Summerses for advice?
Pretty sure it had more to do with avoiding retaliation, Nate said. The letter said-
"Are you two here to help or to flirt?" Rachel called out, knowing full well that the two of them had been in the middle of a telepathic flirting session.
"I am a multitasker," Kate called back with a grin. "What can we do, anyhow?"
"Well," Rachel said slowly, turning on her heel as Kate caught up to her. "Dad is fretting with Jan over details while your parents are handling the security measures for where James will be staying, and Billy is 'helping' James to pack, so … I guess your official job would be to pick out what kind of take-out we're having for dinner tonight, because there is literally nothing we can do and James and Billy seem to be covering what we might be able to help with."
"By that you mean they're hanging out in his room and Billy's picking out the clothes he needs to take while James is picking out what he thinks he needs for tech," Nate said dryly.
"Pretty much, yeah," Rachel agreed. "Natasha and Tony will have things taken care of to the point he'll really only have to bring tech and clothes and just move in. You know how this works. They even stock the cabinets, and it's not supposed to be super long term. Just until he rushes through his work or the end of the year, whichever comes first, so …"
"Right," Nate said in a sigh, looking toward the stairs. He didn't want to admit it, but he didn't like the idea of his brother not being close by. Especially when he hadn't planned on this at all … at least, not like this and not yet. It felt almost the same as when they were little and the Summers family had to leave James with Tony for everyone's safety. He didn't remember much of that, only that he couldn't sleep for weeks without his brother around … and he knew James had even more trouble with that kind of thing, so Nate was pretty convinced that this was a bad idea.
Until he started considering that Billy … might actually help keep his brother from feeling entirely isolated. "Damn," Nate almost whispered as he watched Rachel and Kate chatting. Kate was right. Again.
Are you going to tell her she was right? Rachel projected while she and Kate were laughing.
No. Yes. … Maybe. Let's … let's just see how it goes first, huh? Nate shot back, then joined the two of them with his arm around Kate's back.
Scott headed upstairs to see how James was handling things, since he hadn't seen him since he'd gone to pick up Billy in Westchester, and now, even though it was edging toward late, neither of them seemed to be bothered in the least at the fact that they were about to be forcibly separated … at least during the week.
"How you holding up?" Scott asked, looking between the two boys, who were tossing things into a duffel bag.
"Alright, I guess," James replied. "Nothing I can do about it but just do it, so …"
Scott nodded and leaned in the door, glancing toward Billy for a long moment. "You're planning to zap yourself there more often, aren't you?"
"Absolutely," Billy agreed, nodding evenly and trying to hide his smile.
Again, Scott paused, trying to figure out what it was he was missing. He knew something was off, he just … hadn't thought the two of them were taking it too far. Even if they were entirely involved. "And … you're okay with all this?"
"I'm not okay with what they're making him do," Billy said. "But he already made me promise not to wish it right, so I'm just going to have to cope with the slow way."
Scott sighed. "He's right about that much, anyhow. Fixing it with a wish would only be trouble for us down the road."
"He'll be done with their stupidity in no time," Billy said in a attempt to assure Scott, though James seemed content to watch their back and forth.
"Will you be helping us with getting him settled too?" Scott asked, already knowing the answer.
"Unless you don't want me to," Billy replied, though that had Scott taking pause, since he'd thought it was going to be an unequivocal 'yes'.
"I … yeah, that would probably be good," Scott replied, then turned, only looking over his shoulder for a moment. He could tell something was up … he just wasn't entirely sure what yet. "Kate ordered pizza for everyone ... "
"We'll be down as soon as I finish up," James promised.
And even though most of their team was caught up in sending their Wolverine off to college, Mia and Tommy were happily enjoying some time alone while the focus and pressure were elsewhere. Pretty much everyone involved with the team in one capacity or another was all worked up and trying to figure out why MIT had suddenly gone insane, and those that weren't trying to figure out that mess were pitching in trying to deal with that whole mess.
Which meant there were plenty of people occupied elsewhere … which left Tommy and Mia more or less entirely unsupervised. Which meant they had a lot of leeway in which their date could move on from their usual fooling around into something a little more troublemaking.
Mia seemed entirely on board, too … and things were definitely getting out of hand, so it was that much more surprising to both of them that when they found themselves pushing the envelope a little further …. Tommy was the one to back off.
"Wait," Tommy said as things were going a little too far. "This isn't … we shouldn't be doing this. Not .."
"I thought you wanted to," Mia replied, caught somewhere between terrified and honestly upset.
"I do … just …" Tommy sat back and ran his hand through his hair. "Not … sneaking around and not just because everyone's looking the other way." He looked almost as if he regretted saying it, blushing lightly at his ears as Mia processed what he was saying.
Her ears perked up, her eyes widened, and she bit her lip a heartbeat before she rushed him in a tackle to kiss the sense out of him. "You sneaky little romantic, you," Mia said before she kissed him backwards.
"Okay, but … you are not making this easy," Tommy answered between stolen kisses.
"Right. Sorry. I just … right." Mia sat back, unable to control her grin as her tail swayed behind her and she tucked a lock of hair behind her ear.
"So… what should we do?"
"Something romantic, obviously."
"Right. Obviously." Tommy managed to get his blush under control, and to his surprise, he was grinning just as hard as Mia was.
"How about we try watching a movie?" Mia suggested. "We haven't actually managed that before."
"I mean … we can try," Tommy agreed, and in a flash, they were in the movie room, and he was smiling to himself the instant she curled up into his side. Maybe slow wasn't the worst thing in the world, after all.
Because of the rush that the whole of the Avengers and a few assorted recently liberated X-Men put in to get James prepared to go to college weeks after the official start of classes, the job was done in time … and after the big push, things at the new house in Cambridge became quiet quickly. Naturally, Scott, Rachel, Nate, and Billy were the last ones there after the moving crew left and Natasha took the time to remind him of the security protocols he desperately needed to follow while most of his family and backup were four hours away. No one told him, of course, that Bobby had volunteered to take first watch from Boston, and they had no plans to. Not when Natasha needed to know if the kid could follow protocols when he was (mostly) alone.
Of course, Natasha and the other adults also didn't know that Billy had no plans to remain that far from James from any extended period of time, or that he had an overnight bag tucked into James' last box of clothes that would be put out after the protective adults were gone.
It wasn't exactly like they were trying to keep it secret - they just … didn't think it was anyone's business unless they asked them directly. And no one had, so they hadn't volunteered their plans to move in together.
But that also meant that they weren't exactly being overly sneaky, and Scott wasn't slow enough to miss the fact that even though they were saying goodbye for a couple weeks to start - since the college had sent a schedule of when he needed to take his tests that extended into the following weekend - they didn't look anywhere near as upset as Scott would have expected them to be. He knew James could keep his reactions in check and was getting better and better about his poker face, but he still showed stress when it was something big. And being alone hours from anyone just wasn't something James had ever had to deal with. Ever.
So, as th Summers family left - with Billy - Scott let Rachel drive and he took a moment to text Bobby to let him know to absolutely keep a close eye on things. Something was up … and he didn't believe the quick peck between the boys was quite the end of things. Which was a little irritating when he considered that James simply hadn't pulled anything stupid like sneaking around yet. But it sure felt like something was off.
Billy, for his part, looked as if he was in a rush almost as soon as the family hit the road, though he and Nate kept their conversation about the team going all the way back to the Summers home … it wasn't necessary for them to take Billy to the school, after all. Not when the real reason behind driving off with him was to keep suspicion away from the boys as the neighbors watched. But once they were in a safe spot, Scott fully expected Billy to teleport away. He just … wasn't so sure where Billy would be going when he left anymore.
And by the way Nate and Rachel were watching him after Billy disappeared with a whispered wish to go to his room, he decided to let it drop … for now.
Of course, when Billy reappeared in Cambridge shortly after, James was still unpacking a few things.
"I think your dad suspects," Billy said, even before he got close enough to say hello.
"I would be surprised if he didn't," James replied, then took a moment to say hello properly. "We'll hear about it, I'm sure. But I'm glad you're here tonight - even if you decide not to stay."
"Um … why would I leave you all alone in a strange town if I have a choice in it?" Billy asked with a grin. "Do you have my bag?"
"On the dresser," James said, gesturing across the room before he checked his phone. "And it's almost time to call it a day anyhow."
"Then we should settle in," Billy agreed with a grin as he pulled him into a quick kiss. "This is going to be fun."
The next morning, James was up early, having slept much better than he'd expected to for his first night in the house. But … making sure Billy got up was a little different proposition … especially when getting the full-on snuggle made it hard to want to get up himself. But, with a lot of kisses and gentle teasing, both boys managed to get up, dressed, grab a bite and get to where they were supposed to be before they were late. They even avoided being busted in the first 12 hours when James picked up the video call from his dad when he checked in to see if James was doing alright going into the first day full of testing and high-pressure professors. Then promised to call him when he was done with testing for the day.
Clearly, Scott was more anxious than Billy had anticipated.
Billy grinned at James before the call ended, then stepped out of the room to wish himself to Westchster. When he appeared in his shared room with Tommy fifteen minutes before his first class of the day, Tommy couldn't help but scoff. "You're going to get so busted," he said.
"We're not doing anything wrong," Billy defended as he gathered up his books, still smiling to himself at how comfortable and good his morning had gone so far.
"Yeah, except, you're never this cheerful first thing."
"You're nit-picking."
"Whatever," Tommy said in a sigh before he zipped by Billy, sure to mess up his hair on the way since he knew it would irk him … and help him look more like he usually did first thing in the morning. Not that he was about to tell Billy that he was actually helping. It was a service, after all … trying to keep him from being busted so badly. On the first. Day.
Craig already had a pretty good idea of what was happening between his patient and his sister when Scott showed up to his session that day looking more frazzled than usual. Once he got the MIT story out of Scott, a few things were lining up, but he couldn't really be the one to bring up the fact that he'd learned just that weekend that the single father whose son was having college issues and dating his sister was Scott -even if his niece, Leslie Ann had been gushing to tell him about how she'd been rescued byAnnie's date and got to meet Iceman at Sunday dinner. He knew. But Scott maybe didn't realize that he knew. And Craig wanted to get that out into the open for a hundred reasons.
But, he at least tried to be professional, focusing on pulling Scott out of his son's problems so he didn't get lost in them. Particularly when this was his son's problem. Not Scott's.
"I know you hate to hear it, but he's an adult now, Scott." He held up a hand before Scott could interrupt. "Eighteen in a couple months is close enough to make his own decisions and you know it."
Scott let out a scoffing sound and leaned back in his seat. "Just because he's an adult doesn't mean I can't back him up."
"No, I wouldn't expect you not to, just as I don't expect you to leave Rachel to her own devices."
"So I don't see your point, Craig."
"My point," Craig said carefully, "is that we've talked about this. You're getting lost in your kids even when they are perfectly capable adults dealing with their problems well - and using, by the way, exactly the tools you gave them."
"It's a big deal, Craig."
"And I'm not trying to minimize that. You've got every right to worry. But you've done all you can, and now, you're letting your worry for those kids define you again." Craig sighed and then switched tactics, seeing quickly that he was getting nowhere with that line of thought. "How have your lectures gone?"
Scott blinked, but he was getting used to the sudden changes in conversation when Craig wanted to steer a session. So, he shrugged with both hands outturned. "Surprisingly well."
"Yes, I'm sure it was surprising to find that students in Westchester wanted to hear from the very first X-Man," Craig said dryly. When Scott shot him a look that was just as dry, Craig smirked. "So, will you keep teaching there? I understand from Ororo they are always looking for more help - not just for academics."
"Yeah, that's … already in the works. I'm considering helping out to sub from time to time as well. Not many people are cleared to substitute there."
"No, I'd imagine it's a small list," Craig said. He let out a slow, patient breath. "And beyond work? How are things outside your family?"
Scott shrugged easily, though Craig could see in the way his mouth tightened that he felt as if he was being interrogated now. The man had enough experience to know the shift in focus. "Ask me what you're looking for, Craig. Better than guessing."
"Fine." Craig leaned back. "When were you going to tell me you were dating my sister?"
"There it is." Scott rubbed a hand over the back of his neck as he tried to decide where to start. "I told you at the end of summer my kids had pushed me into dating again. Didn't want to make a big thing out of it if I can't handle it again or if it just didn't … work out."
"Scott, you're doing well," Craig said. "But I have to admit, as a therapist, I'm pleased you're trying. As her brother…"
"If you think you need to warn her off," Scott started to say, his expression tired.
"No, but I would like to tell her I've been meeting with you - with your permission," Craig clarified. "Nothing about our sessions at all - nothing about the family, just the fact that you are my patient. I think it's best to be as open about this strange arrangement as possible, especially when I know you won't consider switching therapists." Craig held up one hand. "That's not hubris. That's me knowing how deeply your friends looked into me and how long it took them to get you here."
Scott sighed but nodded. "You're right. I'd rather not have secrets either."
"Good." Craig cleared his throat, obviously making the switch from brother to therapist. "Now. About this subbing job…."
As it turned out, there were enough sketchy types circling Cambridge that Bobby found himself watching James' place much more carefully. The surveillance feeds Natasha had provided were showing lots of people checking out the house, but he had no way of knowing for sure which of those were people with nefarious intent - and which were simply paparazzi following any snippet of half-news that could possibly follow Stark or his favorites. So Bobby wasn't exactly keen on stepping back any time soon from his duties as self appointed native guardian.
But that meant that someone was going to have to step in for him at Westchester. And the only someone Bobby could think of that would do a good job was his oldest and dearest friend. It was only right, after all. Bobby was watching Scott's son… so, he reasoned, Scott should cover his classes. It wasn't an every day affair - just … three out of four days. Which, when added to Scott's day for lectures would give Scott a whole four out of five weekdays in Westchester. And he didn't even need to be in Westchester until almost noon!
Bobby just … didn't expect Scott to go along with it with no fight. And Bobby had settled in with a whole notebook page full of counter argument to get Scott to go do it, too. Right next to the dozen donuts he had while he watched the feeds outside of James' place, in his car, and all of the places in the college the kid was frequenting. But so far, he was only seeing James go to school (when Bobby was up that early), do what he was there for, then come home. He wasn't watching anything in the house because those cameras weren't set to turn on unless someone other than James came in. And considering that Bobby knew the kid was getting texts from Scott, Tony, and Natasha like clockwork, there wasn't a lot of room for him to go looking for trouble.
But Bobby was still going to stick pretty close if he could … at least until the weekend, when he could take the time to get closer to check out the house, too.
But from where he was, with the feeds he had, there wasn't much to see. The blinds were drawn, the kid only seemed to go from home to school and back. Which seemed pretty miserable to Bobby. Sure, Scott had raised him, and sure, he knew that James had spent most of his life so far just studying or being at the tower, but this was ridiculous. He wasn't even going out to take drives … and Bobby was very sure that the car James had stashed in the garage was meant to be driven. Often. And he had to make a point to tell Scott as much.
"He's not doing anything but study," Bobby informed him before Scott could hang up. "He's got that amazing car and he hasn't even driven it."
"That's why he's there, Bobby. What do you mean he's not driving? Not even to class?" Scott asked.
"No. He comes out in the morning with a backpack on and jogs to class." Bobby paused. "It's only like two miles, but still. That's two miles before school. Who does that?"
"Apparently, my son, who is stuck inside taking tests all day otherwise," Scott said flatly. "He only dealt with things at the tower because he had access to a gym that took up three floors. He needs to burn off the energy. Come on, Bobby - did you forget what his parents were like?"
"No, I did not," Bobby said, the insult clear in his voice. "That doesn't change the fact that he's seventeen, in possession of a sports car, and isn't driving it."
"He's keeping a low profile," Scott said patiently. "He's done that his whole life. I'm sure he'll be speeding home on Friday night."
"Sure, sure," Bobby agreed. "Hey. Have fun with the class, huh? Even if you'd rather be watching here. I've got this - it's easy after having dealt with Magneto for nearly a decade."
"Just keep me informed of anything that seems important, Bobby," Scott said, sighing to himself before he hung up.
Scott wasn't surprised. Ororo had hinted already to the idea that Scott might help out in a bigger capacity, so the idea that they might orchestrate things to make it more pressing for him to need to be in Westchester wasn't exactly surprising. The fact that he hadn't seen the set up was, though. This is what happened when he hyper fixated on something. Other things didn't entirely hold his attention like they should. He knew they were working to get him to help more, he just … couldn't see the other things in play as well as he should have.
Been a while since I played more than one game of chess at a time, Scott thought to himself, shaking his head. But … the fact remained. He needed to be in Westchester to teach in the afternoons so that Bobby could keep watch. And after the talk he'd had last time around with Craig, he'd decided not to sign up for one of those rotations after all. It wasn't just Craig's advice he was hearing in his head. Not when he could close his eyes in a moment of relative peace and hear Jean's echoing voice telling him to live his life. He had to do that much, too.
Chapter 77: Distractions
Chapter Text
Nate, meanwhile, was doing his best to get through the year. He was mildly anxious about how his family seemed to be in a bit of disarray, mixed with the fact that he was proud of his dad for going back to teaching at Xavier's. But he also had to keep his work up to snuff or suffer the consequences with his father, who suddenly only had Nate at home and was paying a little more attention to Nate because of it.
Nate had never been by himself at home, and he wasn't sure the extra scrutiny was doing him any favors. But on the other hand, he'd spent his life jealous of his older siblings and wishing for more time with his dad, so he wasn't even that mad.
Still, for the time being, his dating life was less than stellar between school, football, and trying to make sure his dad came home to no trouble. It wasn't the kind of thing Nate was used to - that kind of thing was really more his sibling's speed - but … here he was, trying to cover for both of them.
So with Nate distracted, Kate still spent most of her free time with him, but she had her own clubs to attend to beyond the basics of school and cheerleading. She had fencing club, and that in particular had been unbelievably irritating. The coach had wisely kept Kate and Daniel from having a rematch. There was no way he was going to let those two start in again. And it seemed to be working; as long as the two of them weren't fencing each other, both of them were once again staying within the rules and at the level of the rest of the kids in the club.
So when her friend in cheerleading passed her a note in the middle of study hall from Daniel, she was more than ready to throw down when he suggested an off campus rematch. She smirked to herself and kept her composure in check as she calmly wrote her response. When and where?
She went back to finishing her essay while she waited for his response and then was utterly unsurprised when he suggested meeting while Nate was still at practice. Of course the stalker had cross-checked the cheerleading practices to the football practices. Idiot.
She wasn't overly familiar with the area of Central Park he suggested, though - somewhere out of the way that she was sure was less travelled. But … her dad had shown her a few new tricks, and she was pretty sure Daniel DuBois wasn't going to know what hit him when she stuck her fencing foil up his nose. Or … close enough to it.
Kate was smirking to herself as she passed the note back, confirming the duel. She wouldn't have Nate as her second, but she had a panic button, and her parents in a snit and ready to murder someone was every bit as good as Nate, her personal hottie bodyguard and mental nuke.
She leaned back in her seat and seamlessly went from writing her essay to mentally running through the new attacks and blocks that her dad taught her. She could barely sit through the rest of her classes … so it was good there were only two left before she went to wipe the floor with his sorry butt.
When school was out, she stole a kiss with Nate and let him know she was going to teach a jerk some humility, then watched him head into the locker room before she hitched her backpack on her shoulder and headed out.
The drive into the city was a little busy -as always. No surprises there. And she found the spot easily enough. It fit Daniel perfectly - creepy, quiet, and totally overrated.
She was just taking her sword out of the case when he showed up and clapped his hands together. "I honestly wasn't sure if you'd show," he said with a grin.
"I said I would," Kate replied easily.
"I just hope you won't take it personally when I beat you, Kit-kat."
"We'll just have to see who takes what personally, DuBois," Kate replied.
The two of them took a moment to get prepared to fight, and just before Kate was ready, Daniel took the first strike. It was enough to set her back - he was being aggressive as usual, and though that was fine, he was a lot stronger than Kate was. But she was trickier.
And she wanted to end this fight quickly.
They went back and forth, circled and struck without a word spoken, just like the first time. But unlike the first time, each knew the other had some tricks up their sleeves, and Kate for one couldn't wait to dive in.
But even at that - and the added element of gymnastics added in - it wasn't the fight Kate had expected. Daniel was good. Really good. Like … almost superhumanly good. And he seemed to know a counter move for every single trick Kate pulled out of her repertoire.
What's worse was that just as Kate thought she was getting a fair handle on being able to get him back for his ridiculous flourished moves, he shifted the tone of the match from just swords to wrestling. He switched to a left handed grip, then kicked her backward with a cheap shot, causing her to lose her balance. She wasn't prepared for him to abandon swordplay entirely with that kick and to instead rush toward her, pinning her underneath him in almost a tackle.
This wasn't fencing.
Her sword was between them, but not in any kind of angle that she could just cut or stab him, before he grinned at her, quirked an eyebrow, then chuckled before he pressed in and kissed her. "Looks like I won, Kit-kat," Daniel said, smiling way too smugly for her to stand.
But he wasn't stupid enough to push her beyond that, especially with her sword still between them and her knee within moving distance of his groin. He could see she was in shock at his cocky move, so he pushed away and got distance before she could retaliate. "So … that's one to me, then."
Kate got to her feet, seething for more than just the kiss. She was angry about him cheating. "Only one you're going to get," Kate shot back, though she was angry at the blush that had risen up on her cheeks. And of course, he took that entirely the wrong way, smiling at her as she got angrier.
"Can I walk you to your car?"
"You can go to hell," Kate said. "But that's not in my direction, so … no."
"Suit yourself, Kit-Kat," Daniel said as he put his things away, though he never took his eyes off of her. "There are some pretty unsavory characters in this area."
"Yeah, I noticed as much," Kate said dryly, suddenly much more uncomfortable when she realized he knew this area of the park much better than she did. And when she turned to leave, he was way too close with his hand out.
She took a step back to get some space, and he stepped forward into it. "Isn't it customary to shake after a fight?"
But Kate kept her distance. "Only in sanctioned matches. And you got too close already, so no." She half glared as she started toward her car, listening intently to see if the creep was following her. She was on the wrong side of the park to go to the tower, and she was half convinced the idiot wanted her to, so instead of rushing for cover, she went to her car, threw her things in the passenger seat, and got away from there as quickly as possible.
Fuming all the way.
The more she thought about the way the fight had gone down, the angrier she got. She knew her mom was going to chew her out for agreeing to a fight on his terms at a location he picked, but it was one thing to go into a fight disadvantaged and another thing to not even have a fencing match. The whole thing had been a setup for him to feel like he'd won and for him to take advantage when really all he'd proven was that he couldn't handle fighting a girl who was every bit as good as he was without giving up on fencing entirely.
If it had been a proper fencing match, Kate was confident she would have won, too. Guys who couldn't handle the pressure of a good opponent and had to lash out also tended to get sloppy the longer they were denied the victory they thought they were entitled to. And yeah, Kate probably shouldn't have been already thinking of a rematch when she didn't trust him to keep to the rules, but she really wanted to beat him.
She was still in a foul mood when she got home, so of course, her little brother Jim picked up on it. "Oooh, did you kick his ass?" Jim called out - which had Clint quickly shushing him and admonishing him about words he wasn't supposed to repeat no matter how big he thought he was.
Kate did a fair to middling job of rearranging her expression for her brother. "He's aware that he's going to hell," she told him, which had Jim snickering. "But you're right. I should kick his ass every time I see him to make sure the message sinks in."
"Katie, I'm trying to at least pretend I didn't teach you kids how to swear that badly when your mom is thinking about another one," Clint said, rolling his eyes. "Best behavior. Do you want a sister or not?"
"How come it's our job when you want something, Dad?" Jim asked, and Clint pointed a finger at him.
"Stop that," he said. "I know you got your mom's smarts but just… stop that."
Kate laughed as Jim all but skipped away. "You're the one that keeps asking for more, Dad. Not like you don't know Mom is going to teach all of us how to take you down."
"Right, and I'm not ever the one that needs convincing, Katie Kate, but some things you don't want to hear about your parents, so we'll just leave that discussion where it is, huh?" Clint put his arm around her shoulders to steer her right back out the door, headed toward the stairs that would lead to the roof. "We're gonna talk about whatever boy you were just with that isn't a Summers. Don't make me take Nate's side, baby girl, so you better explain yourself in words, not just-" He gestured at the incredibly dry look she was wearing. "-that."
Kate tipped her head back and sighed. "Okay, so there's this idiot new kid in the fencing club. And he's stupid good at it. Like… we've had two matches and the first one was sanctioned and he could keep up with the stuff you taught me." She threw both hands up to illustrate how annoyed this made her. "And the rematch? Was just now. And when we were still evenly matched, he stopped even pretending it was a fencing match, kicked me and futzing tackled me, okay? Like a gearheaded football player." Her face was just as red at that moment as it had been when Daniel had kissed her. "He cheated, Dad!"
Clint watched her getting more and more upset, then slowly nodded. "Alright. So, he cheated. Kick his ass," he said, first and foremost. "But I think you're gonna have to walk me through that again, baby girl. What do you mean he could keep up with the moves I taught you? That's not any sanctioned fencing, sweetheart."
"Yeah, I know. That's what's frustrating about it," Kate said. "We tossed the fencing instructor out of the arrangement and this guy - ugh." She started to pace; she was too mad to stay still. "I was pulling out some of my best moves!"
Clint frowned deeper the more he heard from her. "Katie," he said, his tone a deadly serious one he rarely took with the kids, "I don't want you alone with that kid again. Ever."
"Dad-"
"This isn't some honor thing, either," he interrupted her. "I'm not a Summers. I'm not gonna have a hernia if you fool around. I'll tell you to stop being stupid, but that's not what this is." He met her gaze evenly. "Katie, the stuff I taught you, I learned in the Circus of Crime. If he can keep up with you and block you like that, if he's not even surprised by your moves, I'd bet every nickel I ever owned that he's had the same training. And you do not want to get sucked into whatever one of Duquesne's protégées is interested in you for, okay?"
Kate frowned. "Dad, it's not like I don't know how to take care of myself-"
"I'm not saying you can't. I'm saying you don't want to meet his trainer. Or any of the rest of 'em, really. They're a Hydra side project. They're not gonna be nice, especially if you're my kid." He gave her a significant look with both eyebrows raised. "And if he was trained by the Swordsman? He knows who you are and who trained you. He's not playing just to get you riled, sweetheart. Something else is going on."
Kate paused, her curiosity piqued too much to ignore. "Maybe if I-"
"No." Clint put his hands on both of her shoulders. "Not until you and I spend a little more time together. I taught you how to use a sword, but you need to know the rest of their tricks, okay? Not just the ones with weapons."
Kate almost argued, but she saw how serious her dad looked - and that never happened - so she nodded instead. "Okay," she said and then smiled and gave him a hug. "Love you too."
"Yeah, yeah," Clint said and then picked her up in a spinning hug, kissed the top of her head, and set her down again. "Okay. Go get your sword."
All told, it had taken over two weeks for James to finish re-taking all of the tests MIT requested, and then, not one of the testers had a thing to say to him when he not only met his scores from the first time around but blew them out of the water. The tests themselves were different, of course - different questions, different equations, even different material altogether on some - but it didn't matter. James knew his stuff. And since he was mad, he was annoyingly accurate on every single question. And since they said they'd use only the new test scores for his record, the faculty was stuck with admitting the kid had some serious knowledge - and confidence about that knowledge. What's worse was he knew he was right about everything, and as they graded his tests, with him waiting for them to pass judgment, he watched them with a flat expression waiting for them to admit - one by one - that they'd wasted his time.
The faculty that actually knew and liked the kid were all thrilled, but those that were trying to hide their racist leanings were forced to quietly admit that there was no way he could have cheated … before sending him to the next task. Which, as it turned out, was a hard deadline to catch up on a few classes that had been going on for over a month.
Which meant he had to call his dad and let him know that no, he wasn't going to be able to come home that weekend either. Not when he had a few professors that were apparently of the same mindset as the dean. He'd passed the classes before … but now he had to do it again under supervision.
He was in the library with half a dozen books laid out in front of him as he worked on three different assignments when he distantly heard the click-clack of high heels down the hall. It wasn't an unusual sound - there were a few young women in the student body that wore heels, and a handful of faculty members as well, but none of them were that … proficient in walking in them.
After that thought entered James' mind, he paused and listened a little more intently to the metered rhythm … something else that most of the brainiacs in that college did not do well at all. But when the sound disappeared a handful of doors down, James blinked twice, then refocused on his work. He had to get this done, after all. And considering the topic he'd been assigned for this paper was quantum communications in regards to encryption, he didn't have a lot of wiggle room. Particularly since this professor didn't want anything to do with theories. Especially ones that had been written up by anyone in the hero business and in particular anything to do with Tony's work. Which left him with not a whole lot of sources that were worth anything.
He was halfway through a tricky explanation when someone stopped across from him at the table he was using … and just stood there. Since no one had bothered trying to talk to him so far, he didn't see anything wrong with ignoring this person either. And then she let out an irritated sound from the back of her throat and crossed her arms. But since she hadn't bothered to acknowledge him other than to rudely stare, James continued to ignore her. All the way up until he shifted to grab a book to double check the reference information and this rude stranger reached out to close his laptop.
"I don't have all day, darling," she said, which James found incredibly irritating. So he didn't bother hiding his expression as he finally leaned back in his chair and looked up at her. "Do you know who I am?"
Which was about when James started actually thinking about it. It wasn't his fault his mind was on more important matters when Emma freaking Frost wanted unearned attention. But he also knew about her ego … and how she likely couldn't read his mind without him letting her in. So he chose to test her. "Should I?"
She sounded both insulted and impatient as she tried not to roll her eyes and instead leaned on the table. "You should." She narrowed her eyes and gave him an open once over. "I'm the authority on student rights for mutants on the east coast. My influence crosses all major colleges, and I am your best bet to resolve this little … discrepancy." She held her hand out finally. "Emma Frost."
James considered her for a moment, and without any good reason not to - outside of the stories he'd heard about her - the corners of his mouth tightened as he took her hand and gently shook it. "James-"
"I know who you are, dear," she said in a thick tone. "Why else would I be here?"
"I'm kind of wondering why you're here now," James admitted.
"You're Tony Stark's new golden boy," she said. "Your business is in all the papers; everyone's talking about it. And this newest hitch reeks of exclusionism."
James considered her for a moment as she opened her tote and started pulling out papers. "Miss Frost," James started.
"Please, call me Emma," she said, cutting across him with a tight smile.
"I'd rather not," he countered, which had her pausing. "Did Tony send you?"
She blinked at him, then broke into a laugh that he was pretty sure was used to condition people to flee. "Of course not," she said, looking amused. "I told you, I take it upon myself to look out for young mutants in need of an advocate."
"With all due respect, I've advocated for myself."
"Which is why they're treating you like a common cheat," she replied. "You need me to help you fix this." When James elected not to cut her off at the knees- just because he hadn't known she'd be even a distant issue - she took it as an invitation. "Do you know what triggered this reversal of support from the faculty?"
"No," James admitted, and before he could open his mouth to ask anything further, she continued on to her next point.
"Where exactly have you been hiding all these years, James? It's hard to build up a solid case in your favor if I don't know even the small details…"
"Are you a lawyer?"
"No-"
"So if you're not a lawyer, and Tony didn't call you in," James said, then leaned toward her as he stood up, his hands on the tabletop, "why are you here?" When she opened her mouth, he cut across her this time. "If you say you're some kind of representative for mutants again, I'm going to get a restraining order."
Emma frowned. "What in the world makes you think any court would honor a restraining order to protect a mutant from another mutant?"
James paused but didn't have a reasonable answer when she was probably right. "Listen, I understand that you took time out of your day, but I don't need help beyond what I've already got, and I know no one in my circle reached out to you-"
"Yet I'm here all the same trying to help you."
"You didn't let me finish," James said, letting his voice drop lower. "I know your reputation in regards to the crowd I run in, and I'm sure you know that's not as sterling as you're trying to represent for yourself. The only thing you could tell me is why you're trying to get me to trust you, Ms Frost, because I don't. I don't trust anyone that I don't know personally. And I have no reason to, especially if they show up claiming to want to work in my best interests weeks after anything like that could have been a possibility."
Emma paused and looked irritated before she tried to push through his mental defenses, only to let out a frustrated sound. "Like it or not, I make it my business to ensure that promising mutants find their way through whatever trouble is artificially erected to hold them back. You pinged my radar in spite of everything I know about your lineage."
"Alright, now we're done," James said in a duller tone, since after having met his parents, he wasn't going to entertain anyone who used that tone in reference to them.
"Honestly, James. I just want to know who got you to where you are."
James was fuming, working his jaw as he tried to find the right way to handle her while staying within the boundaries that Tony and Janet had taught him on how to handle trying situations in public - acutely aware of how many sets of eyes and ears were watching them. "Don't you listen to the news or read the papers? I'm here because Tony Stark saw some potential and helped to open a few doors. As for why I'm here today, as you said, someone took exception to my being a mutant. Not really a unique story on that front."
"I know Tony Stark," Emma said. "There is no way that man raised you, and I am well-aware that you've been without your parents for most of your life. It's not out of line to ask which tragic little hero decided to step in and take on a lost little cub."
"That's not what you asked." His tone made it clear exactly how unamused James was at her phrasing.
"That's what I'm asking now, darling."
James tried very hard not to glare at her as he could hear the students in the library slowly gravitating closer to hear the gossip. So he knew he had to be measured in his answer. "Not that it's any of your business, but Tony did have a hand in raising me."
"Who else?"
"I'm sure if you take a look at the Avengers roster from the past ten years, it should be simple enough to fill in the blanks."
"You know I'll just be forced to look at your application papers if you're going to be stubborn about it."
"That, Ms Frost, would be a violation of my privacy, especially since I'm not granting you permission to do so," James said. "That's a point that I'm sure at least one person in that tower would take offense to."
Emma smirked and tipped her chin up. "All the same, James … I do plan to advocate for you whether you like it or not. I look forward to seeing what you're capable of - and I will be watching you." She took out a business card and slipped it into the pocket in his folder. "When you finally realize that to get your credentials in this college or any other, you will need an advocate that doesn't cash paychecks with the school seal on it, you'll be hard pressed to find someone that is better suited and willing to help make it possible for you to live up to the potential that Tony Stark has promised the world. I'm telling you now, your best bet is to have me in your corner. Think it over ... and call me." She tapped the card and readjusted her jacket. "Regardless of what stories you may have been told, I am the best at making sure young mutants get a fair shake in places like this that suddenly take issue with mutants that outshine them." She turned to leave, only tossing a final comment over her shoulder. "Or you can just keep studying and putting in the work that should land you three more Masters than what you already earned."
James watched her go, then sat down - distracted by the woman's push enough that it took him a few minutes to remember himself and what he was doing before she had interrupted him. He closed his eyes, took a few deep breaths, and opened his laptop again, surprising himself when he only needed to re-read half a paragraph before he dove back into his work, doing his best to put Emma Frost out of his mind when he was so swamped with work.
The daily pattern for Billy was amazingly manageable, if he was being honest. Every morning, he got to wake up with his sweetheart kissing him into consciousness or bringing in breakfast for the two of them to share before they got upright and into their days. He didn't even mind waking up early when that was how he got to wake up.
No one but Tommy really seemed to notice that he wasn't sleeping at the school, so naturally, Billy was sure they were well on the way to their own new, private version of normalcy. And … as a side effect, watching James quietly study the papers he needed to practically memorize to finish his theses, Billy was motivated to get through his own homework quickly. His GPA had never been better at Xavier's.
And almost as fun as the wake ups and quiet study sessions was when James would dive in to making dinner for them … or ordering it if he was really exhausted. But even that meant some good, quality time wrapped up between the two of them before they ended up going up to bed to snuggle some more. They were practically an old married couple, save for the fact that they were doing so much with schoolwork.
But it was a big weekend for Billy and Tommy, because their mother was celebrating her birthday, and she'd asked for some time with just her boys. For the first time ever, Tommy was the one to complain because he wasn't getting the total immersion experience like Billy was with his sweetheart.
It made things simpler, logistics wise, for Billy, though. It would be hard to get busted by coming home with James if he wasn't going to be anywhere near the Summers family when James finally got enough done to take a break. Even if he would have loved to watch the whole group get together after nearly a month apart. But … Billy could share. A little. And it was only a couple of days before the two of them would inevitably meet up again in Cambridge to get reacquainted after the weekend and compare notes on how things were with their families.
James was successful in repressing the library encounter with Emma Frost. He'd thrown himself into his work and had finished catching up in most of his classes after a hard push - and enough was done that he could actually go home after three full weeks to meet up to the college's insane demands. But of course, part of his long list of rules in place was that he had to leave his papers and research at school. He could take books with him, but he couldn't take his half-done papers or research on the grounds that he was being watched for anyone that might help him by doing it for him. The inhospitable attitude of the staff and wariness of the students had him so ready to get home that he was looking forward to a day or two not studying. He even decided to head out Friday after class instead of waiting for Saturday morning, early. He just needed a break. Knowing that Billy and Tommy were due to check in with their parents on Genosha as soon as they got out of class in Westchester… it really was a no brainer.
As he cleaned out his folder, he didn't really look at the things he was getting out of the pockets of his book bag and folders. There were a few notes to himself he'd written on what he did want to bring home or what he wanted to get from home, a card from the closest coffee shop, and a pencil among other little bits of flotsam, but he wasn't even looking at them as he shoved them in his coat pocket opposite his key fob.
From there, he didn't pack anything - he had clothes at home, after all. He didn't worry about much more than following Natasha's protocols and making sure the alarms were active before he went into the garage and took a few moments double checking that he had the same program on the car inducer that he'd used when they brought the car there. Then, he let out a sigh, opened the garage door, and started it up … reminding himself as he pulled out of the driveway that he needed to not draw any undue attention to himself on the way home by treating the freeway like a racetrack. Even if he really wanted to.
He didn't warn anyone in Brooklyn about his quick return, eager to get there and see everyone. He was twenty minutes out from home when he finally remembered that it was a big game night. His focus shifted, thinking about all the games he'd been missing over the stress around the college, and for once, even the promise of a crowd wasn't a deterrent. James made a decision without thinking it through at all. It was his little brother's big foray into football as the team captain, and for the first time that season, James decided to go see how Nate was handling things.
By the time he parked, the game was halfway into the second quarter. The last email from Nate had made it clear that their dad was on one of his public quiet flirting sessions in place of an actual date. Knowing that Scott was with Annie, who James had yet to meet, James kind of wanted to see if it was as tragically awkward as Nate had described it.
He was careful to keep his mind closed so as not to tip off Nate or Rachel if she was around. He wanted to get his brother to stutter on the field when he surprised him. The visiting team was part of a big rivalry … and it had been far too long since James had done something like that to him. So he kept an eye and a nose out for their dad - and smirked when he saw him on the far end of the field with Nate's teacher, quietly engaged in polite conversation. He had one shot at this before Kate or his dad spotted him. And he was damn sure he wasn't going to waste it.
So, James found a spot near enough to the fifty yard line and slipped into the center of the crowd of high schoolers with the hood of his sweatshirt up like most of the crowd of teenagers. He carefully worked his way up to the fence separating the crowd from the track … and promptly blew his little brother's cool. "Come on, QB, move your ass for once!"
Nate had been losing steam, but his head whipped up, and he grinned when he saw James looking like pure trouble, which was right about when James opened his mind so Nate could talk when he had a second. You didn't say you were coming home tonight, Nate accused him as they set up for the next play. Nice to see you being you.
I didn't know I was coming home tonight. Had to get out of there, so … here I am.
Rachel's here explaining the game to America … did you see Dad and Ms. Hale?
The curly-haired woman that's blushing bright red half the time?
That's her. She's cute, right? For Dad, anyhow …
James chuckled to himself. Just win, would you? More fun when you do.
I was planning on it, Nate replied, energized a little more now that he had the rest of the family cheering him on. Oh, and Kate is glad you're here too.
James turned toward the cheerleaders but managed to keep from laughing outright when he saw Kate bouncing. She'd been telling him to go to one of the games, but this was the first time since the Stark announcement that James had gone anywhere this public without an inducer on … which was about when he realized it might have been better if he had.
A couple of the teenagers around him had caught on to who he was once he'd spoken up, and a few were trying to take sneaky selfies with him in the background … but it was a little too late now to change course, and to be honest, he was tired enough he really didn't care. He just wanted to see his brother play. He turned to one of the obvious ringleaders and tipped his chin up. "Hey. You think you can get your friends to learn how to chill a little bit?" James said. "I don't care if you want to say 'hi' or whatever, but … don't mob me or I'll have to split. I'm here for the game. Just like you."
Which had Nate doing everything he could to keep from folding over laughing on the field. Oh my God, Nate was projecting as they lined up. You know that guy has zero chill all the time.
I did ask if he could learn, James replied, only half distracted by the now-quietly shifting group of high-schoolers around him.
Dad wants to know what the hell you're thinking showing up like this. He's not mad that you're here, but he's a little … um … tense about the whole no inducer thing.
James sighed internally. I just wanted to see you play. Half forgot something stupid like this could happen. Tell him not to worry; I'm not approaching anyone in the family or friends circle. The car's in the lot, I'll change the appearance under an overpass or in an alley, and when I step out of it at home, I've got my inducer set to be an mashup of the three of you, so for once, I'll look like I belong there, okay?
Don't need an inducer for that, Rachel cut in.
I do if you want to keep your cover, James argued. And that has always been the problem with me being with you guys and you know it. Just … quit with the squishy crap and let's watch Nate make the other guys cry, huh?
The group quickly settled in at their various points to watch, partly because James was right in focus of the high schoolers and partly because Nate almost got sacked for being distracted and Scott wasn't having it.
If you can't keep your focus- Scott started to project to Nate, but Nate shot him down quickly.
Yeah, yeah, I know. Not like you're not totally losing your focus either, Dad. You're one to talk.
I'm not the one playing football, Scott shot back.
I got it, Dad, Nate said, and to his credit, Scott could see him rallying, especially since his coach was chewing him out just as readily as Scott had been.
Scott leaned back, shaking his head, though when he did that, Annie reached over and put her hand on his knee to draw his attention. She smirked at him when he looked her way. "Oh, like you can blame that boy," she said, her smirk widening into a smile. "He adores his big brother, you know. And you're just as distracted as he is - for good reason. You can't expect him not to notice."
"I expect him to keep his head," Scott pointed out.
Annie shook her head. "Oh please. If you can't focus, what makes you think your kids can? You don't realize how protective you can be of each other. Including those boys."
Scott shook his head. "That doesn't exactly make me feel any better."
"It should." Annie let the subject drop for the moment as the crowd got too loud for normal conversation - Nate had just thrown a 10-yard pass to get the first down they needed. She grinned and nudged Scott with her elbow. "He's starting to show off."
"He's just that good," Scott said, reflexively, and Annie laughed.
"Just watch," she told him. "He gets so proud when he talks about his brother. He wants to make him just as proud. You'll see."
Scott didn't argue, especially not when Annie was in such a good mood and Nate was, actually, focusing better by that point. And the more he watched the game, the more he saw that she was right. Nate really was playing better. His calls were smarter. His passes were solid.
Scott didn't realize he was smiling until Annie shifted to take his hand and squeeze it. "You've got good kids, Scott."
"Don't I know it," Scott said, though he'd moved on from watching Nate to checking on James, somehow not surprised to see that James was being careful and strategic about even the way he cheered for the team. He kept it mostly to heckling the other side and cheering for whichever player had the best play, not giving away any favorites.
Annie let him watch his kids for a while longer before she leaned over to kiss his cheek - and start a new conversation among some of the nearby students. The ones who weren't trying to get a peek at what James was up to, anyway. "By the way," she said, as casually as if she was talking about the weather, "my brother let me know you've been talking to him."
"Ah." Scott wasn't sure how to react, since he wasn't sure what Craig had said and definitely wasn't sure how Annie felt about it.
Annie's smile softened when she saw how Scott was holding his breath. "It's alright," she said. "Actually, it's a relief to hear you're talking to someone. When I first met you…" She trailed off, and he turned toward her with a frown. "Well. I'm glad for whatever Craig has done to help you. I could see why Nate wanted you to start dating, but you weren't ready."
He sighed. "Annie-"
"I don't mean anything by it," she said, holding up one hand. "But you've lost a weight you were carrying. I don't know what it was, and I won't pry. But I hope one day you'll trust me to tell me all of it." She blushed and tucked her hair behind her ear. "Oh, I mean… well, if we're still… well, you know what I meant."
"Yeah, I do," Scott said, his own face burning in a way that made him feel like he was twenty and dating Jean again.
Thankfully, the game got intense before the silence between them could stretch on for too long, so both of them seemed to decide that cheering Nate on was better than trying to navigate the idea of talking about long-term trust and other dangerous topics.
For the first time in a long time, James was, in fact, literally hanging out with kids his own age in the overspill of the student section. It kept the most boisterous teenagers that wanted to get close to someone they'd seen making headlines calm and out of the way of the rest of the crowd. But even at that, it was a lot more relaxed than the usual people pestering and questioning him. And Rachel looped Scott in when one of the football players that had been injured in a previous game joined the group that was trying to make friends with James and started asking the pushier questions.
The guy came up on crutches with an incredibly vile remark about Rachel, and though Rachel knew James wanted to knock his teeth down his throat for talking about his sister that way, James not only surprised her but ended up shaming the kid for being chauvinistic.
"Hey," James told him in a firm tone. "What kind of asshole talks about women like that, huh? Even if we were dating, you think I'm gonna be a jackass and spill about someone I'm with? What the hell's wrong with you?" Which … had most if not all of the kids around him nodding in agreement before they more or less shamed the football player into leaving, and it left the group of kids around him feeling a little more like a unified front. All while most of them were trying to echo his sentiment in an effort to look more … well. James wasn't entirely sure what they were trying to prove, but if it meant no one else there would ask him about screwing around with his sister - even if no one knew she was his sister- he'd take it.
And Rachel was patently amused by the move, too. Nice way to get them to play follow the leader, Rachel teased from the visitor's side next to America.
Won't last long, James said, though he was turned to listen to what the girl next to him was saying.
Rachel didn't argue with him - it was a pain to do on the best of circumstances, far worse when he was convinced he wasn't having any influence when he actually was. It was one of those things that she noticed when they'd met James' parents from another reality.
Nate was doing great, too - and his team was up by enough that the visiting team had no chance of catching up by the time the final quarter was half over. Which was about when James decided it would be wise to try and get out now before the whole of the crowd had nothing better to do than mob him. He was up and out amazingly quickly, even after having been surrounded for most of the time he'd been there. And he even managed to beat the family home, though he didn't drop the inducer until Rachel at least walked in the front door. He wanted her to check his work, after all.
James held out his arms as he leaned on the counter when Rachel and Scott came in together. "Well? Does this work better?" As he'd said, he had hints of both his siblings in the facial features, but with Scott and Nate's shade of brown hair instead of Rachel's red.
"You look kinda like Alex," Rachel said, smiling as she made her way over to give him a hug.
"Yeah, computer generated it; I just inputted everyone in the family that's blood-related to you guys."
Rachel squeezed him tighter; then, when the hug was over, she made a point to turn the inducer off. "Much better as you."
"Love you too," James said, then let his shoulders drop before Scott came over to give him a tight hug as well. "Hi, Dad. How was your play date with Miss Hale?"
"Don't think that's going to get you out of a talk," Scott said. "And she's a good person. Don't …"
"I promise, if you actually want me to meet her, I'll behave enough to do that," James swore as he picked up his jacket from the back of the chair it was hanging on. "I'm a little spacey after all the tests and work."
"I'll bet," Scott said, smirking as James hung his jacket up then headed back into the kitchen for some water. He turned to hang up his own coat when some things fell out of James' pocket, and out of habit, he bent down to pick them up - only to lose his smile and good mood when he saw among the scraps of paper Emma Frost's business card.
For an instant, Scott was in shock. Of all the many, many things that he thought he might find, Emma's name was the very last. He felt his mouth go dry, and his pulse picked up before he was trying to piece it together. "Hey, James," he said cautiously.
"Yeah?" James called back from the kitchen.
"Why don't you have a seat. We need to have a talk."
"Yeah, I figured as much," James said before he pulled a chair out at the kitchen table and sat down, waiting for Scott to catch up and start chewing on him. He knew it was an eventuality from the moment he realized he should have worn his inducer to the football game.
Scott took a seat across from him, frowning to himself and trying to decide the best way to start this particular conversation. It was a mark of how differently his boys approached getting in trouble when Scott realized he was almost waiting for James to start a preemptive defense .. but that was Nate's move. Not James'. James was just quietly … waiting.
But he had to get the most pressing issue out first. "I don't want to stop you from supporting your brother; you know that," Scott started out, and James nodded silently watching his dad for how this was going to go down. "But what you pulled tonight was reckless. You put yourself and the people you love in danger." He couldn't help that his tone was getting more insistent and harsher with every word, and for his part, James didn't blink or argue with him one bit.
"I know. You're right. I screwed up," James said softly, breaking eye contact to stare down at his hands. He knew he'd blown it, even if the night had gone down to be relatively uneventful. "I don't have a defense for it."
Scott narrowed his eyes for just an instant, not that James saw it. This was always harder somehow when there was no pushback. At least with Nate and Rachel, he got to know exactly where they were, mentally. James … he just accepted that he screwed up, leaving Scott wondering how much was really sinking in. "Things are different now, James. It's not like when you were a kid." He set Emma's business card down on the table and gently pushed it toward him. "You're a high-profile target, now. Not just for the people I tried to prepare you for, either. People like this, too. "
James stared a the card and let out a long, slow breath, but still didn't offer any defense, which had Scott scrubbing a hand over his face.
"Listen," he said in a much more collected and calmer tone. "I know that … I haven't been entirely complete in telling you what Emma Frost is capable of. Part of that was because … I guess it's hard to admit when you've screwed up that badly. Especially to your own kids." Scott paused, and James looked up to watch him without comment before Scott gathered his thoughts and launched into telling James everything.
He detailed how Emma infiltrated the team, how she drove a wedge between himself and Jean, how she alienated anyone on the team she didn't like - James' father in particular - and how she went on to use the X-Men like her own personal pawns for the Hellfire Club. And how, through it all, Scott almost blindly followed her and let her use him and his position within the team without any pushback … until he snapped out of it and got back to his senses.
Through all of it, James simply listened quietly. Though when Scott mentioned that Emma wasn't above playing below the beltline, James finally reacted, sitting back and shaking his head in protest. "It's her go-to move," Scott said, almost enjoying the expression of disbelief and revulsion James was wearing.
"Dad-"
"I'm trying to prepare you."
"I don't … think …" James closed his eyes and shook his head minutely.
"What did she want?"
"I feel like it would be a lot easier to just … have Rachel let you into my memory to see for yourself. If there's something I missed, maybe you'll see it. You know her … way better than I wanted to hear. Ever."
Scott almost smirked but nodded. "That … I don't want you to fall back on that for everything, but you're right. In this case, that would be the most complete way to tell me."
James nodded; then, instead of calling or projecting, he texted his sister, who, as it turned out was just waiting to get invited into the talk, even if she thought it was just about the inducer. When she heard the explanation, though, she nodded and had both of them relax. James had to take an extra couple of minutes to open his mind enough for Rachel to link the three of them up, since when he was stressed, he tended to go to his natural preset of closed. But that also meant that Scott and Rachel pretty much had to self-guide - not that it was hard to find when James was now worried about the memory.
Of course, that also meant that Rachel and Scott got a front row view of exactly how anxious James was about everything. Not just the Emma memory. Seeing all the stress, too - that gave Scott a much clearer picture of how James had made such a big mistake with the inducer after such a long run of being on top of things, too. And he was sure that for James, not having Billy around wasn't helping matters; Emma really had picked a bad time to show up when Billy was gone with his family and not as good about answering texts in a very different time zone.
And all at once, Scott realized just how much like him James was. Yes, he had enough of his father and mother that Scott was taken aback at least once a day by the similarities. But here, he saw his son trying to shoulder everything, trying not to bother anyone else, trying to live up to the pressures the adults in his life put on him.
It was no wonder he'd forgotten the inducer. But it was also no wonder Emma had pushed to know who raised him.
After the mind share was over, James didn't say a word. He couldn't look at either of them as he waited for what Scott had to say about the encounter, fidgeting with his hands as he waited to get his dad's take on matters.
"Alright," Scott said quietly. "You need to tread lightly when it comes to her. The fact that she has an interest isn't going to change without her deciding as much on her own. She's going to be a pain - for what purpose, I can't be entirely sure."
"Dad-"
"I'm just telling you the truth. I need you to be careful. I know you're already well-aware, but … if Emma pushes herself into this … arrangement … she'll treat you like a possession if she decides to treat you well at all."
"I don't - want anything to do with-"
"That won't matter. If she decides to stick her nose in, you'll be hard pressed to get rid of her." Scott reached across the table to rest his hand on James' wrist. "Especially if she realizes Stark was underselling your potential."
"Okay, but that's got to be the most weighted, dad-like thing you've said all night," James replied as the door opened and Nate let himself in - smiling and in high spirits.
"Good game, Nate," Scott called out - automatically, as he always did after Nate's team won a game.
But Rachel didn't bother to pretend there wasn't a meeting of the minds happening and simply projected everything that had happened straight to Nate. Dad's all kinds of tense about Emma and it's not just the therapy stuff he told us about, she summed up for him before she gave him the projected version, which had him stopping in the doorway with both eyebrows raised.
"You did great, little brother," James said, when it was clear the telepathic conversation with Rachel was over. "I particularly liked the long passes that left the other guys swearing. Sorry I didn't stick around to see the victory dance."
"Yeah, yeah, Kate already accused me of TK," Nate said.
"If you'd done that, your receiver would have been flying. She'll realize, sooner or later, that you're just as good a shot." James did his best to smirk. "Outshoot her breaking bottles with dimes and she'll have to admit it."
Nate smirked. "What, and let her think the competition is ever gonna stop? No way," he teased. "Besides, I'm pretty sure I'm interrupting a way more interesting conversation here."
"Debatable," James shot back, but by the look Rachel and Scott were both giving him, he knew that wasn't going to cut it. "Alright. I'll … just do what I can to avoid her. Pay more attention when I'm in places like that."
"That's a start," Scott said. "And I'm going to want you and everyone on the team - and everyone on the Avengers - to meet with Betsy. Emma will bend everyone around her to her will, and the Avengers never had to deal with telepathic interference like we did. Betsy will gladly build better defenses for anyone who needs it if she hears who's come calling."
"Can't I just … carry a can of drugstore perfume and spray her with it if she comes too close? Or holy water? Something ..."
"James, she was asking about who raised you because you react so much like me," Scott said, leveling with him. "And as much as it pains me to admit it, that makes you even more…" He searched for the right word, his face contorted in distaste.
"Please don't."
"I don't like it any more than you do," Scott pointed out. "And that's why I'm going to ask everyone to renew or rebuild their defenses. She already knows Stark has an interest in your future; I would not be surprised if she's found a way to get to him if she decides she wants to use him. He's got exactly the kind of power the Hellfire Club would like to use. And that's just him."
"Well this just sucks," James said quietly, something he rarely would say anyhow, usually opting instead to stay quiet and let others express that particular sentiment. But then, he narrowed his eyes and looked back up at Scott. "Do you think they can figure out how long she's been acting like a stalker?"
Scott nodded. "Like I said, Betsy will absolutely jump at the chance to make sure Emma never gets her hands on any of you." He nodded to himself and then, simply because he knew James was feeling vulnerable, added, rubbing the back of his neck, "And besides, she's always had the worst timing. If she pulls from anyone's mind that… well… that I'm dating again…"
James nodded once. "Alright, but is this going to be a whole thing where you start sending people to babysit me? Because I'm already half set to say screw it if this is how the first month of being there goes."
Scott simply nodded. "For now, we'll keep things the way they are outside of having Betsy reinforce everyone's defenses. Let Emma make the next move." He put his hand on James's shoulder. "Let us worry about this part. You just get this thing done with MIT and ignore her like you've been doing. You're doing everything right. Don't let her stop you now."
"Right. Should be a breeze." James ran a hand through his hair. "So, when are you going to inform everyone about this nonsense?" He held up his phone. "I want to know if I need to shut it off tonight or not - because as soon as this goes out, Tony's going to start pushing."
Scott smiled at that. "I'm going to want to tell everyone as soon as possible so we can stop Emma before she gets rolling, to be honest."
James nodded. "Then I'll just turn it off now," he said as he did exactly that. "Have fun. I just want to sleep."
Scott smirked as he watched James head upstairs. The kid really was so much like his parents. But still, seeing so much of himself in him… he was surprised to find he was proud of that, too.
Chapter 78: Telepathic Battle Lines
Chapter Text
It was clear when Scott called in Betsy the following morning to help reinforce the entire team of young X-Men against telepathic tampering and to strengthen their mental defenses that James was pretty down on himself. It didn't help matters that by the time he'd gotten home the day that Emma had approached him, he hadn't even brought it up to Billy. So even Billy was a little surprised by the explanation of what had happened and why they were on edge - and more surprised when he didn't even hear it from James, even if he and Tommy were going to get their telepathic booster shot when they returned from Genosha.
Of course, that helped to reinforce in Scott's mind that Billy was as out of the loop as he was, thinking that Billy didn't know because he hadn't been around when it had happened. He still didn't know that James was more or less completely separating things that happened at school with his home life. Even with Bobby playing guardian Iceman, unless a panic button was hit, Bobby wasn't looking inside the house when James was alone.
Betsy was sure when they all gathered up at the tower, to double and triple check that James' psychic defenses were as strong as she could make them before he had to drive back to school the next evening before she moved on to the others since he'd been the one to actually encounter Emma. "I want you to call me if you feel as if anything is off," Betsy warned. "I've done all I can, and your natural defenses are incredibly tough, but … Emma Frost is a far less ethical telepath than I am, so I won't send you off with a false sense of security. If there is even a tiny chance that something is wrong, you need to call for back up." Betsy waited for James to nod his agreement before she let out an uneasy breath. "Don't try to handle it yourself if there's even the tiniest bit of doubt. The last thing any of us want for you is for you to have your mind compromised."
"Yeah, the security risks alone," James deadpanned.
Betsy smiled warmly, then took a hold of his arm. "It's more a consideration of how well you always care for the people you love. No one wants to lose that, or your troublemaking, or anything else about you … all of which goes back to your mind."
James didn't argue with her - not that she expected him to - and when it was clear she was done with him, he headed over to check in with Tony and Scott, leaving the rest of his team with Betsy working on each of them in turn.
"How's your head, kiddo?" Tony asked, resting a hand on the back of James' neck.
"I'm fine, really," James insisted.
"Physically, sure, for now," Tony agreed. "But I gotta tell you, this is exactly the kind of thing we need to hear about right away, not … well after." The suggestive tone and teasing look was a little too much for James though, who went back to looking at the ground as he nodded - not about to argue it with either of them. Even when Tony was making it sound as if something more dirty had happened already.
"Alright, lay off, Stark," Scott said. "He's scarred enough already and I already warned him about Emma's favorite methods."
The two of them shared a look and Tony made a face. "I was going to say her victims seem to be getting younger, but this is stone cold evidence-"
"I really hate it when you do this," James said, cutting Tony off. "Nothing happened and you know it."
"But if you weren't taken-"
"Hey," James said with a little more force, earning a grin out of Tony since they were pretty likely to pick hard back and forth. "I have never been so desperate to accept passes made by someone that …"
"She not evil enough for you?" Tony cut in. "Because if I understand your brother's scale of things, you're underestimating the Hellfire Club. Particularly their Inner Circle."
James stared at him, mouth still open from being interrupted. "No. I have never considered someone who'd sleep with you," James said in a pretty fair shot.
"That'd leave out a large population of the city," Tony said.
"So wrong," James said, shaking his head.
But at least Scott was willing to step in and try and rescue James from the direction this conversation was going. "How about you tell us how things are going with your newest project, since … I haven't heard much on the progress."
Scott raised an eyebrow Tony's way, and Tony supplied: "Been seeing if Tyler can mesh well with the team-"
"Are you sure that's a good idea?" Scott cut in before Tony could finish his explanation, one eyebrow raised and both arms crossed.
"Well, he can't chase what he wants to do," Tony said. "He explored it a little but it's not something that's really … he isn't able to get into the right schools with his background, and honestly, anyone that takes one look at him has already made up their minds before he can even talk. And since he can't be a physician, officially anyhow - he said he'd like to help do some good somewhere."
Scott frowned, thinking off all the problems James had with MIT and knowing, deep down, that Tony was right and no medical school was going to let a Creed in. And he knew that Tyler wasn't his father and had been kidnapped and forced into a weapons program - none of which was his fault. And yes, he knew he would be a hypocrite to have fought for Logan's inclusion on the team and then not let this kid have the same chance.
He just… didn't trust the kid. And he didn't have a good reason to. So, he rubbed a hand on the back of his neck. "I just hope you know what you're getting into," he said at last. "Even with Logan, even with the professor helping, when he went into the red… there was so much that we never were able to fix for him."
Tony closed one eye. "Maybe that's something Betsy can help with, then," Tony finally said. "We've been trying to get Tyler to react a little less … completely, but he hasn't figured out how to stop once he starts."
Scott paused as he considered how to break it to Tony. "Well … that might depend on what the problem is. Betts … had a specific conflict with his father that might be either very very helpful or a fast route to trouble."
"Okay, what's the story there?"
"She was primarily the one that was working alongside the Professor when he tried to help Sabretooth." Scott blew out a breath. "She nearly died when he broke through the psychic work that they'd done and he gutted her. She doesn't have a lot of love for the whole … look. I'm sure."
Tony frowned, looking over to where Betsy was working with the young team. "Still … can't hurt to ask, right?"
Scott gestured openly. "I think, all things considered with Tyler's history, that you're right. It would be good for him to get some help and get back to the kid he was before that department got hold of him. So if she can help, yeah, she will. I just wanted you to have all the background going in."
"He's really not a bad guy, most of the time," James put in for Scott's benefit, since he had spent a lot of time at the tower before he'd had to pack up and head to MIT. "Completely worthless with any kind of tech, but he still tries." That had Tony smirking as he put an arm around James' shoulders. "But considering what Dad just said? You probably ought to be the one to bring down the wrath of Psylocke."
"You can't 'not it' on something like this," Tony said flatly.
"Just did," James replied. "And it's your idea so …"
Tony nodded and gave James a little shake before he started off to talk to Betsy leaving James and Scott to watch the show.
"He might actually be good for the team, Dad," James said. "And he fights a lot differently when someone else isn't pushing the buttons."
Scott sighed. "I know," he said. "And I know I've got no right to tell him he can't… I fought for your dad under the same circumstances."
"His file wasn't as extensive as Logan's," James said. "They skipped a lot of the torture and went straight for programming. Theoretically, it should be something workable if he can commit … if I understand it from Rachel right."
Scott nodded and made an effort to relax. "That's good to hear too," he said. "But even just the programming will be hard to fight. That's all I'm saying."
"Hit him in the head hard enough and he stops," James said flatly. "Probably where the manual reset is…" It was a tease, but a quiet one in an effort to help Scott relax a little.
Scott let out a breath, recognizing the tease for what it was, and then reached out to ruffle James' hair. "Sorry. I'm not being a good example right now."
"You're being a great dad though, so … I'll take it. I just wanted you to know we've fought a few times since that first 'hello' and it's just different."
"And I trust your judgment," Scott said. "I did, in fact, admit that Tony Stark was right about something, so I'm hoping that makes up for me being so hesitant because of someone's genetics," he added with a wry smile.
"Yeah, don't gotta do that," James said.
"He says after I've already done it," Scott chuckled.
"I didn't know you were going to do something like that and he's off doing the whole ask the mutants for help thing. He needs to do this, you know. I've softened him up, but he doesn't reach out because he still feels guilty." James gave him a look.
Scott frowned. "Still?"
"I'm reasonably sure that's about half the reason he's bent over backwards for me."
"At the start, maybe, but that's not giving you enough credit since then," Scott pointed out.
"Alright." It was a solid non-confrontational disagreement, but he really didn't want to hash out what he really thought about all of it - and only part of that was from some of the crap he'd heard at school.
Fortunately, before the quiet discussion could turn into an argument, Tony returned with Betsy along with him. And before either could say anything, James pointed to Scott. "His idea."
"His idea to have Tony ask me to try and fix this Creed boy? Or his idea to get me here where stupid questions like asking me to fix the Creed boy could happen?" Betsy asked with a little more edge to her tone considering the subject matter.
"Yes," James said, nodding slowly.
Scott held up both hands. "Neither," he clarified. "James is trying to start something to get out of admitting he's a good kid."
Betsy smirked at that. "That's not news to anyone here," she said. "I told him, so I'll tell you too, I can't agree to do anything until I see what his feral break looks like. I need to know the triggers, his response, and of course, see how hard he is to break into. His father welcomed telepaths, but I don't know if that was purposeful or just the difference between his mutation and your parents."
"Door's open if you want to watch and weigh in," Tony said to Scott. "And you do have a lot more experience in this field than anyone here."
But that had James giving Scott a 'see?' sort of look as a silent 'told you so'.
Scott gave James a dry look but nodded all the same. "Yeah," he said. "If he responds more like Logan did than Sabretooth did…"
"Sabretooth reacted … well," Betsy stopped herself. "It was very very different between the two of them, and the only real problem I can see is if he does react more like Logan." She gave Scott a look. "We never could help him handle it when he really lost it, so I don't think we could do anything to help the Creed boy if he reacts like that."
"Not us, anyway," Scott said. "Jubilee could, though. Or K."
"I doubt someone hugging him would help," Betsy said, smirking at him.
"Alright then," Tony said, clapping his hands together. "On that note, if it's just an evaluation, I'm sure we can get that rolling to save you a trip back here. Take some time, decide after you see him work … then let me know. But I do want you to think it over before you come up with any answer." He waited for Betsy to nod, then he turned to James with a look and a moment later, James headed off to find Tyler leaving the three adults to walk to the training room together.
The walk was silent, even though it was clear Tony was trying not to start talking to make a case for Tyler from the angle of the kind of person he was proving himself to be when he wasn't fighting. But he really was trying to leave it wide open for Betsy to see for herself without the pressure he'd normally put on.
And Betsy was doing her best callback to her days on the catwalk, nose in the air, nearly strutting and looking prepared to smack down anyone who crossed her. Her icy look didn't melt in the least when they turned the corner and she spotted Tyler as he chatted with James and Thor outside of the training room.
James turned to see them approach as soon as Tyler looked their way, though he didn't say anything to help or hurt Ty's chances as Betsy slowed down and Tyler took it as a cue to make his attempts at being friendly. He excused himself as he stepped between James and Thor, his head down and his shoulders rounded forward in an effort to look smaller on his way over. He half-tripped over his own feet a few steps into his trek, and he couldn't stop the broad smile as he ran a hand through his short hair and offered his other hand to Betsy to shake while he introduced himself. "Hi, it's a pleasure to meet you, I'm Tyler." He smiled again, more nervous this time, and it was clear from the wide eyes and the fact that he was half holding his breath that he didn't think anyone outside of whoever was in the tower usually would even consider helping him in any capacity. "I… don't really know what you want to see, but I'll do my best to show you … um … I guess whatever you tell me."
"I want to see you fight," Betsy said, frowning at the boy's outstretched hand for a moment before she gingerly shook it - surprised when he was incredibly delicate about it.
"Oh. Okay," Tyler said slowly, turning to look over his shoulder at James and Thor. "I've spent more time practicing with James-"
"No," Betsy said harshly, shaking her head as she said it. "No, you can fight Thor."
"Alright," Tyler said, looking a little anxious about that decision. "I can do that."
When he started back toward Thor, James came back, though Tony redirected him to keep going. "Go check in with your teammates," Tony said as he looked past Betsy to Scott. The two of them shared a nod in silent agreement that Betsy wasn't up to watching this Creed fight this Wolverine. "Pretty clear you don't need to be anywhere near this evaluation."
As always, James didn't argue, though he did kiss Betsy's cheek on his way past, which got her to relax a little bit. She smiled to herself, then turned toward Scott. "I guess we get to see what a junior Sabretooth can do."
"I won't tell you about how he met the team until this is over," Scott said with a quiet smirk. "Just in case you need the laugh."
"Laugh is kind of a stretch, don't you think?" Tony said, frowning.
"For the first part, it is, but the second part?" Scott said, which had the two men smirking.
"Now I want to get this over with," Betsy said as they followed Tony into the booth and Scott pulled out her seat for her.
As it happened, Tyler was a little shy to start fighting, and even once it was going well, the taunts from Thor weren't quite enough to really rile him properly or get him to take the offensive. Not even when Thor started really working him over. It wasn't until Tyler found himself in a pin that made it hard to breathe that he even started growling, but once that happened, it all came in quickly. He pushed Thor back bodily and barely dodged a heavy hit. It came down to grappling though - when Tyler knew that Thor could force him to cease all movement - and could handle whatever Tyler dished out, too.
The moment that it was clear that Thor was taking him down - and dragging him backward - Tyler had what almost looked like a break, but where Tony and his team saw a whole lot of fight, Betsy was leaning toward the glass with her lips parted. But all she offered in commentary was a whispered out 'bullocks' that both men seemed not to have expected from her.
It took Thor some time to get Tyler to finally simmer down, and when he finally did, out of breath and apologizing profusely, Betsy gestured widely with both arms before she crossed them over her chest, muttering curses under her breath the whole time.
"Betts…?" Scott ventured when she didn't say anything.
"That's not a feral break. Not as we know it anyhow," she said, her accent thicker when she was this far off of what she'd expected. "He's having a bloody panic attack."
Scott blinked - and even Tony didn't respond for a good few seconds. "Well, damn," Tony said, the first to recover his voice.
Betsy ignored Tony entirely to turn toward Scott, pointing at Tyler through the window. "That boy … his mind is so much like his father's - minus the complete and utter lack of humanity. But the thought process -the basics on how things connect? This makes so much sense now." She leaned toward Scott, the start of a smile playing at her features. "It's fight or flight, Scott … guess which way his family runs?"
Scott was trying not to smile as well, because he simply couldn't fathom what she was suggesting. "Flight? Seriously?" he asked, the smile escaping him despite his best efforts.
"I could never understand why the man never had a break like Logan did …" she broke into a grin. "He wasn't capable of it. Any time he came close to his panic attack and his flight, his tried to deflect. He began to hurt people to hide the fact that he was trying to end the panic attack. He couldn't stand the idea that anyone might know he was afraid."
"Alright," Tony cut in, "but the end result here is still that Tyler's slicing and dicing, you know…"
"Next time, see what he does if he has what he thinks is a clear escape route. I'll bet he goes for it. Now … as long as he's not a complete and total narcissistic sociopath, he should be workable," Betsy said. "That was what his father's real issue was. Not the mutation - other than the fact it wasn't the one he wanted, that is. He never did stick around when Logan truly went into the red. He got out of the way and ran."
Scott shook his head slowly, still fighting back a smile. "Well, this kid has no problem with expressing his panic. You should ask Rachel to project the way they met."
"Is it that good that you can't just tell me?" Betsy asked, swiveling toward him, though he'd already reached out for Rachel to meet up with them so she could do just that.
"Oh, I could tell you, but I think to see it for yourself is so much better," Scott said.
"Have you seen it then?" Betsy asked.
Scott nodded. "Accidental projection when it happened. She panicked thinking James was in trouble."
Betsy raised an eyebrow at that, but it wasn't long before Rachel made her way in, wearing a smile. "What did I miss?" Rachel asked, pulling up a chair to squeeze in between Scott and Betsy.
"Just the fact that we've discovered that Tyler Creed - and his father - have a flight reaction that is far stronger than their fight reaction," Betsy said.
Rachel almost said something witty but realized her father was projecting to her to wait until Betsy had seen Tyler's pure flight reaction to James kissing him, and she nearly laughed when she realized what her father was up to. "Oh, okay," she said, nodding as seriously as she could before she went ahead and pulled them both in so she could project the memory out to them in all its glory from when Rachel came up to where they were fighting to Billy's intervention, but it included the now-legendary kiss-to-disarm.
Betsy, for all her poise and aristocrat upbringing held on as long as she could before she covered her mouth with an entirely undignified snort and broke down laughing. "Does he know how much like his mother he is?" Betsy said finally, with tears of laughter rolling down her cheeks.
"That was the first thing Dad said," Rachel said, laughing along with her and holding her dad's shoulder for support - not that he was much help either.
"Oh, he's never going to live that down," Betsy laughed. "And the two of them - have there been any other incidents?"
Rachel smiled wider. "Now and again, they joke about it. Tyler's trying to keep up to James' snark - and he does okay. The first time they fought here, Tyler told him kissing was off the table and James countered by telling him he'd have to buy him dinner for another shot."
But that had Betsy laughing all over again. "It's like hearing the stories of K and Tony…"
"Never did get her to agree to the dinner," Tony said, grinning good-naturedly. "Offer was open and everything. She's the one who said that's what it would take, and I met her conditions, right?"
"You never had a chance against Logan," Betsy said. "Didn't even make it to the starting line, did you?"
"Hey, didn't meet her until she was dating him. Not a fair race," Tony pointed out.
"No, not at all. And he still would have won even without the headstart," Betsy said, laughing to herself before she took a moment to compose herself. "Get a specialist in the same disorders that Creed had. Have them clear Tyler of any major psychotic mental health issues and I'll work with him." She turned toward Scott. "And aside from his whole … wide eyed bumpkin routine, he has a lot of the same interests of a few people we love dearly."
"Yeah, it's a shame no medical schools worth anything will take a Sabretooth lookalike," Scott said, let down on Tyler's behalf now that he better understood where his breaks were coming from.
"That's not the only one they won't take," Betsy said before she got to her feet and squeezed Rachel's shoulders. "But that kind of thing should be heard from a sweet little redhead who knows much more about everyone's business than she should."
Scott turned his whole body toward Rachel. "I'm not surprised. Spill."
"It's … it was a few years ago," Rachel said. And I didn't want to make you worry. I'm pretty sure it's not really a thing anymore.
"Rachel." Scott raised a single eyebrow.
She sighed and looked from her father to where Betsy had left, to where Tony still sat trying not to look like he was entirely invested in whatever was going on between the two Summerses. It was something James had considered and didn't push for because he did his research and figured out early that it wasn't even a remote possibility. He never said anything because he didn't want to make a big deal out of something he said would never happen.
Scott let out a soft sound that he simply couldn't stop. Oh, was all he managed to say, and even that sounded heartbroken.
He's alright, Dad. That was a while ago that he even admitted it to me.
Still. Scott let out a breath. We can't let him give up on anything else.
Rachel raised an eyebrow at that. You do know he's already fed up with how things are going in light of this Emma Frost crap, right? And he's half convinced we don't need him on the team, either. You know - because we can do small stuff without him while he does what he needs to for school.
Scott sighed. His parents both felt the same way sometimes. Depression is a hard fight to win. He paused. I'd know.
I'm not sure why Betsy wanted to drag that up, Rachel said. You knew he was down.
I didn't know he'd given up on a future for himself in something that actually interested him, Scott pointed out.
What he's doing now interests him too, Rachel countered.
I know. I just want to make sure… He paused to reorder his thoughts. I want you kids to have what we couldn't. That's all.
We're working on it, Rachel said with a smile tugging at the corner of her mouth.
Billy and Tommy ended up staying in Genosha for an extra couple of days, since, once they got home and settled in with their family, they found it a little bit hard to leave - even if they both really were missing their sweethearts. When they got back to the states, they went straight to Betsy to get their telepathic check up as well.
Both boys had their own concerns ringing through their heads easily. And it had Betsy smiling. While Billy was fretting about why James hadn't told him about Emma Frost and worried that there might be trouble on the horizon if his sweetheart was keeping damaging and upsetting things like this to himself, Tommy was just excited to get back to kissing Mia … just kissing Mia. Billy was too worried to think about the reunion whenever he got back to James, but Tommy wanted to actually sweep his sweet little elf off her feet and into a long, drawn out kiss…. Which totally contradicted everything she'd gleaned off of him when he'd first started up with Mia.
Though she didn't share things with people after a session, she felt this was an important enough turn of events that Ororo at least needed to know that there was likely little reason to worry about her daughter carrying on with Tommy for how utterly head over heels in love he was. What had started out as a fling was turning into something else for him, and he was trying not to wreck it by purposefully moving slower than he wanted to. And Ororo had worked with Tommy one-on-one enough to know how big of a deal that was.
When she was done with Tommy, his knee was bouncing and he was staring at her with wide eyes waiting to hear if he was cleared to go.
"She's in the library," Betsy said with a sly smile. "And she has no idea you're here yet so … remember it's a library."
Tommy grinned. "Thanks, Mrs. Worthington!"
She barely heard all of it for how quickly he zipped off, and she was smiling still as she turned to Billy, intent on explaining before he could disappear too. "Billy," she said, catching his attention - but only just. "So you know, James wasn't trying to hide anything from you. He's just trying to keep going in his studies so hard he's really only focused on school, you, and his family." She smiled warmly. "And not necessarily in that order. Please, take it easy on him. He's already thinking that he should quit the teams and the school."
Billy nodded, then frowned as he looked at her. "Should you be telling me this?"
"Absolutely not," Betsy said as she got to her feet. "But I think that the potential for misunderstanding is too high in this situation, and I don't want to see either of you hurt when it can be avoided. Especially when I know how the two of you feel about each other." Billy's shoulders dropped, and Betsy continued. "I'm sure he'll explain himself later tonight when you go see him."
His head popped up and he did his best not to look too busted. "What makes you think-"
"You've been going there every night, haven't you?" Betsy challenged. "I haven't told anyone and I don't plan to, but you should reconsider what you're trying to do. It is a little early."
Billy shifted for just a moment, but by the time he spoke, he had his full confidence in swing. "I don't know what's early about it. We've been dating for like a year now and we're serious … we're happy, and besides … this is the only real way I get to see my sweetheart and get good snuggles so … thanks for the concern, and for keeping it to yourself but … yeah."
"You're going to get caught."
"We're not doing anything wrong," Billy insisted. "Look at my grades! I'm doing better with him than I have been not with him. And I'm not distracting him from school. We're both doing everything we're expected to and being amazing in school." He smiled her way as he started to walk backwards. "It's alright. We'll be fine!"
But that only left Betsy knowing something that she didn't want to share. Billy was right - his grades were stellar, and from what little she'd seen in both of their minds about what they were up to in Cambridge, it was surprisingly out of the R-rated stuff. Mostly. So, until they busted themselves out, or someone started to slip more seriously in their grades, Betsy decided to hold her pattern for now. Even if she wasn't sure about that decision one bit.
Billy waited as long as he could to wish himself to Cambridge, and the fact that he had to sit through a whole day of school before he could do exactly that was cruel. And it left him thinking it all over. Deeply.
As soon as he had even half of an opportunity, he was in Cambridge, in the house, glaring a little as he headed to where James should be … then remembered that he had a late class to deal with still. So instead of calming down, he found himself getting a little more upset as he really thought it over.
By the time James finally walked in the door, Billy needed to get it off his chest. "So, why is it that you don't ever tell me things?" Billy asked, even before James could set his bag down. James watched him for a moment, hung his keys up and started toward him as Billy continued. "Why is it that I had to hear from your dad about Emma Frost? I thought you realized that it was really bad form to not talk to me about things after you decided to move to Cambridge without talking to anyone about it first. I had to be the one to suggest moving in together - and I know the thought hadn't even crossed your mind until I brought it up."
James took his jacket off and started toward Billy, intending to sit down with him or say hello before the fight could take off. "Can we sit down and talk, please?" James asked. "You're absolutely right; I've been screwing up one thing after another, and I owe you a big explanation and a deep apology."
Billy didn't look sure if he wanted to hear it or not, but curiosity won out, and the two of them sat down on opposite ends of the couch facing each other as James tried to explain.
"First of all, I didn't mean to leave you out of it," James said. "I had kind of forgotten that it happened."
"Is that why we all had to go through Psylocke's brain conditioning?" Billy asked, looking concerned, even after James shook his head.
"No, I'm clean. That was really more because I was stressed out and pushing to get things done and I had too much on my mind," James said. "When I come here to you, I don't want to think about the crap at the college. And to be perfectly honest, I didn't even tell Dad until he … got mad at me for going to Nate's game without my inducer…" Billy raised an eyebrow. "Yes, I know. It was a mistake. I told you I wasn't entirely with it. Anyhow, Dad found her business card. It was out of sight, out of mind. I promise."
Billy was still frowning though. "James, I love you, but you need to tell me things when they happen so I don't get blindsided like this all the time!"
James tried to find a way to reply, and Billy waited, giving him a chance to say what he really thought, until he was just about to give up. "I don't mean to not say anything," James said finally, trying to explain himself a little. "I'm just … used to not telling anyone stuff that doesn't feel like a big deal… and I honestly had put it out of my mind. I didn't tell anyone. By the time Dad started in on Emma and how dangerous she is, I had Rachel show him what had happened from my memory, I just …" He sighed and shook his head, sure he'd said too much or that even if it felt like too much that it was the wrong thing. "I know I blew it. Seems to be what I do best. I'm pretty much ready to just quit. Everything. That's why I didn't text or tell anyone once I got home. In my defense, Emma Frost didn't actually do anything to me, and I had work to get done. I didn't think it was important."
Billy was frowning by that time. "Why wouldn't it be important? It's the White Queen of the Hellfire Club. Why would you think…"
James sighed heavily, then entwined his fingers as he glared at his hands and decided on a little history. "I didn't think it was a big deal because before I met you, I was … kinda … screwing around with her niece, Izzy. You met her at the game. All I got at the time was chewed out and a warning. I didn't get the full history of how awful the Hellfire Club is like I did this time. I didn't think it was an end of the world scenario either. Just a nosy, manipulative, miserable, old witch."
"You clearly didn't get the same lecture I did," Billy said, shaking his head in pure disbelief. "How - how - is it that your paranoid family didn't give you the same lecture my grandfather did? He made it very clear that the Hellfire Club's influence had spread after the X-Men disappeared and told us to avoid their members. And he would know. They wanted him so badly, they made a new position just to get him to join."
James frowned at him, which tipped Billy off that he didn't know about that, either. "Didn't you just say he wanted you to avoid them? But he was a member?"
"He was the Gray King, but he quit when he saw how they operated. After he saw what they really were up close, he wanted nothing to do with them - and he spent so much time making sure we knew what kind of people they truly were. He didn't want us recruited." He made a face at the very thought. "You remember how he was about anyone interfering on his turf."
"Might have gotten the memo, yeah," James said, watching Billy as carefully as Billy was watching him.
"How … seriously. How did your dad and Tony miss something this big?"
"Considering that there have been huge bounties on tips about my existence? I think they were more focused on avoiding everyone, so it wasn't exactly like … a specific thing. But when Kate lost it snorting laughing when she was telling them about how I was making out with a Frost a few years back, Tony and Dad both lost their minds for a whole afternoon, tag team yelling. That was the talk I got. And it mentioned the Hellfire Club exactly zero times." James scrunched his nose. "But … I can see them trying to get you or your brother. That's political sway. That is not the kind of people after me."
"Might be why she's showing up now," Billy pointed out. "I mean, you're the heir to the Stark Empire now." He couldn't help but smile, starting to lose some of his anger when he realized he could so openly tease James now. "Who's the little prince, again?" he asked, grinning outright.
"You."
Billy laughed outright. "Seriously, you never got the Hellfire Club speech? Even from Tony? He knows what they're like. He was a member once, too."
"No," James said, shaking his head, "they were too focused on weapons groups and shady military organizations that want to use me like they did my parents. Maybe Hydra a little, too. That's who wants me. Not stuffy, self important elitist clubs." He shrugged. "That's where my trouble's always been. And Tony's always tried to give me space to not worry about that stuff when I've been with him because my family is so high strung about everything else, so no. Not even from him." He raised an eyebrow and did his best lofty voice. "I've never been important enough for anything other than to be used as a mindless blunt instrument."
Billy shook his head and finally scooted closer than he'd been when he'd started out ready to fight. "Well, now that the world is starting to see the amazing guy I know, I guess I'm going to have to fight off all the people who want my guy, huh? The list keeps growing the more they see how amazing you are."
"Flattery is totally unnecessary … but if it makes you feel better I won't tell you how wrong you are. And I'm pretty sure you can take out a dried up old hag and her geezer party without ruffling your cape."
"Not only that, but I kinda speak their language," Billy said, wincing one shoulder up to his ear. "I mean, groomed for the throne… I speak 'power moves'. Not fluently, but I can do it…"
"This is me, not surprised one bit," James said with a crooked smile. "Impressive little prince."
Billy smiled to match him. "Hey, this means I get to mentor you for once."
"Then I should warn you that I'm a very remedial student." He leaned over to very carefully kiss his cheek.
"I guess that means we have to meet often," Billy said. "Oh no."
"You know my schedule … whatever isn't spoken for is yours anyhow, far as I'm concerned. So … can I start on my apology now?"
"Please, carry on."
Chapter 79: Oh, Hell.
Chapter Text
James was in the middle of a deep discussion with his physics professor when the door to the office opened and his secretary looked between the two of them nervously. "Mr. Howlett has someone waiting for him in the dean's office," he said. He looked at James for an instant, giving him a quick, nervous once-over that James was utterly tired of already. "They said it's urgent."
James looked from the secretary to his professor, then nodded as he got to his feet.
"We'll pick this up later, James," his professor promised before she smiled his way. "You're doing well."
He nodded, not at all looking convinced as he followed the secretary to the dean's office. The man was just leaving as James got there, too.
"The next time your representative wants to speak to you, arrange for that meeting to take place off campus on your own time," the dean told him with a stern expression. "I want to speak with you before you return to your classes." He glared for a moment longer before he left James quietly frowning after him.
He pushed the door of the office open only to see that his dad was right. Emma Frost was pushing and she looked as if she was perfectly in control of the situation already. He stepped inside, and as he was closing the door, Emma asked him to close it. It was just enough that he paused, considering leaving it open all the same before someone on the other side took a hold of the doorknob and pulled it shut in spite of James' reluctance.
"Please, have a seat, James," Emma said briskly. "We have much to discuss."
"I don't think we do."
"Then that's one thing you are desperately wrong about." She gestured to the loveseat by the window overlooking the grounds. "No reason to be uncomfortable; this may take a while, after all."
James paused, frowning to himself and not at all wanting to do anything she said. "Miss Frost, I don't remember asking for your help. In fact, I'm pretty sure I told you as gently as possible that whatever services you offer aren't required or wanted."
"And I recall telling you that you didn't have a choice in the matter." When James opened his mouth to reply, she was already grinning. "You're still a minor, James. You need the help. Stop being so obstinate and let's talk. What harm is a little discussion going to have?"
"Considering you're pulling me out of classes that I'm required to be in, could be a lot of harm."
"We both know that your physics professor practically worships the ground you walk on. Come. Sit." She patted the cushion next to her and rearranged herself as she waited for him to do as he was told, then looked entirely put out when he crossed his arms and raised one eyebrow. "Oh. I didn't mean for that to sound so ... just have a seat, please."
As much as he hated it, he didn't see another reasonable option. "How much of what you're doing to them is telepathic?" James asked as he made his way over, still guarded, still leery.
"What difference does it make?" Emma replied, doing her best approximation of a warm smile.
"All the difference," James replied, standing in front of her and still reluctant to sit down.
"James, this is going to be a very long conversation if you can't simply be reasonable." She smiled tightly and gave him a once over. "The sooner you sit down, the sooner we can get through our little chat."
"Fine," James grumbled, then tried to find a way to not touch her when he sat next to her. Not that he could quite manage that.
Emma started out talking about everything she'd already covered in their last conversation, or lack thereof, then took out some papers and shifted closer. James leaned back to get her out of his immediate space, which at least got her to stop the forward motion. As she moved on from trying to convince him that he'd been wronged - which he knew - to pushing to allow her to advocate on his behalf with tales of others she'd helped, James found himself putting his focus on controlling his facial expressions.
It wasn't that he didn't still find himself attracted to pretty girls … or even pretty older women generally speaking. It was that Emma, to him, was neither of those things. He knew her character was rotten and that she was trying to find the right in to use him, though he still didn't know to what end. And on an entirely superficial level, she just … had some issues, not the least of which was the fact that she'd slept with both his dad and his mentor. So the posturing and posing in a too low cut blouse wasn't nearly as helpful as she thought.
He was pretty lost in thought trying to ignore her perfume when she put her hand on his knee. He really didn't think much of it until she started to inch her way higher, which was when he totally refocused on her hand and stared at it for a few moments. She was midway through her pitch on what she wanted to do for him career wise and far too high up his thigh when he interrupted her. "What are you doing?" James asked, perfectly flatly.
Emma smiled again in her unsettling, cold way, then spoke in tones that simply had no business coming out of a professional woman's mouth in an advisory capacity. "Just trying to get a better idea of what kind of an agreement we can come to."
James' mouth went dry as he realized exactly how right his dad and Tony were, and before he could censor himself or temper his response, he looked up to meet her gaze. "You know you're way too old for me, right?"
Emma looked as if she'd been slapped, but she didn't move yet. Not right away. She gathered up her composure, put on a more calculating smile, and pressed on. "I'm not that old, dear. And there's something to be said for learning from someone with experience."
James looked horrified and reached down to move Emma's hand back into her own space. "I'm seeing someone," he said.
"Oh, as if that's ever stopped a man. It's an excellent way to get to know a person, and it doesn't mean anything…"
"Listen. I know you've had to have spent a lot of money on surgery, and as far as that kind of thing goes, they have done a good job, but I … I can still see that you're desperately grasping for something that has been gone for a good, long while." He tried to move a little further away, though Emma wasn't trying to stop him this time.
"You can't...that's not possible," Emma nearly whispered with a hollow laugh that held no mirth. "I have the very best-"
"Yes, I'm sure you do, but it's hard to ignore the unnatural thinness down the length of your nose, the puffed up cheek bones and injected lips … your skin looks stretched and thin, and all the botox and cream in the world won't get rid of the eyelines, but," James said as he got to his feet, both hands in front of him. "Even if all that was somehow miraculously not a thing, there are markers I'm fully aware of that you can't do a thing about."
Emma's fingers had flitted up to the outer corners of her eyes, shocked and in disbelief. "That's simply not true." She narrowed her eyes further. "What kind of markers do you think exist that I can't avoid if I truly want to?" she asked, sounding livid already, so James saw no reason to hold back outside of trying to be a gentleman.
"I don't think you want to hear it."
"Tell me what you think you know." Anger was flashing in her eyes, and if looks could kill, she'd have surely murdered him on the spot.
James gently dipped his chin toward his chest but never blinked as he held eye contact. "It's not offensive, just a fact," he started out. "You can change your outer appearance or telepathically project it to people that can't block you all you want, but the fact remains that at a certain age, the human body begins to release higher concentrations of benzothiazole, dimethylsulphone, and an unsaturated aldehyde called 2-nonenal." He paused, knowing damn well that she had no idea what he was talking about. "All the high priced perfume in the world doesn't cover the fact that you are aging, and someone with a nose like mine cannot ignore it."
Emma sputtered, beyond furious - beyond words - as she got to her feet in a snit.
"Some people can control it better … but you can't hide it, no matter what you do." Finally, James seemed to get back on his own footing better. "It wasn't a bad play, Ms. Frost. Maybe … I mean … the sex approach might work better if you'd sent a daughter - or … no. The Cuckoos are too old, too, aren't they? Maybe a grand daughter might be closer to my age?"
She let out a sound that had no real description to James, but he kept a straight face as Emma drew back, obviously ready to hit him. Which was when James finally smirked at her with all the same confidence and attitude Logan had whenever he'd come after Emma with a good quip. "The next time you want to talk to me or pull me out of class, clear it by Miss Potts," James said, knowing better than to send her to Tony, even if that's what she'd do anyhow. "I'm trying to finish my work here and this kind of distraction isn't helpful to either of us."
Emma's cheeks burned brightly, likely the first almost youthful thing she'd exhibited from the moment she showed up, and without more than a half-hidden snarl, she stormed out, leaving James to take a moment to speak with the dean when he returned to make it clear that he had no arrangement with Ms. Frost. But to his shock, the dean closed the door behind himself and reprimanded James for insulting Emma for a solid ten minutes.
It left James in a state of shock but also thoroughly convinced that the dean was being mind-controlled. So, instead of arguing, he apologized for any misunderstanding and left the office fuming. He couldn't leave campus until his classes were over, and he couldn't miss another one that day, from what the dean had told him. So all he could do was fake it through the last class, get to the house, and call Betsy - as he'd been told to do, because he didn't trust that he wouldn't be overheard on campus.
His foot was jiggling as he watched the second hand on the clock in the lecture hall drag by, though that only had his mind racing on what he wanted to do first … and at the very top of his list was breaking out the scanner he had at the house to make sure Emma didn't hit him with some nanotech or something. She might not understand it, but he was very sure she wasn't above using it.
As soon as his last class was out, he was on his way back to the house, hyper aware of anyone that might be following him, and resolute in not texting anyone until he could check himself over. The other side of it, of course, was that he was carrying his panic button in his hand - just in case, because for the way she was pushing, he wouldn't put it past her to try something a lot less subtle, either.
He was followed, he was very sure - the black car following slowly was like a confession as to who was pestering him - but they didn't engage, and James was thankful for it. When he got to the house, he wasn't surprised to find that the car finally continued on, even if they passed his place slowly - but by then, James was already running the scanners he had at the door that he used every day he was in Cambridge.
He considered calling out to see if anyone was there, thought better of it, and simply started stripping down at the door. If he did have any nanotech on him, he wasn't about to drag it up to his bedroom. A quick sprint and a scan for nanites that checked not only James but went so far as to scan the house, too, showed nothing of note … and that, finally, had James relaxing slightly. So then, he finally texted Betsy with a very stripped down chain of events where he expressed his concern that the dean had been tampered with. And instead of texting back, she replied by firing up Cerebro and reaching out.
Do you need me to come and check you over? Betsy asked, as she tried to search his memory already to see how badly it had gone.
No. I'm fine. But like I said, I'm more concerned about the dean.
I'm not sure how I can get in to see him and fix it if that's the problem.
Yeah, I'm sure a ninja has real trouble getting around.
You sound like Logan when you do that. But I tell you what; I'll look into it. In the meantime, don't step outside of that house other than for school until I can come see you.
I was planning on going home tomorrow, James pointed out. I need to get out of this town when I don't have anything to do. He was tense on hearing that he might have to stay out of actual contact with the family becuase of something stupid Emma did.
And it took far too long for Betsy to finally reply. Don't go home.
Then where do you want me to go? The school? Or the tower?
Based on what you already told her, the tower would likely be a safer bet since I've already fortified everyone there. Keep her away from the school if you can. I'll let your dad know what's happening. Betsy paused. I know you need to get away from the feeling that town leaves you with, but I don't want you travelling alone.
James paused, frowning as he looked around the room. That … was a fair point and one he didn't really like to admit to.
I'll send someone to help keep an eye out for trouble, Betsy promised. I don't want you alone, and no, Billy isn't going to fit the bill. I'll tell him to stay here tonight. When James didn't respond or react at all, she continued. We do not want him to be forced to deal with whatever tampering Emma Frost may try.
James grumbled to himself, then shifted focus. Let me be the one to tell him at least.
Fine. But I'm going to reinforce it. You two can make it a few days apart, I'm sure.
Thanks, James replied. I think.
I'll let you know who's headed your way once we figure it out, Betsy replied, knowing full well that Bobby was just a short drive away and would be more than happy to do his observation up close. Don't go wandering now.
James didn't respond, knowing that Betsy was raring to get going - and that she'd be using Cerebro as her own, personal walkie-talkie for the time being. It was quicker than allowing someone to ignore their phone or miss the text and far harder to hack into anyhow. But luckily for him, even if someone hacked into his phone for his texts to Tony, it would look like he was just going home for the weekend if they believed his half-lie about being raised by the Avengers.
He was quick to text Billy and tell him what happened in as short and direct a way as possible. Hi. I'm now actively being stalked by an evil witch. I'll tell you all about it when I get home to the tower tomorrow if you're free. It was the best way he could see of both quietly letting him know there was a problem, and also letting him know that he thought his communication might be compromised as well.
He knew Billy was in one of Storm's classes and wasn't able to reply, so in the meantime, he texted Tony to let him know he'd be coming to the tower Friday night.
He headed up to take a shower when Tony's reply came in with enough entertainment mixed in that James was left groaning to himself at Tony's thought process.
Are you going to need to see your therapist this weekend?
James paused as he got the water running, knowing he had to actually answer or Tony would have someone pulled in. I'm taking a shower in about five seconds. Please do not turn this into a thing.
Too late. I'll have him here on Saturday for you.
James rubbed his eyes with one hand, knowing he wasn't going to get out of it, so instead, he didn't bother responding before he set his phone down and started washing up - just because he still had the creeps from Emma trying to play Grandma Robinson. And that was a hard image to shake.
He started texting back and forth with Billy once he was cleaned up, but he was really wishing he could get out of there instead.
But he wasn't expecting his back up to be that fast, or for Bobby to show up with pizza in hand, ready to hang out, either. At least Bobby was one of the few choices that would have a sense of humor … even if he came with his own horror-like cautionary tales about Emma Frost.
As far as Craig had been aware, things had been going relatively well for Scott lately. Yes, he was stressed about the situation with James, but it sounded like James was handling it well and he knew Scott was keeping busy teaching at the school. So, he was surprised to get a call from Scott asking him to take on James as a client as well - and more surprised when Scott let him know that he didn't want to explain himself over the phone. That it was something best explained in person.
The surprises continued, too. Scott arrived at his session with a device James had made for him and set it down on Craig's desk. Before he said anything more than hello, he showed Craig how to turn it on and then sat back, scrubbing a hand over his face and looking more tired than Craig had seen him look in a long time.
"Okay, I'll admit to being intrigued," Craig said.
Scott nearly smirked, but the expression didn't make it all the way across his face. "James is going to arrange for a space for you to meet with him at Avengers Tower later tonight. But in the meantime, this will prevent telepaths from listening in on your sessions. Might help ease the mind of some other clients, too."
"Thank you," Craig said. "But I still don't understand…"
"Right." Scott blew out all his breath again but still didn't directly address Craig. It had been a while since Scott had been this unwilling to talk about something, and Craig found himself leaning forward, his hands clasped in front of him. "James has drawn the attention of the Hellfire Club," he said at last. "They've been widening their net of influence in the years the X-Men were gone, and Emma Frost has been doing what she does best - advocating for mutants while recruiting useful people for the progress of her club."
"Ah." Craig nodded. "That has to be awkward for personal reasons alone," he ventured, knowing the dating history from the simple fact that he'd lived in New York for so long. He hadn't really talked to Scott about Emma before except a brief conversation they'd had in which Scott had explained that Emma had been his last therapist and that hadn't been nearly as helpful as he'd hoped it would be. Which Craig thought was an understatement, all things considered. Craig had been working with Scott for a matter of several months and already he could see that the man's problems had started long before Graydon Creed. The number of traumatizing events in Scott's past would have given anyone PTSD, and the fact that Scott had next to no coping methods for trauma when he'd arrived at Craig's office told Craig everything he needed to know about Emma's time with him.
Still, he kept his professional opinion to himself. For the moment.
Scott was quiet for a long time. "I think," he said at last, "that Emma wants James' influence with the Avengers, the X-men, and with Stark Industries. That would be a big feather in the Hellfire Club's cap. He's due to inherit power and influence, and that's always what they're after." He paused. "We're doing what we can to keep her away from him."
"I'm afraid I don't know enough about the Hellfire Club to understand the aversion," Craig admitted. "If anything, I've had a few young mutants come through my office singing her praises about how she's gotten them safely into adulthood."
"Yeah, I never said she wasn't good at what she does," Scott said. "That's why she was on the X-Men. The professor knew she was capable." He paused again, and Craig didn't need to be a telepath to know so much was left unsaid in that silence. "The problem stems from the fact that they use their charity to build a network of people who are indebted to them in a way that makes them unable to say no if and when the Hellfire Club comes asking for a favor. And they'll cash in those debts the second they know it will benefit them. Usually, that means the person paying up loses something they hold dear, if not everything. It goes without saying that I don't want James indebted to a group that worships money, glory, power, and selfishness. And that's the kind version."
"Yeah, it has to be. You're still avoiding telling me what's got you worked up. You don't have a problem talking about villains when they're just that - villains." Craig raised an eyebrow. "So…"
Scott muttered a word under his breath that was quiet enough Craig didn't hear it, but the way his lips moved made it unmistakable. "I don't want her to realize he's my son," he said at last.
Both of Craig's eyebrows shot up. "You think that would be a problem?"
"I think it would make him a target for her. Personally. Not just for the Hellfire Club." Scott sighed and didn't meet Craig's gaze. "The last thing I want is for her to think she can use my son to get to me."
Craig frowned deeply at Scott's wording. "Must be a helluva ex."
"You have no idea."
"I'd like to," Craig said, but when Scott's entire expression twisted, he held up both hands. "I don't need the dirty details. It's pretty obvious you're not happy with how it ended. Or how it started. Or something. But in the meantime, tell me what I need to do to keep James safe. We'll talk about the rest of it later, but it sounds like you're sending me into the lion's den the way you're acting."
Scott gave him a tight smile. "Betsy Braddock came with me today. She's going to help you build your telepathic defenses. And then, let's walk you through some tower security."
One thing James was incredibly unprepared for was what he hoped would be the only morning wake up call with Bobby Drake doing his best to play protective uncle … or something.
When James' alarm went off, he was taken off balance by the fact that coffee was brewing already, and when he got downstairs, still bed-headed and sleepy, Bobby was entirely too perky. Or caffeinated. One or the other, James wasn't entirely sure.
"Good morning, sunshine!" Bobby sang out, on his feet in a moment. "How long do you have before you need to be in class?"
James frowned and looked at the clock on the wall, then back at Bobby. "I've got time."
"So like … two hours? What are we looking at here?" Bobby asked, rifling through the cabinets until he found a box of Poptarts. He frowned then held them up. "I thought you didn't like sweet stuff?"
James let out a patient sigh as he got a cup of coffee. "Now and again I'll have one if I'm stressed out," he explained, hoping that would be enough to gloss over things with Bobby. At least enough that he didn't get overly suspicious … and that meant throwing one of the damn things in the toaster and rolling with it.
"Oh," Bobby said, watching him as he sat down with his breakfast. "Do you need me to do anything?"
"If you stopped hovering, that'd be great," James deadpanned.
"Yeah, no … see … I'm going to be driving you to class and picking you up, too. No reason to make it easy on someone who might want to abduct our little Wolverine."
"Why would you do that?"
"Hey. You got the warning talk. Now you need the full protection. Who knows what could happen."
"I hate you."
"Hate me on the way to school," Bobby said with a grin.
"Not even Dad says things that dumb," James said, though he was headed up to change all the same.
"Says you. I've known him a lot longer and heard all the dumb things he's said."
James considered him for a moment. "If you drive me to school, you won't be able to get back into the house without a bunch of alarms going off."
"S'fine, I'll wait in the car," Bobby said with a wave, though James wasn't so sure he liked the adjustment. Still … Bobby wasn't budging, and James honestly wasn't comfortable arguing with people he loved, so, he went along with what Bobby said without any further commentary.
But when it came time to go back to New York after classes, James had come to a decision. "I'm driving. In my car. This one … is going to take forever to get there," James said even as he climbed in with Bobby.
"Um, I'd like to drive," Bobby said as he started toward the house in Cambridge.
"It'll only start for the people that are DNA coded to it," James argued. "Sorry uncle popsicle, you're not on the list."
Bobby frowned at him for a long moment. "Fine. But I get to pick the radio station."
"Fair," James agreed.
When they got to the house, James zipped in to grab a few things, then locked up for the weekend as he and Bobby went to the garage to get James' car instead of Bobby's. Their agreement held reasonably enough, and Bobby was having a blast in spite of himself once he got to really looking around at the after market features that James and Tony had put in already - with space for more just calling for Bobby to make his James Bond-like suggestions. But almost every one was met with 'I already did that to Kate's car' or 'that doesn't even make sense' or 'what are you? Five?' all the way back to New York.
Bobby stuck with him like glue, too, even with the inducer James was wearing working perfectly enough that he walked right by the gathered crowd of reporters that were always mulling around the parking complex. The ride to the top of the tower was mostly silent, and when he got to the top floor, James was somehow not expecting for the first person he saw to be Jan - executing a perfect small to normal sized tackle hug that no one could prevent.
He dropped his bag at his feet and kept her feet from touching the ground as she bear hugged him. "You have been away from the tower for way too long," Jan told him as Bobby skirted around him.
"Yeah, well … your husband wanted me to get some degrees, so you can blame him," James replied, then finally set her on her feet.
"We've been watching your tracker to see when you'd get here … you totally blew my bet out the window!"
"You try driving with Bobby singing along to Boston at the top of his lungs," James challenged. "It has a tendency to get you to drop the hammer a little bit."
Jan smiled and took his arm to pull him along. "I'll take your word for it." She winked at Bobby, who made a point to grab James' discarded bookbag as they headed for the living area where Tony was waiting and chatting with Craig of all people.
But the conversation ended abruptly when Tony saw James and got to his feet with an expression that managed to straddle both proud, relieved dad and anxious about everything that had been going on. "Bout time you showed up, kiddo," Tony said, as Jan slipped out of the way so Tony could pull him into a quicker, but still tight hug. "We've been waiting for you."
"I see that," James replied, walking with Tony's arm across his shoulders toward where Craig was getting to his feet. "Is Dad here?"
"Getting coffee," Tony said. "I told him I could have Jarvis handle it-"
"You know he doesn't like to bother Jarvis," James said, to which Tony more or less waved off as they reached Craig. "Hi, Mr. Hale. I'm guessing Dad decided to drag you into this? I know it was probably getting to be too much for Rabbi Cohen - but you don't have to do this, either."
"Rabbi Cohen is perfectly fine," Craig said. "But as I understand it, once we get telepaths involved, I think everyone would rather he keep his mind and not miss anything important with his duties as a rabbi. So as long as you're comfortable talking to me, I'd like to see what I can do to help," Craig said.
James was holding his breath and halfway nodding to himself as he turned to Tony. "Okay … I don't know what you have in mind-"
"Cleared your lab of all the experimental stuff," Tony said, his arm still around James' shoulders even as Scott came in.
"Okay," James said, then raised a hand halfway to his dad. "I guess it's the lab, then. Are you going with, or ..."
"I'd like him there to start," Craig said. "I know I don't have all the right background information, so I'd like to get it from both of you and go from there."
James smirked. "Okay, well … you asked for it. Left her speechless anyhow," James had to tease just to try and get the anxious look off of Scott's face as he led the way to the lab and keyed his code in to get all three inside. He gestured for Craig to pick where they should start since James could think of a few options - none of which had more draw than the other, though he was pretty comfortable in guessing that it would be the little almost-living room by the windows. That was most cozy, anyhow.
Sure enough, Craig led the way so they could sit down on the couches overlooking the city, resting his chin on his clasped hands. "I want you to start by telling me your side, James," he said. "I know for a fact that Scott has more history with this woman to tell me, so I'd rather start with you."
"The first time she talked to me, or this last one?" James asked, since he didn't know what Scott had told Craig.
Craig raised one eyebrow but didn't otherwise react. "Yes."
"O-kay," James said, then turned toward Scott as he drew in a deep, centering breath. "First time I was in the library at the college, working on a paper when she shut my laptop so I'd talk to her," James explained. "She did it in a public place to make it easier to push me to listen to her pitch and I told her I was already well represented, and no thanks." He shrugged. "More or less."
When Scott didn't object, James continued, though he looked less comfortable with sharing that encounter. "This last time, she had me pulled out of physics class so she could talk to me privately in the dean's office."
"Not exactly helpful when you're supposed to be in class under their supervision," Craig pointed out. "She's hurting her cause. That tells me she's after more than just clearing your name."
James shook his head. "I'm entirely sure she was working over the faculty," he said. "The dean was even less himself and got after me when she left about being disrespectful, though she didn't talk to him." He looked at Scott. "I heard her leave. She never slowed down and she didn't say a word to anyone." Then, he turned back to Craig. "And no. I don't think she ever had any interest in clearing my name. If she had, she would have been by weeks ago when this mess started up."
"That's what your father said, more or less," Craig agreed. "I just wanted to hear your side."
"That's what I said to her, too," James said.
"And what did she say to you this time?" Scott asked, one eyebrow raised. "I knew she'd approached, but I didn't know she'd cornered you again. After that first meeting, I know she wasn't thrilled that you turned her down."
"She … started out thinking she had an in and tried to tell me I didn't have a choice in her representing me," James admitted slowly, while still trying to gloss over the details. " might have … maybe … actually been disrespectful this time. But not until she didn't want to take no for an answer. So I think it was more like … treat people how they treat you moments?" But he couldn't stop the troublemaking look no matter how hard he tried. "Kinda."
"You're holding back," Scott said, though he was trying not to smirk because he knew that look and knew it meant James had gotten a good insult off.
"It wasn't anything technically incorrect... " James sighed and closed his eyes. "You were right, Dad. I hoped you weren't but ... She has nothing even close to anything like ethics and she'll try anything to get what she wants, whatever that is. But … ah … so when I put her hand back in her own lap, I pointed out that she was way too old for me. And I outlined how exactly her plastic surgery wasn't helping her case when the scent was from an older person … and I might have told her that it would have been smarter to send in her granddaughter if she wanted to try the seduction route on someone my age? Maybe?"
Scott looked like he wasn't sure if he was ready to laugh at that or get angry on James' behalf or … what. Thankfully, Craig was faster to react with exactly the right level of anger as he repeated: "Back in her own lap?"
"Yeah," James said with a casual nod, brushing over that as much as possible since, in actuality, he was used to people touching him in ways he didn't invite or want. "She said a few things that I won't repeat when she was trying to push me to negotiate, but she didn't say a word after I pointed out she was way too old and explained why," James said, watching his dad stare for a moment longer before he turned back to Craig. "She thinks she's …I don't think she's the type to listen to anything like reason. Realistically, there's nothing she could do for me that Tony wouldn't or can't, I don't think. And he doesn't want to mentor me by getting in my pants."
Craig's mouth was pressed into a thin line, but he didn't say anything as he pointedly turned toward Scott, who floundered for words a few times with wordless gestures. But Craig didn't look away until Scott let out a quiet sound and muttered, "Wasn't too much older than James at the time."
"She did try to press my telepathic shields," James said, to try and pull his dad out of his stunned quiet, and when Scott looked at him clearly expressing concern, James raised an eyebrow. "Please. I'm so shut down when I'm there, I don't think Rachel could push to say hi on a good day. Took me a solid ten minutes once I got to the house to center enough to let Betsy in on Cerebro."
"That's something at least," Scott said in a sigh. He rubbed a hand over his face. "Well, she won't try that with you again. Not with a response like that. So that's one tactic we don't have to worry about, anyway."
"I think that's the only thing I could have said to get her to back off," James told him. "I also think that if she thought she could murder me with her bare hands, she would have tried."
"She's always been sensitive about her looks," Scott said dryly.
"I kinda figured. But, she needs to look in the mirror because she probably hasn't done herself the favors she thinks," James said just as dryly, then thought about it for a second longer. "Unless she's telepathically cheating …"
Craig shook his head, enjoying the back and forth but knowing they needed to get back to the point. "Still," he said, catching their attention, "I don't blame you for needing a therapist. The same woman who dated your dad pulling something like that…"
"Yeah, not just my Dad. Both of my father figures. She slept with Tony, too," James said, though he sounded unconcerned.
"While we were dating," Scott added, his tone sharp enough that neither James nor Craig could miss that, despite no longer having feelings for Emma, he was still hurt by the betrayal.
Craig shook his head. "I'm still surprised, knowing what I know about you now, how long that lasted."
Scott let out a long breath. "Well," he said, speaking carefully when James was there and knowing Craig wasn't going to let it drop - judging by the look on Craig's face. "It was a bad time."
But James was quick on the uptake as usual, and he wasn't going to stick around if it made anyone uncomfortable. "I can leave if you two want to continue alone," James said quietly.
"Probably best," Scott said, and Craig nodded lightly, seeing as Scott was even less likely to share with an audience of more than one.
James didn't say another word as he got to his feet and silently left, deciding to find Rachel who he was very sure needed to know something about how he'd gotten himself back to staying with the Starks again. And more at ease about letting her just see it rather than recount it blow by blow.
Once the door was shut, Craig turned toward Scott expectantly, though Scott still didn't say anything until Craig prompted him. "There is absolutely nothing you can say that will make me think less of you. Past indiscretions aside, you have shown me again and again where your priorities are. No one is the same person they were in their early twenties, Scott."
Scott sighed and let his shoulders drop. "It wasn't my finest moment," he admitted. "I … I needed to see someone, and the professor had asked Emma to come in as a therapist when he had his hands full." He got up and paced the room a few times, then paused to stare out of the window at the city as a means to find his words easier. "Like I said, she's good at what she does. She ran the school in Massachusetts, knew her stuff inside and out. Jean and I were having problems." He turned and gave Craig a tired smile. "The usual, unfortunately. I didn't know how bad it was at the time, but the Phoenix was getting more power over her by the day. I was too caught up in having just been Apocalypse to see it, but-"
"Wait, slow down." Craig held both hands up. "You were what?"
"That's a whole other story, Craig."
"Then give me the short version."
"Complete mental takeover by a guy bent on murder and conquest via exterminating humans to make way for mutants."
"Right. I forgot what your short versions sound like." Craig shook his head to himself. "Okay, so you needed a trauma counselor while your telepathic wife was distracted."
Scott frowned. "No, I asked for help … relationship help. The Apocalypse fight was over."
Craig matched his frown. "Scott, no relationship is going to come out of trauma like that unaffected. Are you seriously telling me the first thing she did wasn't to work with you for the obvious trauma you'd endured?"
Scott shook his head. "It's not like we hadn't-"
"This was different enough that you didn't see your wife becoming a different person. It was obviously more than the usual X-Men problem." Craig leaned back. "And she's a telepath too? If her first priority wasn't healing your telepathic wounds or reaching out to do a couple's session so you and your wife could both understand how to find your way through the recent trauma, what did she do?"
Scott shrugged helplessly. "She … pointed out how vast the gulf between Jean and I was. I mean, I knew at the time that Jean was interested in Logan - still - but the confluence of events… it was everything wrong at once. The Phoenix, Apocalypse, the same old usual drama on top of all of it…" He paused. "Don't… don't misunderstand me. By the time Jean and I had Rachel, this … this was not a problem anymore. Jean and Logan knew they wouldn't work out. They talked it over - never took it any further than that. And when the Phoenix wasn't in play, Jean made it pretty clear who she wanted. And I wanted her. Always. Emma was…" He trailed off. "Emma was interested the way I wanted Jean to be. But she wasn't Jean."
Craig let out a long, nearly silent sigh. "I understand that, actually. I see it in a lot of clients dealing with trauma. They're looking for support, and if they can't find it in their spouses, the temptation to find it elsewhere is high." He chose his next words carefully. "I guess I'm just trying to understand how you went from marriage counseling to dating her. It sounds to me like she didn't try to help you rebuild your relationship at all."
Scott gestured vaguely. "Yeah, well. It's not like I turned her down. And it was all telepathic to start… not that it excuses anything."
Craig sighed. "I'm sorry," he said. "You'll have to excuse me. I…" He got to his feet. "Let's pick this back up next time. I don't want to lose this thread. We'll meet tomorrow. I just…" His accent was deepening with every word. "To be clear, was this affair during your therapy sessions her idea?"
Scott turned a deep red. "She… well, yes-"
Craig stopped him before he could make excuses again. "Excuse me," he said, exiting the room without another word spoken, absolutely furious in a way he usually didn't get. He'd heard stories of trauma and the worst that people could do to one another, but when it was a fellow mental health professional perpetuating it, he couldn't hide his temper.
The idea that a grown woman would see a young man, barely an adult, hurting and raw and searching for comfort, and take advantage of that vulnerability - especially when Scott's wife was unavailable for circumstances outside of her control with the Phoenix - especially when it was clear Scott blamed himself for every last bit of it, from the affair down to the gulf between him and Jean in the first place… that was more than unprofessional. That was grounds for losing a license.
And so, with no real relationship from which to build a rapport but with all of the fury of an Army kid brought up on Captain America stories who beat up the guys who hit on his sisters… Craig marched himself to where Tony was working on something completely unrelated in the kitchen and announced, with absolutely no introduction, "What do I have to tell you to convince you I need the kind of legal help necessary to file a complaint and challenge Emma Frost's license?"
Tony looked up with a shocked expression. "Pretty sure that's enough," he said. "Especially when she's been trying to come after my kid. Got something to work with? I'll make sure my guys can back you." He got to his feet and sent off a text, then reached into a cabinet to pull out some credentials, too. "Are you planning on coming back for James here, then? I doubt our boy is going to be going farther than the tower or school for a while."
"That's fine," Craig said, waving his hand. "I'm more concerned about the woman out there with a history of predatory behavior, particularly against young, vulnerable men."
Tony's good humor evaporated in an instant and he handed Craig his new, personalized pass for the tower security. "We'll crush her."
"Good." Craig straightened up, regaining some of his professional composure. "I take personal offense to anyone who uses their license to gain access to people too hurt to understand their tactics."
Tony nodded. "Tell you what. I know a damn good private investigator who would love to dig up everything that Emma Frost has ever done in a less than professional capacity while hiding behind her license to build the case. Give her … oh … a week, tops."
"Good." Craig seemed all at once to return to the good-natured man Tony had briefly seen when he first arrived. "Thank you. I know you don't know me from Adam-"
"Scott vouched for you, and James said you were good," Tony said. "I try to take care of my people."
"So do I." Craig smiled tightly. "Alright. Well. Thank you again. Sorry to interrupt."
"You didn't interrupt a thing," Tony said. "Came to help, right? Hard to find a good place to do that with people that have our kinds of issues."
Craig frowned at Tony, seeing him in a new light when he wasn't single minded in his focus. "If you need help… or your team…"
Tony smiled tightly and answered with a ghost of a laugh in his voice. "I've made it this long just fine, doc. The team knows you're good - if they want help, they know where to find you, but those that would consider it already have therapists."
Craig smiled brightly - and Tony didn't know it, but it was exactly the same look Annie got when she was about to announce something new and fun for her students to try out just to revel in the joy on their faces when they didn't have to take notes. "Wonderful," he said. "I'll see you bright and early tomorrow morning, then."
"Woah, wait - I don't … I'm fine," Tony said, both hands up in front of him. "I've done my share of … I've had therapy. I'm set!"
"You're certainly better than some other patients who haven't had a decent therapy session at all before they met me, but no, Mr. Stark, I don't believe you," Craig said, nodding to himself - which was about when Steve cleared his throat, cluing the two of them in to the fact that he'd been there the whole time.
"Nuh- uh, no. No," Tony said, eyebrows raised as he pointed at Steve with one finger. "Back off, spangles. Keep out of it - you have no leg to stand on here."
Steve was smiling crookedly already, though. "Oh, don't worry, Tony. I understand doctor-patient confidentiality. I'll just make sure the Avengers' schedule is clear so you don't miss anything important during that hour block."
"Ha! Maybe if you pencil yourself in for the one right before me," Tony said, trying to get back to reassembling a broken communicator and half grumbling under his breath. "Mr. Man out of time. Still can't wrap his head around a smart phone and he thinks I need help."
Steve smiled wider and turned toward Craig. "So, nine o'clock, you want to teach me how to download an app? You can deal with Tony after that. He agreed to the terms himself."
"Oh, come on," Tony said, looking entirely unamused.
"Who's doing what now?" Jan asked as she, James, and Rachel came in to join them.
"Your husband's going to take an hour with Dr. Hale," Steve said with a grin. "Tomorrow morning. After me." He smiled at the three of them as Jan beamed. "We'll leave it to him when you get another turn, James."
"Okay, not like I'll be anywhere but here on the weekend, anyhow," James said, then turned to Tony. "You want to grab a donut or something with me in the morning?"
"Yes," Tony said, taking up James' empty side. "But now, you and I have some work to do in my lab."
"Alright," James said, then raised one hand at Craig. "Thanks for coming by … you know where to find me, if you want to. But you don't have to."
"I think I do," Craig said even as Tony steered him toward the lab. "We'll set up a regular schedule that works around your college commitments after I talk to your other father figure in the morning."
Steve was still laughing to himself as they headed off, then took a moment to thank Craig properly so as not to send him off after watching the circus.
Chapter 80: One Angry Therapist
Notes:
Apologies for being so slow. Got hit with a nasty wave of depression that had me not even opening up the docs to read through them. Thanks so much, ChaosMagicUser for the reviews! I didn't respond to MOST of your amazing comments, but I will try to from here on out if you keep with us. Funk is not fun. - CC
Chapter Text
The next morning, James managed to sleep in a little bit, which was a shock to him since he hadn't slept at the tower in far too long. But his room was just as he'd left it and it was surprisingly quiet at the top of the tower. He'd even sort of missed the gentle sway of the building when the wind picked up. And it was more quiet than home in Brooklyn for sure.
He was just stretching out, and curling back into his pillow, perfectly relaxed for the first time in a while when there was a soft knock on the door and a moment later, Billy let himself in with coffee.
"Hey, handsome. Figured I'd take my chance at stealing some time with my princess in the tower," Billy teased, though James didn't argue with him at all, and instead simply moved over to make room.
"You're up early," James said when Billy sat down and put their coffees on the bedside table.
"No, you're sleeping late," he countered, then stole a quick kiss as he waited for James to do more than pick up his head.
"Guess I'm tired," James replied, then pushed himself into sitting up. He picked up the coffee Billy had brought, then after he got a sip, he took a moment for a better 'good morning' kiss that probably would have gotten them teased horribly if they'd been where the rest of the Avengers could see. "Hi."
"Hi. If you're that tired, I am not against some snuggles while you catch up on sleep," Billy told him.
"No, I said I'd get donuts with Tony," James said, then glared at the clock for a moment. "Unless he went without me."
"I don't think so. He looked pretty bushed when I saw him a minute ago," Billy said, then smiled. "I even came in via the living room instead of right to your room so we don't get accused of sneaking."
"Oh, wouldn't want that," James said, smirking to himself before he finally threw back his blanket and swung his feet over the edge of the bed. "Wanna grab me a shirt?"
"Not particularly," Billy deadpanned, then smiled at his own sass as he watched James pull on his jeans, then acquiesced and found a shirt for him anyhow, not at all apologetic that it was one of the many Stark Industries shirts around the tower.
"Oh, man, you're going to make Tony's day," James said before he pulled the shirt on, then picked up his coffee. "I haven't been wearing these."
"You should," Billy said. "Looks good on you."
"But it makes him twitch when I wear a Spider-Man tee," James defended. "Or Hawkeye! That's even better." The two of them were headed toward the kitchen together, quietly chatting between themselves.
"Do you have an Xavier Institute one?" Billy asked, then did his best to look not-surprised when James shook his head.
"Not yet," he admitted. "I went out of my way to not draw attention to myself before Tony lost his mind and made his announcement, and I don't want to draw down anything bad on the school, so …. No."
"Yes," Billy said, shaking his head. "Because having you wear a shirt supporting the school would be bad for business."
"What's bad for business now?" Tony asked, clearly not fully paying attention to everything around him - which told James he'd been up all night.
"Why don't you forget the coffee and donuts and go back to bed," James suggested when he took the seat next to Tony and reached over to take his cup from him. "You look like hell."
"And good morning to you, too," Tony shot back, then teasingly glared before he reached up to make James' bed head worse as he stole back his coffee. "You need a haircut."
"I kinda like it long," James defended, then gently refused when Jarvis came by to see what the boys wanted for breakfast. Scott wasn't the only one not entirely comfortable with asking for anything from him. "And you're the only one who wants me to cut it."
Tony paused, clearly thinking it over as he tapped his fingers on the table. "Yeah. I can see that."
It took a few minutes for both James and Tony to actually start waking up - aided by the fact that Jan had slipped out to pick up their usual weekend donuts when the two of them were together on the weekend. But … once the two of them were feeling a little more awake, they quietly … and slowly started talking shop in their own private code between them. It was clear in a heartbeat that Tony had been really missing his time with James where the two of them could fall into their comfortable brainstorming session.
Before long at all, it was a whole string of fragmented bits of sentences bounced between them as they finished each other's thoughts, and though Jan and Billy couldn't quite decipher their shared brain moments, they were both highly entertained all the same. Especially when the two of them found themselves not quite on the same page. Paper and pencils came out between bites of food and sips of coffee, and once it was visualized by one, the other would add on to it - and in equal parts both ways.
Jan picked up one of the drawings and pulled it over so Billy could see it too. "Looks like they're solving some issues for the team."
"Lucky us," Billy said, smiling.
The energy level between Tony and James was only getting higher - and it was clear they were just about ready to run off to tinker in the lab to make something that was sure to end with explosions since it had been so long since the two of them had been able to collaborate properly. Or they were …
As Billy and Jan were laughing at the now 2 to 3 word responses bouncing back and forth between them, the relative quiet of the kitchen was interrupted by laughter as Steve and Craig came out of the ready room. Craig was clearly enjoying himself, unable to stop the grin at his time with Steve, in tears of laughter. And when they got to the join the already gathered group, they were all smiling at the good cheer. Steve and Craig each got a cup of coffee, then sat down with the group, which only barely slowed Tony and James down, though with more people around, they seemed to go to entirely non-verbal discussions, furiously drawing between them a complicated diagram for circuitry, checking each other's work and wordlessly pointing out issues to each other while they were nodding and progressively smiling at each other more.
Something was clearly up with both groups.
"I'm glad you didn't run off, Mr. Stark," Craig said at last, and Tony did a full double take as he looked up at Craig from the drawing he and James were working on. "Whenever you're ready."
Tony held his gaze for a moment, looking like a deer caught in headlights for all of a few seconds before he recovered. "Oh no. I'm set. You can take the kid to talk though."
"Hey," James said, frowning at Tony at the same time that Steve let out a long drawn out 'Come on, Tony'.
"You said you'd go after me," Steve said, smiling crookedly. "Look at how well I'm doing now. One hour. It won't kill you."
"It won't hurt to give him a shot," Jan said, bumping Tony's hip with hers from where they were standing together. "Come on, handsome. For me?"
Tony looked entirely put out, unamused and not willing to work with what he had in front of him at all. "I was just headed in with the kid. Right?" he said, turning toward James, who didn't pause for an instant before he was nodding.
"It's been over a month since we've been able to get to work," Tony continued. "Gotta make the prototypes that keep this team funded."
But, when Tony was facing Craig, he couldn't see the crooked, troublemaking look James was wearing just before he nodded slowly at Craig and Steve.
The two inventors got up and started to head toward the labs, but before Tony was more than a few steps from the table, James rushed him and picked him up bodily, hauling him entirely off of his feet. "My lab still okay with you, Mr. Hale?" James asked as Tony started swearing and both Steve and Billy burst out laughing.
"Ah, yes, that would be fine," Craig said, quick to his feet as Jan giggled all the way down to the lab, ducking Tony when he reached for her.
James winked at Billy, who was still laughing, and carried Tony down the hall, even as he quickly started trying to reason, bargain, and threaten his way out of it. "Uncle Tony, you don't scare me," James said before they got to the lab with Craig following them, catching every bit of it. "And I know you're okay, but I love you and want you to stick around for as long as possible, okay? I do not think I can handle losing anyone else too soon and having to deal with your contracts."
Which was not an angle Tony could fight him on. At all. "You are just like your mother," Tony said, getting a broad smile out of James and Jan as she held the door open for them. By that time, Tony wasn't fighting him, even if he looked like he might try to bolt. "That's a dirty trick."
"Do you want me to apologize?" James challenged with a disbelieving tone before he dropped onto the couch with Tony - still not letting him go even as he switched to a bear hug instead.
"Would you?"
"Probably not," James admitted as the door closed and Craig sat down with them. "Do you want me to leave?"
Tony sighed heavily as he considered it. "You know what - anything i have to say might act as a warning for you, so … no. And the way you're goin', kid - you need all the warnings you can get."
James smirked and looked up at Craig, finally letting up on the bear hug he was giving Tony. "Does this count toward my therapy sessions?"
"No," Craig said. "But it was an admirable attempt to deflect."
"Can't believe I let Cap talk me into this," Tony grumbled.
"You know he does know how to use all his tech, right?" James told him quietly. "He just likes to act clueless to rile you." When Tony gave him a dry look, James challenged. "Do you think I'm lying to you?"
"No," Tony said almost dismissively before he started up a long stare out of the window. "Of course not."
"I can go if it makes it easier," James said, more earnestly than the tease earlier. "I didn't think you'd want me here, anyhow. I was just going to give you a hard time to make sure you followed through."
Tony shook his head and dropped his hand across James' shoulders. "Nah, I meant it. Stick around. Only a few traumatic things that might apply to you anyhow. And I'd prefer you learned from my mistakes than to live through them yourself."
"I'd prefer that, too," James agreed with a nod.
It was kind of the perfect transition for Craig to get started, and it was nice for him to see how the two of them interacted so effortlessly and comfortably. There was quite clearly a different dynamic in play with Tony and James than there was when the boy was with his father. The respect and affection was clear in both cases, but the tone was just … very different.
And frustratingly, Tony Stark was nowhere near as open or ready to talk as Scott was. He treated the session - or at least most of it - much like an interrogation or an interview, and before too long, Craig was wondering if it was a mistake to have let Tony keep James with him when he was so beautifully demonstrating what not to do.
Tony's defense, of course, was that his life was an open book and there wasn't a thing that he could tell the good doctor that wasn't already common knowledge. He openly pointed out the coping mechanisms that he'd already learned and adapted to his own unique lifestyle, admitted that he was an addict and outlined how he was coping with his various temptations sufficiently.
But when the subject shifted to how he'd handled his first kidnapping - and the arc reactor he still had in his chest as a result of it - Tony's whole expression went blank and he refused to discuss it. Which was the end of their discussion.
"Alright then," Craig said after it was clear that Tony wasn't budging for anyone, even for his protege's benefit. "I'm sure you've come across dozens of brilliant young minds. What is it about James that made you decide he was the one you'd want to step into your very big shoes?" Tony gave him a dry look, and Craig continued to give him some context. "It may help me with him when we're working though his sessions."
Tony drew in a deep breath, almost rolling his eyes as he thought through if he even wanted to answer, and how much of this was something the kid hadn't heard already. He turned to look at James as he spoke. "Nothing you haven't heard already."
"Does that mean you want me to leave?" James asked.
Tony smirked and shook his head, though he didn't look away from James as he answered Craig. "I knew his parents well," Tony said. "Couldn't find anyone better to watch your back and his mother and I were good friends."
"Just friends," James added, which got a hollow sort of chuckle out of Tony.
"Yeah. She had some pretty clear lines in the sand. Just friends," Tony agreed, though he took a moment to continue, turning to Craig again. "He's the closest thing I've got to a kid of my own and he's got his mother's mind. I'd have kept him myself when he was little, but Scott …" Tony faltered and it was clear to Craig that the mess that had all but destroyed Scott had left deep wounds of a different kind on the Avengers. "He couldn't lose anyone else. So, I did my best to make sure they'd be safe. Whatever it took."
But that was enough for Tony to share, and before Craig could say anything further, Tony slapped his hands on his thighs and stood up. "Well. You two have fun-"
"Wait," James said, frowning up at Tony.
"-I've got work to do-"
"So do I," James said, cutting in even as Tony kept going.
"-and you have therapy to do first. Don't be like me." Tony gave James a tight smile, then turned to nod at Craig once, then he left with James looking after him in shock.
"Well, I guess that's our cue to move on," Craig said after a moment. "Unless you feel as if you need someone to do a session with you."
"No, I just … didn't think this was the plan," James admitted. "I should have known, but … damn." He got to his feet and rubbed his hands on the sides of his legs. "Can I get you some coffee?"
"I'm fine, take a seat and we can get started."
"If it's alright with you, I'm going to make some coffee anyhow," James said, partly wanting the coffee and partly wanting to stall since he honestly thought that everything had already been covered with his dad. He wasn't relaxed, but he wasn't tense, either. Just …. Somewhere in the middle. Once he had the coffee pot halfway going, he looked over his shoulder at Craig. "So … I'll be honest, I thought I told you what you needed to hear for my part of things already."
"You did tell me a little yesterday," Craig agreed. "And I apologize for not actually discussing much of what you had to say. However, I would like to address some of yesterday's session, as well as how you found yourself handling it."
James frowned, but nodded as he made his way back across the room - the one thing he hated about doing therapy with anyone, even Toby, was that he always felt trapped and in a strange place. But he was perfectly comfortable in his own lab. "I'm not sure what you're getting to, but I know you'll get there when it's right." He gestured over his shoulder. "I really should have grabbed my coffee before we came down here, but I won't take off and make you wonder if I'm pulling something. So - if you want to get started on your lead in, I'm going to grab a fresh cup. You're welcome to it."
Craig considered him for a moment, watching the boy's body language for a better clue as to what he thought was supposed to happen before he nodded to himself and decided to do just that as a better inroad to get James to talk to him. Up until this point, he hadn't had a one on one session with him and now, Craig had a sneaking suspicion that James had been only as upfront as he needed to be to help those he was sitting in with - namely, his father and Tony.
"Thank you, I think I will," Craig said as he set his notebook down and made his way over. Perhaps starting a little less officially would help get the kid to start talking for his own benefit.
As soon as the coffee was brewed, James poured a cup for both of them, sure to slide the first cup to Craig before he took his mug and made his way over to lean on his workbench. He had intended to give Craig room to do whatever it was he needed to do, but he honestly didn't know how the guy operated one on one. And he was very sure the guy needed a breather after Tony.
"So," Craig said, leaning back with his coffee. "Was your lab always this nice or is this a new upgrade after the public announcement?"
"It's a little upgraded from when Magneto trashed it twice, but it's always been like this, more or less," James replied. "Tony's always made sure I had whatever might be useful - and a view, I'm told, is a requirement. He's in here almost as much as I am, usually."
"You have a good rapport with him," Craig said, smiling softly. "It's… refreshing, honestly."
"He's easy to get along with," James said. "And we have a lot of fun in between different projects."
"I can see that," Craig agreed. "It's different than what I've seen between you and Scott." He held up a hand. "Not 'better' just different. And I'm honestly relieved to see it. Everyone needs an outlet." He gestured to himself with one hand. "I am not the fun uncle. It's my sister's job to be the fun aunt. But I admire the people who can do that."
James nodded, mostly because he wasn't sure if there was even an appropriate response to that. He was right, of course, but that didn't mean James was prepared to dive in and agree. Of course, he thought of all the ways that the statement wasn't quite right, too. Scott had done his best to keep the kids going and have fun when the coast was clear. There were plenty of camping trips and side-runs to Hawaii with both Scott and Alex … so it wasn't like there was a strict line between how Scott and Tony had treated him. It was, very much like Craig had said - just different. Finally though, James managed half a response. "There's something to be said about the one that does what needs to be done, though."
"I wasn't trying to downplay either of them," Craig pointed out gently.
"I know, I'm just overthinking," James said. "Thinking out loud a little bit, too." He forced a little smile that looked mostly genuine. "And I'm trying to figure out where I fall on that scale, maybe. Probably ought to ask the niece and nephew. Whenever that comes around."
"Now that I've met Tony, I see both of your father figures in you. I think you'll fall in the middle," Craig said and took another sip of coffee. "I got that telepathic interference thing installed in my office, by the way. I appreciate you looking out for me."
"I probably should have sent one to you when Dad got comfortable," James admitted. "I'm sorry it took so long." He shrugged one shoulder up. "So … now what?"
"I'm just trying to get to know you, James," Craig said. "I've heard so much about you from Scott, and it's nice to get a better picture. I didn't know your birth parents well at all, though I met Logan briefly, but honestly, between Scott and Tony…" He smiled. "I genuinely think you have the tools at your disposal to be alright. I haven't doubted one bit since I started working with Scott that the man has taught you how to love - and love deeply - but damn if it isn't good to see easy affection and playfulness in your life too. You need both."
"I am still a teenager," James pointed out. "I think it's a requirement." James' focus shifted to his coffee cup, still unsure of what Craig was looking for, but not yet ready to rabbit like Tony had done. He was going to have to give him a hard time later. Or a hard prank. Or both.
Craig took a deep breath and let it out slowly. "I know," he said. "Like I said, I'm just trying to get a feel for you." He paused and drank the coffee until there was none left in his mug. "This is ridiculously good, by the way. What, does Stark have some rare coffee beans in there or something?"
"Tony can't make coffee to save his life or kickstart his arc reactor," James said flatly. "I just learned from the best, that's all."
"And who was that?" Craig asked, getting up to get some more.
James considered how to answer, but he knew that Logan had met Craig- and it was possible that at some point it had come out that K had looked into Craig for Scott, so he saw no reason to skirt around it. "My mom."
Craig broke into a broad smile. "That's wonderful," he said - absolutely sincere. "My family has a rich history passing down recipes too. It's nice to have something to hold onto from them - especially once my dad lost his memory." He gave James a tight smile. "It's not the same, but still, making biscuits in the morning…"
"I'm really sorry to hear that," James said, perfectly seriously. "That has to be rough. Maybe even harder than just losing him outright."
Craig nodded thoughtfully. "I think loss hurts no matter how it happens," he said. "No matter how old you are." He paused. "But I'll be honest, James, you've got a lot going for you. Good support for needs and wants, as I understand it, a steady relationship, and a good relationship with your parents' memory. What I'm more concerned with now is this new wrinkle with Emma Frost." He leaned forward over his mug. "Because I have to tell you, that woman irks me in a very particular way, and I don't lose my temper often."
James nodded seriously. "I believe they have a support group for that." He looked up at Craig, still keeping his straight face. "Very crowded. Lots of angry men - and women. And small animals, too."
Craig couldn't help but snort in an undignified manner. "I'm sure," he said, not at all professional in the way he was grinning. He tried to get his expression back under control. "I know you've rehashed this with both Tony and Scott, but please, humor me. Can you tell me about her most recent approach to you? I'm a little concerned, but I'd like to hold back on my judgement until I hear the details from you."
James blinked at him a few times. "Okay … what did I skip over last time?" He frowned slightly. "She had me pulled out of class and tried to get me to take her offer for back up in fighting with the college - which, is a waste of time, really."
"Yes, you told me that. I'd really like to hear from you what prompted you to tell her she was too old." Craig's expression darkened. "Please."
James frowned a little deeper for an instant, then seemed to relax when he backtracked through the memory. "Oh. You mean the pass she made."
"Yes." Craig waited, but when James didn't say anything right away, he continued, "I'm concerned because most teenagers - the ones that aren't looking for that kind of attention in the first place - would have a bigger reaction. You're so blase about it."
"Emma Frost aside, it's kind of a hazard," James said.
Craig raised one eyebrow. "If Rachel were here and told you that unwanted sexual advances just happened, what would you say?"
The corner of James' mouth tightened. "Rachel would nuke the guy, first of all," James said.
"Kate, then."
"Kate would shoot him in his delicates."
"So why don't you have the same reaction?" Craig asked.
James faltered for a moment. "I'm …. I … guess I'm just used to it. And I'm not about to hit a woman over that."
"That's my problem, James," Craig said. "You shouldn't be used to that kind of contact. I don't care the gender of those involved. Harassment and assault is harassment and assault. Period. It's not something you should be accepting, and I'm concerned by the way you dismiss it for yourself but stand up for others." He leaned forward. "You'd have had a much stronger reaction if she'd done this to Nate, for example."
James tipped his head slightly, but nodded. "So would Nate," he had to agree, then took a moment to organize his defense. "It's just how I had to react before Tony's announcement. It happened a lot - and before you say I should have told someone - they all knew. It was a matter of not making a scene and blowing our cover. And it never went anywhere, so … it is what it is."
"James, knowing what I know about your father, I highly doubt he was asking you to accept this kind of behavior."
"Oh, he was pissed, sure," James agreed. "But it wasn't an every day kind of thing, so I just tried to avoid … things."
Craig pinched the bridge of his nose. "I doubt Scott asked you to do anything like that."
"He didn't," James agreed. "I kept away when I could so there wasn't any trouble at Nate's games - I didn't go to the school so the access wasn't there for any troublemakers on a regular basis. Really."
"This happened often enough you knew names?" Craig looked like every word was only making him madder.
James rubbed his forehead as he propped his head up. "If we only count the school, yes. Anything in uniform's off the table."
"I will actually agree with you there. That kind of harassment is, unfortunately, a different grade because of your fame in uniform." Craig sighed. "James, I need you to learn how to say no to people. I understand you were trying to stay safe when you were younger, but you no longer have to avoid making a scene. If someone touches you or invades your personal space in any way - especially if you don't want them to - make a damn scene."
"All evidence to the contrary, I don't like being front and center when it comes to drama," James said.
"And predators will take advantage of that," Craig insisted. He paused and tried a different tactic. "In the past, I've worked with a few victims of exactly that same kind of scenario. Not everyone that comes into my office is a superhero, though it seems that way now." He shook his head. "Every single one of them said something to the effect of not wanting to make a scene, not wanting to go against someone in authority, not thinking they had a choice, not thinking the issue was important. And I won't allow that cycle to continue in anyone under my care. Learn to say no. I don't care if it's loud enough for the whole school or if it's just for the one pushing, but learn to say no in a way they will understand means they can never - never - try that again."
"I hear what you're saying," James said. "But historically, that hasn't worked out too well for me."
"How so?"
"I know I don't have an impressive list of actual relationships, but … I said no to my last serious girlfriend in a non-romantic subject and got dropped for it. It was the one time I stood my ground with her. Same kind of thing happened with most of my actual dates when it wasn't just about something physical. And the girls who have been grabby are automatically blacklisted, so, I really don't see where the trouble is if it's the physical issue that bugs you."
"Then they were shit girlfriends," Craig said without any hesitation.
"Apparently." James got up to get a fresh cup of coffee, and took Craig's with him to top him off.
"James," Craig said carefully, "I'd like you to practice putting boundaries back in place. And I'd like you to say 'no' more often."
"No, I don't think so."
Craig smirked. "I set myself up for that," he admitted.
"You really did," James agreed, returning to set down Craig's coffee - mixed the way he took it, too.
"I'm serious," Craig said. "If you let people walk all over you because you don't want to make a scene - or worse, because you think boundaries will push them away - then you're only building isolation and resentment into your relationships. And considering how serious you and Billy are getting, that worries me. Especially seeing as he's not used to hearing no. There's a good reason for concern."
James watched him for a moment, weighing it out. "What makes you so sure he isn't used to that?" He gestured with one hand. "Not from me, obviously, but …"
"I exchanged notes with Toby."
"Ah."
"Exactly." Craig nodded to himself. "So, I think that's a good place to stop for now. You know you have issues setting boundaries. I think I can trust you to at least try to set them for the bigger things, even if you don't make a scene…"
James nodded once. "So would it help or hurt your final note if I told you the girl that gave me trouble at the games was Emma's niece? So we don't have to come back to it again."
"Good lord," Craig said - completely unable to filter his reaction.
"I know Dad's worried about Emma figuring out a connection, but if she talks to Izzy at all, she won't need to dig," James said. "She knew Nate's my brother. The resemblance to Dad is too strong to ignore. Just a matter of time unless I'm giving her too much credit."
"That's not encouraging." Craig frowned, his fingers tented in front of him as he tapped the ends of his fingertips against his mouth.
"No, but now you have some homework, too," James said, raising his mug at Craig.
"Yes, well." Craig pressed his lips together. "Still." He sighed. "You're not the only one in your family struggling with this, James. Please, be on your guard."
"I usually am," James said with a sigh. "And I think most of the time the four of us are so busy watching each other's backs we forget to watch our own."
"You know, I think that just about sums up the issues I have with y'all," Craig said, smiling at last as he got to his feet. "Thank you for the coffee, James. I think I have an addiction."
"It's here when I am," James said. "And thanks for blowing your weekend with us."
"I blew nothing. I got good insight into the man dating my sister," Craig said with a teasing smirk.
"Yeah, I haven't met her, but I've only heard good things," James told him.
"Good." Craig set the mug down and headed for the door. "I'll see you next weekend, then."
"As long as they don't make me stay in Cambridge," James agreed, then followed Craig out just so he could head down to Tony's lab to give him a hard time.
"That is a very specific look," Annie said as she met up with her brother at church. He was pensive, half staring at a point beyond whatever he was actually looking at and in moments like those, their father shone through in his features so clearly that it nearly took her breath away. It was like seeing her father as a younger man - ready to take some foul mouthed idiot out back to beat him down.
For an instant, the intensity of Craig's gaze shifted to Annie, but only so long as it took him to refocus. "Good morning, Annie," Craig said, and though his expression shifted mostly, he still looked bugged.
"Good morning to you, too," she said. "So. Do we need to warn Anton that you might need an alibi or is this just the 'trying to decide how hard to hit him' look?"
"It's not a him," Craig said, trying to keep from having this discussion before church.
"Oh! Then did you want me to hit her?" Annie asked, only halfway teasing.
"You might …" Craig almost smirked at his own little joke. "But I won't ask you to do that."
"So … how bad is it?" Annie asked. "And is the kid involved alright?"
"If it'd been a kid, I wouldn't be sittin' here this mornin'," Craig said in a rumbling tone. He'd actually had to step back from taking on clients under a certain age because his temper got the better of him a few times. Hearing someone so small talking about trauma so big had turned on every protective urge he'd ever called on growing up with two sisters and a dad with PTSD. And Annie and Evie had called Anton and more or less made him babysit Craig until he calmed down enough that he didn't do anything to lose his license or get arrested.
So, yes, Annie had good reason to think Craig was riled up in defense of a kid. There weren't many things that could turn him that particular shade of red.
Annie frowned to herself. "Then I think I'm missin' something here."
"It's a therapist who's been using their position to abuse their patients," he told her quietly. "If you must know."
"Oh," was all Annie could say in response, knowing how seriously Craig took his job and how personally he took it when people used the thing he loved - the job he dedicated his life to - in order to destroy lives instead of saving them. "Well. I don't pity them when you get through with them."
Craig smirked at that. "I've got a few friends lookin' into makin' her life hell," he said, though he paused and glanced around at the vindictive words when they were in church. "Can we talk about this later?"
"Sure," Annie said - and then, because she couldn't help herself, she tried to tease him just a little bit. "Maybe you'll feel less murderous after the preacher does a number on the Ten Commandments."
"You're hilarious," Craig said dryly, though he couldn't help smirking all the same. That was his little sister; she always knew what buttons to push to get him smiling.
And besides, he couldn't do anything but stew while he waited for Tony Stark's army of lawyers to do their thing. So he might as well enjoy teasing his baby sister for their usual Sunday traditions.
Chapter 81: Major Minor Problem
Chapter Text
"Kit-Kat, why are you pretending to ignore me?" Daniel asked from across the hall. It was crowded enough he couldn't simply push his way through. "You're not still mad at me for beating you, are you? Because I'm always open to a rematch if you want to make a little wager out of it."
Nate could feel Kate go totally stiff underneath his arm as they were walking to class together. Even though they'd all been practicing telepathic defense because of Emma Frost, Kate was projecting loudly everything that had happened when she and Daniel had their unofficial rematch. And that was enough to get him furious at the guy too, especially since Kate had mostly complained about the cheating, not the kissing.
Kate spun toward Daniel and away from Nate, her eyes flashing. "I'm ignoring you, Danathon, because the only way you could beat me is by cheating, and you think that entitles you to a victory celebration. And I'm better than you. I don't stoop that low." She stuck her nose in the air in an imitation of her mother going undercover somewhere fancy. "Go lick a boot."
"Oh, like you were doing traditional fencing," Daniel shot back.
"You gave up on the sword entirely when you couldn't keep up and thought we were in a wrestling match, you sorry sack of deflated footballs," Kate shot back.
"As if you didn't start it at our first match," Daniel said in a lower register. "Name the time and the place -"
Daniel had nearly caught up to Kate and Nate - and Nate cut off whatever Daniel was about to say as he simply turned around, nose up and nearly towering over the guy. "That's enough. Find a hobby before you get hurt," Nate said - in as close to a gentle threat as he could manage. Especially when he was ready to make this moron think he was a three year old girl. Permanently. And he was even kind enough to tell Kate as much, too.
But for the witnesses, she replied without missing a beat.
"Oh, I see," Daniel said. "You know you can't win a fair duel so you'll hide behind the quarterback instead."
"If it had been fair to start with," Nate said, barely reining in his temper, "you wouldn't have assaulted her when you thought no one would find out."
"I'm sorry, you did what now," a new voice broke into the conversation as Annie Hale practically strode through the tide of students, her gaze locked onto the three of them.
Kate groaned. She didn't want anyone to know what had happened, and now, Nate had broadcast it, and Miss Hale - no matter how sweet she was - wasn't going to let it drop either. "Ugh. I'm blaming you for this," she muttered to Nate. "I had him handled."
"This was my version of restraint, gorgeous," Nate whispered back. "And you know it."
"And you're hot when you're being protective; don't get me wrong," she said. But this isn't something I want getting spread around my senior year.
"It's just an exaggeration, Ms. Hale," Daniel said, trying for a smile. "Katie is just mad that I won our swordfight."
"He cheated," Kate insisted. "He tossed his sword and tackled me like a caveman." She glared daggers at Daniel. "He's delusional. Thinks if he pretends to be a quarterback I'll give him the time of day."
"Weird he was trying to be a tackle," Nate said over Kate's head.
"His tiny mind can't comprehend all the football positions, Nate. He just thinks you all tackle and wear cups."
"Well I can try it …"
Annie held up a hand between the three teenagers. "Just stop it," she said in a weary tone before she turned toward Daniel. "And you? Your behavior has been a step away from harassment from the start. Put one toe out of line on school property, and I'll make sure you're suspended so fast your Kindergarten teacher will write you a note home."
But Daniel didn't really reply to that, and instead, he glared at both Ms Hale and Kate before he pushed by Nate to get to class.
Nate looked ready to reach out and strangle him with his bare hands, but instead, he held his breath and turned to Ms Hale. "Sorry for disturbing you. We were just going to class. Really."
Ms. Hale glared after Daniel for a moment, sighed, and then turned back to Nate. "He's been trouble since he got here, Nate; I believe you." Then, she softened her expression and turned to Kate. "Are you alright? What Nate said-"
"I'm fine," Kate insisted. "Nate's being overprotective. If he tries to cross any lines beyond what he's already crossed, he'll be a lifelong soprano. I know how to look out for myself."
"It's true," Nate confirmed. "She's really good at self defense."
Annie looked between the two of them, narrowed her eyes, pursed her lips, and then tutted. "Well, even someone who knows what they're doing can use help sometimes. If you decide you need it-"
"I know where to look," Kate promised, smiling brightly. "Thanks, Ms. Hale."
Once more, Ms. Hale frowned, but since there was no conflict and Kate and Nate seemed to be backing each other up spectacularly, she couldn't argue. Instead, she simply nodded and turned to leave.
Kate waited until Ms. Hale was in her own classroom before she thwacked Nate in the back of the head. Your future mom is already trying to mom me by proxy. What's up with that?
Um … I'm not supposed to go poking around in her head? Nate answered. Unless that's slowly dying because Dad can't focus. I can't answer for her - but it must be because she likes you.
She likes you, Nate. It's written all over her face. Probably can't wait to mom you. How fast can your dad move?
If history's any indicator? Think molasses in January, outside with a north wind.
Poor, poor Annie Hale, Kate said in a sing-song mental tone.
I mean … he was a lot faster with Jan, but … well. That was then.
Kate clasped her hands together. They really were so cute together. I thought it was so romantic when I was a kid.
Us Summerses are always cute, no matter who we're with. Get that straight. Nate was smiling to himself, knowing that she'd get on a new track if he could just get her to play a little.
Um, lies. Your girlfriend before me made you look like-
Are you still mad about her? Nate teased.
Depends. Can I pretend to be jealous so you have to win me over?
I'd know if that was the case.
You're killing the mood, Summers.
Considering we're stuck in school? That might be for the best for now …
Spoilsport. Kate grinned at him over her shoulder as they headed into class - and then went ahead and got lost in a psychic makeout session with him anyway, because they weren't going to be able to pay attention either way.
It was a stroke of pure luck that Emma didn't reach out to James the next week - and just before Halloween, James was fortunate enough to end up with a Friday off before the Halloween weekend. Bobby was still keeping tabs on him, but he was at least reasonable enough to leave James alone when he was in his room - which meant Billy could still sneak in and the two of them could at least spend their nights curled up and cozy. And it was getting cold enough that both of them were really enjoying the bed sharing and wrapping up in each other.
But the big deal here was that Billy didn't have a day off and though James was curled around him and lightly dozing, Billy needed to get up and get to class. "I need to go now," Billy said quietly, trying not to talk too loudly and draw Bobby's attention. They'd been getting away with it as far as they knew, anyhow.
"No," James said, smirking to himself. He hadn't been doing much to practice boundaries like Craig had suggested, but this … this felt like a good time to give it a shot if nothing else than for the humor value.
Billy smiled and shifted in his arms so he could get a quick kiss. "What do you mean … you know I have to get to class."
"Yeah, but Doc Hale said I need to tell you no - and this seemed like the right time to try it out."
Billy bit his lip trying not to laugh. "Why do you need to tell me no?"
"I don't know," James said, nuzzling into his neck and doing an excellent job of making it very hard to want to get out of bed. "But I've officially tried, so …"
Billy laughed quietly then leaned in for a more drawn out kiss. "I don't think you're doing it the way he intended."
"I think I have the spirit of the exercise down," James argued, but let go of Billy all the same.
"Yeah, we'll have to talk about that later," Billy said as he quickly got ready for school - still dragging while James rearranged himself - stretched out on his stomach with his head on his crossed arms. He stopped and tipped his head to the side. "You're know you're not helping, don't you?"
"Not even a little bit."
Billy let out a noise from the back of his throat and took a moment to steal another kiss. "I'll see you at the tower later, right?"
"Yeah, I'll be there," James promised, smirking crookedly.
Billy finally disappeared, but it wasn't five minutes later, when James came downstairs, ready to head back to the city, that it was clear that Bobby knew something was up … and he was watching James with a frown. James paused then pulled his hoodie on over his head. "What?"
"Were you talking to someone just now?"
"Were you listening in?"
"Hard not to," Bobby said, looking more serious. "Was Billy here all night?"
But James didn't answer right away - and that was as good as a confession to Bobby when he knew the kid didn't like to lie.
"I am very sure that's not on the parent approved list of things you can do here," Bobby said.
"I'm picking the radio station this time," James said with a wave as he picked up his bookbag and slung it over his shoulder. "And I'm going to New York. You can go with me - like you say you have to, or you can drive yourself. Doesn't matter to me."
"Yeah, I'm going with you," Bobby said, behind him in a few steps to help close up the place for the long weekend. "I think we need to have a talk on the way."
For an instant, James considered telling Bobby 'no', but knew that would blow up in his face if his dad or Craig heard about it, so instead he opted to just … ignore the situation as much as humanly possible on the way back.
By the time James and Bobby got to the tower, Bobby was quietly trying to keep his concerns to himself. At least until he had a chance to talk to Scott and see if he was off base or not. It was hard to get a good grasp of what James was up to or not up to when the kid was so agreeable most of the time … so Bobby tried very hard to keep it to himself.
Scott had promised to meet them there once his last class was dismissed in Westchester, but that only meant Bobby had to hang out for an hour or two before he could chat with Scott. In that time, he watched James with Tony … and Steve … and Jan. And the whole time he kept thinking over all he knew, all he'd seen, and how the boys had acted on the weekend … and it wasn't anywhere close to the way he would have reacted if he'd been that age and away from his sweetheart for a week solid.
When Scott stepped out of the elevator with Billy, who had hitched a ride with him, Bobby was still leaning against a corner near the living room area, watching James and the Avengers with a studious frown. Billy grinned at Bobby, then zipped off, leaving the first two X-Men to discuss things.
"Bobby," Scott said, then stopped next to him to watch for himself to see what was going on. "Something wrong?"
Bobby looked between Scott and James, then nodded to himself. "Yeah. I think … we should probably have a talk. I have some concerns."
Immediately, Scott's mind went to Emma and what she or other Hellfire club members might try to pull - and knowing how wrapped around the occult that group could be, the timing of anything near Halloween was worrisome at best. "Yeah, okay," Scott said, then led the way down to one of the ready rooms that Stark had set aside. He was more concerned for James' safety than he was worried about saying hello when he knew that James was wrapped up in something Stark related anyhow. "Alright, what happened?"
"I'm not sure," Bobby said, then held up a hand when he saw Scott stiffen up. "I think … that Billy's been staying over nights."
Scott didn't look like he was really reacting to start with. He seemed to be holding his breath and was almost perfectly still until finally, "... alright. Wanda needs to know. Can you reach out?"
"Absolutely," Bobby said, and before he'd even gotten his phone out, Scott was headed for the living room where he thought James and Billy were. Of course, when he got there, the two of them had already moved on - likely to James' lab, which was perfectly fine as far as Scott was concerned. It just made his life a little easier if he didn't have to isolate them himself.
Scott keyed in the code to get into the lab, and he was pleased, at least, to see that the two of them hadn't taken the first opportunity to start off a makeout session once they were away from the rest of the Avengers. But before Scott could say a word, Wanda appeared in a swirl of red smoky light … which was about as subtle of a way to say 'you're busted' as the prince of Genosha would get from his mother.
Scott paused to lock the door behind him, and the boys looked between Scott and Wanda before they shared a glance. There was no way they didn't know they were busted.
"Hi, Mom," Billy said, smiling lightly as he waved at her.
"Do you have any idea what time it is on Genosha?" Wanda said, looking far too serious - which had Billy cringing. Especially when he realized she had to have thrown her robe on over her pajamas.
"I'm sorry, I don't know what the emergency is," Billy said, doing a fair job of feigning innocence - even if he was the only person in the room going that route. Even James was giving him a raised eyebrow look.
"William," Wanda said, her tone carrying a bit more power to it than a "mom voice" alone would do - and Billy quickly shied back. "Don't lie to me."
"Wasn't… wasn't really lying," Billy muttered under his breath. "It's not an emergency."
"You secretly moved in with your boyfriend and you expect me to treat it like anything less than the height of short-sightedness?" Wanda demanded. "Do you have any idea what the repercussions would be if anyone found out?"
"I've been super careful. No ones seen me there!" Billy looked between the two parents. "And James doesn't even go anywhere once he's at the house after class. We stay in and study."
"You're both seventeen," Scott said, his tone sharp without being angry - yet.
"And doing amazing in our studies," Billy said, though James wasn't arguing it on either side. "Neither of us has been late once."
"This isn't about whether you can steal time together," Wanda said. "And it's not about your grades or your school schedule. It's about rushing into a stage of your relationship you are too young to be in."
Billy tipped his chin up slightly and shifted his stance. "Well … I disagree." His tone was cordial without any of the tension that he'd started with. Almost reasonable if not for the fact that he was wrong.
While Wanda looked like she was getting more furious, Scott simply cleared his throat and looked pointedly at James. "You'll be eighteen in a few weeks. The second someone - including someone telepathic - finds out you've got a seventeen-year-old living with you, I guarantee there will be headlines."
At that, James finally frowned deeply and crossed his arms over his chest. It wasn't anywhere close to the discussion Billy was having - and it was the right thing for Scott to say because a few seconds later, James simply nodded.
Billy turned sharply to face him. "Seriously? Just like that?"
"If he's right? Yeah." James sighed heavily. "I don't like it, but I won't do anything that will have people dragging you through the mud either." He gave Billy a more serious look. "They already think I'm screwing around with my sister. That's going to be a mess when they realize how wrong they are. They'll do the same with you."
"And you're both public figures," Scott reminded them. "Billy is still considered to be next in line in Genosha." He looked toward Wanda, who nodded once to confirm what he was saying but otherwise kept her gaze on Billy, who was looking anywhere but at his mom. "Something like this has ramifications."
"What we're not saying is that you could do this if you weren't under the public eye, either," Wanda added - because it needed saying. "You're both young. And until you are actually both adults, you don't get to act like lovesick Romeos."
"Mom," Billy grumbled, "I barely get to see him! This whole stupid thing with the school-"
"It's a short term situation," Wanda shot back before she turned to James. "How close are you to finishing up?"
"To be determined," James said. "They keep adjusting things."
Scott pinched the bridge of his nose. "No one is saying you can't spend time together. But moving in… is entirely different. It's a level of commitment you aren't prepared for when you can't give each other your attention." He gestured between the two of them. "And it's a bad idea to take such a big step under stressful circumstances this severe."
"Voice of experience," Wanda muttered under her breath, finally breaking into a smirk.
Scott gave her a dry look. "Look," he said, gesturing with one hand. "You're young. You're allowed to want to spend time together. And I'm not going to get into whatever it is you're getting up to while you do." He gave James a pointed look. "But moving in together is a commitment, not a convenience."
"No one said anything about convenient," James pointed out, because to him, it was anything but convenient.
Wanda tipped her head toward Billy, who shrank in a little more on himself. "'Mom, I barely get to see him,'" she repeated to Billy, who barely kept from rolling his eyes because he knew he'd get in more trouble if he did. "Make time. You said you're studying together? Do that. Have dinner. But don't go behind our backs to move in." She tipped her chin up. "If it's such a great thing, why did you hide it from us?" she pointed out.
"Technically, we just didn't announce it," Billy said.
"Tread carefully, Billy. I actually like this boyfriend," Wanda said in a dangerous tone. "But if you keep acting like you don't understand the weight of your own actions, I will bring you back to Genosha. And you will not be able to reverse my spell and you know it."
"It won't happen again," James said.
Wanda narrowed her eyes at James and then spun to face Scott. "I don't understand," she said, gesturing sharply at James. "I don't understand."
Scott very nearly smirked. "I raised him right. He knows better than to argue with me if he knows I have good reason for the rules I'm setting down."
"I don't understand." Wanda was starting to smirk as well. "I could hear you arguing with his father from space, I swear."
Scott couldn't help but smile as well. "Well, one day maybe I'll be wrong and you'll get a rerun," he teased, and Wanda pushed his shoulder with a huff.
"Come here in my robe ready to fight and your upstanding kid doesn't even have the decency to be a pigheaded teenager so I can get mad at him for corrupting my baby," Wanda grumbled good-naturedly.
"Sorry about that," Scott said in a tone that said he was not. Still smiling, he turned back to James. "Look, if you two really are serious about each other, just wait. Please. At least until you're both adults." He held his hands out to his sides. "I'm the last person who can talk about getting serious young. Really. But I want you to do this right and not just because your temporary situation is short on sex."
"I already agreed with you," James pointed out.
"You said it wouldn't happen again, and I'm telling you it can - once you're old enough," Scott said.
"I don't remember arguing against that."
"Thought I'd make myself clear before I find out you've taken your own statement too literally," Scott said dryly.
Billy looked between the adults and James and made a face. "Okay, but, like, he's only four months older than me. You're seriously gonna make us wait five months?"
"Graduate high school, Billy," Wanda said, one eyebrow raised. "Then you can take up with a college boy."
"That means you need to start looking," James teased in a flat tone. "Since I'll have my degrees finished by then one way or another."
Billy finally smirked at that and shoved James. "Like I'm interested in anyone else," he said. "I'm still coming over to study. And eat. And stuff."
"You might find someone more distracting with all that free time..."
"Nah." Billy made an exaggerated motion with both hands. "That's impossible."
"Never know," James said.
Wanda shook her head and then turned toward Scott, smirked, and leaned in to whisper, "And if this keeps up, I get to keep them, seeing as Billy takes over for me."
"Over my dead body," Scott said without missing a beat.
"If you say so," Wanda replied, then wrapped her robe a little better around herself and simply vanished, leaving Scott shaking his head and wondering how he'd gone from hiding his kids away to arguing with the newest head of a country on who got to keep his kid.
The rest of the weekend had gone about as well as it could while being overshadowed with every adult in James and Billy's lives keeping a much closer eye on them - considering that they'd been living together secretly.
The Halloween celebrations were a bit muted, and Craig had a solid lecture for James, so by the time James went back to Cambridge, he was ready to just … get back to work and put it all behind him. And that first night alone was rough. Not just for him, either.
Billy hadn't slept at all those first few nights, and he did his best to hold back - but their parents did say they could study together … so as soon as he knew James should be back at the house, he magicked himself there, ready to study at least.
And there was certainly something to be said for a few days apart. They studied … and had dinner … and even got to spend a little time on the couch together. But … once it was clear that it was getting late, James took the initiative to say goodnight. The two of them said their good nights and shared a kiss, but when James turned to head upstairs, so did Billy.
James stopped halfway up the staircase and turned with a smile still caught on his features, only accented when Billy pressed forward for another kiss on the spot, but that couldn't last. "What are you doing?" James asked, though he wasn't trying to stop the makeout session right there that was threatening to start up freshly.
"I thought we were going to bed," Billy said, but at that, James pulled back.
"You can't stay tonight, sweetheart," James said.
"I think I can…"
"No, Billy," James said, taking a hold of both of his hands gently. "You can't. I'm sorry, but it's like I said before … I don't like to lie to the adults. And I told your mom this wouldn't happen again. It can't."
"She doesn't have to know-"
"No, but I will," James said. "And I can't do that."
The shock, disappointment, and honest hurt was rolling off of Billy in waves, and James hated every second of it. "Well if that's what you want."
"Not what I said," James replied, as he caught Billy's hand when he turned. "This is not about what I want. Nothing about this stupid situation is what I want, but I still have to do it. And hopefully, I don't inconvenience you so much that you get someone new while I'm dealing with obligations that have blown up in my face." He leaned in to very carefully kiss the corner of his mouth. "Good night, little prince."
"That is not a proper good night kiss," Billy said after a beat - because he could see that James really wasn't any happier about this arrangement than he was.
"I know," James agreed. "But if we start up with that, I'm gonna cave and you know it."
"Just a small one then," Billy teased, before he stepped closer to do just that, even enjoying the turnabout when the kiss ended and James wasn't trying to get the distance. "I guess it's my turn to be the responsible one, hmm?"
"You're not helping matters at all."
"No. Not at all. And that seems an awful lot like what I was saying to you Friday morning."
"I knew that was going to bite me in the ass," James said in a low, quiet growl that at least left Billy grinning. But it was much better grounds to end the night, and when Billy did finally go back to the school, he left knowing that James wasn't happy about their new arrangement either.
He was still riding high after his little realization when he got back to the institute - though Tommy didn't look like he wanted to hear anything to do with his brother's mood.
"I'm surprised you didn't just stay," Tommy said, shifting to get comfortable on his bed and attempting to ignore his brother entirely.
"Yeah, well …" Billy drifted off, but didn't know exactly how to respond when the fact of the matter was that he'd have preferred to stay.
"What's wrong?" Tommy asked, leaning toward his brother. "He get tired of having a househusband already?"
"At least we were doing stuff," Billy shot back. "Which is a lot more than you can say for you and your pretty little Elf."
"And once again, I'm doing a lot more than you realize."
"Does it even count if it only takes a blink of an eye?" Billy asked with a mock look of concentration.
"Does it even matter since you can't do anything with yours right now?" Tommy countered.
Billy opened his mouth to say something, but was interrupted with the room filled with a deep red light as Wanda made her appearance, looking as if she was caught between irritation and … something the boys couldn't quite nail down. But the first thing out of her mouth was: "Tommy." In a sharp tone. "Don't get ahead of yourself for once in your life. You're doing so well with Mia. Keep up that momentum!"
"O… kay," Tommy said, frowning deeply even as Wanda rounded on Billy.
"And you," Wanda said, her eyes flashing as she pointed one finger at him. "I know everything, and you have no idea how close you were tonight to going back to Genosha before you could even say goodbye to anyone."
"Mom-"
"Be happy that I'm not taking your grandfather's hard line on things like this or your sweetheart would be dead right now," Wanda continued to Billy's shock. "And the only thing keeping me from chewing him out is the fact that I know that you were the one pushing." She narrowed her eyes as she leveled with Billy. "You are so lucky that James inherited his father's sense of honor, but don't push it."
"Mom- I didn't do-"
"Yes, you did," Wanda said. "You forget, I know all of your tricks, Billy. I know when you're lying to me and when you're trying to pull something, but this time, you can't play those games." She paused long enough to make sure she had Billy's full attention. "Not if you actually love him and aren't just playing around."
"You know I-"
"I know your brother has been trying to show Mia some respect and has gone slower with her than he has with anyone before her," Wanda said. "So I know he cares enough to do what she needs. You … are trying to do what you always do, but on a much grander scale. This isn't sneaking out after curfew to make out on the beach, Billy. You weren't trying to live with those boys."
As Wanda spoke, Tommy grinned crookedly and made himself comfortable, even kicking his feet up behind him. "Wow, so this is what it's like when you're not allowed to do something. Novel."
"Shut up, Tommy," Billy grumbled.
"Can't. Enjoying this too much," Tommy said, turning so he was grinning at his brother upside-down. "It's so wild seeing you get in trouble. I missed the fireworks last time because I didn't exist."
"You didn't get to see how much trouble he got into," Wanda said. "That doesn't mean he didn't get into trouble." She put her hand on her hip. "And it's not supposed to be a show." She took a moment to run her hand through Tommy's hair. "And if you get into trouble with Mia, I'll be after you just as hard. But so far, you're not trying to be the fast one." She tipped her head and turned back toward Billy. "Novel."
"Aww, love you too, Mom," Tommy said, putting his hair back the way he liked it.
Wanda smiled crookedly then kissed both of them. "Don't start anything, please. You've both been doing so well. I want to keep liking your sweethearts."
"I'm confused, Mom," Billy said, tipping his head back with a frustrated sound. "I thought you liked him because he's obeying your rules."
"I like him for a lot of reasons, but the pressing one right now is that he's trying to stick to his word. You do understand that, right?" She tapped the end of his nose. "Because I know who was pushing tonight and if it had been the other way around, this would be a very different conversation."
Billy groaned. "Mom, you can't just spy on me with magic! I'm almost eighteen; that's not fair."
"Obviously I can, and obviously I needed to."
"You gonna keep this up until I'm eighteen, huh?" Billy asked.
"Are you going to keep this up until you're twenty?"
"Ooh, please keep this spell on him until then. It's, like, karma for all the favoritism the first seventeen years," Tommy chimed in - until Billy sent a spell his way that knocked him off the bed and had him busting up laughing. "Can't take it!" he called out as he picked himself back up.
Billy glared at Tommy but then turned back to Wanda. "It's not an issue anyway, so just… stop snooping on me!"
"We'll see how much of an issue it is or isn't after I have a chat with James, too."
When Billy could only respond with a frustrated groan, Tommy positively fell apart laughing - and then zipped off to go find Mia, because he was convinced she needed to hear about the spectacular Scarlet-Momming that had just happened.
Chapter 82: Hellfire And Damnation
Chapter Text
Craig had a slow morning scheduled - Scott had shifted his sessions to the evenings at the office or weekends at Avengers tower once his paranoia got the better of him. It was a shift in pattern that Craig didn't realize was purposeful until a stranger stalked into his waiting room - practically glowing in a skin-tight white pantsuit with far too low a cut to her blouse. She had dark sunglasses on, and for an instant at the threshold of the door, she looked to be perhaps just shy of thirty years old … but once she was through the threshold, Craig had to blink as he saw the difference that telepathic dampeners had when a telepath was projecting a false image.
Which was how Craig found out that Stark's lawyers had pressed hard for ending Emma's good standing with the licensing board.
She stopped, tipped her nose into the air and looked him over critically through narrowed eyes. "Who do you think you are," Emma hissed. "Dredging up false accusations against my good name?"
"Ms Frost," Craig said, not bothering to pretend like he didn't know exactly who she was with an entrance like that - and a perfect display of exactly all that James had said, too. "I'm sure you know exactly who I am. You came looking for me, after all and - my name is on my door."
"Yet I have no idea who you are," Emma said. "What gives you the right to try and tarnish my reputation?"
"I'm sorry," Craig said, standing up to his full height and looking completely unapologetic. "I was under the impression that it was my duty as a therapist to report incidences of abuse that my clients have endured, especially repeated infractions. It's not my fault you're the subject of an investigation. It's your own damn fault for your own damn actions, so don't come at me like I'm a sexual predator, Miss Frost."
Emma stared at him for a moment in sheer disbelief before she let out a hollow, mirthless laugh. "What on earth are you talking about?"
"I shouldn't have to clarify," Craig said tightly. "If you need a name, that means it's happened more than once."
"I'd like to know what insanely delusional patient you and I could possibly have shared."
"Careful, Miss Frost. Trying to break confidentiality agreements is another point against your license."
"I hadn't considered it yet," she said, eyes flashing. "But I deserve to know who it is accusing me of such blatant lies."
"Read the complaint, Miss Frost. That's all I'm legally required to tell you. And considering the nature of the complaint, I wouldn't allow you anywhere near my patient again to repeat the trauma inflicted on him or further trigger him in the midst of my treatment plan."
"I'd like to see you stop me," Emma said with her hand on her hip.
"Miss Frost, I have you in height, strength, and morality. Please don't test me."
"As if that ever meant anything," she said thickly. "And I'm going to disagree with you on at least one of those little items."
"Please, go ahead. What exactly do you think you have me in?"
"Well I'm not telling lies, for starters. You have no proof of anything." She smirked. "And if who you're insinuating is the same person I'm thinking of, you'd have to go out of your way to prove anything that may or may not have happened was off base. At all."
"Miss Frost, a therapist who pursues a relationship with a client is, by the very nature of the power dynamics of that relationship, predatory."
"I've never heard anything so ridiculous in my life."
"Yes, I know some parents don't teach consent, but it's not too late for you, even at your age, bless your heart," Craig said, his tone dripping with a sweet Southern accent that only came out that thickly when he was truly angry.
"This silly little accusation will never go anywhere."
"Then why are you here?" Craig asked, one eyebrow raised.
"Because I wanted to see who it was that was trying to ruin all that I've worked for. I'm not sure why, but I was expecting someone … more of a challenge."
Craig smirked. "Think what you will, Miss Frost. If you'd see yourself out, I'd much appreciate it. I meant to do some birthday shopping for my niece."
"Enjoy what time you have," Emma said as she did, in fact gather herself up.
"Enjoy what time you have with your license," Craig said calmly.
"Oh, that won't be a problem," Emma said over her shoulder. "Especially when there's no one to stand against me."
Craig glared after Emma and waited until long after she was gone before he let out a long sigh and reached for his phone. He didn't want to call anyone who could be directly linked to Scott, but he did have Jan's phone number (because she wanted to help him get Tony more involved in therapy), and he called her up as he pulled up his email to start setting up some out of office alerts. "Yes, I'm sorry to call without warning, but I've just had a visit from Emma Frost and would like to ask you or your husband just how deeply you're delving into her license and how credible her threats against me would therefore me," he said, still in the semi-professional voice he'd been using with Emma simply because that was the only thing he had to fall back on.
"Well," Jan said slowly. "Tony has a whole team of lawyers that have dug through every single person she's ever counseled officially, a few dozen that were off the books, conducted interviews with old students, business contacts who lost large chunks of time … I mean … there's a lot there. And as far as threats? I'd take even minor threats seriously with her. She's petty and really … way worse than the socialites that I've known. Probably because she wasn't really accepted in that group … but that'd be for someone else to untangle. Do you need assistance?"
"I'm … not entirely sure. She left of her own accord, but my impression is she's mad as a wet hen and looking for someone to blame," Craig admitted, sitting back down to run a hand through his hair.
"That sounds like her," Jan agreed. "I can send a car and we can discuss it here."
"Thanks," Craig said. "Send me a text when it gets here, please. I'm a little wary of leaving the building on my own right now. I've been informed I should enjoy the time I have left, and it's easy to dismiss that kind of threat in my office but…"
"Just keep James' little gadget on you and on," Jan said. "That very much sounds like a telepathic threat to me."
"It probably is. I'm just worried about the fact that she may escalate, since… well... " Craig sighed. "You know, this was a lot simpler when the bullies I fought for my sisters were just big and mean and cried when I kicked their knees out."
"So can we," Jan said brightly. "Escalate, that is. And it's still simple minded bullies. And she'll cry when we kick her - well. I shouldn't make plans. Get yourself together. It won't be long. Happy's on the way and believe it or not, he really is a great bodyguard."
"I believe it," Craig said. "I'm just going to send out a few emails. I only had one other client besides your friend circle, and today was supposed to be his last session."
"Alright, well … maybe we can fix you up for that, too," Jan said, already plotting out how else to help.
"I'll let you know," Craig said. "He may be fine cancelling. This was just a wrap-up." He sighed. "Alright. See you soon." With that, he hung up and then got to work, sending off the email, setting up the out-of-office alerts, and locking up. He pocketed James' device and looked around the office once more. He wasn't sure what to expect, really, so he simply headed down once he got the text that Happy was there.
He was relieved to see the car once he got out the front door, but he'd only taken a step toward it when he heard a familiar voice call his name and turned to see Anton's partner - not a bad guy but not exactly a friend either - heading his way.
At first, Craig didn't think anything of it. They knew each other. They were friendly, if not friends. But then, Craig noticed that the man wasn't smiling or cheerful in his approach and was, instead, in the process of unholstering his weapon.
And, well, Craig and his sisters knew their way around gun safety, so the second Craig realized what was happening, he stepped back into the building and was ready to take shelter - until he saw Happy in a blur of motion too.
The next thing he knew, the cop was on the ground, Happy was on top of him, and Craig ran in to get close enough to pull the gun out of reach of either of them.
By that point, however, Anton's partner was in pure shock, and he looked like he was trying to figure out what was going on. His expression was one of pure confusion - though Happy couldn't see it.
"What the hell's wrong with you, huh? Gonna shoot the doc in broad daylight for wearin' the wrong shoes? Is that what this is?" Happy was shouting - a clear outlet for how frustrated he was and how deeply in disbelief Happy was at seeing a cop step that far out of line. "What's your problem, buddy?"
"What are you talking about?" Anton's partner replied. "Get off of me!"
"I got the whole thing on video," Happy said, but he did let the cop up. "You wanna keep acting like you weren't gonna shoot a guy for no reason? No problem. My boss'll have it in the papers by morning."
Craig frowned and looked between the two of them. "Wait a minute," he told Happy. "Just…" He sighed and looked toward Anton's partner. "Just wait."
Happy waved one hand. "I'm just tryin' to get the guy to slow down long enough to think. Probably can't remember anything with someone pokin' around in his brain like that." He patted his pocket. "Kid gave me one of those bubble things too."
Anton's partner looked between both of them in pure disbelief. "You just assaulted an office, bozo."
"Oh, is that what you think this was? You wanna act like you can do whatever you want? I was savin' this guy's life is what I was doin'. So what. I was doin' my job."
"Mark, just don't," Craig told the cop. He rubbed the bridge of his nose before he handed him back his gun - which was at least enough for Mark to realize how badly off things were. "Look, I got a client whose angry ex is a telepath. Sorry she tried to use you to kill me."
Mark stared at him. "Damn."
"Like I said," Happy said toward the cop in a much more reasonable tone. "If you'd like to see the footage - for your own peace of mind and possibly to build a case - say the word."
Mark cleared his throat. "Yeah, alright."
"Just stick close to one of us,' Happy said. "I don't know how big that bubble is and I'm not in a rush to find out."
With that, the three of them took a look at the video feed Happy had in the car, and Mark simply looked pale, apologized profusely and swore up and down that he didn't remember any of it, and then backed away from both of them, still frowning.
"Let's get out of here before anything else happens," Craig muttered to Happy, feeling a bit sick himself now that his adrenaline was wearing off fast.
"Sure thing," Happy agreed, then held one hand up toward the cop. "You know where you can find me, right?"
"Yeah," Mark said. "Good luck with the crazy ex, Craig."
"It's a burden I bear," Craig said dryly. "And I don't even date."
As soon as they were on the road, Happy took a moment to gruffly check on Craig. "First time's kinda rough, huh?"
Craig had been staring out the window lost in thought until that moment and nearly jolted out of his seat before he gave Happy a tight smile. "I've - well - I've had a few unstable clients or family members or friends, but-"
"It's different when they're comin' at you with superpowers or … or robots. It's always something. They don't get even half the crap I've had to deal with into the papers."
Craig shook his head, pressing his hands against his knees in an old nervous habit. "It's funny," he said at last. "I'm a therapist in New York. I've heard every story you can think of from collateral damage from supervillains. And yet…"
"It's different when the crazy's pointed at you." Happy nodded to himself. "If there's anyone you got to call - the phone in the back is secure."
"Might want to let my brother-in-law know his partner got co-opted," Craig agreed, glad to have something to do. And, as he'd expected, Anton was not only worried about Mark but wanted to come check on Craig.
("I can tell you're not alright; your accent is worse than Evie's on a bad day," Anton had told him, which was hard to argue.)
Still, Craig was surprised to find that the car stopped sooner than he'd expected it to. But then, he was a therapist. He shouldn't have been surprised he was experiencing time in a different way when he was in a state of heightened stress.
"If you got anyone that wants to come in, give me the names and I'll make sure security lets them through," Happy told him.
Craig smirked tiredly. "Yeah, you might get invaded by concerned Southerners."
"First time for everything," Happy replied.
Craig smirked again. "Thanks," he said as he got out of the car. "Really."
"How'd it go?" Tony asked after Happy and Craig made it to the entry of the Avenger's floor.
"Had to put a cop on the ground," Happy said.
"Just the one? What? Didn't want to stress yourself?"
"Light day," Happy answered with a shrug.
Craig shook his head at the two of them, used to the teasing from Tony, at least. "I'm fine, by the way," he said.
"Of course you are," Tony said. "Happy was there." He smiled tightly. "Just sorry that he had to be. I'm sure you had other plans." He gestured openly. "Or … at least, other plans until tomorrow … or whenever you were planning to come in anyhow."
"Yes, we're lucky she decided to try to kill me on a Friday," Craig said, though saying that out loud had him stopping and frowning to himself. He'd never been in that much trouble before. It was still disconcerting and left him feeling pale.
"And if that was a coincidence, I'd eat my hat," Tony said.
Craig shrugged. "Yes, well, my brother-in-law is probably bringing his family to come check on me. His partner was the one who pulled the gun, so you can imagine how he's feeling right now."
"You need a drink, doc?" Tony asked. "Lookin' a little weary."
"If you have a good Kentucky bourbon, I wouldn't say no."
"Probably got something like that tucked away," Tony said, and Happy was already on the way to find it in the liquor cabinet. "Take a seat. No one will bother you here."
Craig smiled at Tony and thanked Happy, finally sitting down with the drink in his hand before he chuckled dryly. "Feeling a little embarrassed, to be honest," he said. "First credible, actionable death threat and I feel like I might pass out. Nothin' compared to y'all and here I am, knowin' it ain't the same…"
"Pretty sure that your reaction is the more normal one," Tony pointed out.
"Yeah." Craig took a drink and sighed. "Felt a lot braver when I had that bubble workin' for me and all Ms Frost had was impotent rage."
"Did it break?" Tony asked with a frown.
"No, no, it was fine," Craig assured him. "Just poor Mark wasn't in its range and had a gun is all. And I may have riled Ms Frost before she left, too."
Tony looked as if he truly got the full picture of the situation. "Ah. yeah. That … is a very angry connection." He rapped his knuckles on the table. "But we can handle her."
"Y'all better," Craig said. "She's already shown how willing she is to play ball to keep that license."
"Scott wouldn't like it, but the kid would be happy to go make her have a bad day for a change of pace," Tony said.
Craig shook his head. "Let's not give her reason to ruin things for him."
"I did say that Scott wouldn't go for it," Tony pointed out. "And generally speaking, that means James won't either."
Craig nodded and took another, deeper, drink. "Right. Well. If it's alright with you, I'd like to just sit here until I stop hearing my pulse in my ears, thanks."
Tony nodded. "Jan's already got a room ready for you - for the full protective section of Chez Van Dyne."
At that, Craig did finally laugh. "Thank her for me, please."
"You can do that when you get the tour," Tony said, though he did leave Craig to his thoughts and a bit of privacy. At least for as long as it took for Craig's family to get there.
Both Evie and Annie practically tackled Craig in hugs as soon as the Avengers brought in his family. Since losing their mom and then watching their dad fade away to Alzheimer's, the three siblings were all-too aware that they only had each other left, and they were tighter than ever because of it - even if Craig's job came with surprises and secrets.
As for Anton, he didn't wait for Craig's sisters to finish hugging him. Instead, he joined the hug, getting everyone upright by virtue of how tall he was, so that they all had to stretch to make him part of the hug. And then, when Anton stepped back, he put a hand on Craig's shoulder to let him know: "Mark called me after what happened. He's horrified with himself. Wanted to make sure you got home alright."
"Tell him I know it wasn't his fault," Craig said, not at all surprised to hear that Anton was already in the thick of the problem and trying to make sure both Craig and his partner were alright. "But no offense to Mark intended, I'm not exactly going to let him know where I am or when I'm home."
"Fair," Anton agreed, though by that time, both of Anton and Evie's daughters had wormed their way into the hug, clamoring for Craig's attention. Mary Beth was still young enough that she was practically trying to climb her uncle, but Leslie Ann was a teenager now and was too dignified for that - even if she was practically bouncing on her toes all the same.
"When Ms. Pryde heard what happened and who was after you, she looked like she was about to-" Leslie Ann glanced over at her father, who had one eyebrow quirked up. "-um. Do. Something. About it."
"Uh-huh," Anton said. He shook his head and turned his attention back to Craig. "Between Annie datin' Cyclops, Leslie Ann at Westchester, and you gettin' the wrong end of Emma Frost's attention, how the hell are we supposed to live our lives, Craig? And what the hell did you do to piss off a mutant advocate? I know you ain't racist, so what gives?"
Craig took a deep breath and let it out slowly. "I can't go into details, but I found out she'd been using her position to abuse a client. Her license is being challenged, and I think she's taking it personally," he added dryly, in an attempt to deflect the conversation. Annie didn't even know he'd been seeing Scott, and he didn't want her to put together Scott and Emma and the accusations Craig had leveled before Scott was ready to tell her himself. This wasn't something Annie needed to hear secondhand.
He could actually see the lightbulb go off in Annie's head, too. "Oh," she said, both eyebrows raised. "Is this what you were so mad about in church the other day?" When he simply nodded in response, she seemed to gather herself to get mad on his behalf. "Well then it's a good thing the Avengers took a shining to you. Can't believe anyone has the audacity to call themselves an advocate and come after you at the same time…"
Craig laughed out loud - really, truly laughed - for the first time since the incident with Anton's partner, letting both of his nieces lead him toward the living room while Annie got herself all worked up over the whole affair.
And then he just kept laughing when Mary Beth and Leslie Ann positively squealed in delight as Jan came to introduce herself. And just like that, the focus was off of Craig (to his relief) and onto the Avengers as they introduced themselves to their unexpected (but not at all unwelcome) guests.
Meanwhile, in Westchester, as Scott's contribution to the school day wound down, Betsy took a moment to debrief … even if Scott wasn't calling it that at all. "So," Betsy said as she sat down across from Scott just as he was packing up to head home for the weekend. "There are a few things you need to be made aware of."
"What now?" Scott asked with a sigh, knowing that Betsy had finally gone to look in on the dean of James' college.
"First of all … something is definitely up with the dean," Betsy said. "But he's not being mind controlled and whatever it is that has him upset he's got shoved down deep with some reasonably strong shields. I didn't want to damage him, so I couldn't press much further than what I did."
"So you're telling me he has telepathic shields? Does he have a telepath working for him?"
"Not exactly," she said, then paused, holding her breath as she considered how best to phrase it. "Emma Frost absolutely had a hand in his defenses … but she's not controlling him. He called her trying to help James. He reached out to her, he tried to get her assistance. She didn't come looking on her own like she claims."
Scott frowned and sat back in his chair, blinking at Betsy for a long moment. "Why would he … he's the one that allowed all of the stupid special rules to be pushed on James in the first place … why-"
"I don't know. That part of his mind is locked down tight," Betsy said. "It could be that Emma designed it that way, or it could be something he doesn't want to think about to the point of near repression."
"And he actually thought he was helping James by pulling in Emma?"
"It certainly appears to be the case." Betsy gestured openly. "For anyone else, it might have been a reasonable idea with what little the world knows about her."
"So it was a coincidence? I have trouble believing that."
"As do I, which is why I'm going to keep a close eye on things with her. I'm sure we haven't heard the last of her after that crack from James. It was a good way to stop the conversation that day, but that won't stop her."
"I know," Scott said, thinking of how much James reacted like Scott himself. "We'll just have to keep an eye on him and keep our heads down."
Betsy smirked. "That won't work for long with that boy. He has opinions. Strong ones. He just doesn't express them well yet."
"Lord help whoever it is that he ends up letting loose on," Scott said with a smirk, then got to his feet and thanked Betsy for her help. He needed to make sure that Nate was still alright, all things considered. He had a lot going on, too … not the least of which the fact that he wasn't planning to go out for basketball this season. Scott just didn't know why he was skipping the season.
"Are you headed in already?" Betsy asked, one eyebrow arched high.
"Not just yet," Scott said, then blew out a breath as he sat back. "I told Billy I'd prefer if he rode with me than to teleport in."
"Are you sure you don't want him to teleport both of you in?" Betsy asked, smiling.
"I'm not sure it'd work," Scott laughed. "Seeing as he has to want what he's casting."
Betsy smiled to herself. "He'll get over it, Scott. He just needs a target when he's not getting his way."
"I figured it'd be a good way to get to know him away from my kids' influence," Scott said. "Especially if they keep going the way they have been."
"Time will tell," Betsy said, though she didn't go into giving her opinion on things. Not when she was hedging her bets that the boys would continue come hell or high water. Especially after seeing how attached they were when the rest of the Summers clan wasn't around. And she didn't entirely believe that they weren't still fooling around every chance they got.. Just … not staying over.
But that could have repercussions of its own, too.
Chapter 83: Hale Invasion
Chapter Text
By the time James came into the tower with Bobby in the early afternoon, the Hales had more or less gotten over their initial panic over all Craig had gone through, to Craig's relief. But James and Bobby didn't know anything had happened, so when they came in, James didn't even look up as he made his way into the kitchen, reading a few emails on his phone and being entirely distracted. He didn't pay any attention to the new scents in the air since, from time to time, new people came through - usually employees of Tony's or press members that managed to score an interview. The truth was that he was relieved to be 'home' and he just wanted to grab a bottle of water and go to his room.
He knew Tony wouldn't push for anything right away and he was pretty sure he'd given Bobby a small aneurysm when he finally broke down and explained what one of his theses was about purely to get him to stop asking. Which meant Bobby had tapped out from shadowing him now that they were out of the car and at the tower.
He could hear the voices carrying over from the living room, but didn't put it together as someone new to the group since they weren't a threat if they were on the Avenger's levels. And besides, Tony would tell him if he needed to be somewhere, even if it was as he was walking through. So, James grabbed a snack and a couple bottles of water - he never could understand how just studying could be so dehydrating - and headed for his room, still focused on his phone.
Or he was headed to his room until someone stopped him.
"Oh! Hello, yes, hi there," Annie said, on her feet in a moment and waving enthusiastically. "We haven't had the chance to meet yet." She was grinning widely. "Hi. I'm Annie and I am thrilled to finally get to meet you in person - your father thinks the world of you."
"Hi," James said as he stowed his phone in his back pocket then offered her his hand. "I'm sure Dad would have introduced us sooner if not for my schedule. It's been a little crazy lately." He wasn't entirely sure that was the truth as he looked more carefully at those gathered in the living room and frowned when he realized that his dad was nowhere around and Annie was there with both Doc Hale and Officer Wright. "Did … is everything ok here?"
"That's a whole story in itself," Annie said as she gently took a hold of his arm and pulled him toward the group. "Come on - you've already met my brother in law, Anton - Officer Wright." Annie was grinning brightly. "He's told that story of you workin' over that pervert on the street so many times, it's practically a legend."
James looked clearly taken off guard as he raised his free hand. "Hey." Then he looked toward Craig. "Doc. You okay?"
As Craig nodded, Annie barely slipped in her enthusiasm. "Oh! I didn't realize you knew my brother too."
"He's been trying to help me out," James said, perfectly open to admitting as much, which seemed to almost set Craig back. He'd expected as much to those the kid knew, but not to a near-stranger. "Don't know how much good he's doing me, but he's giving it a solid try."
"Well if you tell me you've met my sister and my niece already, I'm gonna have to get upset," Annie said, since that was news.
"No," James said as he turned his focus to the rest of Annie's family. "Hi. I'm James. Nice to meet you."
"It's absolutely wonderful to meet you too," Annie said, practically bouncing on the balls of her feet and biting her lip. "I'm really sorry to ambush you like this. We weren't expecting to get called to Avengers Tower, of all places, but apparently, that's what happens when you have a brother who doesn't have any sense of self-preservation." She shot a teasing look over her shoulder at Craig, who shrugged openly.
"Like you can talk," Craig said simply, and Annie rolled her eyes at him.
It was plainly apparent the two of them were siblings.
"Ignore him," Annie said, turning back to James, smiling brightly for him. "How are your college classes? Scott told me about the crap you've been puttin' up with, and I'll bet you're just waitin' for this to be over. Sorry to intrude on your time off. I know that's gotta be precious to you when you're knee-deep in nonsense as it is."
"You're fine. Classes are borderline boring," James admitted. "Material is okay but the pace is glacial." He looked between Annie and Craig. "I'm managing to get my work done during class in most cases, so it's not overly taxing right now. But yeah. I think I'm done with school after this."
"Were you considering more schooling after this?" Annie asked, her expression already clear that she didn't want to hear he was backing off because of bigots.
James opened his mouth, and held his breath, definitely not wanting to crack open that can of worms when he could see that it'd throw fuel on the fire for more than just Annie. "I plead the fifth."
"We're not in a court of law," Annie pointed out as Anton smiled crookedly behind her. "Besides, it's a fair question. You're a certified genius - and that's not just your dad bragging, you know. Not when it's common knowledge that you're taking over Stark Industries. You should have your pick of schools to go to if it weren't for ignorant fools who don't know which way is up."
"But that's still a heavily weighted factor," James replied. "And there's only so much I can do."
"If it were me," Annie said, her eyes alight, "I'd show 'em up with a drawer full of degrees. But I've been told by my siblings I'm petty."
"Pretty sure I've already pushed my luck as much as anyone will let me, Ms. Hale. I'm doing three Masters at once - that'll probably get me by just fine. Besides, none of the other schools of note have an interest at this point in time, so … that's that. A doctorate wouldn't have as much weight from any of the places that might accept me at this point, and I'd never hear the end of it." James glanced over his shoulder. "I'm pretty sure Tony's going to be cutting them off as soon as this is over anyhow, so … they'll hurt eventually."
"Good." Annie lifted her chin and sniffed. "Buncha damn Yankees gatekeepin' intelligence," she muttered under her breath.
James raised an eyebrow. "So the South would be more welcoming?" His tone was perfectly dry and he knew the answer.
"Oh, honey, no," Annie said, her eyes wide and shaking her head. "But they'd be honest and tell you no flat out instead of actin' like they got morals they don't actually have."
"Uh-huh."
"Oh, don't get her wound up," Evie laughed, coming over to stand beside her little sister and kiss her cheek. "Hi, by the way. You've met my husband, Officer Wright, but I don't think we've been introduced."
James offered his hand to her with a nearly polished smile - he really hadn't been expecting to get hit by his dad's girlfriend's entire family. "It's been a while since I met your husband, but I'm glad you're all doing well. I heard about the little scuff up with your daughter." He turned toward Leslie Ann. "Do you go by Leslie or the full Leslie Ann?"
"Leslie Ann," she replied, looking like she couldn't decide whether to be shy or not. But in the end, curiosity won out, and she bounced over, her short buns on either side of her head bouncing as well. "I'm going to be an X-Man one day, you know," she announced - and it looked like this was news to her parents, considering their raised eyebrows and looks of surprise.
"We don't have any real structure on new recruits yet," James said, largely for her parent's benefit. "But I'm sure you'll hear about it when we do. Probably have to go through the Avenger's first like we did. Which means you'll have to get Cap to sign off on it."
"That's what Mia said," Leslie Ann said, nodding seriously, her eyes wide and excited. "I asked her about the team after Iceman said my powers were impressive." She leaned forward, grinning crookedly. "He's my favorite."
"He's not mine right now," James replied honestly, gesturing toward the kitchen where Bobby was still digging up snacks. "Horrible taste in music and he sings like a cat with it's tail in a wringer."
"Well, he's my favorite because he doesn't hold back like the other teachers do," Leslie Ann said. "And he doesn't want me to either."
James shrugged. "I wouldn't know. I didn't go to Westchester."
"And besides," Officer Wright put in as he put his hand on Leslie Ann's shoulder to rein her in, "you're too young to be an X-Man, baby girl. And you just got your powers. Let's take things one step at a time, alright?"
"Yeah, parental consent is a sticky spot," James said, managing to keep a straight face, even if his eyes were sparkling with trouble.
Craig nearly snorted though. "Yeah. I'll bet."
"I got there eventually," James defended with a crooked smirk.
"And the world is better for it," Annie insisted, shooting Craig a look over her shoulder for interrupting the good mood. She beamed at James. "Really, y'all are doing great work. And I wish you could hear Scott talking about you when he's with me. The pride in his voice… you're obviously the light of his life. All of you."
James hedged at that, though. "Yeah, teams aren't really his thing anymore," he said. "But he puts up with us pretty well anyhow." He tried to change the subject, but honestly didn't think it would work, anyhow. "Hey, if I can ask, what is it that got all of you up here to begin with? I'm glad to meet all of you, but …"
"Oh, well, Craig is exclusively working with heroes now, apparently," Annie teased, and Craig rolled his eyes at her.
"I was already headed that way anyway. Last client who wasn't on a team had his last session today," Craig defended himself.
"If you need your weekends, I'm fine," James said, sure that it would rile Craig at least a little.
"No, no," Craig insisted. "That's not what the problem is."
"Sounds like it might be... "
"No, the problem was the damn telepath who took over my brother-in-law's partner and tried to get me shot, if you must know," Craig said. He didn't usually lose his composure, but it was obvious he was still shaken, and he threw his hands up as he said it.
That had James frowning, though. "Did you have your inhibitor field up? I had it tuned just for telepaths."
"I did," Craig said. "That's why she took over someone outside the field to try to take me out from a distance." He pulled a face. "Vindictive woman."
James drew in a breath as he took half a step back, the gears already turning. "You have it on you now?" He was already holding his hand out. "I got an idea."
Craig raised his eyebrows but handed it over all the same. "I'm both curious and nervous."
"Won't hurt you," James said, already headed over to sit down at the couch and crack it open on the coffee table. "Just gonna make the radius bigger and crank up a few settings that will discourage idiocy."
"I'm already a fan," Officer Wright said with a dry chuckle. "Whatcha got?"
"Well…" James was already working on readjusting things on the circuit board. "If I turn up the sensitivity enough, it'll act like feedback with a microphone - just psychic. Ought to drop her in her tracks if she tries to mess with anyone inside the bubble. Interrupt anyone she's scrambling, too."
"Oh good," Annie said. "I don't like the idea of anyone messing with my big brother just for doing his job."
"I want to give her a bigger headache anyhow," James said, then double checked his work, snapped it shut and tossed it back to Craig. "She irks me."
"That's putting it mildly," Craig said as he caught the device.
"That should help more," James said. "I can give you something more offensive if you'd like, too."
"Yes," Evie broke in. "Whatever it is, yes. Nobody gets to hurt my little brother."
James looked between Evie and Craig, then gave Craig a look. "Got it. That explains so much."
"Explains what?" Mary Beth asked, peeking around her older sister to look between her mom, uncle, and aunt.
"Overprotective siblings," James said, which lended well to Craig anyhow. "I think you're safe though, kiddo."
"Right, well." Craig shook his head. "Thanks for the device, by the way. I'm pretty sure you saved my life with it, so if you don't mind, I'll be carrying it around when I'm not in the tower." He sighed and waved around at the living room. "Can't stay here all the time."
"That's what I intended for it," James said. "If you want someone to go with you to gather up anything - or to make sure she didn't screw with your apartment, she can't get in my head on a good day with no device. And she's not too happy with me, so … nothing that'd upset things."
"Actually, that would be great," Craig agreed. "I've been wondering about that very thing."
"Wouldn't be a problem," James swore. "Just tell me when. I'm here, as you know, all weekend."
"Maybe once things calm down," Craig said. "My nieces are still thrilled with meeting the Avengers, you know. It's kind of fun to be the cool uncle every now and again," he added, breaking into a crooked smile.
James nodded, but saw the way Craig's siblings were watching the whole scene, so he turned to Leslie Ann and Mary Beth. "So, there's really not much to do for people your age way up here in the tower. You gotta get creative if you hang out here at all … so … you wanna play a prank on Iron Man with me?"
"Um. Yes. Absolutely," Leslie Ann said - not at all realizing that the decorative houseplants nearest her were instantly greener and bigger when she was that excited. Not that they hadn't been getting steadily bigger and bigger with how over the moon she was to meet Captain America, Wasp, and the handful of other Avengers that had come through to check on Craig.
James focused on Mary Beth to make sure she was on board too, and when she nodded with a wide grin, he turned toward Anton and Evie. "That okay? It'll just be web shooters. Mostly."
"Just keep in mind that Mary Beth is nine," Anton said, his arms crossed, though Evie swatted him with the back of her hand and then shooed them off.
"Go have fun," she said, her eyes sparkling.
James waved the girls over, hoping that the adults would take the hint and grab their chance to discuss things without the kids in the room, though it was almost distracting when he led by bending down to their level with a not at all quiet "let's see how your aim is first, huh? Then you can pick who goes high and who goes low … and who hits him with the water balloons."
With that, Craig's nieces followed James out- cackling with glee the whole way.
The distraction gave the adults in the Hale clan a chance to discuss matters a little more openly, even if they were very quiet about it.
"So if James is your client," Annie started to say slowly, obviously piecing things together, but Craig shook his head quickly before Annie could press.
"Annie, I'm not giving you any information on any client. You know that."
Annie blew out her breath. "Well what am I supposed to think? You have an X-Man for a client and you have Emma Frost on your case…"
Craig shook his head at her. "Let it alone," he told her. "If it's someone you know - and I'm not saying it is - then they get to decide when to share that with you."
Annie sighed, but Evie stepped in to be the reasonable older sister of the group. "And anyway, we need to talk about how to defend against a telepath," she pointed out.
"Right." Craig nodded. "I'll talk to James. If Miss Frost tracks down my family - and she might - y'all need what I've got." He pulled out the device James had given him. "Saved my life."
"Oh, I'm gonna need that story," Evie laughed, pulling Craig over to sit between his sisters so he could more properly fill them in without little ears around.
Meanwhile, Scott and Billy were on their way to the tower - and the car was exceedingly quiet at first. Scott knew Billy wasn't happy with him in the least, and he understood. He remembered being young and head over heels in love and feeling like any obstacle between him and Jean was the end of the world.
But since it looked like Billy was set to simply ignore him, Scott let out a breath, turned down the radio, and turned toward Billy at a stoplight. "Believe it or not," he said slowly, "I am glad you and James are together. You both seem happier for it."
"We were, yeah," Billy said without looking at him.
"Billy, this is just temporary," Scott started to say, but Billy cut him off.
"That's the point, though," Billy grumbled. "James has this temporary situation where he has to live out there and jump through nine hundred hoops and I can't even be there for him unless we steal moments." He finally turned to face Scott. "We're just trying to make this work even though the stupid dean has eaten his life, and you're just making it harder."
Despite the topic, Scott almost found himself smiling. "I'm not surprised to hear it, but I'm glad that's where your head is." He raised one eyebrow. "Makes me feel more inclined to support this being a very temporary issue."
"Sure."
Scott sighed. It was abundantly clear Billy wasn't ready to forgive him just yet. And that was fine. He'd dealt with students giving him attitude before. He just hoped he and Billy could sort this out sooner than later, especially since it was obvious he and James were wild about each other.
In the meantime, he was the bad guy again. Which was fine. He'd been the bad guy with young X-Men before. More times than he could count with Kitty and Jubilee, actually, considering how often both of them had wanted to get into fights that were too big for them. He knew how to be the guy who told teenagers "no."
Wasn't fun, but he knew how to do it.
Still, it made for a long, long, silent ride.
The giggles from down the hall were getting louder and more persistent until the girls sounded like little demons, which meant that they were absolutely up to something. Annie looked over in time to see one of the girls dart for cover behind the island in the kitchen, then fall into a fit of giggles that was emphasized by a shush by the others. But that only made the conversation easier to hear when Bobby was also in the kitchen and felt compelled to find out what was happening.
"What are you doing?" Bobby asked, and Annie watched the look of pure amusement on Bobby's face at whatever he was seeing.
"Are you with us or against us?" James asked - loud enough for Annie to barely hear, but not quite to his usual volume.
"What kind of question is that?" Bobby countered. "What rules are you playing with?"
"Magneto rules," James replied with a straight face, and Bobby started giggling too.
"Oh, then I'd be stupid to be against you," he said - which set off the girls giggling as Bobby looked both ways then dramatically dropped down below the level of the counter with them.
The giggles crescendoed as did the shooshes, and the next thing that Annie saw was that both of the heroes had one of the girls with them and the girls each had some sort of device in their hands and broad smiles on their faces while the guys were both manning the water balloons - though Bobby was already icing his over.
She could hardly concentrate on the conversation at hand when it was so obvious that James and Bobby were doing their best to keep the girls from being too scared, or too worried by giving them what she hoped would be harmless trouble to cause.
The pairs of troublemakers were staged - waiting for Tony to come down the hall when several things happened at once. The elevator opened up admitting Scott and Billy at the same time that Tony stepped out of his lab and called out to them.
Scott saw the positions James and Bobby were in and stopped, holding out one hand to keep Billy from stepping into the crossfire, even if he didn't know what the crossfire was yet. Billy stopped, then broke into a broad grin when he saw James was coaching a little girl who had one hand over her mouth to stifle the giggles and the other arm aimed to web someone up.
Tony had his coffee in hand and was reading his phone, much like James had been doing- Annie noticed - when he stepped out of the hall and directly onto a very slick looking puddle of ice that had just barely appeared before his foot hit the floor. His eyes went wide and he drew in a sharp breath as he started to fall, almost in slow motion. The coffee went flying and he threw his arms out trying to catch himself - which was when the girls struck with the webbing. Bobby was already laughing by that time, but on Mary Beth's second 'thwip', James reached out to catch the end of the web so he could catch Tony before he hit the ground.
As he secured the end of the webbing so Tony didn't finish falling, both little girls and Bobby hit him with the water balloons. "James! What the f-"
Thwip!
The webbing landed neatly across Tony's mouth and James shifted to cover Mary Beth's ears, half blocking her from Tony even looking at her. "There are children around, Tony. She's only nine!" James told him - which had Anton and Craig laughing outright.
The girls were in a fit of giggles, though they quickly took off the web shooters and handed them to their respective 'responsible parties' before they went running - giggling still to their parents when that was a lot more intense of a prank than either had been involved in or witnessed. And they absolutely didn't want Tony mad at them.
James was still smirking crookedly as he put the devices on rather than set them aside as he headed over to help Tony, since … their pranks weren't meant to be long-lived. Just … a little shock to wake the other up.
And when James got there, Tony was glaring hard, though once the webbing on his face had been dissolved, he was at least careful not to say anything that would upset the little girls in the room. "You know, this means war," Tony said as James was dissolving the webbing.
"You know this is just payback for last time," James countered. "And it's been war since I started coming here."
"As long as you know I'm hitting back."
"Give it your best shot, old man," James replied, though he still took a hold of Tony's hand to keep him from tipping sideways as the webbing around his legs hadn't quite dissolved yet.
Tony tried to keep his glare in place, he really did, but he couldn't help but smile quietly when he saw how relaxed and happy the girls were now that they'd blown off some steam, and as soon as he was able, he pulled James into a quick hug. "Welcome home, kiddo."
"Hi, Tony," James said, easily returning the hug, and by the time they'd stepped back from each other, Scott had made his way over to help Bobby to his feet from how hard he was laughing.
"I guess you and Bobby are getting along now?" Scott asked as Bobby wiped tears from the corners of his eyes.
James shrugged. "If he keeps screaming out Boston songs on the way back from Cambridge, no, but this … I can work with this."
Scott laughed as he pulled James over for a quick hug - it had been too long after the week he'd had dealing with teenagers that only wanted to work on their powers, not their studies and listening to more of them that couldn't stop talking about joining the X-Men immediately. It had been all too familiar to back in their heyday when every kid at Xavier's wanted to be part of the dream. "You going to take off the web shooters?"
"I have to fiddle with the trigger system," James said as Annie approached them both. "I shouldn't take them off until I know they work right."
"And that requires testing," Scott said, shaking his head as James smiled. Something like this happened every time that James adjusted Peter's web shooters - or the fluid formulation - or when he needed to blow off some steam. "Any more run ins?"
"Ah, not for me," James said, then gestured behind Scott into the living room where Annie and her family were watching with broad smiles. "Met your girlfriend, by the way. Hope that's okay."
Annie smiled widely and slipped over to Scott to take his hand and kiss his cheek. "Hello," she said, then nearly laughed when she saw how shocked he was to see her there. "Oh, it's a long story. I think my family may be in protective custody?"
"For what?" Scott asked in disbelief. The idea was absurd enough to nearly get him to laugh.
"My big brother has a grudge match with Emma Frost."
Scott stiffened up entirely. "What."
"It's fine, Dad," James said. "He's here with Jan and Jarvis spoiling him."
Scott gave him the driest look he could manage. "Having been on the receiving end of her fury, I can tell you firsthand it's not fine."
"Alright. But it will be."
Annie stood on her toes to kiss Scott's cheek. "Don't you worry. Between James' devices and all these protective heroes, we have plenty of support." She grinned up at him. "But since you mentioned it, should I read too much into your ex coming for my family?" she teased.
Scott stared at her, not at all expecting her to take that particular tack with him. "I … I think you're fine. She doesn't know you…"
"You just said they weren't," James pointed out, just to rile him. "Wrath of Emma Frost or something."
Scott turned his whole body James's way - as Billy broke down snorting, obviously enjoying watching James take his dad to task, all things considered. And with Annie chuckling beside him, Scott was well and truly outnumbered. "I meant I don't think Emma will target Annie for that reason…" He rubbed the back of his neck. "This… this is always complicated, isn't it?"
Annie chuckled and kissed his cheek. "No, no, keep digging," she teased him.
"Okay, well, while you two try to decide how dangerous your proximity is, I'm going to drive Doc over to his place to get a few things," James said as he pushed back from the counter.
"I'm coming with," Billy said. "Clearly, I missed out on a good story, and you need to catch me up."
"You saw the best part," James promised as he took Tony's keys. "But I'm sure Doc is always ready to share."
"Oh, I like him," Annie said, grinning as she leaned into Scott. "Did he come with all that sass or have you been holding out on me?"
"Came that way," Scott said without missing a beat.
Annie laughed. "Well, my brother doesn't get nearly as much teasing as he should, so I'm glad to see it," she said.
Craig rolled his eyes her way. "Love you too, Annie."
"Can't get rid of me, Craig," she called back to him, and Scott couldn't help but laugh at the obvious camaraderie between the two of them.
He shook his head and let Annie lead him to a couch to sit down. "I don't think I've ever seen you with both of your siblings," Scott said.
"Oh!" Annie turned bright red. "Well! You've already met most of them, and you know Craig from James' therapy, so… welcome to my family? I guess?"
Scott rubbed the back of his neck. "And you've met James now, apparently."
"And, unsurprisingly, I love all of your kids," she said, grinning up at him and then rearranging herself so she could sit with her shoulder against his chest until he put his arm around her. "And I've met the Avengers today too. It's been quite the day."
"Yeah? Anyone catch your eye?" Scott asked.
Annie laughed and then pointedly laid her head on his shoulder. "I like the one I've got."
Scott smiled - and blatantly pretended he couldn't see Jan across the room standing in a doorway and doing everything in her power to silently communicate to him that she was beyond thrilled with his new relationship.
James, Craig, and Billy took off without another backward glance, knowing that Craig's family was safe and sound and in good company. And surprising Craig, James didn't hotrod with Tony's car, or do anything that he expected most teenagers to do in that position - all while Billy watched from the backseat, waiting for someone to crack and start talking outside of the basic directions to Craig's place.
As they pulled up, James finally seemed to really get into 'business' mode, which was a new look for Craig to see up close. "You've got your disruptor on you, right?"
"Absolutely," Craig said as he reached for the door handle.
"Good. Stay here for just a minute," James said, then held his hand out for Craig's keys. "I just want to make sure nothing was tampered with. It'll only take me a few minutes to know if anyone's been through here."
"Is that strictly necessary?" Craig asked, though he was handing over the keys all the same.
"Hopefully not, but … really," James said. "Just a few minutes."
"I'll come run a spell too," Billy offered. "My grandfather made sure some of the first spells I knew by heart were the paranoid kind."
"Do it from the car," James said. "I definitely don't want her messing with your head." He gave them both a grim sort of smile, then headed off at a quick clip - first up to the front door, then around the side to the back to try and scent it out for any kind of trouble.
Billy blew out all his breath and fell back against the seat of the car, and Craig gave him a tight smile.
"I know you already have to split time with him," Craig said apologetically.
"Yeah, well, I actually like the part where he's being heroic, so this kind of thing I wouldn't mind if the stupid school wasn't … like it is." Billy crossed his arms. "None of this would have happened in Genosha."
Craig raised an eyebrow. "Regretting your decision?"
"No," Billy said, then paused and frowned. "No, not regretting being here. Just… annoyed living in a place that thinks mutants are less than."
"That has to be a huge change from your grandfather's viewpoint," Craig said mildly.
"Yeah. I know. Kate gave me a hard time for it, and I get that. But it's still better than here."
"It is now," Craig allowed.
Billy scrunched down a little more. "Yeah. Well. I miss my boyfriend."
"I know." Craig was quiet as he looked toward his apartment complex. "I know it doesn't help in the moment, but you are almost done with all this. If you're willing to put in the work to wait."
Billy bristled. "Of course I am!"
"Then I'd suggest acting a bit more like the adult you claim to be."
"Wow."
Craig almost smirked. "Sorry. Can't turn the therapist part of my brain off."
"Wow."
"I know." Craig finally broke into a smile. "But really, I think you'll find the adults in your life will be far more willing to take your side if you step back and breathe."
Billy sighed. "Not really looking for advice right now, okay?"
"That's fair," Craig said, dropping it for the time being to instead wait for James.
James came back at a more leisurely pace, his hands in his hoodie pocket as he looked up and down the road only to open the passenger door. "No one's been here that shouldn't have been. Nothing suspicious. We can wait out here for you if you want some privacy."
"Thanks," Craig said - not because he wanted privacy but because James and Billy hadn't spent any time just the two of them, and he could see Billy driving himself to distraction already.
James waited exactly as long as it took for Craig to get into the building, leaning on the car with Billy, before he had to ask. "So, how long did it take him to try and crawl into your head? Five? Ten seconds? He had that look on his face." He kicked away from the car, tipping his head so Billy would get the cue to join him on a slow walk up to the building.
"More like two," Billy said, though he wrapped his coat around himself a little tighter and they took their time getting closer to the building.
"Still not surprised," James said airly, then smirked crookedly in Billy's direction. They had a little time, but as usual, when they weren't with the Avengers up at the tower, they were in public, and they still hadn't made that leap yet.
The two of them stood there in the cold with James keeping watch and Billy quietly working a spell that would keep the three of them from being seen by anyone that might be inclined to sell a picture. Not because he was overly worried, but because it was something to do.
When Craig came down, the two heroes shared a look and silently took up a position in front of and behind him as they walked toward the car. They were almost there when Emma's voice rang out, catching their attention.
"This explains so much," Emma said, her tone dripping with disdain as the three men turned her way.
"Just get in the car," James told Craig and Billy.
"You're the one that started this witch hunt?" Emma nearly shrieked at James.
"Yep," James said, not missing a beat and not even pretending as if he would entertain her wrath as he stood his ground while Billy and Craig got into the car. "But you're using the wrong terminology. It's not a witch hunt if it's the truth, Miss Frost." She was almost up to him, furious and near growling when he held up both hands. "Pretty sure you need to be more conscious of where you put your hands for a change. Especially with me. Back off."
Emma glared hard between James and Craig, then, in a fit of rage she turned her focus first to James in an attempt at a psychic attack that never really had a chance to be effective, and then toward Craig - though when she focused on Craig, the feedback kicked in and she let out a cry of pain that brought her to her knees as she backed out of her attack and shifted to her diamond form.
"Right," James said, approaching her on his way to the car, though he paused out of her reach to half crouch down to her level so he could talk to her and remain somewhat private about it. "Since you tried to kill my therapist, I decided you're not allowed to even think about screwing with him. Do yourself a favor and don't push to see what my next level of dissuasion is."
"You think you're grown up enough to threaten me?" Emma scoffed.
"I don't think I have to threaten you at all," James replied. "As far as I can tell you're smart enough not to need a blatant threat. But if you want one … I'll be keeping track of him and keeping an eye out for you. That may not sound too threatening, and that's fine. I prefer being underestimated."
Emma glared at him as she got to her feet. "Careful now," she said through her teeth. "You don't know who you're dealing with."
"Neither do you," James said, then stood up straight and turned on his heel leaving her there while he calmly got in the car - and immediately was nearly accosted by an amorous Billy.
Craig was outright laughing as Billy practically climbed into James' lap, grinning widely. "Seriously, James," Billy said and kissed him hard, "have I told you how hot it is when you do stuff like that?"
"Nope. Not once."
"Well, it is. It's very, very hot."
Craig snorted. "Guys, I'm not a limo service," he said. "Last thing I need is another run-in with the police right now, so could you please at least wear seat belts until we get to the tower?"
"If you're gonna be a joykill about it, fine," James laughed. "I shouldn't even let you drive this thing. So you better be sure you burn out every time you shift on the way back."
Billy grinned but did, at least, slide into his own seat - only to lean over to James and whisper, "If your therapist wasn't in need of a bodyguard in the worst ways right now, I'd have wished us to, like, an ivory tower by now. Just so you know. I'm practicing restraint."
"I think he heard you and it'll be in the notes later," James stage-whispered back. "A+ for effort."
Billy grinned and then leaned his head on James' shoulder - and then, just to get James to grin, he whispered a spell that meant there would be green lights the whole drive.
Chapter 84: Of Summerses And Otherses
Chapter Text
"You gotta quit asking that kid to work on your web shooters," Tony said seriously the next day when Peter came by with his daughter to see how things were going.
"But he's like … surprisingly good," Peter said in an old discussion between them.
"Yeah, think I don't know that? I've got him set to replace me. If he wasn't at least as good at this stuff as I am, I wouldn't even consider it."
"I know," Peter said, smiling to himself before he threw an arm around Tony's shoulders. "I just like to hear you admit it. And it's probably good to let him hear it sometimes, too."
Tony had never been lax in handing out compliments of that nature, so Peter's concerns were unfounded and about as close as he came to giving Tony a hard time about anything of that nature. Especially when the Hales had returned to the tower for another day after they all agreed that Tony and James could outfit all of them with something or another to keep them safe. And Tony wasn't about to start up a picking session with Spidey with that many witnesses.
"Okay," Peter said after it was clear Tony wasn't going to engage. "What did he do this time?"
"Just a little webbing," Tony said, perfectly off the cuff even if it was a massive understatement.
"Oh yeah, gotta watch out for random webbings," Peter said as Mayday finally started to giggle as she watched the back and forth between them. She'd almost gotten Steve's okay on Avengers' training … and though she really didn't want to get on Tony's bad side, she knew exactly how webbed up her father liked to make his fellow heroes when the mood struck.
"New tensile strength on the formula is something else," Tony said casually as he picked up his mug then took a drink.
"I … didn't ask him to do that," Peter said, frowning suddenly. "My formulation was perfect."
"Well now it's perfect-er," Tony said, then smiled tightly at Peter, daring him to argue his own commentary from just moments before.
"We'll see about that," Peter said, half grumbling. He trusted James to work on his web shooters, but when it came to the chemical compound, he knew that James sometimes had Tony's penchant for going overboard and that could be worrisome. Little things like release time, flexibility, and the timing on catching it as they came out of the device so he could swing was critical. And that was something he didn't like being fiddled with. "I'm the one swinging, I should pick my formula."
He turned and started toward the lab, only to find that James wasn't there … so he headed to James' room since he knew the kid had to be in the tower. He had to. "May- can you look in the lounge, please?"
"Can I not?" Mayday called back with her arms crossed. "You're the one that wants to talk to him. You find him."
"You really don't understand how hard it is to play hide and seek with Wolverine's kid," Peter muttered almost to himself as he started to much more cautiously look for him.
Tony knew that James was trying to give the Parkers space - not because he didn't like them, but because Mayday was still acting as if James had sleighted her and he didn't want to make her uncomfortable. That or she was a little salty that he was dating a guy now. But what she didn't know was that Cap had seen it too - and he was holding back from letting May step up because of her reluctance to be anywhere near James. It wasn't that Steve wanted them to be paired up for the team, it was just that if there was going to be a problem, he needed both of them to be past it before there was an issue in the field. And every time someone brought up May's ex, she'd get defensive and refuse to talk to or about him.
It was bad for the team to have conflict like that and Steve wasn't above taking James off the team if he was going to cop an attitude, too. He just needed to give the kid a chance to show it one way or the other and it just … it hadn't happened.
But … eventually, Peter found James all the same by using an entirely unorthodox method of simply calling out for him. "Hey! Young Wolverine!" Peter said with his hands cupped around his mouth. "Did you get done with my triggers yet?"
When there was no answer, though a lot of people watching him with odd expressions on their faces, Peter turned back toward Tony. "I don't get it! What gives?"
One step forward was all Peter got before his spider sense went completely nuts and he reacted before he saw the danger - right into the line of fire as James fired Peters own web shooters at him - and trussed him up upside down before starting to laugh. But he wasn't laughing at Peter. He was laughing at Mayday, who had also over reacted to the impending danger and had startled so hard, she'd fallen over with a shouted out 'augh!' that struck James exactly right in the humor department. What's more, Peter had shouted in exactly the same manner and James simply could not ignore the humor in that at all.
He couldn't even get a breath to say anything to Peter for how hard he was laughing - to the point that he actually slid to the floor, holding his stomach. And every single angry protest from Peter or Mayday only had him further on the floor, unable to breathe right.
"You lunatic!" Mayday shouted as she got to her feet and stomped over to where James was still laughing. "Why would you do that!" She glared at him as he got himself halfway under control, not at all amused at his reactions, even if it was hard not to let the infectious laugh get to her.
James made a more honest effort to stop busting up as he pushed himself up onto one elbow, wiping tears of laughter from his eyes as he did so, but when he looked up at her with a grin and just … gestured between her and her father, he couldn't keep it back forever … and this time, as he broke up laughing, May's irritation cracked and she started laughing with him.
"You're such a jerk sometimes," May said as she offered James her hand, then pulled him to his feet. "There was no reason to web my dad up!"
"Really?" James challenged, eyebrows raised. "You don't think that was worth it?"
"Shut up," she laughed, shoving him over a step as they made their way over to dissolve the webs.
But … the whole display had been in full view of Steve … and as soon as this had settled out, he decided that it was time to let May Parker into the Avengers … if she still wanted to join. If they could laugh like this, and she could drop her anger over an admittedly dirty trick on James' part, they'd likely be fine on a team together.
Nate knew that his dad was totally preoccupied with all the drama going down with James, with Billy and James, with Annie, and with Craig and Emma… so he was quietly trying to deal with his own plans without bothering Scott.
Besides, he had a feeling that Scott would take it exactly the wrong way if Nate told him he was trying to graduate high school a semester early. There was no way his Dad would chalk it up to a late game play to be a little more like his brother. And the way things had gone with Billy and James going "too fast," Nate was half convinced his dad would think he was trying to graduate just because Kate was a grade ahead of him.
Not that he didn't consider that a perk of finishing early, obviously. But the reality was that he was tired of being the baby brother, and he wanted to move ahead and be an adult without having to navigate homework and high school. His siblings and his girlfriend were going to be able to do what they wanted. Why couldn't he?
So, he'd met with his counselor to discuss a schedule. And he could make it work… but he wouldn't have time for anything but school and one team. And obviously, he'd pick the X-Men every time.
He wasn't looking forward to the glares and looks he'd get all of fall semester, though. He was the quarterback, after all… And he kept wavering on whether he could squeeze in enough football to do two teams. No basketball for sure, but…
"You look like you're gonna hurt yourself," Kate said as she waltzed into his room with the takeout they'd ordered. "Senior year stressing you that much?"
"Planning for it is, yes, as a matter of fact," Nate replied. "It's just a lot to juggle."
"Sure, sure," Kate said, smiling as she slid next to him and then started opening boxes of food. "So, what's the holdup? Can't decide whether to take painting or photography or home ec or…"
"Trying to decide how many teams I can juggle," Nate answered honestly. "I'm not doing fluff classes."
"Shame. That's what I did," Kate said. "That's the only way I was able to do cheer and fencing and the X-Men and Avengers…"
"Yeah, well, I want to get this over with," Nate said.
"It's because you can't stand to be dating someone so much older, isn't it?" Kate teased. "You were looking for a graduation gift for me and had a crisis."
"That's why I call you my old lady," Nate teased with a crooked grin. "So much older."
"Oh yeah. I'm totally the crypt keeper. How you're still attracted to me is beyond understanding."
"It's rough," Nate chuckled, just trying to rile her now.
"That's okay. I'm a dirty cradle robber," Kate said, fluttering her eyelashes.
"That's also true," he agreed before he pulled her over to steal a rather involved kiss. "You don't really care much about my stupid planning, so why don't we go do something fun?"
"Oh, if you think you can hold back your Summersy planning urges," she teased, though she was already kissing him back between words.
"I can multitask," Nate said with a laugh.
"Don't usually see you in Westchester," Rachel called out, smiling when she saw America step out of a star-shaped hole in reality right into Rachel's office where she helped new students adjust and helped Betsy teach telepathic defense.
America smiled and dusted herself off as the star closed behind her. "Needed somewhere I knew was safe to come out the other side," she said with a shrug. "Nasty dimensional slug problems," she added, flicking a bit of slime off of her jacket.
"Oh, is that all?" Rachel laughed.
"Just trying to keep our team from the same problems that plagued the first team," America said, purposefully only keeping her mind open enough for Rachel to see part of the fight - but not enough to identify her opponent.
Rachel knew America was baiting her, but all the same, she was curious enough to rise to that bait. "Okay, I know you know I can't cheat, so what's the story here?"
"Interdimensional entertainment mogul who gets his kicks by kidnapping people to make them fight or die for his 'shows'," America said, making a face that clearly illustrated what she thought of the whole idea.
"Sounds serious," Rachel said, smiling her way.
"Surprisingly so, considering he looks like something Kate's baby siblings drew in crayon."
"Looked."
"No, he still looks like crayon scribbles. Just different ones," America said, flipping her hair with a crooked smirk.
"Uh huh. So. Did you come here because you needed a shower before our date?"
America paused just long enough to blink and then laughed outright, taking Rachel by the waist to pull her over to her. "Why, yes, I'd like to go out with you," she said, dangerously close enough for a kiss without actually doing so.
"Oh good. I thought I'd have to wait forever otherwise," Rachel said.
"Princess, you have no idea."
"I dunno. I have a couple ideas …"
America laughed outright. "Lead the way, little bird. I think I'm gonna like this."
Rachel smirked a little more crookedly then closed the gap to steal a kiss. "Keep up, now."
"I'll do more than that," America replied - and to prove the point picked Rachel up off her feet.
Scott wasn't entirely sure if Billy was giving him a hard time still because James had sided with Scott and Wanda, or if something else had happened in their dramatic romance, but it really didn't matter. Not when Scott still had to let Billy know that he'd been chosen to play tour guide to the newest student at Xaviers.
"Billy," Scott said, and when Billy looked up at him, Scott waved him up. "I thought I'd give you a heads up."
"Is my mother coming back?" Billy asked with a tone of irritation in his voice.
"Not that I know of," Scott said. "But I thought you might want to prepare yourself … Ms. Munroe is planning to ask you if you'll play tour guide for the new kid. I don't want to tell you how to do anything, but it is kind of a tradition to let some of the older, more established students show the new ones around."
"Yeah, but I thought Mia and Tommy were doing that."
"Well, Mia usually is our default, but we like all of our students to engage in helping each other," Scott told him gently, then had to try and go for a light tease. "You aren't required to do anything outside of normal school hours, so it shouldn't cut into your time in Cambridge."
But at that, Billy narrowed his eyes for just an instant, but didn't voice his opinion either way. Especially when he was pretty sure he didn't have much of a choice in the matter. So for the time being, he took his seat and went to work … intent on finishing whatever work he had to do in Scott's class without engaging any further.
By the time he got into Storm's class, he had taken the time to think it over .. and though he wasn't excited to meet this new kid by any stretch of the imagination, when he did see him - it was plainly obvious how new he was.
"Billy," Ororo called out when she saw him. "Please, come here. I'd like to ask you to be Vojteck's guide for the next few days." She smiled warmly between both of them, and Billy watched as the new kid half cringed, obviously self conscious. He wasn't any taller than Billy was - with a reasonable build, dark hair, and green eyes that were incredibly intense.
Vojteck smiled bashfully, then hesitantly extended his hand. "Pleased to meet you," he said in a thick accent that had Billy blinking at him a few times because that … that sounded an awful lot like his mother's accent when she was emotional … or missing her brother Pietro. "Vojteck Kovacs. You are?"
"Billy Maximoff," he replied, a little off balance because most, if not all of the kids they met even at the school knew who he was, even if they didn't know what to do with 'royalty'.
"I trust you can help Vojteck find his way?" Ororo said with a warm smile.
Billy did a small double take but agreed, earning himself a broad smile from Vojteck and a moment later, Ororo left the room, leaving Billy in charge of the direction to classes ad how to decipher Storm's classroom number system. Which ended up being how he spent most of his day between classes … showing the new guy how to get to one class or another, how to find the fastest path to the dining room, etc etc … he just wasn't exactly expecting to have to show him around after school, too … or to take him to the library so he could find a study group that would work well with him …
And by the time he was done showing him around, Billy realized it was getting late. Like … already missed dinner late. Which meant his usual dinner date was probably shot. But … considering the fact that James was involved in all kinds of things with Stark and the school … well. He'd be fine one night alone. Still, he made a point to text as soon as he realized how much time helping Vojteck had eaten up.
Hey, handsome - I got assigned a new student to show around. Totally didn't realize how late it was.
There was a short pause before the three little dots in the text box danced, letting Billy know that at least James wasn't going to ignore him. Lucky new kid, James replied. Hope you had some fun while you played tour guide Barbie.
Not horrible, Billy replied, though he didn't want to call and be overheard with Vojteck still trying to stick close to him. Raincheck?
Open invite, James answered.
I'll tell you all about it when I come by.
Sounds good. Have fun.
Billy looked only mildly let down that he didn't get the usual X's and O's … or the even more common 'love you' … He frowned at his phone, for a long moment, then put it away, already considering wishing himself there to make sure there wasn't something wrong when his phone chimed with a selfie from James - clearly showing that he was still working with a box of chinese next to him. So Billy did the only thing he could and answered with a selfie of his own - clearly showing that he was still in the library with half a dozen other kids.
This wasn't nearly as much fun as being in person … especially when he knew his guy was once again alone with Bobby no longer staying at the house with him. But he seemed fine…
Still … Billy frowned and was sure to send one last message. See you tomorrow?
I'll be here. Sleep tight. This time, James had been sure to sign off with a quick XO, but it felt like a far cry from acceptable compared to what the two of them had been used to not too long ago.
Try as he might to ignore it, it sure felt like they were drifting apart from one stupid circumstance or another. Which was when Billy decided he wasn't going to wait until Vojteck or Cyclops or anyone else could throw something else at him to mess up his plans. Not when he could wish himself to Cambridge first thing in the morning for coffee with his sweetheart.
James was dragging when Billy showed up bright and early well before classes. He'd barely gotten himself half dressed and was in the kitchen shirtless and barefoot - part way through making coffee when the room filled with a blue-white light and a moment later, Billy had made his way over to wrap James up from behind for a squeeze.
"Are you even awake?" Billy asked, waiting just long enough for James to finish pouring the water in the coffee pot before he pulled him around for a proper hello kiss.
"No," James said, one eye open, though as soon as they were facing each other, he dove right in to say hello right. When the kiss was over, James had to ask; "What brings you here so early in the morning?"
"I really didn't like the way yesterday ended," Billy said, perfectly happy to be wrapped up as James nuzzled his neck, leaving little kisses and nips in his path just because they could and James hadn't been overly thrilled at having been alone again in the house.
"Me either," James agreed, then pulled back to look Billy in the eyes. "But this is an excellent way to say good morning."
"Too bad we don't have a lot of time, or I'm sure we could come up with better," Billy countered.
"Definitely," James agreed, and just like that, the two of them began what had been their usual morning wake up … fixing breakfast together and enjoying a few minutes to just be there. They were halfway through their second cups of coffee when James' phone went off, and he absently picked it up to read the text, though the content had him waking up a little bit faster. "Well that's different."
"What's up?" Billy asked, scooting over a little closer to see what was happening.
"It's Franklin Richards," James said, shifting so Billy could read it, too. "He said he's going to be doing a guest lecture at Harvard and wanted to know if I had room here so he doesn't have to go stay with his uncle."
Billy frowned. "I didn't know you two were that close."
"I mean, we haven't really hung out in a couple years," James said. "But I know how much Johnny gets on his nerves trying to be the cool, relatable one." He looked over at Billy to try and lay it out a little clearer. "I went to the Baxter Building for a while for school work. Franklin was always ahead of me, content-wise and he was a great translator for when his dad would get caught up in something. We're friends."
"And he wants to stay here?" Billy asked with a frown.
"Looks like," James said, then smirked crookedly before he handed Billy the phone. "Don't worry. I'm not going to say anything until I get your input. I'll just point out that Bobby's only here when it's time to go back to the city and it's totally boring otherwise. But … if you're going to be territorial…" He leaned forward and gave Billy a very gentle kiss. "Or if you're just worried, all I can tell you is that he's straight, not anywhere near as good looking as you, and the biggest dork on the planet, so … it's not an issue."
"Oh, obviously," Billy said, though he hadn't lost the frown. He had severe doubts that Scott would okay anything of the sort - especially after the freakout he'd had when it came out that Billy was living there. "It's just short term, right?"
"That's what he says," James said with a nod.
"I don't think that'd be horrible," Billy said, though he curled in a little tighter and James took the cue for more kisses.
"Then I'll tell him I have to ask Dad and Tony this weekend," James said. "They might even shoot it down on the basis that then, MIT may try to say I had him helping me cheat."
"You're right, it might be an automatic no anyhow," Billy agreed, finally losing the frown as he leaned in for another kiss. "But maybe we can just spend a few minutes without talking about other people before we both have to go to class."
After that stolen morning, though, it was hard for Billy to find time to break away to spend time in Massachusetts with his sweetheart for the rest of the week. They'd talked and even had a few video chats late at night that made it incredibly hard to continue to obey their parent's guidelines, but as for actual in person time? Billy simply hadn't been able to break away. Vojteck, who was almost painfully shy, seemed to look to Billy for guidance - and it probably didn't help Billy to get distance when Vojteck's accent was thick enough that more often than not he almost needed a translator - which he easily had with Billy or Tommy, who knew the ins and out of that type of dialect and how it curled around English in a manner that was easily predictable for them to guess at what Vojteck was after.
Both brothers, in fact, were fairly invested in helping him learn English a little bit more clearly - and it didn't take long before they were almost keeping watch to make sure that the guy wasn't horribly misunderstood.
What's more, Billy knew from recent experience that it was going to be rough to get away from Vojteck long enough to steal a few minutes with James while he was up at the tower for the weekend. A weekend that was going to have some important things discussed - like James' upcoming birthday plans, how best to deal with the press that was circling because of that, and in a distant third place, the matter of Franklin Richards asking to bunk up. Billy hardly had enough time to think of how to deal with any of that when he'd been doing his level best to help Vojteck … who seemed perfectly happy to focus on Billy. Protective of the kid as he was, Billy needed a break from Vojteck. The guy was getting entirely too clingy.
So he was almost relieved when Scott asked if he was going to the tower.
"Are you still holding fast to making me ride with you?" Billy asked. "Because I can get us there much faster."
Scott considered it, but also thought about what Wanda had said to him privately about making sure that Billy had to handle things at the same speed that everyone else did from time to time. Yes, Tommy was the one with the reputation for being fast - but Billy had always done everything he could to try and keep up with that pace."I thought it might be a good time for you to get your driving hours in," Scott said finally, which had Billy doing a full double take.
"What?"
"You are still trying to get your license, aren't you?"
"Well, yeah…"
"Then you need time driving." Scott tossed the keys to him and Billy caught them without looking or thinking about it.
"Oh … okay then," Billy said quietly, a little confused on how that shift had happened.
Scott smirked and shook his head. "I'm not out to get you, Billy," he teased gently, then turned to lead the way to his truck.
"All evidence to the contrary."
Scott sighed. "Billy…"
"I know, I know." Billy shrugged his shoulders up as he got to the drivers side of Scott's truck, waiting until he was situated before speaking again. "Still."
Scott was quiet for some time in the cab as Billy made his adjustments before, quietly, he said, "I remember what it was like, you know. Jean and I got married young. I know what it's like to fall hard and fall early."
More time passed as they got onto the road with Billy quietly thinking over what he wanted to say that would have the most impact.
"So if you did this too, you should be on my side," Billy pointed out. "It's not like we're engaged or whatever."
"Okay, but that's the problem," Scott said slowly. "You're too young to do what you're trying to do."
"Yeah, yeah, I heard you the first time," Billy said. "Can we just do this driving thing, or am I getting another lecture about being too young to move in with the guy I love?"
"I said we'd get you time on your license," Scott said. "But that doesn't mean I can't try to make a point."
"Summerses and multitasking." Billy blew out his breath from his cheeks. "Look, you can't even come after me for leading him on or not loving him or anything like that, because I do, so honestly? Once we're eighteen? Gonna go back to the way things were. Not really up to you."
"I'm not trying to say anything like that," Scott said. "And I'm not trying to keep you apart. I just would like to see you both take a little time and ease into it."
"I'm not really built for that," Billy pointed out.
"I get that, but he may decide he wants to keep going with his education, too," Scott said. "Can you be patient enough to see him through that?"
Billy paused, bit his lip, and then said, haltingly, "If it's like this every semester? I don't know if I can take that," he admitted. "But everyone keeps saying this is temporary and it's just one semester, so it's not that likely anyway."
"I know that's what everyone keeps saying, but Billy, I'm trying to be honest with you. He was considering taking it further before the college did what it did and I don't want to discourage him if he decides to go for doctorates. And I sure as hell don't want this one moron at the school cutting him off before he's done."
Billy came to a stop at a light and folded his arms, leaning back in his seat. "I - I know I have to share him with Stark Industries anyway," he said. "And my mom wants me to go back to Genosha eventually and do more as crown prince. But, like, it's different with this stupid college thing, okay? They're making him jump through so many hoops even when we lived together I barely saw him. That's not a fair question."
"I know. But I don't think he'd want to do it if it was like this all the time, either," Scott admitted. "He doesn't react well at all when he thinks someone doesn't trust him."
Billy shifted, thinking of how James had reacted to his mom's interference. "Yeah. Well. We'll cross that bridge when we get to it, I guess."
"I just want you to be prepared," Scott said, then gestured toward the steering column. "Use your blinkers."
It was such an absurd transition from one idea to the other that Billy nearly laughed - and then turned on his blinker anyway. His boyfriend's dad was weird to deal with, but considering all James had put up with when it came to Magneto, he had to keep reminding himself he actually had the better end of the stick when it came to boyfriend's family.
Still, he'd feel better when this was all over and he could just curl up with James every night without interference. He was on a countdown.
When Billy and Scott got to the tower and made their way up, they weren't overly surprised to see that James was there with Tony, Bobby, and Craig. Nor were they surprised to find that they were in the middle of discussing the Franklin Richards matter. But Billy wasn't expecting the three adults already talking to be stumping in favor of Franklin moving in. And it all happened very quickly.
"Oh good, we were just discussing the Richards situation," Tony said, waving them both over. "I got the details from Reed on what's going on. Sounds like it might be a good way to let our boy here have a roommate that doesn't fuel the prank wars."
"So what's the full story?" Scott asked, tipping Billy off that the idea wasn't off the table.
"Franklin's supposed to be doing his first full lecture series at Harvard. Kid's nervous but he doesn't want to rely on family. He's too young to go out on his own, so … Sue's idea. She knew James had a place there that we set up. She knows he'd be safe."
"He'd have to agree to the same security protocols," Scott said. "As much as I like Franklin, I won't go along with it if he's going to be sloppy about security."
"I don't think that's a problem," Tony said. "He knows the level we expect is higher than when the boys were studying together before."
Scott looked toward James, who had been very careful not to express an opinion at all one way or the other before he nodded. "Might be good for both of them."
Tony turned to Craig. "Any thoughts?"
"It's probably the closest thing to a college roommate that he can get, realistically," Craig said. "And being alone all the time at his age isn't the best idea."
"I'm not alone all the time," James argued, though Scott and Tony both glossed over it in favor of continuing their bizzare agreement.
"I'll call Reed and let him know," Tony said with a nod that Scott was echoing.
"Make sure he comes here first to get set up with the right emergency buttons and comms," Scott said as he led the way deeper into the room.
James looked between Tony and Scott, then took Billy's hand to find a few minutes of privacy. "Well, that's that, I suppose," he said quietly. "They'll take care of the details, which means I don't need to be friendly with anyone and we can have a little date."
"Just a little one, huh?" Billy said, still trying to process what had just happened with Scott, Tony, Craig … and the fact that apparently, it was okay for Franklin Richards to move in with James, but not Billy. "Where were you planning on taking me?"
"Well … to be honest, I thought it might be nice to get out. As in … well away from Natasha's circle of influence here in New York," James replied. "So I guess … it's up to you if you want to pick somewhere and get us there or if I'm stealing a jet and we're figuring it out."
"And since we can't spend the night, it'd be much better if I picked," Billy said, already irritated enough that he'd rather just … disappear with him and take the weekend if not for the fact that he knew his mother would be all over them in a heartbeat.
"Unless you'd rather we just ordered in and hunkered down," James said. "I just figured you probably had enough of full supervision all the time everywhere we go. A night off …"
"Is overdue," Billy agreed.
"Great," James answered with a smile. "Your pick on where and what you want to do. I'm game for whatever you want."
Chapter 85: Green Is Not Your Color
Chapter Text
Kate had decided to pick Lexi up from school herself because, for the first time in a while, she didn't have anything going on after school. Nate was in a meeting with his guidance counselor, so she couldn't get wrapped up in him - instead, she wanted to check on her dramatic friends under the guise of picking up her sister. Especially Mia, America, and Billy.
As she pulled up the drive, she wasn't surprised to see Mia out on the lawn with Leslie Ann. The two of them had become fast friends, especially since Leslie Ann adored Mia and wanted to join the X-Men. Mia needed someone who was just as full of life as she was and someone who took one look at her and worshipped her like the goddess she was. Sure, Mia had Forge constantly talking her up as well as the other X-Men, but someone from the outside? That made a real difference, and everyone could see it in the way Mia held herself a little more confidently lately.
Beyond them, she could see Billy, who looked like he was trying to figure out how to get rid of his shadow without being rude to the poor guy. Kate shook her head and decided to take pity on him and give him a way out. "Hey, Billy!" she called out. "Are we still on for driving lessons?"
Billy looked relieved as he bounded over to Kate. "You are a lifesaver," he said as soon as he got in the car.
"It's a good thing the guy doesn't know American law well, because I am so not legally old enough to let you drive with me as your instructor," Kate cackled, waiting just long enough for Vojteck to leave before she invited Leslie Ann and Mia over as well.
"As if I even care about that part right now." Billy paused, shaking his head as they got moving. "He just … keeps pushing for more of my time."
Kate made a noise of sympathy. "Believe it or not, I can relate. I have a full-on stalker at school, and the only reason Nate hasn't done a number on his head is that the guy has ties to my dad's old circus, and I'd rather deal with one stalker than a whole circus of Hydra-affiliated losers."
"Hydra circus. Yeah, that doesn't sound terrible at all," Billy said dryly. "Bunch of horrible, anti-mutant creeps with bendy circus chops. Nope."
"Why doesn't Nate just kick his butt the old-fashioned way?" Mia asked.
"Because he wants to graduate," Kate said dryly. "This guy usually causes problems during school. That's the real problem."
"So … the creep wants to get suspended?" Mia asked.
"My read on the situation? He straight up doesn't care about school. He's not trying; he's blatant about what he's doing when he's trying to screw with me; and all the teachers hate him." She made a face. "He's not in school to get an education. Dad's already looking into whether the rest of the stupid circus is involved."
"Two words," Leslie Ann said, though her tone was quiet. "Restraining order."
Kate turned toward Leslie Ann and then laughed. "Of course the cop's daughter has the right solution. Way to go, Leslie Ann."
"Might as well try to do it legally before you kick his butt, right?" Leslie Ann said, blushing high on her cheeks.
"Less fun, but yes, you have a point," Kate said, tapping the side of her nose.
"I mean … if it's anything like most of the restraining orders I hear about, he'd still be a jerk anyhow, but … you could kick his butt and take him to court." Leslie Ann smiled. "Self defense."
"Oh, yeah. When are you old enough for Uncle Steve to let you go out for the team, because you so have my endorsement," Kate laughed, grinning into the back seat. "Wanna be an X-Man, right?"
"I do, but he just now told May Parker she could go into the Avengers, and she's been trying forever," Leslie Ann said. "It'll probably take me until I graduate."
"Okay, but that's different," Kate said, waving her hand. "May had to get over herself because she was holding a grudge against James for being a hero. Total drama central. Steve won't let anyone onto the team who can't play with others."
"Yeah, how's that going?" Mia asked. "I haven't seen her since she got the okay yet."
Kate shrugged. "Well, the tower hasn't imploded, and so far, she's been alright. I think her dad talked to her - and my mom pulled her aside too, as soon as Steve offered her the spot.
"Sure … James hasn't been at practice with her either," Mia pointed out. "I'm going to wait for that to happen before I decide how good an idea this is."
"Atta girl," Billy said, grinning. "Defend my guy while I'm stuck with Vojteck."
"Don't think that Uncle Cap will let you get away with missing too many practices," Mia said.
"Good, because the guy won't leave me alone unless I have excellent reasons, and upsetting Captain America feels like it's up there," Billy said, throwing both hands up to illustrate his annoyance.
"Well, he thinks he has excellent reasons to follow you around," Mia said, smiling.
"Yeah, I get it," Billy said. "I know he's not the easiest to understand, and it's not that I'm unsympathetic-"
"No," Mia said while Leslie Ann giggled beside her. "He likes you, as in likes likes. Please don't tell me you didn't notice that."
Billy stared at Mia. "What? No." He shook his head. "No way."
"Yes," Mia and Leslie Ann said insistently at the same time.
Billy blinked and turned toward Kate, who shrugged. "Don't look at me. I'm not here as often as they are," she said.
Billy shook his head and looked back at the other girls. "Seriously?"
"Tommy's been laughing about it this whole time," Mia said.
Billy pinched the bridge of his nose. "I'm going to get him back for this, I swear. I'm taken. He's an idiot."
"It's a harmless crush as long as he doesn't push you," Kate said.
"Yeah, the pushing part is the important part," Mia agreed fervently.
Kate smirked in the rearview at Mia. "You'd know, right? Tommy's being patient?"
Mia smiled wider. "When he wants to remind me he actually likes me, yeah," she said, then giggled. "Other times…"
"Yeah, I'm gonna go ahead and ban all talk of my brother's sex life around me forever and ever, okay?" Billy said, making a noise that said he was dying.
Mia glanced up at Kate, grinned, and nodded. "Oh, okay. But we must be doing something right, since we haven't had the Scarlet Witch show up in her pajamas to stop us."
Billy turned his body around fully in the passenger seat to look at Mia. "Really?"
Mia grinned impishly, her tail swaying and her smile showing her pointed teeth. "Yeah, I heard about that. Tommy says the two of you were doing fine until sleepovers became such a worry."
Billy nearly rolled his eyes out of his head. "Tommy doesn't know what he's talking about," he said. "I'm mostly surprised you're willing to go that far with my idiot of a brother."
"Billy, you may or may not know this, but my grandfather was a demon. I just can't help myself sometimes."
Billy flopped back into his seat dramatically - which prompted all of the girls in the car to burst into laughter.
The Richards were fast to move on Tony and Scott's agreement for Franklin to stay with James for a little while. By Monday, they were already halfway moved in - with Tony and Natasha having spent part of the weekend helping them get the clearance for Franklin to get past the security measures in place. Natasha in particular spent a lot of time making sure he knew exactly what he could and couldn't do there, right down to the policy on visitors. And since Franklin was a guest, he hadn't even considered the possibility of visitors - and he refused to consider anyone beyond his family when given the option anyway.
By the time James got back to Cambridge, the boxes were all delivered for Franklin, and Franklin himself was trying to figure out where to start. When he saw James, he broke into a smile and then gestured around them. "How do you even … where do you begin?"
James let his bag slip off his shoulder and hung his keys up as he locked the door. "Well … hit the most pressing issues first," James said. "Place to sleep, clothes for tomorrow, and what you'll need immediately first thing in the morning."
"I've got a few days before my first lecture," Franklin said.
"Then do that stuff first and start organizing what you need now," James advised.
Franklin nodded as he looked at their surroundings. "So … I don't suppose Stark has someone like Jarvis coming in for you, does he?"
"He wanted to," James said. "But I prefer picking up after myself - and cooking for myself. But not tonight. Move-in night is always pizza."
"Is that a rule?" Franklin teased, in slightly better spirits now that he knew the depths that James had moving day down. Then again, he should have known, considering how many times Scott had picked up their entire family to move when James was a kid and the family needed to get away from groups that were getting a little too close for comfort.
"No. It's a law," James said, then headed over to pick out a menu from the stack near the fridge to hand to him. "And relax. I know you're not used to being away from the Baxter Building much, but … trust me. You'll be fine."
"I know. It's just weird, you know?"
"Yep." James dropped down on the couch and kicked his feet up while Franklin tried to relax. It was obvious he was out of his depth, and James could see why Sue wanted him with someone his own age that was more used to … whatever this was. He rubbed his eyes with one hand as he sat back. "You've got a whole day to get the layout of the place and figure out your best route to the school. That's pretty cush. So just … try to relax. Play a game or something."
"That's not a bad idea," Franklin said. "I saw you have a console set up. How often do you play?"
"Only when Bobby won't quit talking to me," James said. "So whenever he's here and I'm not on my way out the door."
"That's criminal. Let's mix that up a little bit." Franklin paused. "Unless you have work to catch up on."
James let out a hollow laugh. "Yeah, even if I did, I can't do it here. I'll order dinner while you set up the game, then I can tell you all about the hoops they're making me jump through."
"Are you even qualified to be a trick pony?" Franklin teased.
"At least I'm not a one-trick pony," James countered, which had Franklin smiling.
And while James wasn't entirely sure of how well this setup was going to work between them - because even if he and Franklin were friends, they hadn't spent a lot of time together in a few years and they'd never spent anywhere near this much time together - Franklin was actually positive about the possibilities and once again excited to be around someone his own age that could keep up.
Football season was over, and the cheerleading squad was switching over their focus to basketball season. The athletes involved had a short break before basketball started, but the cheerleaders … they had to finalize a few new routines that would work at short breaks during the game. Which meant that Kate was the one practicing and Nate was sitting on the bleachers in support while working on his homework. And he was one of only three football players doing so.
The girls who didn't have their football player boyfriends watching them were once again jealous of how Kate's quarterback was such a gentleman to stick around and watch her practice. But Nate was well out of the way, giving the coaches a chance to walk the bleachers looking at the routines from different angles. Which was great and showed consideration for the coaching staff, too… but it also put him out of the line of sight when Daniel DuBois came in, took stock of the area where the cheerleaders had left their bookbags, and then headed over to sit right there.
Nate had seen him come in, then looked up in almost a double-take when he once again tried to reach out telepathically to find Daniel's mind and see how far off base he was in his assessment of the guy. Nothing irritated Nate more in that moment than to know that the idiot creep stalking his girlfriend was capable of blocking him telepathically. But still, being him, Nate pushed to try and find the edges of the telepathic shield. He stopped short of forcing his way in only because Betsy had warned him that doing so could hurt if it was a natural shield, but he could actually destroy Daniel's mind if it was an artificial one. And he couldn't take the chance. If he knew it'd be a migraine, he'd have done it repeatedly. But … he doubted this moron had natural anything.
So … Nate watched and waited to see what the heck this guy was up to. Especially since all he did so far was harass cheerleaders - Kate in particular.
For a while, Danny didn't do anything, but he wasn't there by the girls' things for long before Kate started watching him, too - Hawkeye that she was. But she couldn't concentrate on figuring him out while she had work to do, so Nate gladly took on that role. He wasn't sure what he could do, though. Or he wasn't sure until he saw Daniel looking around the gym to make sure no one was watching him before he carefully pulled out something from his pocket. Nate couldn't see what it was from where he was, and he couldn't see what he was doing with Kate's bag right in front of him, so Nate did the only thing he could do short of calling out and alerting the guy.
Instead of doing something to Daniel … Nate telekinetically nudged the bag right next to Kate's, which fell and emptied its contents on the gym floor and effectively drew the attention of every single person in the gym to Daniel just as Daniel had opened up the container in his hand showing that he had some kind of drugs on him.
But that was all the coach needed to make good on Annie's threat to deal with him mercilessly. Every teacher in the school that had spent more than a few minutes with Daniel DuBois was more than ready to take him out back by the trash cans, and drugs of any kind on school property violated the zero tolerance policy … which was how Daniel ended up interrupting cheerleading practice with the cheerleading coach dragging him down to the principal's office with a surprisingly strong grip.
And as Daniel was being escorted out, Nate made his way down to where Kate was. "So … I guess practice is out early today, huh?" He was doing his best to keep from making a scene, but he did project to Kate what had happened. So, your stalker tried to escalate with drugs. I don't know what they were or how he was going to try it, but he was definitely trying to do something with your bag.
Can you hear what the teachers are thinking? Kate asked, their usual flirty rapport missing entirely as both of them were still set in damage control.
Just that they're not surprised that it's drugs, Nate said. Don't know what kind it is, either.
We have to tell my dad, Kate said. This is exactly the kind of thing he needs to know about, as much as I hate to say it.
Yeah, if he found out this happened without you telling him, it'd be bad.
Kate bounced on the balls of her feet for a moment, then came to a decision. Let's get ice cream first … then you can drop me off at home.
Ah, no. I'll go with you to tell him. They'll probably appreciate the little bits of insight I've got from the coach and the teachers.
Once they did get all the way to Kate's building, it was clear Clint knew something was up as soon as he saw Nate. Since Janice was down again, it was pretty normal for Nate to drop her off, but not to come up … so when he saw both of them, he frowned slightly and waited for someone to speak up before he had to ask.
But Kate looked a little anxious about admitting that someone had tried to either frame her for drugs or slip them to her after having thought about it for a good, long while. So it was Nate who spoke up.
"Danny DuBois was caught with drugs and Kate's backpack," he said, then held up one hand. "I don't know what kind of drugs they were or what exactly he was trying to do, but he was caught. We stuck around the school just long enough for me to 'hear' that he was suspended. But … we thought you'd want to know."
"Thanks," Clint almost breathed out, his expression one of determined rage. He stood there, taking in every detail between the two teenagers, then nodded to himself, picked up a bag he kept near the door, and simply headed out with nothing more than a quick "Stay with your siblings inside, please" before he just …. left, with Kate and Nate staring after him.
For just a second, there was silence in the room. And then, Kate turned to Nate, her eyes wide. "The last time he left without Mom after something like this, it was because some guy had made graphic remarks about Mom when Mom wasn't around to hear it."
Nate kept his arm around her. "Not even gonna blame him, considering what that guy was up to."
"He's got Hydra ties. I'm actually not even surprised he tried to grab me. I'm more surprised that he didn't try it at the swordfight."
"Yeah, and that's what worries me," Nate pointed out. "And that's what's worrying your dad." Nate turned her way with one eyebrow raised. "If this was as simple as an attempted kidnapping, why didn't he do something when you were stupidly alone in his territory?"
Kate hit him in the chest. "Really?"
"I'm just saying."
"Yeah, yeah, you're all wound up and protective." Kate stuck her tongue out at him. "And annoying. What, I can't get competitive sometimes?"
"Not if it makes you stupid."
"Watch it, Summers. You may be cute, but you're also a big, stupid jock yourself, you know."
"If that's what you want to tell yourself," Nate said.
"It is, because I'm right," Kate insisted. "Because who the heck calls their girlfriend stupid if they ever want sex again?" She put both hands on her hips and purposefully stepped out of his grip. "Hmm?"
"What kind of amazingly smart and gorgeous girl completely forgets everything she grew up with just because some loser goads her into it?" Nate shrugged. "Everyone is entitled to stupid moments. Not the same thing as saying you are stupid. Case in point … well … take your pick. We know a few really smart people that do indescribably stupid things."
"A few." Kate had her arms crossed as she considered Nate. "You're still a stupid jock. For the record," she muttered. "But, you know, thanks for having my back at practice." She allowed herself to slip into a small smirk. "All the other girls wish they had such a supportive guy."
"All the other girls have only been worried about what their date looks like," Nate pointed out before he pulled her into another kiss. "They'll get better next time they pick a guy. In college. Probably. I hope."
"Probably," she said and finally gave in to fall into longer kisses and stop trying to be upset with him, even jokingly.
Billy was honestly happy to help the new kid. Really, he was. Vojteck was a nice enough guy - quiet, soft-spoken, smart, quick-witted in his native tongue but so awkward in English that Billy found himself smiling when he could see this new … friend? struggling to communicate when otherwise it would have been an amazingly funny joke. But he didn't seem to be getting any better with his English, and it was just … frustrating.
If he wasn't so clingy, he'd have a shot at finding another friend, but the other students seemed to shy away from the guy who couldn't leave the princes alone. And now that Mia had mentioned it, Billy could almost see the flirting Vojteck was doing … if it wasn't for the fact that not one bit of it seemed genuine. Either he was the worst flirt ever to hit the planet or he was trying to use Billy as his experiment in dating guys. Which just wasn't going to happen.
Oddly enough, if not for the clinginess, he … was pretty good-looking. Those vividly green eyes were hard to look away from. Which made it seem odder that his flirts were so … pitiful. The guy had plenty of material to work with. So, Billy found himself half watching the guy while they were studying, trying to figure out if his own sense of things with this guy was just … off. But that … that had never happened before.
He turned his attention back to his biology homework, and not ten minutes later, Vojteck cleared his throat, trying to get Billy's attention … not that he had anyone else there to talk to. Billy looked up at him, not sure what to expect when Vojteck usually had precious little to say outside of asking for help with one thing or another. "After studying, would you want to go to Salem Center with me?" Vojteck asked at last.
"Is there something you need down there?" Billy asked, not realizing what Vojteck was trying to get at, even after Mia had pointed it out.
Vojteck hemmed, trying to find the right phrase before he settled on: "I want to thank you for helping me all the time. And apologize for taking so much time. I know you have things to do, but … you are first person to …" He paused, trying to find the word that would fit. ".. care."
"What?" Billy said, sure that Vojteck had used the wrong word or exaggerated accidentally.
"My father is dead," Vojteck said. "My mother … not so good mother. She only like my sister, who is terrible." He smiled ruefully at Billy. "So I am still … not good to talk when I know everyone want to not …." He shrugged. "I understand, of course. But I wanted to thank you."
Billy paused. He hadn't expected anything like that, though when he thought about it, there were certainly plenty of signs to show that Vojteck had a troubled past. "Well … you're welcome," Billy said, then gestured toward the front door. "I don't have my license to drive alone yet, but maybe … if you want to talk a little, we could just … take a walk. Stay on the grounds."
"That will make it very hard for me to buy you a coffee or … dinner?"
For an instant, Billy's ears turned red, and the slightest blush graced his cheeks, high. "Voj, really … that's very sweet, but I'm seeing someone. And we're serious."
"Are you sure?" Vojteck asked, then smiled crookedly. "I do not mean to pry, but … I know for a fact that you and I …"
"No. No, I'm very sure," Billy said. "You're a really nice guy, but no. I'm happy to show you around and help you find your way through the whole shift in how to deal with people in this country, but I'm happy with my guy."
"I've made a fool of myself," Vojteck said, blushing as he kept his gaze pointed at the ground between them. "I won't bother you again-"
"That's a little bit of overkill," Billy said, realizing that Vojteck really did need someone to talk to. Now. "Let's just … let's go for a walk. Tell me about how horrible your sister is."
"Your brother is a dream sibling," Vojteck said with a teasing smile.
"You poor mistreated soul."
By the time Billy could get a break to slip over to Massachusetts when he didn't feel guilty about leaving Vojteck - who truly had what sounded like the worst family in the universe - he wasn't really thinking about what he'd find when he got there. So after hearing how James had described Franklin, Billy absolutely wasn't expecting a guy that looked almost as if he could pass for a very young Johnny Storm with dark hair and a carefree smile. Whatever James thought qualified Franklin as a dork … it wasn't anywhere near the qualifiers Billy had in mind.
Not only that, but Billy really wasn't expecting to find the two geniuses at the dining room table going over notes for something with their heads together and laughing.
James had looked up as soon as Billy appeared, of course, and broke into a warm smile, but that really didn't help the image Billy was seeing … to find his boyfriend hanging out in close quarters with a cute genius and smiling. It left a sour taste in his mouth almost on sight. Before Billy could say a word, though, James was on his feet and headed toward Billy, and Billy was doing everything he could to try and push down the initial shock he was dealing with knowing that James would pick up on it in a heartbeat.
But it was clear right away that James wasn't expecting the shock coming off of Billy when the smile slipped and everything about James' demeanor shifted to concern. "Are you alright? Is - did something happen?" James asked quietly, to keep Franklin out of it.
Billy was still trying to take in the details … the house was very clearly no longer reflective of just James, as evidenced by a few of Franklin's things here and there in plain view. It was a lot more overt than anything he and James had done when he was living there. And the boldness of it was rubbing Billy the wrong way.
He glanced over at Franklin, who seemed entirely ignorant of anything that was going on around him, then turned his focus back to James, trying to keep his temper and ugly frustration in check. "What exactly is going on?" Billy asked in a soft but still harsh-sounding whisper that he clearly meant just for James. "Why is your dad okay with him moving in, but not me?"
James' shoulders relaxed, and he shook his head lightly. "This is entirely different, sweetheart."
"Don't -"
"Come on," James said, gently taking Billy's hand to lead him upstairs. Billy very nearly fought him on it, but curiosity about what might be said, shock at the coziness of the situation, and sheer nosiness about where else Franklin had settled in won out over the desire to get his answers instantly and on the spot.
James honestly didn't see why Billy was so mad, so quickly, either, and he was still fairly relaxed as he led the way up to his bedroom and closed the door behind them. But he didn't get a chance to get a word out before Billy turned on him looking as if his fury was only building. And James had no idea what he'd done to elicit a reaction like that. "Handsome-"
"Yeah, he's a lot better-looking than you said," Billy said, which only set James back a little more.
"So he grew out of his pencil neck geek look," James said, unintentionally taking up a more defensive tone and stance. "Who cares?"
"I care," Billy shot back. "What's really going on? Is this some-"
"He's here to lecture at Harvard," James cut in. "That's it."
"You two seemed pretty cozy for just roommates."
James blinked at him, clearly not having expected this angle at all. "He was showing me the theory he's working on for the lecture and trying to translate it to more relatable terms."
"Right. And your dad's okay with you studying with him?"
"Billy, you've got it all wrong if you think Franklin and I have ever been anything more than friends."
"Not that you couldn't be, though," Billy countered. "You have a lot in common, after all."
"Not that much," James argued.
Billy looked as if he was thinking it over for a long moment. "Are you trying to break up with me?"
James looked as if he'd been hit with cold water. "You can't be serious."
"I am dead serious," Billy said, then gestured behind him. "You told me this random guy wanted to move in with you-"
"Temporarily-"
"-and then you utterly failed to tell me anything about him outside of he was a genius-"
"-he's only here for a few weeks-"
"-you just forgot to mention that he's cute-"
"-I didn't realize you were looking-"
"-it's like you told me just enough to get my guard down while leaving out the big picture, just like every other time you've glossed over the big stuff-"
"That's not fair."
"-and it doesn't exactly leave me feeling like you'd even tell me until after you moved on if you decided you didn't love me anymore. If history's any indicator, I'd be the last to know."
By that point, James was mad, too, hurt and unable to argue the accusations with any real proof when there was no proof to support Billy's concerns either. His jaw locked down, and he found himself slowly taking measured breaths as Billy glared at him, and for just an instant, it was all he could do to keep from growling.
"Billy," James said in a very controlled tone. "I am now and have only ever been friends with Franklin. It's entirely platonic - and always will be. I don't know how I can prove that to you, but it's the truth. Like it or not, if you don't want to break up with me, you're just going to have to figure out a way to stoop to trusting me on this one thing. Believe it or don't, but I do love you and I'm not trying to change that. At all."
"If I moved in with a cute guy, would you trust me?"
"Yes." James managed to crack a smile. "Doesn't mean I'd trust him."
Billy paused for just a second at the tease and then shook his head. "Okay, cute, but still. You can't move in with me but you can move in with him and how am I not supposed to take this personally?"
"I don't even know what to tell you. He's a friend. He's about as appealing to me as Nate is - and Dad knows it."
Billy blew out all his breath from his cheeks. "Yeah. Well. Still feels a little bit like sabotage. Having to share you when we barely get to see each other," he admitted, though when James wasn't rising to Billy's level of drama, he was deflating fast, utterly unable to build up any more anger when James was being so reasonable. "You get a roommate and I get assigned a clingy new kid - and suddenly, poof! Alone time evaporates!"
"Tell me about your clingy kid, little prince," James said as he took the time to gently pull Billy closer and steal a kiss while he was starting to lose some of the drama.
Billy couldn't help but smile at him, even if he truly had been worked up. "It's not really his fault," he clarified. "He's got a heavy accent, so it's hard for him to be understood. But that means it's usually me or Tommy who has to translate, and as much as I feel for the guy, I barely see you as it is!"
"So tell Tommy to suck it up and step it up, since he gets to see Mia all the time," James pointed out, carefully peppering him with little kisses. "Only fair."
"True."
"Besides … we're going to need to make some time, since I have a birthday creepin' around the corner, and I know who I want to be with."
Billy would probably have made a more dramatic face if James wasn't so effectively distracting him. "Right. You'll be an adult."
"I know. Major disappointment."
"Only until I'm one too," Billy said. "Stupid limelight. How come we both have PR to think about, huh? Can't just be us…" He shook his head. "Sorry. I'm just mad, okay? The whole thing stinks."
"I know. Sorry that I'm your other grandpa's favorite. Life would be easier all around if I hit it right in the middle instead of at the extremes all the time."
"You're hilarious."
"Will you please stay for a little while? You might want to actually meet him before you make a snap decision on all of this," James said.
Billy still didn't look happy at all, but he quietly agreed and let James lead the way back downstairs, where Franklin was half frowning at their return. "Everything okay?" Franklin asked as they reached the bottom of the stairs.
"Peachy," James replied, then put his arm around Billy's waist to lead him over to Franklin. "I have been a horrible host. You two haven't met yet. Franklin Richards, meet Billy Maximoff."
Franklin lit up as he offered Billy his hand to shake. "Crown prince to Genosha, right? What in the world did James do to catch your eye? Parade around shirtless or less?"
"Nice, Frank. Real nice," James said, half rolling his eyes.
"Well it can't be anything else," Franklin offered with a grin, though Billy was frowning at that, too.
"It was the everything else that kept my attention," Billy said as he shook Franklin's hand.
"Yeah, I just have to give him a hard time. See … he's got groupies here-"
"That's enough," James said, shaking his head and not at all in the mood to listen to this again, especially when Billy was already having trouble dealing with Franklin. He didn't want to deal with whatever jealousy Billy might have when faced with a pretty girl flirting with him. Especially when Billy knew James didn't do well when it came to making girls keep their hands to themselves due to years of self-conditioning.
"I don't think it is," Franklin said. "Sure, some of the people at MIT are standoffish, but there is like … a whole flock of them at Harvard."
"He's making things up," James said to Billy. "He does this … dreams up elaborate stories to irritate the crap out of people. Just like his Uncle Johnny."
"Oh, that reminds me, he said he's picking me up for the holiday weekend next week … Mom has a family activity she wants to do - she's even dragging Dad out of the lab, so I'm told."
"Valeria has something that needs doing in space, then?" James asked, and Franklin shrugged and nodded. "So that means Bobby will be here to be a pain. Perfect."
Franklin smiled wider at that. "At least I'm not riding with him." He turned toward Billy. "We were just getting ready to order dinner. Do you feel like Chinese?"
"Sure," Billy said, then belatedly took one of the menus on the table, picking out the one that corresponded to a place nearby to suggest the right delivery, since James and Franklin had a few different menu options out.
Once their order was placed, James and Billy headed for the living room to spend a few minutes. Both of them had grabbed a bottle of water, and for a long moment, James was perfectly happy to take all of Billy's cues to try and keep him at least to the level of calm he was displaying at that moment.
"Come on, what else can I do to get you out of your funk?" James asked in Billy's ear quietly.
"Um … admit you were wrong; that would be a start," Billy said.
"What was I wrong about? Franklin? Yeah, okay, he's not as nerdy looking as he was before."
"No, that's just part of it. I want you to admit you were wrong about the other part."
"What other part?"
Billy raised an eyebrow and leaned in close so they didn't disturb Franklin. "You said he was straight."
James frowned and looked between Billy and Franklin. "Um … he is?"
Billy laughed hollowly. "No. He's not."
James shook his head. "You're off about this."
"Never."
But James didn't look convinced at all. "You can't be right every time, sweetheart."
"No, but every time doesn't matter, because I am right this time."
James hummed to himself and decided the only way to handle this conversation was to kiss his way out of it … which certainly got Billy redirected for the time being, anyhow. And since they weren't arguing over petty things that probably didn't matter, they had a little time to get wrapped up - undisturbed by Franklin.
When the doorbell rang from the delivery driver, the boys broke apart, and Franklin sprang to his feet from where he was at the table. "I've got this one, guys!" he called out, and James and Billy sat up a little more. James took a moment to grab his bottle of water while Billy rearranged himself to watch Franklin as he got the door.
James followed Billy's line of sight, shaking his head in disbelief. "What are you doing?"
"Watching the show," Billy said. "The Chinese place I picked has the cutest delivery guy."
"Oh, that's good to know. You pick places based on how cute their delivery guys are," James muttered.
"I didn't do that part for me. I like their eggrolls best, too - but I wanted the cutest one because of him."
"Yeah, got it. You wanted the delivery guy, not the moo goo chicken," James muttered.
"Shush," Billy said, intent on watching Franklin at the door with the delivery driver, who, as he'd said, was very cute. And flirty. So naturally, Billy had to get James to see it. He took a hold of James' arm and jostled him as he was taking a drink of water, then hissed out 'look'.
The timing couldn't have been more perfect. As James turned his head, mid-drink, Franklin did his very best attempt at a flirt - wide, welcoming grin, upbeat tone right along with all the body language that showed interest. But, when James had finally looked, Franklin was asking for a phone number. Which was enough to get James to nearly choke on his water.
"Told you he wasn't straight," Billy whispered, entirely amused.
"No, no, I needed to clear my sinuses," James said flatly. "Jeez, warn a guy."
"Um … I did. A few times. You just didn't believe me."
"Point made. I was so very wrong. What was your tipoff?"
"Only everything he said. Ever," Billy laughed.
"Ever?"
"Well … since I came over tonight and his estimation of how you caught my attention."
"Was he wrong?"
"Shut up. Yes. He was wrong. It was the snarl and … stuff."
"Mmhmm. You still don't have anything to worry about," James said before he leaned in for a kiss. "Especially since he has a thing for cute delivery boys."
Chapter 86: No Place Like It
Chapter Text
It hadn't taken much for Clint to find his old circus. They'd never been subtle, and they never got out of their old habits. And he was highly motivated to give them a piece of his mind.
Once he found the circus, he staked it out just long enough to figure out how their personal schedules had shifted over the years. Some of them were slowing down as they got older. Some of them seemed sharper because of their kids, who were starting to outshine them.
Swordsman had a new sap thinking he was the end all be all. Guy needed adoration. But the one he really wanted to get to was the princess.
So, naturally, he couldn't find her anywhere.
He was sure he'd searched every inch of the circus, but Princess Python had disappeared for all the clues he'd been able to find. He'd never pegged her for the kind to retire, though, so he ended up sticking around longer than his search took, trying to pin down what had happened.
Of course, sticking around the Circus of Crime was never the best of ideas.
"You show up here after all this time and think no one is going to notice?"
Clint recognized Jacques' tone, and muscle memory took over from there. He spun with his surprise, barely avoiding Jacques' sword. He'd brought his own on the likely chance that he would run into his old mentor, but he wasn't thrilled to have to fall back on his swordplay, especially against Jacques. The man had been refining his technique for decades, and Clint vastly preferred his bow. He wasn't too proud to admit that they were unevenly matched.
Still, Clint wasn't there to fight Jacques. He was there to find out who had tried to drug his daughter. So while he might not have been as well-practiced as Jacques was, he was filled with a cold rage that helped him block Jacques' next blow. His eyes flashed as their steel met, and he even smirked at his old mentor.
"Getting slow, old man."
Jacques let out a disgusted noise as he feinted, but Clint had seen him pull that move before and blocked him again. The sound of the swordfight had started to draw attention, but for the moment, none of the other circus members stepped in - they were probably just waiting to see why Clint was there or what Jacques wanted to do to him when he won.
"And you are sloppy," Jacques said, his eyes narrowed and his mouth pressed into a thin line as the two of them circled each other. "You've come a long way to die, Hawkeye."
Clint shrugged easily. "Not planning on going anywhere, but you're welcome to daydream," he replied. "Honestly just came by to find the princess, but she got tired of you guys too, huh? Didn't think she'd ditch out."
"She's dead," Jacques said - and took advantage of Clint's surprise. He didn't quite get the run-through he wanted, because Clint moved on old muscle memory, but he did cut a long slice across Clint's chest through the fabric of his shirt.
Clint shook his head, forcing his mind back to the fight, though he couldn't stop himself from asking, "What, did you finally snap and kill one of your own? Wasn't pretty enough to keep around as she got older? Sounds like your MO."
Jacques glared, stepping into a lunge that Clint parried and then answered with his own twist, nearly knocking the Swordsman back a step. Nearly. "Don't be pedantic, Clinton."
"Don't call me Clinton, you fake-ass French wannabe," Clint shot back.
Jacques narrowed his eyes to slits and then flicked his sword fast enough that Clint couldn't defend against the shallow but painful cut along his cheek. "You may think you have retained enough of my good teaching to survive, but let me remind you where you came from, boy. This is not going to end well for you."
Clint resisted the urge to bring his hand to his cheek, though he could feel blood sliding down it. "Yeah, yeah. Just thought you'd want to know one of your own is playing petty high school games with the local cheerleaders. Kinda seemed beneath even you, but now that I'm here again, I remember that's not possible."
Jacques looked like he was ready to tear into Clint, but that was when Maynard spoke up from the sideline - watching the back and forth like one of his circus acts and honestly enjoying seeing the two of them tear each other down. "You wouldn't be here about cheerleaders," he said.
"Probably dating one," said the surly-looking teenager that Clint had pegged as Jacques' latest "protege" - with all the scars to prove it, too.
"Try not to punch up, kid; you're so outclassed you can't even see it," Clint said without looking toward the teenager. He kept his gaze on Jacques but called out to Maynard, "Only came looking because the creep is the princess's kid."
Jacques let out a hollow laugh that echoed in the short silence that followed Clint's pronouncement. "I thought you were an Avenger, boy, or are they keeping you to soft missions once you started losing your edge?"
"Funny how you insulted yourself with that one," Clint pointed out - and accentuated his point with a spin that finally backed Jacques up a step. "You're a 'soft mission', huh? I'll make sure the junior training squad gets the memo. Wanna get your trash kicked by Ant-Man's kid?"
"Impudent little-"
"Wow, five-dollar words and everything," Clint said, clucking his tongue. "Definitely gonna have to send the kids. Vocabulary test afterward."
Jacques shouted wordlessly and broke forward - but Clint had seen him lose his temper enough time to see that move coming. He might have had plenty of practice, but that also meant he'd been reinforcing his own habits. Clint, on the other hand, had been training new heroes, training with Natasha, and trying to keep up with his own kids. He'd learned to adapt; Jacques was a relic.
Clint let Jacques' own momentum bring him to his sword until Clint's blade was through his stomach. Then, with a grim smile, Clint yanked his sword back and stepped back. "You're lucky I'm an Avenger. That won't kill you as long as you get to a hospital. So talk fast and tell me what the story is with Daniel DuBois."
Jacques glared at Clint with one hand over his stomach. "You're meddling way over your head. As usual."
Clint shrugged easily. "I'm used to it." When Jacques simply glared, he turned toward Maynard, who still hadn't moved from leaning against a tent post to watch the show. "Well?"
Maynard held Clint's gaze for a long time before he let out a scoff. "The little brat killed his own mother when he was eleven. As always, you're looking in the wrong place - and way too late."
Clint cleaned his sword off and kept his distance from Jacques. "Sorry to hear that," he said - and he was. As bad as the circus had been, he had, at one point, been on more-than-friendly terms with Princess Python.
Maynard seemed to size Clint up before he broke into a smirk. "The princess had debts much higher up in Hydra. Daniel had training. She offered the boy to pay off her debts." He gestured with both hands. "It seems he didn't appreciate that."
Clint's frown bit into his forehead. "And you're telling me this without going twenty rounds of questions with me because…"
"Because that skinny brat disrupted my show, blew up half the trailers - and emptied the safes on the way out."
"Ah." Clint nodded his understanding. "So you wouldn't weep if someone put a stop to him."
Maynard simply shrugged in response. "Not even a little bit."
Clint nodded, starting to move away from Jacques. They'd amassed an audience, yes, but the Circus of Crime listened to the Ringmaster, and he hadn't given any orders against Clint yet.
Of course, as soon as Clint started to leave, that's when Maynard made a sharp motion with his right hand - and Clint had to sprint to avoid getting crushed by the strongman or hit with the knives the teenager had brought.
But Clint hadn't come to the circus empty-handed, either. His wife was the futzing Black Widow; he knew where she kept her best gadgets. So, without breaking stride, he threw a pellet of gas over his shoulder - and followed that up with three electric bursts from some borrowed, modified Widow's Bites.
And yeah, that was plenty distracting enough to get him out of there and on the road home.
Meanwhile, Scott and Annie had finally decided to get a little time to themselves away from the pandemonium at Avengers' Tower. Craig lived in the tower full-time now, and Leslie Ann's family had moved to Westchester, but Annie had wanted to keep teaching. So, to her delight, Jan had helped her find a new place close to the school and had bought it for her under her own name. Since Emma Frost still had her sights on the Hales, Annie drove with one hero or another to school and back and spent her school day in a telepathic dampening field.
It was all carefully coordinated to keep her safe in case Craig's feud with Emma made her a target. But it was also incredibly stifling.
Scott could tell that Annie wasn't pleased with the new arrangement. Annie was used to volunteering her time at the drop of a hat for any student who might be struggling, and she was used to staying at the school chatting with students and teachers alike. And while the Avengers and scattered X-Men who volunteered to help her (and to, in most cases, subsequently text Scott that they "approved" of his girlfriend, as if he needed them to vet her or something) did what they could to let her keep her old schedule, they also knew that the longer she was in public, the more danger she might be in.
So, when Scott arrived that afternoon to pick her up, he didn't take her back to the apartment Jan had gotten for her - and Annie noticed the instant he turned the "wrong" way.
"Scenic route?" Annie asked, wondering if he was taking extra precautions that day - and if so, whether he was taking them for a reason.
"You could say that," Scott said, smirking to himself.
"Oh, and he's back to playing mysterious," Annie said, though she was laughing, so Scott kept his silence, getting even more laughter out of her and accusations that he was "playing up" the man of mystery thing.
But he genuinely enjoyed hearing her laugh, especially when everything had been so stressful lately. Even she had been stressed, and he hated to see that. She had been a source of warmth in his life, and he hadn't realized how much he prized that until she'd been pulled into the drama that always, always followed the hero life. Now, he wanted to make sure he didn't lose her to it.
So, he had a plan to hopefully cheer her up.
By the time they turned into the small neighborhood where Scott and his kids lived, Annie's eyebrows were high on her forehead, and she was leaning forward as far as her seatbelt would let her go. She hadn't seen anywhere they could eat for a few streets, and as the surroundings turned more residential, she figured out what was going on but didn't say anything until Scott pulled the car to a stop outside a well-kept house.
She turned to face him, her eyes wide. "Did… did you mean to take me home?" she asked in near-disbelief, her smile still threatening to break her cheeks for how widely they were stretching.
Scott smiled as he turned the car off, then schooled his expression and came around to her side to open the door for her, waiting to give his answer just to see how long she'd allow him to keep it to himself.
Knowing the neighbors, he was well-aware that Toby would be coming around soon, alerted by the local busybodies about the good-looking woman he'd brought home, but that was, honestly, part of the fun. It had been ages since he'd had someone he wanted to show off. Even with Jan, he'd been so worried about secrecy he'd let it get in the way of the particular sort of pride that came with walking with his girlfriend and knowing he was lucky to be at her side.
"Of course I meant to bring you here," he said as he took her hand and helped her out of the car, breaking into an honest grin when he could see delight painted all over her features. "You know how careful my family has had to be. Do you think I'd bring you here on a whim?"
Annie turned to face him fully, covering her mouth with one hand while her eyes danced. She didn't call him out on what he'd just said - she'd been with him long enough to know he wasn't the best at expressing how he was feeling - but the fact that he'd brought her there and admitted that he never did that for anyone he didn't fully trust… it was his way of admitting he was serious about her. Less words, but far more dramatic in an almost understated way that she'd come to love.
Scott led her into the house and didn't say anything, instead letting her look around at his family's home and its relatively normal trimmings. She could tell immediately that they lived there; Nate's school things were scattered everywhere and there were wonderful pictures on the mantle of all three of Scott's children with other family members at important moments in their lives - they weren't hanging on the wall where anyone could see them through the windows, but they were still there to show off proud accomplishments and family togetherness. Scott might not have felt comfortable personalizing too much, but still, there was a warmth and love about the place that Annie could actually feel just by looking around.
He had poured everything he had into making this home safe for his kids in every sense of the word, making sure that they had a home to come back to even if they were a bit scattered at the moment. She could see so much of him in the little details, like the list on the hall table, the notes by the fridge reminding him of important dates he didn't want to miss, and the warm smells coming from the kitchen…
Wait.
Annie turned toward Scott. "You baked?"
Scott rubbed the back of his neck but nodded. "I'm not as good as you are, obviously, but I used to be in the PTA, and I picked up a few things," he said prompting Annie to let out an affectionate huff. "But Jan said you and your sister have practically opened up a bakery in Avengers Tower, so I figured… well… it might be nice if someone made something for you."
Annie let out a delighted noise and threw her arms around Scott's neck, kissing the sense out of him until he picked her up so they could carry on somewhere that wasn't the front entrance.
"I'm unarmed!" Kate called out before she would even think about going into James' workspace, considering the prank war that had been going on lately. "I bring coffee!"
James shook his head when he heard her announcement. "You're fine, Kate. Neutral, like Switzerland until you decide to pick a side."
Kate poked her head in and broke into a crooked smile. "I'm kind of surprised Billy isn't here. Couldn't get away from Vojteck again?"
"That's what he said," James said. "He told me about his shadow. But I think he's still mad about my shadow, to be honest." For as irritated as Billy had been seeing how comfortable Franklin Richards had made himself, he only got mad all over again when he found out that Franklin was riding into the city with James for the weekend, too - and it didn't matter much at all that Franklin went directly to the Baxter building once James parked.
Kate set the coffee down and shrugged. "Must be new for him," she said and then took a sip of coffee. "The jealousy thing. He never had that problem before when his dates were under penalty of death. Gotta mess with a guy when he realizes the beefcake he's got could just walk away."
"Kate…" James trailed off and sighed. He knew she was trying to help, but honestly, he felt like there was so much more to what was going on than just Billy being insecure - even if he was. "There is nothing to be jealous of." He covered his face with both hands and leaned on his elbows at the bench. "I hate this."
"Oh, come on," Kate said as she sat down next to him and gently slid a coffee toward him. "It's not that bad, is it?"
"I didn't think so, but apparently, it is," James said. "Nothing about this whole friggin' semester has been okay with Billy. I can't fix it, can't make it go any easier. Pretty sure he's pissed off at me more often than not, and I can't do a damn thing about it."
"I don't think that's true," Kate said.
"Yeah? Ask him." James gave her a dry look.
"You act like we don't talk," Kate said, waving her hand. "Yeah, he's mad, and yeah, some of the time he's mad at you, but that's just because hey, I'd be mad at Nate if he was too busy for me, too, even if I understood it." She took a long sip of coffee and then looked over the top of her mug at James. "Emotions aren't logical."
"Yeah, I'm aware."
Kate took in his scrunched up shoulders and deep glare, sighed, and then slid over to bump shoulders with him. "Look, the semester's almost over. You're only about a month out from being done. I promise I'll make sure Billy doesn't lose his head to his own drama, but don't get sucked into that whirlpool either, okay?" She smiled softly at him. "You wouldn't be this worked up if you weren't as deeply in love as you are. If you didn't love him, you'd have given up on dealing with this crap by now."
"You never know. You've seen my record," James said dryly.
"True," Kate said, tipping her head to the side. "Would it help if I pointed out that all your friends actually approve this time? He's totally not a Frost; I pinkie swear."
"Uh huh. Too bad it's not just a month. It's a month plus whatever it takes for them to approve my papers that I have to re-write," James said. "He could go supernova-sized supervillain by then."
Kate closed one eye. "But you won't be in classes or anything. I mean, won't it let up a little?"
James gave her an even drier look. "And the unlikely award for Little Miss Sunshine goes to …"
"Look, I'm just trying to prevent supernova supervillains. Give me a bone here, James. I don't want to see Billy's head explode either."
"I don't have anything helpful to give you though," James said in a sigh. "Every time I turn around someone's getting in my face one way or another and there is always one. More. thing. I'm probably not even going to end up getting the damn degrees." He gestured toward the other end of the lab. "And it's like going through a damn fishbowl the whole time. Rarely does anyone even talk to me. It's always around me, or about me - which … makes the hair on the back of my neck stand up." He shook his head again. "Doesn't matter though, and I'm not looking for sympathy, so don't even start. You asked."
"I did," Kate agreed, then sighed out all her breath through her cheeks. "You know I wish I could help, right? If I had Billy's powers, I'd have wished the stupid out of the dean or something, I dunno. Something useful."
"Maybe he'll get irked and poof me out of this reality," James said dryly.
"If he poofs you to the one where your birth father's still around, can you bring me? I liked his fighting lessons," Kate teased lightly. "We can come back even bigger and badder than we already are."
"Nope. Gonna hog 'em," James answered, shaking his head lightly. "Doubt that's where I'd end up anyhow."
"Well, maybe you'll get poofed somewhere surrounded by hot guys, since he's so jealous." Kate grinned obnoxiously. "Can I please come to that one?"
"Sure. They wouldn't be interested in me if that's where he sent me anyhow," he teased.
"Depends on if they're all gay or bi in this reality. If it's like ours, the numbers favor me," she teased right back.
"If Billy's mad at me at the time of the wish, they'd probably like anyone but me," James pointed out. "Which is reasonable."
"Ah, so super, duper, blindingly oblivious straight dudes. Dunno about that," Kate said philosophically.
"Just your type."
"Fair," Kate laughed. "Your brother is being a jock lately. I love him, but wow."
"How are you shocked by this?"
"I'm not. He's just being either super protective or so busy I barely even rate a psychic makeout," Kate said, pulling a face. "Which reminds me… your dad and Wanda must have decided to conference with the other parents, because my mom gave me a detailed overview of what she'll do to Nate if we get, like, pregnant in high school or something."
James waved a hand at that. "Like she'd actually do that," he said.
"Um, it's all survivable. She would."
James gave her a look. "You think Nate would just … turn off his brain and let her? He'd let her think she did everything she wanted to him."
"You think Mom wouldn't make sure the powers were turned off before she started?"
"Okay, let's try this from another angle. You think I wouldn't stand in the middle to stop her?"
"Point," Kate agreed. She waved her hand. "Doesn't matter anyway. I'm on the pill and I make him carry some Trojans, so…"
"I know you're careful - otherwise, I'd be giving him a hard time," James said. "You're too smart to let him be stupid."
"I know I am," Kate teased him. "Your brother is hard work."
"Utterly, helplessly smitten."
"Can you blame him?" Kate said, gesturing at herself with a little giggle.
"Yes."
"Love you too."
As Kate and James were chatting, Tony came in, dressed well rather than in his usual jeans and tee. He waited for a natural break in the conversation before he knocked on the door with his knuckles. "Hey, kiddo. Hate to break up the party, but we have to get moving. Big conference and I need you there."
James sighed and turned toward Tony. "That's this weekend?"
"Yep," Tony confirmed. "Jan has you packed. You'll be back in time for class Monday." He tapped the door frame with his hand. "Meet you by the elevator." He left the two of them alone for a moment, but that only had James deflating as he looked at the tools on his bench.
"Well that's perfect," James said, then gave Kate a dry look. "If I pass you a note, can you get it to Billy?"
"What's wrong with your phone?" Kate asked. "Can't you text?"
"I thought a handwritten letter with a wax seal would be more fittingly dramatic," James deadpanned even as he took his phone out and started to draft a message. "I'll text him. Just … this isn't going to go over well at all."
Kate winced in sympathy. "Yeah, but it's so romantic how you're speaking his language," she offered.
"The wax thing, you mean?" James asked with a mirthless laugh. "Why wouldn't I?"
"Because he's made of Magneto-level drama sometimes," Kate said, smirking. "Unfortunate family trait."
James raised an eyebrow her way. "I was raised by the Summers. So what's your point? Not like Magneto holds the corner market on drama."
"Right. I almost forgot how overly dramatic your family can be, too," Kate said, rolling her eyes. "Have fun at your conference."
"Yeah. Fun," James said dryly, though he got up and headed down the same hall Tony had taken a few moments earlier. He was increasingly unhappy with everything in his life, and he didn't feel as if he could talk to anyone about it either. Yeah, he'd told Kate a few things, but with Kate, something always got lost in translation, so he was pretty sure it wasn't doing him any good anyhow. With a sigh, he checked in with Jan to make sure he had everything, then followed Tony into the elevator so they could head to the airport.
"You have any work you need to get done this weekend?" Tony asked, watching James a little closer when he saw how unenthusiastic the kid seemed.
"No. They still don't want to let me work on anything unless I'm in the library," James said. "I'm all caught up on coursework anyhow."
"So you're just focusing on your papers?"
"That was the idea, yeah," James agreed, then took a slow, deep breath to try and recenter himself. "I'm fine. I just … I don't know. Lost track of what day it was, I guess."
"Understandable," Tony said, then rested his hand on James' shoulder. "Try to relax a little for this if you can. Been a while since you and I got to stretch."
"Yeah," James agreed, nodding to himself. "It has."
Tony smiled a little warmer and shifted to jostle the kid before both of them readjusted their coats and waited for the elevator doors to open. They hadn't scheduled out their flight as it was a private jet, but … there were always photographers waiting for the two of them - and when both of them were moving together, it was always that much more of a draw.
Even having expected it, though, James wasn't prepared for the barrage of questions asking if there were going to be any big announcements around James' eighteenth … which only had James frowning and wondering how the hell they'd figured out when that was. But Tony gave him a bracing look, and the two of them politely declined answering anything as they climbed into the car.
Meanwhile … Kate had just gotten James' coffee cup to take to the kitchen, sighing to herself at the high levels of drama going on in her friend circle, when Billy showed up looking like he was half out of breath - wide eyed and rushing. "Okay! I just got the message!" Billy said, turning on the spot to look around himself and realizing quickly that it was just him and Kate in James' lab. "Oh, come on," Billy bit out. "This is - damn it!"
"He wanted to leave you a handwritten love letter with a wax seal, but Tony was pushing him to move," Kate said with a smile. "I thought it was really sweet."
"I'm sure it was, and that doesn't make this any better at all," Billy said before he dropped into one of the cushy seats by the window. "How much did I miss him by?"
"Not even five minutes," Kate said before she sat down with him. "He wasn't happy at all."
"That doesn't help, either," Billy said, looking more irritated. "You know, his birthday is so close. I'm probably not going to be allowed to be anywhere near him until my birthday, too."
"Oh, come on."
"Really. This is the adults interfering when it's alright for us to be spotted together. How bad do you think it'll be when we can't because of possible bad PR?"
Kate shook her head. "Billy, you're starting to show your genetics on both sides of the family. Tone the drama down, dude."
Billy stopped all movement except what it took to turn her way. "Kate," he said, the single word dripping with disbelief and showing how insulted he was.
Kate smirked and spread her hands out wide. "Hey, you're talking about a Summers. I grew up with that family, and if you think Scott is gonna let James' birthday pass without doing something - if you think there isn't gonna be a family dinner and at least a birthday cake… if you think Annie won't offer to bake it, because apparently, according to Nate, she is already thinking of momming them and he can hear her projecting her thoughts… I mean, I don't know what to tell you, Billy. You're not going to lose him to PR and public events and school on his birthday."
"And after that?" Billy pointed out.
"What, you're chickening out of a relationship you loved before all this school crap because he's got a public life?" Kate's eyes were as wide as she could get them. "You're the futzing crown prince of Genosha! You can't get upset that someone else has a life like yours!"
Billy gaped at her. "It's not the same!" he spluttered.
"No, but you can't be mad that your boyfriend has just as much baggage as you do. I guarantee you if you two end up, like, married or something that there will be times when you're gone for months at a time at some political conference or dealing with, like, Latveria threatening to nuke you or something, I dunno. Go ahead and tell me there won't be times you're so wrapped up in being King of Genosha that you barely have time to do anything but eat and sleep and then go back to work. Because that's gonna happen, you know."
Billy crossed his arms and huffed out his breath with a muttered, "Not like I wouldn't bring him along."
Kate openly rolled her eyes at that. "Billy, seriously. James is stressed beyond belief, and you're hitting him with this dramatic jealousy and - and you know he thinks the world of you, right? Because it's eating him up that you're so mad, and I love you both? And I want you two to work out? But he's been like a brother to me my whole life, and I will absolutely take his side in this if you end up pushing him away. You got that, right?"
"That's the last thing I want to do," Billy replied.
"Okay," Kate said, nodding. "Okay, good. Then maybe, I dunno, tell him that."
For a second, Billy had to hold back the knee jerk response, but couldn't let the moment pass with some healthy measure of sass. "Maybe I will whenever I get to see him."
"You should write him a love letter and seal it with wax," Kate said, grinning obnoxiously.
"Oh my God, why so dramatic, Kate?"
"Just suggesting something befitting a prince, Billy," Kate teased. "Come on. We'll get you some stationary. I'll bet Thor even has some wax for you to use," she added, threading her arm through his.
That next morning, all was quiet in the Summers house when Annie woke up and stretched lazily, enjoying not waking up to the rush of Avengers on a mission or arguing about something or other or even, hilariously, the fact that Thor sometimes snored and brought a little thunder with him when he did.
She turned toward where Scott had been, but he was already awake and starting the day, she realized when she saw what time it was. Nate needed to get to a weekend team practice; she wasn't sure if it was a sports team or a superhero team, actually. She was a little too tired to remember that kind of thing.
Still, even with Scott already downstairs, Annie was smiling to herself. No one had ever invited her home to cook for her. Sure, she'd dated around, but the first night at any boyfriend's place was usually just that - the fun part after dinner. But then again, that was why she liked Scott so much. He put in the work on the little details that meant the world.
With a soft moan, she finally got up and started to look for something to wear. She hadn't actually planned to stay the night, really, and she didn't have anything on hand. So, she ended up going to his closet to find a shirt to throw on. He was well over six feet tall, so she figured there was enough of a height difference that anything of his would cover enough to count as almost-modest.
She pulled her hair back into a ponytail, smiled to herself again at how refreshingly nice this relationship was, and then headed downstairs, fully intending to help Scott make breakfast.
To her surprise, however, Scott wasn't the only one in the kitchen that morning.
Nate glanced up from his eggs and toast, took one look at Annie wearing Scott's shirt, and tipped his head back far enough that he could look at his father upside down. "Dad. Dad," he said and didn't say anything else other than to look like every embarrassed teenager Annie had ever met.
To his credit, Scott only broke stride for a moment when he realized what had happened - and then, instead of trying to smooth things over with Nate, he grinned, gave Annie an obvious once-over, and then said without looking at Nate, "You're the one that set us up. You have no room to complain."
Nate sputtered and then let out a disbelieving laugh. "I can't believe this."
Annie looked between the two of them, biting her lip. She had known that Scott was a single father when they started dating; it was actually one of the things that drew her to him. He was obviously devoted to his kids and active in their lives. That said something about his character. But she didn't want to mess things up for him and become the girlfriend that the kids didn't like, so she gestured vaguely toward the stairs. "I'm sorry; I can go-"
"No, no," Scott said quickly, "you're fine. Nate knew you were here."
"And what you two were up to," Nate muttered under his breath as his foot jiggled.
Annie felt her face turning red as she remembered what Scott had told her about his kids' powers. "Oh. Oh, I'm so sorry," she said, both hands over her mouth.
"You don't have to apologize," Scott said. "Nate knows how to keep his mind to himself. And considering how he and Kate are, he has no room to talk." He gave Nate a look with both eyebrows raised. "Unless he wants me to change the rules around here."
Nate laughed and held both hands up. "Wow, okay, I get it. Pile on the minor. I know when I'm not wanted." He snatched up his last two pieces of toast and got to his feet. "I was on my way out the door anyway."
Annie took a step toward him. "I hope I'm not driving you out…"
Nate turned her way, picked up on her honest fear, and realized that with how hard she was trying not to get between Scott and his kids that there was a real chance she would slow-walk the relationship they were building until Nate actually said he was okay with them dating. So, even though he did not want to have another night where he came home from a date with Kate to overhear his dad doing that… he swallowed, smiled, and assured her, "No, I just have to give my dad a hard time after all the grief he's given all of us." His smile widened. "Actually, it's nice to see Dad stepping up his game. He's rusty, you know."
Scott threw a bagel at Nate. "You're going to be late for your practice."
Nate ducked, grinned, and took a huge bite out of his toast. "See you later, Dad. Try not to do anything you tell me not to do," he said, grabbing his coat from the hooks near the front door on his way out, laughing to himself the whole way down the front stoop.
The door had hardly shut before Scott was shaking his head and turned to Annie. "Sorry about him."
"No, don't apologize," Annie said. "I'm sure with his abilities, it is weirder than normal dealing with his dad dating again." She looked down at the shirt she was wearing and then back up at him. "I… didn't exactly put my best foot forward, either."
"All three of them are like that, and you did nothing wrong. Nate in particular likes to tease me. I'm sorry you're getting caught in the crossfire."
Annie tucked her hair behind her ear, bit her lip, and smiled again. "I know a thing or two about teasing siblings. I guess I'm just… I've never dated someone who has, well, their own kids, actually."
Scott tipped his head to the side. "I hope that isn't-"
"No!" Annie shook her head, her eyes wide. "No, it's nice. You're so good with them. I just don't know - I don't want to tread where their mom was, if that makes sense. Or break any boundaries…."
"They're the ones who wanted me dating. And they're old enough to be fine with it."
"Okay." Annie tucked her hair back again, even though not much of it had fallen out. "Okay, that's… that's good, because I definitely like being here."
Scott smirked to himself, though he was rubbing the back of his neck as he looked for his own response. Nate wasn't wrong; he hadn't dated in so long that he wasn't sure what to say other than, "Oh, well, that's good."
"And your cooking isn't half bad, either," Annie said, her blush turning into a grin at last. "But I should really show you a few of my favorites."
"Next time you want to get out of the tower, then," Scott agreed.
Annie smiled wider. "I don't mind cooking for a crowd, but I don't think they know what to do with me, really."
"Jarvis looked like he was half afraid this was Tony's way of telling him it's time to retire," Scott said, and Annie burst out laughing.
"It's just a stress-reliever, really," she said. "I like to cook, and Craig's been in so much trouble lately, not to mention sweet little Leslie Ann wants to be on the team…"
Scott raised both eyebrows. "I didn't know that."
"About Leslie Ann or Craig?"
"No, I knew about Craig," Scott said, shaking his head - and then nearly laughed when he realized Annie was looking for pots and pans. "What are you doing?"
"Making some breakfast. Toast may be good enough for a teenager on the go, but I hardly ever get to eat much for lunch at school when I'm grading papers, so I prefer a big breakfast," Annie explained. "Do you mind?" she asked, almost belatedly.
"Not at all," Scott assured her, smiling bemusedly as she made herself at home. She seemed perfectly comfortable with him and with making a space for herself - except when it came to the kids, who she obviously desperately wanted to like her. He could imagine that dating her without the kids involved would have been even more of a whirlwind than he already felt like it was; she had a way of simply slipping into his orbit so seamlessly he couldn't have said when they had shifted from tentative dates to a more serious relationship.
Annie got to work throwing together some French toast and then cutting up some strawberries to go with her breakfast, humming to herself as she went and leaving Scott simply smiling after her as she worked. There was something nice about seeing the woman he was dating so at ease in his home. It was, he hoped, a good sign.
Annie had nearly finished when she glanced up to see that he was watching her, and she blushed deeply. "What?"
Scott felt his own face turn red as he tried to recover. "Sorry. I was just … thinking…"
"What about?" Annie asked, tucking her hair back.
Scott opened and closed his mouth a few times before he found the answer he wanted. "Just… how nice it is to feel, you know, normal."
Rachel.
Nate could hardly get away from the house before reaching out to his sister. She was living in Westchester now, and because of that, she was missing everything. And he wasn't about to let her miss something this big.
On the other hand, Rachel was trying to do her own thing … and that meant that she wasn't around her family as much. Physically anyhow. Psychically was a totally different story and Nate was the most likely to push that aspect of things. James was good about keeping in touch through texts. Once in a while, she'd hear from her father telepathically, but more often than not, Scott would warn her with a text first saying he'd like a word. Nate? Nate had little respect for boundaries. Especially with his big sister, so he never warned her first before bashing into her mental barriers with all the subtlety of a Mack truck.
What now, Nate? Rachel asked. Did you pick out that promise ring for Katie?
What? No- this … you're not supposed to go digging, Rach.
And you're not supposed to just barrel at me on the psychic plane, but here we are.
Whatever, Nate replied in an impatient sigh that came through loud and clear, even like this. I just thought you'd like to know that Dad and Miss Hale had a sleepover and that she came down to breakfast wearing his shirt, but if you're too busy to hear about Dad …
Wait. What?
I said you are missing out on everything. Not the least of which being the fact that Dad brought… her… home. To the house. Our house.
There was a long pause as Rachel stepped beyond her brother's boundaries and simply started digging through his memory of that morning's events. And she honestly couldn't believe what she was seeing.
See? Nate replied, sounding cocky enough that Rachel was all but convinced that he'd played her into doing exactly what she'd done - peeking into his head. They're escalating.
Oh my God, stop that, Rachel said in a much shorter tone. Thank you, for sharing your mental scars with me. I'll make sure that Dr. Hale has time for you when you go in for practice tomorrow.
Um … I am not talking to her brother about her, Nate pointed out. But … I will talk to Kate about her. Just thought you should know!
Nate retreated quickly from their telepathic discussion leaving Rachel mulling it all over, and like her father, she only thought it through about seven hundred times in the matter of a few minutes before she reached out with a text first to ask permission for a telepathic chat. Lord knows she did not want to interrupt anything if he was involved with his new … girlfriend.
"I feel dirty even thinking that out loud knowing what's going on," Rachel muttered to herself, though that also neatly illustrated to her how long it had been that her father had even tried. "This was so different when it was Jan…"
While she waited, Rachel considered the differences between her father dating within the hero community and him dating outside of it. And there were just so many variables. So much was different and so so many things were just … too normal to mesh well with the life that the Summers family had long ago considered their version of normal. Naturally, she was worrying herself into an ulcer already.
She couldn't help but wonder why now - when all three of his kids were going into the hero business - was he finally making an attempt at 'normal'. She also had no tact when she wanted an answer, so the text she sent read: 'Can you talk? I swear it has nothing to do with Nate. At all. Not even a little bit.'
Finally, after what felt like an eternity, but in reality could have only been a minute, her phone buzzed with a response from her dad: You alright? You're overcompensating.
She had to stop from a sassy response of 'learned from the best' and instead replied a little more civilly. Of course I'm alright, Dad. I'm FINE. I just wanted to check in and I didn't want to reach out if you were busy. That's all.
I always have time for you, Scott replied.
Then … good. Nate is freaking out - in a good positive way. So are you available to talk off-line? Or are you preoccupied? I can stick with text if that's easiest.
Just doing breakfast dishes, Rach. You're welcome to chat.
Rachel let out a breath and nodded to herself. The truth of it was if Miss Hale was planning to spend a long, languid morning, Rachel didn't want anything she was thinking to be readable to anyone and misinterpreted. So, once Rachel made it to a quiet spot, she reached out to handle this discussion how she was most comfortable. Are you sure? Rachel projected.
I'm sure, Scott replied in kind.
Okay. I don't want to step on any toes.
What's on your mind? You only tiptoe like this when it's bothering you.
I just … needed to make sure you're okay. Like okay, okay. Not just … you know.
Other than the new semi-co-parenting Wanda and I have been doing lately, you mean? Scott teased lightly.
Well, you should probably just get used to that, Rachel said. I meant the stuff with you. My brothers are as stupid as ever in new and refreshing ways. I'm not overly worried about that part though. Tell me about now.
I'm okay, Rachel, I promise, Scott said. I'm not going anywhere.
Okay, but … are you okay because you're picking this for yourself or because you're doing what everyone is pushing you to do?
Scott nearly replied that she was worrying too much, but then, the time he'd spent actually dating Emma because Jean had told him to was definitely a solid mark against him - especially since, once again, he'd been told by his dead wife to find happiness. It's different, he allowed at last.
I know. It has to be. I know you have no intentions to repeat anything if you can, Rachel replied. I just … am too much like you and you're right. I'm probably overthinking, but I'm still going to keep doing it until I know for sure everything is alright. So. Maybe … make your case?
Scott nearly laughed. Oh, you are absolutely my girl. Would you like a list? Helped me.
Yes. Please. Rachel was smiling to herself since it was only half a joke and she was fully aware that she favored her father when it came to how she thought.
Alright. Scott took a deep breath and let it out. She cares, Rach. Deeply. About everything she's involved in. The school, her students, her family, even her recipes. And it's nice, you know, for someone else to care and throw themselves into things. He paused. And she's obviously not anti-mutant, he added, only half teasing.
Oh, my, God. Don't … phrase things like that.
Sorry. Wasn't trying to scar you.
You are not sorry.
Scott smiled. Then I won't go into detail about how attractive she is as part of the list…
No, I want to learn my own details, Rachel said. So … what are your plans for that, then?
At that, Scott lost his smile to honestly think over his answer. I don't want to ask her to move in until Nate is out on his own or at least better at keeping his mind to himself, to be honest.
Okay, but … if you're waiting for Nate to keep his mind to himself, it's never going to happen.
No, but as I understand it, he's already talked to Natasha about a lease once he's eighteen. And I'm very sure Natasha is only helping him with that because it means she can still keep an eye out.
At least one of my brothers has thought that far out, Rachel teased. And you're talking long term plans when I'm still in the information gathering phase. Seriously. She's been to the house now. Is that going to be a regular thing? Do you need to like … get warning from us before we come home, or do you want to let us interrogate- I mean … talk to her?
Just don't come in my room if it's locked; you're old enough to know how that works, Scott teased.
I've never done anything like that in my life, Rachel countered.
Right. Scott shook his head and then let out a long breath. Honestly, Rachel, this is new for me too. I'm taking each step as it comes; I just know what steps are ahead, not when or whether I'll be ready to take them.
I know. That's why I wanted to check in. It's a lot.
It is. He paused again. If you aren't comfortable…
I will be more comfortable once I can get to know her a little bit too - see what it is that you see. You know?
I'm thinking of inviting her family to Thanksgiving anyway, since they're between homes right now. But I was going to bring it up with the three of you first.
That should be interesting. Are we all going to go to the school, then? Or are you going to let Tony steal away James for the holiday like he's threatening to?
Please. I haven't had Thanksgiving at the school since I was twenty-six. We're going there.
O-kay, she all but sang out. You're going to break Tony's heart.
Oh no.
Alright. Well … let me know what the plan is when you get it hammered out, Rachel said. I won't interrupt you any more this morning.
Love you too, Rach. Tell your girlfriend she's invited too, he said, smirking quietly, since Ororo had tipped him off to that little development.
Alright, I will. Love you - don't do anything that'll have Nate giving you the birds and the bees speech in retaliation. Because he's just waiting.
He tries it and I'll project to him what Emma and I did
Just warn me first. Please. I am doing all I can to keep the Phoenix back. I don't need that tipping me over the edge.
Alright. You get a warning. But Nate doesn't, Scott said, smiling as the telepathic conversation came to an end. He turned to a grinning Annie, who had definitely guessed what he was up to, and was sure to tell her his daughter was looking forward to spending more time with her to get to know her.
Chapter 87: Desire
Chapter Text
James and Tony came back from their conference with just enough time for James to get dropped off in Cambridge. He'd slept a little on the flight back, and as it turned out, he'd had to change on the jet so he'd be to class on time, which meant no chance to go back to the tower for his car, though Tony promised that he'd have it in the garage in Cambridge for him by the time he got out of class.
That on its own wasn't a horrible ordeal, but James was a little down seeing as his birthday was just around the corner and he was pretty sure that he wasn't going to be able to go home for it … and considering how distant things had been feeling with Billy with every hurdle being thrown at them one after another, James was under the impression that he'd be spending his eighteenth alone. Or with Franklin, which … there was no way he wanted to do that and hear how Billy would handle that little twist. Every aspect of it was a pretty depressing prospect. But he sure as hell wasn't going to say a word about it. There had already been far too much attention and drama pointed his direction since the beginning of the school year - and that wasn't even counting the drama that came from the tabloids that were once again following him around.
If he was being honest, James was surprised it had taken them this long to catch up and start shadowing him in Cambridge. He hadn't yet mastered Tony's level of aloofness yet … but he was working his way there, and his morning run to class was now accented with press following him and trying to talk, though James ignored them all the way up to the entrance of the building.
Every day it seemed as if there were a few more students gathered up to watch him come in as if they suddenly realized he was there and weren't entirely repulsed anymore. Some were overly interested, if James was being honest. But he was doing his damndest to ignore them in particular. Especially with how jealous his little prince was over someone that wasn't interested in him. He felt as if he had enough drama already, thank you.
James made his way to his first class, bookbag slung over his shoulder, his coat draped over his arm, and his sunglasses perched on top of his head from the moment he stepped into the building. It was starting to get cold, and James had spotted the first few flurries during his run from the car to the door. So he was looking forward to a snowy run after classes were out for the day.
He found a seat in the lecture hall and took out his laptop as he settled into class. It was the same song and dance as it had been since he'd started there, but … after spending a weekend making headlines with Tony, the students seemed to be openly watching him more, which left him feeling as if he was living on exhibit. He hadn't really had to face anyone after so much press like this, and he realized very abruptly that many of these people would kill to work for Tony's company … let alone be in his position and that realization made him incredibly uncomfortable - not that he showed it.
The sensation of being watched only seemed to intensify all day long. He was starting to wonder if he had something wrong with him … at least, until he was in the library, deep in thought only to be interrupted by someone he'd yet to meet.
"They're staring because they thought Tony Stark wouldn't want to keep you," the young woman across from him said, jostling James out of his thoughts enough to look up at the stunningly pretty raven haired girl. He very nearly did a double take on seeing her, immediately wondering why he hadn't seen her before now. She smiled widely. "The reporters are saying you're going to be eighteen very soon. They'll probably get more aggressive once they decide that you're fair game."
James frowned to himself … that … wasn't anything he'd even thought about, so naturally, she was probably right. And the fact that she knew what she did had him doing little more than a quiet agreement before he pulled a textbook over to reference. "Is that what you're doing? Reporting?"
"No." She watched him for a moment, the smile still lighting up her features before she set her bag down and pulled up the chair directly across from him. Which had him pausing again. In all the time he'd been there, no one wanted to even sit at the same table, let alone that close.
Having no reason to see it as anything but some kind of trouble, James didn't bother filtering his thoughts. "What are you doing?"
"I'm a student, too. This is a big table and a busy library," she said, opening up her own laptop. "And you seem to be at the center of the quiet." When he looked up at her again, she broke into a broad, glowing smile. "It doesn't hurt that the view is ...well. I can appreciate the view."
James' frown deepened at that, his focus shifting from his laptop to the strange but distracting young woman, then back again several times. She was at least a few years older than he was - more depending on what program she was in and at what stage of it. But there was something about the way her words curled around her tongue had him paying a little closer attention. The fact that she was more or less exactly the kind of girl he would have chased if not for the fact that he was spoken for had him off, too. "I don't mean to be rude, but who are you?" James said, since there was no denying to himself that his focus was shot now.
"Katarina Smith," she said, then almost belatedly offered him her hand to shake. "Charmed. More than I'd like to admit."
It was such a blatant flirt that James found himself reacting before he could think it through. "You don't need to admit it," he said, wondering to himself why he was flirting back. Not … good flirting, but he couldn't tell himself that wasn't what was going on and that had him even more off. He wasn't the guy to flirt while he was seeing someone. And yet … it was sort of bubbling up on its own.
"Would it be too forward to ask you to dinner?" Katarina asked, still smiling in a way that made it hard to look away from her.
"Wouldn't be if I was single," James said. "But I am not, so … I'll have to politely decline."
She tutted, shaking her head. "Well. If that changes, let me know."
He almost replied with a dry 'not likely', but … the truth was that he wasn't feeling very steady about much lately, and instead, he made a non-committal noise and simply decided to get back to work. But he wasn't expecting Katarina to settle in better and spend her time smiling to herself and stealing little glances at him.
"Do you want me to move to a different spot?" Katarina asked when she could see that James wasn't focusing properly on his work.
"Would you mind?" he asked, knowing he still couldn't take home what he needed to finish his papers.
"Not at all," Katarina said, gathering up her things in an instant - and just like that, James felt badly for making her move … or he did. All the way up until she simply moved her things across the table to sit next to him. As she settled in, she even went so far as to move her chair closer to him until they were nearly bumping elbows. "That's better, don't you think?"
James turned her way in pure disbelief of how bold she was being while still managing to stay within a few boundaries. Even if she looked like she wanted to break some. "I really am trying to get some work done."
"Am I distracting you?" Katarina asked, looking perfectly pleased by the very idea. "Because I'm more than happy to do more of that if I am."
"No." James scrubbed one hand over his face. "Listen, ah …"
"Katarina, but you can call me Kata if you like."
"Right. Katarina," James said, trying to get control of the situation and put into play some of what Craig had been harping at him. "I'm flattered, but I'm seeing someone."
"I'm not asking you to go back to my apartment," Katarina said. "I just want you to chat with me. Maybe get a cup of coffee since it would be improper to ask you for a drink." She smiled wider and sang out "Come with me" as she leaned toward him and rested her hand on his wrist.
James turned his head toward her and found himself shifting entirely her way and considering it, all while she smiled a little wider and bit her lip, waiting. But there was something about her scent that was just … off. He couldn't place it, and it was well hidden among the more obvious notes that he'd been trying to ignore anyhow, so he almost missed it entirely. He'd even started to lean her way before he managed to get a grip on himself and spoke up in a low whisper as if he was sharing a secret. "That's ...not gonna happen."
As soon as he had spoken, he pulled back, away from her and she blinked at him in obvious surprise. "You won't be offended if I try again another time, will you?" Katarina asked, sounding much more reasonable, and less forward.
And for as much as James wanted to put his foot down and draw a solid line in the sand, there was something about that whole interaction that he couldn't quite shake. When he didn't answer fast enough, Katarina smiled broadly again as she packed up her things, then made a point to kiss his cheek after she got to her feet. "I should probably let you study. See you around, handsome," she said, still smiling, though something in her eyes wasn't matching the alluring … everything else.
He waited until the library doors closed heavily behind her before he let out a breath and closed his eyes. Something was so wrong and it was hard not to just … abandon the books and go after her.
The librarian cleared her throat, and when James looked up, it was obvious that the woman didn't approve at all of whatever had just transpired in her library. She marched over with all the fury of any guardian of the books and pulled a tissue out of her pocket. James stared at her with furrowed brows all the way up until she reached out to start removing the lipstick that Katarina had left behind on James' cheek. "Young man, this isn't the place to pick up girls," she said in a quiet warning. "And between you and me, you don't need anything more to draw those reporters in. Watch yourself."
"Yeah, I'm trying," James said, leaning back away from her, one hand half raised to block her. "Thanks. I've got it." This librarian had ignored his existence - to the point of making it hard for him to get his work done when he needed references that weren't available without one of the librarians to help. So this? This was far and away different than her usual reaction.
It only took James a few minutes after that to utterly abandon trying to get anything done that day, so he packed up and left, only glancing at the librarians on his way out. This day was just getting weirder and weirder. "I hate when Tony drops me off anywhere," James muttered under his breath.
When James got home, Franklin was already there and settled in for video games and popcorn - thoroughly enjoying his freedom from the Baxter Building. "Hey, roomie," Franklin called out, looking over his shoulder as James came in. "Get that paper done yet?"
"Had to request a reference paper that they don't have," James said. "So I'm out of luck until that comes in." He hung his keys up and took a look around the room - there was nothing there he wanted to deal with - and he was in no mood to even order out, either. "I'm headed up. Keep it down, huh?"
"You got it," Franklin agreed, then pulled over a headset so he could keep the television quiet for James' sake.
James glanced at him one more time before he climbed the stairs and then jumped in the shower. Katarina was still lodged in his brain and he felt almost like he needed to make it up to her for refusing her advances and not going with her to coffee. That … he needed to get that thought out of his head and the only thing he could think of was taking a long, hot shower.
But even then, he was a little foggy as he dried off and got ready for bed just a little bit early. With a heavy sigh, he dropped down on his bed, working on drying out his hair and using the time to try and figure out why he'd gotten so off balance in the library over a pretty face … and figure.
He didn't think that he wanted anything to do with Katarina … but he was reacting to her and that was screwing with his head pretty hard. He was feeling guilty for picking up on her body language, leaning into her scent, and even thinking about the 'what if' that could have followed coffee while also dreading the very thought of how upset Billy would be if he'd known how James' mind had drifted. But that only prompted him to reach for his phone to text Billy, hoping that talking to him for a minute would clear the cobwebs out of his head.
Billy had been through a pretty tough day himself, as it turned out. All of the teachers were in full push mode and Billy found himself swamped in busywork on top of trying to gently guide Vojteck to dealing with his problems himself. But that had come with mixed results. On one hand, Vojteck was working a little more independently, but on the other, the guy had started to stick with him at lunch, sharing whatever he had for sweets, and had taken to resting his hand on Billy's arm, shoulder, and as recently as math class, his knee, too. Which was really uncomfortable for Billy when Vojteck knew Billy was seeing someone.
But all the subtle passes were more or less ignored when Billy was more and more anxious the closer they got to James' birthday. They were only about a week away now … and Billy could hardly concentrate because of it. He'd even been dreaming about it - and very little about those dreams were pleasant.
When his phone pinged, Billy nearly jumped, then held his breath when he saw that the text consisted of very little.
Hey. You got a few minutes? James sent.
For you? Is that even a real question? Billy's foot was tapping as he waited for the response, praying it wasn't some iteration of 'we need to talk'.
I know you're swamped and I don't want to be accused of distracting you when you should be studying.
Too late. What's up?
The three dots danced for what seemed like a very long time considering the response was simple : Nothing. Just wanted to know if we're okay.
It wasn't until just then that Billy really understood what Kate had been trying to tell him. Even in the text, he could see that James was nervous about whatever changes might happen once he was legally an adult. For the first time since the college had gotten criminally stupid, it was obvious how isolated James felt. And it did nothing to reassure Billy that things between them weren't headed for utter destruction. Especially after he'd lashed out and all but accused him of cheating with Franklin. He hadn't thought; just reacted. And now he could see that he was pushing James away without meaning to.
He didn't think about his reaction then either, and he didn't realize that the spell he cast was entirely non-verbal. In fact, he didn't even realize he'd cast a spell at all until James appeared in his room, phone still in hand and looking totally unprepared.
James looked around the room for a moment, then turned to Billy with a perfectly open expression. "This works too. I guess. Unless it's not .. something positive…"
"No," Billy said, looking on the verge of a panic attack himself. "I just … wanted you here, I guess…"
"You guess?"
"I maybe didn't realize I even cast the spell to get you here?" Billy admitted, his ears turning red as he grasped for something to say.
But that was more or less exactly what James needed to hear because his whole everything shifted and he couldn't stop the crooked smile or the way his shoulders relaxed. "Nonverbal?"
"Yeah?" Billy said slowly. "I know I didn't say anything - and I was surprised to see you here…"
James gestured openly and tossed his phone onto Billy's bed before he took the handful of steps closer and pulled him into a proper hello kiss. "I promise, I have zero complaints," James said in a low rumble. "Hi. What's got you doing nonverbal spells to get a kiss? And for the record, I'm okay with being part of your nonverbal spell."
"I just…" Billy took a deep breath and let it out in a rush - along with all of the words that he'd been holding in as well. "I miss you like crazy, you know? And I don't want to screw things up between us just because of all the crap that's been going on. And Kate's right, you know, that it isn't even your fault that all this stuff is happening, but I've been taking it out on you and just reacting, and I don't want you to think that I'm anything like the supervillainous side of my family, alright?" Before James could even begin to respond to all of that, Billy had taken in another breath for another string of words. "And you're about to turn eighteen, and I'm dealing with a shadow who's making passes at me, James, I swear. And I just want to go back to how it was when it was just you and me and waking up together, but we can't. And I'm trying to keep in mind that I want you to be around in the future, but it's about to be the holidays, and I wish I could celebrate more with you and steal you away for all of December or something, but that's not possible and I just want to be selfish but I know that when I am, I end up accusing you of stupid things and that's not fair to you. I just don't want to screw things up because I love you, okay?" By the time Billy had finished all he had to say, his eyes were wide, and he looked like he was on the verge of tears. "And … and I guess I wanted you so badly I didn't even have to speak. So…" He was slowing down as his emotions got the better of him. "So, yeah. Love you. Guess that bleeds into my magic. How deeply I want you. Hi. By the way."
James took Billy's hand and then gently pulled him closer. This absolutely wasn't the time to discuss anything close to Katarina or his concerns about that nonsense. He was pretty sure Billy wasn't going to have the energy to remember that James was having concerns, too considering how upset he was already.
For a long moment, James took the time to hold steady and waited until Billy lost some of the anxious edge, trying not to rush him. As soon as Billy let out a shaky sigh, James took the opportunity to wrap him up in a bear hug and carefully kiss him. "I told you that I love you, little prince. I'm not going anywhere," James promised quietly and waited for Billy to catch his breath and snuggle in for a moment. This was what both of them really needed, so James saw no reason to hurry it. "Have you been sleeping lately?"
"Not really," Billy admitted. "I've been … stressed out and distracted …"
"That has to change now. Come on," James said, finally letting him out of the hug, though he kept a hold of Billy's hand. "Let's go to bed."
Billy pulled back, frowning deeply at him. "I thought - "
"You said you weren't sleeping well. You never had trouble sleeping when we were in Cambridge," James pointed out. "You need your rest, little prince. Come on. Clothes on. I'll even sleep on top of the covers, but I think, all things considered, I'm okay with breaking this rule one more time before we can't for a while."
"What about our parents?"
"They're not invited," James said as he dropped onto Billy's bed, then waited for Billy to join him. "Unless you don't want to just snuggle up."
"I don't have the energy for anything else," Billy admitted as he climbed in and promptly made himself comfortable half wrapped around James and using his shoulder for a pillow.
It took precious little time for Billy to fall asleep once he got comfortable and had a few kisses with his sweetheart, but James stayed awake just waiting for Wanda to show up.
But Wanda wasn't the first member of Billy's family to bust them, as it happened.
The look he got from Tommy when Tommy zipped in to his side of the room was one of cautious disbelief. "You two are in so much trouble. Unless you want me to run you back …but he hasn't really slept in a few days, so I don't really want to wake him up right now."
"Thanks," James rumbled out softly. "But I'm not going to slip out when he just crashed. It'll be fine."
"Oh-kay…if you say so …" Tommy settled in with his hands behind his head. "It was nice knowing you."
James raised an eyebrow at that, but doubled down on getting comfortable. He should have left. At least as far as the adults were concerned. But … that wouldn't do Billy any good at all, he was sure.
So, James was a little surprised when it took Wanda nearly twenty minutes after Billy had fallen soundly asleep to show up looking like she was ready for a fight.
Before she could get started, James cut her off. "He's exhausted and worried. I'm not doing anything wrong, neither is he, and I'm not about to let him get upset any worse than he already is. Especially when all I need to do to help him is to be here and do this."
"That's not the point, James," Wanda said, still looking livid.
"I think it is," James countered. "This is a case of extenuating circumstances. We're not even considering doing this all the time when everyone is against it."
"I didn't say I was against it," Wanda argued.
"Yes, you did. Very clearly. And while I respect that, I'm not here tonight as anything but emotional support." James' tone was still even and soft, but held a slightly gravelly rumble the more he argued.
"If he needed that much support, he'd have reached out," Wanda said, her hands on her hips. She was getting irritated all over again, because this time, Scott's kid didn't have the decency to listen to her like he had before. No … this time, he was being as much of a stubborn mule as his biological father was.
"He wouldn't have spoken up, though. Not if he wanted to stay here," Tommy cut in, then held up both hands when Wanda spun his way looking furious at the intrusion. "What? I'm just saying… he's not wrong."
"Ask Tommy how Billy's been doing if you won't take my word for it - and I don't expect you to take my word on anything," James said, though that had Wanda losing steam as she turned back toward James and Billy … and noticed that Billy's eyes were open, though he hadn't moved and he wasn't arguing with her like he normally would have.
"That's not the point," Wanda insisted. "This isn't going to be something you can do once you're legally an adult here. Not without disastrous consequences. People who want to plot your downfall are just waiting for something to use against you both. It would be different if we were in Genosha, but not by much." She had to try and plant the seeds, after all. "The two of you can't keep doing this while you're so young. I won't stand by and allow it."
"With all due respect," James said clearly. "There's nothing going on that warrants any punishment toward Billy. If you need to blame someone, then everything about this mess is on me. So … go ahead. Do whatever you need to."
That seemed to be the real breaking point for Wanda, though. She was very sure the expression James was wearing was the same kind of quiet defiance that he'd shown her father, and that … that was a heartbreaking thing for her. She never wanted to be compared to Magneto. Certainly not in how she dealt with a possible future son-in-law. "What do you think I'm going to do, exactly?" Wanda asked in a much softer tone.
"I don't know," James answered. "Whatever you want, I guess. Not like I'd fight you."
"That's not the point either," Wanda said, losing more of her steam.
"Doesn't matter. What you do isn't my call," James said, not backing down or pushing one iota.
Wanda let out a sound of frustration, and Tommy spoke up. "So … are you going to like … unwish his existence, or … send him off to like … Latveria or something?"
"Of course not," Wanda scoffed.
"Then … what are you going to do?" Tommy asked.
Wanda narrowed her eyes at all three of them, though she let her gaze rest on Billy, who seemed to be silently begging her to leave them alone for now. "The worst thing I can think of will be to go have a word with your father," she said finally, even if she could think of much worse. "But if you try to make a case with him before we can decide what to do with you-"
"I'm not doing anything but keeping Billy company," James said. "Tell dad I said 'hi', and for your own sake, you'd be smart to text first. He might be tangled up with his girlfriend, so … at your own risk otherwise."
"Oooh, good point," Tommy said, nodding sagely. "I heard those two are pretty … um … active."
James made a disgusted sound and threw one of Billy's small pillows Tommy's way, to Tommy's entertainment. "Please stop."
But it allowed Wanda to leave on a good note, even if she made sure to steal one last, meaningful look at Billy before she zapped herself to the main foyer of the Institute first to text Scott. That was a considerate piece of advice from James, after all. She didn't want to end up fighting with Scott for breaking up a date. Not when she knew it had taken Scott forever to give dating an honest try again after losing Jean.
She waited only long enough to hear from Scott before she sent herself right to his house, sure to appear in the living room as they'd done when Scott was in such dire straits after Magneto died … and she found herself pleasantly surprised to see him looking almost relaxed.
"Sorry to interrupt, but we have a situation to discuss," Wanda said, already pacing the room.
"What happened?" Scott asked, ready to go to war if need be.
"Your son."
"I had assumed as much. What happened?"
"That's just it," Wanda said, letting her shoulders droop. "He's breaking our rule without actually breaking our rule. And he's being infuriating."
"Maybe you should tell me what he did specifically," Scott said, then paused, unable not to tease just a little bit. "Not too specifically, though."
Wanda rolled her eyes. "He's spending the night with Billy in Westchester, but I'm pretty sure he's not planning on sleeping even though Billy's curled up with him like he's a teddy bear." She threw her arms up as she let her frustration build again. "He was waiting for me to yell at him, Scott - wide awake, and just … so infuriating."
"You said that before," Scott pointed out. "I'm guessing you broke up the party."
"No," Wanda said, wide-eyed. "The little punk had a solid argument that Tommy joined him for." She gestured with her hand, conjuring up a chair before she sank into it seamlessly as if it had been there all the while. "They weren't actually doing anything, and yours at least was fully clothed and not using the blankets at all."
"So, aside from spending the night, are they doing anything they shouldn't?"
"I don't think so," Wanda said. "Not with Tommy in the room, I hope."
"So James is just there …. Doing what, exactly?"
"Reassuring Billy, he says, which I can't even get mad about," Wanda said. "He's finding loopholes in the rules … not sleeping, not doing more than being a security blanket, and not doing anything more physical than exist." She pointed his way. "But he's still staying the night, even if it's on top of the covers."
Scott shook his head lightly, trying not to smile when it was clear Wanda was upset. "He knows where the line is. He's not going to cross it, Wanda. He'll walk right up to the line and park himself on it, but he won't cross it."
"This time, you mean."
"No .. and there's a reason I went out of my way when this first came up to be clear that we weren't against them doing this ever, or he might have very well broken up with Billy. Especially if he thinks you and I really don't want them together."
"You're joking."
Scott shook his head seriously.
"You have a defective teenager, Scott."
"No," Scott said, smirking crookedly. "I have K's son." When Wanda huffed in response, Scott smiled crookedly. "I trust him, Wanda. Trust me on this: he won't cross the lines we've drawn. So if we don't want them to blame us for breaking them up, those lines have to be temporary." He leaned back. "In the meantime, Annie was going to watch The Great Escape with me tonight, so unless you're in the mood for Steve McQueen…"
Wanda smiled crookedly. "Maybe next time," she said. "We can make it a double while we talk about our boys. After all … if they're as serious as they seem to want to be, we might need to get used to each other again."
There was a knock at the door and Wanda spun first to look at the door, then slowly turned back to Scott with a raised eyebrow. "I thought you meant you were meeting her somewhere …"
"Good night, Wanda," Scott said, and to his amusement, Wanda only grinned at him before disappearing in a swirl of deep red smoke. He opened the door for Annie, and was rewarded with a quick kiss as soon as she was inside. It was familiar and reassuring and just felt right. With a bright smile, Annie said hello then headed for the kitchen, making small talk about traffic and the weather on her way to grab their popcorn, so while she was puttering in the kitchen, Scott took just a moment to send off a text to James, knowing he was probably anxious after dealing with an angry Wanda.
You know where the line is. I trust you.
That was all he wrote, not at all surprised at the response from James as he sat down on the couch.
That's one of us. Love you too.
Again, Scott shook his head just as Annie sat down and curled into his side. "What's got that look on your face?" Annie asked, perfectly content to snuggle up. "Which one did something to make you proud now?"
"James," Scott said, allowing his smirk to stretch into a smile not just at the thought of his son but at the sight of a pretty woman curled up with him. It had been a long time. "He's got a lot of eyes on him right now, so he knows he's not supposed to do anything that could get him in trouble before he's eighteen, but…" He chuckled. "He's doing everything short of getting in trouble."
Annie looked up at him with her chin tipped back so he was upside-down from her perspective. "And the rulebreaking is making you happy because…?"
Scott smiled crookedly. "Hey, this is the kid who wouldn't put a toe out of line when he was little because he got bounced around and didn't want to rock the boat once he was settled in with our family," he explained, well-aware of everything Toby had pointed out - and how far James had come in slowly starting to express himself. "Believe it or not, it's a relief to see him doing some healthy rebellion. And the fact that he knows where the line is and doesn't go too far?" He shrugged. "This is good for him."
Annie smiled up at him, her nose scrunched up with the force of her grin. "You seriously can't figure out how to do anything but gush, can you? It's kinda cute."
Scott didn't quite know how to react to that other than to smile. "Yeah?"
"Almost as cute as rescuing me from the Avengers," she teased.
"Ah, yes, the known villains," Scott said, nodding seriously.
Annie laughed and hit him with the back of her hand. "You know what I mean. It's nice not to be treated like a china doll, you know? I know Craig put himself out there, and I know it's important to lie low, but I honestly don't know how you lived like that for so long. It's exhausting being hidden!"
Scott smirked. "You have no idea."
"I don't and I don't want to," Annie agreed fervently. "It's so much nicer to hide like this." She gestured around them both at the popcorn and blankets. "Trying to live my life when Janet Van Dyne is looking over my shoulder is oddly stressful."
"Ah, well." Scott tipped his head to the side. "Jan knows you and I are dating, and we promised we'd look out for each other." He paused again. "We dated for a little while."
Annie sat up to look at him better. "I didn't know that."
"We didn't exactly advertise it," Scott said, shifting slightly. "I… wasn't ready to date again, really. Kind of fell apart." He let out a slow breath. "She and I are still good friends. I grilled Tony after they got engaged," he added with a teasing smile. "And considering the other ex-girlfriend you know about, Jan's the better alternative."
Annie snorted. "Okay, that's true," she admitted. "Still, now I'm gonna be thinkin' about that every time Jan hovers. Gettin' measured."
"You're fine," Scott promised. "Everyone there likes you."
"So you say."
Scott smiled and dipped his head to steal a kiss. "You know Natasha and Tony wired this place with their security systems and I can scan a mile out, so if you don't want to stay at the tower all the time, you can come here anytime."
Annie grinned and kissed him back. "Okay."
The morning after James had spent the night and woken Billy up with a few gentle kisses to start his day right, Billy spent most of the day bouncing his foot and just counting the minutes until the end of class so he could stop wasting time and start texting Kate to make sure she was free after school before he wished her over. And, for good measure, Kate had alerted America to Billy potentially being in crisis, so America invited herself along as well.
Seeing the look on Billy's face, Kate was glad she called in the backup.
"What's up?" Kate asked, jumping up onto the bed to sit on one side of Billy, while America took up the other side, leaning against the wall and resting her arm on one knee.
"Oh, nothing, just my boyfriend making my mom back down," Billy said, his voice slightly higher than usual.
America grinned obscenely. "Great! So when's the wedding?"
Both Billy and Kate turned toward America fully. "America," Billy said, completely red-faced.
"Just saying, chico. You're head over heels for the guy and he can stand up to everyone in your family. What? You waiting until he's done with school or just until you're eighteen?"
"Neither of those things," Billy said, still red.
"Shame," America said philosophically.
Kate shook her head and reached past Billy to shove America in the shoulder. "Oh, come on. You can't pull stuff like that, especially not when you're moving so fast with yours."
"Um, no, you're the one at high risk of a shotgun wedding, Princess. Me and my bird are taking the long, slow, enjoyable route," America said, her grin once again obscene.
"I'm not at high risk of anything," Kate said, shaking her head. "Why are you like this?"
"I don't know. Just the way the Demiurge made me," America said, laughing at her own little joke. "Really, though," she said, turning to Billy, "good for him."
"Yeah, he must be just as head over heels as you are, because growing up, he never stood up to adults," Kate said.
Billy scrunched his nose. "You and I have very different life experiences with James."
"You have very different family members," Kate pointed out. "Not a good comparison."
"Point."
Kate waved her hand. "Anyway, tell us about the heroic stand against the Scarlet Witch. Was she glowing? How much growling was involved?" she asked, even going so far as to prop her hands up to hold her chin. "Was it properly dramatic?"
"Actually," Billy said, grinning steadily wider, "he just informed Mom that he was going to sleep over - just sleep - and basically stared her down like he was just waiting for her to get mad at him."
"He was. He was totally expecting the blowback," Kate said, nodding sagely. "I was right. He's smitten. Badly."
Billy grinned. He'd actually, truly, honestly needed to hear that, especially from Kate, who had grown up with James. Sure, he and James liked each other, and James had said as much with more than just words, but having someone from the outside confirm that James was stepping out of his comfort zone and standing up for him in ways he didn't usually was just… it was weirdly comforting.
"Anything else you need to get off your chest or are we grilling the princess about how her Summers is rearranging his school schedule to graduate early for her?" America asked when Billy had been silent and grinning for too long.
Billy turned his entire body to face Kate, and Kate turned as purple as her bow. "It's not just for me," she started to say, and America groaned so loudly Kate was sure anyone in the hallway heard it.
"You two were made for each other," America said when she was done voicing her disbelief. "You're both oblivious idiots sometimes, you know that?"
"He just wants to be on the team full-time-"
"Uh-huh."
"And his siblings and I will be graduated, so he's the last one who's not able to do the teams fully-"
"Uh-huh."
"And his dad is moving fast with this new girlfriend, so he'd like to move out of the way of-"
"He still can't do that until he's eighteen, I'm pretty sure," Billy pointed out. "That seems to be kinda important apparently. So … the moving out isn't a thing unless he's going to follow you to college a semester behind … which I'd believe for how he stares at you when you're not like, making out."
Kate waved a hand. "I'm going to a specialized design school Jan helped me get into. Not exactly up his alley."
"So knowing Nate, he'll just go work at the coffee shop across the street from the school," Billy teased. "For proximity. And guaranteed coffee breaks."
Kate shook her head at him. "I'm not moving out of the apartment building my dad owns, so… not like he needs to follow me anywhere."
"But he will."
Kate twirled a stray bit of hair and bit her lip. "Yeah, maybe." She shook her head and tried to regain her footing. "Must be baked into that whole family, considering yours goes toe to toe with big, bad super powerful royals for you."
"I think he does it for the sake of doing it a little bit," Billy said. "And he's a little frustrated with not being able to go further with school if what his dad told me is right."
"Yeah, Nate said something like that too," Kate admitted, leaning back against the headboard. "I feel for him. I really do. Mia told me she doesn't think she'll get to go to college at all unless she goes to Genosha to do some kind of specialized study."
"You know, that is an option," Billy said thoughtfully. "She'd probably enjoy it …"
"And then Wanda would have a different troublemaking couple to worry about," America chuckled. "Wins all around for you."
"Yeah, too bad the schools on Genosha don't offer the really high level science nerd stuff," Billy said dryly.
"Would've worked out well for you," Kate agreed. She reached out to squeeze his arm. "Hang in there. Pretty sure he just showed you he's ready to fight the world for you, so… sounds to me like you're doing pretty good for not getting to see each other much."
"Yeah, and that would be comforting if the college he wants the doctorates from wasn't going out of their way to make things harder for everyone involved," Billy said, then shrugged. "Well. If we can make it to my birthday, it should be easier anyhow. At least as far as spending little bits of time."
"Or," America said slowly, "you two can maybe take a gap year and forget about college for a little bit. I'm pretty sure you could argue that he's earned it, since he's doing stuff that most people don't do until they're in their mid twenties."
"I didn't think about that," Billy admitted, then leaned back as they got into discussing plans for the Holiday weekend.
That same day, before Thanksgiving break officially started, James beat Franklin back to the house early in the afternoon. Usually, he would have taken that time to get ready to head home … but when he got there, Johnny Storm was in the living room playing video games. So James paused before he hung up his house key and dropped his bookbag, which was enough for Johnny to pause his game and turn with a smile that hitched for a moment when he realized it wasn't Franklin.
"Oh, hey kiddo," Johnny said, turning a little more fully to watch as James came in to inevitably sit down with him. "Been a while since I saw you - who said you could get tall?"
"Polygenetic inheritance, hormones, and probably better, more steady nutrition and health care than what was available when my parents were kids," James said without missing a beat - not because it was necessarily the truth, but because such a scientific answer would irk Johnny - and it did.
Johnny cringed as he turned back toward the television, shaking his head and making a face, though he didn't start his game back up right away. "Why do you do that?"
"You asked a question, I tried to answer it," James said with a smirk, since he'd already gotten to him.
"Yeah, and I was expecting something more … you. More smart assed anyhow."
"Oh, well. Then it's probably to spite you," James said. "I've got you by an inch."
"That's just … so wrong."
"So I'm told," James said, then kicked his feet up on the coffee table, which at least had Johnny relaxing a little bit.
"Much better. Want to pick up controller two?"
"If you need me to," James said, then settled in to play. There was nothing better to do, and Johnny hadn't been entirely sure how to handle him for years, so James had adapted to just … do whatever it was that made Johnny most comfortable. He liked the guy … he just knew that Johnny was in the class of superheroes that still felt badly on how the X-Men had ended the first time around and that unease around him had only increased since the Summers kids had pulled together the new incarnation of the team.
They didn't really talk much after that, instead, falling back on video games until Franklin came in, and then, Johnny looked both relieved and conflicted when Franklin's response to seeing his uncle was to shout out to him. "Just keep doing whatever and I'll get ready to go. I don't need your help!"
"Well, I'm still driving you," Johnny called up, then turned toward James. "Do you need a ride in?"
"Nah, I drive myself," James said.
"I thought you drove yourself when it was you and Franklin," Johnny pointed out.
"Yeah, but if I can get away before they come in, then I can still just drive," James said half distracted as they continued their game.
"Not gonna happen, kiddo," Johnny said.
"Probably not this week, anyhow," James agreed.
"Right … I'm looking forward to all the arguing you'll be doing with everyone once you're old enough to tell them to stick it," Johnny said, though James laughed at that.
"That's not likely," James said, though he didn't get much further before they ended the last level they were working on and both of them decided to pack it in. "Next time?"
"You bet," Johnny agreed with a smile. James started to close things up as Johnny waited, jiggling his keys in his hand and bouncing on the balls of his feet. He didn't notice when the door opened again, thinking it was James going outside … so he totally wasn't prepared when a familiar voice called out to him.
"Holy crap. I should have known I'd run into you, considering the arrangement," Bobby said, closing the door behind him. "I'm surprised you didn't have Ben do this for you."
"Bobby," Johnny said almost in a breath after he'd whipped around to stare at him, pale and obviously off his game. "I heard you were back in town- well, the states … I mean … it's been kind of busy, you know?"
"Must have been for you not to even try to check in for the whole time I was in Genosha. In prison." Bobby put on a tight smile, but the challenge was perfectly clear in his eyes and as James and Franklin hit the bottom of the stairs together, both of them stopped to watch the show.
"It … you know anyone that wasn't a mutant wasn't allowed-"
"When has that ever stopped Earth's Mightiest Heroes?" Bobby challenged, then immediately waved both hands and took a step forward. "Don't mind me. I'm just salty that it took Scott's three kids stepping up for anyone to remember that there used to even be X-Men."
But that had Johnny angry - as most things did. "You know we were all trying to keep them safe, Popsicle." He gestured toward where the boys were, on the other side of the wall out of sight and sharing a look between them much like they used to do when they were kids and there was fighting in the Baxter building … between any of the members of the Four. "Don't act like we all didn't have our hands full."
"You didn't," Bobby said. "The anti-mutant rhetoric blew up once the team was gone. They have scanners to check for people carrying the x-gene - way more accurate than the stupid sentinels they used to have."
"Did you even try to reach out?"
"Was anyone even bothering to pay attention to Genosha when Magneto was being quiet and sticking to the island for so long?"
At that, Johnny paused, and it was as good as a confession to say that no, no one was watching Genosha to help, even if dozens of countries had anti-mutant attacks and ordinance on deck to obliterate the tiny nation. "You know you've got our help the minute anything looks like trouble here," Johnny said. "You are an official member of the team."
"Yeah," Bobby said with that same smile still in place. "It sure is good to have friends to watch your back."
And to Franklin's surprise, instead of a sharp retort from Johnny, there was a moment that looked as if his uncle had been doused with cold water. Johnny paled and everything in his body language read that he wanted to fix it … and he had no idea how or where to start. But what really threw Franklin off was the tone Johnny used.
"Bobby, come on." Johnny sounded as if he was almost pleading.
"Don't try and cover your tracks now by saying I'm on your team," Bobby said, pointing one frosted finger in his face. "If anyone in that building gave a damn about me at all, you can't tell me Reed and his giant brain couldn't have found a way to check."
Again, James and Franklin shared a look and an unspoken conversation that showed that they both were in agreement with Bobby, but that only had the two of them wishing they had a way to get far from this conversation while Bobby and Johnny went back and forth. Their reactions were very very different though. Where James was trying to be invisible, just like when they were kids with no where to go from the arguments, Franklin was frowning and leaning forward - toward the influx of new information. Franklin wanted to know more about oh so much, including why his uncle was trying to bend to get Bobby's approval, while James was dealing with another barrage of the same information presented in a new, upsetting light.
So of course it was Franklin who broke it up. "So … are you two going to throw punches or kiss and make up?"
James looked up toward him fast, especially since when they were kids, Franklin was just as likely as James to not interrupt arguing adults … that was something else that had changed. But that was nothing compared to how red Johnny turned … or the incredibly smug look Bobby was wearing.
"Gonna take more than a half hearted hello after ten years of forgetting I existed to get either reaction," Bobby said, then took a step around Johnny to see the way the boys were seated on the stairs and to take stock of both of them. "Have a safe trip, Franklin. I'll see you soon, okay?"
"Will you tell me the story about whatever … this … was between you two?" Franklin asked.
"No," Bobby said, then turned to look at Johnny over his shoulder. "I think that's one your uncle needs to explain first."
Franklin pounced on the opportunity to make Johnny squirm and after a quiet goodbye from Johnny, the two of them headed out, but that only left Bobby and James for a moment. "Are you okay?" Bobby asked, since the kid hadn't put much thought into working on hiding his reactions when it was around the people he really cared about. And little had really changed as far as Bobby could see when it came to how quiet and withdrawn James got when he was in a safe place and still needed to retreat. Just … he wasn't as obvious about it as he'd been as a kid. Instead of hiding, he looked more like he was trying to keep out of it entirely. When James didn't answer immediately, Bobby continued. "Of course not. Listen, I don't know what they were up to for the whole time we were gone, but I can only guess that it was mostly whatever crazy notion Reed was wrapped up in instead of the problems right in front of him. I was laying it on thick-"
"Because you weren't expecting him and you still want him in spite of how hurt you are that he didn't come rescue you," James finished. "Yeah, I gathered."
Which was Bobby's cue to blush brightly and lose his ability to attack so quickly. "Can you not sound like your mother for like …five seconds? Please?"
"Fine," James said, then raised one eyebrow. "You gonna just let him walk away without finishin' it?" he asked in a gravel laced rumble that was uncannily close to what he'd heard Logan use when they'd popped in from another dimension. But that had Bobby staring more wide-eyed.
"I take it back," Bobby said, before he closed his eyes and covered them with one hand. "Oh my God. Why are you like this?"
"Nature versus nurture," James deadpanned.
"And there's the nurture. Wow. Okay, let's … wow."
"You're driving," James informed him.
"Wait … your car?"
"Yeah. But I'm going to sleep - and I'm going to ask that you don't crank up the radio."
Bobby finally smiled. "Um … I thought your car was DNA coded …"
"It is." James put his arm around Bobby's shoulders. "Congratulations, you're on the list. Love you Uncle Snowflake."
"Love you too. But … so you know, I'm going to burn the rubber off those tires on the way to the school," he teased on the way out of the door. "No hiding in the tower for you this weekend."
"I can put new tires on," James said, but that only had Bobby smiling wider. "Are we going right to the school, or …"
"No, you need to check in at the tower as you then you can leave with the family as not-you," Bobby said. "Stupid, but .."
"It should protect the school," James said in a sigh, wondering how long it would take the reporters to figure out that he was using an inducer. Had to be a matter of time. But until that happened, he had his fake-Summers face to wear.
Chapter 88: Natural Habitats
Chapter Text
James had done his level best to avoid everyone after he and Bobby got to the tower, and he'd been very careful about avoiding Craig and the group of Hales that were buzzing around excitedly. They were good people, but … they were all … loud. And worked up. And he wasn't really in the mood to listen to details on what they had planned for Thanksgiving dinner, which James felt was almost wasteful, time wise, when he was trying to get papers done and knew Billy was getting frustrated waiting for him. So, he'd gone right to his room once he'd checked in with Jan and Tony, then spent some time chatting with Billy - who was a little distracted by a family message board that his dad was running - and then, he'd just curled up and gone to sleep.
But in doing so, he missed out on actually finding out what the Hale family had in store for everyone in Westchester. Had he known, he might have taken Tony up on his offer to stay with the Starks for the holiday to avoid the crowd. Instead, he kept his head down for as long as he could that night and let them do their plotting and planning without getting caught in the middle.
James woke up early Thanksgiving morning to the sounds of the Hales in residence at the tower scuttling around the living room area as they made last minute marching orders for each other. He slipped out of his room quietly and edged his way to the kitchen, where Jarvis was just setting up to make coffee.
When Jarvis saw James, however, he broke his usual form and gestured to the coffee pot. "If you prefer your method to mine, I won't take offense."
"If it'll take one thing off your list today, I'd be happy to," James said before he started to make the coffee and Jarvis took a seat -something that rarely happened on big days. And it was no surprise to James that Jarvis was preparing to make a feast for the Avengers who were in the tower that day, either. He'd spent several holidays with Tony, Jarvis, and Happy, more with them plus the Avengers. Even if that didn't add up to those spent with the Summers part of his family, Jarvis, Tony, and the Avengers were also considered family as far as James was concerned - and it had been a while since he'd been able to spend a major holiday with them.
And as far as this year with the Hales was concerned, it was quietest there with Jarvis, so James stayed there even well after the coffee was brewed and both of them had a cup in front of them. Jarvis was working down a little bulleted list and James was quietly trying to ignore the discussion in the next room as the Hales made their attack plan - who was going to do what, where, and with who - all in their own personal family codes … or it sounded like code for as thick as the Southern accent was getting. So for the time being, James really didn't want to be anywhere else but tucked away in the kitchen, leaning over his mug of coffee while Jarvis hummed to himself nearby.
The two of them watched on a security monitor when Scott and Nate arrived at the top of the tower - an early warning system for guests that Tony had installed at Jarvis' request years earlier. With a warm smile, Jarvis got to his feet long before Scott could reach the kitchen and handed James a travel mug for his second cup of coffee, knowing that it wasn't just James going with Scott to Westchester. As James poured his mug, Jarvis set a few more travel cups out … which wasn't unusual. Not when he was accustomed to trying to care for the Summers family as soon as he saw them. But James took just a moment to process that there were four cups in total. The one James was holding plus one for Scott and Nate each and … one that Jarvis was filling with sweet tea. For some reason, James wasn't making the connection when Rachel was already in Westchester.
"Jarvis-" James started to say, never having grown out of asking the old butler what was happening when he didn't know. He might not have asked someone else, but Jarvis had always been a safe bet for James, more than happy to enlighten him if he knew anything or to give him sound advice if he too, was in the dark.
"Miss Annie will be joining the three of you," he said quietly - both because he didn't want to be overheard and because he knew James could hear him clearly. "She wants to get an early start on things and is also incredibly nervous about entertaining a crowd consisting of all those gathering in Westchester."
"Yeah. That makes sense," James agreed, on his feet and handling the right additions for his brother and dad for their coffee. "I can set up another pot for you before we go."
Jarvis smiled at that and nodded quietly. He took tremendous pride in the job he did and how well he did it, but he also knew how much James felt compelled to help those he cared about - so he didn't have any trouble allowing the kid to do something small like coffee. Which was what Scott saw when he came into the kitchen to find his son. Jarvis was sitting near James while James put the finishing touches on the coffee machine for those that would remain at the tower.
"You ready to roll?" Scott asked as Annie came in to join them.
"Yeah, just gotta put on my face," James replied, which earned a muted smile from Jarvis as he turned away, trying not to laugh at James' joke when Annie looked confused for a moment.
"Do you wear makeup?" Mary Beth asked from around Annie's legs - she'd been following Annie more closely when it came to getting a chance to talk to the superheroes around her.
"Not quite," James said, then took his inducer out of his pocket for Mary Beth to look at. "Push the button in the middle for me, would ya?"
"Is it an image thingy?" Mary Beth asked, even as she covered the device with one hand.
"Yep," James said, though that had Mary Beth scrunching her nose up.
"But that's stupid. You don't have any horns or anything you gotta hide," she reasoned, then pushed the button and gasped when she saw how convincingly James looked like a member of Scott's bloodline. "Oh."
"Yeah," James agreed as he put the button in his pocket. "See you in Westchester?"
"Yes," Mary Beth agreed, then started to smile. "Will there be games and tricks to play?"
"Not today. We need to let everyone relax and not worry about pranks. Then we'll get 'em twice as good next time," James said, smiling crookedly as he made a point to hand Scott his coffee cup, then waved at Jarvis as he and Nate fell into step together.
Nate was still stirring his coffee telekinetically when he and James leaned against the back wall of the elevator. It was a moment for Scott to take in, just because he was never going to get over the job James had done programming that particular inducer - or the fact that James only used it when he was with the family to blend in.
"How was the drive yesterday?" Scott asked, just to watch James' reaction. Especially since he'd already heard from Bobby how it had gone - and the fact that James had let him drive.
"Fine," James replied perfectly casually. "No trouble."
When Scott met James' gaze, he knew the kid wasn't going to crack. Not now, not with other witnesses, and not before he was ready. "We can talk later, then," Scott decided.
"If you really need to talk," James said. "Maybe Doc will have a few minutes." It was a clear tease, and an effort to pull Annie in to distract his father. And it had Nate snorting into his coffee.
"I'm sure he'll have plenty to say about it," Scott said dryly.
"Oh, don't worry," Annie said with a smirk. "Evie and I use him as our personal gopher during the holidays. He's the only one tall enough to reach the top shelves anyway. He'll be plenty busy."
"Dad's tall enough," James said without missing a beat.
"True." Annie turned toward Scott with a crooked smile. "And he can cook, too."
Scott could feel his blush hot on his cheeks. "Yes, well…"
"Did he make you the chicken or the beef? Not cold enough to use the many kinds of soup he falls back on," James said , while Nate did his best to keep from smiling - failing miserably.
"The chicken," Annie said.
Nate and James were nodding in unison, neither of them really planning to take it any further when they both knew that was plenty for Scott as it was. "That's a good sign," Nate said quietly, hoping Scott hadn't heard it, though he knew Annie had.
Annie smiled his way and tucked her hair behind her ear. "I think so," she whispered back.
Scott couldn't help but smirk, even though both of his boys and his new girlfriend were teasing him together - because they were doing it together. That was a good sign as well, and not just in the teasing way Nate meant. She wanted so badly to get along with his kids, and she seemed to be doing alright.
He reached out to take her hand as they headed down to the garage, smirking to himself when he saw the boys exchange glances that definitely came with additional telepathic teasing.
When they got to the garage, Scott led the way with Annie, but James and Nate climbed into the back of the mustang, and James promptly got comfortable, bunching his coat up to use as a makeshift pillow right out of the gate, and not expecting to be drawn into any part of the conversation.
Annie watched them in the rear view mirror as the boys got situated, buckled up, and even managed to get comfortable with little leg room and minimal picking … at least she thought it was minimal picking until she spotted a few minute clues from Nate that told her they were having a telepathic conversation. It left her wishing that she and Scott could talk so privately too.
She wasn't the only one to notice it though. Scott was watching his boys … or, more accurately, his youngest and his masquerading middle as James settled in to sleep - convincingly enough if it wasn't for the utterly bemused expression Nate was wearing. "Guys," Scott said, drawing both of their attention, even if Nate was the only one to turn his way. "Come on. You can share. What are you laughing at?"
"Nothing," Nate said, though James smirked, eyes still closed.
"Nate."
"What? It's not my story!"
Scott turned to look at James before they could even back the car out of the parking spot, then stayed there until James cracked one eye open.
"I was just telling him about Bobby and Johnny's spat," James said. "For a guy covered in flames, he got roasted hard by the walking ice sculpture."
"What happened?" Scott asked, unable to stop himself when it was Bobby they were discussing.
"I just told you," James replied. "They got into a little spat. That's it. Bobby walked away victorious."
"James."
In the backseat, James sighed heavily and picked up his head to make his point, though he was very sure he wasn't making the impact he was going for while wearing the fake-Summers face. "Dad. I'm not entirely sure he was happy with his own reaction when Johnny came by. Let him tell it if he wants to. That's literally all I told Nate."
"I'm sure it is, but he can see the mental image, too," Scott said, and at that, James had to concede that his dad was right.
"Okay," James said. "I'll shut down the connection. If Bobby okays it, I'll have Nate show you all of it, but I'm telling you, he just got a flash of Bobby being aggressively sassy."
"Aggressively, huh? What did Johnny do?" Scott couldn't help but ask.
"Probably cried," James deadpanned.
Scott chuckled. "You guys have only really gotten to know him since he moved back from Genosha, but man, his sense of humor has gotten sharper."
James considered it for a moment, then decided to try and give his dad a little better picture without revealing too much. "I've never seen Johnny step back from a fight like that."
Scott grinned outright at that. "Go Bobby."
"Anyhow," James said, drifting off a little rather than expanding on his statement - but it was a clear cue that he didn't want to get into that at all.
"Right." Annie cleared her throat and nodded to herself. "I… don't think I've seen your inducer look before. Do you do that often?"
"I have a few of them I use all the time in the city," James said. "This one is just for the family things. No reason to draw the wrong kind of attention their way."
"It must be odd," Annie said.
"We prefer his normal look," Scott said. "But it's not always possible to stay under the radar because of his title with Stark."
"Oh, I know," Annie said quickly. "I just meant it must be off-putting to put a face on that matches your place in the family."
James wasn't entirely sure how to respond to that, so he fell back on a non-committal sound instead.
Annie blushed. "I don't mean anything by… I just meant… it's obvious you're Scott's but the visual… oh, never mind. I'm not explaining myself properly. I meant it as a compliment. You're already a Summers, really, it's just… oh, well…"
James smirked at that and stole a look with Nate. "It doesn't make much of a difference to me, but it was getting to a point when we'd go places with other inducers that they were watching me anyhow. I looked too different from the rest of the family, so I decided if I was going to wear camo, it should be the kind that looked like it fit in. I try not to think about it too much beyond that."
"Well, I thought it was a sweet gesture. But maybe my brother is rubbing off on me, reading into things…"
"I am very sure he'll have a whole book's worth of analysis to say about it when he sees it," James said.
"For you and Scott both," Annie agreed. She bit her lip and glanced toward Scott. "Do you know, he didn't tell me Scott was his client - I had to figure it out for myself?"
"Couldn't have taken too long, detective," Nate said. "Especially since you had him figured out for who he really was … what? Date one?"
"Couple dates in, actually. He threw me off when he showed me that his eyes glowed green," Annie admitted. "No one in the general public knew what happened to Cyclops; how was I supposed to know they were cybernetic?"
"They still don't," James pointed out. "Know what happened to him, that is."
"On purpose," Scott said. "I'm more than happy to teach at the school and stay out of your way so you can be better than we were."
"Cop out," Nate coughed.
"Please don't," James said toward Nate, trying to cut that line of teasing off fast.
Try not to sound like Magneto at Thanksgiving, Scott projected to Nate, his tone just teasing enough that Nate knew he wasn't taking it too seriously - but sharp enough to tell Nate that Scott wasn't ready to leave the normal life behind, either.
I was just teasing, Nate said. But I'll try to stop, okay?
Alright. Scott tipped his head. Not saying I'll never don the suit again.
Yeah, well … when you're ready, I know Tony and James have been working on something for you. Don't think it's ready yet, but they're working on something more defensive.
To hear Stark tell it, he's already looking for ways to give me "laser vision."
That's definitely part of it, Nate said. James is handling the power level and safety angle. He's actually really good about the safety side of things.
We'll see, Scott said, though he didn't cut off the telepathic conversation soon enough for Nate not to pick up on the fact that his dad's thoughts had turned to Annie and how much his dad did not want to lose a good relationship to the hero life. Again.
So, Nate leaned back in his seat, getting absolutely no help from his big brother, who was once again pretending to fall asleep, then he did fall asleep, because he really was that tired and fighting off depression. Still, that left him to his own thoughts as he tried to process the fact that his dad was truly falling for Miss Hale. And knowing his dad, this Thanksgiving dinner was more or less a test run to see if they'd both be good fits in each other's lives.
And yeah, Nate knew his dad was worried about dragging Annie down with him in the hero life, but Annie would have been headed that way anyway, the way Leslie Ann was going on. No way Annie wouldn't have been involved anyway. And what Scott didn't seem to realize yet was that Annie was intrigued by the life. And she had a lot of the fire Nate picked up in the minds of the X-Men who had been on Genosha, the ones who never felt like they'd left the team. If she'd had powers, she'd probably have been on a team.
But at the same time, she was so normal. All he could hear from the front seat was Annie projecting without meaning to about all the food she and her family needed to make, hoping that she had gotten a full list from Ororo of food allergens for anyone there (the only strange one on the list was Kitty, who was allergic to carrots, of all things), and hoping that Scott's family liked her - his whole family, including the X-Men.
Even Annie could see that the old team was Scott's family; Nate just wondered when his dad would catch up to that fact and stop trying to stay so separate. Sure, he was teaching and would go full-time in the fall, but one of these days, he was going to remember that he'd never actually stopped being an X-Man.
Scott pulled the car around the back of the building once they got there and the four of them piled out. The boys didn't seem to be in a huge rush to get into the building though. Nate wasn't feeling like he was quite ready to play enthusiastic X-Man for the kids in the school who were mesmerized by the team, and James would have rather just kept sleeping since he didn't know who was in there ready to say hello. But he knew it was too early to be too friendly.
"How messed up is your hair right now?" Nate teased quietly - though both Annie and Scott heard it.
"Doesn't matter," James replied sleepily. "Inducer. It's perfect even when the real stuff is crazy."
"Cheater."
"Want me to make one for you?" James teased. "Give you a purple mohawk or something."
"When you treat my girlfriend like a little sister? You'll program it to give me her cutouts."
"I will." He paused. "Or maybe I already have."
"Traitor. You remember I'm your brother, right?"
"Yeah, but she's like … almost a twin. And she has good taste … in coffee."
"Gonna go ahead and be offended," Nate decided, smirking hard.
"You're just mad we had campouts without you."
"I was six and you had the coolest stories from camping with her and the Black Widow, okay? Let it go."
"We got to share a tent without supervision and no one was worried. Wonder if that'll ever happen… oh … wait. Nope. Never ever." James bumped his shoulder to Nate's. "She's always snored, too. So … you lucky dog, you."
"Thanks, James," Nate said dryly.
"It's a fair trade, since you talk in your sleep," Scott said, smirking as he bumped shoulders with Nate.
You must get that from your mother, James projected to Nate just to get him to laugh. Especially when he continued with: Should we bother warning Katie, because … well. Probably a done deal, right Romeo?
Probably.
I wonder if it was your mom or the Phoenix that did that … because now I would pay good money for America to wake up to Rachel just screeching in her sleep.
What do you want to bet that when Rachel does it, America just rolls with whatever she's talking about until Rachel wakes up?
Probably. But what would she do if it was a full on like … hawk scream? Out of nowhere. She's pretty unflappable, but that … come on. Has to be worth a fluff of frizz falling off the bed swearing in spanish. Parker style.
No, no. She'd jump up ready to fight something. The Parker fall is for when Rachel proposes in her sleep.
If it doesn't happen that way, I'm going to be forever disappointed in everything.
I know, right? Nate chuckled. America would run with it, too. Plan the wedding and tell everyone Rachel was a fast mover.
She'd suggest an interdimensional trip to some other world's Vegas. Elope.
Rachel would wake up in interdimensional-Vegas.
And probably roll with it.
Which was about the time that Scott decided it was time for them to stop holding a telepathic conversation when there were people around them that wanted to be social. So he cleared his throat and gave them a raised eyebrow look. "What were you two discussing that had you laughing that hard, Nate?"
"Whether or not the Phoenix makes Rachel's sleeptalking more interesting than mine," Nate said without missing a beat.
"I'm betting on red-tailed hawk style screams," James added perfectly seriously.
Scott shook his head at both of them, but then, purely because they were in such good moods and he was so relieved to see it - James had been beyond stressed lately and even Nate had been working himself half to death over his plans to graduate early - he said, "Actually, it's more like a cassowary."
The two boys again didn't miss a beat as they both fell into nodding and low rumbled agreement as if it was the most logical explanation available. But before the tease could go any farther than that, they heard someone positively fall apart laughing and turned to see that Bobby had just strained to meet them- and promptly hit the floor in pure glee.
Scott didn't bother to hide his grin as he made his way over to Bobby. "Good timing," he said, and Bobby just laughed that much harder.
"I love it when you bring me stuff like that as if it's perfectly normal," Bobby said with a grin. "When is your brother supposed to be here? I promised I'd pick up a few jars of peanut butter for him to smuggle to Genosha."
"There's no telling with him. Either he'll be here after dinner starts or with enough time to try again to convince James to go surfing for the weekend," Scott chuckled.
"But he's bringing the kids, right?" Bobby said.
"Oh yeah." Scott paused. "He says he wants them to meet their future aunt," he admitted - purely because it was Bobby, and he knew if he didn't get in front of the teasing, Bobby and Alex would team up on him.
"What can you say to that?" Bobby said, gesturing openly. "Your exploits have made news all the way around the globe, Casanova."
Scott mimicked Bobby's body language. "That's how he'll paint it, anyway. Try not to scare Annie off, huh? I actually like her."
"Hey. I met her. I like her," Bobby said. "But you know no one can really control Alex but Lorna, so … I'll do what I can to distract him if he starts in."
"Much obliged." Scott put his arm around Bobby's shoulders as Annie found herself answering a few questions from Kitty. "James says you roasted Johnny Storm, by the way. Didn't say more than that except that you won."
"Is that how he framed it?"
"Figured there was more to it," Scott said, nodding - since he'd been on the team when Bobby had been so terrible at hiding his feelings for Johnny after he'd joined the Fantastic Four for a bit.
Bobby paused, then tipped his head. "He's a jackass."
"Hasn't changed in the last fifteen or so years, then, huh?"
"Not even a little bit," Bobby agreed.
"You have, though," Scott pointed out.
"Wonder why," Bobby said dryly, then quickly shrugged it off. "Doesn't matter though. So … better subject. Anything. Anything at all."
"How was driving the super car?" Scott offered, knowing Bobby needed the out.
"I love it. Tried to burn the rubber off the tires but couldn't. I'll take one in white." Bobby let out a breath and thought it over for just a second. "Have you gotten to drive it yet?"
"Not really," Scott admitted, going along with Bobby's redirect when it was so clear that he needed the out. And since Bobby immediately grinned and launched into telling him about the car, he considered it a success.
James and Nate left the adults to their own devices and headed for the game room to blow off some steam and avoid the inevitable quizzing they knew was coming from well-intentioned people they loved. Nate was a little grumpy that Kate's family elected to head off to parts unknown to spend the weekend with Barney Barton's family, and James was happy to keep him occupied. Especially since Billy had told him that he and Tommy would be spending time with their parents. So they both thought that they were missing their significant others.
Or they did until Tommy rushed in with his usual wind-swept hair and carefree grin. "Are you two hiding out down here? Why? Are you avoiding my brother? What did he do?"
"Wait," James said, holding up one hand. "I thought you were spending time with your family this weekend."
"We are," Tommy said, rolling his eyes. "Here. Duh." He zipped off before James or Nate could really react, then the brothers shared a look and headed toward the dining room area to see who exactly was hanging around Westchester - but for some reason, he was still surprised to see Wanda talking to Storm and Vision excitedly chatting with Billy.
Or the entire flock that Alex had brought with him. Naturally, they had their kids, Christopher and Susie, and both of them had brought a friend along. Lorna was watching them closely, and the two kids looked completely awestruck at the mansion and the number of X-Men mulling around.
But before James or Nate could ask anything or even say hello, Billy spotted them with a broad grin and made his way over to say hello - ignoring the crowd when it was a group they were comfortable with as he went for a kiss.
"Hi, we're hanging out with our family here," Billy said when he pulled back from the kiss.
"I see that," James said, looking past Billy to tip his head in a subtle greeting to Vision, who was watching them while Wanda was preoccupied. The curious expression Vision was wearing had caught James' notice, and he was already wondering what Vision thought of how fast the two of them had been moving. He knew Wanda's outlook. But he wasn't about to ask the synthezoid what he was thinking. "If I had known, we wouldn't have been playing around in the game room."
"No, no, I never get to surprise you," Billy laughed as Vision came over. It had been quite a while since James had seen him, even if Wanda had been liberal in stopping in from time to time unannounced.
"It's been quite some time," Vision said, though he wasn't quite smiling at James and James wasn't sure how to interpret him. "How are your classes going? I understand your original theses were rejected."
James let out a sigh, though he kept it controlled. "I finished my coursework last month. I'm writing new theses with new subject matter. And they're coming along. Thanks."
"I'll admit to being curious why they were rejected. The premise upon which each of them were written was sound," Vision said, as Billy's shoulders dropped.
"For reasons I wasn't given details on, my academic integrity was brought into question," James said, seeing no reason to lie or mince words. Not when Vision would likely see through it anyhow. "I was told if I wanted my Masters' degrees there, I'd have to pick new topics for my papers and only work on them at the college. So… I am."
"I don't understand why they would question you in such a manner but not question others," Vision said. "Did you do something that could be interpreted incorrectly?"
"No," James said. "I was just born wrong. Defective genes. That's all. At least as far as I've been told."
"I think I'd like to know more about this predicament," Vision said, and for the first time when it came to James' interactions with him, he immediately declined.
"If it's all the same to you, I'd like to just get through it and get it over with. I don't think it matters much why they decided to make an example of me, and I'm really tired of hashing it out," James replied, but that had Vision slowly smiling at him.
"Spoken like both of your parents," Vision remarked. "They too would see no reason to dig deeply into the reasons when the problem needed to be dealt with now."
"Thanks, I guess," James said, no longer sure if either of Billy's parents now approved of them dating
"You're quite welcome," Vision answered, not having picked up on James' unsureness. "If you're not too busy, perhaps you can tell me how your new papers are coming along and what they're about. I'd love to hear it."
"Su-ure, I guess we can do that," James said cautiously just before Vision smiled and gestured for James to lead the way to where they could talk.
Billy grinned at James and wordlessly apologized, since he could see James really didn't want to talk about the new papers he was fighting to get finished. No one had really talked to him about them outside of Tony, Hank, or the Richards. But Billy still hoped that James would be able to enjoy the talk with his dad … particularly when he was sure James thought Wanda hated him if he'd read between the lines when James had gone a round with Wanda, that is.
James and Vision took a long while before they were chatting quietly, with Billy simply enjoying the fact that they could talk about things on a level that neither got to very often in this kind of setting.
Which was about when the rest of the Hale clan came in.
Evie and Craig were deep in conversation, going back and forth about something while Anton reminded the girls to be on their best behavior. Since the Wrights had been living in Westchester, they knew where to go to find the kitchen, but they hadn't been expecting to see the guests from Genosha.
But while Craig's reaction was a quiet smile when he saw Vision and James deep in conversation, Evie took one look, tsked, and went right to the kitchen.
Not two minutes later, Scott's own conversation with Bobby - and now Kitty - was interrupted as Annie practically stalked over to him, leading the way with a pointing index finger.
"Mr. Summers," she said, in a tone that had Bobby and Kitty looking like Christmas had come early, since she said his name as an accusation instead of the pure flirt Jean had always used when she used his full name. "When were you going to tell me or my family we'd be cooking for royalty?"
Scott blinked at her. "I didn't know they were coming either."
"Really." Annie put her hand on her hip but kept pointing at him in accusation, this time with the other hand and with a wooden spoon she had been using until that moment to stir up some mashed potatoes. He could even see the residue of her cooking on the end of it; she got it that close to his face a few times.
"Annie, they don't stand on ceremony. The X-Men are family," Scott said. Then, when Annie was still glaring at him, he added, "Besides, I've never thought of my kid brother as some royal who needs special treatment."
Annie rolled her eyes at him. "As if it wasn't intimidating cooking for your family as it is. First impressions are important, Scott!"
Scott let his shoulders drop, then reached past her spoon to take her other hand. "Annie, this isn't an audition. My family already loves you."
"But please, keep on keeping him honest," Kitty said with a gleeful smile. "He needs so much help sometimes, don't you, Fearless?"
Scott gave Kitty an exceedingly dry look, but when she responded with a bright smile of her own, he sighed, shook his head at her, and then turned back to Annie. "You'll blow them all away, Annie. I have full faith."
"That's great, Scott. You're still gettin' conscripted to wash up. C'mon." With that, Annie grabbed Scott by the hand to pull him into the kitchen - leaving Bobby and Kitty still looking like they had gotten early holiday presents.
While the Hales were going full tilt in the kitchen, Rachel and America were soaking up some time together - out in the open for the first time since they started dating. At least, it was for the first time around family other than Rachel's siblings.
Nate was playing with his cousins while Kate spent the day with her family - which was almost a downer for Nate if not for the fact that Alex's kids worshipped the other Summers kids. And Nate was the go-to guy for them while James was out of reach … which he was. Or at least, he was trying to be. Unlike Nate, James was a little more uncomfortable with the whole … everything going on. He had precious little time with family as it was, and they'd never spent any holiday other than Halloween in Westchester. So he wasn't in his comfort zone at all.
Considering how little time Billy and Tommy had with their parents, once Billy and Vision were in an involved discussion - and Tommy and Wanda were catching up similarly - James decided the best course of action was to leave them to it. Scott and Alex were laughing together, and Nate, Rachel, and America got going with the little kids playing, so James took the opportunity to slip off to the library where he knew it would be quiet. He also wanted to spend some time reading through the professor's works just to remind himself why he was fighting for the damn degrees, too.
He hadn't told his family how incredibly discouraged he was - or that he'd actually finished one of the papers in its entirety, turned it in, and was waiting to hear if they were going to bounce it like they'd done to the first three. He also hadn't told them that the work he'd done on this particular paper - that was sitting on the dean's desk - was honestly a much more pulled together work than the previous ones he'd handed in and because of that, he'd already decided that if they pulled out more hoops, or pushed for anything else with these degrees … he was done.
Tony would just have to find someone better to take care of the company while James went to the woods where he belonged. Away from everyone and everything.
James already felt as if he was wasting time in Cambridge and working his ass off for nothing. But his other two papers were relatively complete as well … a month or two on each of them would have them in spectacular shape. But he wasn't going to do the work if they were just going to be tossed. He was hoping that he'd have good news for everyone by now … a little light at the end of a dark tunnel. But that wasn't the case. He was still in the dark, waiting alone since he refused to watch the disappointment from his dad if the college pulled anything again.
Which was why James had decided that the best way for him to clear his mind of all the garbage going on was to tuck into the warmest spot in the library, watch the light snow fall outside and slowly go over Professor Xavier's works in what he imagined was the man's meter of speaking.
He had the entire stack next to him and was half curled up next to the fireplace with his shoes off so he could sit cross-legged in the cushy chair. He'd gotten through about half of the first volume and had paused to let it soak in while he tried to mentally apply all that the professor had to say so far to what he was dealing with - totally lost on if he was moving forward or backward comparatively to when the books were written.
The library was silent but for the crackling fire when Mia teleported in, looked around, then teleported over to perch on the back of the chair and sneak a peek at what he was doing. "Why are you hiding away?" Mia asked, her tail swaying behind her playfully.
"I don't know," James admitted. "I just … I guess I didn't want to be in anyone's way, so I left."
"That's utterly ridiculous," Mia said, then shifted how she was perched to something less menacing and more relaxed. "You're hardly around any of us."
"Probably easier on everyone not to be around my grumpy self," James said with a self-depreciative smile, but Mia was quick to roll her eyes and hit him in the shoulder before she shifted off the back of the chair, forcing him to make room for her so they could share the space.
"So don't be so grumpy," she said.
"It's not purposeful, little goddess."
"Why do you have to add 'little' to all your best nicknames?" Mia teased, leaning on him as she took the book out of his hands to see where he was.
"Well," James said as he rested his head on hers, "for you, it's because you're not fully a goddess yet, with lightning flashing in your eyes."
"And for Billy?"
"Just slipped out. Seemed to fit, and it makes him blush so …"
Mia smiled crookedly, almost laughing at him if not for the section she was reading in the book. It dealt with the professor's belief that coexistence between humans and mutants was possible in this lifetime and how much harder mutants had to work to prove they weren't there to destroy humanity. It spoke of the level of patience required to keep trying and how integral it was to do so not just for tolerance from fearful humans, but for acceptance, which was a far more lofty goal.
The passage had her snuggling in a little better, too. She always needed the reassurance of someone close to her when she thought of lofty goals like that. Acceptance of hidden or even pretty mutations was one thing. Total acceptance of physical mutations like hers still felt impossible more often than not. She looked like a demon, after all.
And though James's mutations were mostly invisible, she'd seen all the horrible things being written by racist and alarmist reporters that were convinced that James was going to use Stark Industries as a means of arming mutants to destroy humanity. Or that he was just going to be a bloodthirsty monster like they'd painted his parents to be.
But those voices were the minority. Even J. Jonah Jameson was still insisting that if the press wanted to crucify the kid, they needed to do so only for crimes James had committed himself.
It was a big deal, even if she was sure James was taking it too personally and was missing out on the fact that even with the accusations, he had fans, not a lynch mob. And she was pretty sure he didn't see it that way, which meant she had to straighten him out. "You know, out of the people in the team that could be in the spotlight all the time, I'm glad it's someone that doesn't have the ability to forcibly change minds." James let out a sigh and leaned his head on hers a little more solidly before she continued. "You're making them eat their words just by being you."
"I'm not really doing anything," James said quietly, though he could see that she was speaking from the heart.
"That's the best part," Mia insisted, then picked her head up so they had to face each other. "They're starting to see what all of us already do."
James held her gaze for a long moment, then leaned over to kiss her cheek. "I'll feel better about it when they realize what a little goddess you are. They should be worshipping you."
Mia smiled slyly, looking more like her mother as she did so. "Then you should enjoy your turn while you have it," she teased.
"Just keeping the crowd warmed up for you," James said. "They'll forget about me once you allow them to see how amazing you are."
Mia started giggling, but was glad to just spend some time with him. More often than not, her days and evenings were spent with Tommy - which was great, but even now, the whirlwind of dating him could leave her breathless. She knew she could get some sympathy from James in that area.
"We should do more stuff together," Mia said thoughtfully.
"I do not want to double date with the brothers," James said. "First time he got too fresh with you, I'd have to kill him, and that would be a problem for everyone… things would snowball and then everyone would probably die."
"Such optimism."
"What's that? Sounds terminal. Is there a vaccine?"
Mia started giggling harder at that though, and didn't try to get him to backtrack, which had James teasing her more to keep her laughing. "I think you're safe. Or immune. Or something."
Just then, the door opened, and both teenagers glanced up to see Forge come in the library and immediately break into a smile when he saw the two of them. "Oh good," he teased. "And here I was worried that hearing my daughter giggling behind closed doors was going to mean I had to put Tommy in zero gravity for the duration of the holiday."
Mia rolled her eyes. "Daaaaad."
"It's a real concern," Forge said, though he was smiling too widely to look convincingly stern. "Dinner is ready, by the way. You two can practice being in-laws avoiding Royal get-togethers later. The Hales are trying to make us all ten pounds heavier before the day ends."
"I thought that was the point of this holiday," Mia said, blinking innocently and blatantly ignoring anything else Forge had said.
"Sure," Forge chuckled. "That's what we're remembering today."
Meanwhile, Scott had been helping Annie and her family bring everything out of the kitchen and into the dining room. He stepped into the kitchen one more time and saw that the last of the dishes were gone, but Annie was still there, wiping her long-dry hands with a towel.
He crossed the distance between them in a few strides and then kissed her just beside her mouth. "Everything looks and smells amazing, by the way. I can't believe you guys do this for every big holiday."
Annie smiled lightly and glanced up at him. "Family tradition. Food brings everyone together, you know."
"And you looked like you were enjoying yourself."
"Baking is fun, Scott."
"Even for unexpected royalty?" he had to tease her.
She swatted him playfully with the towel. "Can you blame me? My family already loves you; I'm allowed to want the same for myself!"
At that, Scott stepped into her and pulled her into a long, lingering kiss. And when it broke, he brushed her hair out of her face where it had fallen out of her ponytail. "Annie, you make me happier than I've been in years. I promise they care more about that than they care about your stuffing."
Annie let her shoulders drop. "Even if I'm not a superhero?"
"Is that what's got you this stressed out?" Scott shook his head. "I'm not either."
"That's different and you know it."
Scott brushed her hair back again. "I promise you no one cares what powers you do or don't have or what team you are or aren't on." When Annie still looked stressed, he kissed her. "And I love you, so nothing else matters."
Annie blinked at him, broke into a smile, and threw her arms around his neck for a passionate kiss.
Chapter 89: Fair Game
Chapter Text
James was getting anxious with the way that the press corps was gathering up as close as legally possible for them to do so as he came and went between the house and school. Tony had set Pepper on task to get the legal team in gear to get them to back off, but with his birthday just a few days off, they were getting pushy and trying more and more creative ways to try and scoop an exclusive.
In the past few days alone after Thanksgiving break, James had been asked in transit at least a dozen times if he was seeing anyone, what his plans were after he finished up whatever he was doing at MIT, and pestering him for specifics on what exactly he was trying to button up there. But, considering how hard the dean had been on him, James didn't want to draw any undue attention down on any particular department - so he didn't say a word to any of them as he ignored them as much as possible. Not that they didn't speculate after seeing which buildings he was using.
The student body was starting to speculate, too, but to James' relief no one on the staff would crack - citing student privacy issues. But still, details were starting to leak out. LIke the number of Masters' he was pursuing at the moment, even if they didn't know specifically, the comparisons to Tony's education had them pretty sure what he was working on, even if they were all talking like it was very likely too ambitious for a person of his background.
But that only made sure that he wasn't endeared to any of them any more than the others when the tone was one of derision.
Yet, even with photographers trying to sneak peeks in the windows of the library and the lab, James was more or less guaranteed quiet there. So that was where he was as often as he could be, for as long as he could be while he pushed harder to finish the damn degrees faster. He was ignoring calls from the team to go on runs - even when they were close to Massachusetts - not that they didn't understand why.
The team was, in fact, on a rescue pick up near the Louisiana/Texas line that James had sorely regretted not going on when Katarina decided to try again to make friends.
James was buried in a paper, translating it from Japanese to English and making notes on what was useful to him when his emerald-eyed admirer stepped up behind him and gently rested her hands on his shoulders.
"You are working far too hard," she purred as James drew his shoulders up toward his ears trying to gently dissuade her from touching him. It was much easier for him to draw lines in the sand when he was focused on something else, it turned out. But it wasn't enough of a clue to get her to back off like he'd hoped. Instead of removing her hands, she stepped in closer and ran her fingertips down and across his chest until she was leaning over his shoulder and half wrapped around him. "Why don't you take a little study break with me?"
It was a lot harder for him to think straight when she was touching him and using that song-like tone. Or maybe it was her scent when she was too close. "Katrina-"
"Katarina," she corrected with a smile as he turned his head to try to see her, then carefully pulled her arms off of him to steal back his space. "Or Kata."
"Sorry. Katarina," James repeated, then rubbed his eyes with one hand while she stepped back, smiling. "That was rude of me. I meant no disrespect. I'm just not … focused on names right now."
"I see that," she said, then sat down next to him. "Would it kill you to take a coffee break?"
James sat back and blew out a breath. He'd lost his place in the paper anyhow and it'd probably take him ten minutes to find it again now. "I may have to," he admitted.
"Then if you have to, come with me," Katarina said in her sing-song tone. "We'll only be gone for a few minutes. We can even stay inside away from the windows so you're not harassed."
James looked over to the librarians, well aware of the fact that they would need to be asked to leave the materials out he was working on. "Give me a minute," James said finally since he was in need of a short break anyhow. He got up as Katarina watched, then he walked over to ask politely as he knew how if they'd allow him to leave the materials out on the table while he took a short study break, though he noticed that the woman that usually gave him such a hard time was nowhere to be seen. The older woman behind the desk, however, was more than happy to accommodate while he was being so polite and a few moments later, James let out a weary sigh as he grudgingly took a short break with Katarina grinning at him on the way down to grab a cup of coffee at the closest cafe on campus.
The two of them ordered a snack and some drinks, but once they found a booth to sit down, Katarina looked up at him with a small cringe. "I forgot to grab napkins - do you mind?"
"No problem," James said, shaking his head lightly as he turned automatically. When he came back less than a minute later, she was smiling crookedly at him, watching him carefully as he sat down to join her. He honestly didn't even know why he'd agreed to have coffee with her other than he felt slightly bad about how their first meeting had left her hanging … and then of course, screwing up her name … But he'd already decided that this was simply a means to apologize if he needed to and to try and gently turn her down for whatever she thought she might get out of him since … her non-verbal cues and her scent was loud and clear in telling him she wasn't just after coffee.
"Listen, Katarina," James said even before he'd picked up his coffee. "I appreciate your valiant attempts to get me to break from studying but-"
"I know, you're not looking for anyone," Katarina said, cutting him off. "But you also look like you can use a friendly face here, so … I think I can restrain myself for now to manage that much."
When James let out a hollow laugh and rested his chin on his knuckles with his arms propped up on the table, she pointedly picked up her cup of coffee. "I only wanted to see if you can be more personable outside of the library - I've only ever seen you studying. So please … take a moment to breathe."
He nodded silently, since that was indeed what he'd agreed to, not really paying too strict attention to how she was watching him as he took his cup and had a drink. He'd avoided coffee on campus the whole time he was there … no matter what the cafes did right, after having his mother's brand the way she brewed it, everything always tasted bitter to him, and that cup was no different. But, it was hot, and the little touch of cinnamon and vanilla almost made up for the bitter tang of overroasted beans. The bigger problem with it was that he knew that bitter coffee taste was going to linger until he could find a palate cleanser when he got to the house.
"Again," James said as he sat back. "I've been rude, and I know nothing about you. Why don't you tell me how long you've been going here and what you're studying."
She smiled and wrapped her long fingers around her cup before she started talking to him about her courseload - most of which pivoted around chemistry, which … she didn't look like any of the chemistry majors he'd met and he hadn't seen her in the related classes he was taking, either - not that it wasn't possible. He wasn't paying attention to the student body when he had to cram so much in at once, after all.
And while she talked, he drank his coffee just so he had something to do. All the way up until they were both done - then, she reached over and rested her hand on his wrist. "We should continue this in a more private setting," she said, and again, James found himself staring and trying to remind himself why that wasn't an option. "Come on, we can just take a ten minute drive to get out of this building."
"I don't have my car here," James said, though he was almost on autopilot, not even thinking of telling her no just yet. Especially when he couldn't make himself look away from those mesmerizing green eyes …
"I can drive," she said, smiling wider as James got to his feet with her. They started toward the door, but just before they got there, James slowed to a stop looking confused. "Is something wrong?"
James blinked and took a few steps backward. "Yeah. Why am I … Kata, I can't go with you."
"It's just for fresh air," she said in a laugh, perfectly delighted that he'd used a less formal name for her. "Or are you afraid we'll do something if we're too isolated?"
At the question, though, James honestly couldn't answer and that had him more set in the 'no' column. Even if he still felt badly about telling her no - and that … that little detail really had him spinning. "I'm sorry, Kata." He took another couple of steps back the way they'd come. "Thank you for the company and the coffee, but I really do need to finish up." He turned away from her even as she stared at him in shock. "Maybe I can make it up to you some other time … when I'm not so worn out."
"Yeah … o-kay," Katarina said, wide-eyed and sounding as if the rug had been pulled out from under her. When he paused to look over his shoulder at her ,she still had one hand halfway reaching for him and her expression was just … much more horrified - or even scared than James thought was even feasible for their limited encounters.
But … now he had a whole new problem he had to deal with. And it wasn't the kind of thing he could talk to Billy about. At all. Especially when he couldn't understand why he was so compelled to go with her. So, after he snapped a few photographs of the paper he'd been translating, returned all the texts and papers he was working off of, and headed toward the house, he took the time to text Rachel.
How'd the rescue go? He sent - both as a way to see where they were and to see how much energy she had available to her.
Wishing you went with, huh? Rachel replied.
Absolutely. Are you headed back yet?
What's wrong, little brother? Do you miss me terribly?
You have no idea.
There was a short pause before her last text came in. Open your mind if you want to talk. I can keep Nate out of it.
James sighed to himself, then took a moment to bottle up everything he could about his encounters with Katarina - the mental equivalent of tidying up his room before someone came in - then concentrated on Rachel as he gave her the path in. I'm not entirely home yet, James explained. But I'm … I think I'm in trouble.
Okay, we can swing by and get you.
No, not that kind of trouble, James said, mentally holding up both hands. It's just …. Rach.
Rachel's tone went more somber at hearing the conflict even in his mental voice. What happened?
I'd rather just show you when I can sit down in my room, James said. I don't really … I can't explain it.
Project, little brother. Maybe I can help.
Just keep it to yourself. I'm almost there .. show me how the mission ran in the meantime, James answered as he rushed the last few blocks to the house. He couldn't help smiling to himself on seeing how the run had gone and how smoothly the team was working without him, though he didn't shut that thought down fast enough for Rachel to miss it. Before she could correct him, he made it home and let Rachel into the memories of the encounter with every vivid detail his mind held on to … which included the scent catalogue and how he felt for all of it.
That in itself was totally self explanatory as to why it was trouble to James. She could feel the same pull he'd felt, and the hyperfixation at the time - the intense layers of scents and his thoughts before, during, and after both encounters.
But it wasn't really anything she thought James wanted to hear, either. Especially since by her estimation of what he'd seen, smelled, and felt … it was complex, but not anything like the way he felt about Billy. Even on their first meeting when James wasn't sure about the obvious flirting Billy had done. But considering all the horrible things the Summers kids had heard about how people viewed his mutation, she could instantly understand what he was concerned for.
Okay. I see what you're worried about, and yeah, okay, she's definitely pretty, Rachel said in a means to try and get him to lighten up. But that doesn't mean you're being animalistic, little brother. Yes, she's coming on to you, but you're not following that impulse. And you're not going to, right?
Rach, if I was going to do that, it'd already been done.
That's what I'm saying. She's a temptation, but you're not going there. You're doing fine with this. It'll pass. She'll get the hint.
Maybe, James replied, not feeling better about the situation at hand at all. He nearly severed the connection for how hard he tried to tamp down the impulse in his chest to go find Katarina. So he decided to explain himself for that rush - if Rachel had picked it up. He was pretty sure she had. I already feel like I need to make it up to her.
Yeah, don't do that. She was being forward, Rachel said, then tried for a more teasing tone. If you're going to split up with Billy, pick someone that's not a draw from below the beltline, huh?
Yes, that … that is exactly the kind of pep talk I needed to hear. Thank you Rachel, James replied dryly. A kinder, gentler 'get your mind out of the gutter, you absolute pervert' was definitely the kind of life advice I was seeking. If it wasn't such a serious concern and it wasn't just a below the beltline response you'd be tempting me into projecting what I was picturing at the time.
No, please don't! Rachel laughed. I just mean that I could see no part of that memory where you could see yourself with her for anything more than a one night stand or a fling at the most. Which, I have to remind you I don't ever want to think about, thanks - but your interest in that girl is purely physical from what I can see.
Yeah, well ….
I know. She's hot and interested and exactly your type with that … weird air of danger to her. But you're not really interested in her.
I know. I'm not really considering it, I don't think. I want it to stop.
Then don't let her take you for coffee next time, you complete moron. And if she tries it again, just … do. Not. engage.
Again. Your helpfulness is just off the charts. I just wanted to know how off I was and you told me that. So … I'm closing my mind now.
Then I'll make sure I make a tiny jiminy cricket of myself to tell you you're being an idiot and she's probably evil so keep it in your pants.
Damn, Rach.
I know. I thought you'd gotten over your evil tastes already.
Shut up. And keep it to yourself, you daywalker.
Love you too, Rachel sang back, which had James smiling crookedly before he did, in fact close the connection. It was confirmation - which was exactly what James needed. He wasn't losing his mind and it wasn't anything more than base physical attraction. He could ignore that. Even if he really didn't need that over his head with everything else he had to consider already. So with a sigh, he took the first step in pushing that out of his mind by texting Billy next to center himself and focus his energy where it counted.
James was pretty sure that regardless of the buzz that the press had built up, the middle of the week wasn't supposed to be a big news day for anyone. Especially when the news was just … inconsequential as far as he was concerned. Maybe it would have meant more if it had been someone else in the crosshairs, but seeing as it was him, and that no one had known he even existed until Tony dragged him out in front of the cameras, the barrage of cameras and reporters at seven in the morning when he stepped out to take his run to class seemed really stupid to him.
But unlike even days earlier, they suddenly found the courage to crowd him to the point he had to push his way out of the knot of cameras to even take his run. Once he was out of them, it wasn't an issue. A few sprinted to try and keep up but they couldn't keep James' pace for long. Which was how he ended up with an entourage of cars following slowly and snapping pictures while he ran to class with a backpack slung over his shoulders. And he couldn't help thinking that this was utterly ridiculous. But he had work to get done, and he couldn't let this kind of idiocy derail him. Especially when he had no plans whatsoever to celebrate, so he didn't appreciate strangers incessantly asking him what he was doing with his day.
In Westchester, Scott had shown up early to take part in the Xavier Institute's long-held tradition of staff coffee first thing in the morning. It was a little tradition that he'd missed, and with James not making the coffee at home - and Scott half convinced that to make it the way K did, you had to be genetically related - this … was a long-lost bit of normalcy that he'd missed dearly.
Of course, part of that tradition was watching the news to see how much trouble the day was set to bring, and since it was James' birthday and speculation on the kid had been insane in the press, Scott really just needed to know how the attention was affecting his middle child. So far, nothing about the school year had been positive for James and Scott really was worried about him. He knew the kid would manage to do exactly what he set out to do, there was never any doubt about that, but no one knew what kind of impact it would have on James long-term.
As much as he'd wanted to show up in Cambridge to help James start the day right, he knew the kid was anxious enough about keeping his family's identity safe … and had taken the brunt of the press because of it. What little wasn't aimed at James at that point was squarely pointed Tony's way. But … Scott, Rachel, and Nate had been kept out of it. As much as he hated seeing James that uncomfortable, he was also grateful for Nate and Rachel's sake.
But that didn't mean he was going to let the day pass - even if he couldn't go into the house while James was at school since the press were camping out there just waiting to get pictures of anyone close to the kid. Yet, he still had ways to get around that - and his most likely accomplice had just stumbled in to breakfast looking surly - obviously not having slept well the night before.
Scott watched Billy as he scowled at his pop tart - slowly waking up and looking more and more grumpy as he listened to the 'news'. That is, until Scott decided to break the ice. Then, Billy turned his frown to Scott instead. "Do you have any plans today, Billy?" Scott asked, doing a fine job of keeping his expression under control.
"As a matter of fact, I don't. Someone is worried about getting in trouble over a secret now under-age boyfriend," Billy said with a dry tone.
"I thought he might shut everything down today," Scott said with a nod. "So … I guess the only way to do this will be to have you help me get him home for a few hours tonight as soon as he's done with classes today. Are you willing to help, or do I need to ask another reality bender that can get him in and out undetected?"
"Well I guess that depends on if it's just an errand or .."
"I think all of us would be upset if you didn't show up, Billy. You're still part of the family as long as you want to be," Scott said, then amended his statement. "You are even if you don't want to be, too."
Billy tried to keep his grumpy mood in place, but the prospect of spending down time with his sweetheart today was a little too tempting. "Does James know you're planning to do this?"
"No," Scott said, finally smiling crookedly. "And I think it's time he got surprised. I'll get Rachel and Nate to help. We need to do this right - like we always do." That at least had Billy losing his scowl in place of a much more trouble making expression, and a few moments later, the two of them were sitting together plotting out how to handle everything.
As the day went on and both Scott and Billy had time to consider what they wanted or needed to do for James' surprise birthday celebration, the two of them would take a moment between classes to compare notes - trying to get everything as right as they could, even if there were a few hiccups along the way … like the fact that both of them had different ideas on what they should have for dinner, which led both of them to realize that James still wasn't sharing his opinions on what he liked best in favor of letting everyone pick their favorites. It was a little frustrating for both of them, and bringing Rachel into the conversation proved to be no help at all since she had her own thoughts that didn't match up with either Scott or Billy.
As it turned out, James' day had been sliding downhill from the start, and his stomach was twisted up in knots by noon with just two classes left to go. None of the classrooms were safe when the press was just outside snapping pictures through the windows, and when that didn't pan out like they wanted, some of the students had started trying their hand at covert photo taking for cash with mixed results and unanimously irritated teachers at the disruption. He wasn't even surprised when he got the message that he had to go to the dean's office.
So, before his last class of the day ended, James found himself leaving to go see if he was getting kicked out for circumstances beyond his control. He was almost dizzy, and he had a sinking feeling in the pit of his stomach as he went that only felt heavier when he stepped into the office and the man gently asked him to take a seat. Nothing felt right about this interaction and he was on the edge of dread and anger that it was going down like this - blindsided when he was alone without his Dad or Tony for back up. But, he still quietly did as he was asked without comment while he waited to see how this was going to be framed.
The man took a seat, straightening out his tie once he was seated, and then he simply watched James for a long moment before he cleared his throat. "It's quite a show out there today," the dean said in a soft, tentative tone. "Are you managing to get any work done with all the distractions?"
"As much as I'm allowed to normally," James replied. He didn't mean to take the shot, but he was close to cracking from all the pressure anyhow - and if he was going to be kicked out, he might as well make his feelings known.
The dean gave him a tight, pained smile at that, nodding to himself. "As I understand it, you've declined Ms. Frost's assistance," the dean said, though unlike the angry tone he'd used every other time James was brought into his office over Emma Frost, this time, the guy almost sounded … concerned. "May I ask why?"
"For lack of a better term, familial conflict," James said, seeing no reason to mince words on her behalf.
"That's unfortunate," the dean said, honestly sounding disheartened. "She could be a powerful ally."
"I have no doubt about that. But … there is nothing she has to offer that I don't have access to already and her retainer is higher than I'm willing to pay even if I didn't have the resources I do," James replied flatly, but managed to keep his tongue otherwise. He didn't believe for a second that this guy had waited over a month to talk to him about Emma freakin' Frost.
The dean mumbled his agreement, looking distracted as he watched James - and giving James the distinct impression that he wanted to say something, but for some reason was stopping himself.
"Is this about my engineering paper? Am I in trouble or is this another refusal to let me move forward?" James asked after the silence stretched out for a few minutes and he was to the point that he had to consciously keep from jiggling his foot. "I know the press is being a pain, but I can't do anything about that, so-"
"No, no," the dean said quickly, cutting across him and frowning deeper as he held up both hands. "No, nothing like that … you're not in any trouble because of the press and your paper … that paper is under review. That's all I can tell you, unfortunately. I simply thought it would be wise to check in with you and see how you're … ah … handling college life here."
James blinked at that, and leaned toward the man, not having expected a wellness check any more than he'd anticipated another discussion about Emma Frost. "What-"
"Have you found a way to integrate into our student body? I know my younger students often have more hurdles when faced with older peers, particularly in the more advanced levels."
Again, James found himself off balance. There was nothing about this conversation that seemed normal, particularly after several months of busting his ass with no one but a handful of teachers checking on him. "I haven't exactly had time to make many friends," James said. "Not with the schedule I have right now."
"You can always readjust your winter semester," the dean said. "I know you were in a rush to finish, but you can take your time."
"With all due respect, when I take into consideration the problems with the press getting overly pushy, I think your student body would appreciate it if I hurried along and finished up faster."
"In that matter, I believe you're mistaken, young man." He cleared his throat again, then picked up a stack of papers and put his glasses on to look them over as he switched gears. "I've been told your work has been above the bar in every subject and your teachers are more than pleased with your writing and lab work." He looked up at James and put on a smile that James simply couldn't buy, if nothing else, than because he was the one insisting on all the hoops. "Keep up the good work, . You've done well avoiding trouble, I'm pleased to say, and I hope the rest of your birthday goes well."
"Thank you," James said, his tone almost sounded like a question, and he very clearly didn't trust the situation so he made no secret of how he felt through his tone and his body language. James paused for just an instant before he got to his feet and the dean almost belatedly did the same, still looking like he wanted to say something. But even with James giving him an expectant look, the man couldn't do it, so he finally smiled tightly and turned to leave, trying hard not to growl on the way out.
It was too late to go back to class, so James let out a weary breath once the door closed behind him and he started to go down the very short list of things he needed to do before he could head off to take his run home.
He had to go to the library to see if the paper he'd requested had come in for one of his last two theses … and he had to check in with the physics professor before he continued on the second paper any further … One could wait … the other would not.
So, before he could allow himself a few minutes to himself, James headed for the library. He could at least take a few photographs of the papers most important passages for reference before he headed back to the house. Unfortunately, he was held up for a little bit while he sifted through the texts triple checking his references and trying to ignore the slowly circling, very nervous students that obviously wanted to get closer.
He glanced around the library, taking stock of who was where, and was unsurprised to find that after a moment or two, Katarina looked up and caught his gaze from across the way - only to surprise him when all she did at that point was to smile broadly before going back to her own studies.
That was one more layer of complications he really didn't have the patience for at the moment, but James also knew that if he didn't cut out soon, she'd find her way over to talk and even if he was misreading her actions, having her close and flirting a little would only screw with him some more. He watched out of his peripheral vision for a few moments to see how much it looked like she had left to do before he called it a day himself … and got out of the building before she could catch up. Just being that close to her had him fighting the urge to apologize for something … he didn't understand. And he did not want to spend his birthday with a beautiful girl he was having trouble keeping at arms length. That could only spell trouble if he allowed her another chance to get in close.
While he was trying to clear his head, James ignored the buzz of his phone in his pocket until he got to the house, inside, and locked the door behind him, then, he kicked off his shoes and made a point to double check that the blinds were closed on his way upstairs to take a hot shower. But once he'd cleaned up and turned his face into the spray, the water wasn't working to wash the day away. He felt sick to his stomach, like something was just wrong. But he didn't read the text from Billy until he was half changed - and he told him as much.
Sweetheart, whatever you're thinking, just tell me. I'm barely back in the house from school and I'm going to finish changing in about five seconds. James wrote, then pulled one of his most cozy, soft hoodies on over his black t-shirt.
I was thinking we could get together today behind closed doors and spend a little time away from the press. Unless you're having a horrible day, then we need to do that.
It's just another day, Billy. Nothing special to report and no reason to screw up your schedule. Really. I'm just going to watch a movie in bed later.
That's totally unacceptable to do alone.
I'll live. Love you.
Love you too. Don't go to bed yet.
It's like two.
It's three and I want to see you. You've got two minutes to get dressed. Love you - see you SOON.
"Damnit," James muttered, knowing perfectly well he didn't have a say in it at this point, so instead, he pulled his socks on and grabbed his shoes … that was about all he had time for before Billy cast his spell and James disappeared, only to reappear in the living room at the Brooklyn house. Where his entire family was waiting with smiles to greet him - though not before Billy got there to pull him into a tight hug and kiss. "What the hell?"
"Happy Birthday, Sweetheart," Billy said quietly.
"You didn't really think we were going to let your birthday pass without doing anything, did you?" Rachel said with a broad smile before she nearly pushed Billy out of the way to hug her little brother while he was still openly off his guard.
"I thought you might want to, yeah," James said, though he closed his eyes as he leaned into the hug, tipping Rachel off that today was not going well for her little brother.
"No way, dork," Nate said before he joined in, too … just to complete the sibling circle. "No one here gets to see you as much as we'd like anyhow. Why would we skip your birthday? Not like you're out of the family just because you're eighteen now."
It was clearly a tease, but one that hit a little too close to some deeply buried concerns not only for James, but Scott, too. And there was no way that Nate could have known exactly how close to the truth he'd hit, either. Not unless he'd caught it telepathically, anyhow.
And on that note, Scott made his way over before James could start overthinking that. He pulled James into a solid hug, noting that it didn't look like James had anything to say after that astute insight on Nate's part. Nothing that he wanted to air anyhow. "Couldn't let it pass without doing your birthday right," he told him. "So - how's it been so far?"
"Better now," James replied - understated as always - more so lately, too. "Thanks, Dad. But you didn't have to do anything."
"James, I'm going to be celebrating your birthday until the day I die," Scott said, one hand still on his shoulder.
"As long as that's not the same day, I'm good, I guess," James replied.
"I'll do what I can," Scott said with a smirk, then gestured toward the rest of the family. "And when you're twenty-one, I'll take you to Harry's."
"Thor already said he was going to handle that," James teased.
"Dad privilege," Scott said without missing a beat. "Thor can take a number."
"Okay then," he said, though he left out the rest of what he was thinking - if he was still going to be around, or if Scott would have something more pressing to deal with - all things considered. He was pretty sure Nate and Kate would be making all sorts of announcements in no time.
And Scott had definitely noticed the lack of enthusiasm, so even though James ended up mildly joking with both Nate and Rachel once they got into the food, Scott found himself sitting down a bit apart from them and almost holding his breath.
He hadn't thought about it in a long time, but… he was almost positive he'd had the exact same fears as James once. When Charles Xavier had taken him in, he'd saved him in so many ways, and Scott knew every day how much he owed the man. When he'd quit the X-Men, even though it was temporary back then… he'd been convinced he'd just lost his family too. It was a hard thing to unlearn, that feeling in the back of his throat that went hand in hand with knowing he was going to get left behind again. Their circumstances had been wildly different, but James had been bounced around so much as a little kid that even his stable years after that hard start weren't going to undo that damage. Just like finding the X-Men hadn't undone similar damage Scott had dealt with from his years in the Home for Foundlings.
There wasn't anything Scott could do, really, and he knew it. That feeling didn't go away, that sense that an adopted family was more precarious - even if he knew that wasn't the case. But Scott hated to see it in his son, because he knew what that felt like, and he knew that James didn't really have the full memories of his first family and the stability he'd lost.
"So, you look like Atlas over here," Annie said, bringing two plates of food over to the couch to sit beside him with a smile.
Scott glanced up fast when she sat down and then let out a breath. "Sorry. Just thinking."
Annie nodded sagely. ."I can see it too," she said. "I don't blame you for worrying."
Scott let his shoulders drop. "I was the same way, you know. You get to adulthood and you think the adults that got you there might just be finished with you-"
"That's no excuse," Annie said, wrinkling her nose at him. "I know he's under a lot of pressure, but still!"
Scott turned her way, his eyebrows pressed together. "It's not exactly easy to shrug that kind of self-doubt off. You've been around Craig long enough-"
"Oh, like my brother puts up with people using substances as self-medication," Annie said, matching his defensive body language without realizing it.
Which was when Scott realized they were not having the same conversation. "...what?"
"What do you mean 'what'?" Annie said, still looking like she was ready to defend her brother. "Considering how careful you've been about anything that could endanger your secret, I would have thought drugs were the last thing you'd let anyone near. Heaven knows what anyone might say under the influence, let alone-"
He reached out to grab her hand. "Annie. What are you talking about?" he said more insistently. "What drugs?"
She took her hand back but softened her expression. "What were you talking about, then? I thought you had bionic eyes, Mr. Summers."
"They scan for weapons and, at best, could tell me if someone had a fever." He leaned forward. "What are you talking about?"
Annie met his gaze and then, seeing that he was honestly worried, let out a slow breath. "I've seen enough kids using drugs in school to know what it looks like," she said. "And James has some telltale signs. His pupils are dilated, and he's not moving freely. Everything else, well … that might just be depression, or it could be something else." When Scott stared at her in shocked silence, she bit her lip. "I thought that was what had you looking so pensive."
"No," Scott said but couldn't quite find anything else to say as he looked past Annie to where the kids were still joking around. He swallowed hard and then nodded once. "Annie, James can't get high or drunk without some serious work. He'd have to be drinking Asgardian ale or an entire shelf's worth of alcohol - or doing heavy drugs in massive quantities. Or he'd need an inhibitor or collar. None of that would get past Bobby or the dean, and if it was an inhibitor, he wouldn't still be showing signs." He looked toward the kids once again, using Tony's zoom feature to check and see that, yes, James's pupils were still dilated and he did seem to be moving a little slower than usual.
Annie reached out to put a hand on his knee. "What can I do?" she asked quietly.
Scott blinked to return his sight to normal and then turned toward her and sighed. "For now, I'll keep an eye on him and talk to him after the party. If he looks worse, I'll talk to him sooner, but…" He sighed again. "That's what I was trying to say earlier. When you lose one family and another takes you in, the transition to adulthood is… rough."
"Oh!" Annie looked instantly sympathetic and nodded quickly. "Oh, right. Yes. That makes perfect sense."
Scott smirked as he watched Annie all but trip over herself to agree. She had come from such a loving, complete family that he knew falling for someone who had so many hiccoughs in his family couldn't have been easy for her. "He'll be alright," he promised. "On both counts. Whatever's going on right now, I'll talk to him about it. You're right; something is wrong, but he wouldn't do that to himself. Which means I need to chew Bobby out on his security standards."
Before he could consider his next move, Scott took a moment to take his phone out and call Hank. He was closest, and he could get there relatively fast. Hopefully in enough time to get some blood drawn .. or just to sniff the kid out. Especially since now that Scott was really watching James, it looked like he hadn't hit the worst of it yet. But none of his kids seemed to realize what was going on even after James closed his eyes for a moment and sat back in his chair. .
But Billy sure noticed. "Hey, what's wrong?" Billy asked as Scott got to his feet.
"Just a little lightheaded," James replied quietly. "I'm fine."
"I don't believe that," Billy said- and by that time, Rachel, Nate, and Kate were all watching James a lot more closely.
"It's not a big deal," James said, though he didn't look ready to do anything other than sit there and try to get his bearings again.
"What's going on?" Nate asked as Scott made it over to them and started looking James over for himself.
The scanner setting in his eyes showed him all kinds of signs that James was having more trouble than he was letting on… aside from the obvious symptoms, his pulse was racing but he was barely breathing.
"You should lie down," Rachel said, catching what her father was projecting loud and clear.
"I'm okay," James argued, though now it almost sounded like his words were running into each other, too.
"No you're not," Nate argued, stepping in to pick him up telekinetically before he argued any further.
"Knock it off," James growled out, but by that time, no one believed he was alright.
"Just hold on a minute," Scott said, and for his dad at least, James did exactly as he was told. Especially when it was obvious that Scott was running a scan. "What did you do today?"
"Same things I do every day," James replied in a grumpy tone.
"Something was different," Scott said. "So what was it?"
"I don't know … everyone was weird today and the press was getting in my face, but … nothing bad." He paused, thinking of how even Katarina hadn't gotten close enough to flirt with him. But then he started backtracking mentally when he realized feeling like this had him thinking of her. "Wait. What are you thinking?"
"I think someone drugged you," Scott admitted. "Hank is on the way to try and get some blood before it's burned out. Did you eat or drink anything at school?"
"Only what I brought with me," James said, staring at him and wondering how and who could have done it. No one had a chance all day that he could remember.
"Well, either someone drugged you or you've been experimenting with illegal substances," Nate said with his arms crossed, which only had James giving him a dry look. "Hey. Those are the options!"
"I'm not experimenting," James said in a growl, rearranging himself so he was sitting upright in spite of how his brother had tried to push him flat.
"Transdermal, then?" Rachel said looking up at her dad, and when Scott nodded, Billy paled.
"Wait …"
"I took a hot shower before you brought me here," James told him, automatically switching over to 'work' mode when faced with an actual problem. "Just about anything that I could soak up through my skin would be washed off."
"We can have Hank check just to be sure, though," Rachel added, and Billy let out a sigh.
"I feel okay, though," Billy said.
"We'll check anyhow," Scott said.
James tried again to argue the need for Hank to check up on him just a moment before Rachel pushed him back flat - and it was clear once he was prone he had no drive to make himself sit upright again.
"And this is why we're having Hank check you over," Rachel said with her hands on her hips.
James didn't argue with her at that point, either, instead he let himself melt into the couch while the group settled in to speculate while they waited for Hank to show up. By the time he did, he had only had time to draw James' blood as James nodded off during the exam a few moments before the alarm Tony had set up for the house in Cambridge went off.
By the time Scott had the cameras up, though, it looked an awful lot like a false alarm. Nothing in the house was disturbed and the press outside were all still milling around, chatting among themselves. There was no angle from any camera that showed any trouble in the house, but considering the state James was in, there also wasn't much of a chance of it being a coincidence. So, Scott reached out to Natasha and decided that James would be staying the night. At least.
By the time that call was made, the other kids were holding serious discussions and James was unresponsive to attempts to wake him. Annie couldn't think of how to react and instead found herself just sitting on the love seat staring at the whole scene, covering her mouth with both hands.
Scott sighed as he took a seat next to Annie and gently put his arm around her back before he turned to the others who were all in various states of damage control, information processing, and strategizing. "Nate, can you and Billy help Hank get James to his room? He's not going anywhere tonight."
"I don't think I need help," Nate said, but for once, neither of them were using their powers to get James going - just in case someone could see.
"I'll put a monitor on him just in case," Hank told Scott as the boys got James up the stairs and to his room. "But I don't believe he's in danger of dying tonight." He tipped his head toward Annie then followed the boys - device in hand to set up the monitor.
But that gave Scott and Annie a chance to talk while Rachel, Kate, and America were gathered up in a tight knot in the kitchen to discuss things. "Are you alright?" Scott asked Annie quietly.
"Fine," Annie said, though her voice was a slightly higher pitch than usual.
"Uh-huh." Scott forced his shoulders to drop as he slid closer to wrap his arms around her. "You sure about that?"
Annie sighed but shifted in his arms so that they were more comfortably positioned. "I am," she said more seriously. "I'm … well, I'm upset for him, obviously. But I can already see your team and your family defending him, and that's good. I just…" She blew out a breath that moved some of her hair out of her face. "I've seen Anton struggle with being a mutant, but this is a whole new level."
Scott nodded, watching her carefully. "You don't have to stay in the line of fire, you know," he said, slowly. "This life isn't for everyone. I'd know. I left it behind myself."
Annie shook her head, neatly tucking into him to physically show him her decision. "That's not at all what I was trying to say," she told him.
"I wouldn't blame you if it was," he gently pointed out.
"I would," Annie said. She reached up to brush some of his hair away from his face. "You're not even a hero anymore; your children are. What kind of person would I be if I couldn't even handle being support to a hero's support system?"
Scott shook his head at her wording. "It's different," he said.
"It's not." She stood on her toes and strained to kiss him with their height difference. "I won't lie to you and say it isn't… disconcerting to see that all the paranoia you carry around is not only justified but necessary. But all I can feel right now is anger."
Scott blinked. "What?"
"You've been raising them since they weren't even old enough to go to school, and this is what you've been worried about their whole lives. Your entire experience with fatherhood was stolen from you and turned into a battle for survival. Why wouldn't I be angry?"
Scott watched her and the fire in her eyes and smiled. He could see so much of Jean in her in that moment. Yes, they were as different as they could be in so many ways, but in the defense of their family and their sense of justice, they were exactly the same.
It was so damn attractive.
"I feel that way all the time," he admitted and then picked her up for a kiss, temporarily distracted because Annie was so hot under the collar and because, frankly, he couldn't do anything but wait for Hank's lab results, wait for Natasha to evaluate James's clothes, wait for Tony's security systems' evaluations, and wait for James' healing to get rid of the drugs. All of which were things he could do nothing to speed along. But he could spend some quality time with Annie and her fire.
Upstairs, after Billy and Nate had done what they could to get James comfortably in his bed and Hank put a few sensors on James to monitor him from afar, Nate tactfully let himself out - and closed the door behind him. He didn't need to be a telepath to know that Billy wanted some alone time, even if James wasn't aware enough to take part.
It would take Hank some time to get analysis back on what it was in James' system that could so profoundly affect him, and if it wasn't for the fact that Billy knew James liked to immediately clean up when he got into the Cambridge house after school, he would have been more concerned about contact with something so potent should it still be on James' skin or clothes.
But that wasn't the case. James still smelled like soap, and his hair was barely dried when he'd shown up in Brooklyn, so instead of backing away, Billy looked around until he found another blanket, made sure James was properly covered up and tucked in, then climbed in next to him with his own blanket. He didn't know what he'd tell his mother, other than the truth, so he let his intentions to stay where he was solidify - since he was pretty sure that was the trigger for the spell she was using. The moment when intention became action would draw her in, and that meant cuddling up and committing to it.
There was a lot to unpack, after all … suddenly, all of the paranoia the Summers family held so tightly to was crystal clear. He'd assumed that the kidnapping attempt by the Acolytes had been entirely new and just fresh fuel for the paranoia they always had … but this? They knew right away who was after Billy and Tommy. This attack had no leads. Nothing solid anyhow. Billy could count on one hand the number of people that would consider crossing Tony's line in the sand and not one of them was a good option. And that had him thinking about the ones that wouldn't cross that line, too … he had no idea how many entities and supervillains would have considered snatching his sweetheart based on who his parents were, let alone his ties even before he and Billy started dating.
Suddenly, James' reluctance to go public with their relationship looked less and less a matter of the slight age gap or any of the issues with this being James' first boyfriend. Instead, it looked like more of a protective move. And that had Billy considering what he could do to return the favor as he watched over James, slightly on edge for how little they knew about the attack.
Which was when Wanda appeared … her presence betrayed by the red light shining from under the door. Billy turned to face her as she walked in, once again looking ready to fight - especially since it hadn't been long at all since she'd shown up for exactly this kind of infraction. "What are you thinking?" Wanda said in a harsh whisper.
"Right now? Mostly about how to make him more impervious to poison and drugs," Billy countered in a very matter of fact tone before instantly launching into a retelling of how the night had gone. He was on his feet within the first few sentences - animatedly telling her how it had gone … accented perfectly by how very still James was in spite of the noise Billy was making.
She heard him out, her arms crossed over her middle as Billy continued from storytelling into speculation and running down what the Avengers and elder X-Men were doing right then to keep James safe … or relatively so. "And now, you're considering wishing for him to be more … him when it comes to drugs and poison. Billy, sweetheart, that's a terrible idea," Wanda said before running her hand through his hair.
"I disagree."
"No, listen," Wanda said, making sure to take him by both shoulders so he had no choice but to give her his full attention. "Remember when I said not to meddle in the timeline?"
"Yes."
"And when I told you that as you get older, you'll have to pay consequences for doing magic that doesn't need to be cast?"
"But-"
"You didn't mean to wish Tommy out of existence, remember?"
"Mom- that's nothing like-"
"What kind of consequences might happen if you meddled with James' mutation?" When Billy didn't have an immediate response, Wanda dipped her head to make sure she'd kept his attention. "I thought you loved his mutation as it is?"
"I do, but-"
"You can't meddle with things that help to make up the people around us. You know this. If it was that easy, I would have wished for your grandfather to let go of all the bitterness he held onto for so long and to enjoy the people he loved while he still had time to do so. But that would have changed him in ways no one could have predicted. The same holds true even for this. Please, sweetheart. He'll bounce back better than anyone on the planet. Just let him do it."
Again, Billy was quiet, though his focus was on James as he slept.
"You can stay here tonight," Wanda said.
"I'm probably going to spend tomorrow here," Billy warned. "I need to be sure he's okay - especially since his dad is probably about to have a stroke or something."
"I really wish you wouldn't skip classes," Wanda said in as harsh a tone as she could manage, though it didn't carry any of the scathing qualities she'd hoped for.
"Let's be honest, Mom. I wouldn't be able to concentrate anyhow. At least I'm not lying to you."
Wanda closed one eye and pointed at his nose. "Only if Scott's alright with you sticking around."
"I promise, I'll ask." Billy held his mother's gaze as she searched his face for a lie. "In the morning."
"Uh huh." She broke into a crooked smile then pulled Billy into a hug and kissed his cheek. "So you know, I don't want anyone to steal him either."
"Thanks, Mom," Billy said, squeezing her just a little tighter before they broke apart and wanda waited at the doorframe as Billy settled back in. She lingered for a few moments longer, then turned off the light, stepped out into the hall, closed the door, and disappeared back to Genosha.
The next morning, James woke up slowly. He was sure it wasn't past his usual alarm, but he couldn't remember how he'd even gotten into bed … and then, when he shifted, he realized that Billy was curled up with him. He smiled to himself for a moment, leaned toward Billy and kissed his forehead before he even realized … wait. They weren't supposed to be doing this.
But Billy was using his shoulder for a pillow and his arm was across James' waist … and their legs were half tangled in blankets on top of the usual tangles, so he couldn't just … get up.
"Billy," James half-whispered in a rough voice. "What…"
"Taking the day off," Billy muttered, doubling down on his snuggle. "Mom said it was okay. I'm sure your dad will be okay, too."
James almost laughed at the audacity of it all. "Except I have to go to class," James said, then reached over to pick up his phone on the windowsill. "I have some time, but you're going to need to wish me there or I'll never make it."
"Oh, yeah, that's going to be a big 'no', handsome. I have to want something to wish it into being and I do not want to send you back to where you were drugged," Billy replied.
"Sweetheart, it's really not up for discussion," James said as he turned and pulled him into a better snuggle hoping that would wake him up enough to get him to listen to reason.
"You're right. So get comfortable because we're staying," Billy said in that same sleepy tone that left James wondering if Billy was listening to him at all or just deciding he'd rather skip out on responsibilities for a change.
"If I understand things right, I slept through my own surprise party, so … I think I've been down enough." James leaned in to steal a very quick kiss. "I'm going down to make coffee. You should come have some with me before I figure out who else can get me back to Cambridge before my class starts at ten."
James slipped out before Billy could come up with a solid counterargument, his phone in hand as he looked through anything he'd missed while he was out. When he got to the kitchen, it was still pitch black out, so he was careful to watch his footfalls and avoid the floorboards that squeaked if you stepped too close to the middle of the run. He knew he couldn't be too far ahead of his dad, after all. Not after something like that.
Once the coffee pot was brewing, James hopped up onto the counter and leaned his head back on the cabinetry as he peeled off the sensors Hank had stuck across his torso, then crossed his arms over his chest and settled in to listen to the rest of the house. He could hear Nate trying to get comfortable after ignoring his first alarm, his dad trying to decide if he was getting up or not … likely he'd been up half the night or better. And he could hear Billy shuffling upstairs … vacillating between getting up and going back to sleep.
And while he listened to the house in the background and let the smell of the coffee wash over him, James closed his eyes and tried to remember as much as he could from the night before - and attempted to pinpoint when exactly his night fell apart. There was just … a lot of the day he couldn't remember. But even at that, he wasn't overly worried about it, if he was being honest. Not because the threat wasn't real, but because he couldn't afford to let it stop him now. Getting everyone else to agree … that was a whole different story.
He needed to get to Cambridge, and he needed to do it faster than he could manage in a car. Which meant his options were either getting Happy to arrange to fly him there in the helicopter - nothing pretentious or suspicious about that - or sweet talking his boyfriend into wishing him there. But seeing as Billy had made it clear that he wasn't interested in that option … James reluctantly took out his phone and sent a text to Happy, knowing better than to even attempt to talk to one of the Avengers first. It was probably a waste of time, but … if he was going to get there in time, he had a finite amount of morning to work through.
He'd only just sent the text when Scott arrived, moving slowly enough that James knew he'd been right in his estimation of how much sleep he'd gotten as Scott went to the pantry to get some things for breakfast while the coffee was still being made.
Wordlessly, Scott slid his phone over to James with a text message from Natasha pulled up so that James could see her report from her examination of his clothes. He'd definitely been hit with a transdermal cocktail that reacted on contact with water, and Natasha let Scott know that Tony was already furiously looking for answers on who had access to what looked like a super-potent ketamine.
"Only so many places that could have happened," James said. "Got it. I can work around it."
"James," Scott said in a tired tone.
"Dad, I'm fine," James said. "And I have to finish up."
"And I don't want you to give up your dream, but there's an imminent threat here-"
James let out an irritated sound. "It was never a legit threat. I have trackers sewn into my clothes that don't turn on until after a sweep, and when they do turn on, they broadcast. It's fine."
"I'm more concerned about what could happen to you before that, especially in the state you were in last night," Scott told him frankly.
"You'll need to fill me in then because I don't know how bad it got." James hopped off the counter and pulled down two mugs then poured them both a cup. "What do you think could have happened?"
"You didn't fight your siblings on anything. I think if someone with nefarious intent had you in that state, you'd go along with them," Scott said frankly. "And when you're that out of it, it would be easier to break into your thoughts, break into your healing…" He trailed off. "My concern is that the drug was only the first step to getting you where they wanted you."
James slid the first mug to Scott as he sat down with him at the table. "Probably. I'm still not going to hide though. Not when I might actually be making some forward progress."
Scott paused at that, though before he could press him, he looked past James to where Annie was at the top of the stairs. "Forward progress? That sounds suspiciously like good news," he said - partly for the tired smile it got out of Annie.
"Which is why I was keeping it to myself. It's still not a solid thing, so I didn't want to unnecessarily get anyone's hopes up … again." James tipped his head slightly, the smirked to himself when he heard Nate stub his toe on his dresser and start swearing under his breath.
"Still, that's encouraging. What have you got?" Scott asked.
"Two of the three papers are about three quarters done," James said. "And the engineering one is already under review. But that doesn't mean anything, as you already know."
Scott was quiet, tapping his finger against his chin, before he said, with a slow smile, "Still, you're close."
"Maybe." James leaned forward. "What the hell do you think I've been doing beating my head against the wall over there?"
"Giving yourself a concussion, obviously," Scott teased right back.
"For all the good it's doing me," James replied. "So … Natasha's angry texts aside, I need to get back to Cambridge. Before class today."
"Billy can get you there, can't he?" Annie asked as she hit the bottom of the stairs.
"Billy would rather wish me to Genosha and call it a done deal," James said dryly, though he kept his focus to his coffee cup for the time being.
"Understandable. I'd be beside myself with worry too," Annie said, letting herself into the cabinets and already pulling things out to make breakfast.
When she had her back to them, James shifted his focus from his coffee cup up to his father with a single raised eyebrow look … and just waited.
Scott nearly laughed, purely because the look was so familiar. "Not a word."
"About what?" James replied perfectly evenly.
Scott sighed and shook his head, though he couldn't be as annoyed as he would have been with Logan for the same look - especially when Annie stole a kiss on her way past him to look for something or other.
James nearly smiled, but made a point not to … just because he was sure it would get Scott to break first … then held Scott's gaze as he went right to picking. "Miss Hale, I didn't think to get some tea out for you. Does Dad have enough to get you through the morning?"
"Oh, usually," Annie said, unconcerned as she got some hashbrowns started. "Don't you worry about me."
But James wasn't going to let that slide by Scott and as soon as Annie had answered, he mouthed out 'usually', then got up to get more coffee.
"I," Scott said in a whisper, "am an adult."
"Me too. Usually," James whispered back before he let his volume ratchet closer to normal. "Does Jan have the invitations printed yet?"
"For what?" Annie asked, frowning his way.
"Nate's graduation," James shot back, covering his tracks and again shifting the focus from what Scott wanted to discuss with him. "She likes to plan well ahead and it sounds like he's on track for an early bow out."
"Good for him," Annie said, genuinely pleased, before she went back to what she was doing.
James smirked as he slid Scott's cup to him again. "I really should just go and leave you two to your morning. I doubt Billy will cooperate, so I'm going to need to get to somewhere the chopper can land."
"Oh, do you need someone to drive you?" Annie offered.
"No, I don't want to interrupt anything. You take your time waking up. Flight's only about an hour and I have time."
"I'm sure Billy will wish you there," Annie said reasonably. "If you tell him how close you are… I know it's a risk, but you won't be there much longer, and really, from what I heard and saw of all the conversations Scott was having last night…"
"I'm pretty sure Tony spent half the night up like Dad did," James said. "They both deserve a little more time in bed. Besides … worst case scenario, I can bribe Tommy."
Scott chuckled under his breath. "And that," he said, "will get Billy to agree."
"We'll see," James said. He got to his feet again and headed over to get a mug of coffee for Billy. "But if that's the case I've got a little more time, too."
As he left, he passed Rachel, though he paused to kiss her cheek on his way by, and that left Rachel a little more relaxed on her brother's behalf. She took in the state of things in the kitchen and smiled at her father since Annie was still working. "Did he actually discuss everything or did he distract and redirect?"
Scott raised an eyebrow and then realized she was entirely right, sighed, and waved his hand. "In my defense, he hasn't been here on a morning when Annie has been here."
Annie paused and looked their way with her eyes wide. "Oh, did I ruin something?"
"Not at all," he promised quickly. "James has a talent for finding distractions anywhere when he doesn't want to talk about something."
Annie blushed. "Still…"
"Not your fault," he insisted. And then, just to drive the point home, he got up to kiss her while she was flipping over the French toast. "He's made up his mind, so he'll find a way not to hear other viewpoints."
"That's one way to put it," America said, chuckling as she announced her presence by stealing some of the cinnamon French toast Annie had made. ""Your future step-mom makes a mean breakfast, gorgeous. I'm in favor of more family time."
Rachel and Annie both turned a brilliant pink, though Annie's was far more pronounced. "Oh, I was…" Annie started to say and then trailed off entirely, absolutely unable to come up with something to say in response to America.
She has that effect on everyone, Rachel assured her.
If you say so, Annie said, doing a fair attempt at projecting in a controlled manner.
Rachel grinned. Hey, you've been practicing.
I'm trying to make a good impression on Scott's family.
You already have, Rachel promised. Then, just because Annie still looked pink, she added, And my girlfriend likes you, so…
Ringing endorsement, Annie said, though she was smiling as she turned back to the rest of the breakfast spread she was making.
Annie wasn't expecting the spectacle she found when she finally got back to the tower after school was out. She knew that the Avengers were riled up by the sheer number of texts that had been flying back and forth over night from both Tony and Natasha - as well as those from Hank about toxicology and those from Jan and Steve that were simply showing support. But for some reason, she didn't realize how territorial Tony was when it came to 'his' kid.
Most of the Avengers were keeping far from the labs at the top of the tower, though that part wasn't overly unusual. The unusual part was when the door to the lab slammed shut, Hank got up and left to avoid the dining room area where most of them had a tendency to sit and talk. And she could hear why they were leaving before Tony even got close.
He was fuming as he tore into someone on the other end of his bluetooth call. The tone itself simply was not anything close to what she'd heard in the tower or even in the rare moments a reporter had ticked him off.
She didn't think he was aware that he had an audience, but once she heard what he was raging about, she understood why he was so consumed. He was determined to figure out who had managed to get past all the security measures in place to protect James, and he wasn't going to rest until he had someone's head on a platter.
She had to cover her mouth to hide the fact that she was smiling. She had seen James's self-doubt plainly in the few times she'd been around him, but she hoped that, as he got older, he would realize just how loved he was. There was Tony Stark, absolutely emotional over the whole affair in a way that Annie had only seen with parents who were terrified for their kids.
She'd known, of course, that Tony was on the case, because Scott had been up most of the night getting messages from everyone. But Tony didn't look like he'd slept, and he was clearly running on coffee. So, in a moment's decision, she slipped past him into the kitchen and then followed the sound of Tony still berating people until she found him pouring himself coffee from the machine in the living room, his phone still in hand.
Wordlessly, she slid some food his way and then had every intention of backing off - though she didn't quite get away cleanly. Jan had seen what she was up to - and Tony looked surprised too.
"I was just…" Annie gestured toward Tony when Jan paused in the doorway. "I don't know what to do, so I'll help the people who do."
Tony looked like he was caught midway into a double take, and his tone shifted almost at once as he took stock of everything around him. "Thank you," he said in as civil a tone as he could muster before he tapped his earpiece again, drew in a breath and dove in all over again - to who Annie thought was some kind of military brass as he awkwardly scooped up what Annie had left for him in one hand, shoved his phone in his back pocket, then grabbed his coffee on the way back to the lab leveling severe threats the whole way.
And Jan seemed to appear out of nowhere next to Annie an instant before she bumped shoulders with her. "That was really sweet," Jan said. "He gets all tuckered out threatening the military."
Annie was surprised but smiled all the same. "I understand why he's mad, though. You should have seen Scott last night."
"Oh, i"ve seen him in that mode before," Jan said, nodding. "Tony's going to worry himself into a heart attack the way he's going, though. He'll calm down when he can see his kid."
"He's back at school working away," Annie said.
"I know," Jan said, smiling. "He's determined to make those professors eat their words. In record time."
"That and he's so close it would be a shame to quit now," Annie said, smiling mischievously. "Next time you see him, ask him how close."
"I heard. He had to tell Tony just to get him to back off enough to get to class," Jan said. "What he didn't say was that he's probably not doing much on the other two until he knows what the story is on the first. Our boy isn't gullible enough to do all the work up front with no payout after the last time around."
"Smart," Annie agreed. "Given their track record, that's probably the only thing he can do."
"I've been encouraging him to consider other colleges," Jan whispered. "I know Tony favors MIT but there are other options. There has to be. But he has his father's stubborn streak. And Scott's too. And Tony's. Triple scoop."
"I went to Ol' Miss, but I wouldn't recommend it for avoiding racism," Annie admitted in a wince.
Jan grinned and leaned toward Annie as if imparting a secret, even if the secret was common knowledge. "James' little roomie, Franklin Richards, has been guest lecturing at his alma mater across the way in Cambridge," she said in a whisper. "Harvard didn't take issue with a high profile mutant …" Jan shrugged her shoulders up to her ears. "But I can't point that out to anyone …"
Annie raised an eyebrow. "You'd think with how smart James is, he'd pick up on that fact."
Jan waved one hand. "He has self esteem issues."
"I've noticed," Annie said mildly.
"I've already planted the seeds," she admitted. "He told me he wasn't sure it was worth trying elsewhere until this was straightened out, but he didn't outright say no."
"That's something," Annie said, drumming her fingers against her side. "I could talk to him too…"
"In a very big way, I also want him to do something to give MIT the middle finger … biggest competitor would be quite the statement."
"Not to mention when he's running SI and Vanity Fair does a spot on him… the story of his college drama would be all over the issue, too," Annie said, then paused and laughed. "But that might be me. I have a small petty streak when it comes to nonsense like this."
"No, no, that's exactly the angle I'm imagining, too," Jan said with a bright grin. "I'm just torn on if he should be in red or yellow."
Annie chuckled. "Have you roped Scott into this yet?"
"He's been too stressed out for me to even try," Jan said. "He isn't thinking much about counter attacks when he's wrapped up in damage control."
Annie nodded and blew out her breath. "If it's not too weird to ask… how did you deal with him when he was like that?"
"Um … I tried to help," Jan said quietly. "With the kids, with the tech, I designed for the kids to have a little fun with them, and I think I did okay? Until I got hurt on the job. That was it." She blew out her breath and took Annie by the arm to sit down in a cozy corner. "He couldn't handle me going back to what I do. I can't imagine he's anywhere near okay with James going out again that fast."
"He barely slept last night," Annie admitted, allowing her frown to completely overtake her expression. "He's worried sick."
"Which only has James more determined to prove he's okay," Jan said. "It's frustrating because physically he absolutely is. And he's learned how to hide the rest … most of the time."
"Scott does the same thing; I think it's a learned behavior," Annie said, shaking her head.
"Oh, for sure. I've seen the weird Scott-Tony-Howlett hybrid version of deflect and ignore. It's awful. And strangely effective against most people."
Annie smiled wider, though this time, she was blushing. "Oh, he did that this morning. I think he and Scott were talking about me, but they were too quiet for me to hear them."
"Do not try to go super quiet with that boy," Jan warned. "Especially if he's teaming up with his Aunt Widow or either Hawkeye. They can read lips, you know."
"Between them and the telepaths, I'm going to have to get used to never having privacy again, aren't I?" Annie asked in a sigh.
"Just worry about the telepaths with that," Jan said, patting Annie's arm. "James prefers to keep his nose out if he can. Hawkeyes … well, they're just nosy."
"I taught Kate. I know," Annie laughed.
"But … they can also be amazingly useful when it comes to planting information," Jan said with a troublemaking grin. "So. We totally need to plot this out."
Annie leaned toward Jan, caught up in her infectious enthusiasm. "I'm listening."
Chapter 90: Natural Reactions
Notes:
So it's been nearly a month ... oops. I'd like to say I can put these out a little quicker, but ... time will tell. Time will tell.
Chapter Text
With focus on and around Avenger's tower, it was simply too hot for the young heroes to get out and enjoy a little time to themselves without risking being 'unmasked'. Even during the week. So far, only James and Rachel had been outed, but now that the press had two private names and faces to go with their heroic public names … they were looking for more.
But that meant that it was just too hot for the kids to hang around anywhere close to the tower. Their parents had hoped that would get them to lay low, but that was never going to happen when they had the rare opportunity of a day off with no extracurricular activities on the board.
So it was just fate that Kate had found a large group of high schoolers gathering for the group to use as a good time and hide in plain sight. The only unfortunate thing was that the party was in Jersey, a point that Nate had to give her a hard time over - even if Billy and Tommy didn't seem to mind in the least. It was plain that the boys needed something to lighten them up after details on the attack on James made it back to Wanda and Vision.
No one in the Maximoff or Summers household was amused. At all. The poison used on James had turned out to be a terrifyingly simply concoction that could have been used by at least three or four individuals, and the only saving grace they had was that it wasn't one of Viper's complex, horrifying layered poisons, so they were reasonably sure that at least she wasn't on the list of people actively pushing to kidnap or kill the kid. But that didn't mean that a repeat of the same toxin wouldn't kill one of the others if they came into contact with it.
They needed a break. All of them. And a river-side warehouse party seemed like just the ticket. How Kate had heard about it, no one really knew, but … she knew about it, and she was more than ready to make friends on the other side of the river just as a change of pace. And they were all relieved to see that yes, Kate was right.
The party was big enough that they could wander, mingle, dance, and even grab a corner to hang around and chat while watching their peers live it up without much in the line of worrying about reporters overhearing them or stalker-y adults creeping around.
It was the kind of vibe they could catch at Xaviers, if not for the following they had there that wanted to know all about being X-Men. Or the stalker Billy had that was getting more and more forward.
Music was playing and one of the local kids was actually a promising young underground DJ. Almost everyone was into it in one way or another but very few of them were actually dancing. But those that were happened to be entirely too enthusiastic.
Kate, however, was in her element, and she was more than happy to pull Nate into the middle of the random groups of dancing teenagers to try and get him to loosen up - and then she fell apart laughing when Nate did his finest to make a fool of himself for her entertainment. It only lasted for a minute or two, but Kate needed to be held up by the time she got to full amusement, and Nate was more than happy to take that moment and shift it into stolen kisses between giggles.
He loved it when she let loose like that … and he didn't mind doing whatever it took to get her to grin like that.
Tommy looked almost like he wanted to do the same, but … he would have rather stuck close to Mia. And America was quick to call him out on it.
"How many times have you texted her already?" America teased. "Can your service even keep up?"
"No, it can't, thanks," Tommy said with a smirk. "But who said I'm just texting? I can get there before the text does anyhow."
"It's important to breathe, too," Billy said, one arm over his chest and a drink in his opposite hand.
"Like you'd be worrying about breathing if you could have gotten James to come out," Tommy shot back. "Come on. You'd be hiding somewhere making up for lost time or something."
"So not the point," Billy said, rolling his eyes because … well, he hated to admit when his brother was right. And he wasn't about to start now, either. But he didn't have time to retaliate before Kate and Nate bounced over, grinning and laughing the whole way.
"See?" Kate said. "I told you we could find a party."
"No one doubted that," Nate said, grinning as he wrapped her up from behind. Because you are the party, gorgeous.
I love that you know that and can admit it, Kate replied. But we have some moping friends we have to stop from moping.
That's my girl. Always trying to be the hero.
There's a nature versus nurture argument to be made here about my parents being Avengers…
Yeah, and mine's not trying to carry the weight of the world on his shoulders ever.
You turned out pretty normal.
I should be insulted.
Okay. I'll make it up to you later, Kate decided, and Nate laughed.
"What did we need to celebrate again?" America called out, breaking up the obvious telepathic flirting and kicking herself away from the booth she'd been leaning on.
"Um … we're almost done with my last ever fall semester in high school," Kate said, emphasizing every word.
"So … you're planning to celebrate our senior year by making it the all-Kate, all the time celebration for the next six months?" Tommy said, looking entirely amused.
"I can share," Kate said magnanimously. "You wanna pick the next place to party?"
"Only if I can pawn it off to America and ask her to kick us a hole in a dimension that rocks."
"I can," America said, grinning lazily. "And I'll make sure to snag Billy's poor downtrodden hunk on the way." When Billy turned red, America grinned even harder. "What, those were your words, weren't they?"
"Not… exactly…"
"I must have missed some of those when you were describing how hot he is…"
"America, why are you like this?"
"You tell me," America replied, grinning at her own inside joke, since a version of Billy had, in fact, created her universe.
Billy shook his head at her and then turned toward Kate. "Tommy has a point, though."
"And like I said, I can share," Kate said, both hands on her hips. "And you two need to get out more. Tommy's busy playing spy for 'Ro half the time trying to stay ahead of threats on the school-"
"-you make that sound like a bad thing-" Tommy tried to put in. "-when I'm really just being the best hero ever-"
"-and you've got that stalker," Kate continued, ignoring Tommy. "C'mon. Tell me it doesn't help to get away from him."
"Um… excuse me," a voice called out, barely breaking into the teasing and merrymaking, though they all spun to see who it was. "Hi." The young woman was brown-skinned, with shoulder length dark, flowing hair, and deep, wide brown eyes. She waved the tips of her fingers as she looked among them. "My name is Kamala. Hi."
"Hi, Kamala!" Kate said brightly, grinning as always before she introduced the group - by first names only. "What's up?"
The girl looked both ways, then lowered her voice more as she leaned toward Kate, though they all sort of leaned toward her, too. "I was just … I overheard you and your friends, and um … I'm sorry, but are you Hawkeye?" The last word was whispered, and the girl looked like she was hoping they weren't overheard. Or offended.
Kate's lips parted slightly, and then, she broke into a grin despite herself, already telling Nate mentally that she had this handled. "What makes you think I'm that awesome?" she asked - not outright denying it, especially since she had grown up with Avengers who were regularly called Hawkguy and Miss Widow by their neighbors.
Kamala bounced from one foot to the other. "It's just - well - I've seen a lot of the news footage of the new X-Men and the younger Avenger members, and you…" She gestured to all of Kate in one sweeping gesture. "You kind of act and sound and look like her, you know."
Busted, Nate projected, leaning over Kate's shoulder.
Oh, hush. It's not my fault I'm too amazing to be contained, Kate replied, though she smiled at Kamala. "Wanna join us?" she asked.
Kamala looked like her eyes might pop out of her head. "Really?"
Kate nodded. "You're smart enough to figure out who I am, but maybe don't try to guess on anyone else here. I'm well-known enough because of my parents that some big bads already spoiled my identity, but everyone else…?"
"Right, yeah. I get that," Kamala said, nodding too many times before America laughed and pulled Kamala into the seat next to her.
"Chill out, chica. No one here bites," America said, and Kamala flushed and nodded some more.
"No one here, anyway," Tommy said - and Billy kicked him.
Kate grinned and leaned toward Kamala. "So, cool as it is to be recognized for being one of a kind, we're really just here to have a normal, good time."
"I won't mess that up," Kamala promised quickly, both of her hands raised.
"Wasn't saying you would," Kate said, mirroring Kamala. "Just setting ground rules."
"The Purple Wonder over here is trying to act like she's the only one graduating high school this year," Tommy put in.
"You're still in high school?" Kamala asked, her eyes wide.
The other kids shared smirks. Kamala looked to be around fourteen, and they could all remember how much older seniors had seemed when they were freshman. Being mistaken for college kids was kind of nice, actually.
"Started young," Kate said.
"Yeah, some of us were born with expectations," Tommy said - and kicked Billy.
Billy rolled his eyes. "Ignore him."
"It's okay. I know who you two are, too," Kamala promised, though her level of awe didn't seem to wane. If anything, she looked a little more wide eyed as she took in who was who. And started making guesses on the others mentally.
"Well, yeah, but that's because the Dead Guy Formerly Known As Magneto Formerly Not A Terrible But Not A Great Grandfather insisted we didn't do masks," Tommy said, and Billy groaned.
"Really, Tommy?"
"You're right; I could have added a few more titles in there."
"Why are you like this?" Billy complained.
"One of us had to be the cool one," Tommy replied with a grin that had Kamala both relaxing at seeing how normal they could be while simultaneously only partially controlling her excitement.
"So, um, how did you even hear about this party?" Kamala asked after the twins had bickered back and forth a little bit. "I was under the impression that you guys stuck mostly to the other side of the river."
"Well … that's not really accurate," Nate said, though his tone was slightly different than Kate had heard in a while. He was obviously being cautious about his identity in spite of his very vocal insistence that they be allowed to de-mask before they were all 18.
"Well no," Kamala agreed quickly. "I just … I guess I just assumed you were either living in New York or … um … well… maybe in like … Salem Center? Maybe?"
"We live all over," Tommy replied with an easy grin. "And Kate has a fascination with Jersey for some reason."
"It's because we always have fun when we go to Jersey," Kate sniffed. "And we've spent a lot of time here lately."
"That's true," Billy agreed since many of the calls the team has responded to had been out of Jersey in the last month or so. "And I do like the view from the river."
"See? I knew you'd love it here," Kate said brightly, though that had Kamala puffing up too, since this was her city.
The group chatted for a few minutes, and before much time had passed them, all of the kids on the team were engaged and delighted with Kamala. So much so that when she accidentally saw the time on her watch and startled, all of them were concerned for her as she panicked.
"Are you alright?" Nate asked.
"Oh… I am just … in so much trouble if I don't get home like … right now," Kamala said, bouncing in her seat. "But … I … is there any chance I could get a selfie with you guys?"
Nate shook his head, already knowing that if there was any chance his face would be out there next to Hawkeye, his dad would hit the roof, but America took charge and put her arm around Kamala to pull her into a quick selfie with her and Kate as soon as they were on their feet - and once they were partially away from the table, Billy and Tommy were happy to take a similar picture with Kamala grinning broadly between them.
But that might have been a mistake too, because as soon as the picture was done, and they straightened up to say their goodbyes and move on, two other teenagers came over with their phones out asking for pictures too … and that quickly snowballed until the group was surrounded by people trying to get their pictures with the young X-Men.
There were a lot of ways it could have gone - Tommy could have zipped them out, Billy could have wished them out, or Kate could have talked them all into forming a line, but what happened instead was everyone at the party outside of the young team themselves very suddenly froze.
"What just happened?" Tommy asked, turning toward his brother. "Are we all moving this fast now? What did you do?"
"Nothing!" Billy insisted.
"I did it," Nate said, his eyes glowing as he floated about a foot off the ground. "We should go. They won't realize what happened."
"Did any of them get a picture of you?" Billy asked since out of the group, he was becoming more and more attuned to how careful the Summers kids had to be.
"No," Nate said, looking out over the crowd as he scanned their minds. "But they got Kate. Cat's out of the bag, beautiful. A few of them already posted to social media. If I'm in the background, none of them knew it - not like it'll matter when it hits the school anyhow. Speculation…"
"Yeah, you're probably busted by proxy. What is it with you and your sister letting other people bust you out?" Kate asked as they navigated between frozen teenagers.
"Hey. She busted herself out."
"But that only happened because she was with your brother," Kate pointed out. "You're suckers when you're around the people you love."
"Oh, like you're one to talk."
"I am," she said primly. "And I'm gorgeous, too."
"One of a kind," he teased her, just because she was in such a good mood.
"And you know it."
While the rest of the team was acting their age, James was working on advanced levels of paranoia. Sure, he'd played the whole poisoning incident off at the time when it came to his family - he didn't want them worried more than they would be on their own, after all. But when he wasn't trying to shield them from all of it, James was honestly on edge. He still hadn't figured out where he'd been hit with that elephant strength version of haldol, but he was sure that if anyone else had been hit with it, they'd be dead.
So, in a bit of paranoid caution, James scoured the newspapers for obituaries of anyone connected to the college. It was morbid but he was alone for now. Franklin only had a few lecture dates left on his schedule before Christmas break, he was due back from space any day… and James found himself effectively alone in the Cambridge house. Sure, Bobby had been hanging around, but he wasn't actively staying there.
And though James really wasn't used to being entirely alone … there was a certain peace that came with solitude that James had never really been able to experience thus far. The house was quiet … save for the ticking of a clock in the living room and the kitchen sink dripping. He could hear the reporters and fans outside mulling around and speculating with each other. And a little closer to that was something scratching at the back door.
James turned his head toward the sound, then followed with his entire body before he started to move in that direction. When he looked outside, he didn't see anything at first, and when he finally did see the source of the noise, he let out a heavy sigh as his shoulders dropped.
The cat Natasha had mentioned on her sweep of the house was sitting on the garbage can near the back door, curiously staring at him through the window with big, bright green eyes. Which was when he'd realized he knew the cat. Well … sort of.
The boys had been leaving scraps out for the little animals after having heard one of their neighbors cursing and shouting at the strays, and though Franklin hadn't been on board at first, after seeing how skinny some of the animals were there in town, he had felt sorry for them too … and the boys had silently agreed to try and help them a little.
By the time they really got going, it was really more Franklin's project than it was James'. Franklin had much more time while he was there, and since it was really just a few lectures every week; the rest of the week had been open for him to explore … and to pick up plenty of treats for the animals and make friends.
But James realized that when Franklin left … the animals would still be looking for handouts. So, on thinking it over and counting out how long Franklin had been in space … he realized the little black cat had to be starving. And because it had been a while, James didn't bother with cat food or even table scraps … and instead, he cracked open a can of tuna and brought it out to the skinny stray. As soon as the cat saw him step out, it jumped off the can and snaked its way around his ankles, purring and mewing until he set down the offering … then kept purring as it let James stroke its fur.
He sat on the back step for a long while, watching the cat until it was finished, and then, surprising him, the little cat kept purring as it jumped up on his lap and got comfortable. James didn't think about it as he made friends with the cat, and he wasn't paying attention at all to much beyond his immediate surroundings, though he did look up just before a camera clicked and a reporter looked surprised that he'd been caught. As the guy started to ask questions, James got up and took the cat inside with him. She was friendly enough … and he decided he could use the company to distract him.
By the following weekend, James was ready to fall back into a schedule of school, the house in Cambridge, then 'home' to the tower on the weekend where he planned to pack in two days full of tinkering with Tony and seeing his family as well as a session with Craig on Saturday. He was holding tight to the recommendation that he avoid Brooklyn and the school just to be on the safe side. Which he was fine with. It was a good chance to catch up with Tony - and a chance to actually do a few missions if they came up. It wasn't like he could do his work on the weekend like any other student when all the limitations were still in place.
He was helping Dani Cage with her algebra assignment from her college courses with Luke Cage carefully watching from a few arms' lengths away - still not over Dani stealing kisses over tutoring. Even if Luke knew perfectly well that James was dating Billy.
It was an odd day anyhow. While Tony and Natasha had shifted their focus from tinkering and hunting down every sin Emma Frost had ever considered to hunting down whoever was responsible for drugging James, Jessica Jones had taken the distraction and the rush of news to turn her focus to Emma. So there were quite a few very busy heroes - leaving Luke in charge of helping the kids that still went to the tower. And he was a little resentful that algebra wasn't one of the things he could help with - so he'd grudgingly agreed to let James help her … as long as he could keep close watch.
Dani was finally getting into the groove when Craig came in and paused when he saw the tutoring session in play. He'd come prepared to take an hour with James to check in on how he was handling the circus going on around him now that he was freshly an adult, and freshly attacked by some yet unknown entity. But seeing him explaining advanced mathematical terms and functions in a way that Dani could easily relate to was good. And about the only good thing Craig could put on the list of things he needed to talk to James about.
Craig waited for what looked like a natural break in the tutoring session to catch James' attention. "When you're done there, it's overdue for us to have a little chat," Craig told him, and for just a moment, James looked up at him with the most unamused, neutral expression Craig had ever seen from him.
"We'll see how it goes," James said, not really in the mood to go along with anything even close to talking about ay of the crap from the past week.
"Actually, I think I'm good," Dani said, then smiled at James. "You can go ahead and get it over with."
"Great, let's head to your lab, then," Craig suggested at the same time James muttered 'thanks' through clenched teeth to Dani and Luke's absolute amusement.
Before they could make it all the way down to the lab though, Steve shouted for James to stop … because for the first time in months, James was in the tower when a call came in that suited the young group of Avengers already gathered up and finishing up their homework.
And to James' total relief, Mia had been studying with Leslie Ann, so she was close by and ready to play. But James still had to smooth it over. A little anyhow.
"You needed to talk to Tony too, right?" James asked Craig with half a grin as he started half-jogging backward toward Mia.
"Well yes, but -"
"Great. We're just going to Jersey. Won't be long," James promised. "Probably be back within the hour."
"Please wait if we run over," Mia called with a bright grin before she took a hold of James' arm and the two of them disappeared.
When they reappeared just in front of the locker room, James kissed her cheek. "Thank you. I really need to get out and do something."
"I know," Mia said with a grin. "And it's been too long, so … let's go see what we can do to stop some idiots in Jersey."
James nodded and the two of them parted company to get changed, and though James was the quicker one to be ready, he waited to put the cowl on until he was in the hall again - which was how he discovered that the team had officially grown a little while he was at school.
"There's a look I haven't seen up close," May Parker said from where she was leaning against the wall. "Sooner or later, you'd have to end up going with me on a run, right?" Her tone was bright and she was smiling with her mask in her hands.
There was just a split second where it was clear that James hadn't expected to see Mayday in a uniform… she'd always been clear she was going to join the team as soon as she was old enough, and he knew that Steve had given her permission to join, but he didn't realize she'd already gotten through Steve's hoops to run missions. "Mayday," he said, giving her his best smile without thinking about it "Finally talked the old man into going along with things?"
"He had to back off eventually," May said with a grin before she awkwardly reached out to lightly tap his arm. "Haven't seen the up close, finished version of this."
"I've been busy," he said, turning to start toward the jet and resolutely not commenting on May's reimagined Spider-Girl uniform while May almost skipped to catch up. They were almost to the end of the hall when Mia appeared a few paces in front of them in a poof of purple-pink smoke, looking like she was up for trouble.
"Hi, May," Mia said before she glanced up at James. "She was done before me - Steve said she cleared her training already, so … it's really just a two-person run … "
"So it'll be perfect for one to tick down my list of required trainings!" May said enthusiastically.
James caught on to what May was blatantly ignoring though and took a hold of Mia's hand. "If we're both going to be on the same team, we're going to have to at least try to get along," he told her quietly. "I'm fine. She … is trying to be fine. So let's just go do what we do, huh? I need this run before I jump off the tower - and I'd appreciate it if you went with. Just in case this is bigger than we think."
Mia smiled and nodded. "You make a solid argument. That's happened a few times, too - the whole bigger than we expected thing."
"Just once or twice," he agreed, then gestured to the cockpit. "I know you haven't cleared the tests yet because my brother hogs the stick, but ... "
"Ooh, yes," Mia said, bouncing for a second before she teleported into the pilot's chair and James took the co-pilot. She looked at all the dials and screens, then let her shoulders drop. "He has it on auto, doesn't he?"
"Yep," James agreed. "We can step in if there's a reason to, but yeah. It's all remote."
"Darn." Mayday was standing between the two of them, one hand on either chair. "Can we take it off of auto?"
"No," James said, already shaking his head. First mission without an adult and she was pushing. He wasn't exactly surprised.
May frowned at his reaction, but stepped back to take a seat, then pulled her mask on, loosely crossing her arms and falling into silence. And while they headed off, James started outlining what the details on the mission were for the girls, who were otherwise occupied. May was checking her web shooters and triple checking her cartridges and Mia was looking over the streets and the known trouble zones before they got into it.
They were really just going in to help SHIELD discreetly crack into an abandoned school building that was supposed to be a pick up point that a freedom fighting group used to get kids out to the X-Men, but it looked to be surrounded by AIM - and AIM was fighting back. As they circled the approach, both James and Mia started to take in a few details that they'd need to know about the layout of the school - going over the scans that James had going of the building itself, the SHIELD personnel, and the AIM soldiers defending … whatever it was they were defending. The fact that it was an old school had both James and Mia a little on edge.
"That's a lot of AIM morons," Mayday said. "Why don't we have a full-blown Avenger with us?"
James and Mia shared a look, but James refused to rise to Mayday's incorrect assumption. "Steve gave us the assignment," Mia said. "Are you going to say that Captain America got it wrong?"
"I just-"
"Uncle Steve, who made sure we all knew how to handle fights and make the right call and planned battle strategy and who also snuggled us when we were kids," Mia continued. "Are you going to say that he would send us into unnecessary danger that we can't handle?"
May faltered, then shook her head. "No. I just …"
"Then you're saying that Captain America, a bonafide national treasure and genius tactician is wrong on his assignment of who should take this mission?"
"No!"
"Just stay close to one of us," Mia said as they headed toward their target in silence. The flight was incredibly short and quiet after that before the plane went in to land behind SHIELD lines. When they got out, the lead Agent in charge came up to meet them, and the three of them stayed close to hear the most recent updates - quickly discovering that the reason Steve had picked the three of them was because all three of them were able to get into places without detection, and all three had a stellar reputation with kids …which the lead Agent thought was an important factor.
"Historically, kids don't react well to the black combat fatigue look," Agent Coulson said with his usual dry humor that most people had to pay attention to catch. "Superheroes though … lot better outcomes."
"So when do you get your spandex bodysuit?" James asked, earning a loud snort from one of Coulson's team members.
"Just as soon as they get tired of looking at yours," Coulson shot back, which had a new wave of snickers from his team as he tried to redirect them. "Once your team gets inside, we won't have reliable eyes on you."
"I can fix that," James said as he made his way over to the bank of computers Coulson's team had set up. He took over on a laptop that was showing the drones footage that they had inside already, and after a few lightning fast pages of code flew by, when James was done, there were three more camera options on screen - all of which were currently showing the SHIELD agents and Coulson himself. "Your security tap for these cameras will be good for an hour, then they reset to something else."
"Then I guess you have an hour," Coulson said. "Try not to do anything that'll have your family breathing down my neck. Any of you."
The three teenagers shared a look and with a nod, Mia took a hold of both James and May then disappeared, leaving Coulson's team wondering if they even had a plan.
From Coulson's viewpoint, it was a little hard to see what was going on and why … Mia's camera kept fuzzing out when she would teleport and Mayday's was enough to make a person seasick by the angles and sweeps that happened as she swung or crawled … James' was the most steady, but considering how the kid moved, he wasn't too concerned with camera angles. But … between the kids and the drones, they got a complete story. The girls were deflecting back to James' judgement the closer they got to the action, though both Mia and May were doing fine work webbing or teleporting foes out of the way as they came across them. SHIELD had never gotten such an easy job since Mia would teleport them directly into the holding cells in the mobile units. Clean up and picking up webbed up footsoldiers was also a great way to spend the day as far as most of the SHIELD agents were concerned too…
And there was a solid wake of opponents, until someone tried to take a shot at one of the girls. Coulson couldn't tell for sure which one it was since there was a splatter of webbing that went by Mia's body camera, and after some shouting, what looked like a tackle, and a snarl that they heard all the way outside, both Mia and May's cameras went fuzzy as Mia teleported them both out for a moment.
Both girls looked a bit frazzled and Mia blinked at May for just a second before she disappeared in a swirl of smoke to go back and help James with whatever it was that he was doing … his camera was nothing but one soldier or another fighting at that point anyhow. At least, until it very suddenly wasn't.
Rapidfire teleports around the building were visible from outside and Mayday was bouncing on her toes to go back, but Coulson and his team wisely restrained her as Mia and James started really working on things … but then everything went quiet, and when Mia came back, she handed Coulson's tech guy three flash drives.
"You can go get the bad guys now," she said. "We kinda got carried away, but no one in there will bother you."
"Where's your last Avenger?" Coulson asked.
"Oh. You were right, there were kids, too … he's bringing them out." She smiled, then disappeared to go back, and a few minutes later, James was walking out with Mia. Mia had a little boy in her arms who was beyond thrilled at her soft, fuzzy fur and James had a little one on one hip with another holding on to a leg and another still holding his hand - which at least explained why they were taking so much time getting out. He had his cowl off - as he often did with kids, and the little girl holding his hand was wearing the cowl, holding the nose of it down as she clung closely to him all the way out.
May slipped by the SHIELD agents and managed to get the kid that was riding James' foot to go to her, though they were most of the way taken care of by then, and the three Avengers stuck around just long enough to make sure the kids were safe and comfortable before they headed back to the tower. They were barely in the air though before May decided to let her opinion be known.
"I so called it," she said triumphantly as she crossed her arms looking entirely too smug.
James turned her way with a frown. "What did you call?"
"You. I told you that you'd be an amazing hero. You should have just listened to me from the start. All this good you've been doing - and you don't even think about it when you do it, do you? It just … you're a natural. This is what you're supposed to do!"
"Mayday, honey, I don't know what planet you're on right now, but I've been doing this for a while now," James said patiently.
"I know, but I never got to see how you operate! I know you've been doing stuff like this - and the fact that you have been for so long with no trouble is proof that I was right!" May was looking more smug by the second and James and Mia weren't sure which path she was taking.
"May," Mia said, trying to get her to refocus. "We all said he'd be good at this … and all of us are, so … we're all right?"
"Yeah, but his excuse was that he couldn't because of some fictional boogeyman," May said, then held up both hands when both Mia and James straightened up and looked ready to argue. "But I'm glad to see you got over that, James. Really. We never would have had to break up though if you'd have just gotten with the program."
James was stunned but ready to correct her, a breath away from a growl when instead, Mia spun toward her and teleported within an inch of her nose. "Let's get something straight, Spider-Girl," Mia started out glaring hard with a growl lacing her tone as she stuck a finger in May's face. May startled backward, but Mia didn't let her get much breathing room.
"You have so much wrong with your story," Mia said in a commanding tone that had May reevaluating and James watching the show. "If I ever hear you try to downplay how bad the department is, or how bad those weapons programs are - that want to brainwash and control our friend and who were probably the ones that poisoned him on his birthday - I'll 'port you into the Hudson River. You have no idea what it's like to have to hide your whole life just so someone doesn't attack you or throw you in a jail cell!"
"He's not even wearing a mask," May argued weakly. "That's not hiding - especially when he's openly Tony's little Simba!"
"That was tactical!" Mia shouted. "You weren't there, you didn't see it when whole futzing platoons of special forces came to try and kidnap the Summers kids! They wanted to take all of us! They would have locked us up and used us! You have no …I" She let out a frustrated sound as lightning flashed in her eyes and thunder rumbled overhead, though Mia didn't seem to realize that part at all. "I was there when Billy got the mind control thing out of Tyler's head! They poisoned James last week! You have no clue!"
But that was when James intervened, resting his hands on Mia's shoulders to pull her back, and half leaning away from her when he saw the flashes of lighting still in her eyes. "I'll make sure she gets to read the right files, Mia," James promised, then waited for Mia to go back to the cockpit with her tail twitching irritatedly the whole way.
"Wow," Mayday said thickly. "What crawled up her-"
"Just don't," James said, turning back to Mayday. "I know you have a burning need to be right about everything, but you really need to lay off. She's right. You don't know half of the crap that's gone on, which is insulting when I think about how much of it I've been right about since I've been on the teams."
"James, I just-"
"May, no." He was trying hard not to glare or growl or do anything else even remotely aggressive, though that was hard to do when she was doing her obstinate routine. "I want to make this very clear, so please, listen to me for once in your life. I want to be able to work with you on a team, I do. You have a great heart and I know you want to make a difference in the world, but Mayday? You can't possibly understand my decisions any more than you can understand what life has been like for Mia. You've never had to hide who you are. You don't know what it's like to wake up in the middle of the night from something crashing off a shelf only to panic and wonder if it's soldiers coming to drag you out of your bed. Or to find yourself in a bad fight and see those soldiers coming toward you with their weapons trained on you. You haven't had to deal with anything even remotely like that, and I honestly hope you never do."
May for the first time was quiet as James let that soak for a moment. When she finally spoke up, it was with a quiet apology to Mia, who was still irked at her. "Sorry, Mia…"
"One more thing, Mayday, I think you're a little confused on how things ended," James said, his jaw half locked into place.
"I'm the one that ended it," she said, one hand on her hip. "I know how it ended."
"Yeah, but you sound like you forgot the why."
"Um … no?"
James nodded as he drew in a deep, calming breath, but after not having gotten a chance to actually deal with this particular rejection until now, that wasn't the easiest breath to take. "Okay let me rephrase it. From day one, I let you make all the calls, every step while we were dating. I never crossed you, never made demands or even suggestions. Is that fair to say?" She thought about it for a moment then reluctantly nodded. "The only thing I ever told you no over was this." He rested his hand on the torn fabric over his chest. "That was when you got tired of me."
It was clear she was running it over in her head, frowning deeply, and when she realized his viewpoint and how that had to have felt to him, she paled. "But … I didn't think … I thought we agreed on everything ...you had so many rules your dad made you follow …"
"It wasn't just rules," James said. "That's how he kept us alive. There is no way in hell that I'll ever apologize for following Dad's rules when that was literally what kept us from being killed or kidnapped as kids. Even when that meant I lived in the tower away from my dad and siblings."
"It's just … hard to believe that's actually a thing that happens to people still."
But that had James' eyes flashing because it was a measure of how much she still didn't listen to him on anything or believe him. "Try paying attention to the news," James half growled out - which was when May suddenly got exactly how mad he was with her. And yet, she still tried to be glib.
"Why? To see more footage of you?" May asked with her hip cocked out and her chin up.
"Wrong stories," James said before he closed his eyes and then gestured toward the cockpit. "You should go sit with Mia and see how the landing works."
"I thought you were copilot."
"Just … go." James watched as she headed up to the cockpit and sat down, only letting out his breath when he heard May apologize to Mia, then he took a seat behind May so she couldn't look at him as they made the approach, stewing and irritated the whole while.
Once they landed, he waited for both girls to pass him by before he got up and followed Mia out, though he did make a point to take a hold of her arm and pull her into a quick hug. "You know, you're my favorite X-Man, right?" James told her quietly.
"That's because we get into the best fun," Mia said, then smiled up at him. "I'm not sorry for anything that I said."
"You shouldn't be, either," James said as they headed for the locker rooms. "You're my hero, Mia. Love you."
"Love you too," she sang out before she teleported into the ladies' locker room and gave him a chance to clean up and get changed. Craig would be waiting for him, after all. And if he had to guess, Steve and Tony, too.
But knowing they were there and waiting wasn't exactly calming to James. In fact, the more he thought about it, the more irritated he was. So when he got up to where Tony, Steve, and Craig were, James was in a mood.
"We saw the whole thing," Steve said as James came to a stop facing all three of them - half squared up and ready to fight.
"You did good work," Tony said, then tried to lighten the mood. "I especially enjoyed that snuggly little kid jungle gym look. All the kids accounted for?"
"According to SHIELD," James answered with a nod.
"Great. Well. As much as I would like to play, I'm pretty sure doc here wanted a word or two."
"I can wait a little while," Craig said when he saw how riled James still was. He wasn't being a jerk, he was just … his body language was screaming with minute cues: how tense he was, the fact that his jaw was still locked down tight - something he'd picked up from Scott - and the wicked glare that went with an otherwise stony expression. For a teenager it was miniscule, but Craig had known James well enough to know that for him it was akin to screaming for everyone to back off. That disposition was no way to start a discussion.
"I don't think you understand," Tony said, drawing not only Craig's attention, but James' glare. "Once we get started in the lab, you'll be hard pressed to get him to take a breather all weekend. He can outlast me without breaking a sweat. I can promise you he'll outlast you, too."
"Or redirect you," Steve said, getting James to fully spin is way with a look of pure betrayal.
"I'm fine," James insisted with a touch of a growl lacing his tone. "The mission went well. What's the problem here?"
The three men were silent, though they shared looks for a long moment until Steve broke the ice. "When we installed those body cameras, Tony made sure that no one wearing them could turn them off," he said slowly, with Tony nodding slowly beside him. "And you know it's our practice to leave them on even in transport."
"And," James said, honestly not bothered or surprised by that one bit.
"We heard everything on the way back," Steve said.
"So," James said, not blinking as he held eye contact with Steve.
"So … if nothing's wrong, then you should be able to calmly take your session with Dr. Hale," Tony said. "Had mine while you were out."
"If you had yours while I was out, how did you listen to everything?" James challenged.
Tony blinked at him, caught in his white lie. "Watching you do the hero thing is therapeutic for me," he said. "Nice to see the next gen holding up extraordinary standards like it's a hat trick."
James scrunched his nose at that, but the statement seemed to slow him a little bit. "That's …"
"The truth," Tony said, which seemed to take James down a little further. "Go on. We don't need to debrief because we saw everything."
"I'll make sure Mayday gets the full rundown on everything she should know and everything she missed," Steve promised. "I honestly thought she was smart enough to just listen to what was going on around the tower and understand."
"As much as I love her, she doesn't easily absorb facts if they contradict her point of view," James said, but that only had Steve smiling because he didn't know if James had gone entirely the other way and hated May Parker.
"Then we're free to have a little talk," Craig said. Normally, he would have guided one of his patients to whatever room he wanted to use, but in the tower, and with James in the mood he was in, he elected to let James pick his own direction. But he wasn't expecting the kid to pick Tony's office. "No lab views?"
"If we go in there, everyone will take it as their personal invitation to stick their nose in and I know you have a lot to get off your chest so ... " James gestured behind the desk. "There's still a view. If you need it."
Craig smiled at that and took a seat. He waited for James to do the same and was rewarded by a very age-appropriate drop into his chair that perfectly communicated that James felt as if he was there against his will. "First of all," Craig said in his warmest, deepest tone. "I'm proud of you for standing up to May Parker. I know that wasn't easy for you to do seeing as she was your first love. But the way you handled the conversation was very mature. There are adults that couldn't even begin to approach someone that hurt them that deeply, let alone keep their emotions in check while they did. Steve filled me in on everything your conversation missed. He did so hoping that you'd have more support by my knowing."
James kept his gaze on his hands, though Craig could easily see that it still stung, which only made it that much more impressive that he hadn't had an outburst like May had.
"James," Craig said, waiting for him to acknowledge him before he continued. "I'm glad you're starting to see your worth, your value, and I'm glad that you're standing up for yourself. We do need to talk about everything that's happened since the last time I saw you, but before we get there, I need to emphasize how important it is for you to believe that you are so loved. For as long as I've known you, it's been easy to see how unimportant you think you are in your family. I need you to start looking at the evidence that you're loved instead of all the reasons you think it should be easy for them to leave you behind."
For a long moment, Craig actually thought they were making progress, too. James was quiet, his focus still on his hands as Craig hoped he was just … processing. It was a lot to absorb - genius or no.
"Are we done here?" James asked, instantly reminding Craig that regardless of how grown James looked and acted, he was still just barely a legal adult.
"No," Craig said, "I really wanted to check in with you about how things are going now that you've been attacked away from family and friends that love you and want to protect you, too." James drew in a breath and Craig cut him off before he could say anything. "And if you tell me you're fine, you and I are going to have a real problem."
At that, James let out a hollow laugh. "What else am I supposed to say?"
"How about the truth?"
"Okay … what choice do I have other than to be fine?" James countered. "I can't back down, I can't give up, and I can't let it affect me. Sure, someone took a shot, but they missed. I'm fine. I was fine when I woke up the next morning and I'm still fine now."
By this point, James' eyes were flashing, and had Scott been there, he could have warned him that any attempt at reason now was pointless. And that could possibly extend to forever regarding this subject. Like his father, James had made his mind up and trauma or no, he was going to stick to that decision come hell or high water.
Craig shook his head. "You're so much like your father, you know," he said, then quickly held up a hand. "Scott, I mean. I didn't know your biological father well enough, even when he was here, to say whether or not that's true of him. But I can tell you now that I hear his excuses and insistences every time you say you're fine. And I'd hate to see you coping as poorly as he did when he first came to me." He raised one eyebrow. "It's alright to let it affect you in private, James. It's alright to be shaken. I'd be shaken. Your family is shaken. It's okay to be afraid of those with nefarious intent - fear keeps us alive."
"That's more or less what Dad's said for as long as I can remember, and you know what? That's not living. That's surviving. And I'm really damn sick and tired of just surviving - so no. I'm not shaken. I was confused right after it happened, and I don't really remember any of what Billy and my family told me happened, but I'm not letting any of those creeps shake me." He gestured openly. "Not that easy anyhow."
"You can't just ignore what happened, James," Craig said seriously, shifting his tone to counter James' temper. "You can't let yourself slide and just … wait-"
"I'm not saying that I'm just moping and sitting around waiting for something to happen," James clarified. "I'm still operating under the pretense that I can do the things I want to do while being prepared for the worst. That's part of giving those idiots the finger - by not letting them impact me. I know you're telling me it's healthy, but I can't afford to be shaken right now."
"You can't prepare to fight someone when you don't know what exactly they want - or how far they'll go to get it," Craig said. "I've seen the reports from Steve. Some of these people are just … they have no humanity, and it sounds like they'd want you to be the same way. You can't see yourself the same way they do."
"I know who I am, and I know what people like that are capable of," James said evenly. "I know what they expect from me and what they want from me. I've tried very hard to show there's more to me than what they think. But that goes against their prejudices, so I doubt that matters." He let out a sigh as he centered himself and tried to refocus. "No matter what anyone says or does, I'm still going to do what I was born to do, one way or another. If something happens to me while I'm trying to get there, I won't know the difference, but I'm very sure whoever it is won't survive it. Not after taking out Tony's pick to replace himself."
"James, leaving aside the assumption you're working with that you will die -"
"I won't die," James said easily in such a candid tone that it took Craig back a step. "They wouldn't want that. I'm no use to them dead." When Craig frowned, James elaborated. "They might destroy my mind, but they won't kill me."
"How is that better?" Craig challenged, then again held up one hand to try to continue. "That is also something the entire population of heroes has been trying to prevent your whole life. And no amount of distance on your part will undo the love your family has for you. They will never be truly prepared for losing you, so stop trying to prepare them for it! Instead fill your time with them with good memories they can hang onto. If you're distant now, you won't dull the pain. You'll only cause regret. They will always look back and wonder what they could have done if they were closer, if they'd been there. Even your father still thinks that way sometimes and he was there. Having actual distance won't solve that."
James looked ready to respond, eyes slightly narrowed in an aggressive gesture Craig hadn't seen before, so Craig was sure to try and make his other point before James could tear into that. "And besides, if you truly believe your death or mental death is inevitable, why on earth wouldn't you want to live the life you have to its fullest? Love deeply, leave no regrets."
James leaned forward though, as if imparting a secret. "I am. I'm not trying to prepare them for anything bad. They know the risks without me hand holding. I'm trying to prepare myself to be ready to take down as many of those idiots coming after me as I can. If I go down, it'll be swinging. In the meantime, they're living their lives too. I'm not going to interrupt when they're all doing well."
Craig paused because this … was nothing like Scott or Tony. Or anyone else he'd spent time with while he'd been around the Avengers. "I think you're focusing on the wrong thing, here."
"Yeah? How about a little exercise, doc? Put yourself in my shoes and tell me what you'd do, because if you allow time to be shaken, or look for trauma, or whatever - that gives them an in. They get an opportunity to come after you. I don't have time for that. I've only had time for trying to live … which is what I've been doing."
For a moment, Craig was stunned. It seemed as if James had already thought through every response, every concern Craig had wanted to discuss and had more or less torn it down one point at a time. The boy was obviously either in deep denial, or in a mindset that really shouldn't have been something that James should have been capable of. His reactions were more like that of seasoned soldiers or ex-special ops. But smarter.
And he'd been so reasonable up until this session. But then, Craig thought it over and he realized this was the first session they'd had since James had finally become an adult. Which … he had to try one other topic before they called it for the day - and he knew he wasn't going to get anywhere with the other topics.
"Then … maybe you can just tell me how hings are going with the press, or the attention at school…"
James arched one eyebrow and tipped his chin down, wearing an expression Craig had seen Logan wear in their limited encounters. "They don't know what happened, so they're still focused on my social life. Thanks for asking."
Craig finally smirked as he looked down at his notes. "And how's that going?"
"Disappointing, considering," James replied straight-faced, then shrugged when Craig looked up, concerned. "We can't do anything. His family's paranoid because of the attack on me - my familiy's paranoid as always, and all the adults in our lives are overly concerned that we're not acting like ourselves while actively telling us not to act like ourselves or do the things we like to do to cope. And no, I'm not talking about sex, so don't ask."
"Not planning to," Craig said, but now at least, James sounded more like himself with the softer subject. So he'd continue their talk for a while longer to see if he could cover a few of the things that Annie had been concerned over, too.
Chapter 91: Friends And Loved Ones
Chapter Text
Scott definitely had a lot on his mind coming from a lot of different directions, but … time teaching was slowly helping him to feel more like himself. He'd been subbing and stepping in for Human-Mutant relations now and again since the beginning of the school year, but with one faculty member or another taking turns in Cambridge watching out for James, it had become clear quickly that they needed one more class covered, and at the time, Scott hadn't even considered not volunteering to teach History, though his offer to pick that class up had gotten the rest of the staff to pause fully for a moment.
Naturally, he knew what the concern was because that was Logan's old class. But aside from the fact that he really wanted to step in for personal reasons, that class could easily go hand in hand with Human-Mutant Relations. So that was the explanation he ran with. And he was thankful that no one but Ororo had said anything to him otherwise. But even that discussion had just been a bittersweet 'thankyou' that went with a hug that probably went on for a bit longer than either of them had intended. But that too, was needed.
And now, most days, Scott didn't start out his history class with that heavy feeling in his chest anymore. He really was starting to feel more like himself the more he did things that he wanted to do. His kids were all old enough to at least start down their own paths - and they certainly seemed to be doing exactly that.
Scott still had his cup of coffee in hand as he settled into his classroom. Class wasn't set to start for another ten minutes, and he was staring out the window over the grounds like he used to so often. Reflecting, being grateful for all that was going on that was positive. That was kind of nice, for a change.
And he couldn't help but let his mind wander like it always did years ago as they approached the holidays. All of the kids at the school … did they have families that loved them and were just protecting them by sending them here, or were they abandoned and feeling alone as the holidays approached? Who needed a reminder that they were loved and cared for, even if they only thought it was by the people in the Institute?
He didn't know these kids like he knew the kids he used to shop for years ago, but that didn't mean he wouldn't try if Ororo needed help in that department.
Snow was falling gently outside in big, fluffy clumps - adding to the already deepening blanket of white that covered the grounds. Something about watching the snow fall really was mesmerizing and Scott got lost in his thoughts until he heard the first rumble of kids heading in to class. With a sigh, he turned and started toward the desk wondering if the kids had any idea what their teachers were thinking about at this time of year - or if they had any idea how much the staff of this place took each one of those kids into their family.
He raised his mug to take a drink as he sat down - there were still a few minutes before class started after all. His papers were in order, his lesson plan laid out, so all Scott had to do now was to allow himself a certain measure of paranoia that seemed especially fitting before History class. And with a blink, his cybernetic eyes switched over to scan for threats as the kids came in.
He wasn't exactly checking out the kids, though that was part of it. Test days always brought out a cheater or two, and though Scott didn't want to come after someone before they cheated, he did like knowing ahead of time who to watch.
The first handful of kids came in - and already there was one potential cheater and two that were going to need their phones confiscated for the test. He gave them a chance to turn their devices off and put them away - class hadn't actually started yet, after all.
Billy came in a few moments after Scott set down his mug, and as he'd come to expect, he wasn't a bit of trouble himself. But … the young man that had been following him around like a lost puppy seemed to be a little more troubling for Scott. For one thing, the kid didn't seem to know how to take 'no' for an answer. He'd pushed Billy to do things with him, spend time, and even Scott had been close enough on a few occasions to hear Vojteck ask Billy to go out on a date with him. But Billy had consistently, calmly, and tactfully told him no every time.
At first, Scott had thought that Vojteck had been asking Billy to double with him and some girl - especially since Scott had seen Vojteck on more than one occasion openly watching some of the more attractive and vulnerable young women. He'd seen it as predatory, and he'd been about to pull the kid aside when he saw him put a hand on Billy's knee. Of course, Billy had gently put a stop to that, but it was the kind of behavior that just .. it had him watching Vojteck a little closer. Something was off about that kid.
Speak of the devil, Scott thought to himself as Vojteck came in for class. He paused at the doorway, looked around the room, and then made a beeline right for the closest open seat to Billy. Scott tried not to have much of a reaction as he watched the kid go- but as he passed, the sensors in his scanners lit up and all at once, Scott was scrutinizing him a lot closer.
And to his surprise, along with the pocket knife Vojteck had on him, he also had two more knives, some sort of tech in his wrist watch, and a small bag of marijuana. The boy had set his bag down, but knowing the threats in the air against the princes, even if this was an innocent thing, Scott couldn't ignore it.
"Vojteck, can you please see me at my desk," Scott said. "Bring your bag."
The young man straightened up and looked toward Billy, who shrugged openly. Vojteck took his time getting to the desk, even as other kids began to file in. "Is there a problem?" Vojteck asked and Scott took out a small box from the bottom drawer of his desk and set it down between them discreetly.
"I'm not sure what your reasoning is, and right now, I don't want to hear it," Scott said. "You know there's a strict no weapons and no drugs policy in effect. You're going to need to put everything that falls into either of those categories that you have on you or in your bag into this box, right now." Scott looked past him to the kids, most of whom still seemed to think that they were just chatting. "Be discreet. I'm not trying to embarrass you, I'm only looking out for everyone's safety and well being. Including you."
Vojteck blushed high on his cheeks, but did as he'd been asked, discreetly slipping some of the weaponry into the box, though when he looked like that was all he was going to hand over, Scott cleared his throat and raised an eyebrow. "All of it," Scott said. "Unless you want me to take it myself."
"No," Vojteck replied sullenly as he handed over the rest, though he didn't take off his watch.
"What's the story with the watch?" Scott asked - no longer in as giving a mood when the kid tried to hold back.
"Is just a watch," Vojteck replied just before the bell rang.
Scott watched his readouts as the lie came through plainly on his sensors. And again, he tapped the edge of the box. "You can have it back after class." He'd already decided he wanted a better look at that watch, and he knew he needed to when he saw how livid Vojteck looked at the loss of it. Something was up and Scott wanted to know what it was. Now.
Which he could do … while the kids were taking their tests. Once they were all seated - and to his amusement, much of the student body was far more receptive to what he had to say, still in awe at Cyclops teaching them - Scott handed out their tests and took a seat. He gave them all some time to settle in, and right off the bat, Vojteck was clearly uncomfortable, but still, Scott waited for him to try and get into his test before he quietly took the watch out of the box to more thoroughly inspect it.
His sensors were only showing it was some sort of higher-grade tech than what any kid at Xaviers should have … he didn't have the in depth means to see what it was supposed to do …
But there had never been a need for that kind of thing. Still, he took the time to make some incredibly in detail scans to have Tony look into and he tried to see if there was some kind of secret compartment or clues on the watch itself that would help him, but the display that came up in Hungarian (he discovered after one of the many programs decoded it for him) only displayed 'unauthorized user'.
After the second attempt with the same reaction, Scott noticed out of the corner of his gaze that Vojteck was watching him - and he looked both livid and nervous somehow. Scott met his gaze, and for a beat or two too long, Vojteck finally looked away, back to his paper … which Scott could see hadn't been touched.
He'd never wished he could read minds this badly before. But something was off. And Scott couldn't find a reasonable inroad into figuring out what. For the time being though, he did have a test to monitor - and yes. The new kid from Topeka was trying to cheat. "Peyton," Scott said, immediately busting the near-cheater, and allowing Vojteck the fallacy of believing that Scott was no longer analyzing every breath he took.
When Peyton came forward and handed over the cheat sheet packed with tiny notes, Scott pushed the box containing Vojteck's things aside … but it gave him room to open up his laptop and start digging into the records of the school to see where this kid was from, why he felt the need to carry knives and weaponry with him suddenly, and how the heck he could have gotten a hold of tech that so far, had no information on it in the screening he was running.
Scott was almost distracted when the first of the kids came up to hand in their paper - and get excused to prepare for more tests as the school started to wind down on serious studies in favor of holiday movies. But that meant Scott wasn't going to be able to sift through everything he was finding … to look for minute clues that meant there was something hidden.
But he couldn't do much about it other than to watch the kid closer. And let the rest of the staff know. A foreign student with no real background carrying weapons and stalking one of Genosha's princes was a very big problem. And aside from notifying the other teachers, the Avengers, and possibly Wanda - Scott decided the first step would be to also warn Billy.
So he was glad to see that Billy had actually taken his time on his test and was one of the last ones to hand his paper in. "Billy, if you don't mind, I'd like a word after class," Scott said.
"Are you going to be mad if I go sit in the corner with my phone until then?" Billy asked, not entirely sure if he was in trouble, or if this was more parental meddling.
"That's fine, thanks," Scott said, then waited patiently for the last few students to finish up so he could tell Billy what he knew.
Once the room was clear, Billy looked up from his phone, looked around, and then got to his feet to cross the room again. "So… what's up?"
"Vojteck," Scott said, gesturing for Billy to pull up a seat.
"Oh. Okay." He took a seat and immediately looked uncomfortable at the subject at hand. "Just Tell me You're not assigning study buddies."
"I'm not," Scott promised. "In fact, quite the opposite. I'm warning you to steer clear of him as much as you can."
"I've been trying. Since like, day five. Or six."
"You don't have to be nice about it, Billy." Scott took a deep breath and let it out. "I confiscated weapons from him today, along with a watch that I still don't understand. The tech in it is well beyond what should be in a watch, and I couldn't break into it." He raised an eyebrow and held Billy's gaze, knowing that, considering all the time he'd spent helping James up until James had truly surpassed him in science and tech, Billy would know that Scott wasn't exactly tech-addled either.
"So … enlist help?"
"Looking into that already," Scott said. "But … be on your guard. We don't have much background on him, and anyone following around a prince with weapons…"
"I can just … I don't know. Work up a spell that will keep him from hurting me." Billy nodded to himself. "Grandfather pushed to be sure I could work up very specific directives."
Scott almost smirked. "Sometimes pays to be paranoid, huh?" he said, still not entirely sure where the line was with Billy in talking about Magneto.
"We'll see," Billy said.
Scott nodded. "Well, I'd say now is the time to work up that spell. I'll make sure the staff is aware too. I don't want the other students at risk if he tries anything and takes it out on someone else if it doesn't work." He paused. "Can you do the same spell for Tommy?"
"Oh yeah. No problem there." Billy nodded. "He won't look at it like a good thing necessarily. Doesn't like when people protect him."
"Yeah, I've never dealt with anyone like that," Scott said, smirking more openly. "Still, go ahead and do it. I don't want to take risks with either of you."
"Me neither," Billy agreed. He paused and then got to his feet. "Do you need me for anything else or…?"
Scott shook his head. "I'm going to let Storm know," he told him. "The rest of the staff will keep an eye out until we know what his story is. Might be better to keep a close eye than to kick him out and risk him going back to whoever gave him that watch."
"Tommy will totally know you're all being protective."
"He'll get over it."
Billy spread his hands out wide. "If you say so," he said, backing toward the door. "I'll tell James. Maybe he'll feel better that he's not the only one dealing with crazy."
"He might. He'll want to make sure you're okay, too."
"Oh, you mean he'll check on me? What a nightmare," Billy deadpanned, and Scott chuckled to himself as the door closed behind Billy. Those two boys were trouble together, and as soon as Billy turned eighteen, Scott knew he was going to have his hands full.
He sighed, the smile dropping away in an instant, and then got to his feet himself. He needed to let Ororo know what he'd found. And then, he wanted to talk to Forge about the watch.
When he found the two of them, they were half wrapped up in each other and enjoying some tea between classes. So Scott was sure to hurry it along. And he started by unceremoniously dropping the watch on the table nearest Forge. "I need you to take a good look at this and tell me what the story is," Scott said, honestly concerned more the longer he had to think about it. They did not need to be in a position to tell Wanda that they'd allowed her crown prince to be attacked. "I took it off of Vojteck before the History test. He also had some weapons on him. We need to keep a closer eye on him."
"You act as if we don't keep a close eye on anyone from that area of the world," Ororo said even as Forge picked up the watch and started looking it over.
Being a technopath had some advantages .. one of them being the fact that the tech often gave up its secrets without having to be cracked open. "Well," Forge said after a moment. "This is a cold-war era Soviet spy watch. But it's been reworked with newer surveillance and stealth tech."
"Stealth how?"
"Stealth like it emits a low-level field of disruption for powers," Forge replied. "I'll test it further, but if I had to guess, based off of where and when it originally was created, it was probably to stop telepaths from peeking in. It's likely that someone in Vojteck's family was either a spy or a higher up in the Soviet government. These were pretty common in the '80's. Over there, anyhow."
"Why would a teenager need to block a telepath?" Scott asked with a frown.
"I … would imagine he didn't want anyone knowing what he was thinking … but the surveillance is the more active application here. I"ll look into it and see what it gathered," Forge promised. "It might take a while to get the language settings right, but I should be able to see what he was watching or gathering. That would give you a better idea on if it was for something nefarious or if he was just trying to cheat."
"That's not an unreasonable application, but considering how closely he's been shadowing our little crown prince, we should keep closer tabs on him," Ororo said. "And keep an eye on what he does around Tommy as well. I don't trust that anyone after one of Genosha's princes would pinpoint one over the other. If this is a political issue, then they'd take either one of them."
Since there wasn't much else Scott could do now that he had alerted the people who needed to know and then wait and watch for better information or for Vojteck to play his cards, there wasn't actually a reason to postpone the date he already had planned with Annie. He was supposed to take her back to the bookshop and cafe - which was fast becoming a favorite spot for her - and he was loath to cancel when, really, he didn't need to. But his head definitely wasn't in it, and he found himself thinking about Vojteck and running down possible sponsors the kid could have to set him up with that kind of tech. Wouldn't be the first mutant to get roped into shadowy organization - both pro- and anti-mutant, too.
Still, he at least tried to look like he wasn't mentally elsewhere when he picked Annie up from the tower and drove her to the cafe. It helped that she, as ever, had plenty she wanted to tell him, and it was nice to see her immediately launch into storytelling over the latest antics of the younger Avengers and the Avengers' kids who weren't yet on the team. Knowing she was excited to tell him about her day was a nice feeling, despite his preoccupation.
They were nearly to the cafe when Annie asked, "Something happen at the school?"
Scott blinked and turned her way at the stop sign. "Sorry?"
"You looked like you were thinkin' a bit too hard, and all I said was that Jimmy Barton is about a step away from joining the team once Captain America, you know, figures out how to tell him he's too young for it yet," Annie laughed. "Not really somethin' you need to think about."
"Just worried," Scott said.
"About him? He'll be fine. Takes after his father."
"I'm sure he will be; I know his parents," Scott said.
"Then is this about yours? Scott, they're doing well." She paused and bit her lip. "Unless there's been another problem like what happened at James's birthday party?"
Scott shook his head quickly. "Nothing like that," he promised. "Nothing… active."
"Thinking about the possibilities then." Annie leaned back in her seat. "You're going to have a heart attack by your next birthday the way you're goin'. And Craig said you'd been making such good progress."
"Hey, you don't get to bring your brother into conversations," Scott said.
Annie raised an eyebrow at him. "Okay. I think you've been loosening up. But now you're lookin' like Atlas."
Scott sighed as he pulled the car to a stop and pulled the keys. "Billy's got a stalker, and I'm worried it could escalate. I don't think it's just a jilted wannabe lover. Something's off here."
"There it is." Annie reached over to put her hand on top of his on the gear shift. "Have you talked to Billy? He's a smart boy."
"I have-"
"Good." She took his hand in a firmer grip. "I know there's nothing you can do about it now, or you'd be doing it. So why don't we grab some food in the meantime. Or do X-Men not eat food anymore?" she teased.
He almost smirked and shook his head at her. "What is it we're supposed to run on, then?"
"The dream," she said without missing a beat. "The dream and a whole lot of hope. I think it sustains you."
"If you say so," Scott said, hiding his smile as he got out of the car and came around to the other side to open her door for her. "And what about you? How's Craig doing? I only see him lately when he's in a professional capacity."
"His potentially violent mutant hater is thankfully quiet," Annie admitted. "Haven't heard from her in a while, though to hear Tony Stark tell it, she's probably knee-deep in dealing with his legal team. More worried about what happens in a few weeks when the cases are all either settled or litigated."
"Didn't realize there was that much legal work going on," Scott admitted. He hadn't really been paying attention to what was going on with Emma, mostly because it was still a sore subject, all things considered. He didn't want to know.
"Well, Stark has been digging, and your boy isn't the only one she's targeted in college. It's a tender age for a lot of kids, trying to get into adulthood, and if they have enough power or money or influence for her to care, she doesn't seem to mind breaking whatever rules she needs to break to make them owe her. It's everything a therapist shouldn't do."
"Sounds right," Scott muttered.
"Anyway, Craig's alright. Leslie Ann and Mary Beth have been talking him up as a hero, so he's soaking in being the cool uncle for once," she teased. "Though Leslie Ann is mad he won't help her convince Anton to let her join the team. She's too young, but she thinks she's older."
"Yeah, she's been hanging out with Mia and recruiting her to her cause, too."
"I don't doubt she'll be amazing when she's old enough, but Anton's scared to death she'll rush into something she's not ready for and get herself in trouble," Annie admitted and bit her lip. "I told him y'all wouldn't let that happen, not to these kids, not after what y'all went through. But you know how it is when you're worried about the people you love. Especially kids."
"Yeah, I know," Scott agreed.
They fell into silence for a bit, until they had a small table in the corner and were finally getting into their club sandwiches. Then, Annie broke the silence.
"You like teaching, don't you?" she asked, smiling when he looked up in surprise. "You've got the bug. I see it every time we get a new teacher. You're happier like this."
Scott smiled and rubbed the back of his neck. "It feels familiar."
"You love it," Annie said, grinning outright. "Isn't it wonderful? It's almost the end of the semester, and everyone's stressed over finals, I'm sure, but you can also see the improvement they've all made this time of year too."
Scott couldn't help but smile as he leaned forward to match her body language. She loved being a teacher, and he loved to see her light up like that.
"Do you know, I've had the most amazing essays this year. I tried something new, asked the kids to write about current events and then link them to what we've learned in history either to show the cause and effect of the past to the present or to show history repeating itself. I think I'm going to keep this assignment. These kids are creative!"
Scott smiled and reached out to cover her arm with his hand. "Sounds like you love it just as much as I do."
"Oh, absolutely," Annie agreed, her eyes sparkling. "I hope I never stop being surprised by these kids."
"I hope so too," he agreed, finally starting to relax. "I think I'd like to hear some of those essays."
Annie positively beamed at him, then straightened up, pressed her free hand to the table, and said, "Oh, have I got stories." And Scott just laughed and leaned toward her, soaking up her gushing reviews of all her students had learned to apply.
And she was happy to inform him that several of her students used mutant rights issues and incidents as examples before expressing their distress at how slow those rights were coming in to play.
Franklin Richards had finally finished his lecture series … but he was dragging his feet about leaving the house in Cambridge. It had become its own kind of home for him and he was in no rush to leave the mostly laid back and fun vibe that he and James had managed to create for themselves.
Most of it was almost child-like in the level of fun with practical science experiments built way up past a point of lunacy, or pizza fueled video game marathons or discussing their theories with each other in depth in a way that Franklin simply couldn't accomplish at home with his parents. Not because his parents weren't up to it, but because they didn't have the same kind of outlook of possibility that the boys had.
He'd even missed all the time Billy had once spent at the house. But - the media misinterpreting why Franklin and James were living together had been more than enough for Franklin to want to get some real distance between them. Especially when it sounded like some of them thought James needed someone from the Fantastic Four to supervise him when he wasn't with Avengers. That kind of tone wasn't at all something Franklin or anyone else could misinterpret, and honestly he was worried about what might happen to his friend once he was isolated.
Franklin was just thinking about how he was going to handle going back to the Baxter Building when he felt something wet underfoot a split second before James' damn black cat started weaving between his legs, purring loudly.
He startled and jumped, then moved away from where he'd been standing only to do a small double take because that wet thing under his foot appeared to have been the dead body of a songbird. Franklin let out a shout, then several choice four letter words as he started shouting for James to deal with his cat.
"What's the problem?" James asked, leaning in the doorway between the kitchen and the living room while Franklin hopped on one foot - completely grossed out.
"The problem is that your cat has gone from chewing up the flowers to leaving her kills around the house," Franklin replied.
James looked over to the mess, and to the slinky black cat sitting on the floor with her long tail swishing behind her. She didn't seem bothered at all by Franklin's antics and was instead watching him passively, though she'd quit purring. "What did she do wrong?" James asked before he took a few steps toward the cat and crouched down to give her a little pet. "She brought you a gift, Franklin. Why are you so ungrateful towards her thoughtfulness?" The little cat was arching into his hand, and once again purring loudly while Franklin stared at them in disbelief.
"It's a dead bird, James. What's cute about that?"
"Yeah, but she killed it for you," James pointed out. "Could have been worse."
"How?"
"She could have just wounded it for you."
Franklin let out a noise of disgust and threw his arms up as he stalked toward the bathroom. "I hope you have somewhere to take her when we're both moved out of here. And … would you please deal with her gift?"
"Ungrateful," James said while the cat happily purred and leaned into him. He did, however, clean up the songbird mess - and gave the cat some tuna for her troubles. Franklin might have no sense of humor over this, but James thought it was hilarious. "Just have to give you a name, beautiful."
"You should call her Lucifer," Franklin said, drying his hands off as he watched the two of them - back to the kitchen and calmed down a little now that he knew not to trust that he wouldn't step on dead animals.
"That's harsh. She's just doing what comes naturally to her," James said. "She's trying to take care of you. Wants to help you be a better hunter."
"You're hilarious."
James broke into a low chuckle at that. "It's a cat thing, Frank. All cats do it."
"Which is why we don't have one at home."
"Yeah, that's why," James said, rolling his eyes. "So … do you need help packing up?"
"About that," Franklin said. "My uncle is supposed to come and help me this week … we should be done packing up by Friday. He asked me if Bobby was picking you up or if it was someone else's turn."
"Does he want to see Bobby, or is he avoiding him?"
"To be honest? I have no idea. Could go either way with him - and he refused to tell me anything about the two of them. I am so disappointed."
"You and me both."
"So … want to not help me pack? That way we can drag it out and see what happens if Bobby comes on Friday …"
"You're getting vicious. I like it. Yes. Let's play video games before we have to stick to online campaigns to play."
In a rare move that was only possible because they were so close to break, Billy wished James to Westchester for a night in. They'd been so preoccupied with avoiding press that they totally missed out on the fact that they could spend time alone at the school - as long as they kept their behavior no more risqué than PG-13. And, of course it didn't hurt that Billy knew Tommy and Mia going to be out on a double date with Kate and Nate. Which meant minimal brotherly interruptions for both himself and James.
Not that the start wasn't rocky. James had barely appeared - and was tackled by Billy for a fairly impolite hello when Mia let out a wolf whistle. It didn't get them to stop … quite the opposite, actually - and several underclassmen nearby found themselves torn between a bright blush and unable to look away from the two known public figures in their generation of mutants.
"Oh man, you two are going to get into so much trouble," Mia giggled, and as soon as Billy and James stepped away from each other, she teleported over to wrap James up in a hug, too.
"Is kissing illegal now, too?" James asked as he picked her up in a bear hug.
"No, but you know … there still aren't many same sex couples open in the school … hang ups from home."
"Then they better just get over it," Billy said, entirely missing that Vojteck was in the crowd and looking positively incensed. "I already decided I'm keeping this one."
Mia giggled delightedly as the boys fell into step with her, leaning against each other with every step. "You should say hello to my mom before you get complaints about the public makeout sessions."
"Yeah, I was supposed to help her this semester but …" James trailed off.
"I know," Mia said consolingly. "Maybe next time."
"Right," he said under his breath as they came up to her office - and Tommy zipped out, blowing their hair back with the wind that always seemed to follow him. Of course, he blew Mia's argument for propriety by scooping her into a dip and kissing her into giggles.
Ororo was only a few beats behind him. She stopped in the door way, crossed her arms over her chest and cleared her throat to break it up, though she was already smiling toward James and Billy. "I was starting to believe that you forgot where I live," she teased James.
"I know, I'm sorry," James said quietly, but by that point, Tommy started to laugh and scooped Mia up to leave in a rush. And that had James looking in the direction they'd left. "Hey, Aunt 'Ro, do you have a few minutes?"
"For you? Always," Ororo said, gesturing for them to join him in her office. "What is it that's on your mind?"
"It just hit me that I never did a debrief on that little mission that Mia and I went on," James said as he took a seat across from her.
"I heard that Mia set a few things straight for May Parker," Ororo said with a crooked smile.
"Yeah, but I don't think she realized what she was doing when she was doing it."
"Mia said as much," Ororo agreed. "And you set her straight."
"No," James said shaking his head. "I meant I don't think Mia knew- Aunt 'Ro, she had lightning in her eyes."
Ororo blinked a few times before she responded. "Are you sure?"
"Very. My hair was standing on end and I don't think she knew what she was doing at all. It might even be on the mission recordings. I know Tony held on to them."
While Ororo was processing, Billy leaned over to whisper in James' ear. "You didn't tell me that part."
"Which? The lightning or the fact that Tony has the tapes?"
"I mean … both are good to know."
"Which are you more interested in?" James asked quietly.
"Do I have to choose?"
"Absolutely not."
"I think," Ororo said, breaking into their back and forth, "that I would like to see what's on those tapes."
"Totally on it," Billy promised. "Iwantthosetapes."
"You can just … skip over the whole … girls going back and forth - it's right at the end of Mia telling her off," James said.
"I wanna see that part too," Billy put in. "For totally… educational… not… jealous reasons. Nope."
"Nothing to be jealous of anyhow," James said.
"No, not anymore, but I was, and there's definitely some Schadenfreude going on here."
Instead of arguing it at all, or denying anything, James just leaned over and kissed his cheek. "Whatever you want."
Billy grinned obscenely and stole another kiss as he leaned past him to start the tapes - and didn't back up to give him any space after that, neatly sharing the same space as James and grinning as Mia let May have a piece of her mind. "I love Mia. I've said that, right?"
"Oh yeah. Favorite X-Man," James agreed.
Ororo blatantly ignored the two of them, leaning forward with her eyebrows high on her forehead as she watched the footage. And then, just like James had said, something flashed in Mia's eyes - though the angle on the cameras wasn't perfect for confirming if it was or was not lightning. Still, she trusted James's word, so she leaned back, a disbelieving smile tugging at her mouth until it took over her expression. "That's new," she said, sounding both shocked and proud.
"That's what I thought," James said.
"I wonder if she can do more than that," Billy said, sounding more like his grandfather than he entirely meant to.
"Of course she can, she's a little goddess," James said in a tone that made it clear he believed Mia could do every bit that Storm could. Eventually.
"Obviously. What was I thinking," Billy teased.
"Dunno. Probably something about Mayday, if I had to guess," James teased right back.
"True," Billy said, running with it. "I mean, if I get my mouth to do that pout juuuuust right, does that make me more or less attractive? I'm asking for scientific reasons."
"Please don't," James said, refusing to answer specifically.
"Billy," Ororo said before Billy could accidentally take the teasing too far, "would you bring Forge here, please?"
"Oh, sure," Billy said. "IwantForgeherewithus," he chanted - and Forge appeared a second later, screwdriver in one hand and a sandwich in the other.
"Okay," Forge said. "So, I'm here now."
"You have got to get some helper 'bots," James said with a crooked smile.
"And let them have all the fun?" Forge shot back, matching his smile.
"You still haven't come to play at the lab," James said, even as Ororo shook her head at both of them.
"Before you two make a play date, you need to watch the after footage from Mia's latest mission," Ororo told Forge.
Forge's smile shifted into the proud one he always wore when it came to Mia. "What did our little goddess do now? Solved the question of world peace already?"
"Not yet," Ororo replied, then started the recording up - already cued up to the right spot since she knew where it was now. Ororo didn't say a word, instead letting Forge see it for himself and decide what he thought he saw in the tape.
"Oooh, grab the angle from James's body cam here," Billy offered. "That might show it better than the one from May - even if Mia was in her face the rest of the time."
Ororo smiled, but followed Billy's advice with a much clearer result. Especially since Mia's eyes were flashing when James tried to slow her down. And then, having seen it better herself, Ororo simply leaned on her desk with a bemused smile.
Forge, meanwhile, was grinning steadily wider the whole time he watched it, and when the footage ended, he turned to Ororo and simply kissed her. "Would you look at that. She's even more perfect now."
Ororo laughed. "She doesn't even realize she was doing it."
"We'll tell her as soon as she gets home," Forge said, nodding along, still grinning widely.
"We need to get out of here before the school-wide PG-13 rule is broken," James stage-whispered to Billy.
"You mean we need to get out of here and break that rule," Billy stage whispered back.
"That too," James replied.
"That reminds me," Ororo said, finally looking away from her grinning husband. "Billy, would you remind your brother that just because he's continuing to work with me does not mean he has a free pass to break my rules?"
"Is a text okay, or does it need more impact? Like … Wizard of Oz style?"
"I'll let you decide for yourself," Ororo said with a sly smile.
"That probably means a text that will blow up into Wizard of Oz," James pointed out.
"Probably," Billy agreed, grinning crookedly. "Now, come on. I don't get to see you that often, and we're going out," he added, grabbing James around the waist before he wished them both to privacy.
Across town in Salem Center, Mia, Tommy, Nate, and Kate were just settling in to order dinner on their double date when Tommy's phone pinged with a text message. He was smiling to himself as he took the phone out, then rolled his eyes when he saw that it was from Billy. "Pesty little brother …"
He was sighing to himself as he swiped to open the message - only for the message to erupt out of the phone exactly like the big floating head in the wizard of oz as Billy delivered Storm's message - complete with colored smoke, flashing lights, and the mystically deep echoing voice. Ending with 'This will be your final warning!'
And it had startled Tommy nearly out of his seat, too. Which was wonderful entertainment for the others.
"Tommy, is your brother available for other Big-Headed Warnings, because those guys that were catcalling us on the street…" Kate managed to tease through fits of giggles.
"I thought your overprotective Summers brother would handle nonsense like that for you," Tommy said. "But … yeah, probably if you mentioned it." He turned toward Nate. "my brother is only being so dramatic because he wished yours over for a few hours. I'm blaming that situation."
"If that was all that was going on, your brother would be occupied. You've obviously been so ridiculous you outstripped his blinding need to get some," Nate said straight-faced - and Kate burst out laughing, clinging onto him for support and making him break into a grin.
"Whatever," Tommy said with a wave. "What are we doing? Because if it's just to roast, I want a turn and/or we can leave you two … alone."
"I'm ninety percent sure that was Mom's way of saying 'stick to the double date'," Mia pointed out. "Partially because you're too recognizable."
"I am. And so's our resident Hawkeye," Tommy said, grinning Kate's way.
Kate shrugged her shoulders up to her ears. "Like I said, can't hide awesomeness."
"No idea why you'd want to," Tommy agreed with a nod.
"Mostly for the sake of my trophy boyfriend," Kate said, ignoring Nate's scoff. "His family's under constant assault, you know. And that's not even an exaggeration."
"Yeah, I heard," Tommy said with a wave, then turned toward Nate with a grin. "Last Summers standing. With a mask. I give it … a week. Two if you grow a mustache or get a mohawk."
"Yeah, I already got a talking to from my parents about risking a Summers," Kate said. "I know his dad isn't happy either."
"Little unicorns, all three of them," Mia said airily.
"Yeah, but we love 'em anyway," Kate said and leaned into Nate to kiss him, though he playfully shoved her shoulder. "Aww, c'mon.
"Yeah, yeah," Nate said, shaking his head. The truth was that he had the four of them in a psychic bubble from the moment they went into the restaurant. No one could see anything but four kids out to eat - their identities were safe as long as he mildly thought about it. "Ooh, hey. I found out Dad knows how to skim social media this week. Ask me how."
"How?" Mia asked, happy to play along.
"He actually follows certain hashtags - and he knows what hashtags are," Nate teased.
"Oh, will wonders never cease," Mia laughed.
"You're at the top of the list," Nate said, pointing a finger at Mia. "Everyone loves Nightcrawler."
"Sure do," Tommy put in. "But some of us more than others, so … I think she gets to pick the movie."
Franklin had dragged his feet all week long so that when Bobby did finally show up Friday afternoon, they were still packing.
"Close the door or you'll let the cat out," Franklin called out when he heard Bobby come in.
"Okay … what cat?" Bobby asked before he turned the corner into the living room to see Johnny and Franklin trying to finish packing the last few boxes and a slim black cat sitting on the table behind the couch supervising them. "Oh. Okay. When did you get a cat?"
"Not my cat," Franklin said and Johnny couldn't help but smile at that.
"Okay … when did James get a cat?"
"Just after the kidnapping attempt," Johnny said when Franklin rushed into the next room, leaving the two of them alone. "The boys were feeding the animals and he brought this one inside, apparently."
"Probably overdue," Bobby replied, then stuck his hands in his pockets as he leaned in the doorframe. "So… is my kid ready to go yet, or …"
"I don't know, honestly," Johnny replied, though now that they were alone with only the cat supervising them, he lost some of his easy tone as his nerves caught up to him. "I've been trying to get Franklin packed, only I'm not so sure he even wants to move out."
"I'm sure the rest of the family can't wait to get him back though, so … I won't hold you up."
"Bobby, wait a sec," Johnny said. "Can I- can we just … can you talk to me for a minute?"
"About what?"
"Just … everything," Johnny said, even fumbling through that much. He looked over his shoulder then got to his feet, even going so far as to awkwardly pet the cat for as long as she'd allow him to while he stalled for time. "I … so we really screwed up." Bobby scoffed. "I mean, we should have checked in. Sooner. Somehow. But in my defense, I thought you were happy. I thought you had someone else."
Bobby stared at him with a look of incredulous disbelief. "Who did you think- what?"
"Nevermind. Forget it," Johnny said, red-faced. "I'm sorry, okay? Just ... " he scooped up the cat, who mewed at him. "Franklin's being hard to help, so let me at least get her settled in her carrier."
"Wait- go back-"
"James said he didn't want to leave her behind for the break," Johnny said, trying to ignore Bobby's attempt to talk about real things. "He's got everything set for her, just needs to put her in the carrier."
Bobby stared at him in shock, totally unsure of what the hell was going on with Johnny hiding behind the cat. But by that time, James had hit the bottom of the stairs with Franklin.
"Thanks for keeping me company," James said, drawing both Johnny and Bobby's attention.
"Thanks for letting me," Franklin said, and a second later, the two of them were bear hugging it out. "If and when MIT drops the ball, you've got an open invite to talk to the dean at Harvard."
"I don't want to do anything you set up for me-"
"All I did was show him your test scores and your rejected papers. Drop the brass rat. You already know you look good in red," Franklin said with a grin. "At least think about it. Seriously."
"Merry Christmas," James said.
"Happy Hanukkah - heard you might be converting," Franklin teased, smiling wider when James started shaking his head.
"Are you two getting that serious?" Johnny asked, looking stunned, but that had just set himself up for some higher level sass.
"Why?" James asked. "Are you worried we're moving too fast, or that we might eclipse you two?"
"We? Us- we're not- we haven't…"
"You got through a half assed apology," James said.
"Keep going!" Franklin added, grinning at both of them.
With the boys in agreement, Bobby and Johnny shared a look - both of them with red cheeks and at a loss for words. "Catch you later, hot head," Bobby managed - which was far more congenial than anything he'd had to say so far.
"Sure thing, icicle," Johnny replied automatically.
James walked around them and picked up the cat carrier and the little bag of supplies for her on his way out the back door. "Your ride today, Uncle Snowball."
"Oh… okay," Bobby said, in a little bit of a daze as he belatedly headed out behind him.
The door had no sooner closed behind them before Franklin poked his uncle in the ribs. "You hear that? You still have a shot!" He sighed heavily while Johnny rolled his eyes. "If only you had some game when it mattered!"
But that only sparked off some serious teasing between them.
For James and Bobby though, the drive was pretty quiet for the first long while. Bobby hadn't expected what little Johnny had said and for the life of him, he couldn't figure out what he'd meant when he said he thought he had moved on. Sure, there were a couple flings in Genosha, but … certainly not anything that had made headlines or would have. And the last time Bobby could remember seeing Johnny in person before now was when he'd had James … when James was tiny.
Why in the world would Johnny think he'd moved on when he was being a temporary guardian for Logan's son? It just didn't make sense, and Bobby was trying hard to make it make sense.
They drove until the press backed off - and after a little change in the way Bobby's car looked - and after James was wearing his inducer, too … they finally pulled up to the house in Brooklyn. "You going to stick around for a minute?" James asked, and Bobby nodded as they climbed the handful of steps to the front door.
"Yeah. I'm just … yeah." Bobby looked off balance, and James wasn't about to poke him when he was clearly that far off. Instead, he let Bobby lead the way and slipped upstairs with his things - and his cat - while Bobby took a moment to talk to Scott, who was in the kitchen preparing for dinner later with Annie.
"Hey, Bobby," Scott said, glancing up at him for a moment, but keeping on task. "You sticking around for a few?"
"Just long enough to fill you in on whatever's going on," Bobby replied.
"What's up?" Scott asked, looking concerned for no other reason than his tone.
"Oh, nothing much with James. He's fine. In fact, he brought a pet home with him, so … really sweet stray cat, I guess."
"Then what has you looking like that?" Scott asked.
Bobby held his breath and looked up toward the ceiling as he tried to find the words. "I … don't even know where to start."
"You ran into Johnny again, didn't you?"
"It'll probably be the last time," Bobby replied. "Franklin's moving back to the Baxter Building, so he'll have no reason to cross my path again."
"Alright," Scott said slowly, but wasn't entirely sure if it was the right time to press, considering he knew how Bobby had felt about Johnny years ago - and he knew how upset Bobby had gotten the last time they spoke. "You can stay for dinner if you like."
Bobby shrugged up one shoulder. "Nah. I've got plans with some of the kids for a snowball fight. Want to get that going before it gets too dark, you know?"
"Door's always open," Scott reminded him.
"I know. And maybe I'll take you up on that over break. I just … gonna clear my head."
Scott watched Bobby go, though it was still early in the day, so the rest of Scott's kids weren't home yet, so he decided to see what he could find out from James, if he was willing to talk. He called for him at a volume no louder than his regular speaking voice, sure that James was going to be listening. He always was, even when he didn't want to hear anything.
James got down to the kitchen quickly, and Scott noticed he'd made a point to make noise as he hit the bottom of the stairs to warn Scott of his approach. "Did Bobby leave already?" James asked.
"Yeah. Couple things I wanted to ask before everyone else shows up."
"Okay, shoot."
"Have you heard back from the college yet on your paper?"
"I would have called you if that happened."
"When were you going to tell me about the cat?"
"Original plan was to do that when I got here, but Bobby looked like he needed old friend attention so I got out of the way."
"Fair. On that note - what's going on with him? Did something happen with Johnny?"
"Johnny attempted to apologize," James said thickly. "And for him he did okay. But then he botched the ending, so I don't know how badly that really went. Bobby didn't really talk all the way here. I don't think I've ever heard him be that quiet before."
Scott looked thoughtful for a long moment, just weighing it out and trying to decide how best to help. But that was kind of a rough path when he needed to talk to Bobby more privately. "Okay. So, lighter subject again-"
"Because you don't want to talk about Bobby's love life anymore than I do."
"No, I don't," Scott agreed with a crooked smile. "Might be nice to have a pet around the house."
"She's a pretty good hunter," James said. "And friendly enough."
"Bobby said she was a stray?"
"Reformed stray. Franklin and I were feeding the animals after one of the neighbors got loud about trying to get rid of the cats and raccoons and whatever." James shrugged up one shoulder. "I'll take her back with me when break is over."
"Sounds good," Scott said. "You can let her roam. You don't need to keep her locked up in your room."
"Okay. Thanks." James turned to leave.
"When are you planning to go see Tony?" Scott asked.
"I don't know. I thought I might try to coordinate with Billy before he goes back to Genosha for the holiday."
"That's a sure thing, then?"
James gave him a dry look. "His mom is barely holding back from snatching him up and keeping him there after my stupid run in with whoever. Yes. He's absolutely going home for Hanukkah."
"Surprised he didn't invite you to join him."
"He did. I haven't answered yet."
"Why not?"
"There are a lot of reasons," James said. "Part of it though, is that I don't think his mom really wants me around."
"That's ridiculous. Wanda likes you. I Thought you boys were getting serious," Scott said with a frown.
"Yeah, well. I guess we'll see. And no she doesn't."
Scott shook his head as he watched his son line himself up for the same kinds of mistakes his father had made. It was easy to see that James was trying to protect Billy by keeping him away from the crossfire if possible. Even if James hadn't fully committed to it. "You're making a mistake," Scott said finally.
"What are you talking about?" James asked, frowning hard as he looked up.
"I mean … trying to protect Billy by keeping away from him."
"I'm not-"
"Yes you are." Scott gestured for James to take a seat with him at the kitchen table then waited until he did exactly that. "You know, your father used to pull that same thing. It was a desperate move that very nearly cost him a shot at happiness more than once." When James only frowned deeper, Scott continued. "I saw him do it to a few different women he got involved with over the years before he met your mother - it was always when things got dangerous, and it was always a misguided hope that distance would mean safety. But - it never did. And your mother …"
"He didn't do that to her," James said, confident that wasn't possible from what he saw between the other dimension's Logan and K. And the memories Billy had helped him find. No way.
"He tried to," Scott told him, looking perfectly serious. "But that was a wild miscalculation on his part."
"How?"
"At that point in their relationship, she loved him, but she wasn't about to let him call every shot without discussing things with her. Nothing big was going to be decided alone without serious repercussions. And as far as she was concerned at the time, he was dropping her. So she went elsewhere."
"Wait. What."
"She took what she saw as a rejection on the chin and practically turned right into Tony's arms."
"You said they didn't date-"
"They didn't get that far. I don't know how far they took anything, but she barely missed a beat before she and Tony were looking like that was inevitable. I don't know all the details because when she did that, I got pretty mad at her, too. Didn't realize she was just making a point with Logan. Not until I saw Logan's response to the two of them. Which was when your father realized how badly he'd screwed up. He had to fight for her, but he did finally convince her she needed to be with him instead of Tony. At the time, it was a pretty serious insult for her to tell him that Tony seemed more interested in a commitment." He leaned toward James. "You don't want to take that risk if it's someone you love. I can tell you right now, I don't know if she'd have stuck with Tony or not, but it was a mistake on your father's part and she did not make it easy for him to fix it."
"Dad-"
"I'm just saying, if you're trying to do something similar, thinking it will protect him and you love him- don't do it. Totally different story if you don't want to be with him anymore. In that case, just end it. It's kinder not to drag him along."
"Don't you have a date to get ready for?" James asked, which was the most blatant redirect Scott had seen from James in years.
"I do, but if it comes down to it, we can order in instead," Scott replied. "I want to make sure you're alright and to help you to keep from making a huge mistake."
James held his gaze for a long moment, but made it clear he wasn't up for talking about his love life at all. "I'm gonna go upstairs, settle in, and order something for dinner so I don't interrupt your courtship dance. At all. I'll think over Genosha with my earphones in so I don't have to overhear anything. Just pretend like I don't exist. I will be.."
"If it's just that you're anxious about how the country will react to you-"
"That is also on my list of concerns," James said, sounding resigned to it. "Seeing as I murdered their last king, that is definitely on my list of concerns."
"Self defense," Scott said gently because this sounded like James was going backwards on that front.
"Right. Tell that to his followers," James replied as he got to his feet. "Love you. Nice to be home."
"Love you too. Let me know if Billy decides to get you out of here, okay?"
"Will do," James agreed as he left, though now Scott had to do what he could to finish up making dinner and wait for school to get out for Nate and Annie.
No one should have been surprised that the buzz at the school had slowly become more involved where Kate was concerned. Nate had been listening to the growing rumors and whispers for days and with every passing day, he found himself unintentionally drifting away from Kate publicly.
Not that it slowed him down in telepathic flirting … but it was definitely much less fun when they weren't face to face, hand in hand, side by side. A block away from each other on opposite sides of the street when they were doing the best they could to kinda have a date was just … so so wrong.
This is stupid, Kate projected to Nate as the two of them sat next to each other in Annie's history class. She'd been thinking about it all week - since the first recognition by a freshman the Monday after the party in Jersey City.
It is but we still have to graduate so, here we are.
No. This minimal contact garbage. I've had four cheerleaders ask if we broke up already.
Oh, come on, Nate projected back. Like I care what they think anyhow.
Yeah, I know, but that also means more guys asking if I'm free Friday night, Kate pointed out. And a few girls.
Okay, we'll figure something out, Nate replied. Try as he might, he didn't like it when other people were hitting on his Hawkeye.
Nate was really just starting to grumble internally when out of nowhere someone came up to Kate with their phone held up in front of them and grinning broadly.
"You're Hawkeye right? Ohmygosh, I can't believe we actually spotted you!" The girl was bouncing on her toes. "Would it - is it okay if we-"
"Canwepleasegetaselfiewithyou?" the second teenager blurted out.
"It'll only take a second!"
"And we promise we won't tell everyone where we saw you!"
"Unless it's okay, then - ohmygosh! Tina is going to lose her mind when she hears we met you!"
I'll keep an ear open for any trouble, Nate projected. Have fun.
Thanks, Kate projected back before she took the time to chat with the kids She let them take pictures, posed along with them, and then did her finest to shake the slowly growing group of teenagers that wanted to know how to become an X-Man or Avenger, how it felt to be surrounded by so many hot guys in tight clothes, and the whole hanging out with mutant royalty. It was a lot of the kinds of questions Kate would have teased the living snot out of her friends with - so it was outright laughable that this was what they were asking her.
She had her inducer in her pocket - waiting for a chance to use it, but sadly, that was only getting harder to do - and she had to change before they got into the subway to head to Nate's house. Otherwise … she'd have to just go home and let her parents get her siblings from Xavier's. And she really wanted to spend that long drive alone with her sweetheart.
Turn down that alley, Nate suggested. I'm a block and a half behind you, but if you can get out of their line of vision for a second, you can totally disappear.
Handy dandy telepathic suggestion. Why don't you use it so we can just walk down the road?
Because that would be abusing my powers, Nate replied calmly. And it would deny you your adoring fans.
Shut up, Kate countered, though she was already blushing as she ducked down a tight alleyway. She watched as the teenagers that had been following her looked down the alley and continued on, which gave Kate a chance to turn on her inducer and walk out a few moments later entirely incognito.
When the two of them finally fell into step with each other, Nate seamlessly handed her a latte that he'd picked up for her while she was dealing with her fans.
At least that was a nice peek at normalcy between them.
When Nate and Kate got into the Summers house, they were greeted first by the smells coming out of the kitchen as they momentarily turned off their image inducers.
Oh, right, Nate projected to her as he took Kate's coat and hung it at the door. Dad is cooking for Miss Hale tonight. You're invited. Billy will probably be here before long, too.
Yeah, I know he's pushing to get James to go to Genosha with him for the holidays. She smiled at Nate and kissed his cheek, then beat him to the punch to call out to Scott. "Hi Scott!" she called out. "We're just here long enough to take your truck!"
"As long as you're back for dinner later," Scott called back.
I totally beat you in saying 'hi', Kate teased Nate.
No, you didn't. I projected to him as we walked in the door, but it's cute that you think you can beat me in saying hello to my dad.
But I did beat you. By using my words. Try it. You might like it.
"Doubtful," Nate said as Scott turned the corner, cleaning his hands off on a kitchen towel.
"Tank's full," Scott said. "Take image inducers. Your brother's been working up some new ones - just in case."
"Of course he has," Nate said, rolling his eyes. He kissed Kate's cheek. "I'll just ask him to bring them down. I know he's hiding out already."
"Just don't let the cat outside," Scott said, which was enough to get Nate to pause halfway to the stairs and look between Kate and Scott with a confused frown.
"Oh … okay." He held up one hand. "What cat?"
"Your brother brought one home with him," Scott said, then headed toward the kitchen to keep working on dinner.
"Okay then," Nate said as he and Kate both looked around the living room for signs of this cat. "I really shouldn't be surprised that he can get away with just bringing something like that home."
But Kate was the one to spot her where the cat was sitting on the table like an ebony statue, watching them and looking entirely too regal for an ex-alleycat. "I'm definitely more of a dog person, but …" Kate quietly made her way closer to say hello, smiling to herself when she got into the same room where it was much more clear that the little black cat was purring loudly.
The cat watched Kate approach, unintimidated in the least by strangers. Kate held her hand out to her to smell, but the cat just looked at the offered hand, and then up at Kate almost accusing her of having lost her mind. But she allowed Kate to pet her all the same, even leaning into her hand and purring louder.
Which was about when Nate noticed the beheaded flowers on the table nearby. "Um … what … why are the flowers like this?" Nate called out - to his father.
But Scott hadn't seen what the cat had done and came out to look - considering that he'd gotten the flowers to set the right tone when Annie showed up. And when he saw them, his expression fell and he called fo James. "Inducers or not, I need a word," Scott called out.
"On the way," James promised - rushing down the stairs with two brand new inducers in hand. He hit the bottom of the steps - and turned to see that Nate and his dad were both giving him the same incredulous look while Kate was smirking and absently petting the cat.
"What the hell, James?" Nate blurted out, and Scott tapped Nate's chest with the back of his hand for his language.
James looked between his family, Kate, and the cat - then realized the flowers were all murdered. "Oh. Yeah, well … she does that." He handed the inducers to Nate and Kate, then reached over to scritch the cat under her chin.
"You could have warned me," Scott said as he went into motion picking up the mess.
"In my defense, I didn't realize your courtship dance now included flowers or I would have kept Morticia in my room."
Scott did a little double take then tried to hide the smile, and Kate's whole everything paused for a full second before she broke down with a fit of giggles.
"Oh my god, that's perfect!" Kate decided as she gave Morticia a little more love. And Morticia soaked it up, purring loudly and curling into Kate's attention.
"That's what I thought," James agreed, just as Nate sighed and ran upstairs to change - and Scott left the two of them with the cat as James promised to go get some flowers for Scott's big show. But he paused since usually, with a new inducer, Kate was already fiddling or asking what she'd look like. "You okay?"
"Yes," Kate said, nodding. "It's just hard to handle things when someone decides to be distant because of other people."
"Is this ... " James tipped his head. "Is this a 'best friend' warning, a little sister warning, or is this actually about Nate being cautious?"
"I mean, you can take it all three ways if you want," Kate said. "But I was referring to your brother acting like we're not together in classes now. It's such a pain."
"Ah. Yeah. I'm sorry you're too awesome to contain," James said, barely smirking enough to let it show in his eyes.
Kate smiled a little wider, then schooled her expression down as James offered her a hug. He was halfway through a decent bear hug when she spoke up, too. "And thanks. I needed the cheering up. Your cat is amazing."
"I like her," James agreed. "Billy hasn't gotten to really meet her yet, though. So … hope he likes cats."
"She's graceful and fearless," Kate said with a smile. "Just his type. You're good."
James smirked, using Morticia as an excuse not to look Kate in the eyes. "Right. So. This time, I decided to give you the same kind of inducer I use to pretend to be a Summers."
"Um … you are a Summers."
"You know what I mean," James said, shaking his head. "You'll look like a natural born Barton."
"Oooh, how did you decide which features to use from everyone?" Kate asked, already getting her inducer ready to try out.
"Analyzed genetics, for some of it. If it's a dominant trait, it's in there. For everything else, I flipped a coin."
"So … I'm red-headed?"
"Yeah, but I gave you your dad's nose," James said with a shrug. "There are adjustments, though."
"What kind of adjustments?"
"The kind that turn up the number and severity of various cuts and bruises," James teased with a crooked smile. "Naturally."
"You're such a dork," she laughed, shoving his shoulder with one hand, even as she clutched the inducer in her other hand.
"Established," James countered as he pulled on a sweatshirt and picked up his shoes. "Enjoy your drive. Nate will look like a very androgynous Captain Carol and Rhodey mix."
"Are you … really? Or are you just screwing with him?"
"Really. And it's more to screw with Rhodey, but yes." He leaned over and kissed her cheek. "Try to cut him a little slack. He's not happy about any of this either, Katie."
"I know, but that doesn't really help."
Without anything very helpful to offer at that point, James again gave her a bear hug. "We both know he'll bust himself out sooner or later," James whispered. "So… I'm going to get some replacement flowers for Dad. So Morticia has something to do later, too."
"Yes. I'm sure that's why your dad wants flowers around. To entertain your cat," Kate laughed. But she was laughing and still smiling by the time Nate caught up with them again - all cleaned up and smelling fresh.
"Ready to go, beautiful?" Nate asked with a smile.
"Oh yes," Kate agreed before they waved goodbye to Scott and headed off to get Kate's siblings from Xavier's.
Bobby was turning over an envelope Sue Storm had sent to the mansion addressed to him a few days earlier when he passed Nate and Kate in the hallway at the institute. They had been there to pick up Lexi, but when Nate heard Bobby wondering how and why he'd been invited to the Fantastic Four's holiday party - and whether he should go - and picked up on the fact that Bobby had been stewing on Johnny's apology and the invitation for days now, Nate came to a stop, turned toward Bobby with his whole body, and shook his head. "Seriously?"
Bobby also stopped, then made a face at Nate. "You gonna go out of your way to look that much like your dad for no reason?"
"Just go to the stupid party," Nate said, shaking his head. "I can't believe you haven't figured this out yet."
"Look, I-"
"He thought you were dating Kitty!" Nate said, and Bobby stopped short. "You're such an idiot, you know that? You spent all that time going to Japan with Kitty after what happened, and, hell, I even remember staying on Genosha with you when we were little and thinking you two were flirting."
Bobby stared at him. "We were trying - we were trying to deal with - that's not what was going on."
"That's what you let Magneto believe to stay out of prison. Must have been believable, considering how paranoid he was."
Bobby ran a hand down his face and groaned. "Okay, Tiny Scott, first of all, stop that. Second of all, this is stupid."
"And third of all, you're going to that party, right?" Kate finished for him, fluttering her eyelashes. "Right?"
"Do you have any idea how disturbing the combination of Tiny Scott and Mini-Hawk is?" Bobby countered. "Why… don't you worry about your own issues, kids. Sounds like you've got enough happening without worrying about my crap."
"Which is why it's fun to worry about other people's crap," Kate sang out sweetly. "Have fun at the party. Do you need a ride?"
"No, but I'd like an autograph before you get locked in a tower!" Bobby called back.
"Sure, bring me a picture of me and I'll sign my face," Kate said.
"Won't be possible because I'm gonna get a copy of you when you were five and apparently didn't like the idea of pants." He grinned at Kate. "But … you already said you'd sign your picture when I brought it so…"
"And I am a woman of my word. Pants are still overrated," Kate said without missing a beat. "Especially the ones with tiny girl pockets."
"Take an inducer with you when you go back, Mini Hawk," Bobby called out. "Might not hurt for your little telepath to do the same."
"Smart," Kate said, giving him a two-fingered salute. "Hey, if you end up dating the most photographed superhero this side of Tony Stark, do you want one too?"
"I have no interest in Cap like that," Bobby deadpanned. "And no. I can deal with it fine."
"So you are thinking ahead," Kate said delightedly, clapping her hands together. "Go! Go snag your man and tell him he's an idiot." Still cackling, she backed into Nate, who practically picked her up on their way out the door. "This is so fun. I love when you get all 'stop being stupid' with your powers!" Bobby could hear her telling him before the door closed behind them, leaving Bobby shaking his head at the whole situation.
But… on the other hand…
Well, he knew it was gonna bug him if he didn't try to sort out the mess that was his relationship with apparently Sue as well as Johnny, so he headed out, invitation in hand, still wondering how this was his life after Genosha, apparently. Babysitting a mini combo of Scott and Logan and fending off rumors that one of the best friends he had in the world - and the reason he'd survived Genosha, honestly - was his girlfriend.
Once he got to the Baxter Building, he thought he might have an idea of what to say, but when Sue was the first person he saw, he switched gears and instead waved the invitation practically under her nose with a sharp "What the heck?"
"Well," Sue said, only leaning back slightly. "We didn't have a party last year, and this is the first one I could invite you to since you got back home." She looked past him with a raised eyebrow. "No plus one?"
"Who'm I gonna bring, Santa?" Bobby shook his head.
"I honestly don't know, Bobby," Sue said, then slipped close enough to give him a quick hug. "But I am glad to see you all the same. Come on-"
Bobby let Sue steer him deeper into the party, sure that he was missing something. "I just… it took me by surprise, you know. Don't hear from anyone to check in with me forever and then… parties?"
"Would you rather we didn't try now - when we can safely check on you?"
"No, that's not-" Bobby blew out his breath from his cheeks.
"We didn't just sit pretty here the whole time," Sue said. "There was a lot of trouble for a long time with Victor. Again. He seemed to want to be involved with helping for the kids. Well … he wanted to help Valeria anyhow."
"Uh-huh. That sounds like him," Bobby said, making a face at the thought.
"You missed all of that lunacy," Sue said. "And seeing as it's Christmas and not Halloween, I'd rather not rehash the details on how he ended up her godfather, if it's all the same to you."
"Her what?" Bobby let his whole head drop forward.
"I told you … we had a lot of crap to deal with, too," Sue answered softly. "But I am sorry we didn't find a way to get you out of there. Johnny told me some of what you'd had to deal with."
"Yeah. Same old story, me. Started my life as an X-Man in a prison cell…" Bobby gestured with one hand and let the sentiment trail off.
"Are you saying you retired?" Sue asked as she handed him something to drink. "That doesn't sound like you."
"Ah, no, one of the only original X-Men who never retired, thankyouverymuch," Bobby said with his chin up. "That's why I kept getting in trouble on Genosha."
"If it helps at all - and I don't expect that it would - most of the times that Victor backed off of destroying Genosha was when we were screwing with his plots," Sue told him quietly.
"Yeah, he wouldn't have been any better for Genosha than Magneto was, at the end."
"Oh, he wanted to wipe it out," Sue said.
"Yeah, well, Magneto was going to get it wiped out," Bobby said. "Same end, different means. He put a target on it as big as the Empire State Building and then pissed off everyone with an ax to grind."
"Doing a lot better now, I understand," she said. "Have you been back, or do you plan to go?"
"Trying to decide, honestly," he admitted. "I made some good friends there. There was a couple that kept getting arrested as often as I did because they were organizing peaceful protests for visitation rights, human family passports, that kind of thing. But I'm also glad to have the place in my rearview, so…"
She nodded thoughtfully, but didn't warn bobby when Ben came up behind him and dropped an arm around his shoulders as a means of saying hello. "Thought you got smart and found somewhere warm," Ben teased.
"Oh, yeah, I'm a regular tropical paradise these days," Bobby shot back.
"See, I thought I remember you sayin' you couldn't take the heat, but … go live on the equator makes a person wonder what you were thinkin'."
"Mostly not thinking?" Bobby shrugged both shoulders up to his ears. "Hi, by the way."
"Welcome back," Ben said, then yanked him into a bear hug.
Bobby couldn't help but smile, purely because this all felt so weirdly normal. "You big softie."
"Yeah, that's what I'm known for," Ben grumbled. "Why don't you catch me up, huh? Last I heard you were runnin' off with one of those gals you worked with. With the kid … then we saw the kid, but no word from anyone else?"
Bobby pinched the bridge of his nose. "Wow, that makes it sound like I'm some kinda deadbeat," he muttered. "Look, Scott was always gonna take James; he was godfather. Me and Kitty just took him for a while so Scott could go by himself to make sure the heat was off before he moved the kids in. Pretty sure Alex had the other kids for a while. It was a tire fire? We were all just… taking the kids where we could and cleaning up messes."
"Yeah, I can see that. Kinda was told somethin' similar, just wanted to hear if the stories lined up."
Bobby shrugged and set aside his empty glass. "Yeah, so, I mean-"
"He's on the roof," Sue said before Bobby could dig himself too deeply. "And I didn't tell him I invited you. So … you have the element of surprise on your side."
Bobby blinked at Sue and genuinely thought about trying to play the whole thing off - but then just took another drink instead. "Okay," he said and headed up, steadfastly not looking toward Ben or Sue, since he didn't need to see them smirking at him.
And they were right; he did have the element of surprise. Johnny was sitting in a chair on the roof with his feet kicked up, looking up at the sky - so Bobby threw a snowball at him and got him to nearly startle out of his chair and hit the ground.
"What was that for?" Johnny blurted out as he got to his feet and brushed the snow off, then did a double take when he put together who it was that had got him. "Oh. Hi. Party's downstairs."
"Yeah, been there. You know me and Kitty weren't dating, right?"
"Ah … no. And what did I have to tell me otherwise? Seeing as you disappeared with her to an island."
"Yeah, wasn't my idea to stay on Genosha. We'd stopped in because we needed somewhere safe for mutants, and with the school leveled, that was pretty much the only place we had. Planned to stay long enough to recover and then… I don't know. Figure out what to do after the X-Men stopped existing, I guess. Didn't know it was a one-way invitation for everyone but Magneto's favorites."
"That's just … dumb," Johnny finished lamely. "But seriously. You guys looked like you had the whole … found picket white fence going on. Look at it from my angle. And with everything else that had gone wrong before …" He held up both hands. "But if you're going to start yelling at me again, fair warning - I'm jumping off the building and flying somewhere else."
"Look." Bobby ran a hand down his face. "I went with Kitty because she knew Japan best, and I owed Logan my life, okay? Cleaning up his unfinished business there was the only thing I could do, and she was the one who knew what needed doing. Wasn't a fling. Spent half the time trying to get her and Spiderman together, actually," he added, grinning crookedly.
"Yeah, that … would explain why he was in a funk for a while," he said. "Like … all five minutes of losing his buddies."
"Pretty sure you and Kitty can commiserate on the whole mixed messages thing, seeing as she didn't know about May until we heard she and James were dating through the Summers-Maximoff family grapevine."
"Oh, wow," Johnny said with a raised eyebrow expression. "That little spider is sneakier than he looks. Or acts. Or … anything."
"Right?" Bobby smirked and then leaned against the wall. "So. Yeah. Wasn't dating Kitty. Partnered up for some ninja kicking, watched the kid so Scott could lead some bad guys on a merry chase away from the kids' trail. That cover everything?"
"If I'm being honest, probably not, but I'm still stuck on Parker having hidden game for so long, so … maybe circle back with questions when I'm not half buzzed on eggnog?"
Bobby grinned and then made himself a chair out of ice to sit next to Johnny. "Fair. It's a very big thing to get over - the secret Spidey game."
"I mean … you at least had an excuse for not knowing for so long," Johnny said. "I honestly didn't pay him that much attention."
"For a chatterbox, he actually doesn't give much away when he doesn't want to," Bobby agreed.
Johnny was quiet for a long moment, nodding in agreement. "I really am sorry we didn't push to check in. For what it's worth. Excuses notwithstanding."
"Yeah, I am still a little pissed that you thinking you lost your shot at dating me means I got to rot in jail, not gonna lie," Bobby admitted, though he wasn't nearly as mad as he'd been the last time they'd talked about it.
"If I'd known you were in jail - the dating thing wouldn't have made a difference," Johnny insisted. "I'd have found a way to bust you out or end up sitting there across the hall or whatever."
"You are buzzed," Bobby said with a smile he couldn't quite help. "That's probably the nicest thing you've ever said to me - even if you're so wrong."
"I'm not wrong. I've melted concrete before. A little metal wouldn't be much."
"I mean about the sitting in jail with me," Bobby said. "Humans don't go to jail on Genosha. Or they didn't, anyway."
"What are you talking about?" Johnny asked, turning his way.
Bobby sighed. "Look, in this hypothetical scenario where you get caught trying to bust me out? You're dead. Sorry."
Johnny drew in a deep breath, held it with one finger pointed skyward and shook his head once. "I … am going to disagree because I still think I could have just gotten away with it. Because I'm not just another human." He leaned toward Bobby with a troublemaking look. "I'm super human. Totally different."
Bobby laughed and leaned forward to match him. "Sure, I'll let you think that."
"And I'm not that buzzed," Johnny said. "Right. Not super buzzed, yes to super human. Cosmic, even. So there."
Bobby kept grinning wider and laughing along to every word. "Oh yeah, that'll teach me," he agreed. "And all I've got is awesome genes."
"You wanna spell that?" Johnny teased, grinning now that the heaviness of the situation had shifted a little.
"Yes. It's spelled both ways. Take it as you will," Bobby laughed.
Johnny's smile slipped a little as he watched Bobby laugh. "I've really missed that."
"What, bad jokes?" Bobby shook his head. "You've got Ben for that."
Johnny shook his head, then took the initiative to pull Bobby a little closer to steal a kiss. "The laugh, you moron."
Bobby blinked in pleasant surprise and then returned the kiss in kind. "Missed you too."
Chapter 92: Family Functions
Chapter Text
The warm rush of tropical air was enough to set James back a step when he and Billy arrived in Genosha via one of Billy's spells. At almost the same time that they appeared, James heard the telltale woosh that announced Tommy's arrival as well. Before he could quite process that, Billy pulled James into a fairly involved kiss.
"Welcome to Genosha … take two. What are you thinking?" Billy asked in an anxious tone.
"I'm thinking that I'm not going to tell your brother that you got here first by a hair," James said with his eyes closed.
Billy knew that James was anxious about going back to the island … to the palace to spend time with Billy's family. And he was truly hoping that all would go well. "You're just saying that."
"Okay, sure," James said, then opened one eye and stole a quick, chaste kiss. "I know you're going to keep checking, but I'm here, with you - I'm alright. Really and truly. Please don't get anxious on your time home because of my issues."
"It's like you had your sister check in my head," Billy deadpanned as he took James' hand and they started toward the center of the palace. It wasn't until just then that James realized Billy had wished them to his room, which was probably a very safe place for them to be - even if some of the guards took offense. "Mom and Dad will be glad to see you came." He grinned over at James for an instant. "And Uncle Alex, of course."
But that was about when they crossed Alex's path, so James couldn't help but pick. "Oh, right. Alex. How could I have forgotten about Uncle Alex …"
"You little punk," Alex said before he took a few quick steps and shoved James sideways. "Heard you made an inducer for yourself that makes you look like me."
"Why would I want to be ugly?" James countered, even as Alex laughed.
"It makes him look like he fits into the whole Summers-Grey group," Billy said. "There are touches of Rachel and her mom in there, too."
"Aww," Alex said. "Totally pointless when you already fit in."
"Are you high? Or on something?" James asked. "You're all … squishy and touchy feely. Keep your emotions to yourself. I don't want any."
"Emotions aren't contagious, James," Alex said as he rolled his eyes. "Or so I've been told."
"You were lied to," James said flatly as Alex put his arm around both of them, steering them to where the rest of Billy's family was waiting.
"And you're here for the duration, kiddo," Alex said. "A whole week … and change. Which is great because I think you'll like it a lot more this time around." He jostled James as James looked over at Billy - clearly unsure of the entire situation, but going along anyhow.
And Billy knew how big of a deal this was for James - going back to Genosha. So he didn't tell him that he was right on some fronts. There was a small group that was calling for his head, both figuratively and literally, but the overwhelming bulk of citizens of Genosha were looking at what had happened more positively. Magneto had been a vicious, controlling dictator, so the quick re-opening and support the citizens had gotten with Wanda at the helm had been reassuring. Even if many people were still hesitant to trust her.
The rumors around Magneto's death had grown, too. Some even thought Wanda had hired the kid to take him out. And because of the mixed feelings concerning that, Billy wasn't in as much of a rush as last time to take James out around the island - but James certainly didn't need to know Billy was protecting him.
Alex was the one to really see the first sign of trouble when they met up with the rest of the family. With his arm still around James' shoulders, he caught it the instant that James stiffened up more than he already was, and he nearly took a step back when Wanda came at them with a broad grin. Obviously, he was going to have to take a minute to have a word with his sister in law about how the whole angry mother look every time she saw him was going to affect any possible relationship they might have in the future. Especially since it was pretty clear to Alex that James was waiting for backlash.
Wanda wrapped Billy up in a tight hug, smiling to herself as she held onto him. "Welcome home, sweetheart," she said, still holding on tight. "It's about time you boys showed up. What took so long?"
"Just a few last minute things," Billy said, perfectly happy to take the snuggle. "And I had to do a little convincing," he added quietly, though he knew James would have heard it anyhow.
However, that seemed to have exactly the effect Billy had hoped for because when Wanda pulled back from the hug, she looked concerned - first as she searched Billy's face, then as she looked over at James - and immediately stepped over to pull him into a tight hug too. "You are always welcome, you know," she told James quietly. "And I'm very glad you decided to join us for the holiday." James nodded and muttered out a quiet thanks before Wanda doubled down on the hug, then stepped back, still smiling with one arm still around him so she could guide him along with her.
Alex watched the scene for a moment as Wanda dove into trying to mother James with Billy grinning next to her and couldn't help himself. He had to text his big brother. You don't have to worry, by the way. Wanda's going out of her way to coddle him.
It took Scott a few minutes to respond, though. He'd asked Alex to keep an eye open, and by extension, he'd been waiting to hear from him. But Scott hadn't expected Alex to be that fast about checking in unless there was trouble. That can go a few ways.
Well right now he's trying to figure out the safest way to respond to her, Alex replied. It really shows that he has no idea what to do with her.
That doesn't surprise me. Let me know if he needs backup.
He'll be fine, Alex promised. He'll either find a way to make it work, or he just won't come back again. Billy will be crushed if it goes that way, but it'll be one way or the other. There's not a lot of middle ground with my in-laws, you know.
I know. Thanks, Alex. Keep in touch.
You got it. Can't wait to see Annie again, big bro. Go get her.
With that, Alex pocketed his phone and met up with Lorna, who was waiting for him while their kids trailed behind James and Billy like lost puppies. Of the many directions that Billy could have taken with his love life, Chris and Suzie had decided that Billy with James was the best possible way for them to keep James around - and make him come play with them more often. So they were laying it on thick already.
But what Alex hadn't planned for - and likely neither had the others - was Vision actively seeking James out to spend time with him. And while Alex was concerned that James was most comfortable with the android in the family, he had to admit that Vision did have a way of getting through to the kid via conversations of tech that was way over everyone else's head.
Though there was a lot going on as far as family traditions, one of the more fun aspects for Billy and his parents to watch was Alex and Lorna's kids insisting on playing with James. Especially when James couldn't bring himself to do anything but everything they wanted. It was part of why they loved playing with him. The other part came when the first candle was lit, the blessings were said - and though they were getting a little bit big to be throwing themselves at someone like that, Chris and Suzie insisted on snuggling in with James while Vision read a story to them just before dinner. They never got to see James, after all - and this was the kind of chance they weren't going to miss.
And while Alex and Lorna were enjoying watching the kids joyfully giggling through a story that was not in any way funny yet, Wanda was watching the way James was quietly trying to talk Chris and Suzie into listening and tickling them when they couldn't … which only made for a very vicious circle. Until he kissed each of them on the top of the head and gave them a little squeeze to get them to snuggle in better. Suzie in particular looked like there was nowhere she'd rather be.
"Mom?" Billy said gently, when he saw the way she was watching James and the kids. "Are you alright?"
"Of course I am," she said, though it was plain to see she was caught up in her emotions before she kissed his cheek. "Go on. I'm sure you two will want to turn in a little early after dinner. Get some time in now before Chris decides he wants to wake you up in the morning."
"I'm locking the door, then," Billy said.
"Probably smart," she agreed, then kissed him on the cheek again before shooing him over.
James looked up without moving his head from where he was leaning on Suzie as Billy reached over to tickle Chris and then pick him up so they could snuggle up, but that only had Suzie looking like she'd won - and James wasn't helping as he doubled down on the snuggle to Suzie's giggles.
Billy and James turned toward each other to steal a quick kiss and the kids started in.
"I'm sitting by Billy," Chris whispered to Suzie.
"Well I'm sitting with James," she whispered back to him - then stuck her tongue out.
"Who's sitting in the middle?" Lorna asked, unable to ignore the scene in front of her.
"Huh?" Chris said, turing her way with his nose crinkled up just like Alex. "I'm still gonna sit by Suzie, too."
"Yeah, we have to sit together," Suzie agreed.
"So you're going to sit between Billy and James," Lorna said, shaking her head. "That's not-"
"It's fine," Billy said, knowing that the kids would get more obnoxious if they tried to fight it. "Just means we can tickle both of them."
"Yeah, but you gotta wait for all the kisses until later," Suzie informed him from where she was hanging off of James.
"I guess so," James agreed, which only had Suzie grinning wider - with Wanda and Lorna watching with identical expressions that perfectly portrayed how they were melting over the whole scene. And the sentiment carried on all through dinner, accented only by the occasional smug look from Alex.
When dinner was over, Billy pulled James along with him toward the wing he'd grown up in. "I'm not really tired yet," James pointed out. "It's still kind of early for me…"
"I know. But you need to know where we're staying."
James frowned, but didn't argue it - not until he realized they were just going to Billy's room. "Wait…"
"Mom is okay with us being us - she just wants us to be us away from the press - and away from the threat of the press. So … we're not tired … whatever shall we do?"
James looked shocked - something that rarely happened this clearly. "You're kidding me."
"Nope."
"How long did you know this?"
"Um … from the very beginning. Did I forget to mention the part where we get to bunk up here?"
"Yes." James broke into a crooked, disbelieving smile then pulled Billy over hard for an involved kiss. "Troublemaker."
"What makes it even better is that you were willing to come to Genosha even if you couldn't share a room," Billy said as he took a few steps closer and stole a quick kiss. "I wonder what that means …"
"It means I love you, and you know it," James replied. "So please … don't make a thing out of it."
"But it's so sweet," Billy teased. "You're being a big softie for me."
"Yes. Yes, I am."
Billy laughed delightedly before he leaned in for a long kiss before puling the door shut behind them.
The next morning, Billy woke up exactly where he wanted to be, half wrapped up with James and comfy with the warm breeze blowing in through his window. But he was slow to wake up. Especially when he was just so comfortable. So he didn't see that James was wide awake and staring at the ceiling. He didn't know that James hadn't slept more than a few minutes overnight. And he didn't know that his sweetheart was doing everything he could to keep his muscles relaxed so as not to disturb Billy as he slept. He also didn't know how much James had been dreading anything to do with Genosha, or he would have been much less convincing on his path to get James to come home with him. Again.
But, Billy did hear it when Chris and Suzie came knocking on his door - disappointed that it was locked and still prepared to wake the boys up. He snuggled in a little better, smiling to himself when he was rewarded with a perfectly timed squeeze.
"I think they'll find something else to do," Billy said quietly.
"Likely," James agreed - but his voice wasn't nearly so raspy as Billy was expecting for first thing in the morning.
Billy picked his head up and gave James a chaste good morning kiss. "Jet lagged?"
"Yeah, probably," James agreed rather than admit he was having trouble coping.
Billy gave him another, slightly less innocent kiss. "Give it a few days. Then you'll get messed up when we go back."
James smiled tightly at that, mostly because it was highly accurate and there was nothing either of them could do about it.
"You gotta wake up now!" Chris shouted from behind the still-locked, still-closed door. "It's so late!"
"What time is it?" Billy asked, looking for his clock. He leaned across James to turn it his way, then let out a sigh. "It's just after noon."
"So that makes it like … three in the morning back home," James said, counting it out quickly.
"Yeah … so why aren't you more tired?" Billy asked, then leaned in for another kiss.
"I am," James replied, as the two of them tried conversing between little kisses. "But. I can adjust."
"We should sleep longer. Mom won't mind if we're not up and running yet. Dinner isn't until seven …"
"I think your parents want to see you for more than just dinner times," James argued, then sat up as soon as Billy disentangled. "Tell you what - I'll make the coffee when we get to a coffee maker."
"That would probably help a little bit," Billy agreed before he too got up to start his day.
James was quick to get changed ready for the day- or what was left of it - and once he was ready, he fell back to have a seat on Billy's bed and just … wait for him to catch up. He was tired, but he couldn't close his eyes with all the distantly familiar scents in the air and not have flashbacks to everything that had happened the last time he had set foot on Genosha. He could also remember everything Magneto had said to him when Billy wasn't close enough to hear it. The old man's ghost was alive and well - and making James feel guilty as hell for everything.
Billy did not miss it, either. He had hoped that James' quiet mood had more to do with jet-lag, though, so he tried to keep a more positive attitude around him. Thankfully, he wasn't alone in his efforts, either. Alex was more than happy to get involved, and Vision was positively invested, even if he managed to keep back until James had gotten through a couple cups of coffee. Even if the smallest Summers kids couldn't wait that long and had crawled up into James' and Billy's laps long before James looked like he was feeling approachable.
Of course, even Wanda knew the coffee was just something to hide behind since the caffeine didn't really affect James. But she wasn't going to bust him out on it. Not when her niece and nephew were still getting the kind of attention and affection they were after.
Alex had spoken to her, of course - and Lorna had backed him up since they knew James far better than Wanda did so far. And she'd left the boys to their own devices - even if it was just sleeping- all morning. But when presented with James, looking and acting so much like Logan, she didn't know where to start to try and make him feel more welcome. But she did know that Billy was head over heels, so she had to try something.
Wanda came closer with a warm smile. "How did you boys sleep last night?" she asked as she sat down nearby. The family on Genosha had been up for hours, but she knew how hard it was to make the adjustment when it was so harsh.
"It took a while to go to sleep," Billy admitted, "but it is nice to be home."
Both Wanda and Billy turned toward James, who only gave them a tight smile and nodded once in agreement before he kissed Billy's temple. "I'll catch up," James said. "It's a lot worse when I go with Tony to Japan or Australia."
"I'm sure it is," Wanda said with a warm smile, doing everything she could think of to reach out. But she knew James wasn't going to be an easy one to crack. She also realized that this was probably a lot harder for him to face than Billy knew - and she hated that James had lost what little innocence he'd had left because of her father, and she didn't like that he was facing this so stoically. That part was too much like his father and his dad. "Maybe you boys should spend some time on the beach today."
"I am all for it," Billy agreed.
"If you're up to it, the waves should be great today," Alex said.
"I think she meant they could take time just the two of them," Lorna told Alex gently.
"Right," Alex muttered, smirking at Lorna. But that only set it up for the boys to head to the beach away from the palace.
Which ended up being a trend for the rest of the holiday, though Billy could see that something was off with James by the end of the week. His guy was almost mute. He kept his opinions to himself and he wasn't really holding up his end of the conversations with Vision either. But Vision could see what the trouble was - through analysis and simple deduction.
But there was little they could do - and it was obvious that what James really needed was a session with a competent therapist and a solid nights sleep.
When Hanukkah was over, Billy joined James, Alex, Lorna, and the kids to celebrate Christmas with the Summers family.
"You're getting spoiled with all this alone time," Alex teased Billy as they prepared to leave. "You're going to die in misery between the end of the holidays and your eighteenth birthday."
"Oh, shut up," Billy shot back. He really wasn't in the mood to be reminded that this was temporary … at least for a few more months.
"Should be interesting," Alex said over Billy's shoulder. "I mean … are you staying at the house too? Or are you joining us at the hotel?"
Billy paused for a moment. He hadn't thought it through other than to assume that he'd be staying with the Summerses in Brooklyn. And he'd been so caught up in enjoying his time in Genosha that he didn't really think to ask. It would be no trouble, of course. He could always wish himself to wherever, but still …
When they showed up, Scott and Annie were already prepping for the influx of kids and family members - laughing in the kitchen and stealing kisses. So, as soon as the group had been wished to the Summers home, the kids rushed off to find and pounce on Scott while Billy turned toward James. "So…"
"Alex is screwing with you. You'll be staying with me."
"I had to check."
"You really didn't," James argued, then took his hand. "But it's kind of cute that you thought I was going to kick you out."
"To be fair, the constant time together is a little different than when we were living together," Billy said. "For all I know, you might be ready to take a break."
James leaned over and kissed his cheek. "To be fair, the constant time with one family or another is probably going to be enough to make me appreciate Cambridge with Morticia for a while. And it would only be better if you were there with me. In the quiet."
"Just you, me, and the cat?" Billy asked with a crooked smile.
"That's what I'm thinking. Not there permanently, obviously. Cambridge has just about worn thin on me."
"I know," Billy agreed, starting to relax a little, though he had to wonder yet again where that meant he and James might end up living. Wanda had made it clear she wanted them in Genosha - sooner than later. But that didn't mean that's how it was going to go. And he knew James was holding back on any major decisions until he found out if MIT was going to even consider his work for his master's theses.
They'd headed upstairs together, where Morticia was waiting for them - lounging on James' bed and purring even before they'd come in. "Hey there, beautiful," James said as he set his bag down - though Billy had already tossed his bag and started toward the cat.
"Kate's probably still laughing about her name," Billy said with a little smile as he picked Morticia up to spoil her.
"Good," James said before he dropped down on his bed and settled in. "She needed it."
"She's not the only one,' Billy said as he laid down next to James and let Morticia decide where she wanted to be … which also happened to be on James where both of them could pet her.
"I know," James said. "I'm pretty horrible to deal with all around. Sorry 'bout that."
"Still no word on your degrees, then?" Billy asked.
"I was hoping a letter or something would have shown up by now," James said, then took a moment to share a long, careful kiss with his sweetheart. "No answer kind of seems like an answer, I guess."
"Will the board have an issue with you taking over without the Master's degrees?" Billy asked, since he truly hadn't thought that the college would truly block him from earning his degrees. And that sort of had James' whole future as he'd known it in a state of uncertainty.
"I guess we'll find out," James replied, though he didn't look like he'd really figured out what he could do if that was the case - or if he'd already given up on trying to figure it out. But James was ready to sleep for a few hours, and he knew no one in the family would disturb them until dinner time. So he settled in.
Though James had managed to crash for a couple of hours, to him, it felt as if they had really just gotten comfortable when Nate called up the stairs. "Hey! I hope you're not making out on the eve of Christmas Eve, big brother."
"Oh great," James rumbled, though he didn't bother opening up his eyes before Nate continued.
"Uncle Steve just brought over a package for you," Nate called out.
"I'll deal with it later," James called back.
"Dad says now," Nate shouted. "So … zip up and get down here."
"He really does have sex on the brain all the time," Billy said with a laugh before he put a hand on James' shoulder to keep him down for a moment longer. Just for another kiss. "He can wait a second."
"Yeah, he can," James agreed. "We should make out just so they can wait." Billy started to snicker, but they didn't get much time to make Nate and Scott wait before Nate shouted for them again.
Billy was quicker to his feet, and was smiling to himself as James dragged himself upright with what looked like a lot of effort. James sighed heavily and when he met up with Billy at the door, they clasped hands and headed down to see what was going on. But when they got to the bottom of the stairs, they definitely weren't expecting to see that it wasn't just Scott and Nate. Steve had stuck around and he wasn't alone, either.
Tony was looking smug next to Steve, which seemed to be the tipping point for James. "Is that from the college?" James asked, looking between the Avengers.
"Open it and find out," Steve said, though Tony's expression really was the dead giveaway.
James let go of Billy's hand and opened the small box to find the red leather cover behind some tissue paper holding the Master's degree. The first one, anyhow. He let out a deep sigh that let his shoulders relax - and though he was pleased to see it, he was genuinely tired, too. And after not having slept on Genosha more than a cat nap at a time for over a week … he was ready to crash. "Well. It's about damned time," James said, then handed Scott the leather cover opened up so he could read it himself about half a second before Tony got a hold of him in a laughing hug.
"Knew they'd pull their heads out sooner or later," Tony said. "Proud of you, kid. You stuck in there better than I would have."
"Yeah, that doesn't make me feel any better," James said.
"I could get away with being a drama queen about it," Tony countered as he held James at arm's length. "You just made them eat their words."
"Right," James said as he looked toward Billy and Scott about a half second before Scott pulled himself together enough to wrap up James in a tight bear hug.
For a long moment, Scott just held on, not saying a word, though James could feel how keyed up he was, even with Annie covering her mouth and bouncing on the balls of her feet in excitement nearby. "I'm so proud of you," Scott whispered just loud enough for James to hear.
"Dad, it's just the first one," James said. "Not even really a halfway point."
"Like I don't know you have the other two more or less finished," Scott said before he finally let up on the hug, even if he kept one arm around his middle child.
"Not the point," James said.
"No, the point is now you can consider the doctorate again," Tony said. "If you want it."
"Let's just see how the other two go," James said. "Then I'll think about what I want or don't want to do."
"Don't let them keep you down," Tony said in a bright tone. "I've been looking forward to calling you Dr. Wolverine."
"Oh, man. Please don't," James laughed finally. "No one wants to hear that."
"I … definitely want to hear that now," Steve said.
"Me too," Billy laughed, though he was trying very hard to not be selfish when it came to James' education. "Oddly enough."
"No you don't," James said, then gently pulled Billy over for a quiet kiss. "And I don't know if I want to anyhow. This year has been miserable."
"And that would be totally caving to what that moron at the school is allowing to happen," Tony added before he dropped one hand on James' shoulder, smiling at Billy all the while. "Anyhow … figured you'd want to start off your holidays right. Spread some good news in the Summers clan …"
"Thanks, Tony," James said before he stepped away from Scott and Billy to give Tony the hug he was so clearly looking for.
"See you in a couple days, kiddo. Enjoy some time with the fam." For a long moment, Tony looked to be near bursting with pride before he and Steve flipped on their inducers and stepped aside to leave the family to celebrate.
Scott still had a hold of the degree in one hand as Rachel came forward to offer her congratulations as well with Nate hot on her heels. "This feels bigger than the other ones so far," Rachel said over James' shoulder.
"You mean because I had to do it twice?" James deadpanned.
"No, I don't think so," she replied. "Maybe. No … it just feels like a more grown up thing. I don't know. Just glad you're moving forward. I know how you hate standing still."
"I do," James agreed before Nate picked him up in a crushing bear hug the second Rachel let go.
While the siblings were joking around, Annie made her way over to Scott and gently nudged him with a smile until he took the half second to consider his actions before he opened up the little leather cover to show off James' new degree. "That'll look a lot better once it's in a frame, don't you think?" Annie suggested as Scott let her take it. She was still pretty new to James for as little time as he was around her, but she was already deeply invested in all of the Summers kids. Whether they knew it or not.
"Yeah, Just gotta figure out where to put it," Scott answered quietly.
"I'm sure it'll have to go in his lab for now," Annie said. "Then he can figure it out later. Don't think I didn't catch that y'all don't have anything givin' away your identities layin' around here."
"You're right, we don't," Scott said, then pulled her into his side with one arm to kiss the side of her head.
"Of course I am, don't sound so surprised," Annie laughed. "But right now-" she handed him the leatherette back, "I have some preparations to make for the holidays. You go ahead and enjoy your kids. I know you don't get as much time with the whole lot of 'em that you should."
She popped up on her toes to kiss his cheek, then zipped off to give them an out if they wanted privacy - even if she wanted nothing more than to be in the middle of them, joining in the celebrations. It was going to be an interesting Christmas after all … especially since the whole group was meeting up in Westchester for a massive, blended celebration where the elder Hales would get to meet the Summers family for the first time. And Annie was anxious on how that was going to play out. After all, her father had always had a clear image in his head about the kind of man his little girls would end up with. And she wasn't sure if 'superhero' was going to fit the bill as well as 'ex-military' like Anton. So she tried to swallow down her nerves by beating some dinner rolls into submission.
The next morning, Annie woke up to the smell of cinnamon rolls and hot coffee. She checked the clock and frowned on seeing that it was just a little bit after their usual wake up time, which meant someone had been busy. She could hear more than one person talking in the kitchen though, so she couldn't be sure that it was Scott who was the secret baker.
She got dressed and slipped out to the kitchen, to find Scott with Rachel, both of them with coffee and a cinnamon roll in front of them, and when she stepped into the room, both of them tuned her way with a smile. "So is this one of your traditions, then?" Annie asked as she made her way over to kiss the top of Scott's head and take a seat next to him.
"One that the kids grew up with," Scott said, though he had to admit it meant more to have Christmas eve cinnamon rolls after having spent a little time with that other-dimension's K. Yes, he'd done it for James since he was tiny, so it was likely none of the kids realized where it had come from, but in his mind, it was still a borrowed tradition. And a yearly silent tribute to K on a holiday that she clearly loved.
"They smell wonderful," Annie said, smiling warmly at him as he got up and got one for her along with a glass of sweet tea, knowing that she didn't touch coffee. "What time does everyone come down?"
"Usually a little later than normal," Scott said. "But they'll stay warm on the stove, so it's fine. Let the boys sleep a little. Billy and James are probably fighting a little jet-lag, too."
"Alex and Lorna sure are," Rachel added, when it was clear Annie wasn't sure how to proceed in that particular discussion. She didn't know what the traditions were like with them, and she wasn't about to press. "I'll bet Chris and Suzie will be bouncing off the walls though."
"We'll see them tomorrow," Scott said. "Give them a day to adjust … and some time away from the palace."
Annie settled in, happy to listen to what the two of them might have to say to each other since Rachel spent most of her time in Westchester. But that turned into a more advanced getting to know you session that left Annie entranced to find that Rachel had taken up a teaching position at Xavier's working with beginners on Psychic Self Defense. Annie was particularly interested in that since apparently, most of Rachel's students weren't telepaths. And Rachel was more than happy to tell her about it - even going so far as to give her a mini lesson while Scott sat between them with a proud smile he couldn't wipe off his face for anything.
Nate came in shortly after Annie started to get the hang of things, smiling to himself that Annie was trying so hard to do something so incredibly foreign to her. But that was about when Scott realized that things were a little off.
"Where's your brother?" Scott asked, which was just the right kind of question to throw Rachel and Annie off their game.
"Sleeping. Hard," Nate said. "Billy was just waking up when I came down, so he should be down soon."
Scott frowned, thinking about how stressed out James looked when he came in. A sinking feeling in the pit of his stomach started up and Scott began to wonder just exactly what had gone down in Genosha for James to look that anxious. He knew it wasn't Wanda and Vision - Alex would have told him if there was tension there. So all it could have been was held over guilt from Magneto. And that wasn't at all the kind of headspace Scott wanted James in. Ever. So, he started a new pot of coffee, trying to make it the same way K did, and waited for the boys to come down. But still, it took Billy almost twenty minutes, and when he came down he looked almost as if he wasn't sure he should.
"Come on, Billy boy," Rachel called out. "He'll get up when he's ready. No reason for you to starve in the meantime."
"Yeah, I just … wasn't sure why he's zonked so hard," Billy admitted even as Rachel handed him some breakfast. "Maybe I should take him some coffee?"
"After you have some," Nate decided. "He's not going anywhere right now."
"I've got it," Scott decided, then put a hand on Billy's shoulder when he started to get up. "Really. I wanted to talk to him anyhow. Just stay put."
"Oh… okay…"
Scott was quick about getting together breakfast for James as a cover … he was pretty sure the kid wasn't going to be awake if he was still upstairs. He just didn't know the extent of how off he was, so he needed to gauge that before he knew how to progress into Christmas. There were going to be a lot of new people around, after all. He needed to know how little of a filter James would have available to him when it came to strangers and Bobby's teasing.
He set the plate and mug of coffee down on the bedside table before he sat down on the edge of the bed and gently tried to wake James up. Then not so gently. Even at that, it took a minute or two for James to blink himself half awake and turn to look at his dad. "What's wrong?" James asked, starting to push himself upright.
"Nothing. I just wanted to check on you. You doing alright? Did something happen on Genosha?"
"No, they were great," James said, though he sat up enough to lean on his headboard. "I just didn't really adjust too well, I guess."
Scott watched him try to wake up then handed him the coffee, frowning deeper when James' reaction to it was to take down half of it in one shot - scalding hot. "James-"
"I couldn't sleep, okay?" James said quietly. "I'm just catching up."
"Couldn't sleep for a few days or the whole trip?"
James looked up and met his gaze for a moment. "I … cat napped."
Scott let out a breath and let his shoulders drop.
"I know," James said. "Just … don't."
"Go to sleep, James," Scott said, though he still handed him the cinnamon roll. "We have first impressions tomorrow."
"You mean you have first impressions."
"We all have first impressions," Scott insisted. "And you do need to catch up. Rachel will keep Billy company if he gets bored."
"He's the one that's jet-lagged. He should sleep too."
"I'm sure he'll feel the same way," Scott replied with a half-smile. "But you-"
"Need to sleep. I know."
When Scott reached the bottom of the stairs, Billy was sitting with Rachel and Annie with his arms crossed. "Is he okay?" he asked, sounding concerned.
"He just needs to rest up. He was a little anxious about going back to Genosha, that's all," Scott said. "Was he okay over there?"
"I mean, he was off," Billy said. "But for the most part, I thought it was … you know. Revisited trauma." He was quiet on the details since he didn't know what Annie knew and what she didn't - and he didn't want Annie to think badly of James because of what had happened with his grandfather.
Scott looked more serious for a moment before Rachel spoke up. "Good thing Rabbi Cohen was planning on coming by this afternoon," she said over the top of her coffee mug before she took a sip.
"Oh yeah, that'll be fun," Billy said, though he had a matching expression. "I think, if it's all the same to everyone, I'll just go back up and maybe check my email. I'd like to get back on the right time zone, if I can."
"Let me know if you want to go to the coffee shop," Rachel offered. "I'm meeting America later for a latte and she was asking about you."
"Just tell me when," Billy said with a smile before he tipped his head to Annie and Nate and made a beeline for the stairs.
Annie smiled after him but waited until Rachel was gone as well before she spoke her mind. "Revisited trauma?" she said, arching one eyebrow in Scott's direction. "I thought most of the hubbub after Magneto nearly killed you was here at home, not in Genosha."
"It's … complicated," Scott said slowly.
"Is it ever not?" Annie teased lightly.
"Kinda wish it wasn't," Scott told her before he let out a long sigh and turned to watch Rachel and Billy head off, away from anywhere they might eavesdrop. "The kids were there. James got in between Magneto and me."
"Ah." Annie nodded softly. "That would complicate things."
"It does," Scott agreed. "Even if most of the fallout came into play here, it started there."
"And considering what you told me about that fight, I don't imagine any of them got out of there without some lasting damage," Annie said, shaking her head. "You said he took your eyes, Scott."
"That was before the kids showed up," Scott said. "I didn't really know what was happening by the time they got there." He held up one hand. "I was still fighting. I wasn't expecting them. But obviously, I didn't see what happened."
Annie reached out to rest her hand on his. "It's a good thing y'all have such a big support system, then. That poor boy's going to have to get used to Genosha if he wants to keep carryin' on with its future king," she said, ending her statement with a wince.
"I think that's why he went along with it," Scott said. "He's making an effort."
"He's in love; that's plain enough to see," Annie said, her fond smile returning. He did love how warm she was even talking about his kids. Then, because the topic of conversation had been overly heavy until that point, she couldn't help but tease him: "The men in your family seem to fall hard, don't they?"
"Not just the men," Scott defended.
"True," Annie said. "You've raised good kids, Scott. They have good hearts."
"Like you said, they have a big support system," Scott replied.
"And a good father," she said firmly. "Don't count yourself out of that, Mr. Summers."
"Yes, ma'am."
Annie shook her head and then simply leaned forward to kiss him.
Ororo had spent hours putting delinquent kids to work decorating for the holidays and as a result, the masses of abandoned, neglected, and generally anxious about the holidays kids had gone all out to give the place a storybook look. The halls were decked with holly and pine, pointsettias were on nearly every decorative table and coffee top. Small lighted trees were in the corners here and there, all of them holding envelopes in their boughs and presents under them for the various kids and teachers.
Wreaths were hung on many of the doors and mistletoe was hung in nearly every doorway and strategically throughout the school. The holidays were finally in full swing and the kids were starting to get into it now that they'd had a little time off before Christmas.
To top it off, Ororo had arranged for on-demand hot chocolate to go with the mountains of cookies and treats that were dotted around the game room, living room, and various other areas where one might steal a little snack.
It was a young person's paradise, and most everyone was in good spirits well before the Hale family descended on the Institute. Ororo had prepared for them and there was a whole line of students who had volunteered to assist in the prep in the kitchen after having gotten a taste of the Hale family's show at Thanksgiving. Ororo really couldn't wait for Annie to see her helpers, either … or to not so subtly suggest she find time now and again to teach them how to cook.
Annie, Scott, and Nate were the first to show up, though Annie swore outright when Billy and James popped into existence as they walked in the door, one hand over her heart.
"I told you we could just wish our way there," Billy said with a grin as James laughed and the two of them held each other upright.
"You're joking around and we spent all that time driving!" Annie scolded.
"You were the one pushing to get in the car," Nate reminded her as Scott shook his head at both of them.
"I thought James wanted to drive them!" Annie defended with a laugh now that she'd gotten over being startled. It wasn't that she didn't know Billy could do that, but she hadn't seen it that close up.
"Why would he do that when wishing us here got us more alone time?" Billy teased, then kissed Annie's cheek before she could get after him.
Annie shook her head and headed into the kitchen ahead of her sibling's arrivals … She knew her sister was going to be there any second, and Craig was set to follow an hour or so later with their father. It was the first time that Douglas Hale would see Leslie Ann's school, so Leslie Ann was bouncing as she stared out the window, watching the snow and not-so-subtly waiting for her grandfather to show.
But that meant Annie had time to prep … with the half dozen or so hopeful looking students waiting in the kitchen.
Scott was keeping a close eye on Vojteck as soon as the kid showed up to the school's family-like festivities. The kid had started toward Billy as soon as he saw him, but then stopped short when he saw that Billy wasn't alone when Billy pulled James under the mistletoe for a kiss that tiptoed on the edge of what was acceptable in mixed company.
For a long moment, it as obvious the kid didn't know quite what to do about that … but he was smart enough to find something else to do than to pester Billy while he had his full focus on James - and vice versa. There was a tiny voice in the back of Scott's head that had almost hoped that Vojteck would try something in front of James, but that little voice was quickly derailed when the front door opened to admit Craig and the patriarch of the Hale family.
He drew himself up and headed over to be welcoming, introducing himself before Craig could, and helping to take their coats while Craig got Douglas oriented.
Annie had warned Scott that her father was showing signs of dementia - or alzheimers … they hadn't gotten a definitive diagnosis yet, but either way, Douglas was having a hard time. And the holidays had a way of showcasing that a little more prominently than other times of year.
But he was pretty lucid when he arrived at Xavier's … and he looked entirely unsure of his surroundings as he took in the details of the school around him. He had a critical expression on his face as he looked at the kids still at the school, the teachers milling around doing last minute preparations and stuffing presents under the trees. The place was flawless, yet … his expression clearly read 'that'll do'. And Craig was already ready to try and do damage control on whatever his father might or might not say.
Craig led him toward the living room where a football game was playing already and several of the older x-men were watching with a few kids that loved sports - and Nate was right up front explaining the game to a younger student who wanted to learn, but had never gotten the opportunity to play. It was one of the things he could do without putting in much effort - and he loved the game, so… Nate saw no reason not to dive in and get someone else addicted, too.
The boy Nate was explaining things to was also just barely physically mutated, so he served as a very good litmus as to where Douglas was, senility wise for the day. Craig watched as Douglas sat down nearby, close to Bobby, and when all he had to ask was what the score was, Craig let out a breath and looked toward Nate. "You let me know if you need anything, won't you?"
"Absolutely," Nate promised, then projected the rest of wha he was thinking. He'll be fine. I've got it covered if need be. Annie is getting pressured to teach cooking classes in the kitchen … so I guess enjoy.
Craig let out a breath of a laugh and rested his hand on his father's shoulder. "Dad, I'm going to help Annie and Evie in the kitchen. This here is Nate - one of Scott's kids. If you need anything, he'll help you out."
"Hi," Nate said with a wave.
Douglas nodded his way. "Quite the gathering y'all've got already. Always like this?" he asked - gesturing toward the hallway as different students passed.
"Pretty much," Nate said. "I don't know what Craig has told you about the place…"
Douglas waved a hand. "Fancy school for kids who don't got a place. I heard. Sounds perfect for Craig, really. Kid's been wearing his heart on his sleeve since he was three. Do you know just last week he was down at one of those protests?"
"I'm not surprised," Nate said. "I wouldn't be surprised if he was organizing some of them, too."
"With his sisters providing refreshments. My wife's been pullin' her hair out worryin' about 'em, too. Too much heart and not enough sense - they get that from her."
Nate glanced toward the kitchen, but none of the other Hales were available, so he just nodded. "I haven't met your wife," he said, which was true, since she'd died before Scott had started seeing Craig. But he wasn't going to break that news to Douglas, who obviously wasn't living in the present.
At the mention of his wife, though, Douglas positively lit up, leaning forward with a twinkle in his eye. "Prettiest thing you ever did see. Sent me Polaroids when I was still in the Army. Had to hide 'em from the boys, you know? Got even prettier the longer we were married, especially the way she was around the kids. She's still takin' care of 'em, probably runnin' the kitchen like she does."
"The way I understand it, Annie's been running things this year," Nate said.
Douglas chuckled. "Annie takes after her mother. Looks just like her, too. Can't understand how she didn't get swept off day after she left home, but can't complain. Girl's got standards - and knees that work."
"She's my favorite teacher," Nate told him.
"That doesn't surprise me one bit," Douglas said. "She always said she was gonna teach, and once she decides something, that's it." He made a sharp gesture with one hand. "That part, she gets from me, mind you."
Nate smiled. "I believe it, sir. Can I get you something to drink while we wait for the game to start up again?"
"Don't suppose y'all have sweet tea in this fancy school…"
"I believe we do," Nate said before he got to his feet. "I'll be back in just a minute." He grinned at Douglas and nearly trotted to the kitchen - to see the pandemonium there, how his dad was 'helping' and of course, to help Douglas out. "Your dad is kind of amazing, Miss Hale."
Annie laughed. "How many times, Nate? You can call me 'Annie'."
Nate grinned widely. "It just doesn't seem proper," he defended.
"Kate seems to manage just fine."
"Kate was raised by a carnie and a russian spy," Nate pointed out. "Anything goes."
"Billy manages," Annie argued.
"The Maximoff family is notoriously savage," Nate continued, though he was unable to stop the laugh in his voice. He leaned toward her. "I mean … Genosha doesn't even have peanut butter."
"The horrors," Annie replied without missing a beat.
"I just came in to grab Mr. Hale some sweet tea … if you think he needs anything else, I'll handle it," Nate said, knowing she'd give him a look for all the formality around the family.
"Scott, your son is blatantly ridiculous," Annie said, and Scott shrugged.
"Can't help it. Those are his grandfather's genes," Scott said easily.
"Hurtful," Nate said toward his father.
"You're the one insisting on 'Miss Hale'ing her."
"Being polite? What's wrong with being polite?"
"I've asked you to call me 'Annie'," Annie said. "Really, you don't have to be so formal.
"James started it."
"Uh-huh." Scott waved him off. "Go bring Mr. Hale his sweet tea," he said, and Annie hit him with the back of her hand on his chest.
"I think I will," Nate said, then swept out of the kitchen, still giggling to himself at everything. He just turned the corner to head back to the game, though, when he saw the expression Douglas was wearing. Nate followed his line of sight to realize that he was watching Mia and a young lady with pixie wings and antennae, and it was abundantly clear that Douglas wasn't sure of his surroundings at all. "Brought your sweet tea, Mr. Hale." He set the tea down close by before he took a seat at the couch, watching and waiting to see if he needed to do anything. Or call for back up. "Did I miss anything?"
Douglas blinked away from Mia and then smiled at the sweet tea. "Thank you," he said, though he didn't say anything else until after he'd had some to drink. "Whatduya know. Some Yankees can make it right."
"Can't take credit for that," Nate said. "I'm pretty sure that Officer Wright made this batch."
Douglas nodded slowly, obviously recognizing the name but taking a second to place it. "Good kid," he said. "I was glad when he went into the force instead of taking another tour. Evie had a hard time, and she liked him so much." He let the thought die when it was clear Nate wasn't sure what to say to that. Then, he said, "Guess this school takes all kinds," into his sweet tea.
But that had Nate uncomfortable. It wasn't that he hadn't heard things like that before, it was just such an odd sensation to hear it there. So, to try and salvage what he could, Nate cleared his throat and tried to get back to common ground. "So, you have any bets on who's going to win today?"
Douglas's smile returned instantly, and he nodded. "Yeah, whoever's playin' the Patriots damn well better win; I hate it when one team hogs the glory."
Nate broke into a grin. "As long as it's not Dallas," he said, just to test the waters.
"Now, don't nobody watch Dallas games for the ball," Douglas said.
"Yeah, that's kind of the problem," Nate agreed.
Douglas turned to face Nate properly, then broke into a laugh. "So, when're you gettin' married?"
Nate looked up fast with a blush. "I'm only sixteen."
"Still, no teenage boy I know keeps wandering eyes to themselves if they ain't serious about their girl," Douglas said. "Must be someone special."
"We've got a pool going," Billy said over Nate's shoulder, announcing his presence with a crooked grin. "But I already bought in for the day after his eighteenth."
"Too slow for the day of?" Douglas chuckled.
"Figured he'd want to keep one day to himself. You know - so he wasn't accused of making it too easy to remember." He raised a hand toward Douglas. "Hi."
"Hey there. You must be…" Douglas waited for the introduction, slightly flushed because he knew he didn't know anyone and didn't know if he should have.
"Billy Maximoff," he replied. "Sorry. I was just trying to figure out how to pick at Nate some more while he's still blushing."
Douglas tapped his finger against the glass of his sweet tea. "Heard that name before - somewhere."
But Nate had already warned Billy to tread carefully, so instead of jogging his memory, Billy waved a hand and sat down on one side of Nate. "Don't worry about it," he said. "I'm still new around here. Maybe you heard Miss Annie talk about me or my brother."
"You must be one of her kids, then," Douglas said, looking immensely more comfortable. "I swear, she collects them long after they graduate, too."
"Good. I like her," Billy said. "And I graduate in June with Nate's sweetheart."
"He better get her a class ring or she'll get caught up with some beatnick in college," Douglas said, and Billy grinned widely.
"Oh yeah," he agreed, nodding along.
Just as Nate was turning bright red, James dropped down on his other side. "Better get her better than a class ring," he said then handed a bowl of pretzels to Nate. "Who's got the foose-ball?"
"James." Nate pinched the bridge of his nose. "Why."
"If I don't pick on you, how will you know that I care, baby bro?" He bumped Nate's shoulder. "And it feels like I haven't seen you in a week."
"Eight days," Billy corrected with a snerk. "And a half."
"Exactly. Forever," James agreed.
Nate shook his head at both of them. "I play the game and you still do this."
"Well, that's because I don't play the game," James said. "Explain it to me in terms I'll understand. Far as I know, that game's the devil."
Nate groaned, but Douglas just started to laugh, so he felt stuck. "You know what, I'm going to see if Miss Hale needs help."
"She probably does," James agreed. "You can upgrade to wash monkey if you hurry."
Nate shook his head, though he did notice that Douglas was significantly more relaxed around James, and Nate was picking up telepathically on the fact that Douglas felt like James was familiar - but Douglas couldn't place him. Nate didn't know if that was just from news reports or something more personal, but whatever the case, the guy was relaxed, so Nate excused himself.
"Oh, I was just about to come check on you," Evie said, nearly to the door when Nate came through it. "How's Dad?"
"Well … he seems to be doing alright," Nate said, gesturing in the direction he'd just left. "He looked pretty lost for a little bit there, but for some reason he hit it off with my brother so… he's okay."
"Oh, good." Evie brushed her flour-covered hands off on her apron. "I never can tell with him. Sometimes, he's as sweet as can be, but sometimes, he's living in the fifties and grumbling about the modern world."
"Yeah, me seemed a little off balance when he saw Mia and one of her friends," Nate said.
Evie gave him a tight smile. "I'm sorry. Really. He was so much better when he wasn't losing his mind like this. He knew Anton was a mutant, too. Took him a couple years to get over it, but before he went downhill, he was very different."
"Yeah, he seemed pretty confused," Nate agreed. "But James is being obnoxious, so … I guess he likes that."
"Sounds right." Evie sighed. "Thank you for looking out for him. It's not easy, even on his good days."
"No problem," Nate said. "I'm happy to go back, I just wanted to get out of the crosshairs and see if I could help for a little bit."
Evie chuckled. "Well, before you go, we could use some telekinetic help. We're 'bout ready to serve food, and seein' as there's an army to feed…"
"Consider it done," Nate told her.
Chapter 93: Valentine's Day
Chapter Text
The first few weeks after school started up again after the holidays was a cold blur of snow, solitary time, and more snow. There had been a solid birthday weekend for Kate that involved all sorts of festivities that she insisted the whole world joined in on with fireworks and parties - no matter how much her siblings tried to say it was the whole New Year's Eve situation.
No one was really prepared for her decision to host a masquerade ball for her birthday - and had gone so far as to outfit everyone with masks on arrival. It was unexpected and creative and fun. And a little disorienting.
And there had been a small measure of drama when Corsair showed up two weeks after New Years looking to celebrate the holidays' with his family. That had resulted in the kids being quiet for a few days and Alex not so subtly giving him a calendar, complete with the holidays and birthdays marked.
But Billy was fully prepared for Valentine's Day. He had a plan in place- a quick dinner in Genosha. Nothing too exciting other than alone time, that is. He just had a few things to pick up ahead of the wish for extra impact.
So he made his way to Salem Center. He'd barely started shopping when he remembered something he'd missed in the last shop, and then turned almost directly into Vojteck. Billy took a step back, trying to get a little space and not surprised at all when Vojteck barely gave him that room - stepping closer as Billy backtracked.
"You lost or something?" Billy asked. "Because I didn't even know you were here in town."
"It's a nearly another American holiday, isn't it?" Vojteck asked. "I have things that must be done, too." He kept walking toward Billy, though it was pretty clear that Billy's spell to make sure Vojteck couldn't hurt him was working well enough.
And realizing that his spell was working, Billy stopped just to see how Vojteck would react. He could get into Billy's face, but he couldn't harm him. But almost as soon as Billy stood his ground, he heard a few rushing steps behind him. He turned just as someone snapped a collar shut around his neck.
Billy had never seen the guy before, but that didn't matter when he was reacting almost entirely on instinct, with a nearly-shouted "how dare you" and a right hook that the guy blocked and seemed amused by. Billy felt his face get redder. "Who the hell do you think you are?" he demanded.
"The back up," the new guy replied, then looked past Billy to Vojteck as he grabbed Billy's arm and twisted him around so he couldn't try to hit him again. "If you need anything else, I can just slap him around a little for you. Way he acts, I kinda want to." He didn't wait for Vojteck to say anything one way or the other though before he began to restrain Billy and maneuver him halfway down an alleyway out of sight while Vojteck leisurely started going through Billy's pockets.
Billy kept trying to squirm away, but the new guy had a tight hold of both of his arms, and his right arm was twisted up behind him in a way that made moving uncomfortable at best and painful at worst. "When I get my powers back," Billy started to say, but neither of his attackers were listening.
Vojteck had Billy's phone - and as Billy was sputtering, he unlocked it - having watched every move Billy had made for months, he knew the code. And that made it incredibly easy to send a text. "You won't be worrying about your powers or anything else for a while," Vojteck said in a thick accent.
"That's what you think," Billy said, still trying to twist free. He did manage to kick the new guy's knee, but that only resulted in the guy slamming him to the ground hard enough that Billy bit his tongue - and then swore when he realized the guy was handcuffing him. "Get off of me!"
"I wish I was surprised that I needed a gag," the guy said, putting a knee between Billy's shoulder blades just to make it hurt. "Is that how it works? Or do you usually wiggle your nose or something?"
"Who the hell are you anyway?" Billy grumbled.
The guy smiled as Vojteck casually walked off to get the car. "Why do you care?"
"I take it personally when people try to kidnap me," Billy said.
"I'm not trying," he said. "You're caught. Voj got rid of your trackers and as soon as we're done with the phone, that's going to be trashed too. But if you need formality, you'll figure it out soon enough."
"Who are you trying to bait in?" Billy asked, knowing that was one of the more likely scenarios for using his phone like that.
The guy grinned brightly. "Just someone in your top five."
"Pretty sure any one of them will wipe the floor with you, so I'm not sure why you're that into masochism, but to each his own…"
"One definitely can't," he said with a laugh as the car pulled up. "So. Get in quietly or you'll get in unconscious. Your call, your highness."
"Last chance to back out before my mom wipes you from existence if I can't," Billy said instead.
"Yeah, I'm not too worried about that," he said, grinning wider and shrugged. "Latveria is so … moody this time of year."
Billy's eyes went wide, and for the first time, he was more panicked than he was angry. "You're working with Doom? Are you serious? He'll blow up Genosha on a whim!"
"Me? No. But my boss is, and I don't like to argue with her."
"Look, I don't know what your game is, but Genosha isn't going to-"
"I don't care about Genosha or Latveria," he said. "Now shut up and get in the car or I'll knock you out and buy myself some silence."
Billy was still wide-eyed, though he did climb in - if for no other reason than he wanted desperately to know what was happening.
Meanwhile, Kate had been frustrated trying to avoid the reporters that had gotten way pushier seemingly the second she turned eighteen. She had been fine with the selfie requests and stuff - that was harmless - but the guys with microphones in her face asking who she was sleeping with on the team to get into a mutants-only team or the ones who were being blatantly racist and saying they were worried about her "safety"? Yeah, those were bloodsuckers that needed to drop dead.
She had finally gotten to her disguised car and into her inducer when she got a text from Billy and instantly panicked:
Having a total freak out and could use someone to talk me down. Things with James are … bad.
Kate swore under her breath. Knowing the two of them, that could mean anything from James having some kind of anxiety-driven train of thought after Genosha leading him to believe that he couldn't hack being the prince's boyfriend to Billy having a solid cry because James's stupid school obligations had ruined their Valentines plans for the next day. Either way, those two needed someone to step in before they imploded on each other. They worked, but they were both so stupid sometimes.
She shot a quick text to Nate to let him know she had to go help Billy with relationship advice and then floored it, glad for the excuse to speed.
But when she got to the ice cream shop where she and Billy liked to meet up, she didn't see hardly anyone there. Just some very off-brand, very serious looking adults, who were almost too invested in minding their own business. Which in itself was odd, because this was a busy time of day for them with teenagers.
"Billy?" Kate called out as she walked from one end of the shop to the other, one hand on her hip where she had her team comm. She did not like this setup.
To her surprise - and suspicion - Vojteck came out of the back from behind the counter, his eyes wide.
"Oh good, hello, Kate. I'm glad you're here. He is not acting o-kayl," Vojteck said, and Kate crossed her arms, her hip cocked to one side.
"No kidding," she said. "What, did you roofie him or something? Wouldn't put it past you."
Vojteck gave her a dry look. "I was coming here on my own to meet a friend. I did not expect to see him here after he was being so … dramatics all day."
"Dramatic how?" Kate said, not at all trusting the guy.
"Is Billy. Everything is dramatics."
"While that is true, you've been stalking him for months and not taking no for an answer, so you can see why I don't trust anything about this."
Vojteck looked like he was trying to find the right words, which was on par for him more often than not anyhow. "But I have stopped trying to get his attention so much after I see him with his boyfriend at morning - he is okay. Lunchtime? Not so much. Texting, texting, texting…. Needs vodka, I think. Something. No more coffee. I don't know what is texting over, but he is not okay."
Kate sighed and dragged a hand over her face. "Fine. Where is he?" she said.
Vojteck sighed and gestured toward the back room. "Is with nice waitress. She want to give him some privacy."
"Aww, Emma," Kate said in a sigh. "Alright, I'll take things from here."
"Yes. Thank you," Vojteck said, sure to stay back - at least until Kate stepped through the door. There was a split second between her crossing the threshold and when Vojteck moved. He wanted to give her just enough time to see what was back there before he attacked.
Kate stopped when she saw her favorite ice cream waitress tied up beside Billy, and she moved on instinct, whirling on Vojteck to kick him in the gut and make him stumble several steps back from her. Which was a good start - if not for the fact that her arms and legs felt heavy, and she was losing steam fast after that kick.
"Are you done now?" Vojteck asked as he stepped forward. He didn't wait for the drug to fully take effect before he rifled through her pockets with the help of a small device to look for trackers and beacons. He knew who her parents were, and he was sure they'd have a higher level of distrust for everyone. So he came prepared. Seven trackers, her panic button, and her phone were set to the side before he started restraining her.
"Hands off," Kate said, though her words were heavy in her mouth. She could talk, but it took some effort - and movement was out of the question when her arms and legs wouldn't cooperate.
Vojteck smirked. "No worries. I prefer blondes."
"Good. Now lemme go," Kate said, frustrated that she could do nothing but glare.
"I'm afraid that's not on the roster today," Vojteck said then whistled for his accomplice to gather up Billy. "We have places to be - sooner than later."
Kate was already glaring, but when she saw Daniel arrive, she swore outright. "You futzing little creep," she bit out through her teeth.
"That's no way to say hello, Kit-Kat," Daniel said as he pulled Billy upright, smiling wider at how angry she was. "It's been so long."
"Not long enough. Get your hands off my friend," Kate snapped.
"Sorry, Kit-Kat, I'm under orders." As Daniel spoke, Vojteck pulled Kate up, too. It was clear right off the bat that the two of them had their plans laid out.
"Orders, huh?" Kate narrowed her eyes. "Who's pulling the strings, huh? Bullseye?"
Daniel looked toward Vojteck and grinned broadly. "Ah, no. What do you say, boss?"
Kate glanced toward Vojteck, who was already holding himself differently and with more confidence. "So I was right about the roofies."
"No," Vojteck said. "I didn't drug your friend. Daniel collared him. However, if you are going to be obnoxious, I have something I can give you. Both of you."
"Leave Billy alone, you little freak," Kate said, her eyes narrowed.
There was only half a second between Kate getting wound up and Vojteck outright slapping her hard. "Watch your tone. You are in no position to make demands of me."
Kate worked her jaw as much as she could and then gave Vojteck a crooked grin. "Wow, the temper on you. Now I'm double glad Billy didn't fall for your act. Red flags everywhere with you."
"I was under the impression that you were clever," Vojteck said. "But for someone so clever, you still have no idea who you're dealing with. I wonder how long it will take you to figure it out."
"You mean besides the fact that you're teaming up with Daniel, who I already know was promised to Viper by his own mother?" Kate pointed out. "Which makes you, what, either a Strucker or a Shmidt, I'd say. Hard to tell when both possible dads are so u-gly."
Vojteck smirked. "More clever than I thought," he admitted. "Which do you think fits better? You could have figured it out had you looked at my name."
"Shmidt," Billy put in, breaking out of his furious silence at last. "You changed it to fit the home country you claimed, but it's still there."
"It's still my home country," Vojteck answered. "Mother was insistent that we spend time there."
Kate winced dramatically. "Ugh. Gimmie a minute to reconcile 'Viper' and 'Mom' because… ugh. You poor thing."
"He did say his mother was horrible," Billy stage whispered to her.
"Well that was our first clue," Kate said. "Silly us."
But Billy started to frown at that. "And … that his sister was the worst …."
Kate got it about the same time Billy did. "She's that little twerp that drugged James…"
"Just the once?" Vojteck asked with a smile that did not fit the situation. "I doubt that."
"And what does that make you - Igor?" Kate said, furious at the implication and lashing out the only way she knew how. "You definitely got your dad's looks."
"I never met the man," Vojteck said, then took a moment to pull out a syringe that was loaded up and ready to go. "I'm also not interested in what you have to say to me yet." He seemed totally unbothered as he jabbed her, even going so far as to smirk wider while he depressed the plunger - then tossed one to Daniel. "This will be easier if they're quiet. I'd like to get them in the air before my sister can get her job done. As nervous as she is, I wouldn't be surprised if she can't follow through."
Kate and Billy glanced at each other, but neither of them could do anything beyond that, slipping quickly into unconsciousness and panicking the whole way there.
In Massachusetts, James was incredibly distracted as he reworked an entire section of his last paper … the second one had been turned in just after New Years, and now he was putting all his focus on the last of the three. With a little luck, he'd be done with all of this nonsense by the end of February.
The trickiest part was the analysis, since the subject matter of all of his papers was far enough advanced that most of the staff had only read a few articles on the subjects at hand, so putting things into terms that made them relatable was rough. He couldn't dumb it down, and he couldn't dive right in to the overly technical areas without the proper footwork and taking the time to make sure it flowed, too.
He'd been there long enough that he didn't realize that he wasn't alone anymore - too involved in his work to even begin to care. Most of the students gave him a wide berth, or at least would remain quiet and stick to themselves if they got closer. The press had already gotten pictures of him studying, pictures of him working in various labs on campus, coming and going, and once, they got a photo of him smiling at his phone between classes … which set off a whole long week speculating who his sweetheart was … or sweethearts, taking into account the Stark connection. They fully expected him to be like Tony in that regard, after all.
And because it was the day before Valentine's … he really should have been paying closer attention to his surroundings. Especially when someone invaded his space, then reached up to pull his book away from him. He looked up, ready to get angry with whoever it was, but stopped, even as he took a hold of the book when he realized it was the girl that had been shamelessly flirting with him for months - smiling like a cheshire cat.
"Hello, handsome stranger," she said, and once again, James found himself at a loss for words. For a moment anyhow.
"Karina … what are you doing?"
She hummed impatiently. "First of all, it's Katarina." James cringed and sat back. Every time she spoke to him, he got her name wrong. "Secondly, you are in dire need of a study break," she said, still grinning as she shifted to walk around the table.
"Can't do it," James said, though he didn't move fast enough to pull his hand away when she rested hers on his wrist - and he found himself staring at her hand. He didn't have the urge to pull away or to tell her to stop and he didn't know why.
"Of course you can," she argued. "You can, you should, and you will. Come with me, James. We can get coffee. It won't take long."
James continued to stare at her hand for a moment, then looked up to meet her gaze. "I'm not stopping for coffee right now."
She frowned and took a slightly tighter grip on his hand, though she looked almost as if she was bracing herself. "Then some water." When he shook his head, her tone softened. "You've probably been in here since before noon. You need to hydrate, don't you?"
He narrowed his eyes and swallowed his growl back before it could erupt fully. She was irritating him on nearly a molecular level and he really didn't know why. "Fine," James said - hoping that the vending machine in the hall would be enough to get her to back off because there was no way in hell he was going to go with her for coffee. He got to his feet and she took his arm, one eyebrow raised in a challenge for him to pull away from her.
"What harm would it do for you to escort me?" she asked, almost stroking his arm, and James frowned slightly.
She wasn't wrong, but again, he was irritating her in a way he couldn't quite place and the combination of irritating and enticing was just … hard to wade through. He let out a sigh and looked toward the librarians - new people - who quickly waved him off - silently agreeing to watch over his things while he was gone.
They stood in the hall across from the beverage machine and James waited for her to try and sell him on something to do beyond what little he'd agreed to, but halfway through the bottle of water, James started to feel a little dizzy. He frowned and looked down at the water, focusing on the little droplets of condensation as he swallowed thickly. He turned his hand over, curiously staring at his palm and entirely missing the fact that Katarina hadn't said anything for the last minute or so.
"I was right. You do need some coffee," she said, then didn't wait for an answer before she took a hold of his wrist and started to pull him away. "I'll buy."
But the drug on his hands clearly wasn't having the same full effect as last time around because he planted his feet and stopped, nearly knocking her off balance in the process. "Did you…" he looked over at her, frowning deeply - and though he was incredibly dizzy, the sleepiness wasn't kicking in yet. His focus went from her almost hungry expression to the fact that she was holding his hand … that was covered in the now-activated drug. "Wait-"
There was an instant of realization - a moment where James started to pull it all together in spite of the mind fog that she should have been on the ground for that, and a split second later, Katarina made the decision to rush him and kissed him hard, cracking his head against the wall with the level of force she'd used to come at him.
At first, he didn't know how to stop her, and unfortunately, years of trying not to rock the boat when young women did exactly this kind of thing had him hesitating to react at all. Once he reminded himself to move, he tried to at least end the kiss if he couldn't get away from her, but she wasn't letting go of him. When he nearly managed to break loose and had gotten one of her hands off of him, he was pretty sure he was out of the woods. He shifted to put his hands at her upper arms so he could push her back - and she stabbed him in the backside. James let out a surprised sound, muddled with a 'stop' which gave her the chance to make the kiss a lot more substantial. He could taste a bitter, acrid something, and the moment he started to register what that was, she slid one hand onto the side of his neck, the other under his shirt, and barely broke the kiss to speak.
"What are you doing?" James asked at the same time Katarina spoke.
"Follow me," she said in a more commanding tone, then pressed in to kiss him again, smiling to herself when after a few seconds, he stopped fighting her and started to reciprocate. His hands slid from her arms to her waist to pull her closer, which made the whole fiasco easier on her. When the second kiss ended, he closed his eyes trying to concentrate before she took a hold of his wrist and started to lead him out. "Stay close."
James blinked a few times, but mindlessly did exactly as she said - completely forgetting where he was, what he was doing, or why he was following her. She had her own private route that avoided all of the press corps members that James had never seen and the whole while she was sure to keep a tight grip on him as if he would slip away the second she let go.
In under ten minutes, he was sitting in her car wondering why he was going with her, though clearly not yet with it enough to do anything about it. Before she started the engine as he began to look around, taking in their surroundings, she dug into her purse to retrieve a syringe. He turned her way as she pulled the cover off of the needle, frowning before she jammed it into his thigh and then rested her hand on his arm. "Kat-" James watched as the liquid drained into his muscle, but she cut him off.
"Lie down. Stay down," Katarina sang out nervously, and without asking his body to do so, James did exactly as she asked. She watched him for a long moment, hoping that he'd stop resisting her so much and worried the drugs would take him too far, or that she'd run out.
James drifted in and out of consciousness as they drove, though those moments were always accented by Katarina working out dosages before he was hit by the sharp bite of a needle in his leg when he seemed to be too aware, or worse yet - with it enough to try and question her. She was swearing under her breath before they could get to the airport, and finally, she let out a frustrated sound, reapplied her lipstick with shaking hands and parked her car before leaning over to kiss him again. His hand drifted up to push her away, but she managed to catch his wrist before he could make contact. The lipstick needed time to work fully, after all. And this time, James could hardly keep his eyes open as the kiss continued. He didn't feel the next poke, or notice how anxious she was as the last needle went in and she fumbled for the handcuffs she had in her glovebox.
The guards dragged Kate from the black panel van, where she briefly got a look at the massive, dirty cityscape around them … nothing there was familiar and everything was written in about six different languages, though Japanese looked to be the most prevalent. She wasn't sure where she was. At least, not until she saw someone trying to mug a cop, who turned and shot the would-be-thief in the street without blinking then casually turned away from him to continue … she didn't really get to see what he was doing, but it wasn't anything legal, she was obvious.
The men escorting her never let her feet touch the ground, not that it made a difference. The drugs they had her on left her limbs feeling heavy, and her focus wasn't quite where it should be, so whatever it was … the effects were fading.
The building they went into looked … well… it was absolutely posh inside. Everyone around her was in tuxedos and cocktail dresses … sparkling jewels adorned the women, greasy smiles on the men as they rubbed elbows and gambled while drinking and laughing. But for some reason, they didn't seem to think a thing about these creepy bodyguard types carrying a teenage girl through the crowd. And the men kept carrying her down one winding hall after another to the point that even if she hadn't been drugged, she still would have lost track of where they'd gone.
The casino like interior gave way to marble halls and smooth walls, where every footstep echoed like a tomb as Kate found herself more and more aware of her surroundings. The cheerful din of the betting floor gave way to near silence right about the time she started seeing green-clad guards rather than tuxedo'd ones.
And she still couldn't control her arms and legs and there was no sign of Billy anywhere.
The echoing sound of heels clicking on the marble floors caught her attention, particularly when she realized the woman at the center of the sound was being followed by no less than a half dozen soldiers, whose boots in unison couldn't hide the terrifying click-clack of those stilettos. Though her vision was still muddled, she was pretty sure that she recognized the woman's profile the instant she saw her.
Viper didn't say a word as she led the way, and the men kept silent in her wake, which was only that much more terrifying the instant Kate realized that she was being taken into Viper's lab. But she wasn't alone when she got there …
Two of four surgical tables were already occupied. The room was immaculate, cold, and lined with cabinets of medical supplies and … other devices. Before Kate could form the words to say .. anything, she found herself strapped down to the third table. She tried to fight her way out of it, but her arms and legs still weren't behaving right, and instead of the left hook she tried to land on the creep carrying her, all she managed was a somewhat loose fist as the man secured her wrist in a manacle. To her left, the empty table stood under a light that was turned off. To her right, was Billy, fully awake, incredibly pale, and obviously terrified. And across from Billy was James, not yet awake, but more tightly restrained than either Billy or Kate and oddly, there was a smudge of lipstick on his mouth.
Kate frowned when she saw the smear, knowing that was one of Vipers' favorite tricks, but the idea of her kissing James had Kate doing a full body shiver.
But that was also right about the time that Viper walked in the room - which had Kate doing a double take. She'd thought that Viper had led the way …
But no. The woman she thought to be Viper was younger and quietly gathering up supplies while the real Viper stood at the center of the lab, looking over the vital signs of each of the three young heroes. It was plain to see she was trying to decide where she wanted to start.
"So many wonderful choices," Viper purred. "And it's not even Mother's Day." She bit her lip as she slowly turned, taking in details on vital signs for each of the three restrained victims. Two of them she'd need to be fairly careful with … there was value in each of her playthings, after all. The girl would be a wonderful tool to force a few Avengers out of hiding that had been a thorn in Hydra's side for far too long. The young prince would be an inroad into pillaging Genosha and taking what she wanted there, though that would have to be carefully played, considering how dangerous the game she was playing with Doom was to keep Genosha's new queen out of the way. She smiled to herself as she considered the possibilities. If Dr. Doom had done his share - Wanda would be of no consequence. She could breathe easy knowing that the Scarlet Witch was no more dangerous than an angry kitten while in his care. That was all he wanted, too. Wanda to himself and Genosha available for Viper to pillage. Which left one more young victim in her lab.
Viper turned her full attention toward young James Howlett and absolutely couldn't stop her smile. There were simply so many places to begin. So many options, so much to be done ...she wanted to weigh it all out on where to start with him. Aside from the sheer amusement he was bound to bring her during their sessions in her lab, he was far more useful than he realized well beyond what she could do with his connections to Tony Stark. Old family influence from his father, the dreadful usefulness of a feral on a leash, not to mention the astronomical sum she could sell him for if she grew tired of the games … She could easily get lost in playing there, so she decided to try and focus elsewhere for the time being.
She made her way over to Billy first as she took a closer look at his vital signs, then paused to smile wickedly at him without comment. She hadn't had anyone to play with in far too long. At least, no one worth making it last. She'd just made up her mind on where to go and what to do first, though she simply didn't want to make anyone think they were getting off easy. "Miss Barton, if you were given the choice, who of the three of you should I introduce myself to properly last?"
Kate was honestly surprised at being addressed, let alone asked a question like that. But she'd also been raised by Hawkeye and her mouth was working fine, so in characteristic fashion, she didn't even think before responding. "Depends on if you're ramping up with each go, doesn't it?"
"What fun would it be to tell you first?" Viper laughed, then decided to take it slow with them. Build trust or something like it. "I thought I'd start with a simple blood draw, for simplicity's sake," Viper said, as she took out a kit. "It would be nice to know where you all are before I start adjusting things. But if you have something more interesting as an opener …I might be persuaded to take requests."
"Vodka, thanks."
But that only had Viper smiling wider. "Vojteck, you heard the girl. Get one for her best friend, too." She paused and smiled. "In fact, get one for all of us."
Billy looked like he couldn't believe anything that was happening as he ventured a quiet, "Oh, uh, I don't… drink…"
"You will today," Viper told him as she drew a few vials of his blood. "One way or another." She'd barely gotten her vials filled before she handed them off to Katarina, then turned her sights on Kate. "I have to admit, I'm curious on which of your guardians you take after most. And at what point each of you will break down and tell me what I want to know." She shook her head as she pressed down hard on Kate's arm - even if the feeling wasn't all there yet. "You've all led such interesting lives so far … and you each have so many wonderful connections." Viper came back to Kate after handing more vials off. "Connections like your teams, of course, your personal relationships, and oddly enough, old family ties that should have been severed if you wanted to avoid little mishaps like this."
Kate blinked at Viper and then, after a deep breath, shifted her expression to one much more calculated, the way her mother had taught her. "Typical," she said. "No imagination. It's all about bait and pressure with Hydra."
"Oh, my darling little hawk...this has little to do with Hydra," Viper almost whispered before she ran one hand through Kate's tangled hair. "I know what kind of stock you came from, little girl. As entertaining as it would be to pick your brain for the things that Hydra would want from you, I can get most, if not all of that from either of your little friends. I want my share."
"No."
"Obstinate. I'm still not sure if that's influenced by the Widow or Hawkeye. Or if it's ignorance." She shook her head, then made a point of letting Kate see the measure she was drawing up in the hypodermic needle. "I wonder how well they prepared you for this kind of discussion." She held Kate's arm still then slid it into the crook of her arm, smiling at her as she pressed down the plunger, but oddly enough, instead of a burning feeling in her veins or the kind of pain that she'd only read about in reports, she could suddenly move her arms and legs much easier than just a moment or two ago. "I don't want you to go through this not knowing everything that's about to happen."
She left Kate to consider what that might possibly mean before she made her way over to Billy to do more or less exactly the same thing - at least as far as the injection was concerned. She didn't bother telling him anything about what she wanted to know, not that he needed the primer. He couldn't think of any reason anyone would bother him unless it had to do with Genosha. Not when she'd already kidnapped two of his favorite people outside of the family and teamed up with Doom to neutralize his mother.
Behind her, Vojteck followed, assisting as her right hand man after having brought back several glasses and a bottle of vodka. At her direction, he began putting IV's into each of their arms and ignoring anything Kate or Billy had to say to him as he worked. And for a moment, the two friends had no idea why Viper was taking so much time before she started being herself. As soon as the IV's were in and working, Katarina came over to help too. She laid out the glasses and poured a measure for each of them. The three family members took a moment to face each other, smile grimly, then threw back their shots. Viper was pouring herself a fresh measure, watching her children team up to force Kate and Billy into taking the vodka Kate had suggested … even if she hadn't meant it at all.
But long before the vodka could start to have an effect, both of them were feeling dizzy, off balance, and not … right. Which was also right about the time that Katarina and Vojteck started asking both of them for information on how to get into the tower. Codes, security details, numbers of guards on duty, the entrances the Avengers used … all of the things that couldn't be seen from outside the building. Things that only other Avengers or those close to them would know.
And to Viper's delight, as she drank and tried to decide on where to even start with James, neither Kate nor Billy were budging on anything. Billy was dealing with the situation by trying to attempt a spell, just repeating, "silencesilencesilence" or "Iwishyourmouthwasgone" and other similar silencing spells, though Kate was somehow enacting a balancing act between what her mother and father would do, digging like Natasha would do - but with all her father's snark.
"...and besides," Kate said after the fifth question she refused to answer. "You're just the menial help, Vojteck. Go mix drinks for the patrons upstairs or something."
Vojteck's eyes flashed - especially when Katarina smirked - and he lashed out, backhanding Kate and leaving a hand-shaped imprint at her jawline. Again. "What makes you think that you an speak to me in such a manner?"
Kate worked her jaw but didn't drop his gaze. "Karma. And you're still second best. Hit me again. Won't change it. And you know it," she said, noting the satisfied way Katarina nodded to herself. Kate had been right; there was a massive power imbalance between the two of them. And Kate was more than happy to poke and prod at that particular open wound on even the off chance it got their captors more interested in each other than their captives. She'd managed to get out of a few tight spots with attention redirection before.
"I may not be able to hurt your little friend, but I can certainly hurt you," Vojteck said.
"Vojteck, sweetheart, don't let her focus you. Keep pushing," Viper directed, having decided how she wanted to approach her last victim, who was finally starting to stir. "One of them will crack." James was just coming out of the worst of the poison Katarina had dosed him with. And the first thing he heard was Viper trying to ask what the security protocols were for Tony's lab while she gently cleaned the lipstick off his face. It took him a moment to realize who she was, and had it not been for the smells floating in the air - antiseptic, heat, almonds, and something that just … made the back of his throat itch - he might have tried to answer in some capacity or another.
But instead, he frowned to himself. He was still in a haze as he tried to sit up and started to panic and wake up faster when he couldn't move. He blinked hard, the light shining into his eyes bright enough to be painful, when he managed to see a flash from a needle as Viper was pushing up his sleeve. "Make it easier on yourself," she said. "Tell me what I need and I won't hurt your friends."
James tried to turn his head enough to see what Viper was talking about, mostly ignoring her even as the needle went into his arm simply because he was focused on panicking, but as she gave him the injection and the effects started up almost immediately, he found himself trying not to react to the white-hot pain going up his arm. His hand clenched and he tried to force it to relax, shaking and trying to force down the panic. He tried to relax his muscles and keep his breathing slow, but it burned as it crept steadily up his arm. When it hit his chest, he knew he couldn't hold his reactions back much longer, though he tried as his hands were shaking in fists and Viper taunted him by gently petting his hair and telling him to let it out.
When he didn't start screaming like she wanted, Viper bit her bottom lip and ran one hand down the side of his face. "That's alright, my dear boy. I estimated but fell short of what you truly need. I'm sure we'll fine tune our adjustments as time goes on." He wasn't fighting her as she played with his hair - too concentrated on keeping from screaming while she played her games. "Now," she said softly. "Go ahead and fight it as long as you're able. Don't give in too quickly." His eyes were screwed shut as she stepped back and followed up with a second shot as if she could watch exactly how long it took for the poison to make it to the mark. But that got her what she was after - at least as far as James went. He tried to keep from making even a tiny noise, but it wasn't long before all he could sense was the burning in his veins, roasting his nerves from the inside out.
He wasn't talking, but he didn't realize that she really didn't care if he would talk or not. She wanted to get it from Kate or Billy, so she kept her focus on James, holding her breath - lips parted until he couldn't stop himself from screaming. Viper looked positively delighted, and even started consoling him as if she wasn't the cause of the pain - all while waiting for one of the others to fold.
Billy went pale when he heard how ragged James already sounded - but to his credit, he responded by switching the attempted spell to "leavehimalone" instead of a silencing spell. He was giving away how worried he was, obviously, but it was a means to express that worry without putting his home and family in jeopardy. He'd spent enough time with Erik drilling into his head how important Genosha was to the mutants who lived there that the idea of giving anyone anything they could use to get there was upsetting at a cellular level.
Kate silently watched James with her mouth pressed into a thin line and her eyes narrowed, too angry for a snappy comeback at first. But the second Katarina tried to ask her something again, Kate snapped back at her. "Oh, go bother some Hydra goon looking to get lucky, you second-rate copy of your mother."
Viper looked delighted at the response, then turned to her daughter. "Go to the other one, kitten. Start with something kind." Then she turned her focus to Vojteck. "You know what to do with her."
"Are you sure?" Katarina asked, doing her finest to look as if her day was ruined, even if Kate could see that was an act in spite of the fact that she wasn't nearly as comfortable as Vojteck was by the way he approached, pulling on a pair of gloves.
"For now, yes. Sodium pentothal with both of them to begin. We'll add more interesting things if they can manage to be obstinate under that," Viper said, turning her attention back to James with more drugs as Katarina looked more determined to get the answers she was looking for.
By the time James had burned through the third round of shots, he was shaking in rage and shock, so Viper decided to try a more direct approach with him anyhow. She was confident Katarina and Vojteck could handle getting the basics from Kate and Billy. Even if they were trained in some capacity, they were still vulnerable to the less volatile administrations that Viper had laid out for her children to use against them. It was good practice, after all. And while they studied, Viper would keep the more pressing interrogation to herself. She tried to get James to focus on her, and when he wouldn't, she took his chin in her hand - only for him to snarl at her and snap at her hand. A second later, Viper screeched and tried to pull back as James clamped down, biting her until his teeth met, though at that point, Viper had to shift her strategy to avoid having a chunk of flesh removed.
Billy whooped from the other table. "That's my man."
"You little bastard," she hissed as she tried to get control of the situation. She started by trying to get him to simply let go while Katarina and Vojteck stopped what they were doing, staring at the scene since neither had ever seen anyone fight back against their mother like that. But when the only response she got from James was a glare of pure loathing and a deeper growl, she lost her good humor and decided to attend to him in her own manner, even shouting at her guards to stay back aside from the one who had rushed to try and hold his head still. "You think I don't know how to handle you acting like this?" Viper bit out just before she pressed toward James hard with the hand he was biting. She was once again smiling maniacally when she covered his nose with her free hand, doing what she could with what was available to smother him, even climbing up onto the exam table to get a better angle. And she kept up the pressure - at least to the point he had to let go to breathe. But the second he did, she shifted gears and continued to try and smother him while hissing out curses until he stopped fighting and was trying to shake her loose.
She stepped back, glaring at James and holding her hand close to her chest while he was gasping for a breath. "Keep questioning them both. I'll deal with this one myself. Neither of you are ready to handle him." She got a wicked sort of smile as she watched the three captives. "I forgot how much of a challenge this could be. I've missed it."
Billy had turned a slightly green color, though he didn't say anything until Viper had gone to clean up and dress her hand, which was bleeding badly. And then, he addressed Vojteck first, just to say, "So… I'm going to hazard a guess that your workplace environment could stand improving."
"I don't know what you mean," Vojteck replied quietly. "It's always good to learn something new when torturing your enemies."
"Choke chain's pretty tight, huh?" Kate said.
"That's my mother you're talking about," Vojteck said in a snarl, drawing himself up with his eyes flashing dangerously.
"Oh, I stand corrected," Kate said - though she was smiling victoriously at getting some new information to work with. "Choke chain's pretty tightly wound in the apron strings, huh?"
Vojteck did his best to regain control of his temper as he glared at her. "I don't understand what Daniel sees in you." He smirked. "I"m not sure we can find a use for you. Not when you'll be so broken once we get our information." He tipped his chin down as he looked her way, taking his time as he let his gaze slowly go up and down her body. "Then again … if you can't cooperate, there is no reason to negotiate leaving anything for them to even find."
Kate glanced toward Billy and James and Vojteck stepped in the way to block her view. "Don't bother looking to them for help. They have their own problems to contend with. Your only card to play will be if you decide to be reasonable and tell me what I need to know about the tower and your security protocols." As he spoke, he gave her an injection as Viper had suggested.
Katarina had watched the whole interaction alongside Billy, busying herself with preparation while her brother was working Kate over. All of this was spiraling quickly out of a zone she was comfortable with. She'd had a hell of a time getting James under control enough to get him to Madripoor and she was fairly convinced mid-flight that she was going to run out of drugs to use on him… and then what would she do? Her mother had warned her that James would be difficult to control at first, but this was so far beyond that… Working on Billy would be a relief, frankly.
With a calming sigh, Katarina turned her attention to Billy. There was nothing more she needed to hear from her brother as he tried his hand at intimidating Kate, after all. For a long moment, she seemed to be staring at Billy, and he was watching her with a suspicious frown in return.
"What are you doing?" Billy asked quietly - not prepared fully to deal with more torture, but even less prepared to have Viper's lookalike blankly staring at him.
"I was considering giving you the easy route," she said, then smiled tightly a beat too late.
"Easy route?" Billy asked, not quite believing a word of it.
"Yes," she replied, then took a glove off to lay her hand on Billy's arm so he could feel the pull of her powerset encouraging him to try and please her. "But what fun would that be?" As Billy tried to blink out of the fog, she replaced her glove, then cut off Billy's sleeve for better access to the crook of his arm. "Now … what will it take to convince you that your best interests lie with Hydra?"
"Um … maybe for Hydra to stop … being Hydra?" Billy suggested as Katarina started her injection.
"That would go against our mission," she said, then smiled tightly. "Just give that a few minutes to start working and I'll ask you more about Genosha. Take your time and concentrate on that, now."
Very little time had passed before Viper returned. She was frowning at her injury and as she stepped into the room, she took the lid off of a glowing blue vial then drank it. She looked around the room, taking stock of the three captives and her children laying down the groundwork to get down to business. And while Kate and Billy weren't yet feeling the effects of the truth serum that had been injected into their veins, James was locked onto her with a deep glare that was accented with a growl as soon as Viper met his gaze.
She waggled the empty vial at him then tossed it across the room as she approached him. "Don't worry now, that was a little healing accelerator. I'll be good as new and ready to teach you some manners before you know it." She looked over her shoulder and snapped her fingers. "In the meantime …"
A moment or two later, three sets of helpers marched through the door with each group carrying a scanner toward each of the captives - to forcibly get scans of their hand prints. Every one of them knew it was trouble - and every one of them knew that this was her attempt to break into the tower at least. And though Billy and Kate fought them on it, and even did well enough to squirm enough to try and screw up the scans, James flat out refused to unclench his fists, knowing that he had clearance the other two didn't. And there was no way in hell he was going to allow her to take anything that would give her access to Tony's work.
The growls were enough to spook the helpers, and after a moment, Viper took Katarina by the elbow and dragged her over to help. "It seems my dear daughter, that our little pet has to learn some manners. You'll need to learn to handle him sooner than later, so while I heal, you will teach him to behave," Viper said.
"I'm not kissing him when he's like this," Katarina said, her false bravado cracking at the thought of what he might do to fight back against that after he bit Viper so viciously.
"Don't be ridiculous, dear," Viper said as she pushed a tray toward a clearly nervous Katarina. "We're still establishing his thresholds. An assault to the senses would be more appropriate." She smiled falsely and rested her good hand on James' knee. "So we'll start there and move along as required."
When Katarina hesitated, Viper continued. "I don't want to need to do this twice, so don't screw it up." She looked toward the tray and then gave Katarina a meaningful look. "You've done this before. Just be careful this time."
Katarina watched James for long enough that Viper had to snap her fingers to get her attention. "Yes, Mother," she said clearly, then narrowed her eyes at James and put on a cruel, false smile.
James, of course, had no idea what they were planning, or how they were going to go about doing anything. He was reasonably sure that Viper was going to keep from losing use of both hands, and Katarina had already learned exactly how much James didn't want them touching him. Both women came closer - one on either side of him standing between one outstretched arm and his torso, and James found himself unsure of who was the bigger threat.
Katarina had the tools, but Viper … Viper was clearly calling the shots and she was livid. But then, when James was watching Viper, caught half between angry and terrified, Katarina reached out and took a handful of his hair and forced him to turn his head to the left. She was a lot stronger than she looked.
"No, darling," Viper said, eyes flashing in a cold rage James hadn't seen from anyone. "I want the left one."
"Yes, mother." Katarina smirked, then looked down at James passively before she turned his head the other way with a fair bit of a fight.
"Don't snap his neck, darling," Viper warned just before Katarina managed to get him back under control.
"I won't," Katarina said. She held his head steady with one hand then turned to look for the tools before Vojteck caught up to them and offered his help by taking over holding James' head still. "Don't squirm."
"Wait-" James said in a panicked tone, realizing as she leaned in what she was up to. Not that it did him a bit of good. A few moments later, he was screaming again when she gouged out his eye.
The reaction from Billy was entirely uncontrolled as he started loudly swearing in every language he knew, pulling and straining against his restraints.
James was unable to do anything in response outside of trying and failing to curl in on himself While Katarina finished the job and Vojteck held him still. And, while he was reeling, Viper took the scanner and forced his hand into place. "A word of warning, boy: if this scan isn't perfect, I'll cut your hand off to get what I need." Which had Billy furiously switching his spell to 'Iwantyoudead' glaring venomously at both Viper and Katarina - more so to Katarina for looking so perfectly pleased with herself as she examined the eye and began to deal with preserving it properly. All while Viper looked proud of the way her two children had handled the whole situation. Right down to Vojteck congratulating Katarina on a job well done.
Viper watched the reactions from Kate and Billy for a moment longer, though her focus didn't seem to drift from James for long, and as the young man started to get a grip on himself, she smiled and reached into the pocket at her side.
"You see, my darling, little Wolverine," Viper purred out as James tried to get his bearings even a little bit, not fighting her while he was that far in shock. "I don't need you to tell me what I want to know. I don't even need you to cooperate. I will simply take what I want, when I want it, and you can't do a damn thing to stop me any more than your father could years ago. Even less than your father could manage when I first met him, in fact." When she finished her little hissing speech, she took a moment to put an eye patch over James' missing eye and let her hand rest over his heart. "It's been far too long since Madripoor welcomed Patch home. This is your new home now, my dear boy, so get used to it. I will never allow you to leave this island without my permission - and that won't happen until you learn to heel, and how to obey."
When James glanced up at her, he couldn't stop the low, rolling growl, glaring hard - though Viper only seemed more thrilled at his reaction.
Viper turned, watching Billy with her head tipped to the side slightly, then started to walk toward him. "Katarina, my dear heart," she said in a falsely sweet tone. "It appears as though your brother was right. Did you not know how close these two were?"
"I didn't realize they were at protective stages," Katarina admitted. "He'd refused to say who it was he was seeing. To be honest, I thought it might have been the Richards boy. I was sure he was more like Stark with lovers."
"That's a pity," Viper said, honestly sounding let down. "We could have used some insight into that group as well. It would have helped our ally. Unless…" she turned back to James and started stroking his hair. "Were you and little Franklin having a bit of naked fun all alone in that big house?"
"No," James said, still trying to catch his breath and shaking his head lightly. It was the truth, after all.
She hummed to herself and walked across the room where she pulled a tray closer and came to a stop next to Billy,. "Now, little man, we have some time and you have yet to tell me anything useful." She looked to Katarina, who was still near James. "Did you dose the prince properly?"
"Yes, not long before you returned," Katarina replied. "It hasn't had time to take full effect."
Viper turned her attention to Vojteck. "I injected Barton just before she handled Maximoff," he told her.
Viper nodded to herself and again looked toward Katarina, who was almost experimentally resting a hand on James' chest. "You have work to do, my dear. You can play with him later. He's not going anywhere."
Katarnia smiled - a false look that still seemed to please Viper - and she walked back to Billy and Vojteck rearranged a few things on the tray next to Kate.
"You can see we're prepared to get your little friend under control," he told Kate. "I know you want nothing more than to get far, far away from here. But let me be clear - unless you cooperate, there is no chance that will ever happen. No one knows where you are or who took you." He glanced over at his mother, who was whispering something similar to Billy, though the fact that she was keeping it that close and quiet seemed to irritate Katarina since she had nothing to do if she wasn't allowed to touch James and her mother was working over Billy. "So. Now that you've gotten some of that built up sass out of your system, I'll give you a choice." He tapped the air bubble out of the needle, then set the syringe aside. It was more of a threat anyhow when she was just starting to really feel the effects of the sodium pentothal. "Tell me what we're asking about your team nicely, or I will move forward with less pleasant cocktails."
"Look at you all grown up and independent," Kate said, making a face, before she tipped her head to the side, smirked, and added, "But with such a reasonable request… Okay, sure. 'What we're asking about your team nicely.'"
Vojteck drew in a steadying breath in an attempt to keep his temper in check. "Give me the codes for the tower, you insipid little twit."
By that point, Kate was feeling the effects of the drug, so she couldn't not answer, but considering how often Hydra had gone after her, she also had a solid defense that her dad had taught her.
Which was to talk. A lot.
"Okay, so, here's the thing about the codes. You really need to know where to put them in and at what times and days, because my mom is paranoid and likes to randomly change things up. I mean, I don't blame her, seeing as the riff-raff is trying to get in all the time, and honestly, she's been paranoid since before I was adopted. Got worse once there were kids in the tower. Have you ever seen her when she thinks one of us is in danger? The woman is scary. So yeah, obviously she changes things up. That's important for you to know when you get caught. And you will, by the way…"
Vojteck kept a straight face, though his jaw was working slightly. "Mother, can I poison her while she's on the truth serum?"
"No," Viper replied easily though it was clear Billy was doing a similar job of babbling. "Not yet. Give it a chance to work. You may have to try to guide her through it."
"Ooh, hey, Viper, what are you going to do if he poisons me anyway?" Kate sang out happily.
"I'm not sure. I'm tempted to do the same, little hawk," Viper called back. "But I'm busy with your little friend right now." She turned to look at Kate. "is there anything you would like to ask him?"
Kate tipped her head to the side, smirked, and nodded. "Hey, Billy, whose boyfriend do you think will be more destructive about their rage in this situation? Yours or mine?"
"Physically or mentally?" Billy had to ask after a moment.
"Yes."
"Well," he said drawing it out for a long moment. "Yours will lobotomize people? But mine will lobotomize people."
"Right? It's such a close matchup."
"I mean … mine will be messier about it …."
"Mine will be faster and get more people at once…"
"Yeah, but mine's here, so …"
"Mine nearly lobotomized an entire Hydra platoon for thinking of hurting me, and these guys let a doofus kiss me, so…"
"Yeah, mine's stupid protective too," Billy agreed, nodding to himself.
"Guess we'll have to wait and see how fast mine gets here," Kate decided.
Viper smiled at the two of them, and had to burst her bubble. "Katherine, my dear girl, I'm not an amateur. This place is shielded from telepaths. Even your little boy toy's mother wasn't able to look into this place. Your trackers and communicators are all in New York. No one knows where you are. And no one knows who took you."
Kate narrowed her eyes just long enough for Viper to see that she was shaken, but then she looked toward Billy. "Wow, so she really, really wants your mom to declare war, huh? Not how I'd want to go out, if it were me."
Billy shrugged. "Be a short war. You know. Once she gets away from Dr. Doooooom."
"We'll start calling you Billy of Troy."
He snerked at that, and grinned her way. "I mean … I'm from the Indian ocean, not the mediterranean. Still closer than you though..."
"See? I'm a genius."
Viper hummed as she and Katarina shared a look. "The weakest link then," she decided as she walked across the room toward James, though halfway there, she tossed a tiny dart into Billy's leg. It took a moment for him to get past the initial glare at Viper, but after a minute or so, Billy seemed unable to remain still and was clearly hurting. "Miss Barton. Either start talking or I'll be forced to torture your friend into insanity." She smiled sweetly at Kate. "You will remain unharmed."
"Pay attention, lady. I've been talking. Yeesh, dementia looks bad on you."
She snapped her fingers first at Vojteck, then at Katarina. "Give her the reversal now. And you- keep the boy on the edge of consciousness. I'll start on this one until she finds a reason to be a little more giving in her answers. She knows what I'm after. We've been very clear."
Both Vojteck and Katarina dove into their assigned tasks, and Viper looked positively livid, glaring at James as he growled at her. She pulled on some heavy duty gloves, then took out a different hypodermic needle. The needle was a heavy gauge and every part of the thing was shining stainless steel or glass. She stopped next to James and waited for Kate's drugs to work, pulling her out of the barbiturates she'd been on - and once she was clear headed, Viper tried one more time. "Codes for the tower, Miss Barton." When Kate predictably responded by working her hand around as much as possible to flip her off, Viper whispered out 'fine' and jammed the needle in her hand into the center of James' chest. His growl stuttered, then dropped off before she could withdraw the empty syringe, and it was easy enough to watch as James' eyes rolled into his head and his heart stopped on the monitors. "Speak quickly. It's difficult to estimate the right dose to reverse it. Taking his mutation into consideration, of course."
And that - that was the one thing Kate wasn't prepared to deal with. Someone killing her teammate. She didn't even have a witty response or a way to control her expression as she blurted out, "No, no, no, no, wait, just - no, okay? You just -" She shook her head. "Look, I can't - I can only give you my codes but they shift if one of us goes missing, okay?"
"Then tell me the routes to read them," she said, still not moving, with one hand on James' chest. "Passwords, the hidden gateways into the system. I'm very sure you know something useful since I know your mother wouldn't simply rely on telling you in person every time she changed something." When Kate couldn't speak, staring at James, Viper snapped her fingers. "If you don't care enough about your teammate to bother, then I don't know why I should either." She dropped the syringe in her hand on the tray next to James and started to walk toward Billy. "What about this one? Would you speak up to save him?"
Kate finally broke out of her shock. "Check my phone," she blurted out. "It'll show up as a text from Nate about our next date but the location of the date is the code. The coordinates are."
Finally Viper seemed to come down from the terrifying hyper-focused menace she had going on. "Thank you, Miss Barton." She continued until she was standing next to Billy anyhow, watching his vitals. After a moment, she strode back to James and quickly drew up a measure of something else that looked dangerous and jammed that needle into his heart as well and addressed Katarina. "Get the prince to tell you how he checks in with Genosha. Our Wolverine should be ready for round two by that time. We'll use the same drug plus thirty percent. Like I told you before, once you've established a baseline on our Wolverine, the same dosage won't do the trick the next time around. We won't know for sure if an additional thirty percent will be too much or too little until we try." She gestured for Vojteck to start chest compressions as she watched, even going so far as to correct his form while he worked, though she handled the rescue breathing until a rhythm came back on the monitor.
It only took the two of them a few minutes, but it was apparent when James was back because he started growling again once he was even partially conscious. But all any of the captives could do was glare… and worry about each other and whether Viper would kill any one of them to make a point again.
Chapter 94: Missing In Madripoor
Summary:
Quick note: TRIGGER WARNING. For the next several chapters, there will be discussion of sexual assault and its fallout/the work of recovery after something like that.
Chapter Text
Nate knew something had gone wrong not because any panic buttons had gone off or check ins missed but because it was absolutely not like Kate to blow him off for this long, especially since last she had texted him, she was going to go help Billy deal with his overly interested, clingy shadow. And Kate by now should have been at least giving a dramatic play by play, if not an invitation for ice cream, which she seemed to think made any situation better.
Instead, he was getting radio silence - including when he reached out telepathically.
It was concerning enough that Nate actually asked Rachel to get on Cerebro and see what was up, while he did one more search, trying to find not just Kate but Billy. And when that yielded no results, he knew it was time to alert the adults.
Which brought him to Bed Stuy, where Kate's younger siblings were running circles around Clint demanding pizza for dinner. Nat answered the door - since Clint was obviously busy - and then immediately yanked him inside when she saw the look on his face.
"What happened?" she demanded.
"I don't know yet," Nate admitted, frustrated already. "And I should. I can't find Kate or Billy anywhere telepathically, and so far, neither can Rachel. On Cerebro." He was floating as he spoke, his eyes glowing brighter with every word. "She was supposed to be helping Billy with his Vojteck problem. And I can't find that guy either.
"Didn't Kate say you had trouble reading Daniel, too?" Clint asked from across the room.
Nate nodded. "Yeah, he has some kind of shielding."
"Natural or artificial?" Natasha asked with a growing frown.
"It's hard to tell the difference, to be honest," Nate said with a grimace. "But it feels artificial."
"Who has that kind of tech?" Clint asked.
"Right now, a dozen military organizations, Dr. Doom, and Hydra - those would be the only places with personalized tech like that," Natasha said, her eyes getting narrower by the second as she swept into motion, already sending alarms to the others on the team to gather at the tower so they could take stock of the situation and make sure no one else had gotten sucked into whatever was going on with Billy and Kate.
"What's your best guess?" Nate asked - refraining from peeking just because he was anxious about what that might mean, and half not wanting to know the answer.
"Either Doom or Hydra."
Nate nodded to himself. "So all hands, either way. Okay. Alright. Got it." The group began to move - and Nate stepped in by helping the smaller kids find their coats and pull their boots on. They'd be safest at the tower if either Doom or Hydra was making a move. And the kids had gotten used to him helping them, too.
The ride to the tower was mostly silent among those on the team, but Kate's closest siblings were suspicious and wary as they watched their parents and Nate go into mission mode.
When they got to the tower, Natasha started looking into her systems to see who was there already and who had yet to show. She could track who was coming in from the screen on her widow's bite, and to start, she wasn't overly concerned when James wasn't en route, but she sent him a ping all the same to make sure he knew to get there as soon as he could or at least answer her so she knew what to expect.
Her stride lengthened as she stepped out of the elevator onto the top floor, and for the handful of Avengers that weren't there, she had return messages stating their estimated arrival time. But still, nothing from James. She frowned to herself, thinking it had to be the fact that he was in a test - or perhaps he was prepping and in a rush to get there as Logan often did, but that only meant he was her next phone call. She called his number, and had put the phone to her ear as they stepped into the main conference area for the team. When she looked up across the room at Tony, he also had his phone to his ear.
He gestured, doing his best to try not to look worried. "I'm trying to get through to the kid," he explained.
She raised an eyebrow and held eye contact. "Me too. Any luck?"
"No," Tony said as he turned and went into motion to start his own search for James. "He had trackers in his clothes. Put them there myself …"
Natasha swore under her breath and headed after him, leaving Nate and the kids with Clint and the gathering Avengers.
Tony had started muttering out orders to his AI system on the way, then barely beat her to his lab, where the computers were already humming and working fast at his hastily shouted out commands. He was anxious even before the search could start properly, fiddling with his hands and fidgeting, impatiently waiting for his tech to tell them that they were worrying prematurely. "Who's behind it?" he asked before the first scans could finish.
"That's what I'm about to find out," Natasha told him as she'd already taken over one of his other computers. It was a mark of how worried he was when he didn't even bother trying to dissuade her. She was digging into her own protocols when she found a message in her text messages. She pulled it up quickly, expecting to get the response from James she was waiting for or better still, something from Kate only to find a warning instead.
Any attempt to intervene will only end in them dying. I will contact you for a trade. The message came with Viper's personal symbol, not the Hydra logo, telling Natasha quickly that this was simply for Viper's interests and likely had little or nothing to do with Hydra. Not that she wouldn't use Hydra to keep her prizes.
Natasha glared at the text, but responded all the same. I need proof that they're alive. All of them. Tony's computers were still searching, but Natsha knew this would be the fastest way to confirm who… she just didn't expect Viper to respond so quickly. Kate looked angry beyond words with tears streaming down her face. She likely didn't even realize she'd been crying by the look of her. Billy was in a similar state, surely for the same reasons, but she couldn't help but cover her mouth when she saw James glaring hard and wearing an eye patch that didn't hide the trickle of dried blood on his cheek. "Stop the search, Tony. You're not going to find him like that."
Tony swore as Nate and Clint caught up to Natasha, but before Natasha could answer, Nate paled, unable to keep from peeking at that. His hearing fuzzed out as instead of paying attention to the adults starting to look more grim, he reached out to Rachel to let her know what was going on … and to see if she could find the three missing X-Men.
Weeks passed and across the world in Viper's den in Madripoor, the trio had long been broken up. After something horrible that Viper had used on James met its peak efficacy on the second day, she'd had him dragged to her private lab gasping but otherwise paralyzed and looking terrified as they took him away unable to fight back.
Meanwhile, when it was clear that Billy and Kate had taken all they could, Viper had them brought to the dungeons to rest and to refuel until she decided they could tolerate more. They were still close enough that when James was being tortured by Viper, the others could hear the screams. At least, until Viper closed the door to her torture chamber behind her. That was somehow worse when they didn't know if he was even still alive. Or guessing what she was doing to him when he wasn't screaming. Nothing going on in her lair could be anything but terrifying.
But over the course of their captivity, Viper had worked hard to get information out of Kate and Billy, and though it wasn't complete, she'd still gotten good intel. It didn't seem to work to hurt Kate to get answers from her like it didn't work to hurt Billy to get answers from him … but if she used Billy against Kate and vice-versa, it did the trick quickly enough. Especially after she'd used James as an example and sometimes as the motivation for Kate or Billy to talk.
What Billy and Kate didn't know, though, was that even though so much time had passed … she hadn't asked James anything. She'd been too busy trying to test his limits, to see how efficient his healing factor was, to see where his pain tolerance levels were, how stubborn he was, and if she could break him.
That was about to change though.
"You're doing well for someone so inexperienced," Viper told James as she rested her hand on his forearm, but that only earned her a low, rumbling growl. He hadn't broken. And that put a smile on Viper's face. She truly hadn't had a challenge in years. "Yes, yes, I know, you have no interest in doing this like a reasonable person with even a shred of self preservation. But I have to give you one last chance before I start …" she ran her hand through his hair and he tried to dislodge it, though he didn't really have a chance at that working. "... digging around and rearranging the furniture."
"I'm not helping you screw over Tony Stark or anyone else."
"Who said anything about Tony Stark?" Viper asked, pausing as she smiled a little wider. "I simply want to establish a few facts, the most important of which being that you will give me everything I want."
Instead of a needle, she jammed a dart into his leg and James watched as the liquid in the dart slowly drained down.
"I'd almost destroyed these," Viper told him with a wide grin and it wasn't long at all before James was squirming. "But it seems I'm more sentimental than I thought. I have no idea if the compound that is now coursing through your veins has gotten stronger or weaker with time, but it was enough years ago to get your father to tell me anything I wanted to know." She leaned closer. "And he truly was the best I ever got to torture. You will learn to obey me and my daughter. By force or by threat - it doesn't matter. You will heel."
"What do you want from me?"
Viper smiled wider. "Everything." As James found it hard to focus his vision, Viper leaned in close enough that she was all he could focus on, which was when he leaned back trying to think, going fuzzy as the drugs really started to kick in. She watched for when his pupils finally stabilized, one hand on his bare, bruised chest as she paid strict attention to his heartbeat. "Are either of your friends important enough for you to want to save them?" James nodded long before he mumbled out a 'yes', and again Viper smiled before she started pushing for yes and no answers, knowing he wouldn't remember any of the questions she'd asked him - which left him wide open for the kind of mental manipulation that was always devastating to his father.
This one was a long game, after all. The boy's healing would make her usual methods of brainwashing and manipulation a little harder to set in … but it wasn't like she didn't have extensive experience in exactly that, either. And the boy was useful. If not for the obvious means to get into Stark Industries, there was the matter of Katarina's eventual ascension within Hydra and Madripoor.
Viper knew she only ruled Hydra by virtue of her reputation outweighing those belonging to men at nearly her level of influence. And those men, no matter how bold, knew how the Red Skull had met his end at the mercy of Viper's poisons and tortures. There was no line she wouldn't cross.
And yet, as proud as Viper was of Katarina and how beautifully the girl had fallen into her own footsteps, Katarina was cursed with her father's pride in claiming victory too soon. She'd been a tender sixteen when Viper finally allowed her to murder her half sister to secure her position at the head of Hydra. And that had been telling of the kind of bearing the girl possessed. Viper preferred to make her declaration of victory as she stood on the bodies of those she'd toppled. Katarina joyfully proclaimed her win while the fight was still underway. But … if Viper could give the girl leverage … in the form of Logan's son - his namesake X-Man and Avenger- on a leash to act as her personal attack dog, and in matters concerning Madripoor, that would cement the girl's status outright… no one would cross Katarina. But that was likely months out, if not longer.
All of that hinged on which parent the boy's mind was more similar to. Viper knew how to break Logan. She never did get the opportunity to find out how to break K. But both of them had decades of experience in counter-intelligence and torture. Their child knew nothing. Which left him vulnerable - something Viper was going to enjoy using against him. It'd been far too long since Viper had twisted a Howlett into painful knots and she looked forward to finding out everything she'd need to make him bend to her will.
While Viper was working James over, Kate and Billy were given cells in her dungeon. Unlike James, they both needed rest or they'd be useless to Viper anyway. The first time she'd let them go to their cells, both Billy and Kate had more or less collapsed into sleep nearly immediately, but as the days went on, they were starting to keep better track of each other - and trying to help each other.
Naturally, they weren't always in the cells at the same time, and even if they were, they could sometimes hear James - so they were never truly relaxed. And if Billy was honest, he was getting jumpier the longer this went on. When he couldn't see Kate, he was worried about her and James, especially after she admitted on the fourth night that she didn't actually remember some of what had happened.
He was actually, surprisingly, more worried about the others than himself, if only because his grandfather had literally told him nightmare stories once he was old enough about what would happen if someone got a hold of him, and he'd spent his preteen and teenage years more or less going overly paranoid (or not-so-paranoid) possibilities with his grandfather to keep himself safe and to keep Genoshan secrets safe - he'd had to do that before Erik would even consider agreeing to Wanda's schooling proposal.
So this felt weirdly expected - at least the part where Katarina kept trying to get him on Hydra's side, trying to make a deal so that she and Viper would have inroads into Genosha. He wasn't happy about it, and he was wildly unprepared for how hard it would be to hold his line when his boyfriend and one of his best friends were hurting that badly, but he'd kind of figured that at least once in his life someone would threaten him to get to Genosha.
The problem was that this was so personal. If he wasn't convinced Viper would try to kill anyone in her way, he might even have been tempted to deal with Katarina. He knew his mom could stand up against these Hydra goons anyway, so he wasn't worried about that. He was more worried that if he walked out of that place, he might be walking out alone.
So, yeah, he was kind of feeling protective - and he was only too aware of the fact that Katarina was using that against him, like she was using it against the others. Didn't mean he wasn't going to fall for it, though.
He was exhausted and sore and still sometimes muttering attempted spells under his breath just for something to keep himself sane as one of the guards half dragged him with a grip on one arm down the hall toward the cells he and Kate had close to each other. His head came up fast, though, when he realized he and Kate must have arrived at the cells close to the same time - or at least, her cell door was still open, but he could hear her.
And then he looked past his huge guard to see that Kate's guard was in the cell with her.
"Hands to yourself," Kate said, her voice a higher pitch than Billy was used to hearing from her. It was clear Kate was dizzy as she pushed to get the guard back and away from her a little bit, but the size difference was causing her some real issues. He had a hold of one of her wrists, and was jockeying for the other, but Kate wasn't about to make it easy on him.
She managed to keep that hand to herself, but it was clear that wasn't going to last long. Still … she had to try. He grasped for her arm again and Kate was stuck using methods for close combat … and she started with the classic angry college girl route - and kneed him in the groin. He didn't lose his grip on her wrist - if anything, he clamped down tighter. But it did make him fold partway over where she could pull back slightly. Her back had already been against the wall, but she shifted along the wall as the guard doubled over. She braced herself to keep from falling and once again pulled her knee up hard - breaking the guard's nose in the process.
But he still didn't let her go. As soon as the crunch - and his scream echoed the cell, he pulled on her arm hard, yanking her off her feet and putting herself at a distinct disadvantage from the ground. So she used what she had available … her feet. She was trying to hit vital points on the guy, and though she didn't break anything she wanted to on him, she did manage to kick him away from her enough that he was nearly all the way back in the hallway - and furious.
Billy's guard had stopped to watch the fight - and Billy could swear he heard him laughing both when the guard would get in good shots and when Kate did. But that also meant the guy wasn't paying as much attention to Billy as he could have been, and Billy wasn't about to stand aside. In one quick motion, he yanked his arm free from his guard and then pulled back and punched the guard menacing Kate as hard as he possibly could.
Kate's guard went out like a light - but Billy almost didn't register that, because his hand felt like it was on fire, and he ended up folded over it, holding it tightly to his chest. He had absolutely, definitely broken something.
"Billy, duck!" Kate called out, which was about the only thing that could have broken Billy out of his thoughts enough to move, so the first time his assigned guard tried to hit him, he missed. The second time, though, the guy grabbed a handful of Billy's hair so he couldn't dodge.
The guard hit Billy hard enough that he was seeing stars and then kicked him in the chest so that Billy felt all the breath leave him. Which was about when Kate half stumbled out of her own cell to try to return the favor and protect him.
"Get back in your cell now," the guard bellowed at Kate as he raised a weapon.
"Or what, tough guy?" Kate shot back almost automatically, her eyes flashing as she ignored the guard to instead try to get to Billy. "This place already sucks. I'm just helping a friend here."
The second she took another step forward, the guard fired his taser and held the button down until she hit the floor. Then, when he saw she wasn't getting up right away, he dragged Billy back into his cell and locked the door tight. Once Billy was secured, the guy dragged his coworker into the alleyway between the cells and gestured for Kate to move. "I'll hit you again with it if you really want me to. But I'd suggest you move yourself." He was still holding the weapon in his hand, finger on the trigger and waiting.
But when she didn't move, he narrowed his eyes - not trusting that she wouldn't try something. So he hit her with the taser again before he dragged her into her cell, too - while her muscles were still twitching and uncontrolled.
He did not, however bother trying to rouse his coworker and once the cells were locked, he simply walked away.
The guard was the first to get up - and he looked between the two young heroes before he pushed himself upright and grumbled his way out of the holding cell area, leaving them alone but for each other's company and the ever-persistent screaming from upstairs.
Kate leaned against the metal bars of her cell, not at all in the mood to try moving, let alone getting up, though she was at least glad to see that the guard who'd been in her face was gone. So when Billy started to stir, she mustered up her best smile for him. "My hero," she sang out to him.
"Oh, shut up," Billy grumbled, holding his hand closer to his chest. It was already turning all sorts of discouraging shades of purple.
"You really are though," Kate said. "I wasn't fighting very well."
"Neither was I," Billy argued."I even broke my hand…"
"Yeah, you need to practice hand-to-hand when we get home," Kate agreed. "I know Cap taught you better, Billy. You lose all form when you lose your temper too?"
"Is this a critique?" he shot back in disbelief. "I broke my hand and my face and you're critiquing me?"
"You wouldn't let me praise your heroics!"
"Because we're still stuck in here!"
"Yeah, but he didn't get what he wanted and lemme tell you something, Billy, he's not the first to try," Kate said, dropping her tease. "So yes, thank you."
"We gotta get out of here," Billy said after a long silence. "Before something horrible-er happens."
"Between your parents, my parents, James' dads, and the entire roster of active superheroes, I'm fully expecting a valiant rescue any second now," Kate said firmly. "It's not a question of 'if' we'll get rescued. It's 'when', Billy boy."
"I guess I'm just impatient," Billy said quietly. "Shut up."
"Yeah, if you think I'm chomping at the bit to go another round with any of these Hydra creeps…" Kate let out a long sigh that lapsed into silence punctuated by a snarl that startled both of them nearly out of their skins before they heard James' voice for the first time in they didn't know how long:
"That's not the deal."
For a long second, Kate and Billy stared at each other. And then, Kate swallowed hard. "Okay, so… silver lining," she said when Billy looked as white as a sheet, "at least he's still able to form arguments?"
"That … doesn't sound like solid negotiation," Billy pointed out.
"Yeah, I'm trying very hard not to think about the fact that it sounds like he's already made a deal, Billy. Trying very, very hard."
"Yeah, that's … this is bad."
For a couple days after their attempted uprising against the guards, Billy and Kate didn't see each other at all - which had both of them worried about the repercussions the others were facing. So Kate was relieved to see Billy in his cell when a guard dragged her back to hers- even if he looked much worse for the wear. Not that she could judge, seeing as she felt like moving was an imposition and couldn't for the life of her remember what had happened between morning and evening that day.
She wanted to ask him how he was holding up and to try to give him some optimism to hold onto to stay sane, but no sooner had the guard locked the door and left than someone put his foot in the door to the hallway and strolled inside.
"Kit Kat, it's been so long," Daniel said, announcing his presence in the cockiest way possible. "Looking a little rough. What's wrong? Haven't had time to hit the spa yet?"
"Du Bois, if you so much as breathe the wrong way, I'm-"
"Oh please. You couldn't beat me when you were full steam. What in the world makes you think you can do it now?"
"First of all, you cheated. You've never taken me in a fight. I was fencing. You were cheating."
"Well, I feel like celebrating. Maybe I'll cut you some slack and give you a head start."
"Go to hell, Du Bois," Kate grumbled.
"He's already there," Billy pointed out, his eyes narrowed. He hadn't really met Danny before the kidnapping, just heard Kate complaining about him and then suddenly had to deal with him in-person in a collar and he was still mad about it.
"Actually, this place is getting better by the day," Daniel said, spinning Billy's way. "I should probably thank you for that."
"Excuse me?" Billy stared at him. "What?"
"I said I should thank you," Daniel said slowly and very clearly. "Your boyfriend got me off the hook. Finally." He paused, then shrugged. "Well … not really his call, but still. The results are what I was hoping for."
"What are you talking about?" Billy asked, significantly paler than before - which was saying something with how bad of a shape he was in.
Daniel smiled widely, then turned toward Kate. "You guys really don't know yet? I don't know if I should tell you."
"He's bluffing," Kate said, holding Daniel's gaze. "As if James would ever help a pathetic loser like you."
"Like I said - it's not his choice," Daniel argued. "But it got me off the hook anyhow, so I really don't care."
Kate sighed and leaned against the bars. "You gonna tell us or are you just going to talk yourself in circles?"
"I don't know. What's it worth to you? Have to be worth my time to clue you in to Viper's fun."
Kate narrowed her eyes at him. "You wouldn't be down here if she didn't want you to be in the first place."
"Actually, she said she didn't care if you two knew anything or not. I'm just in a good mood."
"Then share with the class, Danathon."
"Oh, Kit Kat, you're so impatient," Daniel said. "I don't know if I should spill though. Might just break your little friend's heart."
Despite herself, Kate glanced toward Billy, who did, admittedly, look sick over what James could have gotten into that had Daniel so pleased. "He's a big boy. He can handle it," she decided, though Billy was quiet enough that she wasn't actually sure he could.
"Oh, what the hell," Daniel said, looking between the two of them. "You see … Viper is getting ready to retire. More or less. Katarina is set to step in, step up… not just in Hydra, but here, in Madripoor. Trouble is … well. Those places take issue with women in charge that haven't scratched and scrabbled and slept their way to the top on their own. So … Viper decided her little princess needs the right kind of credentials. Fill in the blanks, guys. Pretty sure you can figure this one out without the flow chart. Won't be too long and there'll be a lovely little wedding announcement staring the new Viper and her incredibly unwilling groom."
Billy went from pale to green, so Kate ended up speaking before her brain had fully processed it all. "Okay, so, James as decor I actually get, but who in their right futzing minds thought you were decent arm candy?"
Daniel chuckled. "It's not about arm candy, Kit Kat. Like any other affair dealing in the trade of animals, it's about pedigrees. His father held a lot of sway around here, so … that will make her taking over Madripoor easier. Hydra will follow."
"Still doesn't explain you," Kate insisted, her nose turned up.
"I qualified for ambition and viciousness. I'm sure you figured out my past by now, Katie."
"Heard you killed your mom, yeah," Kate said. "What, trying to impress Viper and get yourself married off? I thought you didn't want that."
"Didn't realize she'd take to it that well," Daniel said. "But that's nothing compared to how happy she is right now."
"Just stop," Billy said quietly.
"Billy, it's fine," Kate said quickly. "It's fine, I promise, it's fine."
But Daniel had caught it clearly and turned toward Kate with a grin. "Toldja."
"Shut up," Kate said, her gaze on Billy. "Her plans aren't going to matter once Billy gets his powers back anyway. Right, Billy? Pull a Tommy on this chick?"
"Kate, if he made a deal-" Billy started to say, but Kate cut him off.
"And we're not speculating," she said. "We're not going down that road until we have better intel than Danny here trying to lord anything over us. And even if - even if - Katarina has her claws in him, there's an easy solution to that problem. My mom's codename."
"Oh, that's cute. Do you think that'll happen before or after the ceremony?" Daniel asked. Then clicked his tongue. "Wait … that's still the guy that dies, right?"
"Context clues, you neanderthal. It's a metaphor, not a straight-shot comparison," Kate grumbled.
"Hey. You're the one that made that comparison," Daniel said. "Oh, yeah … that will probably get the attention of a few Avengers, too. Who do you think will come running first?"
"Better hope it's not either of my parents leading the charge, Du Bois. They're hoping for an excuse to accidentally on purpose murder you."
"Hey. Believe it or not, I'm only a pawn here. Just like both of you."
"Yeah? Then if you're out from under Viper, why not just leave?" Kate challenged him.
"Believe it or not … she is very generous." He spun toward Billy. "Katarina, however … she doesn't really know how to share, so you're out of luck, bud."
"Uh-huh. Generosity isn't one of the many words I've heard to describe Viper." Kate crossed her arms.
Daniel smiled wider. "Don't worry, Kit Kat. You'll see." He winked at her and turned on his heel to leave. "Nice chatting with you. As always." With that, he closed the door behind him, and Kate was left with an abnormally quiet Billy and a sinking feeling in the pit of her stomach.
Katarina had been operating on instructions to get Billy on board to stay with Hydra. And he was a lot easier to work with now that he knew James wasn't an option. Or at least that's how Katarina was taking it. She was enjoying her work more and more. Billy was restrained, stuck to a table and directly across from Kate for the first time in a long while, which could only mean bad things were about to happen. Still, it was a different set up from what they'd initially woken up to in Madripoor and it had both Kate and Billy on edge. For one thing, the room Viper had taken James into seemed to be soundproofed, and they had no idea what their missing friend had been dealing with all this time when Viper wasn't allowing them to hear the product of her tortures.
As it turned out, Katarina's style was entirely different from Viper's when they weren't in the same room together. She was more tense, unrushed about her movements as if she was truly worried about getting every little step right. A sadistic perfectionist.
Billy and Kate shared a look as Katarina hummed to herself, choosing her tools and poisons. They honestly didn't know what else she might want and both of them were feeling incredibly guilty for having spilled as much as they did. And to start with … she wasn't asking them anything. Not one question. Not one request … just pure and simple torture and terror. And she dove into her work.
"You can't kill him," Kate said once Billy had finally quit screaming from the last round of poison.
"No," Katarina agreed. "But there is plenty to do without killing him." She smiled, then turned to go back toward Billy. "It's much more challenging to keep you alive and see how far you can be pushed." She paused, her hand on Billy's arm as she watched the readouts, ignoring the glare he was levelling her way. "Vojteck, perhaps you can do something new while I work with the drugs.." She tapped her fingers rhythmically. "I need a few things to continue this session … would you monitor them both until I return? I know you wanted to get back to working on the girl. Lord knows the guards already have."
"You act as if I need your input to do my job properly," Vojteck said. "Another session - and you've again forgotten something critical. Perhaps one day you'll get it right."
Katarina paused and the two of them shared a look. "My job has been significantly harder than yours lately."
"Only because you're still afraid of what might go wrong should you fall short of your perfectionism," Vojeck said with a tight smile. "I too, am looking forward to what may happen when you slip and make an error with your dog."
Katarina narrowed her eyes at him and spun on her heel. "Try to control yourself. I'm not done playing with her."
Vojteck smirked, shaking his head to himself as his sister left the room. "Hello, Katie," he said as he pulled up a stool to sit next to her. "Do you prefer my sister's warm approach over mine?"
"Your English needs work. There is nothing about that girl that is warm," Kate said flatly.
Vojteck smiled and tutted. "It's nice to see you, too. This is easier than working with your other friend."
"So, what, you've accepted your sad, miserable lot in life, Teckie?"
"I've accepted that you're trying to rile me, but you're the one who has something to gain by doing so," Vojteck said. "Even if you still have just a little left to lose. Be cooperative and I'll be sure to make it quick."
"She's not wrong, though," Billy said, his voice soft and hoarse. His gaze was glued to Vojteck, and he looked furious in a different way than he had been with Viper and Katarina.
"And you think your position is much better than hers? Just because you've put a spell on me that won't let me touch you?" Vojteck asked with an amused expression playing at his features. "Genosha is all but open to us. Your compliance is no longer necessary. Your mother and robot are indisposed - with any luck at all, permanently. The only reason you're even alive now is because our mother thinks you'll be useful to keep the Katarina's pet in line."
Billy blinked. "...what?" He couldn't help it; he was too tired and upset to hide how much it hurt to be reduced to leverage against James.
"Well … at least until she doesn't need you to keep him in line. That's just a matter of time," he amended. "Then we can circle back around to discuss your outlook on the world."
When Kate could see that Billy was too hurt to say anything, she broke in again. "That's bull. He's lying, Billy. Maybe not entirely but that's just how Viper is, Billy. She thinks people are expendable. I mean, she can barely be bothered to hide that she's only keeping her son around for manual labor and as a spare heir."
Vojteck smiled at that, tapping his chin. "And … what do you suppose our reason to keep you breathing might be?"
Kate did her best aloof shrug considering how she was pinned down. "Oh, I dunno. Half the Avengers would go ballistic otherwise. Not like I haven't been used to coerce Steve or Tony or my parents, like, half a dozen times before I was twelve."
"The Avengers are over rated and fading away before our very eyes," Vojteck said. "Perhaps … in knowing that, it might be better to let you live, after all." He smiled wider, and it was easy to see the same glint in his eyes that Viper had when she was feeling malicious. "But then, we all have our thoughts on how this should pan out. For instance, I felt as though DuBois was underpaid for his part in this … fiasco. He has now lost the position my mother had hand selected for him. He should be given some sort of reparations for having his place taken."
"You actually paid that idiot?" Kate rolled her eyes. "To do what? Annoy me while you actually captured everyone?"
"That's really not any of your concern," Vojteck said. "Perhaps I should let him have you, now. To ease his broken heart. He was set to become the right hand of Hydra's head. He deserves compensation."
"Absolutely not," Billy said, with all the force of his grandfather, and in the same tone.
Vojteck turned toward him with a smile still in place, though he let it fall easily. "You would prefer I kill her then?"
"Well, no," Billy said, frowning and pulling against his restraints again, especially since Kate looked stunned.
"Yes, that's the answer. I'll leave her fate to you," Vojteck said. "Live or die? It should be an easy choice."
Billy let out a frustrated sound, fresh tears springing up as he did so. "You know what the worst part is?" he spit out. "I really believed your act. I bought into your neglected little brother story, the bad family dynamics, the whole nine. And you're just as sick as they are - just in a different way."
"Every lie is based in the truth, Billy. At least the believable ones are." He gestured openly. "Tell me where the lie was, though."
"Billy, he just admitted I've been right this whole time," Kate sang out, trying to get Billy to keep from breaking down.
But that prompted Vojteck to turn and smile at Kate. "You've convinced me that killing you would be too kind." He kept eye contact with Kate as he pulled out his cell phone, then took a moment to text Daniel with instructions. "I'm only going to ask that he break your hands on the way out."
"You've got a death wish," Kate snarled at him. "Not that I blame you. Probably better than whatever method your sister's got planned for you. Even if Mom is creative."
"If she gets her way," Vojteck said. "But I've seen some doubt between both of them. Katarina is nowhere near as competent as she should be handling venoms and poison considering her mutation. Pitiful, really. But then… I guess you never know."
"You're delusional," Kate said, still glaring. "Like your mother would let you run anything more than a hot dog stand."
Katarina chose that moment to join them again, laughing in spite of herself. "Is that what you call your friend there?" she said to Kate. "She did have him pull in the prince - and we used him to get you. All in all, that's a bit better than nothing." She rested a hand on Vojteck's shoulder. "If you're going to let DuBois in here, you'll need to clear him by Mother's guards. They're not letting anyone in without clearance while she's playing."
Vojteck nodded once, smiled maliciously at Kate, then turned to leave. Katarina watched him go for a long moment, then turned toward her two captives. "I'm sure he has a plan. It would be interesting to actually see what he could manage. But, I'm afraid I don't have my mother's patience."
"You don't say," Billy bit out, angry the more Kate looked pale, especially because until that point, she had honestly been doing a lot to keep him sane in all this.
Katarina smiled again. "If he was more useful, then I'd keep him, but … the only one of any use in my family is my mother." She paused and turned toward Kate, smiling wider. "And before you ask, no, that's not based on any attachments. She's doing me an incredible favor, so … I'll do her one by disposing of any distractions or irritations that might slow her pace."
"Okay, then, do me a favor and make sure you kick your idiot brother's ass while I'm still alive so he can hate every minute of me being right and gloating about it. Turnabout is fair play," Kate said, getting some of her voice back.
"He'll be dead before the week is out," Katarina said easily. "I've gotten tired of listening to him preen."
Kate shook her head as she watched Katarina. "I don't suppose you're in the mood to stop him from the whole … Daniel issue, though," she said, her eyes narrowed.
Katarina stopped, tipping her head as if she was truly considering it. "I suppose it depends on how he speaks to me when he gets here." She smiled at Kate, fluttering her eyelashes just as Kate had done moments before, and began laying out her tools again, readjusting them, double checking her charts, and looking perfectly at home preparing to torture Billy some more. "I never wanted anything to do with Daniel DuBois romantically, but I had long ago come to accept the match. I almost feel as though something is owed in this transaction."
She was just drawing up a measure of a vile looking electric violet liquid when Daniel and Vojteck returned. Daniel froze just inside the door, obviously not having expected to see Katarina there, let alone taking a measure of some nefarious fluid. She smiled wider seeing his hesitation, though he was quick to defer.
"Katarina," he said, bowing his head slightly and avoiding eye contact. "Your brother said I might be able to remove the girl for you?"
"What do you plan to do with her?" Katarina asked, hesitating before she took a more open assessment of Daniel, then drew back a few extra cc's of whatever she had in her syringe.
"I … thought I'd take Kit-kat out of your hair, and somewhere she'll never bother Hydra again." He put his hand over his heart. "As for details, I'm not sure yet. But I'm open to suggestions."
"Clever phrasing," she said, smiling to herself as she set down the syringe. "If we hear so much as a peep from her again, it will be your head on the line."
"High bar to clear, Du Bois," Kate said in a strained voice. "You gonna risk her wrath, really? You can barely take me on in fencing. You really think you can do anything without me ruining your promise to 'not make a peep' or whatever?"
Daniel glared at her for a moment, then turned to Katarina. "Once I get her somewhere secure, I assure you, she won't be trouble. But … I'd happily do what you like if you can help me get that far …"
"Are you asking me or Vojteck?" Katarina asked - and it was a fair question that neither Kate nor Billy knew meant very different stakes for payment.
Daniel hedged, then let out a breath. "It would be easier to deal with the city if you'd help, Katarina. One last favor in exchange for gracefully stepping aside."
"The alternative is that you simply die," Katarina said, then started toward Kate looking just as nasty as her mother did, before she started singing out something in a language Kate didn't recognize at first, even if she couldn't quite look away from her once she'd started in. By the time Katarina started singing in English - making her orders for Kate crystal clear - follow Daniel. Be quiet and obedient - Kate wasn't even sassing her. And by the time she cradled Kate's head in her hands to continue her song, Kate didn't flinch. Even when Katarina released the restraints on Kate without any threats of handcuffs or poison, Kate wasn't herself at all.
Daniel was smirking crookedly as Kate found herself upright and Katarina turned his way. "You have two hours."
"Stop it," Billy said, his eyes wide with horror as he watched the scene unfold. "Stop it, please."
Katarina sighed in a tone of longsuffering. "You have nothing to offer to make your demands. Or even requests. She's not in pain. She'll be perfectly unharmed."
"Liar." This time, there was something else behind Billy's words, an echoing quality that no one there had heard from him before, even Vojteck, who'd been in Westchester with him.
She furrowed her brows, though the smile never really slipped. "I know that when people see my powerset at work it's a bit unsettling. Loss of free will can be disturbing to witness. Especially to those that have spent too much time in the United States. Let me ease your mind, though. If it makes you feel better, my little Wolverine would not submit to my voice or my touch. He needed to be poisoned as well before he'd bow to my influence. He's learning quickly, though. We've truly made great progress. He doesn't even fight me when I drug him with a kiss anymore."
Billy's eyes flashed brighter - with real light - and his voice echoed again. "I Want You Dead," he said, his voice dripping with anger and fear. And he didn't even register that Katarina had stopped smiling as her heart stopped because he was glaring at Daniel too. "Drop dead, you bastard."
And to Billy's utter surprise - considering none of his spells worked in a dampener… Katarina simply dropped. And so did Daniel.
All three of the remaining teenagers in the room were temporarily frozen in shock, but Kate was faster to react that Vojteck was, grabbing the syringe Katarina had meant to use on Billy. Vojteck, to his credit, realized immediately what she planned to do and dove for her, resulting in a wrestling match in the lab while Billy was still tied down. He couldn't seem to get any more spells to work, and he didn't know how he'd managed the ones he had gotten to work, so he could only watch as Kate and Vojteck jockeyed for control of Katarina's syringe. They were surprisingly evenly matched, considering how long Viper had been working over her captives, but Kate was running on desperate adrenaline that helped her match Vojteck's physical advantage.
Plus, Kate had trained with her mom. Kate managed to work herself around to put an elbow in Vojteck's groin, he let go on instinct, and she jabbed him with the needle, panting and glaring at him as he sank to his knees. He had some immunity built up to Viper's poisons, so he wasn't in nearly as dire straits as Billy would have been, but that didn't mean he wasn't dizzy and sore and hurt all the same.
Kate kicked him in the stomach and then looked around the room for something heavier, finally deciding on the metal tray of Katarina's chemicals to hit Vojteck over the head with. And then, once he was safely unconscious, Kate rushed to get Billy off of the table. Both she and Billy weren't operating anywhere close to where they needed to be to get out, not after enduring Viper's tortures, but if Kate could pick the lock on the collar, they could at least get out and get help for James.
"What happened?" Kate asked, already setting to work while Billy stared at the bodies on the floor, his eyes wide and his breathing shallow.
"I don't know," he admitted. "I was just so mad… But I've been mad this whole time and that hasn't worked."
"Well, whatever happened, thank you," Kate said, pausing her efforts to get him free to kiss his cheek.
Billy let his shoulders drop and finally looked away from the bodies toward Kate. "Hey, you're my best friend. I wasn't gonna let them kill you or - or freaking sell you off to that tool."
"Seriously, thank you," Kate said, glancing down at Daniel and shuddering. "I didn't know she could do that. That was like … like something Nate's capable of, honestly. Only worse because it wasn't a mental takeover." She made a face, shook her head, and turned back to Billy. "So, like, do I need to make you that mad again or something because that was super helpful and I'm not above telling you how I was aware of everything happening…" She trailed off and caught his gaze when she saw he was staring at the bodies again. "Hey, you okay?"
"Yeah…" Billy swallowed. "Sorry. I just… I've never done that before."
"Pretty sure no one's gotten their mutant powers to work in a collar before, Billy-boy."
"No, I meant - I've never actually killed anyone. Not directly, anyway. I think maybe a few things I did for my grandfather when I was younger got people killed but…" He swallowed hard. "We need to find James."
"And get him snuggling you stat. Agreed," Kate said. "I'm working on it, I promise. Dad and 'Ro taught me everything there is to know about lockpicking." She twirled her fingers and then went back to work, muttering under her breath about how pissed her parents, his parents, and Scott were gonna be - pushing aside everything else, the way her mom had taught her, with the mental promise that she'd fall apart after she saved her friends.
Finally, she managed to get the collar open, did a little dance to congratulate herself, and then threw the collar across the room and took Billy's arm. "Okay, let's get out of here," she said.
Chapter 95: Sinking Ship
Chapter Text
When they found James, he was stuck down on Viper’s table and an absolute mess. He still had an eyepatch on, but had also gained an oxygen mask that he was still struggling to get little sips of air through. His eyes were closed as he tried to get control of his panic, though they could see evidence of long-term misery in the slightly cleaner tear trails that marked a path from his eyes to his hair. He was naked but for a sheet draped over his torso - bloodied, bruised, burned, dirty, and shaking. There were puddles and broken glass scattered around the room and his hands were in fists while his arms were stretched out away from his body. They could see that some of the splashes of whatever had landed on him, too - and a few of those splashes were smoking, but the second he heard Kate and Billy, he snarled with everything he had in him for them to stay back. It was low, rumbling, and honestly something neither had heard directed at anyone. “Don’t step foot in this room ,” James managed to get out, though he immediately started trying to gulp in bigger breaths of air. “Don’t. Touch . Anything.”
“James, it’s okay,” Kate said, faster to recover her wits just because she wasn’t the one dating him.
“No. It’s not ,” James answered, clearly unable to get a breath. “Look at me. You can’t. Just.. Stay back. ”
Kate and Billy shared a look, and Billy started to float. “Okay,” he said slowly. “Okay. I can-”
“Don’t. Touch . Me,” James said from between clenched teeth, though his voice was definitely shaky, even beyond the lack of oxygen he was fighting against.
Billy froze. “James… we have to get out of here.”
“You can’t ...touch …. anything . At all.” He looked up to catch Billy’s gaze. “She had … gloves on. If she needs …”
“She’s immune to poisons, that has to be extra strength nasty if she’s suiting up,” Kate said, and James nodded his head in agreement, glad she could finish his thought when he was struggling so hard just to breathe. Talking was nearly excruciating.
“Right.” Billy swallowed. “Okay. Um. We need backup.”
“Just go ,” James said.
“No,” Billy swallowed again. “I can’t… you’re stuck here and…” Billy shook his head. “ Iwantourcomms ,” he said, finally finding something useful to do. He hit the panic button on his and tossed Kate hers. “We’re getting backup.”
“So find … a safe spot,” James said.
“And leave you? No way,” Billy said.
“Yeah, um, he sort of killed DuBois and Katarina, so I’m sticking with him,” Kate said, her arm around Billy’s shoulders.
James blinked up at the ceiling for a moment. “I saw.” He pointed to the screens across the room. “Everything.”
“Well, that’s disturbing,” Kate said, then bit her lip. “And pro-o-o-obably a death sentence for Vojteck, actually.”
“Yeah,” James said with a weak growl. “Creepy little … jackass.” He took a few deep breaths trying to get a bigger punch of air to speak more than a word or two at a time, and when he managed it, it all came out in a rush. “Why didn’t I know about his guy stalking you sooner?” When he got that much out, he started coughing hard and once again struggling to breathe.
Billy sighed and let his shoulders drop. “I… I’m sorry. I was just trying to help him,” he said softly. “I saw what picking favorites did to Tommy…”
“I’ll knock … his teeth in.”
“While still covered in Viper poisons. Nice touch,” Kate said, nodding approvingly.
James looked over toward Kate and spoke in a whisper. “The crap he said to you …”
“I’ve got thick skin,” Kate promised. “DuBois was the real problem, not that wannabe.” She frowned and waved a hand at him. “And save your breath. You need it.”
James wanted to chew her out. That was the kind of thing that needed to be reported. “You didn’t … say..”
“I told Nate,” Kate said, cutting him off. “Nate couldn’t get a read on him, but when he futzing kissed me, I had to stop Nate from getting thrown out of school for killing the guy, okay?”
James made a scoffing sound as he tried again to get a bigger breath. Strangely enough, the oxygen was finally starting to help a little, even if the acids on his skin were still bubbling and burning. “You didn’t … ask me to ...get a read on him?” he drew in a deep, shaking breath, but couldn’t hold back his anger much longer. “That was … the whole …. That’s what everyone told me my stupid powerset was good for!”
“You’ve been busy trying to salvage your future from the idiots at MIT!” Kate shot back.
“I could take a minute!” James shouted out between coughs.
“And you shouldn’t have to!” Kate insisted. “You should be allowed to have your own problems, okay? I thought Nate and I could handle one idiot ourselves!”
He tried to gesture again, staring at her wild-eyed. “ This is my own problems! You could have been kept out of it!”
“Yeah, um, hate to contradict a gorgeous guy when he’s being all protective?” Billy put in. “But I’m the heir to Genosha, so yeah, I was gonna end up here regardless. And they wanted a junior Avenger who wasn’t you, so if it hadn’t been Kate, it might have been Lexi or Cassie.”
“Yeah,” James said, losing some of his rage simply from lack of oxygen. A point that he traded off volume for content “I need to hit someone, okay?”
“Well, I left Vojteck poisoned and unconscious where we were, so I can go drag his sorry butt over here so you can take it out on him,” Kate offered.
“Don’t bother. Too tired.”
“I get to hit him too, though,” Kate insisted. “I mean, I’m still beyond pissed at him.”
“I just want one crack,” James said in a sigh, trying not to squirm too much as he glared at the ceiling.
“Okay,” Kate said, sitting down in the doorway and resting her chin on her knees. She and Billy were running on adrenaline that was fast losing the battle against exhaustion when they had nothing they could do - other than hope no Hydra goons showed up to take advantage of how worn they were.
Thankfully, they didn’t have to wait too long before a rush of wind alerted them to a new presence, and Tommy zipped over, finally skidding to a stop and backtracking when he saw them. “ There you are!” he said. “You know, I’ve looked all over this stupid island for you? Widow had a hunch, but I wasn’t gonna wait in a jet . That’s insane .” He made a face and then helped Billy to his feet, not even pretending not to be worried like he usually would. “You look like someone ran you over, Billy. And then some. Where’s the bad guy?”
“Billy killed half of the problem,” Kate said and hugged Tommy from behind. “I am so glad to see you, by the way. Don’t go in James’ room, though. It’s booby-trapped with poison.”
Tommy made a face. “Of course it is. You guys don’t do anything less than an eleven on the drama scale, you know that?” He shook his head and then grabbed his comm. “Yeah, I found ‘em. Come to my position and send someone with telekinesis so we can get Wolverine outta here.”
“Clothes,” James requested.
“Oh, and James is shy and wants a loincloth, please,” Tommy added.
James sighed heavily. “Tommy. No . I’m not … being shy. ”
“If you say so,” Tommy said with a shrug before he turned to Billy and ducked his head to catch his gaze. “Hey, tell me about your first murders, okay? Catch me up.”
It only took a few minutes while Tommy and Billy were comparing notes for Nate to show up with Mia in a poof of smoke. He was worried about his brother of course, but Kate was the first one he saw and he didn’t even get out a ‘hi’ before he scooped her up in a bear hug. “I have been looking everywhere for you,” Nate told her. “You wouldn’t believe the number of facilities that have shielding from telepaths.”
Kate had been doing a decent job holding herself up until that moment, but then she clutched onto him in the hug and buried her face in his shoulder. I have never been happier to see you in my life , she projected to him and simply started to cry in relief.
Nate kept Kate clutched tight, and he didn’t look up to see what kind of trouble his brother was in until he had her half cradled and secure, though Kate was kind enough to project everything she knew about his predicament - which saved a lot of time so Nate could just … shred the restraints holding James down. It took James a moment to get halfway upright, stretch out, and stand up, though once he took the oxygen mask off , he seemed to be breathing easier, reminding him of exactly how twisted his time with Viper was if she’d gas him and leave him on the slab.
Once James was upright and holding part of the sheet up to cover himself, Nate got a good look at the state his brother was in, from the bruises, burns, and dried blood, discolored skin, and the freakin’ eyepatch still in place. And as soon as he was standing away from the slab, James turned his back to the group and pulled on what Nate and Mia had brought. Still, when Nate reached out to try and put a hand on James’ shoulder, James cringed and stepped away from him. “Not until I’m decontaminated,” James said. “You got a death wish or something?”
“No, I-” Nate shook his head but pulled his hand back. “I just wanted to check on my brother, that’s all.” Nate frowned. “We can do it telepathically…”
“No. Take care of your girlfriend. I’m fine.”
“Yeah, that reminds me. I’m lobotomizing Vojteck. Just so you know.”
“Not if I get a hold of him first,” James warned.
“Wanna know where he is? He’s just starting to wake up, and I have a bead on him…”
“No. I’ll handle it my way.”
“You know what he tried to pull -” Nate started to say, but James cut him off, knowing all too well what Vojteck had been up to and all Kate had been threatened with.
“Yep,” James said. “Most of it was on Viper.”
“Gonna lobotomize her too once I find her.”
“Too nice,” James argued, which was a different angle from him.
“Not if I do it by putting something through her ,” Nate shot back, too mad at first to pick up on how serious James was.
“She was trying to…” James stopped his thought and even went so far as to physically step away to back out of the conversation, a little too close to fresh trauma to want to share it. “Nevermind.”
Nate thought about pushing, but between Billy wrapped up in a hug with Tommy and Kate still refusing to let go of Nate, he was sure it was more important to get everyone out first. “Okay, well, let’s get Vojteck and get out of here.”
“Tommy, if you want to get your brother out of here - Kate too,” James said. “I need to kill someone real quick.” His tone was about as casual as could be, but he looked as if he could kill him with a look.
“Wait, no,” Kate said, holding on tighter to Nate.
“Then take Nate out, too,” James said.
“You don’t have to deal with this like you’re the only one who-” Kate started to argue, but James cut her off.
“I want to,” James snarled out venomously, which was something else new, even as he swayed on the spot.
Nate frowned as he watched James and then shook his head. “Mia,” he called out, “get my brother out of here. He’s not himself right now and I don’t want him making dumb decisions.”
“Do not touch me,” James growled out.
Mia held up her hands, her tail switching behind her. “So, um, I don’t want to get poisoned, but also, we shouldn’t, you know, kill people?”
“Some people deserve it,” James said low and his growl began to ripple under his words constantly - low enough to be felt rather than heard.
“Yeah, um, I … I may need to talk to Tony or Steve or someone?” Billy said, looking past Tommy at Natasha, who had just caught up and was watching the scene unfold with a deep frown, unable to keep from staring at James, shirtless and wearing the eyepatch.
Natasha cleared her throat and then stepped forward to rest her hand on Billy’s shoulder. “We’ll cover all of this later. Right now, Nate, you need to get your brother to decontamination without him touching anyone else. I’ll deal with Vojteck and any other Hydra lieutenants I can find.”
“The higher ups already left ,” James told her. “They ran out with Viper.”
“Of course they did,” America said, sliding neatly over to where Kate was to steal a hug and check her over for herself.
“Wasn’t a Hydra thing anyhow,” James told them. He stopped in front of Nate, who was following Natasha’s lead. “Get out of my way.”
“I’m not … I can’t believe I have to say this to you,” Nate said, shaking his head. “And as much as I can understand how much you want to make him pay, we don’t kill . Avengers and X-men don’t kill! ”
James narrowed his eyes, and looked ready to argue it when Vojteck half stumbled out of the room at the end of the hall, holding one hand up and using the other for balance. “I surrender,” Vojteck said an instant after James growled out ‘I quit’, though he didn’t get more than a step or two before Nate intervened.
“You can’t just quit to kill a guy,” he said, trying to reason with him as he stepped in James’ path.
“Just did. Move.”
Nate looked even more upset, especially because the next thing he did was to telekinetically lift James so he was floating out of reach of the walls, floors, or ceiling and then spun to face Vojteck. “You just made me use my powers against my brother , so talk fast or you’re going to spend your life thinking you’re a duck.”
“All that I told Billy was true,” Vojteck said. “And I know my sister was going to try to kill me as soon as my mother was out of the picture. As it was, Mother only kept me around for sentimental reasons that had nothing to do with me . I surrender. I do not want to die from the monsters my mother creates.” He made a point to glare up at James who responded with a deep growl.
“The only reason to let that little worm live is to use him as bait to get Viper,” James half-snarled, which illustrated perfectly to Natasha where he was mentally.
Natasha looked between Vojteck and James, let out a slow breath, and then simply hit Vojteck with her Widow’s Bites until he was unconscious and spun to face James. “You need decontamination,” she said again. “I’ll make sure our prisoner doesn’t escape.”
“If he does, I’ll chase him down,” James said.
“Yes, I know you will, James,” Natasha said softly. “Now, please, let me get Kate and Billy home. Billy needs you.”
It was clear that it still took James a moment to even agree to that, but he didn’t have much of a choice in it with Nate keeping him away from everyone. “I’m not letting this go.”
Natasha sighed, but she went to where Vojteck was all the same, dragging him behind her without bothering to do much more than that. Not one of the members of the team who had come to save their friends could find the right words to put to the situation when three of their own were so clearly traumatized and they were plus one Hydra torturer on the way home.
James stayed far from everyone for the flight back, curled in on himself and hugging his knees in the rear of the jet as he tried not to pass out from exhaustion. He wasn’t surprised at all to find that a whole decontamination crew was waiting for him at the tower, either, and he simply ran with it, silent the whole time. As soon as he was cleaned up, triple checked for toxins, and dressed in his own clothes and a fresh eyepatch, he quickly found himself plus Billy, and trying hard to moderate the instant cringe he had on being touched, let alone hugged .
Billy was almost bouncing on his toes until he got the okay, and then he attached to James, flinging his arms around his neck. He could feel James go tense and hold his breath, but he hugged him tighter rather than let up. “I was so worried about you,” Billy breathed out and then started crying - mostly because he was overwhelmed and the only time he’d heard anything from James was when he was screaming in Viper’s lab.
“It’s alright,” James told him in a breath, though he was still trying to get his temper in check and get past the panic attack he was on the edge of just from being touched. “If I learned anything out of this, it’s that I’m not likely to die like that . I’m just sorry you had to deal with all that crap. I’ll figure out how to fix it.”
Billy shook his head at that. “Nope, this is what I need right now,” he said and snuggled in.
“Even with the damage?” James tried to tease, though it didn’t quite come out right and it was clear that he actually meant it.
Billy glanced up at him, his gaze lingering on the eyepatch for a second, before he had to try to match James’ tease. “As long as you’re okay with dating a murderer.”
“You didn’t slow down when it was me,” James pointed out. “And you were doing it out of chivalry - protecting virtue.”
“And you were defending yourself and your dad, so I guess that makes us both more or less the same on the murder front?” Billy winced one eye shut and then laid his head down on James’ chest. “Okay, I’m actually not as okay with this idea as I thought I would be,” he said, suddenly more pale than before.
“I knew it. Too hideous to continue,” James whispered before he closed his eyes and kissed the side of Billy’s head.
“No, not you ,” Billy clarified quickly and stole a kiss that had James holding his breath again. “I meant the murder thing. For me. Not you. The me murdering thing.” He winced. “Yeah. Don’t like that at all.”
“I know,” James said as he tried to relax a little. He was overreacting to everything and he knew it. But Billy was right there … he was safe , he was whole, and that had been something James had been worried sick over for the whole fiasco, so he tried to force himself past the panic.
“I didn’t even mean to do it,” Billy said. “I mean, I did. Obviously, I did, because the spell wouldn’t have worked if I didn’t. But… you know what I mean, right?”
“I know.”
“And I’m not sorry about it, and I feel like I should be. And I don’t know how I did it. And I hate that I did it. And ohmigosh what if I’m turning into my grandfather -”
Finally, James had managed to lose some of his tense edge while he was trying to soothe Billy and instead of running with the panic, he ended up shaking his head as he pushed back his own issues to help. “You’re not turning into your grandfather, little prince.”
“You don’t know that! He didn’t start killing people until after he was locked up and traumatized by fascists, so, like, the parallels-”
Before he could keep going, James leaned forward, and did his best to kiss the sense out of Billy. Even if the prospect was half terrifying to start, once they were wrapped up in each other much of the tension drifted away and James leaned into getting lost in that kiss until it met a natural end and both of them were out of breath. “ You are not Magneto.” His tone was gentle but still left no room for argument.
Billy blinked a few times to get his head out of the kiss and then nodded softly. “Okay. But… maybe you need to do more convincing. Like you just did. Just now.”
“Okay. I can try,” James agreed, finally smiling crookedly, though it was incredibly understated compared to his usual light.
Of course, there was still debriefing to be done, and Hank was waiting to do another blood draw on all three of them to monitor how quickly the various toxins and drugs were leaving their bodies. But more pressing was the fact that Scott was waiting, too. And looking as if he was going to come undone until he and Rachel saw Nate and James walking their way, though James’ focus was on the ground.
Scott looked incredibly relieved… until James looked up and Scott saw the eyepatch. He froze in place, his lips barely parted as he simply stared.
“Hi, Dad,” James said in an attempt to use his usual off the cuff tone and falling woefully short for how raspy his voice sounded and deeply uncomfortable with the way that everyone had been looking at him. “So… ah, we’re fine now. Everyone’s safe. It’s over. Sorry to mess up your day -you can go back home with Nate. I’ll ask Tony to get me back to Massachusetts later so you don’t have to drive it.”
When Scott got up to his kids, he couldn’t say anything at all, and for a long moment, all he could do was stare until James couldn’t look him in the face. Almost as soon as James looked away, Scott reached up to rest his hand on the kid's cheek, then stared for a little longer until he simply had to pull him into a long, tight, wordless embrace.
James tensed for a moment, but it wasn’t long before he wrapped Scott up in kind and was doing his very best to keep his emotions in check. It was just so hard to keep it tamped down when he knew he was safe with Scott after so much torture.
When Scott finally loosened his grip, he didn’t let go, even if he stepped back slightly to stare at him a little more. When he finally had his emotions halfway controlled, his words came in a rough, shaky tone. “Son, I am so sorry that this happened. She never should have gotten close to you. At all.”
“It’s not your fault, Dad. It was going to happen, sooner or later,” James said, but that only seemed to have Scott working his jaw a little more tersely.
Scott shook his head, but didn’t argue that point when he only had so much he was capable of saying. “ I swear to you on everything I hold dear that I will make damn sure that Viper never comes anywhere near you ever again.” He sounded more deadly serious than any of the kids had heard before, and even without checking in with each other it was abundantly clear that something had changed.
“Dad-“
“I don’t need powers to take that bitch down. I should have done it years ago.”
“We know you don’t need powers,” Nate said, in somber agreement with their dad.
Though Scott was still wound up, he could see how worn out James was - and how hard he was trying to hide it. “Did she let you sleep?” Scott asked him quietly, not at all surprised when James hesitantly shook his head ‘no’. “Then you need to do that now. Get some food then go to bed. Please. You can debrief after you rest.” That in itself was a marker of how upset Scott was if he wasn’t raring to find out what had happened.
“I can hold out,” James said, but Scott gave Billy a meaningful look.
“We haven’t been able to get in touch with your mother at all. I know Dr. Doom had her and your father, but Reed Richards and his team already got her out. I don’t know how she’s doing, or how bad it got. I’m willing to bet, though, that if you two go curl up to sleep, she’ll be here before the hour is up and we can fill her in,” Scott said. “And if she doesn’t show that fast, you both need to sleep anyhow. Go on. I’ll handle her.”
Billy looked surprised for just a moment, but was smart enough not to question it. Not when it was clear Scott was right - James needed to crash, and Billy needed to curl up with him ASAP. So, instead of arguing, or pointing out that he could easily get a hold of his mother if she was safe , he went for the option that gave him time with his guy now and gently pulled James with him to James’ room as Rachel promised to bring them food.
Nate was more than happy to keep Kate close - especially since she was obviously hurt and projecting some of what she was reliving when she closed her eyes too long - he was surprised when she actually broke away from him once everyone was back to the tower and had started to settle out. Sure, she was supposed to talk to their parents and fill them in, since the boys weren’t nearly as willing to talk as she was, but actually, she couldn’t focus long enough to talk to them.
She had a nervous, jittery energy that was so unlike her that Nate didn’t put up any argument when she left, though he did come with her. And then, when he realized that all she wanted to do was check on James and Billy, he relaxed slightly. He could understand the urge, especially since the three of them had been so worried about each other that whole time.
When Kate saw that Billy and James were both safe , even if neither of them was truly okay, she nodded to herself and turned around, seeing Nate for the first time. “So, we should get Tyler to come and heal Billy’s hand. And, you know, some other stuff,” she said, almost as an afterthought, looking down at herself. She looked truly disheveled, bruised and dirty. She needed a shower in the worst way; her hair was matted and sticky. And even though Natasha had given her some spare clothes, she didn’t look like herself at all.
And, weirdly, she wasn’t projecting the whole story to Nate all at once. Which had him worried that she hadn’t even processed any of it yet. But he also didn’t want to slip into her mind - yet. Not without an invitation, because he knew that she always felt better when she talked. Out loud.
“Yeah,” he said, frowning as he watched her shift her weight from one foot to the other. “Tyler’s on his way. Probably gonna want to hold your hand. I can play jealous boyfriend if it would make you feel better,” he offered, purely because he wasn’t used to her being this… off . That was part of what he liked about her in the first place, after all. She was so much more normal and happier than what he’d grown up with, and he liked that she allowed him and all his stupid drama to be in her carefree orbit.
“If you want to,” Kate said, then stepped into him and all but leaned his way into a hug. He tucked her under his arm and directed her, knowing she was going to crash once she was healed up and had talked to their parents.
Once they got to where Natasha and Scott were seated and waiting for them, Natasha got up from her seat to look over Kate more openly. She might have been the Black Widow, but she was an open book when it came to how much she worried about her kids - including the Summers family. But there was fire in her gaze as she gestured for Kate to sit with them; Nate could actually hear her detailed fantasies of what she planned to do to Viper, and Natasha didn’t usually project.
“I know this is still fresh for you,” Scott started to say, then paused, swallowed, and nodded. “And I’m sorry it happened in the first place.” He didn’t say out loud that this was exactly what he’d been afraid of since the kids restarted the X-Men, but Nate heard that part loud and clear and was pretty sure Kate did too, telepathy or no.
Kate smiled tightly at Scott, though it didn’t reach her eyes. “Hydra’s been a problem for me since I was three, Scott. They’ve just never - I’ve just never dealt with Viper ,” she clarified, pulling her arms tighter around herself.
Scott nodded, though a muscle was working in his jaw, so Natasha stepped in. “Anything you can tell us that would work against her,” she said simply, and Kate nodded.
“I think,” Kate said, slowly, “that she cared more about James than anything else.” She didn’t look up, so she didn’t see Scott go still. “She kept talking about how much she’d missed screwing with his dad. For her, with him , I think it was personal. Billy and I were actually there for strategic purposes.” She paused. “Well, James was strategic too, but more as a symbol. She wanted his pedigree for her daughter, according to Daniel. But even if that was what she told Daniel and Katarina, she wasn’t just in it for the name recognition. She was hooked on having him in her lab specifically.”
Scott and Natasha shared a look at that, though Natasha looked prouder than Scott did. She’d been the one to teach Kate how to flip an interrogation, after all. “Alright,” Natasha said, an almost-smile pulling at her eyes, though it only lasted for a second, considering the subject matter. “Tell me more.”
Kate shrugged and leaned against Nate. “We’ll have to change all the codes and protocols across the board,” she started to say, but Natasha waved her off.
“Already done several times over,” she promised. “That’s not what I asked you, little bird.”
Kate bit her lip when it started to quiver at her mom’s nickname for her since she was a kid, but she nodded all the same. “Viper has been grooming other young minds in Hydra, like Daniel. I know he was going to be Katarina’s husband when they got older - Hydra is sexist, by the way, don’t know if you’ve noticed but they want a guy at the head, so Katarina needed a puppet.”
“I did notice,” Natasha said dryly, though she leaned forward, watching Kate with obvious concern.
Kate nodded and swallowed hard. “Yeah, well, from what I gathered from Viper and the three stooges, Viper’s doing more than just shopping for spouses for her kids. Seemed to me like she found the personalities in the next generation who were most likely to end up as leaders and coopted them to make sure that they worked for her instead of becoming threats to her leadership from within. Daniel even said that she could be generous when she wanted to be; she got their loyalty through fear and just a little bit of honey, and they wouldn’t think of unseating her or Katarina. I doubt Daniel’s the only one she did it to; he’s just the one she picked out for Katarina’s groom before she met James.”
Scott and Natasha shared looks with raised eyebrows between them before they turned back to Kate. “We’ll look into it,” Scott promised her, and Kate relaxed her shoulders.
“Okay, good,” Kate said. “I know Katarina is dead now, but Viper had plans within plans, it seemed like, so even though we have Vojteck, I wouldn’t be surprised if she finds a way to retire with him as her mouthpiece or something, so probably keep an eye on him…” Kate ran a hand through her hair but couldn’t get it all the way through before her fingers tangled in something matted, and she pulled a face and then yanked her hand back.
Natasha watched Kate quietly. “You’ve done well getting as much intelligence from them as you could, but-”
“Yeah.” Kate sighed and shifted slightly in her seat. “We… we didn’t see what was going on with James after the first day. She killed him in front of us, though. Made Vojteck do CPR to bring him back. So she kinda established right up front that she didn’t have any lines she wasn’t willing to cross.” She pulled her shoulders in tighter to look smaller. “Billy broke his hand standing up for me. Viper told the guards they could handle us however they wanted, and Billy was furious but terrible at hand-to-hand.” She faltered at last and closed her eyes until she no longer felt like she was in danger of crying. “I, um, I don’t remember everything that happened, but a lot of the time, when I came out of whatever Viper had me on that gave me amnesia, she was asking me questions, so I think I probably gave away a little too much intelligence. Sorry,” she said, blatantly redirecting, but the adults couldn’t ignore what she’d just said, either.
“Not your fault,” Scott promised, though he, too, was leaned forward in obvious concern. She was part of his family by that point, and it broke his heart to see her so obviously shaken and hurt.
Kate nodded and then cleared her throat. “Anyway,” she said. “Tyler can heal us up, and I’m sure he’ll give you an overview of all the nasty stuff that wasn’t drugs. So. If it’s okay with you, I want a shower, please.”
Natasha let her shoulders fall but got to her feet, waiting only long enough for Kate to stand before she broke form and rushed her daughter, yanking her over in a long hug. “I will fix this, malyshka, ” Natasha swore sharply.
And Kate, for her part, just clung on and hid her face in Natasha’s shoulder, openly crying and not bothering to hide it - so that by the time they broke apart, Kate felt like she was going to crash.
“I’m taking this one with me to help,” Kate announced, wiping her face as she grabbed Nate’s hand. “And before you say anything, I have real concerns about my ability to not pass out in the shower. So this is pure strategy .”
“Uh-huh,” Natasha said - but it was a mark of how concerned she was that she didn’t exactly stop them either.
Not that there was too terribly much to be worried about in the first place, especially since, once they were alone and Nate did, in fact, start to help Kate out of her clothes so she could scrub herself clean of Viper’s family’s grabby hands, he had to stop when he saw, away from the half-destroyed lab and the adrenaline of rescue, just how badly bruised and scraped and discolored Kate looked in the light.
And the fact that she was wincing just through taking off her shirt was just as concerning.
“Like what you see?” Kate asked in an old, automatic tease, but it just rubbed Nate the wrong way.
“Not really,” he said. “That looks… tender .”
“Yeah.” Kate tossed her shirt at him. “I know. Could have been worse, though. It could have been a lot worse.”
“Yeah,” Nate sighed, though he suddenly seemed as if he was afraid to touch her for fear of hurting her more. “What do you want me to do?”
“I actually was not lying to my mom; can you just… make sure I don’t fall over or something? Adrenaline comedown is a real thing,” Kate admitted as she finished shimmying out of her clothes and headed for the shower.
“Yeah, I know. Absolutely I have your back if it helps …” Nate’s eyes glowed as he telekinetically picked her up. “No reason to waste energy … balance is overrated.”
Kate’s eyebrows shot up, and then she grinned his way. “Thanks,” she said sincerely, letting him hold her up so she could make a good go of scrubbing the better part of a layer of skin off in the process of trying to feel clean again.
Finally, Kate got out and grabbed a towel, surprised into a genuine smile when she realized he’d heated it up for her while she was washing herself off. “You think of everything, don’t you?” she said as she wrapped up, half smiling to herself.
“I try to,” Nate replied quietly.
“Of course you do.” They were quiet until they found themselves at her room. With a backward glance, Kate crawled into bed as soon as he set her down there. Kate gestured for him to come over. “You okay, big guy?” she asked, though after the shower and warm towel, she already sounded like she was fighting sleep.
“Yep, I’m not the one dealing with Viper-fueled PTSD,” Nate replied. “But I’m happy to just sit in the chair and keep watch so you can sleep without any big dumb football players bumping your bruises.”
“You’re not a big dumb football player when you don’t want to be,” Kate said with a tired smile. “And Tyler should come around and fix the bruises part anyway.”
“Well, I’ll go where you want me to when he’s done fixing you up,” Nate said. “And I’ll lobotomize anyone that comes near you again with any whisper of ill intentions.”
“Thanks.” She snuggled into her pillow, her eyelids fluttering already. “Sorry you don’t want to join me.”
“I didn’t say that. I’m sorry we didn’t find you faster, and I don’t want to trigger you, so ... “
Kate hummed to herself. “I’m okay,” she promised. “Really.”
“If you want me to play pillow, okay, but you have to tell me the second it’s not okay.”
“Babe, I’m not your dad. I don’t do that thing he does where he shuts down. Come over here and let me wake up to not an empty room, and I’ll be happy,” Kate said.
“Okay, but I don’t think I’ve ever seen you anywhere near this not-okay,” Nate said as he made his way over all the same.
“Fair,” Kate agreed, though as soon as he was close enough, she rearranged herself so she was practically tucked into him. Not anything touchy-feely, either, more like she was hiding in his side. Don’t go anywhere, okay? I can’t handle losing anyone right now.
I’d like to see someone stupid enough to try and make me leave, Nate replied.
Love you too, Kate projected, promptly falling asleep almost before she’d finished projecting it.
Which just left Nate sitting there watching her sleep and trying hard to fight the honest panic in the back of his mind. He’d been scared when they hadn’t been able to find Kate, Billy, and James, but now that they were back where they belonged, he was trying to come down from the scare of a lifetime.
Because the truth was, they’d been gone for so long , Nate could hear his dad starting to wonder if they were going to walk into another Graydon Creed rescue: a rescue too late that left a body count and unspeakable trauma behind. Nate had started to wonder that too - and he’d started to feel like that was just his fate, really. The men in his family had a bad habit of losing the most important people in their lives. He had seen what that did to his dad. And he didn’t want to turn into the shell of a person his dad had been after losing Jean.
He also had to fight the urge to leave , and that, he knew, was all Corsair. Which was even worse , somehow. The idea of trying to run away before he got hurt. He’d rather stick around and lose everything than turn into his grandfather .
The more he thought about it, the more he was stuck on the idea that he really should have lost Kate. She’d said herself that Viper had been willing to kill them. And Viper had gotten information out of all of them. Kate was the least powerful of the three of them. If Viper had kept her alive, it would have been for a reason .
He just… he didn’t think he could deal with it if this came back on them and he lost Kate. She had always been there, since they were little. She’d been there when he was small and scared of how sick James got, when Jan had almost become part of the family and he’d had to mourn losing an almost-mom. She’d been there when the Summers kids had to hide with the Avengers to avoid soldiers and weapons programs, when they’d had so many moves that stability just wasn’t found anywhere but with their found family that seemed so steady and confident in their place in the world that Nate had learned to ignore the ache in his chest that yearned for that kind of self-acceptance. She’d been there like a beacon for his whole life, and she’d kept him stable when they’d almost lost his dad. She was refreshingly full of life and light and believed in Charles Xavier’s dream just as much as any other X-Man or mutant dreamer. And if he didn’t want to turn into his dad or grandfather, Nate needed that kind of anchor in his life. Someone normal and fun and brilliant with kindness that had no equal .
Yeah, he knew he loved her. He’d figured that out a while back. But almost losing her had just made him more determined to keep her safe. Even if he knew she’d go out of her way to be a hero anyway, more so if she thought he was coddling her.
For some time, he sat there watching the rise and fall of her chest as she breathed. Her hair was still wet from the shower, and since she was using him as a pillow, he was getting wet, too, but he didn’t care about that when his mind was still occupied thinking of how unprepared he’d been for the possibility of losing her. And even now, seeing her so different from the girl who made him smile even when his family had been going through hell, he wanted to do something for her.
So, despite his earlier determination not to peek in Kate’s mind so that she could talk out loud about what had happened to her, he slipped into her memories while she was asleep. She had good mental defenses; he’d been the one to teach her. But when she was that hurt and vulnerable, her defenses were down - and she was so used to his presence in her mind that her defenses didn’t recognize him as a threat anyway.
Instantly, he was stuck by how much Kate’s mind had changed. He was used to seeing happiness every time he entered her mind, being surrounded by her love of friends and family and by her joy for life that infected everything she thought. Usually, her mind was full of images of superheroics and of Nate - he liked those memories best - but now, it was visibly darker, the beachfront that made up the center of Kate’s mind marred by high waves and boiling clouds overhead.
The water was where Nate knew he’d find Kate’s memories, especially the most recent ones, which washed up with the tide into pools of water that he could stare into until he fell into the memory itself instead of watching it play out in the shimmering reflection. So, all he had to do was look through the tide pools until he found memories of what had happened with Viper.
And that, he quickly discovered, was far too easy.
Almost every tide pool he looked into had a memory of Viper’s manipulations; or of Vojteck and Katarina torturing her or James or Billy; or of Daniel gloating; or of…
Nate froze when he saw one of the tide pools that showed a memory that must have taken place in the immediate aftermath of Kate being poisoned by Viper. In the memory, Kate was still feeling the after-effects of a drug or poison and couldn’t stand on her own two feet; she had to be dragged back to her cell by one of the guards, who spent the entire time taking the opportunity to put his hands on Kate in every place he wasn’t invited as he carried her to captivity- despite Kate’s weak attempts to stop him.
And then, as Nate watched in horror, the guard didn’t just leave Kate alone in her cell, instead he came in with her, pulling at her clothes as she tried to get distance and couldn’t get her body to move with any real strength to stop him.
Nate finally broke out of his horror to step back, his eyes glowing with power. He didn’t know what he had expected to find, but to see Kate that powerless and that terrified and that hurt while some opportunistic bastard took advantage… all he wanted to do in that moment was go back to Madripoor and rid apart that guard and any other guard who had touched her.
When he blinked into the physical world, he wasn’t quite disconnected from her mind yet, so he heard the moment she started to wake up. Knowing what he now knew, he had no idea how she’d react to him being so close, so he started to move away, but that set off a wave of fear that made Kate’s eyes pop open. Even half-asleep, she was projecting how badly she needed someone she trusted close to her, how terrified she was of being alone, of sleeping alone, of closing her eyes for too long without someone else there to warn her if something bad was coming.
Nate’s desire to kill the guard warred with his desire to make sure Kate was alright, and obviously, taking care of Kate won. She needed to be safe, and she needed to feel safe, and that wasn’t going to happen if she woke up alone, apparently.
So, he settled back in with her and waited for her to relax and go back to sleep, unable to stop the impulse to kiss the top of her head as she grasped onto him. “It’s alright, I’m here,” Nate said in a soft rumble. And once her breathing evened out once more, he decided that as soon as she was okay - or at least okay enough that she could stand for him to leave - he was going to deal with this. Permanently.
Chapter 96: Telepaths
Chapter Text
When Rachel got to James' room, she wasn't at all surprised to find that James and Billy were wrapped around each other. James was drifting -and ready to pass out, so she knew she was right to rush. Billy, however, looked as if he was going to be up for a while thinking all of it over as the adrenaline crash really set in.
"Hey little brother, you need to eat now," Rachel said, trying to push James into doing so before he crashed. She'd never seen him this badly hurt before, but she knew after the first time he'd used his claws or when he'd fought so hard with Tyler that extreme stress or massive injury could take him out for a while.
"Not hungry," James muttered, his eyes half drifting closed, though he still looked tense even with Billy trying to soothe him, flinching away from Billy's touch and trying to stop himself from doing so.
"Eat anyhow," she said, looking to Billy to encourage him, but Billy wasn't too inclined to make him do anything when he couldn't get him to relax. "Maybe you can tell me some of what happened?"
"Do you want me to talk or eat, Rach?" James asked, eyes closed as he reached for a sandwich. "I can only do one."
"Eat. Please."
Without another word, James did just that … and only as much as he thought he could get away with. On a good day, Rachel had a hard time getting James to eat anything, let alone all she'd brought for them before he couldn't stay awake another second. He closed his eyes, then shifted away from what Rachel had brought in as she tried to last-second keep him going, then he slipped face down and flat from the seated position he'd been in away from Billy and half curled in on himself, sleeping soundly by the time he did so.
"What happened?" Rachel asked Billy, frowning at how thoroughly James had already crashed. "Did you see what she did to him?"
"Some of it," Billy admitted, then shifted to watch James sleep while he tried to find his own appetite. "She separated us before long and all we could do was listen to him screaming sometimes." The two of them stared at James, and Rachel tried to look into his memories, but his defenses were as tight as ever - maybe even more so when he was protecting himself. "She took his eye on the first day." He thought it over for a long moment. "I wouldn't be surprised if she took it more than once for how crazy she was acting around him."
Rachel hesitated, but decided that she really wanted to know what had happened, so she very gently asked "Will you tell me what happened to you and Kate, or show me if you don't want to talk?"
Billy paused at that, though. "I'm kind of trying to process … and I just … I've spent all this time listening to James screaming when I could hear him at all. I need a minute before reliving that, okay?"
Rachel blinked as she got her bearings, then nodded silently. "Just … reach out if you need anything. And try to get him to eat, if you can."
"I think we missed our window on that," Billy said as he covered James up with a blanket.
"Maybe," Rachel conceded, leaning in the doorway as she watched her brother. "So … when you get your bearings, please let me know. I want to hear what happened, okay? And if you don't want to talk about it, I'm okay with just looking if you'll let me. You won't have to think about it or concentrate on it at all if I do that, alright?"
"Sure," Billy agreed, though he settled in a little better, still feeling like he'd been caught up in a whirlwind. "Just not yet. Okay?"
Rachel nodded, then stepped out and closed the door behind her. She leaned against it for a moment before blowing out a breath… she knew perfectly well that every one of them would end up giving a different debrief … unless they were lying, then it would all match up. Especially when she knew they had all been isolated at one point or another. There was no way they all had exactly the same experiences. And every one of them was going to need professional help to get through it, she was sure.
As much as she wanted to go listen to Kate's side of things, it was bugging her more and more how uncooperative she knew James was going to be, short of making sure the other two were safe, so, while he was passed out - not asleep, even if it looked the same - Rachel found a quiet spot and got comfortable, intending to push the boundaries of her powerset to see first hand what had happened via James' memories.
She settled in alone after dodging a very angry Tony Stark, who was advocating for a bigger counterstrike on one phone while pushing to speak privately to the dean of James' college immediately. So at least she knew that side of things would be taken care of for her brother … so she could focus on his mind better while everyone else was worried about his body and his future. And everything else.
The only problem was that in order to get past his natural defenses, she needed to push a little harder than usual, and it wasn't long into her push that she found herself naturally tapping into the Phoenix powers as if the flames were an extension of her mind - less the leap that it was to touch even a few months earlier. Practice, it seemed, had her more in touch with the fiery being, and the Phoenix was eager to see what had happened to Rachel's little brother. That had her powerset supercharged enough to finally slip into James' memories without waking him.
It wasn't as easy as stepping into other people's minds, but it felt a lot easier than what she was used to with her brother … and once she was there, she had to take a moment to orient herself … everything had changed in his mindscape. The freshest, nastiest memories were easiest to find since James still hadn't had a chance to process everything that had happened to him when Billy and Kate weren't around.
She was fuming when she saw how indistinct most of the torture was … blending together and nearly constant for most of the time he was gone … little details like Katarina or some other underling taking over when Viper needed to rest, while not giving James even the time to sleep … Rachel was honestly surprised to see that her brother wasn't more screwed up.
She saw much of what Viper did, and some of what Katarina did, too … even though it blended … but what was more pressing was she saw through James' point of view the intention that Viper had behind her tortures and how not only had it been horrific for him, and that Billy was right in guessing that Viper hadn't removed an eye (or two) just once… but the fact at some point, James and Viper had just … built off each other with every passing hour.
Viper had gotten further than she'd initially expected to with James - and she'd been pleasantly surprised when James had agreed to do what she wanted about halfway through if only she let Billy and Kate walk - with no further harm done. He'd been perfectly willing to give himself up to whatever madness Viper had planned, but the sticking point had been too much of a loophole for Viper to agree to. Instead of working with the deal James had offered, she decided to try and push him - through torture and abuse, hoping that enough of it would have him breaking. But the harder Viper pushed to force him to abandon his clause on Billy and Kate's safety, the harder James dug his heels in and refused to cooperate. At all. Even entirely blinded and with Viper abusing his other, further heightened senses, James refused to budge.
But that only had Viper more obsessed and pushing hard enough that even her assistants had questioned how wise it was to keep going. They were questioning how possible it was for Viper to keep him when her pushing only resulted in an increasingly more stubborn, growling, defiant young man that was less easy to manipulate the more she insisted. But only when Billy and Kate's lives were in the balance.
What surprised Rachel the most was when Viper threatened to kill Billy and Kate to teach James a lesson … everything shifted in the negotiations. Including Viper's reaction. James' growl had gone deeper - and instead of taking in the threat with fear, it looked more like a challenge that shifted into a threat from James. "Kill either of them and I'll let you think you won," James had told her. "I'll make sure I destroy everything you've ever loved before I come after you and when I do, I'll make sure you burn slow."
The threat had clearly unsettled Viper if her total change in expression was anything to go by. Gone was the cocky look she wore when she was enjoying torturing him. She could feel James' rage teetering on the edge of something terrifying, begging Viper to push him just a little bit more.
But that was when Viper changed her tactics … and instead of threatening Kate and Billy, she doubled down on hurting him. As if doing so was rebuilding her confidence. Or at least redirecting James from that level of murderous intent.
As Rachel was really getting caught up in the emotions James had felt and the vivid memories of the pain, she was jolted out of her thoughts when the sprinkler system kicked on and doused her with actual cold water.
She swore loudly and patted out the flames sizzling against the water that fell from above, then closed her eyes tightly as she focused on getting a grip on the Phoenix that had obviously fed from the emotions rolling off of her little brother. Then, once the flames were out, Rachel started swearing freshly - and more enthusiastically when she realized her father would know exactly what had happened without so much as a word spoken.
She darted out of the room she had been in to meet Billy as he opened the door to James' room, frowning at the water everywhere a moment before he muttered a wish under his breath that turned off the fire suppression system. "Was that you?" he asked.
"Yeah," Rachel admitted, pushing wet locks of red hair out of her face. "Got out of hand."
He looked over his shoulder then held the door open more for Rachel to see inside. "He hasn't moved a muscle," Billy told her. "Even with a cold shower."
"He's got a lot to heal from," Rachel said in a sigh. "Just … keep track of him. I need to find Dad and hope he didn't have a heart attack from me going all … firebird for a second there."
"Why would you do that now?" Billy asked, frowning slightly, which had Rachel blushing and Billy put it together pretty fast after that. "I want to know what she did, too. And I don't think he's going to talk to me about it."
"No, I don't think he'll talk to anyone," Rachel agreed. "But that just makes this more questionable for me to share it. I don't … I shouldn't have looked."
"Yeah, that sounds like something I need to know," Billy said before he focused to dry out everything around them with a quick spell. "I'm just going to go keep an eye on him."
"Call if you need anything," Rachel said, then tapped her temple. "I'll be listening."
She was quick to find Scott who was waiting for her and looking anxious and a little green.
"Are you okay? What happened ?" He asked while taking stock of her, looking for any sign of further trouble.
"I pushed and peeked at James's memory. I'm fine. He's … well, he's not. Fine. At all. Not that we expected him to be. ." When Scott opened his mouth, Rachel held up a hand to stop him before he got too far. "This will all go faster if I just show you."
Scott barely considered it before agreeing, and in a quick influx of information, Rachel showed him everything she'd gathered of James' memories of his time spent with Viper, her kids, and her apprentices. The tortures that stuck out enough over the background of misery for the time that Viper had him - the things she said, the actions she took - all of them were horrific and unspeakably cruel - and some of them bad enough that he was already trying to block them away behind a wall of repression, but using James' senses against him particularly screwing with his eyes…
Rachel had to take a step back for a moment when Scott couldn't hold back the harsh memories of how painful it had been when Magneto took his cybernetic eyes … Scott was pretty sure that digging out real ones had to be worse. Especially when done repeatedly. The fact that James wasn't healing right yet, paired with the fact that he was still missing an eye had Scott convinced that she'd wanted to make that particular injury permanent. And that left him wondering if she had. Hank had his estimations, of course, but they were just that … guesses.
"You're going to get Dr. Hale in, aren't you?" Rachel asked Scott quietly. "He really needs help."
"Yeah, we just need to wait and see when James wakes up. Could be hours, could be days," Scott replied. "But I'm not interrupting him when he's healing from so much."
"He crashed before I could get him to eat. Said he wasn't hungry, grudgingly had part of a sandwich, then fell asleep."
Scott sighed as he thought it through, realizing that in this, he was more like his mother than his father, and very likely dealing with an unhealthy dose of anxiety to go with his trauma. "Then after he wakes up, he probably won't sleep for a week," Scott said finally. "In the meantime, we need to make sure all three of them have everything they need to get beyond this."
"I already asked Tyler to check in on Billy and Kate when he gets here," Rachel told him. "And he should be here any minute. He just had to get in from his college class that he left early."
"Alright, let me know if anything changes," Scott said in a sigh, rubbing his temples.
"Let me know if you find out anything before I do," Rachel said before she popped up on her toes to throw her arms around his neck for a hug and hold on tight - which was exactly what Scott needed too.
As Scott had predicted, Wanda showed up sooner than later. But when she couldn't wake up either Billy or James and saw the damage that still lingered, clinging to both boys, she came out of the room and took stock of everything around her first. "What's happened here?" she asked, looking both lost and angry.
"The boys and Kate ran into some trouble with Viper," Scott said, then gestured for her to follow him into the kitchen. "You should stick around to hear what happened. I heard you had some trouble with Latveria."
"I had to control myself when we got out," Wanda admitted. "Victor may not have any qualms about abusing magic and science, but I would rather not have anything backlash against me from a fit of rage." She turned to look down the hall where she'd just been to see Billy and James. "Where is Viper? I don't need magic to torture her as badly as she did to them."
"We're not sure. She got away before we could get to her," Scott said. "But I'm on it."
Wanda thought about it, but fell short of simply using her magic to deal with things. She was exhausted herself from her own ordeal, and now her focus was on her son, his boyfriend, and their best friend. "Is Billy alright?"
"He's a little banged up," Scott said. "I'm sure Hank can give you a better idea of what happened, but … he's more shaken up that he used his magic to kill two people." Scott gave her a meaningful look as Wanda let that sink in.
"As a byproduct of a spell or -"
"No."
"Oh, that …that may have some backlash."
"Yeah. I remember. So, stick around," Scott said. "We haven't gotten the full story yet. We still need to hear from Billy. Kate already talked. Rachel looked into James' memories - he's probably not going to talk at all."
Wanda frowned and then took Scott's arm. "So tell me what you know and let me talk to my son when he wakes up."
Rachel was rubbing her forehead as she made her way back toward her room, a headache building behind her eyes that had more to do with trying to hold back fire than with all the stress she was under - though that, too, played a large part in how crummy she was feeling. She almost missed Tyler asking where he should go first as she passed him, but caught herself just long enough to point the way to where he could find Billy first since he had something broken.
But the moment of reprise hadn't lasted long. As she watched Tyler go, her mind went back to everything she'd seen in James' mind. She had shown her dad everything… except… she hadn't given him the glimpse of what she'd seen James already trying desperately to repress. She'd given her father the overview; she hadn't shown him Katarina trying her hand at differently-poisoned lipsticks and injections to see what worked best to make James compliant and docile enough for long enough to let him unwillingly play the part of her husband on a leash, though what she'd seen had made it clear that nothing Katarina and Viper had mixed up had let him forget what Katarina had done to him under the influence. So aside from the peeks and overview, Rachel really hadn't shown her father anything else, either.
She just knew if she showed her dad that kind of abuse when he was so obviously a step away from coming undone - when he looked at James and the eyepatch and relived his own trauma, or when she also knew that he already suspected the same thing had happened to Kate…
...well, she was trying not to make anything worse than it already was.
Besides, she wanted to give James time to come to terms with everything. She knew this kind of thing in particular wasn't exactly something he'd want spread around in the first place, let alone when it was so fresh.
But she wasn't sure she was making the right call on any of it, if she was being honest with herself. Billy and Kate were projecting things that they didn't want anyone else to know, James didn't trust Rachel or Nate at all, and everyone was tearing their hair out. And she knew - she knew - that actually talking would help all three of them if they could. But that was assuming they did talk to someone. Billy seemed alright opening up, but…
Rachel pinched the bridge of her nose again. There was so much she could fix. So much she could do. And she didn't feel like she knew enough to know what she should do.
She let herself into her room and flopped down on the bed, completely absorbed in her own thoughts - at least until the door to the bathroom opened and America stepped out with her hair wrapped in a towel.
"You know, I had the water running, waiting for it to get hot, and then all of a sudden, I was drenched and wet. Know anything about that?" America asked, already climbing onto the bed beside Rachel.
Rachel shook her head, though she was having a hard time not smiling when America was giving her such a troublemaking grin the closer she scooted on the bed. "I let a little fire out, okay? I was pissed off."
"Must've been something else to get fire out of you."
Rachel brushed her hair back from her face. "I might've peeked into James's memories," she said. "And shared them with Dad, who then had a total trauma response reliving losing his eyes while I was mind-sharing with him. And that's not even touching the stuff James is hiding even though his defenses are down enough that I can see in his head at all." She hadn't meant to say more than that she'd peeked, but she was mad enough - and it was America - that it all came out in one long, frustrated, half-shout.
"That sounds like a whole new level of Summers family drama."
"You have no idea," Rachel said, turning more fully to face America, her eyes wide and illustrating the problem.
"I could …."
"Yeah, love you, babe, but I'm not subjecting you to projections of torture just because I set off the sprinkler system," Rachel said, then stuck her tongue out.
"I was thinking more of the kind of sharing that doesn't involve a third party." America managed to crack a crooked smile that she knew Rachel loved. "Just words. No pictures."
Rachel couldn't help herself; she matched the smile with a smirk of her own. "Weird pillow talk request, but…" she teased.
"You don't look like you're ready for pillow talk until you get a few things off your chest." She pulled Rachel closer so she could try and get her to relax a little bit. "So … tell me what you need to get that over with so we can move on to fun things that you obviously need."
Rachel curled into America's side, trying to keep up her good mood with a small, teasing, "Oh, if you insist," that fell away quickly when America just gave her a pointed look. So, with a sigh, she gave America an abbreviated version of what she'd seen - but, more importantly, what she'd glimpsed in James's memories and what she knew from both Kate and Nate's thoughts as well. And before she knew it, she'd told America everything she was afraid of - doing too much, doing too little, doing exactly what they needed but getting so caught up in misery that the Phoenix got loose… all of it.
"Okay … we can deal with all of that," America decided. "After they start to talk about it. But you … you need to go somewhere. With me."
"O...kay," Rachel said, wiping her eyes despite the lack of tears - but that was only because they were evaporating as fast as they came out with the fire in her eyes. "I thought we were going to stay in."
"Like I need to stay in this dimension."
Rachel smirked, intrigued despite how crummy she felt. "Now that I can get behind," she said. "What have you got planned?"
"A little place that you can hit some stuff," America said. "And then a little place where you can just … relax."
"I've mentioned how much I love you, right?" Rachel said, already starting to sit up and pull her hair back in a ponytail. "What're we hitting?"
"What do you want to hit?"
"You got anyone really deserving who screws innocent heroes for fun? Because Katarina is dead…"
America cringed. "That's pretty specific, but I'm sure we can come up with something."
"Oh good. Knew you loved me," Rachel said as she got to her feet. "Lead the way, gorgeous."
When Billy woke up a few hours after Tyler had patched him up, he quickly realized that James hadn't moved a muscle and didn't look like he was going to any time soon. However, Billy needed water … and food now that he had rested, even if he felt like his head was swimming. So, he got up and pulled another blanket up to cover James before he stepped out of the room, closing the door quietly behind him and trying to tiptoe over to the kitchen. So he really wasn't expecting it when he found his mother there, drinking coffee with Scott and quietly discussing the situation.
"Oh, I'm so glad you're up," Wanda said, on her feet a moment before she crossed the span to put her hands on either side of his face then kissed his forehead. "You looked so comfortable, I didn't want to wake you. Come on, sit down. Eat something, and when you feel a little better, you can tell us what happened."
"We already heard from Kate," Scott said. "And we know you all had different experiences, so … when you're ready, we need to know what happened and what her desired outcome was from this."
"She wanted access," Billy said as he took a seat, trying to neatly step around telling them what had happened yet. "She had Kate to get intel on the Avengers, me for Genosha, and James for SI."
"That's all?" Scott asked, frowning because every one of those routes had already been reinforced, waiting with traps for anyone that tried to use them and Rachel and Kate were both convinced that it was much more personal than just SI.
"Isn't that enough?" Billy asked, frowning deeper, though he paused. "She had more in mind for James, but she didn't really share details with anyone."
"Just start at the beginning," Wanda suggested as she rubbed his back. "Take your time and try not to skip anything."
Billy nodded, though he wasn't sure what Wanda and Scott were looking for, if he was honest. He'd seen the way Viper played with James, and he'd seen the hell Kate had been through, and honestly, his own experience was… about what his grandfather had warned him might happen if he "continued on with the X-Men," as he put it. So it was hard for him to see what else needed saying.
He did, of course, make it a point to alert the adults to some of what he'd seen Kate dealing with, because he knew she would try to play it off. He didn't say everything, because he didn't want to step into her recovery, but… he hoped he had pointed them in the right direction, at least.
Either way, once he'd finished talking to Wanda and Scott in an official capacity, he just wanted to be with his mom, since James was still sleeping off all the crap he'd been through. So he laid his head on her shoulder, and when she recognized the look on his face, she cast a spell that brought them somewhere private.
"Glad you got away from Doom, by the way," Billy said without picking his head up. "I'm sure that was terrible too."
Wanda shrugged lightly enough that she barely moved Billy. "He wanted my power; that's what he got," she said simply.
Billy nearly snorted. "Sounds right. How'd you get out this time? Viper and Doom doesn't sound like a great team-up."
Wanda looked away from Billy for a moment and then let out a slow breath. "He didn't just want my power. He wanted the mind stone too."
"Ah," Billy said, understanding instantly. "I'm gonna go ahead and guess that didn't go well for him." When Wanda simply nodded, Billy let out a slow breath and ventured a quiet, "Yeah, well, I sorta… snapped too. And I didn't actually mean to-" He cut himself off, knowing his own powers would give away that lie. "I did mean to, but I didn't mean to actually kill anyone, if that makes sense. And I don't know why it worked."
"I'm not sure either," Wanda admitted. She paused, then turned her head to kiss his forehead. "You've always been powerful, though. Bending reality to your will. Sometimes, the rules… don't apply to us."
"Which is exactly why people like Viper and Doom want a piece," Billy said, making a face.
Wanda nodded, though she let that part of the conversation drift off. They could look into Billy's power surge - if that's what it was. But that could be done later. For now, she wanted to circle back to something else. "I'm honestly impressed with your restraint. I'd have been more creative if I was going to kill someone," she said, teasing him to soften the fact that she wasn't going to let him not talk about what he'd done.
Billy saw what she was doing, though, and shook his head at her. "Not funny, Mom."
She let her smile drop. "I just-"
"I know, but I… I don't even want to joke about torturing anyone to death, okay?"
Wanda's shoulders dropped. "Of course," she said, though in the silence that followed, she was trying to figure out how to help. Billy had always been the more sensitive of her boys, and she knew he couldn't have been dealing with this well -if at all.
Thankfully, she didn't have to come up with anything more to say - Tommy arrived not far into the long stretch of silence, running past them and then backtracking. "Oh, hey, found you," he said with a crooked grin. "Everyone's taking their turns talking to the team leaders about what happened, and I figured you'd be hiding after that." He dropped down onto the bench on Billy's other side. "So, how come you didn't wish 'em out of existence? Seems way more efficient. You know. Having lived that."
"Are you ever going to let that go?" Billy asked.
"Nope!" Tommy said brightly. "I was zapped into the Great Beyond, my friend. You don't get to walk that off." He'd meant it as a tease, but when he saw his brother's shoulders drop - because of the implications of the deaths he'd caused - he backtracked. "But, I mean, it's different zapping your brother for being a pain and killing off two totally evil torturers who had it coming. Kinda surprised you left Vojteck standing, considering how he stalked you for forever."
"It … the other two were worse, okay?" Billy said in a half-hearted mumble.
"Yeah, you were madder at them in the moment, I get it. Just seems like a waste to only get two out of three if you're going to break the rules of collars to drop the bad guys like flies," Tommy said.
"If he'd given me even a tiny hint that he was doing or trying to do the same stuff the other two were, he'd be dead."
"Okay, fair." Tommy gestured at his brother with one hand. "But, see, when I press you like that, you're all confident and cool and 'they got what justice they were asking for'."
"They did." Billy crossed his arms and shifted uncomfortably. "That doesn't mean I'm okay with being the one that did it."
"That just means you have a conscience," Tommy pointed out. "Coulda been worse. You could've pulled a page out of Grandfather's book and floated through the whole facility, crushing people into tiny balls of armor. Restraint. You apparently have it now."
"Maybe I wouldn't have if I wasn't wearing a collar," Billy said with a ghost of a smile tugging at the corner of his mouth.
"Oooh, yes. I can see it now." Tommy threw his arm out wide, gesturing at headlines no one could see. "Mystery in Madripoor: Whole Sections Leveled. Billy the Terrifying Goes on Rampage. Oh God, Oh God, Save Us."
"It's Madripoor, sweetheart," Wanda said. "No one would look twice."
"Mom, you're raining on my joke with reality," Tommy said, putting on his best whine.
"Ooh, didn't mean to do that. How about we talk about your chivalrous rescue of everyone, hmm?" Wanda said.
"Perfect. I love this idea. I need a parade, and we need to start a planning committee," Tommy said, grinning as he launched into an obviously over-hyped retelling of what had happened - seeming to get more ridiculous the more Billy laughed.
It took a couple of days for James to wake up, and when he did, it was the middle of the afternoon. Billy and Kate had already gotten a chance to talk to their respective therapists and Doc Hale. Everyone at the tower had been taking turns peeking into James' room to see if he was awake yet - so of course it was between people checking in that he actually woke up. At first, he kept his eyes closed, frowning to himself at all the aches and sore spots he had littered across his body, though his head was certainly hurting him the worst. He didn't want to move. He didn't want to even consider getting up, but once he actually was awake, it was incredibly hard for him to ignore how insanely hungry he was.
With a sigh, he pushed himself upright and ran one hand through his hair and across the stubble on his face, eyes still closed, and not at all in the mood to converse with anyone about anything. Touching the eyepatch didn't help his mood much, either. He finally looked down at his arms and was immediately disheartened by the vivid bruising that he could see. Everywhere else couldn't possibly be any better, either. It hurt to stand up - and hurt more to stretch, but he did it anyhow, though he pointedly ignored looking in the mirror. He knew his hair was a mess and he was covered in dark bruises still if the way he felt was anything to go off of. He didn't care to change, which was a marker of how hungry he was … normally, he wouldn't have ignored the details of having not taken a shower in days, but … that could wait.
When he got to his door, he didn't think about what he was doing as he stopped and listened for a long while to figure out who was there and where they were. It sounded like a couple of Hales were in the living room if the quiet chatter with southern drawls were any indicator. He checked his watch and let his shoulders drop. Tony was probably in his shop or in a meeting. He was pretty sure his family was back to school - as well as Billy and Kate, though when he thought about it, he realized he'd entirely lost track of what day or even month it was. Ignoring that detail, he silently slipped out of his room and started toward the kitchen, aware of every move he made, every swish of fabric, every little thing that happened - he heard it and tried to keep from adding to it at all.
Craig was in the living room, chatting quietly with Steve, but they weren't facing where James was, so he slipped by them in search of pretty much anything to eat. He even got a chance to start gorging before Jarvis came in and wisely didn't bust him out. Instead, he set to work trying to feed the kid before he crashed again. No questions asked - just … trying to take care of what James needed.
But, no matter how fast James tried to stuff himself, he wasn't going to be able to get back to his room without someone other than Jarvis catching up. He just didn't think it would be Craig.
When Craig saw him, he let out a deep sigh of relief. "I was starting to wonder when you'd get up. Glad you're safe."
"No," James said, keeping his focus on what he needed most just then, which happened to be food.
"No, you're not safe?"
"No, I'm not going to talk about it," James said, finally looking up at him. "At all."
"Well, I wasn't expecting to right now. Just when you're ready-"
"Not interested." Then, James paused and seemed to remember himself and looked toward Craig again. "Nothing personal, but no thanks." He didn't wait for Craig to respond, and he also didn't want to hang around for more of what could only be a strained conversation. So, James got to his feet and took the tall glass of water and another sandwich that was next to him, gave Craig a tight sort of smile, quietly thanked Jarvis, then went back to his room.
Craig turned to watch him go, though he knew better than to go after him considering how clearly James was saying no. Those walls were already thick and Craig didn't know yet how exclusive that conversation was going to be. Clearly James hadn't even considered a civil conversation when his main goal was avoiding talking about his fresh trauma.
When he considered what he knew about the kidnapping and torture … and the players involved, Craig wasn't surprised at all that James didn't want to talk. It was a common response after heavy trauma - he'd seen it in soldiers and POW's before. But to make matters worse, even before this fresh hell, the kid had been ridiculously clever in monitoring how much he'd share when he talked to Craig or Rabbi Cohen before. Craig wouldn't have been surprised at all to hear that James had studied up on psychology to find out exactly how much to share or not share once he had been told he'd be getting regular sessions. Rabbi Cohen had suspected as much from the beginning of his time with James, too, and he'd been glad that Craig stepped in to take over on James' care. He was just dealing with a little more than a family-centric rabbi knew how to handle. But even this (and most of the Summers' trauma) was well beyond the realm of normal traumas that Craig had seen. He couldn't imagine he'd be working with teenagers that had been tortured by world-famous terrorists, after all. Let alone to the extent that James had gone through in the time he'd been trapped with Viper.
So avoidance of the subject almost seemed … tame, when compared to the facts of his case. That wasn't going to help ease Scott's mind though - and Craig was absolutely worried for Scott seeing as his son had just been horribly tortured by a super villain.
Because James hadn't expected to run into anyone his age, he truly wasn't expecting it when Nate turned the corner with Kate, then broke away from his girlfriend to quick step over and gently wrap his brother up in a bear hug, though he stopped fast when he felt James react. James had always been good for a quick hug regardless of the situation, so when James' reaction to his little brother hugging him was to instantly start to push him away, Nate very nearly backed off. He felt James hesitate even as he was pushing him back, then he shifted into the most awkward attempt at a hug Nate had ever seen. And even at that, he quickly transitioned to a hesitant pat before starting to pull back.
"I'm really glad to see you," Nate admitted. "Even with just one eye."
James reflexively reached for his eyepatch only to touch the edge of it and shift to run his hand across the side of his head then halfway up the back of his hair. "Yeah, well… you might have to get used to it."
Nate instantly looked alarmed - the prospect of anything like this being permanent on him was terrifying. "I thought Hank said-"
"Hank doesn't know for sure and I haven't had both eyes for pretty much the whole time I was gone," James pointed out. "And I don't really want …. Don't you have anything else to talk about?"
"Ah… sure," Nate said slowly, grasping for something to discuss. "You … picked a good day to wake up from your nap?" James looked up at his brother with a frown. "Be… cause SHIELD is coming to get Vojteck and take him to … wherever they take teenage supervillains in training before standing trial on Genosha."
That had James glaring at anyone and everyone around him. But even with the heads up, he wasn't expecting to see Hank and Tyler half growling as they led Vojteck through the common area. The Summers boys and Kate stepped back to let them pass just as Wanda, Billy, and Jan arrived from Jan's office on the other side of the living room. But James didn't see that they were there. His entire focus locked onto Vojteck and before he could rein himself in, or consider his response, the instant Vojteck made eye contact with him and smirked, it was over.
James took two fast steps forward and hauled back, then positively hammered Vojteck with every bit of strength and weight he had - which was considerable. A muted crack echoed the room as Vojteck fell backward into the couch, hitting hard enough to rebound right back up in time to catch another of James' punches to the face with a more muted crunch … and the same amount of snarl out of James.
Vojteck never stood a chance, and while everyone witnessing the display stood in shocked silence, James got in a solid four or five hits before someone could react. Surprising even himself, Tyler was the first to move. He half swore under his breath and darted forward to stop James from smashing the guy's face in. But it wasn't enough. As soon as Tyler touched James, he spun between hitting Vojteck long enough to kick Tyler backward away from him.
But it was enough to trigger the others into motion.
When James' arm was drawn back, as Hank rushed for Tyler, Thor managed to grab a hold of James' wrist with one hand and wrap an arm around his chest, pinning his other arm to his side before James could deliver another punch. James snarled and tried to pull away from him, but the moment Thor had a decent hold on him it was over. James tried to squirm his way out - but that was never going to happen.
"Peace, James," Thor said firmly, practiced enough to keep him pinned in a way that wouldn't let him pop his claws. "He has felt your fury; now find your dignity."
"Why don't you go shove your peace right up your-"
"James," Kate said softly. "Leave some for me, huh?"
James blinked and turned toward Kate, then slowly quit struggling to get away from Thor on hearing that, not that he had much of a chance of it anyhow. "Fine. But just because it's you asking."
"Love you too," Kate said as Thor carefully let James go - though not until after Hank and Tyler had gotten Vojteck up off the floor and headed toward the SHIELD transport.
James, however, wasn't pleased with their resident Norse God. "I like your brother better," James told him, just for the sound of disbelief Thor let out.
"You will change your mind on that viewpoint should you have to contend with him," Thor said.
"Yeah? He'd have helped," James pointed out. "Wouldn't have been a joykill."
Kate smirked as she made her way over to James and watched Hank and Vojteck leave. "So, I've never seen someone actually bounce off a couch from a hit like that before. Very Three Stooges. Kinda fun."
"I was trying to punch him through the couch."
"If I had super strength, I'd put him through a wall just for the Looney Tunes-style person shape," Kate said, smirking wider.
"Too nice."
"Yeah, but it would make me smile," Kate pointed out.
"Then we'll have to figure out how to make that happen."
"Aww, thanks." Kate looked for a moment like she might do something like kiss his cheek, but she stopped when she saw the look on his face, bit her lip, and stepped back, discreetly tipping her head toward Billy, Wanda, and Jan- who was laughing hard. "So, uh, Billy says his therapist is pretty good. I'm trying to decide between Mrs. Kaplan and Mr. Hale. I don't think the one Mom has me using is up to … all this. Suggestions?"
"Try them both and see which one fits better," James said. "They both probably have their high points."
"Fair enough," Kate said, rubbing her upper arm. "Anyway…"
"Yeah. Love you too," James said, then took a few deep, slow breaths. "Don't have to make a thing out of it. You'd make Nate jealous." The words were right, but his tone was still too grim.
"I'm gonna want some help when Mom clears me to go back to school," Kate said, bouncing from one foot to the other.
"You know I'll always help if you want it," James said. "Chances are good I'll be totally free anyhow. All the time I missed? Probably out on my ass."
"Their loss," Nate said.
"Mine too," James pointed out.
"Yeah, just one more reason Viper sucks," Kate said, making a face before she grabbed Nate's hand. "Come on. If we catch Hank when he gets back from locking that jerk up, we'll get an eloquent soliloquy of violence."
"Enjoy that," James grumbled. "I'm going back to bed."
"I'll meet you there later," Billy called after him, though he was still distracted with Jan half hanging onto him giggling about James' vengeful response to Vojteck.
The only drawback James really had when it came to sleeping more due to depression as opposed to a healing coma was the fact that it didn't take too much to wake him up when he didn't actually need to crash. He'd woken up when Billy came in to curl up, and he'd woken up when someone in the living room down the hall dropped something heavy on the coffee table. So there was no way he was going to sleep through it when Billy started shifting in his sleep and making small, constricted noises from the back of his throat.
James turned his way before he even opened his eyes and tried to listen first. But when it sounded like Billy was almost whimpering, he just wasn't having it. He gently jostled Billy's shoulder and spoke in as soothing and low a tone as he could manage, venturing a little closer in spite of his own reluctance. "Hey, wake up, Little prince. You're okay. I've got you."
At first, Billy wasn't awake enough to react well to the slight jostling and had shied away, but hearing James seemed to help. His eyes opened fast, and he took a great, gasping breath, then a few shallow breaths as he reoriented himself. "James?" he whispered in near disbelief.
"Yeah, just me," James replied. "You alright?"
"Yeah. No. I just… gimmie a minute." Billy took another few, short breaths, one hand over his eyes.
"Take your time," James said, frowning as he watched Billy gather himself. "I'm not going anywhere."
"Thanks." Billy took a few more, deeper breaths, then finally glanced back up at James. "Sorry. Didn't mean to wake you up."
"I don't mind."
"Yeah, nice to have the instant confirmation that we're not - you know…" Billy trailed off and closed his eyes again.
On hearing that, James sighed heavily. There was a lot Billy didn't know of what Viper and Katarina had done - he needed support from his boyfriend … who wasn't being a very good boyfriend. "What can I do?"
"I don't know," Billy admitted. "It was just a dream…"
"Okay, well … when you figure it out, let me know," James said as reasonably as he could. "If it's a problem to sleep in here with me, I'd like to know before it gets worse. For you."
"No, no, it's not that," Billy promised quickly. "No, I missed you and - and I don't want - I just - it was a bad dream. Memory. Thing. That's all."
"Yeah, I get that," James agreed before he snuggled in a little bit and invited Billy to join him, though he wasn't quite as open as he'd been in the past as they curled up. He rested his head on Billy's shoulder, then gave him a squeeze around the middle hoping that if he was the one half wrapped around Billy, he wouldn't panic as much as if the tables were turned. "And … chances are good you'll have to put up with my crappy dreams too, so … you're fine. Or you will be."
"Yeah. I'll get there," Billy agreed, relaxing into holding on to James at last.
"You have a much worse deal, too," James decided. "At least I'm waking up to a handsome prince … you get a scruffy pirate."
"I like scruff," Billy pointed out.
"You'll get tired of it," James said, trying to pull Billy out of his head a little.
"No way," Billy said, pulling him a little closer. "Haven't gotten tired of it yet."
"Okay," James replied, but it seemed like Billy was getting away from the dream a little. Which was what he was hoping for.
Sure enough, Billy started to relax enough to try to go back to sleep, closing his eyes with James beside him. "Besides," he said softly, "I missed you."
"Missed you too," James agreed. "Didn't think we'd get to do this the way things were going."
"Yeah, well, there may have been a reason the spell worked…"
"You're amazing and crazy powerful when you want to be?"
Billy cracked a smile. "Amazing and crazy powerful and mad, more like. Turns out I got my grandfather's temper."
"Whaaaat? Temper? You?" James said as he picked his head up off of Billy's shoulder. "Nah. Tommy would have warned me."
"Sure," Billy laughed. "Tommy would have done that. Okay."
"I choose to believe it."
"Okay, but I choose to believe you've got head trauma," Billy teased him.
James thought about it for a moment before he settled back down, shifting up a little so they were sharing a pillow. "No … they weren't beating my head around."
Billy paused and bit his lip. "Did with me."
"I don't think that's really Viper's way," James said quietly. "She was dosing me with stuff she'd held on to from when she screwed with Logan."
"Yeah, Katarina would lose her temper when I told her she didn't have a prayer of comparing to me," Billy admitted, though he wasn't sorry about it in the least. "Guess that was her dad coming out."
"She couldn't come close," James said in just over a whisper, though Billy hadn't missed the shift in tone at all.
"Thought so," Billy said, though he let the subject fall for a while before he ventured a quiet, "Love you, by the way. In case I haven't said that recently."
"It's been a little bit,' James agreed. "But love you too."
Billy nodded and then snuggled in again, trying to go back to sleep - and honestly a bit more relaxed just hearing James reassure him too. Things were still horribly off, but at least they were in each other's arms again, and it was clear that's where both of them wanted to be.
Chapter 97: An Island Paradise
Chapter Text
Billy, Kate, and James were just starting to really get into recovery mode … sleeping, seeking comfort and company, and feeling protected when new intel started to trickle in through SHIELD and Natasha's hidden feeds. For as freshly safe as they were, they weren't out of the woods. Hydra wanted to hit back and reclaim their prizes. Two of them, anyhow. Once word was out that Wanda was away from Dr. Doom, alive, well, and looking for a fight, suddenly Viper had no interest in Billy.
And for as smug as she wanted to be about that, Natasha took it as reason to want to spend time with Billy herself to see if there was a reason Viper backed off beyond the obvious attempt to keep from pissing Wanda off more. It wasn't like Viper to be cautious - even with those far more powerful than her.
But the newest trouble was that both SHIELD and Stark Industries very likely had moles or worse within their numbers. And that meant that the kids were no longer safe at the top of the tower. At least … they weren't safe until those in charge got the chance to really sift through their personnel.
Naturally, Betsy offered to step in and help Tony with anyone with clearance into the tower - but that meant the group needed to relocate somewhere safer. But there was always bound to be blowback. Scott just hadn't expected the angle it was coming from. They player, yes, but not the argument.
"No, I agree with you, really," James was saying with his hair sticking up several different directions as he tried to keep Tony from touching him while Tony directed him toward the living room. "Get them out - get them to safety, but I have to try and salvage my degrees-"
"Don't be ridiculous," Tony said. "I'm already on top of that. You'll be fine if you go. You need to reorient yourself. Breathe."
James swore and in a fit of frustration stood his ground - something he had never needed to do with Tony. "it's not your problem!"
"Like hell it's not!" Tony bellowed right back, refusing to give an inch. "We know we have Hydra trouble in the building and if you think for one second that I'm going to take a risk with your life regardless of how old you are, you're out of your damn mind and need to rest more than I thought!" He gestured with one hand as James' shoulders slumped. It was exceedingly rare for Tony to raise his voice with him like that. "Go! Get some distance or I'll block you from doing anything but taking a vacation until you're feeling more like yourself."
"How is that different from what you're doing right now?"
"Right now, it's still a choice you can make yourself," Tony said in a low, serious tone. "Make good choices, kid. You're too much of a powerhouse to push through to exhaustion like I do. Be smarter."
"I rested-"
"So rest more."
"I have work to do."
"Take it with you when you visit the island," Tony said as he took a few steps backward with his hands in his pockets. "No supervillains to screw with your projects when you roll with the mutant monarchy. Go. Maybe Vision will be able to help you. Be good for both of you." He finally forced a smile, and James could see that part of why Tony was so anxious was because he couldn't handle James like he normally would have. He couldn't throw an arm around his shoulders or pull him into a quick bear hug. The physical restraint Tony was showing putting up distance and keeping his hands in his pockets was evidence of that … and that more than Tony's argument was enough to get through to Tony's protege. A little. "Tell him I said 'hi' while you're at it."
James could feel it as Scott came to a stop just behind him, and for a moment, he was very sure that Scott was fighting the same urge Tony was to hug him or put a fatherly arm around his shoulders. And he was grateful that Scott didn't act on that impulse any more than Tony did - though Scott had a lot better control of himself.
"You know I hate to agree with him," Scott said quietly as Tony turned toward his lab.
"I know," James said in a sigh. "So what's the plan?"
"What do you think?" Scott said, raising one eyebrow.
James shook his head, ignoring the others as they started to gather, too. "I know Tony said we're going to Genosha, but we both know that we can't keep you away from Miss Hale for that long." His tone was all off even if the tease was well placed.
"Annie will be going with," Annie said, though James had known she was there without turning to see her. "So will Craig. You'll both have everyone you need."
"Is that even legal?" James asked.
"Not under the old laws," Wanda said as she came over with her boys. "But new management is far more welcoming to non mutants."
"She changed it so people had the option to visit family and friends," Billy explained. "And so Kate can come."
"That's true, you know," Wanda agreed - just to watch Billy smile. "And I'm not taking away anyone's support system, so … let's get moving sooner than later. We can always just … conjure whatever you're missing if you don't have everything."
With precious little left to argue over, James reluctantly agreed and fell into step with Scott as they gathered up close to Wanda. The near-entirety of the Hale clan was going along with the young heroes and their families(though Natasha had insisted on flying herself), so the group was a lot bigger than James had ever seen Billy handle on his own.
But none of them were really expecting it when Wanda and Billy clasped hands and worked together to magic the whole group of them right to the palace.
The rush of hot, humid air was intense - especially prominent since they'd just come from the frigid northeast where an ice storm was blowing in. Instant travel also had a means of making the jet lag worse too … mid-morning in New York meant dinner time in Genosha - and the peak of the heat. Very suddenly, everyone felt overdressed for the weather, though James only burrowed into his hoodie a little deeper. The last thing he wanted to do was to shed any clothes. But he wasn't about to say anything.
Instead, James turned toward where his dad and his girlfriend's family had stopped fully to stare at the scenery around them.
"So, welcome to our home," Wanda said to the Hales and the rest of the group who had yet to visit Genosha.
Annie was already peeling off her jacket to sling it over her shoulder. "Well, that's a familiar pea soup feelin'," she teased Craig, who rolled his eyes at her. "Turns out mutant paradise is just like home. Says somethin', I think."
"Ignore her," Evie said, laughing at her sister. "This place is amazing." She gestured around at the metallic structures that seemed to cut themselves into the horizon instead of rising naturally from the sea like any other island would do. "You can actually feel the power that went into makin' this place."
Wanda smiled lightly, not quite sure what to make of their reactions just yet. "If you'd like a tour," she started to say.
"Oh, yes, please," Annie said immediately. Then, realizing who she was talking to, she blushed. "But I know you're busy. Scott can find Alex, I'm sure."
"Ooh, can we go with Billy?" Leslie Ann asked, her eyes wide as she took in all there was to see. "I can't feel any plants around here. This is kinda weird."
Billy glanced toward James, but when James looked like he was trying to disappear into his hoodie, he sighed and then put on a smile for the youngest Hales. "Sure thing. I think we have a greenhouse you might be interested in if all you want to do is find plants," he teased.
"You need way more plants around here," Leslie Ann told him seriously. "And not just for me. I've been talking with Dr. McCoy, and he told me how much my powers can help people because having greenery helps with mental health and stuff like that."
"He's not wrong," Billy agreed. "There are a lot. more plants outside of the city, but in it? Some flowers and trees would absolutely help." He was already leading the two girls off - though Anton stuck with their tour group because he wasn't entirely willing to let both of them wander off with a freshly-traumatized teenager. Besides, Mary Beth wasn't a mutant like her sister was, and while Wanda had promised that was alright, the rest of Genosha might not have gotten the memo, and Anton figured a huge guy with a cop's build would do plenty of deterring in the meantime.
Annie winced as she looked Wanda's way. "It is a bit… imposing," she admitted. "Beautiful in its own way, but I wouldn't want to live here."
"You haven't seen our beaches yet," Wanda said, knowing exactly where Alex was going to take them and blatantly setting her brother-in-law up to impress his future sister-in-law. "They're renowned the world over."
"That sounds like a perfect vacation," Evie said, nudging Craig's shoulder with her own. "And our brother is gonna need someplace to relax in between sessions. He's emotionally invested in all those kids."
"Like you aren't," Craig shot back.
"I'm not a therapist," Evie said with a sniff. "I raised a family on a cop's salary and work schedule. I didn't need other people's problems to make my life interestin'."
"Oh, here they go," Annie said, shaking her head with a smile as her siblings fell into an old argument the whole time they waited for Alex - who then proceeded to show up looking like Christmas had come early now that he got to see Scott surrounded by his future in-laws. (And that was, really, how Alex referred to them, even in front of Scott, because he could see where this was headed.)
"Hey, Annie," Alex said, grinning as he strode toward her. "How long you been here?"
"Long enough to adjust my wardrobe," Annie said, indicating the jacket slung over her shoulder and the fact that her sleeves were pushed up to her elbows.
Alex looked toward Scott, grinned obnoxiously, and then said, "Well, I know we have some swimsuits if you want to really change things up. Besides, you gotta come see my favorite part of living here. Aside from my beautiful wife, of course. Scotty won't mind the view, will you?"
Scott ran his hand down his face. "Alex…"
"Thought so." Alex draped his arm across Annie's shoulders. "Come on, Scotty. Keep up."
With the bulk of the Maximoff family playing host in one capacity or another, James took the chance to get away from everyone. He knew it was a huge deal for half the people that had shown up in Genosha to even be there, so he was glad to see Erik's family playing friendly welcome wagon to the small insurgence of humans in his stupid utopia. So … considering the fact that he needed a break, too, he found a quiet balcony and tucked himself away from everyone. That felt more comforting than being with anyone. Especially when everyone wanted to try and reassure him… and he was being pretty ruthless about keeping Rachel and Nate out of his head, too. They didn't need to know anymore than they already did, after all. Knowing wasn't going to change anything. Wasn't going to make him feel better … in fact, he was convinced that it'd only have him feeling worse.
As for Nate, he'd finally felt alright about leaving Kate behind. She still liked to sleep where she could see him when she woke up, but she'd been having some sort of delayed reaction to a poison and was going half out of her mind scratching her arms, so Hank had given her something, and she had fallen asleep curled up with her head on her mom's shoulder, and Natasha had honestly been half wrapped around her for the better part of a day. Nate had known since he was a kid that Natasha could be incredibly protective of his family and hers, so he wasn't necessarily shocked, though it always did manage to surprise him when she would get that cuddly, no matter how many times he saw it happen.
And while Kate had been relaxing with her parents, Nate had been building ammunition for himself, keeping a simmering rage going that had him glad he wasn't the member of the family the Phoenix had chosen, because he absolutely planned to rain down some destruction. He'd peeked some more at Kate's memories whenever he needed more fuel for that fire, and seeing as there were two weeks of awful to choose from, he wasn't ever short on reasons to go to war.
Not to mention Billy, who was beside himself and blaming himself for everything he could conceivably blame himself for, not the least of which having been the bait to lure in Kate and then being unable to do anything but break his hand at the very end of their captivity - and even that had him wishing he'd done that in the first place… or wishing he hadn't at all and had found another way.
And James wouldn't tell Nate anything, but seeing as the guy still had an eyepatch and didn't want to be touched at all, and was getting more withdrawn with everyone except Billy (who obviously needed James's reassurance, so James wasn't going to slow too much for Billy's sake). Nate had plenty of evidence to fuel suspicions, and that was enough to piss him off as-is.
His eyes were glowing blue when he wound up running into James - not necessarily on purpose but simply because he was trying to be sneaky about giving Kate space with her parents - and when he saw his big brother, his hero, trying to be that small, he knew if he didn't move, he was going to snap.
"Wanna get out of here?" Nate asked in a bluster, his eyes still glowing.
"Your face is glowing," James replied, rather than answer openly.
"Yeah, I'm aware," Nate said. "I peeked at some of what happened."
"Oh," James said, then fell into a deeper frown. "That'd do it. Who'd you peek at?"
"Both of them," Nate said, knowing full well that James was aware he couldn't peek in his head at this point without hurting him.
"Yeah, that was ugly," James said quietly.
"Don't suppose you could ID some guards for me…"
"Oh yeah."
Nate smirked, glad that, with his brother, he never had to do too much prodding to be on the same page when it was something important. "I've got faces out of her memories, but…"
"I can tell you who the worst offenders were too. Saw it. Was in the room when the idiots reported back."
Nate stopped and swallowed, trying not to lose his temper just yet. "Reported back," he repeated, glowing somehow brighter.
"She didn't give them permission, but she wanted to know what was going on - and she wanted to make sure I knew." He was turning a piece of beach glass over in his hand as he avoided looking directly at anyone or anything. "Part of her schtick, I guess."
"Wasn't just you," Nate said, because he recognized James's tone. "They timed it so Billy knew, and Kate saw what happened to Billy half the time too."
"Billy didn't see it on a live feed," James countered bitterly.
Once again, Nate stopped. "God," he whispered, horrified.
James was on his feet in a blink and doing what he could to put up some distance from where he'd been, not really taking into account anything else at the moment. But sitting still for too long was bad for him. And Nates horror was clear in his voice. Admitting to his brother that he knew what had happened to the others had James's stomach twisting into knots. He needed air. Now.
"Hey, wait up." Nate jogged to catch up and then turned to jog backward to face James. "C'mon. Let's steal a jet or something and go make sure those creeps never get their hands on anyone else."
"I was up for that before we left last time," James pointed out.
"You had all the right rage, yeah," Nate said, not pointing out that James couldn't have actually raged like he wanted to when he'd been that bad off. "And now I know what you know, so…"
"We'd have to be back before Dad realized it," James pointed out. "And I'm not going back there without the GPS trackers off on the way in. Especially after seeing what she has in tech."
"And I've already got a psychic timeclock in Wanda if we don't get back before Dad can know we're gone. Seeing as Viper made sure you knew, I'm not taking the chance she's not expecting us."
James looked out of the window for a long moment, weighing it out. "Tasha's jet is the fastest."
"Perfect. She'd probably want to come too if Kate wasn't half wrapped around her."
James nodded to himself and shifted direction since he had been watching the comings and goings much closer than Nate had realized - and he knew who was set up on which runway. But, when they got to Natasha's quinjet, they found they weren't the first ones there. "Oh good, you're handing off your bow," James said as they walked up on Clint. "We'll bring back your arthritis cream."
Clint rolled his eyes. "You're hilarious, kiddo, considering you're trying to tag along. I was here first."
"Yeah, well I know exactly who you're looking for, so you're tagging along," James said.
"Well, ain't that something," Clint said. "Great, you're intel man. Still tagging along, but with an important job."
"Nate, you wanna knock him out? I'll tie him up and we can get back before he realizes it," James said, perfectly serious.
"Sure you don't wanna stay here and stare at the tour guide's best features some more? That's the only reason you come here, right? The view?" Clint shot back.
"If that's what you want to believe," James said.
"He's not that wrong," Nate said, smirking as he walked past Clint to the cockpit. "He's wrong, but not that wrong."
James looked between the two of them and took a step backward. "Or, I can just stay here for now and come get you later when you can't find anyone you're actually after. You two probably need to bond anyhow."
The back of Nate's neck was red enough for both Clint and James to know that the tease struck a little close to home, especially after how much Nate had realized he couldn't lose Kate. "Shut up," Nate muttered as he finished up the pre-flight and telekinetically pushed James back.
James looked over to Clint. "You really shouldn't go. Avenger rules and all that."
"I used to work for Hydra. Ain't lines I haven't crossed before," Clint said. "And if you think Steve or Jan or Tony is gonna kick me out for this? They're not stupid. They can figure out the gist of what happened."
"You won't get the chance to do anything," James said. "You'll be clean."
"I don't need to be, but thanks," Clint said as Nate started up the jet, and Clint dropped into his seat, his easy posture belying how much he wanted to go after these Hydra creeps.
"I'll handle navigation when we get close," James told Nate as he pulled up a laptop and started working. There was no way he was going to let them go in as is - and he fully intended to draw fire to the wrong side of the island to distract Viper's men.
"And once Clint knocks out any dampeners, I'll handle crowd control," Nate agreed.
James nodded once - already deciding that if they needed the distraction, he'd split off and play bait … it'd work, but it would also piss off his brother a little more if he began to lose his nerve going in. "Don't worry about the crowd," he said.
"Gonna be Hydra soldiers once we get in," Nate pointed out. "And I've been stuck just being angry this whole time. You're not the only one who gets to let it out."
"Nate, I thought I was just here to get into her systems and point out who needs their ass kicked," James said flatly. "Nothing to let out."
"Sure," Nate said, and the two of them lapsed into silence until they were nearly there - and James did take over on the systems.
James had been doing some thinking on the way, and there was one facet to their loose plan that he just couldn't get behind. "I know the plan was to play dress up, but forget the uniforms and pretending to be Hydra," James said as Nate set the plane down. "I don't want to wear that idiotic uniform for one minute. Just make us invisible. That'll be better."
"Done," Nate said, his eyes glowing - and Clint grinned crookedly and purposefully projected to Nate:
You'll be fun to play with at family get-togethers.
Really?
What, you think I don't know where you two are headed?
You gotta do this now?
Yes.
Nate pinched the bridge of his nose. Whatever.
Once they were out of the jet, Nate started to rush forward, but James put a hand on his chest to stop him as he watched the soldiers run around them looking for intruders and scrambling to defend the other side of the compound. It took him a moment or two, but finally, James started to walk toward the building, taking his time as he reoriented. He hadn't been able to wander, but he'd watched enough on the surveillance while Viper had him to know which areas bled into which - and he knew where the offenders were generally stationed.
They walked at a normal pace through the winding halls deeper into the Madripoor maze under the Princess Bar - pausing at busy cross sections in the building and cutting down one hall to the next until they saw the cells. "Dampener will be closer to the cells themselves," James said - which was Clint's cue to deal with that little mess so the three of them could continue to infiltrate invisibly.
It didn't take Clint long to find where the dampener was tucked away by some of the closed-circuit cameras, and once that was disabled, he went ahead and messed with the feed, too - a quick trick he and Natasha had been doing since they met that would intermittently fuzz the feed just to be obnoxious.
James stood there for a long moment with his eyes closed, scenting out the air as he tried to decipher when the idiots in question had been through there, though that was a little tough when so many Hydra agents had been through there. Then, he pointed past Nate toward a darker hallway. "Guy's blonde. Has a limp right leg."
"Right. I saw that happen, too," Nate said, his eyes narrowed as he started to float, already in motion to give the guy a psychic lobotomy.
James crossed his arms to wait, and even looked toward Clint who was obviously ready to fight. "You can go too."
"I'll get the next one. The way that kid works, there's not gonna be a fight to have." Clint shrugged, though he was obviously raring to go. "You got a scent trail for me?"
"Sure." James took a few steps toward the cells and stood between the two smallest ones - the ones Kate and Billy had been stuck in. He closed his eyes and pivoted, moving through the next door to where the hall came to a 't'. He looked down both directions, took the time to try both out and then pointed to the one that led to the right. "Short. Weasley looking. He's got a broken nose and a fat lip. Left handed."
"Thanks, kiddo," Clint said, though his tone was steel as he grabbed an arrow.
It didn't take long for Clint and Nate to circle back to James, either, and neither of them looked all that apologetic. Clint was still wiping blood off his arrow - he never left behind any he could re-use, and he'd only needed one shot to kill the guy - and Nate was still angry but starting to glow less now that he'd turned his Hydra creep into a vegetable.
The three of them were walking through the compound - and it was clear James was trying to keep his temper in check - or his nerves. It was still awfully close to the rescue, after all. They hadn't found the idiot that had crossed both Kate and Billy yet. But it was just a matter of time.
Traffic was getting busier, and more than one Hydra creep had bumped into one of them in the tight quarters, so it was not just a matter of time as to when they found the guy, but also to when they were found.
One soldier bumped into Nate, then stopped and turned, realizing that something was just … off. But since he couldn't see them, instead of trying to engage, he took a few backward steps and then headed off with the rest. But that came back to bite them after they'd turned a few corners.
They stepped out to cross a large room that echoed with every step - but Nate hadn't been thinking about something like that when he hadn't had to worry about that. The first steps echoed loudly enough for the soldiers across the room to turn, looking for the source and surely expecting reinforcements. But when they saw no one, one of the commanders shouted what he suspected.
"Investigate that," he ordered one of his underlings. "And be quick about it!"
James reached out for Nate and pushed him behind himself, bodily blocking him from harm in case someone had an itchy trigger finger.
Nate very nearly whispered what he was thinking, then fell into a more foul mood when he remembered that James was refusing to let anyone into his mind. So he projected to Clint instead. I can stop the bullets before they get to us, don't worry about it too much. My brother's just being … stupid.
Yeah, well, that seems to be a condition in your family, Clint said, totally glossing over the fact that he would have done the same.
But they still hadn't been seen. So after a moment, James held one finger over his lips as he looked at Nate and Clint then started walking silently, continuing on the path.
Clint and Nate shared a look, and since they both knew they couldn't manage to be as quiet, Nate simply used his telekinesis to lift them off the floor so they could float after James. He was their navigator, after all … they did need to know which way they were going. And that was all fine and good until ….
As they were following James, who was only moving faster the further down the scent trail he went, the group of them happened to cross into an area that was armed with motion sensors. The eye for the trigger was nearly invisible, and James didn't even see it until after he'd tripped it.
Nate 'heard' the rush of excitement from some of the closest guards and immediately put up a telekinetic bubble that protected him and Clint - but James had rushed forward instead of stopping where he was and ended up getting hit by two darts and a bullet high at his shoulder.
He didn't even try to stop the roar of pain as the bullet spun him toward the Hydra guards, and for an instant, James looked shocked. Until he saw who it was leading the pack of soldiers. He drew in a quick breath and with a rippling snarl, he charged forward claws out and hyper focused on one guy.
The guard raised his gun belatedly and squeezed off a few rounds, but couldn't adjust for how fast James was going toward him. James didn't say anything - though the snarls spoke for him clearly. He remained focused on the one guard, even while others were trying to get clear or help their friend.
But that's what Nate and Clint were there for and as soon as someone touched James, Clint put an arrow in him and Nate blasted them back telekinetically. At least until he got a hold of a weapon … then he was shooting them with their own rifles, too.
James wasn't letting up. For just an instant, Nate heard the soldier's thoughts and realized that this … this creep his brother was killing was the worst of the group of men that had tortured Kate in her cell. He was the one that had beaten both Billy and Kate - and he was on the fast track to die by the way James was tearing into him. The thought had barely crossed Nate's mind when James finally let the guy fall - very clearly dead. But he didn't stop, either. Not when there were so many Hydra soldiers so close. He kept going, all snarls and claws and vicious ripping and tearing. There was little to no style involved and Nate had never ever seen James anywhere close to this.
So he took a step forward to try and stop him. He reached out with one hand intending to touch James' shoulder with a quiet "we don't kill" but …
The claws went by Nate's nose close enough to leave blood splatter in their wake and Clint rushed forward to get a hold of Nate from behind and pull him backward out of the kill zone. "Woah-kay that's too close," Clint told Nate. "You can't get that close to him right now. Just let him work it out."
"Work it out?" Nate repeated, looking at Clint as if he'd grown a second head.
"Yeah, it's a thing that happens," Clint said. "Trust me on this, okay? I've got previous."
Nate probably wouldn't have believed it from many other people, but… well, Logan had been an Avenger with Clint before he died. So, Nate held back to see what James would do.
However, James couldn't keep going. Not like he had been. He was hurt, still not healing properly, and drugged to boot. So when he started losing steam, he lost it fast. Especially with blood dripping down his fingers from using his claws while his healing was barely working.
It started with a little stumble - just a small misstep as he realigned himself to charge. But that was the cue for the Hydra men still alive and able to fight. When James stumbled, they raised their weapons and two of them tried their hand at blow darts. When one of them hit, James turned toward the injury moving slowly and exaggerated as his head swam. He frowned at the dart's feathers, then took a few heavy steps backward before he lost his footing. He tried to hold on to a nearby table, but ended up pulling that over with him when his knees gave out., which left Nate and Clint to get him up and out as soon as possible.
Not that James seemed to be concerned at all. Nor did he seem to even know where he was or what was going on around him. But the soldiers sure as hell knew who he was - and as soon as James quit actively attacking them, the Hydra agents regrouped and started moving in with clear intentions to recover him.
"James!" Nate shouted trying to get his brother to snap out of it, but instead of waking up or doing anything that would keep the creeps back, James slumped a little more as his eyes drifted closed. This was not at all what Nate had in mind when he wanted to go rampaging after the jerks who had attacked Kate. He absolutely wasn't supposed to lose his brother to those creeps again.
An arrow flew by Nate's ear, passed James close enough to rustle his hair, then sunk into the closest Hydra goon that was just reaching for James. And that pulled Nate out of it fast. They were too close, they were going for his brother. There were too many for them to fight fairly… but when did Hydra ever fight fair?
With a roar of his own, Nate's eyes glowed brighter and he lifted off the ground with his hands outstretched. A moment later, a percussive shock wave rippled out from him, knocking every Hydra agent near them backward. Those who sat up with the first thought of 'recover' found themselves on the wrong end of a telepathic mindwipe. He was tossing people left and right, not caring where they landed as he made his way over to his brother with Clint covering their backs.
"I know you guys are still kinda new to this," Clint said as he got to work. "But you're not actually supposed to give the bad guys one of ours after you wipe the floor with them."
"I know," Nate said in an irritated tone as he rushed to stop James' hands from bleeding so freely. "And so does he. This … is … I don't know. Massively overestimating how much he can take or … I don't know. He doesn't do that. This. Whatever this was."
"I know," Clint said, then helped to get James out of there so Nate could concentrate. "I'm willing to bet this is something Viper did to him."
"What?" Nate said, turning toward Clint in confusion. "Aside from her evil organization and the poison they used on him … she's not even here."
"No, but she had him for what? Two weeks? Ish? Your brother should probably spend some time with Natasha getting rid of whatever brainwashing she did to him."
Nate narrowed his eyes as a few pieces clicked into place - things Kate and Billy had been projecting along with everything he was seeing from James. "Yeah," he said simply, though he managed to make the one word ring with the telepathic shockwave of his frustration, clearing the rest of the way to the jet.
Which meant that, now, the mission was to get back home in one piece. And with Nate flying, Clint had done what he always did … cleaned up the stuff on the kid's face and hoped for the best. He could clean up and get proper medical attention for himself later. Clint was just trying to make sure that no one died on the way back.
And loathe though he was to admit it, Clint was almost glad that they had the darts still. They just hadn't fallen off after James was hit, so they could at least analyze what was being used. It was just … the rest of it that was troublesome. And because James was so bad off, Clint headed to the aft of the plane to take out his cell and warn his wife of what was coming in. Not necessarily to alarm her, but to make sure she knew they were inbound and therefore likely to have tails chasing them.
When the quinjet touched down on Genosha, Natasha was there to meet them with a few other concerned family and loved ones, though Natasha swore outright when she saw what kind of shape they were all in. She'd long expected Clint to come back from any mission or grocery run a little dinged up, but Nate had taken a few hits and had a black eye and James had yet to wake up - still passed out cold, though Clint had managed to bandage him up a little. But they just didn't have the materials on the jet to clean up all that blood.
"I've been tracking you since you called," Natasha said. "You didn't tell me you were headed out that fast. And you turned all my trackers off." She was obviously upset with all three of them, though she was directing her anger at Clint simply because he was the senior member and should have been able to rein in the two generally obedient Summers boys.
"I was informed that I was a tagalong," Clint said. "And I'm pretty sure your little genius is the one that turned everything off."
Natasha didn't argue it, though she did turn toward where Wanda's best doctors were attending to both Nate and James. Nate was in need of a few stitches - his black eye was more dramatic looking than anything, but there was a cut in his hairline that was being pretty stubborn about behaving, so Nate looked much worse than he was.
Even if Scott didn't appreciate the idea that someone had targeted his telepathic son's head, there were a lot more pressing issues than just his boys' inability to sit still when there was a situation that needed more information. But seeing as James was unconscious, all Scott could do was to turn his frustration toward Nate.
"What were you thinking," Scott bit out, his gaze hard, even as he watched Nate get medical attention. "I swear, if this is just because you didn't get enough action when you helped rescue them-"
"Dad, that's not it-"
"- your brother still isn't healing either," Scott continued. You know he's not stable right now. You both could have been killed!
Dad, we went back in because Kate's been projecting what those guards were doing to her every time she relives it, and I got a good look at their faces. I couldn't just let them get away with it! Nate's explanation was desperate, a shout that only Scott heard.
And when Scott heard that, he slowed down enough for Nate to finish explaining.
"Viper made James watch all the torture the others went through," he told his father quietly, though Natasha was close enough to hear it - and so was Billy and Kate. "He knew who we had to find. He could identify them by sight and by scent. He wasn't planning to do what he did."
"What did he do?" Billy asked, frowning at James as he kept Kate close while the medics were working - and Kate for her part was sticking close to Billy, one hand over her mouth as she tried to hide her emotions.
"Lost his temper entirely," Nate said, then gestured at where his brother had passed out. "I have never seen him come anywhere close to that. He entirely snapped and went after this one guard…" Nate looked between Kate and Billy. "... anyone that was too close was in danger. He was cutting through people so fast…"
"He went berserk," Clint said, explaining it to the adults perfectly, even if the kids just didn't know.
"That's a little harsh," Nate said, frowning at Clint.
"No, that's … that's what Logan used to call it," Clint told the kids. "It was a feral break. He completely lost control when it happened. No one was safe if they got too close or drew his attention. That's what happened."
"What triggered it?" Scott asked, frowning now that he understood what had transpired.
"If I had to guess, it would be the creep he was chasing down for us," Clint said. "He wasn't intending to get involved, but then he snapped .. and it was a total bloodbath. As you can see." He gestured at James, who was enough of a mess that it was hard to tell how much of the blood on him was his, or someone else's.
"Ah." Scott ran both hands through his hair and paced a small path before he turned back to Nate and pointed at him. "I don't care that you had a good reason. Pull something like this again without telling anyone what's going on, without backup, without a solid exit strategy, and-"
"I got it," Nate said, holding up both hands. "For the record, I left a telepathic suggestion-"
"Nate, no." Scott pinched the bridge of his nose. When Nate watched him, knowing his dad had to be stressed beyond belief and not wanting to make anything worse when his whole family seemed to be on shaky ground, Scott finally let out his breath. "Let me know when James wakes up," he said and turned to leave, purely to get some distance and clear his head. He couldn't get as mad as he'd wanted to because what Nate told him was actually one of the few exceptions he'd made to the rules even when he was an X-Man - but he was still stressed about the danger they'd put James in without thinking, knowing that Viper was fixated on him. And then to know that James had a feral break in defense of Kate… Yeah, he needed a minute.
Nate watched his dad go, sighed, and got to his feet once his stitches were done. He'd meant to go toward Kate, but to his surprise, she was glaring at him - and at Clint.
"Katie," Clint started to say, but Kate crossed her arms and stepped back from him.
"Don't do that," she said sharply. "It's not worth it, okay? Don't get caught because of me."
"We didn't get caught," Clint pointed out.
"Dad, that's not the point," Kate said, stepping backward nearly into Billy. "I'm fine, okay? You guys getting caught and tortured isn't going to fix anything."
Nate frowned, obviously not expecting this reaction, especially because the only thing he could hear from Kate telepathically was a driving, almost desperate need to be okay and to pretend nothing had happened. He'd figured getting rid of the guys who had tormented her had to be a step in the right direction for making sure she was okay, right?
"Kate, what they did-" Nate started to say, but she rounded on him and pointed at him in accusation.
"I was there. I know what happened, and I'm fine. Hank checked me over, even. Tyler fixed me up. I'm fine."
"Katie-Kate, you're amazing, and I love you, but you're not fine," Clint said gently.
"I am," Kate insisted, despite the fact that everyone there could see that she was on the brink of tears. "You didn't even ask, Nate," she added, and she was no longer yelling, but her tone hadn't changed. "I didn't tell you any of that because I didn't want you to go on some stupid white knight quest to try to fix it, because you can't. You can't fix it, and you can't undo it, and you can't just go charging in there and get caught because of me when you've spent your whole life staying out of the grasp of exactly this kind of bad guy."
Nate stared at her for a moment, knowing that there was precious little that he could say that wouldn't set her off in that moment. He barely glanced at Clint, who could only give him a crystal clear 'don't look at me' moment before he said the only thing that he hoped might get her off the ledge. "Kate, I'm sorry." He didn't try to justify it, or explain it. He just apologized and left it to her. Now was not the time for defense. So he kept a perfectly open expression and hoped he looked pitiful enough for her to not freak out any further.
And just like that, Kate froze, suddenly without a retort. "Well… good," she managed to say at last. She pulled her arms tighter to herself. "Just don't - don't scare me like that again, okay? I'm not- they're not worth it."
"I know, you're right," Nate said. "They're not." He did everything he could to keep from smiling, even a tiny one before he projected to her. But you are totally worth raging. If you ever feel like it, just know that there really isn't any more Hydra in Madripoor now.
Kate blinked at him for a second and then let out a slow, even breath. "Well, that's my guy. In a league of his own," she said, trying to give him a smile that didn't quite reach her eyes. She didn't seem to know what else to say, though, and she clearly wasn't entirely herself, so she simply bit her lip and backed away, leaving to clear her head - though she was headed toward where she knew America was so at least she wouldn't be alone.
Clint turned to Nate, one eyebrow raised significantly. "You catch all that?" he asked.
"Yep," Nate said quietly. "And a lot more, too."
"I'll bet. Said plenty with her body language, too." Clint turned back toward the door Kate had just left.
"She's screaming mentally," Nate told him. "About everything. Everything you can think of."
Clint nodded, his gaze still on the door. "God, it hurts to watch that happen to your baby," he said softly.
"She's one of the strongest people I know," Nate said, turning toward Clint. "She'll work through it. I know she will."
"Yeah, still doesn't make it easier on her in the meantime," Clint said, finally turning back to Nate to let out a breath and give him half a smile. "Well done on defusing, though," he teased. "Tactically sound, that apology."
"It was honest," Nate countered.
"Like hell you're sorry about what we did," Clint shot back.
"I'm sorry she's upset about it," Nate said. "And about all the stuff Dad was mad over."
"Nah, we had Nat as backup if things went south. We were fine."
"Yeah," Nate said, shifting his focus from Clint to Natasha for a moment; she was supervising James. "About that …" The medics waited just long enough to tell Natasha where they were headed before they moved James, and when they left, Nate caught her attention. "You don't have to worry about anyone following us," Nate told her. "I made them turn off their security systems, monitors, radar - you name it. The whole building was dead, including defenses." He paused and smirked grimly. "I left the power on for the booby traps though. Figured they deserved to run into those in the dark."
"Good," Natasha said with a sharp nod, though she wasn't moving with as much of an edge as she had been when James was still being worked on. "What else?"
"If they were true believers in Hydra, they are now doorstops," Nate said. "Except the worst of them. If they were high-value Hydra, SHIELD will be getting a lot of eager confessions and finding a fair number of Hydra executions of their own." He let out a shaky breath. "You know. Except for the ones James got a hold of."
At that last part, Natasha let her shoulders drop and came to stand by him, putting one hand on either of Nate's shoulders. "When that happens," she said softly, "it's because he's been pushed to the brink. And you can absolutely believe that when it happened with Logan, it often happened when he was defending women and children and furious at those who stole their innocence."
"This was so much worse than when he took down Magneto," Nate admitted softly.
"He got too close," Clint explained, and Natasha simply let out an "ah."
"Next time, just step back and let him work through it," Natasha advised.
"Kinda hoping there isn't a next time to this," Nate said.
"I hope so too, for his sake, but the world is cruel, and I don't doubt someone will deserve his rage in the future," Natasha said. She sighed. "It's not easy on him, either, you know. It's devastating to lose control of yourself."
"So, we really did make it all worse then," Nate decided.
"No," Natasha said, shaking her head. "He's been on the edge since you got them out." She gestured toward the door Kate had exited through. "They all are. None of them are themselves."
Nate nodded and followed her gaze. "James said Viper made him watch everything that happened to the others."
"I'll kill her," Natasha said - and meant it.
"He wouldn't tell me anything specific, though." Nate really was doing his level best to be honest with her. "Just that much and then refused to discuss it."
"He wouldn't," Natasha said. "And you've seen more than Kate was willing to tell you too. Don't do that, by the way." She held up a hand. "I'm not saying I'm not grateful or that you didn't do exactly what they deserved, but-"
"It wasn't intentional," Nate promised. "The peeking. She was projecting some of it."
"Then tell her that," Clint said. "Because that's kind of a big violation of privacy."
"I will, when she calms down a little bit," Nate said.
"Yeah, speaking of." Clint turned toward Nat with one eyebrow raised. "I'm sorry, babe, but she's dealing with trauma the way I do."
"Oh god," Natasha said, running a hand down her face.
"Okay … well, if you two are going to start that, I'm going to head down to the kitchens and make sure Kate has a few things she'll pick at," Nate said, holding up both hands as he walked backward.
"You do that. I'll make sure my husband knows how much he has to make up for," Natasha said, and Nate smirked on his way out.
Chapter 98: Deep Bruises
Chapter Text
It was odd enough to wake up to rhythmic beeping on a good day, but James really didn't want to look around himself when he heard the sounds of the medical suite. Not when it was so close to Viper … not when he wasn't entirely sure right off the bat on where he was. He could feel the stupid eyepatch still, his shoulder was hurting and bandaged tightly as well as one arm and just above his knee where he'd been shot … and his hands ached along with a few whole quadrants of his torso. And to make matters worse, the scent of antiseptic was overpowering any other hints he might have gotten.
But he wasn't going to be able to pretend he was asleep for long anyhow, so he finally cracked his one good eye open to look around and see where the hell he was. Especially since the last thing he could even vaguely remember was getting hit with a dart … or three … and losing his steam. But even once he realized he wasn't restrained, he wasn't expecting to see Billy and his parents nearby.
James tested his shoulders a little by shifting his weight, then tried to find a way to sit up that didn't make every bruise and bump scream at him. But that just wasn't possible for how little of him wasn't bruised. The stitches at his knuckles pulled every time he moved his hands and he didn't have to look to know there was a horrible black-purple covering the backs of his hands after using the claws while he wasn't healing properly.
"Oh, hi again," Billy said when he saw James moving. "Turns out you stormed the castle with your brother and his future father-in-law without me."
"I went to play tour guide and point out the stupidest of stupid," James said. "Didn't mean to do anything myself. Oops. Also hi."
"I made Nate tell me who pissed you off, and you know what? Totally agreed."
"It was just one or two guys, I think, so you know …"
"No, I mean the one dude I knocked out."
"Right," James said, trying to place what exactly had happened. "Yeah, he's probably not feeling too good right now. I …think I might have killed him."
"Nate told me that too," Billy said.
"I don't remember much after that," James admitted with a mild shake to his voice. Saying as much out loud after another murder and just being on Genosha … again … it was shaking his confidence on what kind of person he was, or if he actually qualified as a person at all. "Sorry, I don't think I can't tell you anything useful. Probably don't need to hear it if I could."
"You cleared out Hydra, and Nate turned everyone you didn't get into either vegetables or turncoats to give SHIELD plenty of intel," Wanda put in. "Between the two of you, SHIELD is looking pretty worthless."
"Go Nate," James said, entirely ignoring what Wanda had said that was complementary to him, too.
"He made them turn off their security on the way out too," Scott said. "You had to have surgery to get a few bullets removed once you got back here. How are you feeling, son?"
"Like I woke up to an intervention."
"Yeah, maybe don't go running off with Clint as a chaperone this soon after being kidnapped," Wanda said with a crooked smirk, though it was clear she was just barely restraining herself from brushing his hair out of his face.
"To be fair, I told Clint to stay here," James admitted.
"That's not any better," Scott said. "I understand why you went, but James, you need to be careful."
"Yeah, I'm not talking about why I went," James said. "And I'm always careful."
"Then tell me why you felt like you and Nate had to go alone when you knew Viper wanted her hands on you again."
He didn't hesitate to answer in spite of how groggy he felt. "I didn't want Nate to go on his own," James said. "She'd kill him if she caught him."
"I'd have gone with you," Wanda said softly. When James looked her way, she smiled. "I don't know if you've noticed, but my family trades on vengeance. We're quite good at it."
"I honestly hadn't considered asking you," James admitted. "But you were busy helping Billy anyhow. That was more important."
"You're part of my family too," Wanda said.
"Well, Viper doesn't want to kill me, so it's fine."
"James," Scott said sharply, half startling everyone but Vision.
"I'm not wrong, Dad."
"That doesn't make it alright. Surviving something like that-" Scott cut himself off. "I don't want you turning into me or Logan."
"Well if it's any consolation, apparently I'm more like my mother, mentally."
"That doesn't surprise me," Vision said. He'd been letting the other two guide the discussion, but now, he got to his feet and smiled at James. "She and Tony used to spend hours brainstorming together. You have her creativity."
"That … is a very kind compliment. Thank you," James said, since he knew it had to be positive when Viper had spent so much time cursing exactly that.
Vision smiled wider. "You're welcome," he said. "You should be proud. She was in a league of her own."
"Yep, that's my guy. Totally out of my league," Billy put in, grinning as he slipped over to steal a careful kiss with James.
"I don't know what you're talking about," James said to Billy. "I look like an alley cat that got dragged through a hedge backward. Has to be a few thousand guys just like me."
"There aren't. I checked and you didn't even get the whole … scruffy look the fun way."
"I'm a little nervous as to what 'fun way' ends with an eye missing …"
"Well, not that part, but… the rest, minus bruises, gunshots, and contusions." Billy grinned even more crookedly.
"I'm pretty sure you have a lot better things to do than to hang around this big of a mess," James said. "Are you still doing tour guide duty?"
"Yeah, Leslie Ann already has a flock of admirers. She's been growing out the gardens to make Genosha greener," Billy said.
"Good, she can use a fan club," James said, then turned toward Scott. "Dad … if you want to go hang out with Annie and her group, you know I'm not going anywhere now."
"I'm meeting her for dinner later; she promised her nieces they'd go out on the beach together just the girls," Scott said, and no one there missed the fact that his smile was more genuine and so much softer the second he talked about Annie.
"You mean she can relax without baking?" James teased.
"Apparently," Scott chuckled.
James took stock of the room and watched his dad, then pushed himself to sit up straighter to test out how everything moved - or didn't want to, doing his level best not to react to how much everything hurt. "Okay. Well, I think I can do this recovery thing somewhere else."
"Ooh, yes you can," Billy agreed, watching as James removed the ledes and the IV - then instantly wished them back to his room where they could get some privacy and Billy could keep James to himself.
"Not like we didn't see that one coming," Wanda said, shaking her head as she turned to Scott. "I'll make sure that our doctors check in on him at least twice a day. If you can - you should try to take a short break."
"I'm meeting Natasha when she gets back from batting cleanup after the boys' trip," Scott said.
"As I understand it, there was very little clean up to be batted," Vision added. "Nate apparently managed that on the way out."
Scott smirked. "Yeah, that's my boy."
"And you can be sure that Viz made a point to crash their servers, too," Wanda added.
"And perhaps a bit more," Vision said, and Wanda chuckled.
"I see where James gets his aversion to therapists."
Scott stopped and then let out a slow breath, turning to face Craig. He hadn't necessarily been avoiding the man, but he did know that he'd left a few messages asking for a meeting on "read." Still, he tried to explain himself, "even here you have plenty of patients-"
"And last I heard, you were still one of them," Craig said firmly. "And I'll be damned if I let you brush me off like your son is doing. At least he has the excuse of being the actual kidnap victim."
"That's exactly my point," Scott replied. "You have more pressing cases."
"Kate is speaking with Rebecca Kaplan to see if she would prefer her as a therapist. Billy is asleep. James won't speak to me. And you, Scott, haven't been acting like yourself."
"My son, his boyfriend, and my other son's girlfriend were just grabbed by Viper. What did you expect?" Scott shot back.
"That's not what I meant," Craig said, his "therapist" voice on loud and clear. His accent was even less noticeable when he was like this. "You've been stressed, yes, but after you saw them return, something shifted." He paused, took a deep breath, and said, "But I'd rather discuss this in privacy. I don't make a habit of holding sessions in hallways where anyone can hear my clients' business."
Scott dragged one hand down his face. "Now?"
"Now."
Scott thought about arguing, but he could already hear the rebuke from Annie if he did. Think of the example you're setting! She would probably say - and be right.
Which was how Scott found himself sitting across from Craig in a room overlooking the beach. "Look," Scott said, trying to head things off at the pass, "it's been absolutely insane lately. Everyone's stressed. That's normal, okay?"
"There is nothing about any of this that is normal, Scott," Craig said.
"Not for you, maybe," Scott said, looking out toward the beach. "This was practically a monthly thing when I was a teenager. Losing friends to bad guys and then picking up to try again."
"Scott, I want to help, but you can't look at this like it's normal," Craig said.
"It's not, but for this life…" Scott trailed off. "Well, I let them make their decisions."
"You couldn't have stopped them," Craig pointed out. "Where are they with that decision now?"
"Nate and Rachel are still sure of what they want," Scott said. "Kate's not going to give up her bow - if she did, that would be why Nate gives up, but…" He ran a hand down his face. "James wants to run. I've seen that exact look."
"You've seen that exact look on someone else's face. That doesn't necessarily mean the same thing for him."
"Sure, Craig."
"Scott … where are you in this storm?" Craig leaned forward slightly. "Tell me what you're thinking. There's a lot to cover here."
Scott finally tore his gaze from the window. "Craig, I've barely slept since the kids went missing. Ask me again when they're not a step away from shattering themselves."
"Fine. Then talk to me about them if you won't talk about yourself. I know I'm missing a lot in spite of all the time at the tower. What do I need to know to help them?"
"I know they're not as okay as they're pretending to be - any of them," Scott said.
"Seems to be a theme."
"Yes, but I know I've got problems. Those three? They don't know what they need to address, because they're not aware of it. Between Nate and Natasha… look, we've dealt with this kind of thing before. Coopting people and calling them tools. Objects. No one deals with that and comes out the other side feeling better about themselves."
"So give me an idea of what to expect. Start with whichever one you like, but I'm going to need more than 'we've got this covered' to move forward."
"All I've got is suspicions right now, Craig. Give Nate and Rachel a little more time to confirm that."
"And what is it you suspect?" Craig asked.
"I think Viper coopted them. All of them. James in particular, but all three of them were more valuable as assets than victims," Scott told him frankly.
"What about Nate?" Craig asked. "Is he alright after having rescued them or is he building?"
"You saw what happened. He went back in."
"Yes, and that's why I'm asking," Craig said. "I don't know Nate as well. Through Annie, sure, but I don't know if he's going to be as self destructive as his brother."
Scott held his breath and then let it out slowly. "Nate… is too much like me," he said at last, carefully.
"That really doesn't answer my question, Scott."
"Yeah, well." Scott gestured with one hand. "See, if it had been me - if it had been Jean - when it was Jean… God, losing her shattered me, Craig. Nate's not self-destructing because Kate's alive. She's got a ways to go, but she's with him. He's pissed off, but he's got his anchor back."
"Alright, that's good to know," Craig said, nodding to himself and trying to find the right angle to get Scott to talk. There was too much going on for Scott, too - and he was really working hard to avoid discussing any of it. "What about the other two? The situation isn't parallel and James is being self destructive. Not even subtle about it, either."
"No, but that lines up with what I think Viper wanted. Based on what Kate said… she meant to take away everything that made him who he is. Lose your identity, watch your friends hurt - again, little too much like me." Scott gave Craig a grim smirk.
"And Billy?"
"Harder to tell," Scott admitted. "He grew up with his grandfather telling him nightmare stories of what could go wrong, but it's different living it." He let out a long breath. "I should have kept a closer eye on Vojteck."
"I'm ot sure that would have made a difference."
"I found a weapon on him, Craig. I knew he was trying to get close to Billy."
"Did you look into it?"
"Obviously."
"And you're angry at yourself for not catching something that the leader of Hydra set up."
"There was a time I could have caught it before the Avengers even knew Hydra had a thought."
"If you knew to look in that direction, I'm sure. But - did you have any inkling that Hydra was actively going for any of them?"
"It was a problem for Kate. Repeatedly. Nate lobotomized a bunch of them for thinking of trying what happened this time around. So you can imagine how pissed he is."
"That would explain that one. But did you know Hydra was actively going after Billy?"
"I knew Doom was looking their way again. I honestly thought Vojteck might have been tied in with him - and he was, to be fair."
"But there was nothing that you knew for sure or even strongly suspected about Hydra looking his way."
"No." Scott rubbed his fingers down the length of his scars. "I was digging, though."
"Then you can't hold yourself accountable for that. Even if you were digging." Craig leaned closer. "And you can't compare what you went through to what your son is dealing with right now. It's not the same, Scott."
"No, it was worse for him," Scott said softly. "It was quick for me. Twice."
"I'm sure he'd say it was worse for you," Craig pointed out. "Have you two had a chance to talk about it?"
"Not really, and definitely not that part of things, no," Scott admitted.
"You should. If you can get him to talk about anything at all… the common ground might be a good way to segue into other things. Especially when I can see you reliving it every time you look at that eye patch."
"Alright," Scott said. "You're right. Of course. If it'll help James… you're right."
"It'll do you some good to do other things too, Scott," Craig said. "I'm told we have access to a lovely beach … you really shouldn't drown yourself in misery the whole time."
"Yeah, my brother keeps pointing at Annie in her bathing suit and giving me looks, Craig. You should go hit him for your sister or something."
"Remind me to break his fingers."
"Hey, Craig - go break his fingers," Scott said with a smirk.
"Hey Scott, you should spend some time with your girlfriend," Craig shot back, and Scott chuckled as he got to his feet.
"Thanks, Craig."
"Any time, Scott, just don't make me chase you down again."
Nate had waited until Kate had plenty of time to cool off - and America had slipped off to spend the night with Rachel - before he let himself into Kate's room, knocking on the doorframe and waiting for her to be okay before he did so. She was just coming out of a shower so hot the steam was still swirling out of the bathroom door, but when she saw him, she paused, tipped her head, and then went back to what she was doing, picking out a soft nightgown for the night.
"You alright?" Nate asked.
Kate blew out a breath so hard that it would have moved her hair if her bangs hadn't been sticking to her face and wet. "No," she said. "My boyfriend thinks he has to fight my battles, and you know how I feel about being treated like the fragile human on the team."
"This doesn't have anything to do with you being human, Kate," Nate pointed out.
"I know," she said. "But I'm the one who had to live it, Nate. You should have asked me before you left." She pulled the nightgown over her head and crawled under the covers. "It's not cool to leave out the person you're supposed to be getting justice for. Feels less like justice and more like a white knight syndrome."
"Would you have wanted to go?" Nate asked, genuinely curious.
Kate pulled a face. "No - maybe - I don't know. But it would have been nice to be asked."
"That's fair."
Kate sighed and patted the bed next to her in a signal for Nate to come join her. And then, once he was on the bed, she tucked herself into his side like she'd been doing since she got home. "I really am fine, Nate," she said. "I don't want you to think you have to treat me any differently."
Nate almost replied that she was clearly not fine, but once again, she was projecting the same thing she had when she'd yelled at him before - a need to be okay. And because it was so loud and seemed to be informing so much about how she was reacting, he decided to peek and to follow that instinct back to its source.
Somehow, he wasn't surprised to see a memory involving Daniel.
Daniel had let himself into the cells again, enjoying his relative freedom now that Katarina had her eyes on James and enjoying the chance to make Kate mad. The memory started in the middle of the conversation, so Nate didn't hear all the lead up to it, but he did see that, by that time in the back-and-forth between Kate and Daniel, Daniel had reached through the bars to cup Kate's chin and force her to look at him, and she was too tired to do more than pull herself away from him.
"Perks of the job, Kit-Kat," Daniel said, tangling one hand in her hair when she pulled away so that she couldn't actually get distance. "Consider it an upgrade."
Kate rolled her eyes at him. "Don't be stupid. You've seen my guy. You don't compare."
"Your guy?" Daniel laughed. "That's rich. You really think he'll stick around even if you get out of here? He's dating a cheerleader for a reason, and it's not your winning personality. The second you get complicated, he's out."
Kate narrowed her eyes. "Yeah right."
"What, you think Vojteck and I didn't compare notes? You've got one of the most secretive X-Men with a normal human girlfriend for a cover story. Say you do get out of here, then what? You think your super-shy goodie-goodie wants anything to do with you after Viper gets through with you? After you give everything to Hydra and then some? No, he'll find some other girl to play at being normal with, and you'll get discarded like the toy you are."
Nate shook his head when he saw the memory, because he could see that, in the moment, Kate hadn't believed a word of it. But there were other glimpses of memories, too. Vojteck and Katarina and Viper herself all had reinforced the same idea: Kate was damaged goods. No one wanted a traumatized human in their mutant hero group, especially when the X-Men were getting bad press for putting a human in "so much danger." If she escaped Hydra, she'd be a liability.
Nate could tell that Viper had been grooming Kate for something, though he wasn't sure what; the memories didn't extend that far. He'd have to look deeper - or have Rachel look, since Kate still wasn't happy with him for peeking. But at least now he could see part of why Kate was trying so desperately to be okay. Somehow, Viper and her minions had managed to convince Kate of what no one else had: that she wasn't worth anything to anyone unless she was a pretty PR face.
The worst part was that the whole idea twisted up exactly what Nate had told Kate himself: that he enjoyed being around her because she was a breath of fresh, normal air in his complicated life. After what Daniel and the others had said, of course Kate would think of that compliment and twist it to think he only liked her when she was that relief from the drama of the rest of his life.
She was hurt and mentally screaming and scarred, and she was still trying to be okay for him, because she didn't want to add to his list of people he cared about who were irreparably traumatized.
"You're peeking again," Kate said, drawing Nate's attention back to the present.
"You're shouting," Nate replied, seeing no reason to try and lie about it. "But … hold on." He closed his eyes and scrunched his nose as he concentrated hard. Which should have been a real indicator to Kate if she was paying attention … because Nate never had to concentrate to do anything with his abilities. He could deal with whole armies on his own with barely a thought, so for him to concentrate … "Okay. I think I can keep it mostly off for a while. I can't shut down all the way, but … if I really really focus … I don't hear the projecting." He held up both hands. "But if you don't want to talk to me unless I'm trying to turn it off, I'll find an inhibitor… I just don't want to screw this up, okay?"
Kate stared at him for a long time, her lips slightly parted. "I didn't mean…" She blinked and tried again. "I didn't know I was projecting," she said. "I mean, I didn't know I was projecting that much. You… you don't have to put yourself out for me."
"That's kind of what I've been saying, though," Nate pointed out. "I'm trying to help."
"I know you are. I just…" Kate blew out all her breath and then laid her head on his shoulder. "I don't want you to treat me any differently. I don't want to lose what we had."
"Kate, you're mentally screaming the crap that Viper and her kids told you, and you know it was all lies, right?" Nate said. "My family is kind of expert at dealing with trauma. Join the club."
"I know, you just… you always have something going on, and I…"
"Kate."
She sighed and snuggled into him more. "I know. I know it's stupid."
"Hey, they were torturing you on repeat to drill it into your head to separate yourself from your support system. Kind of how that works." Nate paused. "And… on that note… you should really talk to my sister. If you don't want me in your head, at least let Rachel look, because the fact that you're missing long periods of time and the stuff that you do remember is grooming and torture? That's setup for something bad; we need to know what it is."
"Okay." Kate sounded small as she tucked into a ball.
"You don't have to do it right now-"
"I said okay," Kate said, though she was quieter still.
Nate let out his breath. "Kate-"
"Can we just…" Kate bit her lip. "Can we just be us for a minute? You don't have to keep your powers off, and I'll try not to project, and we can pretend we're vacationing and not on team-mandated trauma leave?"
Nate sighed, knowing that Kate was going to have to address this sooner or later. But instead, he said, "Alright," and tucked her under his chin.
He'd let Rachel do the work; he was just happy to have something to do that made her feel safe.
James was having trouble doing more than sleeping and refueling for several days after his and Nate's self appointed mission. It meant his body was trying desperately to fix the laundry list of new injuries beyond those from two weeks with Viper's complete personal attention. Which worked well for him when he didn't want to talk to anyone. Especially about anything regarding Madripoor. He just wanted to put it behind himself as quickly as possible and forget any of it had happened. So … he chose sleep above all else more often than not.
But that made him easy for Billy to look after and snuggle up with, even if he was tensing up in his sleep every time Billy put his arm around him. Until then, Billy honestly didn't know someone could hold their breath at a simple touch while still sleeping hard. And James hadn't given anything even close to an acceptable explanation on why he'd taken such a huge risk with seemingly little thought. To top it off, the story that Nate told painted a pretty terrifying picture of what James had done when the brothers returned to Madripoor for vengeance. Curiosity on James's motives was beginning to drive Billy a little crazy - almost to the same point of anxiety Billy had concerning what Viper had done to James that no one saw. He just knew there was more to it than James would acknowledge- beyond the torture and mind games. He was starting to suspect something more personal than anything they'd hit on so far. He didn't know how to bring it up though.
James wasn't acting like the guy Billy had fallen for, and Billy didn't know what he could do to help. But he knew that whatever was going on with James was absolutely not healthy in any way.
Having James share his room made it easier on Billy for his trauma, but it also allowed Billy to observe more than the others could. That was partly due to James avoiding everyone and partly due to him just … wanting to sleep all the time. But that meant he was showing his cards when he slept too…
James hadn't lied at the tower - he was already showing signs of stress via restless, twitching muscles, soft, distressed sounds from the back of his throat, and nightmares when he was actually able to sleep, but Billy had noticed that more often than not, James wasn't actually sleeping while he was in bed. Instead, he was just … trying to be very still and keep his eyes closed as life passed him by. But when he was actually passed out, any odd noise would wake him from the deepest of sleeps - and he was incredibly lax in doing basic things he'd never been slow on … like answering texts or reading on the internet … or showering and shaving. He just … didn't seem to care much about anything outside of being small, still, and out of everyone's way.
What's more, Billy noticed that James wasn't in a rush to steal kisses or get more intimate than a quick, friendly embrace - and even at that, he was tense through the contact. He was trying not to be … but Billy was quickly growing to hate the way James was holding his breath at every touch. That needed to stop. Fast.
What's more, he still hadn't bothered to talk to Natasha or Scott more than a passing chat full of redirects to avoid actually talking to them. And he'd told them next to nothing.
Considering the incredibly strong aversion James had to talking to Doc Hale or his family, Billy decided that it was up to him to try and help his guy. He just had to be sneaky about it. Well … not sneaky … he just had to make it ease from one horrible subject to another, and he already knew that the only way he'd gotten more than two words out of James regarding the Viper situation was when he was taking about his own trauma. Like his concerns about becoming a supervillain like Magneto and his other insecurities… which did not sound very romantic of a path to get his man to open up but at this point, he'd take what he could get.
"So," Billy said, curling up so they were facing each other and sharing a pillow. It wasn't necessary to be that close, but it was definitely a security blanket for Billy - and a means to check and see if he was taking it too far. With his arm draped over James' waist, he'd know the instant he said something wrong because everything under his arm and hand would tense up. The part that bothered him though, was the fact that as soon as Billy touched him, James went perfectly still, barely even moving to breathe. "I know that I'm going to take some time to get past killing Daniel and Katarina-"
Here, Billy was interrupted when James leaned forward slightly to kiss him gently and chastely. It was the one thing he'd been doing consistently; kissing Billy every time he mentioned killing Katarina. And every time, in spite of how horrible Billy felt about killing them, he couldn't stop the smile at the little token of affection.
"Yes, well… I know how upset you were after you killed grandfather," Billy continued, trying to keep on track. "And Natasha mentioned how hard it is on you to lose your control … and I also know you haven't said anything about killing those Hydra soldiers…"
"Let me stop you there," James said, then gave him another quick kiss. "There is a difference between what happened with your grandfather and what happened with Hydra."
"I know, but there are some similar things … like the whole … feral break. That happened. Both times. And I know how wrecked you were last time, so … are you? Okay?"
James let out a measured breath and watched Billy through his one good eye for a long moment. "Yes. I'm okay. Good even. Those guys …. They deserved what they got."
"Nate says-"
"Nate thinks too much," James said. "He worries too much. They were trying to kill us. They hurt you and Kate. They were asking for it."
But his tone and his physical response weren't matching up with the matter of fact tone James was using.
"You're really not bothered at all?"
"Why would I be? They were trash," James rumbled, then amended his statement. "I'm not exactly happy about losing control, but no one on their side got hurt that didn't deserve it. Nate and Clint …"
"And you," Billy pointed out, not missing that James wasn't counting himself as undeserving.
"At least Nate and Clint are okay."
"They really could have killed you, too, you know."
James sighed shakily. "They aren't allowed to," he said softly. "They might get close, but they can't …" James' whole tone shifted harshly as he tried to change the subject, moving to more defensive sounding than anything else. "It doesn't matter anyhow. We weren't captured."
"But that's what I'm afraid of," Billy said after a moment of watching as James shifted from false anger to hoping Billy didn't push. He reached up to brush James' messy hair out of his face, then hesitated when James closed his eyes tight and flinched, though he followed through very delicately to emphasize that he wasn't about to hurt James for anything, then spoke in a near whisper, sure that James would catch it. "Please don't let her get you again."
"I wasn't trying to-"
"I'd be out of my mind worried for you, even if they can't kill you. There's so much worse things they can do and I'm sure you know that better than I do." James looked more anxious, and if Billy didn't know better, he'd have sworn that was fear. "I hate how much she already hurt you- how all of them already hurt you, but that's not even close to the measure of how much I love you."
He tried to emphasize the gentle, careful approach as he took his time to lean in for a kiss that was much more cautious than Billy could remember sharing with James. Ever. But the way James had been reacting had Billy worried that Kate wasn't the only one that had been screwed over in every way Viper and her ilk could imagine. The terror at being touched, the outright aversion to honest affection, and a few times, James had even turned away from a kiss if Billy had been a little too aggressive - only to hold his breath and wait for the repercussions to show.
And when the much more delicate, cautious approach yielded at least neutral responses, Billy knew for sure Katarina had done more than James was willing to admit to. He was hit with equal parts rage toward Katarina and Viper, frustration at where his affectionate sweetheart had gone, fear that the old James might not ever resurface- or worse yet, they may part ways from all this trauma … but he still had hope that he might have a way to help when James relaxed into the kiss after a moment.
Billy cleared his throat after he had some time to watch James react … paying careful attention to every muscle his arm was resting on. "So, that was nice," he said, to which James quietly agreed, but couldn't keep eye contact. "Please tell me … if I do anything that …"
James glanced up in question and the look of alarm was so clear, there was no way Billy couldn't interpret that as an understanding between them.
"If I do anything that reminds you of them … or of her, please tell me. I can't stand the idea that I might make things worse for you by trying to show you I care."
But where Kate would have once again held her breath or denied any of it, James looked incredibly guilty as he closed his eyes and frowned hard to himself. "I don't even know where to start," he whispered. "I really screwed up."
"What? No," Billy said quickly. "No, it's okay, I promise. I get it. Like we said, we're both having nightmares, and you're so good about helping me, and it's only fair I help you, you know?"
"You really don't need to," James countered quietly, though he'd already started shrinking in on himself. "And it's not you."
"Course I gotta help. I love you. That's the whole point," Billy said. He took a deep breath, let it out, and added, softly, "I know I'm not the one you're trying to get away from, but still - just… tell me if I tread on something, okay?"
James looked like he might argue for a moment, then shook his head silently. "You're not doing anything wrong."
"Well, that's a point in my favor, anyway," Billy said, very carefully and tenderly snuggling up a little better. "You're not doing anything wrong either, you know. I've seen - I saw what Kate went through and … you know … I get it."
"What's that got to do with it?" James asked with a little more voice.
"I mean, same issue, right? Or am I totally off?" Billy picked his head up. "Because, I mean, I'd be happy if she didn't cross those lines…"
"It's not the same." His response was short, tense, and just didn't fit his reaction, either.
Billy had one eye closed as he tipped his head to the side. "Ki-i-i-inda feels the same, seeing as I know you didn't want to do anything with her. I'm totally superior, obviously, and I know you'd never go along with second-best," he tried to tease, hoping that would help lessen it a bit.
But James shook his head. "I don't think we're on the same page. It's not- it's not the same. It's on me."
Billy bit his lip, trying not to say what he was thinking - which was that Katarina had deserved worse than he'd given her if what he was seeing was even a sliver of how much she'd convinced James he was garbage. "So, uh, gonna do a hard disagree here and say you're not even a little bit to blame. But that's a whole discussion I don't think either of us want to get into this soon after it."
"I don't want to talk about it at all," James agreed.
"Okay." Billy took a deep breath and let it out. "Okay, then we'll just leave it at: please tell me if I do anything like her, and I'll fix it. Because - for me - I don't want you to ever think of me and her in the same moment. Fair?"
James didn't argue that one bit, though. "Alright."
The two of them settled in for a little bit, but it wasn't long before James was shifting, trying to get comfortable. And Billy tried to help him. He did. Only to be disappointed when James' response was a dull, weary tone as James told him he just wanted to sleep. Again.
"Don't you want to grab something to nibble on first?" Billy asked since it had been almost all day since he knew James had eaten anything.
"No. You go ahead if you want," James told him, and when Billy moved to give James some space, he curled up into a tight ball, tucked his chin to his chest and started to drift, leaving Billy to his thoughts, wondering what he'd done to set James off.
"Billy, come join us," America called out as Billy passed her and Kate. He had been heading to grab a snack, but seeing as America and Kate were curled up with half the snack food from the pantry in their suite, they were all thinking along the same lines.
"What's going on?" Billy asked as he backtracked to join them.
"Nate got suckered into surfing with your shared uncle, so we're eating everything in sight," America teased him.
"That seems like the kind of thing you'd do at the beach while watching," Billy pointed out.
"Kind of a little light sensitive right now," Kate admitted, waving a hand in front of her eyes. "Mom thinks it's lingering aftereffects."
"Probably," Billy agreed as he plopped down with the two of them. "I'd wish it away but I already got chewed out for even talking about fixing a few things. I wasn't expecting new and more depressing rules to go with the magic after this."
"Yeah, I meant to ask you if you were having a hard time with any… you know… magic consequences?" Kate asked in a wince.
"Not yet that I know of, but I'm sure it's a matter of time," Billy said in a glum tone.
"Well, whatever happens, I'll back you up, okay? I still owe you."
"If you think you owe me, you can share the chocolate," Billy said. "That's all."
"Oh, fine," Kate said, pushing some of the candy his way.
Billy took a few pieces then forced a smile. "Okay, we're square."
"Not really, but it's a start."
"Yes, really," Billy argued. "I'm not … I didn't do anything, really and Tyler healed my hand up, so we're square."
"Yeah, Tyler got me too," Kate said.
"Almost makes up for him kissing your guy," America teased under her breath.
"He tried to evaluate James," Billy said with a smirk. "But that didn't go over too well."
"Once bitten or something like that," Kate laughed.
Billy laughed with her and leaned back. "Not exactly. James almost launched him when he tried to touch him."
Kate leaned back with him, though Billy noticed that she was visibly uncomfortable and sweaty. "Yeah, he, uh, we had a talk, you know? After he fixed stuff."
"Who? You and Tyler?" Billy asked.
"Yeah."
"Okay," Billy said slowly. "What … did you talk about? If I can ask."
If it had been anyone but Billy, Kate would have played it off - but James and Billy… that was a different story. "Well, you know, he knew what he was fixing, right? Asked me if I, you know, wanted him to take the extra time to fix scarring so if me and Nate want kids, you know…"
Billy's eyebrows lifted at that. "I mean, it makes sense that he'd know that kind of thing."
"Yeah, he said he didn't know he could heal scars until the department had him paired up with some horrible evil guy… fixed him up on orders and healed an ugly facial scar while he was at it. The guy was pissed."
"That Tyler made him less ugly? Weirdo."
"Guy was willingly working for the department, so…"
"Yeah, okay, that's fair," Billy agreed. "So … is that all Ty told you?"
"Well, he had me do a few exercises so he knew for sure everything was healed in the right position for archery…" She paused. "I told him, you know, give me the option. Didn't want Nate to think - I mean…"
"Are you sure you want to cram snacks with us when you clearly would rather be kissing your Summers?" Billy teased.
"I don't, actually," Kate said, then made a face as she scratched her arms. "Ugh. I'm itchy."
"Must be going around," Billy grumbled. "Not the itchy part. Do you need something?"
"Probably," Kate said. "I shouldn't be itchy, though. My arms are driving me nuts, but I'm healed up. Ugh." She made another face. "This is stupid."
"What can I do to help?" Billy asked.
America looked between the two of them with narrowed eyes. "Let's get you to the good doc, chica," she said at last. "I know I'm hot, but you're sweating like you just ran a marathon, and we didn't even do anything fun."
"America," Kate started to argue, but America wasn't hearing it.
"We don't know what Viper did, and I'm not taking chances with my best friends, Princess," America said. "Billy agrees with me; don't you, Billy?"
"Um … yes. Considering what she was giving James? Yes."
Kate stuck her tongue out at Billy but let him and America take her to Hank all the same - which was good, because even in the short time it took them to walk down, she felt more clammy than before and tossed her cookies right outside the med lab door.
"Oh my stars," Hank said when he saw the state Kate was in. "What happened, Katie?"
"I don't know," Kate grumbled as America helped her straighten up.
"She's been getting worse all day," America said, frowning and leading Kate somewhere to sit down.
"When did it start?" Hank asked as he started looking over Kate's eyes and started her vitals.
"Little after lunch."
"And it was just today?" Hank asked, frowning deeply.
"No," Billy said, frowning as he put together a pattern. "No, she did this yesterday too. It wasn't this bad, but I remember her being … off when she was curled up with her mom yesterday."
Hank looked pale as he considered a few options. "I'm going to draw some blood," Hank told her gently. "But I'll need a few other samples, too." He looked reluctant to continue his train of thought, but Kate was quick enough on the uptake when she saw the specimen collection he gently sat down for her.
"No," she said - eloquently - as she stared at one test in particular.
"Kate, it's just to rule it out," Hank said.
"No, it's not-" Kate took a breath that rattled. "No, don't make me find out that- because if I am-"
Hank took a moment to take her by the shoulders and look her in the eyes. "Kate, my dear girl, I don't believe that you are. But I do need to test to be sure. Years ago, I could tell with my senses if that was the case, but I'm not nearly as sensitive as others were in that realm. So I rely on science where I can."
Kate nodded, though her hands were shaking. "Yeah," she said softly. "Yeah, okay. I just…"
"There are other possibilities," Hank said gently. "That is just one of many. And not a very likely one."
"Uh-huh." Kate swallowed and then closed her eyes to steady herself. "Right. Okay. Let me just…" She picked up the pregnancy test and pointed vaguely at the bathroom. "Okay. I'll just… i'll be right back."
Billy and America shared a look once Kate disappeared into the bathroom - and then Billy winced when he and everyone else heard Kate throw up again. But neither of them knew what to do or say - all things considered.
While Kate was indisposed, Hank waved Billy over. "Mr. Maximoff, if it's all the same to you, I'd like to test your blood. If one of the far more likely variables is in play with Miss Barton, it's entirely possible you'll be dealing with similar withdrawl symptoms, even if the drug used with you was different."
Billy glanced toward the bathroom and then nodded, though he looked significantly paler. "Okay. I just… I'm not gonna look, okay? Needles are not… my friend…"
"Most of the heroes in our circle of friends feel much the same way," Hank promised as he worked quickly.
"Fair point," Billy said as he sat down close to Hank. He held his breath as Hank cleaned him up, and he looked honestly like he might lose his lunch once Hank got started, too. He did end up putting his head between his legs, but no worse - to his immense relief.
"You okay, Billy?" Kate asked from the doorway of the bathroom. She looked white as a sheet, but seeing Billy with his head between his knees, she pushed off from the door frame and headed over, pushing the test at Hank without looking at it - she couldn't make herself look at it anyway.
"Yeah, just letting Dr. McCoy use me as a control group or something.""
"You look like you've seen a ghost."
"You're one to talk," Billy pointed out, and Kate smiled grimly as she hopped up to sit beside them. When America joined them both, obviously concerned for the two of them, Kate leaned over to rest her head on Billy's shoulder - and Billy leaned against America.
"Pretty sure you'll get lollies later," America teased them under her breath.
"Twinkies," Hank said almost distractedly as he worked quickly to get the tests going and set aside the pregnancy test so it could process while the kids teased each other. "And because I don't discriminate, you're eligible without the poke, Miss Chavez."
"I can pee on something if it's a sticking point," America said without missing a beat. "Rachel will be glad to know I don't have any interdimensional parasites."
"I don't believe you have any more reason than young Billy to worry about that particular test," Hank said dryly.
"Never know. My girlfriend warps reality. So does Billy."
After a few minutes, Hank let out a sigh and sat back on his stool. "The blood tests will take some time to process properly, but at least that's all you have to worry about, Miss Barton."
Kate brought her head up fast. "Yeah?" she asked in a whisper Billy almost couldn't hear even with how close she was to him.
"I told you it was unlikely," Hank said gently. "And that this was just to confirm that I was right."
At that, though, Kate simply started to cry - and she couldn't seem to stop, either, no matter how concerned Billy and America looked. And when Hank took a step closer, that was it - Kate grabbed hold of him around the shoulders and simply fell apart into him, positively bawling her eyes out and letting go of all the pure terror she'd been feeling.
Hank, for his part, simply wrapped her up as tightly as she needed him too - gently at first and then in a warm bear hug when she clutched onto him harder the longer she was crying. He couldn't have imagined what she was feeling, but he was relieved beyond words for her sake. Yes, she would have to deal with lingering affects from what he suspected was an addictive reaction to Viper's poisons, but that could be dealt with.
And Kate - Kate just cried until she couldn't cry anymore and simply let Hank curl around her. She wasn't in a hurry to go anywhere else anytime soon, either. Hank had always been there for her when she was growing up. He'd cleaned up her scraped knees and team-related injuries alike. And as much as she didn't like being touched, being surrounded by big, fuzzy arms? That was different. That felt safer.
And considering how much she knew she could not have handled being pregnant, especially because of a complete Hydra creep, how close she knew she'd been to losing her tenuous grip on sanity… she needed that. She really did.
After having gotten a small upgrade in how medically cleared he was to do things, James began isolating more completely, which meant he had become an expert at finding the spots around the palace that he could tuck into that had both a view and a solid means to avoid just about everyone. Especially after Natasha had come after him determined to undo brainwashing that James was sure hadn't happened. Conditioning, sure, but … brainwashing sounded too hokey for him to believe.
He couldn't evade Billy, of course, because Billy would just wish one of them to the other if he got tired of looking - and he did. Often. But that morning Billy was off in one of the courtyards on the other side of the grounds with Annie's nieces and Alex's kids staging a water balloon fight. So to keep from being involved in that, James took a cup of coffee and tucked into a rarely used balcony that overlooked the ocean.
It was a good place for distraction anyhow… the warm ocean breeze carried the familiar scent of the open sea- salty and wild, with notes of seaweed and the life it sustained clinging to it. But … that scent that close to the sea overpowered the smell of blood that clung to him. And it diluted the strong, acrid smell of antiseptic.
He had the supplies he needed to clean and re-wrap his hands since his healing was still a mess and he needed to keep on top of his hands just because the stupid wraps kept getting jacked up as he slept. Yes, he knew he needed to eat more, but he had no appetite and no desire to do anything of the sort. Yes, he knew he needed to drink more water to counter the blood loss, but again … he had no desire to do so, and if he was being honest, he was going deeper and deeper into a severe depression. But being honest with himself would mean admitting that a few things that had happened around Viper and Katarina weren't entirely on him. Or on him at all, for at least one topic.
He wasn't ready to face that, though. So instead, he decided to focus on the stinging sensation that came with cleaning half-healed wounds.
In the spot he'd chosen, no one could see him from inside the palace - not when he was around the corner from the open doorway and well out of the line of sight. So while he was so well hidden, James kept quiet and began to work on cleaning his stitches and re-wrapping his hands with his coffee slowly cooling next to him. He had managed to evade his family, Billy's family, and the Hales … so far.
Unfortunately, for as tucked in as he was, he also had no quick escape should someone manage to find him and decide to join him. So naturally, the idea of a quick exit was next to impossible when he was halfway through cleaning up the first hand when Annie happened to stumble upon his hiding spot.
"Would you like some help with those?" Annie offered softly. "I've helped Anton and some of his friends on a few occasions; I'm decent with basic first aid."
"Ah, no," James said, shaking his head lightly. "It's not busted knuckles. I'm just cleaning it up a little before I wrap it again. Thanks, though." He was taking his time - partly because he didn't want to have to do it twice, and partly because even saline or clear water stung, and the sting helped to distract him from the thoughts he was trapped with. He needed to be in control of that much, anyhow.
Annie nodded and sat down next to him. "You know," she said after a long period of silence and watching his hands shake from the pain as he insisted on doing it himself, no matter how awkward it was, "the island is beautiful, but you can always ask Billy to take you somewhere else if this place is hard to stay in."
"It's fine," James said flatly.
"I know you love that boy, but you're allowed to take breaks. Just because you'll live here with him eventually… well, you don't have to jump in with both feet, is what I'm sayin', I guess. I just hate to see you look so torn up."
"Just how it is," James said, though he didn't even try for a false smile like he usually would have. "And I don't know if that's how it'd go anyhow."
"You planning to have him commute to New York while you're at Stark Industries?" Annie asked with a sparkling smile. "It could be done, I suppose…"
James hedged at that though. "I don't know that's an option either."
"Well, why not? You love him, don't you?" Annie pointed out.
"That's not all that matters," James said, keeping his focus on his task. "It's not enough."
"Sure it is. The rest is window dressing." Annie waved her hand.
"It's …. There's a lot of drama. Most, if not all of it's my fault, so … probably not even something worth discussing."
Annie shook her head. "Nonsense," she said firmly. "It's not your fault you were kidnapped. That's out of your control."
James shook his head. "It's not that … that was going to happen anyhow. Sooner or later."
"You sound like your father," Annie said in a sigh. "He's been worried about the worst since the day y'all were his responsibility."
"Yeah, I know," James said, then rubbed the bridge of his nose. "It's not going to get any better. Not really fair to him. I told him he could tap out. He did all he could - for me, anyhow."
"Life's like that." Annie looked out toward the view of the waves from their tucked-away spot. "Wasn't too long ago I'd've been killed for this view. I say it's getting better."
"Yeah, but there's still a few reasons I tuck up tight even here," James said, then turned her way with a raised eyebrow. "Not really very popular around here. Adds to the mess I leave in my wake."
Annie shook her head. "To hear my nieces tell it, you only leave pranks and fun in your wake. They adore you, you know."
"I blame that on Officer Wright's storytelling skills." He sighed heavily. "Disregarding this latest mess, the last I heard, the island is split," he told her. "And general opinion isn't real hot when you get into specifics. I'm too close to the crown prince. That's a hazard. You should keep an ear open for what the theories are and why I'm here." He picked up his mug. "Word on the street is that it's not because I'm in love with Billy."
"I don't abide by gossip," Annie said firmly.
James pursed his lips, weighed his answer, then finished a drink of his coffee. "It's not just gossip. And, really it's based in fact, anyhow. As idiotic as I feel saying it, his image matters. What people think will color how he's viewed publicly and I don't want to tarnish that. I probably already have. Murderer. Assassin. What's the difference, at this point?"
"Sweetheart, there's a big difference," Annie said gently. "And people are smart enough to understand the gulf between those two things. Give them some credit."
"I killed Magneto in his own throne room," James said flatly.
"Well, where would you rather have killed him - in Manhattan while he threatened people?"
"I didn't want to kill him at all," James answered easily.
Annie pointed at him. "And that right there is why you're not a killer."
"On the other hand," he said slowly. "When I left with Nate, I wasn't intending to do anything but point the way. And I lost it. Clint can't even say for sure how many Hydra soldiers I killed and I don't remember one of them."
"Scott explained that part to me too," Annie said.
"I don't feel bad about the soldiers."
Annie saluted him with her coffee. "Damn straight. Rapists don't get sympathy."
James paused at that. "Well that was the first one anyhow. The others..."
"And Scott told me about what happens when you go berserk. No different than Anton's little sister - ended up dead before she could grow up and took a bunch of people with her when her powers got to be too much."
James frowned deeper. "It's not the same. And I'm not looking for a pass."
"Alright." Annie set her coffee down and watched the waves for a while longer. "You know, when your father's alright with it, I hope you'll be there when we get married."
James turned toward her for a moment and watched her as she played with the edge of her shorts. "If I'm able, I will."
"I'll hold you to that," she said. "I know it'll take him a while, considering how his last loves went. But I thought you should know I'm sure of what I want."
"Sooner would be better than later," James said softly.
"It's entirely up to him," Annie said. "But then, I make decisions fast once I know it's right, so I'm not surprised I got there first."
"That's ridiculous," James said. "I'll be old and gray before Dad realizes what's going on."
"I think if that's the case, your brother will go out of his mind," Annie laughed.
"Yeah, Nate can't live his whole life waiting on that," James said. "Don't wait for Dad. Go get him. He'll like it."
Annie laughed out loud. "Oh, I like you."
They fell into a slightly more comfortable silence for a long while before James finally gathered up his things and paused for just a moment to try and get something across to her. Before Viper had worked him over, he probably would have given her a little kiss on the cheek, or a quick hug, but that just wasn't the case anymore and the thought of initiating physical contact had him on the edge of a panic attack. He still looked like he wanted to do something, though. And then he surprised Annie when he spoke up instead. "Thanks for taking care of my Dad."
She smiled warmly at him. "Thanks for sharing him with me. I know the four of you mean the world to each other."
But James really didn't know how to react to that beyond trying and failing to smile reasonably before he just left, and Annie frowned after him for a long time before she got up as well - to go and find Scott.
As it happened, Scott had just managed to get himself detangled from Alex's kids and was trying to get a bite to eat in peace, so Annie took the opportunity to swoop in and redirect him - grabbing some food to take with them to their suite along the way.
"I think James is finally warming up to me," she told him once they had sat down to eat - without really any preamble or warning as to what she'd be talking about. "And if he hadn't been through hell to get there, I'd be more pleased."
Scott nearly choked on the bite of sandwich in his mouth. "What?" he coughed. "He's barely talking to Billy."
"Oh, well, he didn't talk much," Annie said, backtracking a bit when Scott looked so genuinely shocked. "Really, I just told him not to listen to Erik's old worshippers and let him know how much I appreciate him and his siblings being so supportive of us dating."
"How exactly did that come up?" Scott asked, since of the few things on the lists of discussion, that wasn't anywhere close to what he thought would get his son to talk to anyone.
"Us dating?" Annie waved her hand. "Oh, well, he seemed uncomfortable when I agreed with his handling of sexual predators, so I tried to lighten the mood telling him - well, I let him know I love your family and appreciate being welcomed into it, more or less."
But that had Scott thinking. "Uncomfortable how?"
"I think he thought I'd be more upset with him, but really, Scott, how many decent people do you know who would mourn creeps like that?"
"This is the kid that got picked up by your brother in law for beating the hell out of a stalker in the street."
"Exactly." Annie touched her nose and then pointed at Scott. "I thought we'd be on the same page."
"You should be," Scott said, frowning slightly to himself as he thought it over. For Scott at least, there were a few puzzle pieces that were falling into place, even without Rachel handing it to him. "He's never had any tolerance for that kind of thing. Even when he was in Kindergarten, he beat another boy up for stealing a kiss from a little girl and making her cry…"
Annie frowned to match him, watching him over the top of her sandwich for a long time and replaying the conversation in her own mind. "Tell me what you're thinking," she said at last, because she might have had a therapist for a brother, but superhero trauma was above her paygrade, and she wanted to know if she was following the right threads.
"I think James feels guilty about something he shouldn't."
Annie put down her food. "Oh."
"He won't talk to anyone, doesn't want to be touched. At all," Scott said, starting down the list for her benefit as much as his own. "He's not taking care of himself, he's shying away from Billy. And he damn near got himself killed trying to avenge Kate."
"Well, of course," Annie said, trying to rally when she could see that Scott was trusting her and pulling her into James's circle of support. "It's totally wrong, but if I'm following you right, and you think he and Kate have the same kind of trauma, he'd see her issues as more legitimate than his own. Craig's had to talk a few male clients into believing they were abused or assaulted just because this damn stigma for men is so heavy," she added, her eyes narrowed.
"And he's always had a problem drawing that line in the sand with people putting their hands on him," Scott added as he thought it over, and immediately started to wonder how much Rachel knew, too. She had to know.
"He's had a hard time seeing his worth since I've known him, Scott," Annie said in a sigh. "This isn't helping matters."
"No. And any progress he made is probably entirely gone now."
"And he's recovering on an island where some of the citizens still think he's a cold-blooded assassin who shouldn't be allowed near the crown prince."
"Not as many as he thinks," Scott said.
"But more than Billy thinks," Annie said. "I love that boy, but he doesn't hear what gets whispered when he's not around."
"Rose colored glasses," Scott said, almost smirking at his own private joke.
Annie paused and then pointed at him. "Are you - are you smiling, Scott Summers? I don't think I've seen you do that in ages!" When that had Scott grinning, she broke into a smile of her own. "Listen, now that we know what he's been through, we can support him. But you're going to turn gray at this rate. Leave him be for the moment."
"I still have to figure out how to talk him into letting Natasha undo some of the brainwashing," Scott said. "This absolutely complicates things."
"So tell Natasha what you know. Lord knows she probably suspects, given the way those three have been acting."
"I don't know if any of us were suspecting that with James," Scott said.
"Because of Kate?" Annie asked. "Because she was the only girl?"
"Maybe," Scott admitted, then sighed heavily as he swore. "I should have considered it when Kate and Billy came back saying how Viper and her daughter wanted to keep James as a symbol. How they planned to force him to marry Katarina. Viper had done more or less the same thing to Logan. I don't know how involved they were though. It was different." Scott paused as he considered it. "I think. Mostly."
"You think." Annie leaned back in her seat. "Alright."
"They were married for a short time. Before he met K. Logan called it a means of fulfilling an honor oath. Hated every second of it, but felt like he had no choice," Scott explained roughly. "All the women in his life were beyond mad about it, but I don't know … Logan made it sound like it was just legal."
Annie pressed her lips together. "Mm." She let the sentiment hang in the air, watching as Scott turned steadily paler the more he thought about it. "Sounds to me like the rotten apple didn't fall far with Katarina and her snake of a mother," she said. "And like I told James, rapists don't get sympathy. I'd throw Billy a parade for what he did if I didn't think he'd wish himself invisible."
"I don't think he realizes what he did."
"He'll catch on. He's too smart not to, and like you said, James doesn't want to be touched," Annie pointed out. "As much as he'll hate it, your son can't hide this."
"He'll still try," Scott said. "And pawn it off as from the torture."
"And he'll figure out when he's ready who he wants to talk to eventually," Annie said. "I have full faith in him. He'll be alright; he has a good support system."
"If you let him hear you say that, sounding that much like your brother, he'll stop talking to you," Scott teased.
"Oh, like you don't pick things up from your brother. I hear Alaska in your accent every time the two of you get together, Mr. Summers. Not my fault mine's a therapist."
"Yeah, but my son would rather talk to you than him," Scott said.
"I'll do my best to live up to that trust," Annie promised.
"You don't have to do anything," Scott said. "If he keeps being somewhat open, just be you." He didn't mention that it might have been a one-off situation. Not when Annie was relaxing into discussion. He reached over to take her hand, then let the conversation shift naturally to less-volatile topics, but when things started to fall into comfortable silence, he made a point to reach out to Rachel.
When were you going to tell me what Katarina did to James?
Did he talk to you? Rachel projected back, scrambling to focus.
To Annie. That's not the point when I know you saw what he's been through.
Okay, I wasn't expecting that, Rachel started as she looked for a way to not argue with him. Okay. Alright. I saw - but I wanted to give him a chance to get there himself when it was so fresh.
And you didn't think after he and Nate went back to Hydra this was something I should know about?
In my defense, you looked like you were going to have a stroke. And he's trying to repress so hard, I don't know how to say anything without triggering him into totally hating me. He already doesn't trust me, Dad.
Rachel, I'm your father. I'm his father too. And it's my job to worry about you kids. It's not your job to protect me; it's the other way around.
I'm going to go ahead and disagree. We're a family and we're supposed to take care of each other.
Then let me take care of you kids, Scott insisted. You said yourself James doesn't trust you right now. I can help.
Okay. Great. How are we going to bring that up to him, hmm?
Scott pinched the bridge of his nose. We'll let him come to us, but at the very least we can give him support tailored to-
That's not going to happen, Dad. He won't talk to anyone about any of this - especially that aspect. He's half convinced he shouldn't be seeing Billy right now because he thinks he was cheating on him with Katarina.
Doesn't mean we should all be trying to help him without all the facts. Don't keep things from me, Rachel. That's not your call to make.
He could hear her mental sigh. Okay. What else do you need to know or want confirmed?
I want to know if there's anything else you're trying to shield from me. On any of them.
I'm going to start working with Kate soon. We suspect brainwashing on each of them, we just don't know what they're conditioned into yet.
I figured that one out, actually, but thank you for confirming it.
I'm still trying to find the balance to sift through James' head, Rachel said. Because unless we can get him to trust us enough to let in the good telepaths, I need a boost to get through without doing damage.
Start with Billy and Kate. I know it's small, but honestly, just seeing those two get out the other side safely with you might help more than you think. Concrete proof.
That was kind of the idea, but since James saw everything - or nearly everything - I was trying to get details or direction from him for those two.
That… might not be a bad idea. Scott paused. But be careful, Rach. That much misery might be a little too tempting for the Phoenix to pass up.
It absolutely is, Rachel agreed, confirming that almost too fast.
And… how's that going? Scott asked cautiously.
I was hoping you'd have good news for me on him discussing things.
Rach… you've got to take breaks too.
Sure. Right after you.
I don't have an interdimensional creature bent on destroying worlds waiting to seize on misery and anger, so… you first.
Get him to talk and I'll take a break.
That wasn't a suggestion, Rachel.
Neither was mine. I can't just stop when I know he's hurting, either.
Mine is more feasible. A break while he's sleeping or someone else is stepping in.
Oh, I am doing that, Dad. If I was trying to work with him all the time, we'd all be burnt toast by now.
And yet the second I asked if the Phoenix was too tempted… you need to take more time, Rachel.
You wanted honesty. So honestly, I'm only really able to try with James for maybe ten, fifteen minutes at a shot twice a day.
Scott let out a breath. Alright, he said at last. Just… be careful. Please.
Love you too, Dad.
Chapter 99: Parallel Paths
Chapter Text
For as worried as Nate was about his girlfriend, he was also worried about his brother. He just… didn't have a concrete way to help James the way he could help Kate. With Kate, he could be there with her, watching out for her when she needed someone around to remind her that she was safe. With James, he couldn't really just… kind of… be there. He knew Billy was helping - or trying to, anyway. Rachel was peeking and using some fire to get into his mind to see things she refused to share. He knew his dad had been trying to talk to James too and that James had more or less shut him out. And he knew Annie was thrilled to bits that James had decided to open up a little with her. She was projecting that all over the place. Even if it had only been the one time so far.
But Nate… really didn't know how to approach anything to do with James being hurt, if he was honest. James had always been his indestructible, unstoppable big brother. He'd looked up to the guy for as long as he had memories. The fact that James had nearly died from the little mission they'd run was terrifying. Especially when Nate was sure that James really hadn't cared what happened to himself during that run.
And yeah, James had been depressed before. He'd been withdrawn before, too. But he'd never been traumatized so severely on top of being depressed, withdrawn, and just plain hurt. Not that Nate remembered, anyhow. He didn't know what to do with that.
So, he figured he'd let people who at least thought they had an idea of what James needed do their thing. He'd keep treating James the way he usually did. Maybe, he reasoned, his brother needed someone who would act normal around him.
When Nate caught up with his big brother, he was curled up and passed out - as was usually the case. But also as usual, when Nate came into the room his brother was sharing with Billy- long before he got close enough to sit down, James woke up. Like Kate, he slept lightly - and seemed to be aware the second anyone was in his space.
Nate grimaced and waved with the tips of his fingers. "Hey," he said. "I can come back if you're hard up for sleep…"
"What's wrong?" James asked, half pushing himself upright already.
Nate let out a long breath and rubbed the back of his neck. "Looking for advice, actually," he admitted.
"Okay …" James raised an eyebrow at that. "Are you sure you're in the right room?"
"Last I checked, you're the only big brother I have," Nate pointed out with a quiet smirk.
"You never know. But sure …all I've got right now is how not to shave and ignore your hair."
"Luckily, Dad covered the personal hygiene section of puberty, so you're fine," Nate teased.
"Then you know all I could ever teach you, grasshopper," James said before he threw a pillow at Nate and dropped back down - though he wasn't trying to sleep yet, instead just trying to get comfortable while they talked.
"Actually…" Nate held his breath and then let it out. "I was hoping you could help me with Kate."
"I thought I did." It was the closest thing to a tease that James could manage in days, even if it didn't hit like it usually would. "Turned out spectacular I'd say. Still healing the bullet wounds from it."
"Yeah, I just…" Nate gestured vaguely with both hands then pulled out the chair from Billy's desk to sit down. "I mean, you know - like, actually know - what happened with her. And I'm trying - I really am - to stay out of her head because she's already pissed at Rachel, and she's mad at me for peeking in the first place. And I feel like I'm just making everything worse."
"She's avoiding me, too," James said as he rubbed his shoulder where he'd been shot. It was healing, but not to a pace James was used to and it ached every time he moved still. "Because she knows that I know what she doesn't know."
"Yeah, she doesn't want to know," Nate agreed.
"Which works because neither do I."
"Yeah, doesn't change that you both probably need to know? But that's not the point here," Nate said.
"Okay, what is the point? I don't understand how I can help. But I will help if I can."
"Dr. Blue made her take a pregnancy test, and she's kind of… a wreck," Nate said, wincing through every word.
"She's not pregnant," James said thickly. "No way."
"I know - and the test was negative too," Nate clarified, then let out a frustrated sigh. "It's just that … every time there's some new wrinkle or some new problem or - anytime she feels like she's losing control again, I can't get her to breathe. And I think I'm doing okay? Just letting her get it out and being there for her and - I just - you know what happened and I was hoping you knew what I'm doing wrong here, because she's still so…"
"You're not doing anything wrong," James said. "Unless you're trying to assault her in a smelly, dirty cell, in which case, we need to have a long talk that will involve a lot of hitting."
"Okay, that's a very low bar, but I'm clearing it," Nate said.
For a long moment, James thought it all over as Nate fell into anxious silence. His foot was jiggling as he waited to hear anything helpful his big brother might come up with. "What do you say to her when she starts to freak out?" James asked slowly, once again sitting upright with his shoulders shrugged up to his ears as he tried to actually troubleshoot for him.
"Mostly that I'm here and she's safe." Nate frowned as he watched James scrunching in on himself.
James wrinkled his nose as he thought about it for a moment. "Can you go simpler?" James asked. "More direct? Something that doesn't remind her of what happened to her in Madripoor? Because … 'I'm here and you're safe' is a reminder that you weren't and she wasn't." James held up both hands. "It's not an accusation, and knowing you, you're probably doing everything text book right, but … how many of those textbooks were written by someone who lived through something like this?"
Nate leaned back. "Huh," he said - because he was still processing the idea and it was such a James angle to take.
"Maybe just … 'Katie, I love you'," James suggested. "It's the truth. Right now."
Nate nodded a few times as he thought it over. "Thanks, James," he said.
"Sure," James said. "If you ever decide you want to go just … erasing memories, let me know."
"Ah, no," Nate said, wincing. "That does more damage than-"
"Yeah, yeah, I know," James said. "Just not sure what harm it'd do at this point. Not like there's much worth saving in there anymore."
"I would if it would help, though," Nate swore. "You know that, right? If I thought tampering with your head like that wouldn't have any side effects, I'd undo everything."
"It's okay, Nate. It was just a smart ass comment," James said. "You'd have to see what I saw to nuke it and I don't want you to deal with any of that."
"Hey, you're my brother. You know I've always got your back, right?"
"Yeah, same goes for you, but … for me, you've got nothing to cover right now."
"Yeah." Nate paused. "Short of erasing memories, is there anything I can do?" he asked, knowing it was an incredible long shot when his brother rarely felt like he could ask for help from his family for small things. It was one of the things Nate hated that James did since they were kids, and this only magnified that.
"I don't know," James admitted. "I can't think of anything helpful, but then, I can't think of anything generally right now, either."
"Well, if you ever feel like video games or pizza…"
"Nah, I'll just crawl in a hole and wait. Let nature take its course."
"You're hilarious," Nate said as he got to his feet. "I'll let you sleep. Thanks for the advice - really." When James leaned over to start to get comfortable again, he couldn't resist adding, "But, you know, if you're not going to feed the healing and just sleep all day instead, I'll be the bigger brother for once and I'll never let you live it down."
"Still not better looking, so go ahead. You need something. I'll try scrawny out."
Nate laughed and rolled his eyes on the way out the door. "Love you too."
Kate didn't actually want Rachel looking through her memories - she didn't want any telepaths in her head, if she was honest - but she also didn't want Nate freaking out any further, and her mom had insisted that she at least try to find out what she couldn't remember. So, she wound up knocking on Rachel's door after dinner, betting that at least she could try to offer a quick peek and then leave with the excuse of not wanting to intrude on America and Rachel's alone time. Or something. Just let Rachel see it sucked and then move on with her life with her paranoid boyfriend.
So, of course, America wasn't even there when Rachel invited Kate in.
Kate sighed and ran one hand through her hair as she looked around the room. "So… ah… I don't actually remember large chunks of time, and it's making your brother crazy. So can you do something about that so he'll calm down?"
"Absolutely," Rachel agreed. "Do you want to get a cup of coffee before we start? Maybe you can tell me what you do remember before we think about anything telepathic."
"Coffee would be great, thanks," Kate said and sat down on the edge of Rachel's bed.
"Perfect," Rachel said with a smile. "Have you gotten the nickel tour already?"
"Yeah, and I gave Billy grief the whole time about where I was and wasn't allowed to be as a human," Kate said with a troublemaking smirk on.
"I thought you were cleared to go just about everywhere," Rachel said with a frown.
"Oh, I am. But I had to give him grief because if I don't tease him, he thinks he's really Magneto, so I remind him he's not by pointing out I'm, like, actually allowed on Genosha now," Kate said, gesturing broadly.
"Ah. See, I thought he was getting over that with James convincing him otherwise," Rachel said, pulling her along to go get some coffee.
"Yeah, that's helping," Kate said. "But you didn't see him after he killed Katarina and Daniel."
"Well not right after, no," Rachel agreed. "I was stuck waiting for you three to get out of decontamination and Hank's dastardly clutches."
"He's been a mess since the second he cast that spell," Kate said. "James is helping, yeah, but he's helping him like Nate's helping me. Doesn't undo what happened."
"No," Rachel agreed. "And it probably isn't much help when James is such a mess, either." She sighed. "Boys are so high maintenance."
"I hear that," Kate said. "If your brother wasn't so hot, I'd give up on guys entirely."
"If I got a nickel for every time I heard that in reference to one brother or the other," Rachel said, rolling her eyes. "Doesn't change the fact that they're both idiots."
"They are. Billy too sometimes, but the boys have got each other, and that's a big help, seeing as they were being played against each other," Kate pointed out.
"Okay, what do you know?" Rachel asked as she set up their iced coffee.
Kate crossed her arms and leaned back. "Katarina outright told Billy he was leverage against James, and Viper kept James close enough for us to hear him - until the last couple days, when we couldn't. So, yeah, it sucked."
"We can circle around to that later," Rachel said. "But … you know Katarina lied, right?"
"Every time she opened her mouth," Kate said.
"So … you know that she was trying to use Billy for more than that," Rachel said.
"Yeah, I heard her trying to turn him into a Hydra puppet. Doesn't mean she wasn't also playing them."
"No," Rachel said, shaking her head. "It was more than that." She held up both hands. "Okay, so … I maybe haven't told anyone what I know, but … I know a lot. I totally peeked. But not at you or Billy."
Kate frowned and took a step back. "Then you know more than I do," she said guardedly.
"Don't get me wrong, I didn't dig through everything. I got a little … so … alright, the whole fire alarm thing at the tower was me after I peeked at James the first time. So I went digging around our prisoner. And what I can tell you for sure is that you and Billy both need some professional intervention for what Viper did to you. And I don't mean a therapist. I need a better shot at Vojteck to get details, but … if not a telepath, then your mom would probably be extremely helpful."
Kate narrowed her eyes. "Mom?"
"Yep."
Kate let her hands fall to her sides, drumming her fingers against her legs as she paced a small path and then turned back to Rachel. "I don't - if they -" She couldn't put words to the genuine panic she felt at the idea of being turned into a weapon like her mom had been, but that was exactly what Rachel was suggesting, and it terrified her. "No."
"And that's another part of it," Rachel said pointing at her. "I don't have the fine details, but if you don't want me to look, I can just tell your mom. I'm sure she can figure it out without the telepathic help."
Kate swallowed a few times. "I don't know," she said.
"Billy needs it too," Rachel said. "And I'd bet anything in the world James also does. But there was a lot to sift through there. The three of you were screwed with when you were awake, but in your case, and Billy's you were allowed to sleep, so there are large spots of rest in your memories. So it's easier to sift through. If that makes any sense."
"Yeah, two weeks straight is a lot to look at," Kate said, though she was still obviously shaken.
"It's easier if there's other indicators in the mind, too … like hypnotism sessions. Those would be quick to spot."
Kate nodded. "And memory gaps?" she offered softly. "God. Rachel, I don't… oh man."
"It's okay," Rachel promised with a warm smile. "Totally something we can work with. And fast, too."
"Please do," Kate said tightly. "If there's something in there…" She trailed off, still reeling, projecting to Rachel the pure fear that came with knowing she was violated and that she wasn't safe to be around.
"Kate, I know," Rachel said, then offered her a hand. "We've got your back."
"Thanks," Kate said, holding on a bit tighter than she meant to.
Rachel waited for Kate to half focus on something else before she dipped into her subconscious and started looking for trouble. And as she'd predicted, it was pretty easy to find, even if it was tucked in behind some trauma that Rachel was very sure Nate would have panicked and tried not to look too closely at. But Rachel had seen snippets from James' memory, so some things … they just didn't line up the same. The order of events was wrong, and Kate's false memory seemed to gloss over Vojteck being the one to inject her each time she went back to her cell. Maybe it was perspective, maybe it was Kate's drugged up state of consciousness coloring how things had happened, but … it was terrifying and horrible - and exactly the kind of cover someone would use to hide a trigger phrase. "Gotcha," Rachel said under her breath, half staring past Kate in the kitchen while she went to work.
Outside of Kate's mind, it didn't look like much to anyone walking through the kitchen, though both Natasha and Scott knew what was going on when they saw the expression Rachel was wearing - complete with fire in the centers of her pupils as she stared off into the distance. And then … after a few moments, Rachel's expression shifted to a mild frown. All at once, she blinked a few times quickly, and turned to Kate with a smile. "Well that was … not a fun one."
"Okay," Natasha said, frowning between the two girls. "Tell me what's going on."
Rachel turned to Kate to get permission before she'd continue. So much had gone on, she just felt it was incredibly important to do that much at least. But Kate just shrugged and held her arms close to herself.
"So," Rachel said in a matter of fact tone. "Our ex-prisoners need a de-programming or two. Kate had a hidden trigger phrase. When she feels like looking deeper, I can make sure there isn't more, but … this … was a nasty one." She held up one hand toward Natasha. "It's gone now. And we should be happy they didn't have a competent telepath to help hide their crimes, frankly."
Natasha's eyes were narrowed nearly to slits, and she came to stand beside Kate - not yet touching her when Kate was halfway curled up already but there all the same. Tell me more. Project if you'd rather keep Kate from hearing it, though information always helped me, and I know your father will want to hear it too.
That'll be up to Kate, Rachel said.
"Kate," Natasha prompted softly, and Kate let out a breath but didn't meet Natasha's gaze.
"I'll be alright, Mom," Kate said. "Rachel is going to undo it."
"I'd like to know what she's doing in there," Natasha said, one eyebrow raised, and Kate shrugged again.
"Technically, Katie," Rachel said gently. "I already undid it."
"Well, good." Kate bit her lip and finally looked up at Rachel. "Thanks."
"I'd like you to rest up a little bit then, if you're up to it, I can look for more later. But I got the big one for sure. I don't know if she thought she could use you for more than one trick. I… need to research that a little more."
"What was the one trick?" Natasha asked, her hand on Kate's shoulder.
"She was supposed to draw Steve out," Rachel said. "As part of Katarina's ascension." She looked at her father. "Assassinate Captain America for the new Hydra head when she had her Hydra Quinceañera or whatever. She was going to be presented with James as her … well, they were calling him her husband to be. Viper wanted her to show up with everything she needed to rule supreme."
Scott frowned deeper. "We'll need to look at Billy as soon as possible in that case," he said.
"Yeah," Rachel said, with a nod. "But … I kind of need more time with James first…"
"Right." Scott let out a long sigh. "Pull Nate in if you need the backup."
"Probably going to need him and Betsy, if I'm being honest," Rachel said. "I nearly lost my grip when I peeked the first time. Hard head."
"Genetic," Scott said with the ghost of a smirk.
"I thought it was learned," Rachel had to tease.
"It was," Natasha agreed. "And it wasn't."
"If I can get them to boost me … they don't need to go with," Rachel said. "And I'm a little more careful in James' mind than Nate or Betsy are capable of. Its a lot easier when he's asleep, too. Comparatively."
Scott nodded along to all of what Rachel said. "Alright. Make sure the other two know your concerns about the programming. We'll need to tread carefully here. Viper never does just one thing."
"No, and I got the jist of what she was leaning toward with James," Rachel said. "I just don't know how much she got done … considering how Nate said he was acting on that run, though…"
"Still," Scott said and ran a hand down his face. "Anything we can do to fix it…"
"On it," Rachel promised.
"What are the chances of him cooperating if you ask first?" Natasha suggested. "This could just as easily blow up in your faces if you move forward without trying that much first."
"I'll talk to him," Rachel said. "I'm going to try to grab him and Billy at the same time - so he knows this is a larger issue." She pushed her hair out of her face. "We're going to fix this, Dad."
For as much as Rachel knew Kate hated dredging up the memories of what had been done to her, it wasn't easy for Rachel, either. It hadn't taken her long to realize that one of the many reasons Viper and her family had given the guards free rein with Kate was to hide the trauma they were using to reinforce the conditioning from telepaths. Vojteck and Daniel knew Kate was dating a telepath, so what better way to keep a telepath from looking than to hide what they were doing behind phrases said immediately before something like that?
Rachel herself was already having nightmares, because on top of what she saw with Kate, she'd seen Billy tortured while being exposed to memory triggers related to his family, particularly Lorna. Poor Billy was going to be jumpy around his aunt for a long time, because he now knew he was supposed to have killed her once his mom was dead, making him the ruler of Genosha and therefore a Hydra figurehead.
And James… well, Rachel didn't like to think about what she'd seen in James's head at all if she could help it. The nonstop torture was bad enough, but the way Viper tore down everything that made James who he was, from his conscience to his intellect, the way she tried to turn him into nothing but an angry animal on a leash… It made her sick.
Still, she knew she was one of the few people those three trusted to even make a difference (even though James didn't actually trust her anymore - which was itself something Viper had done to him that made Rachel's blood boil to think about). And there weren't that many telepaths in the world who hadn't been killed or co opted by bad guys that were capable of cracking into James' head, so she needed to do this. Especially since she could see how badly the three of them were shaken.
Besides, Kate and Billy were basically family by that point. Those two meant the world to her brothers. And the fact that she could see the way neither one of them trusted themselves, the way both of them seemed lost and unsure of their decisions… well, that had to stop.
So, after taking a rest from helping Billy, Rachel went back to work, this time in Kate's mind. She expected to have to deal with more trauma and more misremembered triggers, of course, but this time around, she was intrigued by a glimpse of memory involving Vojteck.
The memory had to have taken place not long after the first time one of the guards had taken advantage of Kate. She was still in her cell, curled up with her knees to her chin and shaking from head to toe. There was blood on the floor, only some of it hers, from where she had tried to fight back, but… she was a wreck, and she was alone.
So, naturally, that was when Vojteck had arrived to let himself into her cell. He crossed the room quickly and quietly, and he didn't say anything until after he was cleaning up her injuries. "I don't expect you to trust it, but I have some medicine that will help with the pain," Vojteck told her in a hushed tone.
"Sure," she said, her eyes narrowed. "That's likely."
He looked up at her, but kept working. "If you prefer to suffer through it, no one will be the wiser anyhow. I am trying, Miss Barton."
"Trying to what, exactly?" Kate said, pulling her arm back from him when he had finished cleaning the long scrape from her elbow down to her wrist.
"Trying to help you to live through this," he said.
She pressed her lips into a thin line. "Yeah, that sounds like crap to me. So what do you really want, here?"
He looked more impatient than before. "If you don't want any help, then I won't give it," he said, his tone closer to a hiss.
"I just don't trust the tradeoff," Kate shot right back.
"Then go ahead and let it get infected," he replied dispassionately.
Kate narrowed her eyes at him for some time before she huffed and held out her other hand to him, which was bloody as well. "Fine. Lord knows I don't want whatever's growing in these cells."
He handed her the bottle of pills - clearly marked as to what they were, or said they were. And to Kate's genuine surprise, she didn't feel any different, just about the way she expected to feel after a few Advil, really.
"So, you're being nice to me now," Kate said when she was sure she wasn't drugged.
"And you're acting surprised," Vojteck said.
"Wouldn't you be?"
"Absolutely," he agreed.
"Okay, so that's established." Kate tucked her knees back up to her chin. "Now what? I doubt you're here to give me a nail file so I can MacGuyver out of here."
"I could, but the guards would shoot you," he said.
"So, again, what do you want? Because nice as you are being right now, I'm not going round two."
Vojteck leaned toward her as if he was telling her a secret, and she cringed back. "I am not that desperate."
"Okay then," Kate said, though she was still too close to what had happened not to show every inch of her relief.
"I don't agree with what happened to you," Vojteck said. "As odd as that may sound, it's true. Just take it as a token moment. It may not happen again."
The memory ended there, but Rachel could see others connected to it, so she peeked into those as well, somehow unsurprised to see that Kate was exhibiting in those memories the same symptoms she'd shown after the rescue had calmed down. Kate had more anxious energy than usual, and she kept scratching her arms and then clenching her hand in a fist, trying to remind herself not to do it and risk opening up another wound. And Rachel could see, even if Kate didn't notice the pattern when there were so many other traumas and drugs in play, that the withdrawal symptoms were better when Vojteck paid her visits to "help."
It was the kind of basic reinforcement Natasha had told Rachel to look for, too. Positive feelings or even release from negative feelings associated with a person or goal. Throw in massive trauma with a trigger phrase built into it, and Rachel wasn't sure where Vojteck had been leading Kate outside of Viper and Katarina's plans for Steve, but he was definitely conditioning her to his favor.
Rachel peeked into another memory, this one just a couple days before Kate and Billy were rescued, so Kate looked almost as bad as she had when they'd all gotten out. She had been asleep, but when the door opened, she woke up automatically, defensive already and expecting either a guard or to be dragged into the lab again. And Rachel noted with a steadily growing frown that Kate looked less defensive when Vojteck let himself in, even though he was the one in charge of torturing her for Viper in the lab and the one whispering code phrases to her just before the guards came in. In two weeks, he'd effectively taught her that he could be kind if it suited him, even if she wasn't consciously aware that she had made that association.
"Which one are you today - Jekyll or Hyde?" Kate asked, pushing herself as upright as she could when she was still exhausted and sore and just barely waking up.
"I'd like to think neither," Vojteck answered as he held up a small paper cup that contained Kate's pills.
Kate let her shoulders drop as she held out her hand for the cup. "One of these is a morning-after, right? Because I've been here long enough that might be a problem."
"Yes, of course," Vojteck said. "No one wants that."
"Thanks." She let out a soft sigh and downed what he'd given her, nodding to herself once her arms stopped itching.
"I think it may be time to help you a little more," Vojteck said. "My sister is making plans to dispose of … well."
"Your sister is a piece of work."
"You have no idea," Vojteck said. "Your friends, if they ever see the light of day will not be the same."
"They'll bounce back," Kate said, automatically.
He smirked at that. "We shall see, won't we?" He turned toward the door. "Now. If you can manage to overcome those blocking your exit here, do you remember which way has the least guards?"
"Yeah, go down first, not up," Kate said, nodding. "We've been over this. I even promised to kick around that guard who's sucking up to Katarina on my way out."
"Kate. The bravado is unneeded, and she has no interest in that guard anymore," Vojteck said.
Kate let out a breath. "Realized he was a sexist little sexual assault fan?"
"Found someone of her own to play with more like," Vojteck answered with a wave before trying to direct her to the next step. "You'll need to avoid the casino floor-"
"And the office right before the bar is booby-trapped with venom on the handle," Kate said, nodding along.
"And when you get into the alley-"
"No cops," Kate said. "Which feels super counterintuitive to, you know, me getting home, but-"
"This is Madripoor," Vojteck said. "The rules are not the same."
"There aren't any rules here. That's the whole reason your family's set up in this place."
"That's an oversimplification," Vojteck said, then moved to the far corner of her cell, pacing and keeping to himself … until the guard showed up at the door.
Kate froze, recognizing the guard instantly, and she instantly started to back away once the guard let himself in, forgetting about Vojteck in favor of the bigger threat to her immediate safety. She had her hands in fists, and when the guard closed the door behind him instead of dragging her out to the lab, she was almost shaking, too.
Vojteck kept his hands behind his back as he passively watched the guard looming over Kate and backing her into the wall. "Who says two heads are better than one?"
Everything about Kate changed in that instant, and Rachel, watching, found herself completely unprepared to see Kate rush the guard, kicking his knee out in exactly a spot she'd hit last time she fought against him. This time, because it was already hurt, his knee gave out, and Kate pressed her advantage, spinning into a kick that broke the guard's jaw.
But even though the guy was obviously reeling, Kate didn't stop or even slow down. When the guard tried to get up again, Kate surprised him by moving toward him, practically on top of him - just to steal his Taser. A second later, she'd put the Taser right to his heart, stopping the guard in his tracks when his heart gave out on him.
For a long moment, Kate stood there with her chest heaving, but when Vojteck approached, she finally looked away from the body at her feet to see that he was holding his hand out for the weapon. She hesitated for only a second, but then, she handed it over, still obviously not herself. And Rachel swore as she watched it happen.
Obviously, Vojteck had put another trigger phrase in there with all his conditioning, and this looked nothing like the command to kidnap Steve. It was some kind of attack prompt… or maybe a defensive one, since Kate gave Vojteck the weapon while under its influence. Rachel would have to look deeper to be sure.
She knew dredging up these memories couldn't have been good for Kate, especially considering how badly Kate had reacted to the thought of her free will being taken away, let alone seeing it in action. So, Rachel did her best to hurry through Kate's memories, running along the beach and taking only cursory glances into the tidepools until she found an earlier memory with the same trigger phrase - only that time, it hadn't worked, and Kate hadn't attacked the guard.
Kate was, understandably, a wreck when the guard left again, but Vojteck didn't give her any space to breathe before he started in on her, absolutely livid as he kicked her in the stomach and then dragged her by her hair toward the center of the cell.
"Useless," he bit out. "Nothing should stop you from defending me. Not fear, not size, not strength." He tossed her bodily into the wall. "Now, let's try this again," he said - and Rachel quickly exited when she realized there was nothing more to see there than the cause of many bruises and minor fractures Kate had been sporting when she was rescued.
Rachel took a deep breath to steady herself before she did, at last, leave Kate's memories, not at all surprised to see that Kate had her arms wrapped around herself, obviously in shock from the dredged-up memory of herself in a triggered state.
"I don't even remember killing that guy," Kate whispered, and Rachel simply held her arms out in invitation, knowing Kate was equally as liable to not want to be touched as she was to need someone to cry on.
This time around, Kate didn't take Rachel up on her silence invitation, instead hugging herself tighter, fresh tears making trails down her face.
Rachel sighed. "We're done today," she told Kate gently, and Kate didn't say anything in response. She simply got to her feet and headed out - to find Nate, and Rachel made a point to reach out to Nate to warn him of what kind of mental state Kate was in, even if she didn't give him details.
The truth was that Kate wasn't truly aware of the fact that she'd headed toward Nate the second she saw those memories; that was just where she went automatically when she was that upset. But when she got back to her room and saw that he was there, she headed right for him and rested her forehead on his shoulder - not quite a hug, just a way to lean on him.
"Love you, Katie," Nate said after a while, and Kate leaned into him a little harder.
"Love you too," she whispered back.
"You need ice cream," Nate said after a few nearly silent moments. "And chocolate. And … to shoot something. Am I close?"
Kate smirked into his shoulder. "Warm," she said. "Chocolate ice cream sounds nice, yeah."
"I was covering all my bases," Nate said. "But … let's go do that, and I know of a few quiet spots that have a good view if you want scenic and ice cream…"
"Okay." Kate stepped back slightly, her arms wrapped around herself at the elbows.
Nate offered her his hand. "May I?"
"Okay," Kate said again. "Yeah. Sure."
When he took her hand he also took a moment to try and get a smile, going so far as to kiss her knuckles before they started to slowly walk toward the kitchen. He didn't try to get her to talk - not when he could see she was shut down, anyhow. So he worked on the reset first… and part of that was making up stories as they walked about 'official Genoshan traditions' he imagined to go with most of the scenery around the palace.
But he didn't actually try to do anything other than gap some awkward silences until they had their ice cream and he'd taken her to a hidden balcony that faced the sea. Even then, he let her take some time to nibble at her ice cream first. And then ;"So … I don't know what I need to do right now, but if it's cannonball naked into the pool to get a smile, I will. Say the word."
That did, in fact, get a smile out of her - because it was so out there. "You're sweet, you know?" she said. "Dunno how I got so lucky."
"It's not really sweet. I already humiliated myself dancing for you for a laugh… clearly there is nothing I won't do to see you smile."
"And I loved every second of it," Kate said and took a more substantial bite of ice cream. "Sorry I sort of… checked out on you."
"It's okay," Nate promised. "I'll always be waiting when you come back." He paused for dramatic effect. "But if it helps you come back faster, I will have to invest in some tight pants and put more music on my cell."
Kate nearly laughed - though she was still reeling and her mouth was full of ice cream, so she was a little hampered. "Can you imagine? America would never - never - let it go. Ever."
"She can hold onto it forever," Nate said. "And be jealous."
"This is a fun look on you," Kate chuckled, shaking her head.
"I'm trying," he said with a shrug.
"You are." Kate took a deep breath, let it out, and then scooted closer to him. "So, um, turns out I killed a guy. Possibly more than one. I'm a little fuzzy on some of it still."
"That's okay, pretty sure I did too."
"Yeah, well, you had a good reason," Kate said, though Nate noticed that she did move away from him slightly. "I just did it because I was told to."
"I don't know what you mean, sweetheart. That doesn't sound like you at all."
"Well, I wasn't exactly me at the time… oh, I'm not explaining it right," Kate said, frowning into her ice cream.
"If you weren't in your right mind, it doesn't count. That's what I've tried to convince James of … I don't think it's any different for you or Billy either, if that applied."
"Oh, no, Billy definitely meant to kill those two," Kate said.
"Yeah, I know. I was just trying to illustrate … sorry. I'm interrupting your thought process."
"You're not, really," Kate assured him, then bit her lip. "So… you know how my mom used to work for the Red Room?"
"Ye-es," Nate answered slowly.
"So, uh, we have that in common now, I guess. The whole… someone else calling the shots on your life. And mind. And stuff." Kate looked away so she didn't have to see his reaction. "He just… said some phrase and I tasered a guy in the heart, Nate."
Nate was quiet for a moment as he thought over how to react to that kind of news. "Okay, but … that … alright. I know you have to feel like crap about that, but you don't have to. That wasn't you. That was someone using you. And as awful as that is, you didn't have a choice, right? But you do have your mom to help you get through this particular thing. And Rachel, if you want…" He shrugged. "I know telepaths are a problem for pretty much everyone right now."
"Yeah, Rachel's been helpful," Kate said quietly. "No offense, obviously. You're my favorite telepath."
"It's alright, you can keep Rachel as your favorite, I still love you."
"You know I only agreed to let her look because you were freaked out, right?" Kate said - which was partially true; she'd also agreed because Rachel had told her she might have had issues like her mom had and she'd panicked, but Nate being so worried had, in fact, played a role.
"Yeah, do me a favor and tell your bestie and my brother they need to follow the Hawkeye, huh?"
"I'll try," Kate said. "It's just… hard. I know I'm not scared of you, but I am, if that makes sense."
"It's familiar," Nate said, though he was irritated about that angle and he knew Rachel was, too. Of all the rotten tricks that Viper and her idiot kids could have pulled, making sure that those three were afraid to let a telepath in was just … dirty.
"Still love you, in case that wasn't clear," Kate clarified when Nate had been quiet for a while.
"If you didn't, you wouldn't let me take you to ice cream," Nate said, matching her volume.
"True," she agreed. She let out a long breath and let her shoulders drop. "Thanks, by the way. For… letting me freak out, I guess. Not peeking. You know. Being you."
"I'm not going to peek ever … not uninvited. Not for you."
"Love you too," Kate said and laid her head on his shoulder.
Rachel truly hated leaving Kate to her own devices when she knew how upset and vulnerable she was, even if that meant her brother was stepping in to take care of her. He wasn't exactly unbiased, and he was openly feeling guilty about having peeked too much without permission, and now Nate was working double time to try to make sure she felt comfortable around him. And Rachel was pretty sure that Kate didn't realize exactly how far her brother would bend over backward for her.
And there were so many questions that couldn't be answered by Kate's mind alone … yes, James had seen almost everything, but it was exhausting to use him as a reference. Especially when he didn't want to be used that way. He didn't actually want Rachel in the room with him, let alone in his head. But that was absolutely Viper's fault. And by extension, it was also Vojteck's fault.
And she'd had just about enough of the crap that kid had pulled. So, since Wanda had pulled rank on SHIELD and insisted on the chance to try the creep in Genoshan court for abducting and torturing their crown prince … Vojteck had been extradited to Genosha just the day before. And since he was there and he knew everything that she'd need to help Kate, Rachel headed to where Vojteck was being held in Genoshan prison … fitting since he'd openly admitted to trying to sabotage the country and its crown prince.
"Have you come to play the good or bad cop?" Vojteck asked when he saw Rachel - smirking too smugly for Rachel's liking, though she was pleased to see how jacked up his face was after James had given him a few taps.
"Nope," Rachel answered as the fire sparked up in her pupils and flames ghosted her hair. She didn't warn him or even attempt to be gentle as she rushed him psychically, burning through whatever was in her way as she searched for the triggers and phrases that had to be hidden. He'd be the one to know every little thing that was done to Kate's mind since he'd been utterly useless in dealing with Billy.
And did she ever find things to work with.
Before she left Vojteck's mind, she took another quick look around - to find his intentions and what he thought he might gain by doing Kate so dirty. It was a little outside of the parameters she'd gone in for, but … totally earned. And he honestly wasn't surprised to find that he'd been planning to fight back against Katarina's ascendancy. Yes, he'd gone along with training Kate to bring in Steve, but the rest of it… he knew Katarina would kill him, so he wanted a bodyguard. And he wanted his sister dead.
She backed out of his mind to find him screaming in pain from the fires around him that she'd been sure to keep just under a level that would do him physical harm … psychic flames though …
Rachel let the flames die back and kept an aloof expression as she assessed Vojteck - giving him the chance to say something so she could get a more clear picture of the kind of person he truly was.
"You think you know everything now, do you?" Vojteck asked in a scoff. "I don't know everything my mother did to any of them, and I can promise you she did far more than what any of them can tell you."
"They also couldn't tell me how incredibly desperate you are to overthrow your mother and sister," Rachel said. "Desperate enough to hide behind an Avenger." She frowned at him. "Didn't think that through, did you? I'm pretty sure Hydra wouldn't take well to one of their own cowering behind an Avenger."
"Considering who my mother picked out for Katarina's groom, I see it more as a symbol of conquest," Vojteck shot back.
Rachel could actually hear the Phoenix telling her how easy it would be to turn Vojteck into a pile of dust. So, she turned on her heel to leave before she couldn't restrain herself from annihilating that little twerp and letting something worse loose. Besides, Natasha wanted to have a word with him … and Wanda was preparing the trial. She wasn't about to rob either of them their revenge. Especially when she could take care of their families in the meantime.
It was Rachel's best option since her own family was pushing her away. She sighed to herself as she left the prison and nearly ran into Wanda.
"Oh, I've seen that look before," Wanda said as she caught Rachel's gaze. "What can I do to help?"
"I'm not entirely sure," Rachel said. "I was just going to tell Natasha what I found about Kate's programming … and I'll get with Billy after dinner for the same thing, but-"
"But your brother is being entirely obstinate," Wanda said, looking concerned. "Billy told me he's worried, too."
"I just wish I could do something for him," Rachel said. "But Viper … she messed with his mind so badly … he believes the crap Viper told him. And I can't help him because he's pushing me away!"
"You don't have to do everything for everyone, Rachel," Wanda promised. "Do what you can, where you can. The rest of us are allowed to help, too."
"I know, I just-"
"Are so much like your father. You can't turn your back on them. Any of them. Not when you feel responsible for their mental stability."
"Well … yeah. But that's a total oversimplification."
"Here's another one. Let us help. I want to help and I've only been told about what's happening after the fact - after you all have plans lined up to fix it." Wanda huffed. "Do you love Billy?"
"Of course," Rachel said, looking as if the notion of not caring about him was insane.
"And you already treat him like he's part of the family?"
"Yes …"
"What makes you think that I don't consider all of you part of my family, too?" Wanda challenged. "I deserve the chance to help protect my family. So ... " she readjusted the hem of her shirt and straightened up importantly. "Don't try to stop me from helping."
"Of course not," Rachel replied as a smile started to tug at the corner of her mouth. She just wished James could have heard Wanda marking her territory like that. "James has been hiding. So you know."
"I'll find him," Wanda said. "But I'll leave him be if he's with Billy." She smiled crookedly. "Now go on. I know Natasha needs a project."
"Okay," Rachel said, paused for a moment, then took the step forward so Wanda could hug her. She hadn't said as much, but she was projecting it so loudly. As soon as Rachel was within reach, Wanda wrapped her up warmly and curled in with her for a long moment.
Chapter 100: Don't Want To Remember
Chapter Text
Billy knew from America that whatever had been happening with Kate, and whatever Rachel had talked to Vojteck about, it had required two weeks in another dimension. America hadn't wanted Rachel to stress herself into the firebird, and sure, she'd maybe overestimated how long Rachel wanted to be gone, but considering how stressed the Summerses made themselves on a daily basis…America was probably right in taking her away for longer than what Rachel thought was necessary.
But that meant Rachel had been refreshed and raring to dive in with Billy when she got back. And now, she was all pissed off to the point of flames and gone with America again, and Billy wasn't sure how long they'd be gone, even if it only seemed like they'd been gone a couple hours.
Billy knew that what he'd experienced wasn't nearly as invasive as what the other two went through, but he was still fuming over what Rachel had uncovered. He had remembered, vaguely, that he'd known James was hurting and had known more than Kate did, but now, remembering that Viper and Katarina had shown him James, had told him that Viper loved having a young Wolverine to test out all her newest poisons, that they had promised to make everything even worse than they already planned - it sucked. It really did.
He'd known at the time - and knew now - that they were going to do whatever they wanted regardless of what he said or did. He knew that. But that didn't mean he hadn't been terrified, that he hadn't cried, or that he hadn't been willing to give them more information than he would have before Viper and Katarina had started their torture and mind games.
And then he'd seen Katarina and James. He hadn't remembered it when they were rescued, because, like Kate, everything was hidden in layers of traumas, but as it turned out, he knew exactly what James was trying so hard not to talk about.
And when Billy had been that off his game, when he had been positively beside himself screaming for James and Katarina to stop even though he knew they couldn't hear him, that was when Viper had stepped in. That was when his memories had cut off, because the drug cocktails were so intense, he'd blocked them all out. And in between all of that, every time he could get a breath, every time he had enough sense to be aware of what they were telling him, Viper made sure he heard Lorna's name. Saw her face.
He'd been programmed to kill his aunt as soon as Katarina was set to make her debut at the top of Hydra. He was supposed to be her puppet. And he was furious.
He'd been pacing ever since Rachel had torn open his memories. He knew James was sleeping with the help of medication, so on one hand, he didn't want to disturb him, but on the other hand, he wanted to tell him that he knew everything. That he once again remembered that Viper had shown him what happened as it was happening. That he knew exactly what Katarina had done to James and how James clearly didn't want anything to do with her. That it wasn't his fault no matter what they'd told him, or what he'd convinced himself of.
He wanted to leave Genosha. Badly. How was he supposed to even look at his aunt Lorna the same way? What was he supposed to say to her? Sure, Rachel had removed the command from his mind, but Viper and Katarina had spent so long making sure he associated her with negative emotions… he didn't want to know if they'd ruined his relationship with his aunt. He'd rather not find out. He'd rather just… not ruin things.
So, of course, after he'd worn a path into the sand on the private beach near the palace, Lorna was the one to find him - and he nearly startled out of his skin when he turned around in his pacing and saw her.
"You've been avoiding me," Lorna told him. "I'm starting to take it very personally."
"Aunt Lorna!" Billy blurted out and then turned bright red, not at all trusting himself and already backing away. "It's - it's nothing it's just - it's nothing."
"At least you haven't learned how to lie any better on the mainland," Lorna teased.
"Yeah." Billy shuffled a few steps back. "A-a-a-anyway, I should really go check on James…"
"He's asleep," Lorna said. "You don't need to check. We all know it. And if you run away from me again, I'll have to do something you'll find too familiar." She raised an eyebrow and leaned toward him. "Something like start floating around with a bunch of shining spheres …"
"Okay, okay," Billy said, holding up both hands. "You don't have to channel Grandfather. Point made."
"So, why have you been avoiding me? I know it's not romantic interludes when your sweetheart is doing his best to avoid even healing."
"He's depressed," Billy defended. "After what he went through, I don't blame him for trying to not be awake and forget it all."
"Is that why you're out here pacing?"
"Because Rachel broke open my memories? Yeah," Billy admitted, dropping down to sit on one of the rocks on the shore.
"So … how bad is it?" Lorna asked before she picked a nearby rock to sit with him, though not right next to him at first. Not when he'd made it clear he wanted space.
Billy cleared his throat. "I… I saw what happened to the other two. More than I thought I saw, actually," he said after a long period of silence.
Lorna slipped over a rock closer. "And …"
Billy scooted away from her. "And… I … don't think you want to be too close to me."
"Did you forget deodorant?" Lorna teased.
"No, but I was supposed to kill you, so…" Billy looked away so he didn't have to see her reaction.
"Oh," she said, nodding to herself, but not looking terribly surprised. "How were you going to do it?"
"With a wish," Billy said.
Lorna laughed. "Then that was a badly thought out plan," she said and stood up to make her way over to him directly.
"Not really," Billy said, wrapping his arms around himself at his elbows.
"No? Do you want me dead?" Lorna asked. "Like really want me dead?"
"No, but I wanted them to stop hurting James."
"Then you'd stop them, not kill me. Isn't that how it works?"
"That's… you're kind of missing the point here, Aunt Lorna."
"It would have gone sideways," she said with a wave. "You can't wish for something you don't want to happen by going around it."
"I don't know. From what I remember, I was pretty desperate to do what they wanted me to do," Billy admitted, glaring at the ground.
"Oh no," Lorna said in a falsely scandalized tone. "Father was right about something."
"What, me being a killer?" Billy said, finally looking up at her. "Because I did, in fact, kill two people with a collar on. That's how badly I wanted them dead.
"Everyone in our family but Tommy has killed people that deserved it," Lorna said.
"Okay, so what do you think Grandfather was right about?"
"That you lead with your heart," she said. "You'll have ulcers by the time you're twenty trying to protect the people you love." She shook her head with a shrug. "You'll be in good company with Scott's kids."
"I always thought that was a compliment when he said it, actually," Billy defended.
"It was."
"I don't get it, then. I mean, you should be more upset about this?" Billy scrunched up his nose.
Lorna waved one hand. "Both of my siblings have tried to kill me at one point or another. It's fleeting."
Billy let out a sigh and tried to give his aunt a warm smile. "Well, I'm not okay with having agreed to kill you."
"Then hug me before I call for a guard to pull you into interrogation."
Billy was surprised into a sharp laugh. "Are you- are you threatening me?"
"Yes. Attempted assassin."
Billy shook his head, unable to keep from laughing again - and did, finally, lean over to give Lorna a hug. "I love you, you know that?"
"I love you too," Lorna told him as she wrapped him up in a bear hug and kept him there. "You're short on hugs, sweetheart."
Billy snuggled in like he used to do when he was younger. "Yeah, well, blame Viper. My usual source doesn't want to be touched, and I don't really blame him, either."
"Should I let go or double down?" Lorna asked before she kissed his forehead.
"I'm okay right here," he promised, giving her a tighter squeeze as he snuggled in. "Thanks."
"Any time you need it, sweetheart," Lorna said. "And if you know Chris and Suzie would be happy to give you a flying tackle."
"You know what? I may take them up on that," Billy said. "There was a total lack of surfer dudes in Hydra," he teased.
"There's a reason for that," Lorna said wisely. "Maybe … you know … I'll bet you can recruit the kids to help with your sweetheart… I doubt Viper wrecked his touch with kids."
Billy touched the side of his nose. "Not a bad idea. And since I know Kate's siblings will mob him when we go back there, too…"
"Or just walk down the street with him," Lorna said sarcastically. "I have rarely seen someone draw kids in like that."
"You should see him on missions in person. I know the cameras love to get those moments, but… it's something else live," Billy said, unable to hide the fondness in his tone.
"I saw it when his parents did the exact same thing."
"It's amazing."
Lorna looked as if she was thinking hard for a moment. "I wonder if there are any unrelated kids wandering the entire island of Genosha that might get overly excited about spotting a real live X-Man in person …"
Billy laughed. "Hint taken. We'll go for a walk."
"Just get him to clean up first. He's scruffy. And he really does have his father's hair. It's unfortunate."
"I like it."
Lorna broke into a grin. "You would." She shook her head as they started back toward the palace. "You never pick the ones that wear a cape … wonder why that is …"
"If you're going to start playing shrink, I'll get Dr. Kaplan and get a real diagnosis," he teased.
"You don't need to do that. I was just curious about your reasons, I know why I don't like capes on my guys …"
"Too dangerous for surfing?"
"Disrupts the view," she laughed.
Billy burst into a surprised laugh. "Right on."
"It's not even that early," Billy said as he pulled James along with him to the breakfast area of the palace. He'd taken Lorna's advice to heart and decided that his guy needed to see the island like he hadn't seen it before. Up close, hand in hand with Billy. The first time he'd brought James to Genosha, he'd made sure to keep him entirely to himself. This time, he really wanted to outline what was amazing about the city and jungles beyond.
But that meant getting up in the morning and making sure James had cleaned up like Lorna had suggested.
But James was less than pleased with his own looks the longer he had to wear his eyepatch. Deep down he knew that he could ditch it faster if he ate more, but that would build up his muscle mass too, and that idea was wildly uncomfortable after the emphasis Katarina had put on his physique. Yes, she was dead, but he couldn't forget the things she said or where they had led.
Almost on cue, James flinched and shrugged his shoulder as Billy rested his hand there for an instant. For Billy, all of this was difficult because he and James had been so generous with light, casual touches since the beginning. So James sloughing off even minor affection felt like a rejection, even if Billy knew better and could see it wasn't a conscious decision.
But … he hoped James' reactions would improve as he woke up and could hear from young Genoshans how big of a hero he was to them. And because so much was riding on this excursion, Billy was nervous.
When they got to the kitchen, Wanda and Vision were enjoying a quiet chat with Scott and Annie over coffee and sweet tea, respectively. James didn't even pretend to be awake as he let Billy direct him into a chair at the table. When coffee was set down in front of him, James curled one hand around the mug and pulled it closer to hold in both hands under the table while he rested his forehead on the edge of the table.
"Are you awake yet?" Rachel asked when she, America, Kate and Nate came in as well.
"No," James rumbled.
"Are you at least trying to be?" She prompted with a hopeful expression, waiting to hear his usual response.
"No."
"We'll it was worth a shot," Nate said, though he and Rachel shared a silent conversation between them comparing their concerns about their brother.
Rachel hadn't filled Nate in entirely, and she wasn't about to, but Kate was watching James a little closer now that they were in the same room. Naturally, she saw how worn James looked, and how utterly uninterested in his own appearance he was. She hadn't realized until just then that he had been sure to keep up on things like shaving and keeping his hair under control, but now? Not so much. Yes, Billy had managed to get him to do a little, but it wasn't up to James' usual level of grooming.
She also quickly noticed how James shied away from any physical contact, and that when someone came too close, he shifted out of their way seamlessly, while somehow at the same time not really being fully aware of what was being said around him.
Billy had to ask three times if James wanted more coffee only to be answered with a very confused looking boyfriend, who then almost belatedly agreed. Kate couldn't remember him being this spacey before. Ever.
But Kate… Kate knew that look. Not on James, but on herself. And she had to put her hand over her mouth as she put the pieces together, trying to hide her reaction. All at once, all she could think about was what James hadn't been wearing when they found him in Viper's lab.
Kate? Nate prompted her, though she'd been legitimately so caught up in reliving that moment that the single word startled her, and she had to wave Nate off, pushing him back at the shoulder with one hand as she covered her eyes with the other. She knew the others were watching her, too, so she was blushing deeply, frustrated with herself and horrified by what she'd just learned.
"Give me a second," Kate said, though her breathing was a little faster than normal until she got it back under control. "I'm okay. Had a moment; it's fine."
Nate watched her but didn't make a move until she had pulled her hand away from her eyes, swallowed, and tried to get back to her coffee. Then, he had to ask, You alright?
Yeah. I just… realized something is all.
Anything you want to share?
Not sure, Kate admitted. How… what do you know about what went down with James? I know you've seen bits of what I remember when I'm dreaming, but…
I think ... I know enough, Nate said.
Yeah, I don't think you do, because… She paused, wondering whether she should tell Nate. She knew she didn't like everyone knowing what had happened to her, and James had the advantage of no one giving him a futzing pregnancy test or anything like that.
On the other hand, he was a guy, and that meant people wouldn't even ask about that kind of thing, stupid as it was. So…
Kate let her shoulders drop. I just realized that James and I are reacting the same way. Which means I'm not the only rape victim here, she added after a mental push to use the actual word, something Rebecca Kaplan had suggested after Kate had spent a virtual session trying to dance around it for an hour.
Nate could feel his shoulders dropping as he started to shake his head. He doesn't - that's not … I can tell you right now that's not what he thinks happened.
Uh-huh. What's his version?
This time, it was Nate's turn to pause, not wanting to violate James's privacy, even if he'd caught glimpses by helping to boost Rachel. He didn't know for sure because James hadn't told him anything. But the impression he got from his brother was mostly clear. Just that he didn't fight her.
Yeah, well, I didn't do a good job of that either. Kinda just… turned off after it kept happening, Kate pointed out.
Kate-
What's the alternative here, that he was, what? Cheating on Billy with the girl torturing him?
Actually-
Yeah, no, that's a stupid take. You don't think I was cheating on you, do you?
Obviously not-
Okay, case closed.
That's not what I think, Katie, Nate had to say in defense of himself. That was important after all. That's what he thinks. From his perspective, he went along with her.
Still a stupid take, slightly more justified from him since he's traumatized and I'll bet you every nickel I can find in Dad's couch that they told him over and over that Billy would see it that way too.
Absolutely, Nate agreed.
Like how I still sometimes think you only want me around to pretend to escape the drama, Kate added, biting her lip.
If that was true, who'd keep me humble?
James.
Ouch.
Love you, babe, Kate sang to him and lightly kicked his foot with hers.
Nate shook his head at Kate then crossed the span to try and say hello to James. He'd just opened his mouth to say hello, but his hand made contact with James' shoulder before he spoke … as was the usual between the two of them … when James cut across Nate before he could even start.
"I'm not playing chess again, so go away," James said, his eyes half closed, though he made sure to say it loud enough he wasn't misheard.
Several things happened all at once … Billy burst out laughing alongside Rachel while Scott smirked and shook his head to himself. Wanda was snickering, and smiling broadly, but the rest of those in attendance had no idea what the joke was.
"It's alright, James, you don't have to play if you don't want to," Wanda said with laughter dancing in her voice. "But if you do-"
"No thank you," James said, which left Wanda laughing to herself even more.
"What's the joke?" Annie asked Scott quietly, and Scott leaned over to kiss her cheek first and foremost.
"When we came here for spring break, Billy's grandfather kept pushing James to play chess with him," Scott explained. "James never wanted to play, and when he was pushed, he liked to play with his food, so to speak."
"And my father couldn't give up on trying to win," Wanda added. "Even after James found amazing ways to beat him with pawns."
"Alright, well … if you're done reminiscing, I think I'm going to take my boyfriend and go out," Billy said as he offered James his hand under the table without touching him first.
James still had his head down, but saw the gesture, and because it was so subtle and so low pressure, he didn't hesitate to sit up and take Billy's hand. "Where are we going?" James asked, looking so confused that Kate was scrambling to finish her coffee fast so she could join them, too.
"I wanted to show you around," Billy suggested. "You only saw my favorite private places the last couple times you were here. I thought we could look at everything."
James frowned, but didn't argue it as Billy continued. "We have a few good coffee shops around here, too. You know … since coffee grows in this area of the world?"
James turned to look at Billy as if he was just considering this angle of things … which he was. But before he could say anything in response, Kate dove in. "Oh, good. No offense, but I could use some people watching with my coffee," she said. "We'll go, too."
"We will?" Nate asked, giving Kate a look that clearly asked if she was sure.
Kate raised her eyebrows, and Nate took the cue to reach out telepathically. I am all for keeping track of them and watching for threats, if that's what this is."
Hopefully, it's just getting coffee with your brother and my best friend, Kate replied. But getting to play bodyguard might be good practice, too.
Okay, Nate said, then grinned. I kinda want to get a read on the island as a whole. Mixed reports from those who should be in the know.
Yes. Keep the protective look. It's a good one for you.
As the four of them slowly headed out, James had his head ducked and he was staring at the ground as they went.
As expected, most people they came across gave them a wide berth because of Billy, though nearly everyone they passed was staring at the little group. Nate followed Billy's prompt and offered Kate his hand, too … just a quiet option to let him protect her a little bit. Like it or not, she was recognizably the human from the X-Men on Genosha, and while Wanda was vastly different from her father, it still remained to be seen how everyone else felt.
Billy took his time, though he was relatively quiet for their walk through the streets between the palace and the shopping district. When they got to the cafe Billy had talked about, James stared blankly at the menu for a moment, then gestured for Billy to order for both of them. He didn't even think before he let Kate lead him over to a table to sit down, giving the two of them a moment alone while their significant others handled the details.
It was the first time they'd been alone, and the first time James had been anywhere public at all, let alone in public with the eye patch. Like it or not, he was self conscious about that, too.
Though Kate was also trying to find her usual high spirits in a crowd, she couldn't help but shrink in on herself a little bit, wondering if anyone could tell that something was different with her. She knew it wasn't common knowledge, but she didn't feel entirely like herself yet. So she looked around them to find something to focus on … something to talk about that wasn't all the misery that they'd been dealing with. She knew what he'd been through, but … she really didn't want to talk about anything even remotely close to it … and she didn't know what she could talk to him about. Until she did a small double take at a gathering knot of people just outside of the bistro's fenced in area that they were sitting in.
She took a moment to see what it was they were doing, expecting it to be Billy they were watching, but … once she saw where they were looking, it was obvious that they weren't watching the prince. And that … that was something she could talk to James about, just because it was so stinking sweet.
"You have ducklings," Kate told James in a low whisper, the pure amusement radiating from every word.
"What are you talking about?" James asked, frowning as he looked toward her.
Kate nodded toward the window discreetly. "Five kids and counting. I think the oldest is eight. They're totally in awe of you."
James followed her sight line to see the kids in question, then turned back to her. "Maybe it's you."
Kate shrugged easily. "While I will never discount my ability to win friends and influence hearts or whatever, no. One of them was definitely saying 'Wolverine'. Easy to lip read."
James propped his chin up with one hand as he watched her. "Is it now? Does Hawkeye look like a squawking bird?"
"Every time. Worse depending on the accent," Kate said without missing a beat.
"Can you demonstrate?" he said quietly, almost a tease, but not quite his normal timbre.
Kate smirked and shook her head. "Might scare the kiddies. And I think you have a fan club."
"They're probably trying to figure out why we're here," James said, neatly brushing by her hypothesis.
"Wondering if you'll stick around long enough to give them tips," Kate sang under her breath. Then, she let out a long, soft, "awww" and added, "Did you see the girl with the tail? She's maybe six and she's totally using it as a security blanket. I love her."
James stole a glance toward the kids again, spotted the little girl Kate pointed out and didn't bother to hide the smirk. "Mia used to do that, too."
"I remember. She and her mom lived in the tower when I was new too." Kate smiled and leaned back in her seat. "It's weird, sometimes, you know - you see kids that little and you're like 'oh crap, I'm supposed to be on good behavior cause I'm a public figure now'."
"Is that what we're supposed to do?" James asked. "My coach wasn't as savvy as yours. He just stuck me in a suit and said, 'Don't panic'."
Kate snorted. "Yeah, well, my mom sat me down when we got our suits with X's on them and made sure I knew my unique position. First human. No powers. Going to be all sorts of assumptions."
"It's a Hawkeye trademark," James said.
"Still different when it's the X-Men, though, you have to admit."
"Yeah," he said. "But I don't think anyone else could pull it off."
"Love you too," Kate said with a soft smile.
"It's the truth, bratty sis." James looked past her to watch the small crowd grinning at Billy and trying to catch his attention as he and Nate made their orders. "You're better at it than I am, too. Which … is a low bar, but still."
"I had a lifetime to get good, and I was already a people person," Kate pointed out. "I… don't remember much about my birth family, but I do remember lots of parties. I think I came to the Avengers kind of… primed."
"I can believe it," he agreed, then pushed his chair back so he could cross his arms on the table to rest his chin, though he fell just short of laying his head down.
Kate watched him for a second and then made up her mind on something kind of sensitive. "So… can I … ask a favor of you?" she asked slowly.
"Always."
Kate nodded to herself. "Can I … sometimes, after I've been sitting and talking with Doc Hale or Doc Kaplan, I just… I don't want to talk to Nate and… my parents are beyond livid, but you actually know already, so I don't have to… can I just… talk to you? Sometimes?" she asked at last.
James was nodding before he actually answered. "Yeah, of course. You don't have to talk if you don't want to, either."
"I do my best thinking as it's coming out of my mouth," Kate said with a half-grimaced smile.
"I know, but … I also think sometimes silence is better," James said. "Even when you don't want to be alone."
"Yeah, true," Kate said. "I feel like I come up with better ways to say what I'm thinking, like, thirty minutes after I talk to the docs, you know?"
"I try to come up with what I'd say to the doc thirty minutes before seeing him," James said with a bare smile.
"I'm trying this novel approach of saying what's in my head to the head shrink," Kate teased.
James leaned toward her and lowered his voice. "They're civilians, Katie."
She shifted how she was seated so the kids watching them wouldn't see her response. "This is not the first rape case either of them has handled."
"I'm sure," James said, then frowned, not realizing she meant him, too. "I … didn't mean to kill that guy, but I'm not sorry I did. You should have had a shot at him yourself if you wanted it. I swear I wasn't going in there to do anything … but I couldn't stop myself when I saw him."
For some reason, Kate could feel hot tears in her eyes as she nodded. "Thanks," she said, not quite sure why she was emotional - or what emotion she was having, for that matter. She wiped her eyes with her thumb, trying to be subtle and failing. "I, uh, kinda killed a guard already anyway and I'm not sure I like that feeling, but he also deserved it, so I'm also not sorry."
"Oh, good," James decided, trying to lighten her mood a little. "Take a penny, leave a penny."
Kate let out a cough that was almost a laugh. "I have the best big brother," she said.
"Love you too, Katie."
Kate smiled and rearranged herself as Nate and Billy finally skirted around the crowd to join them - and then had to laugh when the tiny kiddie crowd (which had gained three members by then with more gravitating their way) went absolutely mad with excitement. "Oh, the fan club is losing their tiny minds," she giggled.
"More interesting people showed up," James told her quietly.
"Lies. I'm still here," Kate shot back. Even if she still didn't feel confident in herself, even if the words sounded hollow, they were such a habit that she couldn't stop.
"And you are the star," James agreed.
Billy followed their gaze to see the kids pressed up against the railing and laughed, then waved the kids in. Once the kids eagerly rushed in through the gate, Billy magically made the table longer so they had space to crowd them without actually crowding them - since three of the four heroes weren't all that good with being touched at the moment.
"Are you really Wolberneen?" asked the girl with the tail, her eyes wide as she got as close as she dared to James.
"He is. He absolutely is," Kate said fervently before James could refute. "He's the best, right?"
The little girl nodded, clutching her tail tighter. "I sawed him on TV before we moved here."
"Do you like it here?" James asked her quietly, since she looked way too keyed up at the moment and he didn't know how to handle excited kids. Most of the ones he'd dealt with, he'd had to convince to go to him.
She nodded. "Nobody grabs my tail here ecks-cept for my brother when he's bein' mean," she whispered.
"Do you pinch him when he does that?" James whispered back. "Because I would."
The little girl giggled. "No, but I do yank his ears. They're really pointy and fuzzy, but his tail is too short to pull on."
James started to nod slowly. "So he wishes he had a longer tail. Sounds like a brother thing."
"That's what my dad says. All the time. He also says if Mom were here, she'd say our tails were the prettiest things in the whole wide world, so he makes us say so to each other," the little girl said, getting steadily braver and closer to James.
"It is a very pretty tail," James agreed, since she seemed to be worried about it.
"You really think so? Even if it's all sticky-uppy and moves too much?" she whispered.
James nodded at that. "Don't fight the tail. Let it move."
"I'm still learnin'," the girl said, showing him her tail in her hand.
"You'll get it," he said.
"And then I can be an X-Man just like you, right, Mr. Wolberneen?" she asked in an awed whisper.
"You can call me James," he told her, shaking his head at the odd formality added to his codename.
The little girl looked like she might float off into the sun. "Okay!" she giggled delightedly. "Thank you lots, Mr - I mean James!" She looked perfectly pleased with herself, even bouncing on her feet.
As she bounced off, James turned toward Billy without missing a beat. "You did this."
Billy had been distracted talking to one of the other kids, but when he heard James, he turned toward him, grinned, and held up both hands. "I swear I didn't," he said. "Tommy and I always get a few kids following us, but that? That is all on her." He raised both eyebrows. "By the way? It's super cute when you get all mushy with kids," he added low enough the kids couldn't hear him.
"I'm not getting mushy. I'm just talking to them," James argued quietly, even as he shifted how he was sitting to let the next kids get close. "You're getting mushy."
"You turn into an even bigger sweetheart than you already are, and it's so hot."
James scoffed at that, and shook his head as a tiny little girl decided to pass by the kindergarten aged boy next to her and just… climb up on his lap to say hello, attaching herself to him with a snuggling hug.
"So cute," Billy mouthed at him before one of the older kids caught his attention and he was distracted again. Billy might not have realized it, but he was different around kids - and not in the way most leaders were where they were trying to look good. He got absorbed in every word the kids were saying and seemed to forget he was a prince or an X-Man or anything other than someone holding a very important conversation with a tiny person.
While Billy and James were talking to their tiniest admirers, there was a little girl with a purple streak in her hair bouncing on the balls of her feet as she stood near Kate, gripping a homemade bow that she'd obviously painted purple … to match her streak. But she wasn't going to interrupt anything. And she waited patiently until Kate turned her way, then broke into a nervous smile, clutching her bow tighter.
"Ohmigosh," Kate grinned delightedly and waved the girl over. "That bow is beautiful. I love it so much. Did you do it yourself?" When the girl nodded shyly, Kate grinned wider. "Do you know how to use it? Because I totally have some tips for bows that beautiful and purple."
"Oh look," James said quietly as he leaned toward Billy and caught Nate's attention. "You match now … I didn't think that color was healthy, little brother."
Billy grinned when he turned to see Nate turning steadily more purple as he watched Kate gush over the little girl with the bow. "Someone just realized he's seeing his future," Billy teased, reaching out to James to intertwine their fingers, since James seemed to be reacting more like himself.
"Pretty sure he knew that when they were like … five."
"I know the feeling. Though, to be fair, I only met you in passing when we were too young for me to remember, so… for us, it was love at almost first sight?" Billy teased.
"Wait. We met when we were little?" James turned his way at that. "I'm going to need that story."
Billy shrugged. "We'd have to ask my mom. All I know is Mom said you and everyone else who escaped Graydon Creed came and stayed here for a little while, and Mom brought us to try to cheer up the other kids, since everyone was so shell shocked. That's the whole story I've heard."
James hummed to himself at that, though he didn't let himself wonder about it too much when he knew that shell shocked was a real mild way of describing it. "Now my number of trips here is all jacked up."
"Whoops." Billy laughed. "Ah well."
"You know," James said as they settled in a little better between eager kids trying to say hello, shifting spots, or moving out entirely as their parents collected them - all of them smiling at the teenagers approvingly as they did so. "I'm kind of surprised you didn't go full on marshmallow and order cocoa or cookies or something for all the kids. Seeing as you have an active following of minis."
"You know, I should do that from now on," Billy decided. "They'll never leave. You'll have eight of them on your lap at all times. Minimum."
James smirked crookedly, and Billy couldn't stop the grin at the peek of the James he knew. "In the states, we'd call that buying votes, and it's totally illegal," James teased.
"I am a terrifying despot who needs no votes. Fear me," Billy teased right back.
"I can't."
"Well, I tried," Billy said, shrugged, smiled crookedly, then leaned forward - carefully - to steal a kiss that instantly drew attention from half the cafe or better.
"There goes the stealthy streak," Nate muttered, though he was loud enough the other two boys heard it as they sat back - a little closer than before.
"I have never, in my life, had anyone try to stop me from kissing my own boyfriend on Genosha," Billy said primly. "And I will do it again," he added - and stole another kiss for good measure.
James was chuckling quietly to himself at that, delighting Billy for the oddly light moment. "This is just how it is here," James told Nate. "He gets more full of it for some reason. I don't understand."
"Must be something in the air," Nate mused, glad to see his brother smiling a little.
"He gets puffed up when he gets to do the prince strut," Kate put in, finally distracted from her enthusiastic fan. She grinned when she saw the way Billy and James were in each other's space, knowing it was a big deal - and then lost her smile entirely when she saw a guy with a camera snapping pictures of them. "Ah, guys? Press at eight o'clock. Someone's using Genosha's visitor policy for profit."
"Oh crap," Billy said, turning toward James - since he was the one with the more pressing PR issue. Billy had been publicly out on Genosha for forever, but James? "I'm sorry - I didn't - I'm not used to them being here."
James thought about it for a moment, then shook his head and shrugged as he doubled down and entwined their fingers again. "What should I do? Kill him? Not like it isn't overdue anyhow."
Billy grimaced. "We've just been so careful…"
"It's fine," James promised - and meant it.
"You're both adults now," Kate pointed out, trying to keep Billy from having a panic attack. "You're both eighteen. That was part of the problem before, and it's not now."
James paused at that though, because he'd been so out of it he'd entirely lost track of time between that lost with Viper and that lost in recovery … and then more lost going back to screw with Hydra and more recovery. "Oh, damn it all."
"If it's going to be a problem for you, I can-"
"No, no, it's not that. I just … I don't know what day it is," James admitted. "Or what week for that matter. I guess I wasn't quite … equating passage of time with anything. Damn."
"Oh." Billy blinked, then nodded. "Right, well, it's Thursday. My birthday was Monday, but I didn't really feel like celebrating then, especially since that was the day Kate threw up in my room…"
"Well I could probably do a little bit better than that," James said. "Throw up in Tommy's room anyhow…"
Billy laughed. "He ran back to Westchester to hang out with Mia for the day."
"It'd be a nasty surprise when he got back then," James pointed out.
"Next year."
"Now I gotta find a way to make it up to you," James said.
"I promise you don't have to," Billy said quickly. "I wasn't up to a party, and I didn't want to make a big deal… and I haven't really been in the mood to celebrate since Madripoor, really."
"Wow, you're new," Nate said. "It's too late now. You hit the challenge button. Life will be easier for you if you give him direction, though."
"Like, oh, I don't know…tell him you like a fancy car," Kate said airily.
Billy shook his head at Kate. "I don't really want anything like that, though," he said.
"Right. Royalty," Kate nodded. "Snob."
Billy laughed. "No, I just meant I'd rather do things for my birthday."
"America will absolutely take you both to a paradise planet or something," Kate said. "That's where she and Rachel have been disappearing to between sessions. We went once when we were dating." She grinned. "It was amazing."
"Do something," James said slowly, because of course, that was never trouble.
"I want in," Nate said instantly.
"M'kay," James agreed - another sure sign of nothing at all wrong.
"Oh, Billy," Kate said, grinning. "This is gonna be fun."
"Maybe," James said, though whatever spark of trouble he'd had working for him seemed to be losing the glow the more he thought about things. Or over thought about things.
"Don't lose that train of thought," Nate said. "You always come up with fun stuff." Nate turned toward Billy. "When I told Dad I wanted to do something fun, James came up with ziplining and we spent all day for my birthday zipping through trees forty feet in the air. He always comes up with fun things."
"Adrenaline junkie," Kate teased, though she'd been along for many of the little adventures like that growing up.
"Like you're not?" Nate challenged, though it looked like the moment was lost on James as he seemed to slip back into his fog once Kate and Nate were halfway okay and James was trying to figure out what they could do that wouldn't put them in Viper's crosshairs.
Billy's smile slipped as he watched the change in James happen right in front of him until James was once again looking somber as he stared at his coffee, entirely in his own little world. All the way up until another kid - this one closer to ten - came over to them and tapped James on the arm. James turned toward her and she looked like she wasn't entirely sure of herself suddenly … but she pushed through.
"Hello. You're Wolverine. Hi. I love you guys. Oh! I'm Greta," she said, gaining her voice the more she spoke. "Um …you look like you need a hug, so I wanted to give you one. Can I hug you?" she asked, looking hopeful. "I give really really really good hugs."
James looked past her to where her best friends were huddled together, giggling and staring, and for a second, he wasn't sure what to say or how to move forward. Until he heard one of her friends being catty, hoping he wouldn't hug her.
Nate and Billy both were just looking for an excuse on James' behalf when James turned his body toward her and nodded, giving her the opening to hesitantly step in and hug him. And surprising everyone, James wrapped the girl up warmly and held on until she started to let go first. When she stepped back a little she looked surprised, grinning broadly.
"Thanks. You're right. I did need that," James told her, though she couldn't stop smiling at him as she stared among the group of young X-Men. And James was enjoying the shocked expressions on her friend's faces.
"You're really a good hugger," she said, blushing.
"You too," James replied with a crooked smirk, already planning on looking for her the next time he and Billy were wandering the streets of Genosha. "Nice to meet you, Greta."
She was smiling hard enough to break her face, but had no idea what to say, but James wasn't about to rush her. Her mother called out to her twice before the spell was broken and she bounded off, giggling all the way.
"So hot," Billy repeated just loud enough for James to hear though Kate read his lips just as easily as Nate heard his projected thoughts on the situation.
"You're nuts," James told him with a little wave.
"Maybe, but at least I can talk to my therapist."
James gave him a dry look at the blatant attempt to goad him into talking. "I tried that once, didn't like it."
"I thought you'd been talking to Craig for the last year … and the rabbi before that," Nate said, frowning at his brother, who shifted in his seat. "Once?"
"Pretty sure you need to talk to them worse than I do," James said to Nate.
"Okay, we're not going to play that game," Kate said before it could go too far south. "Everyone can talk when they're ready to talk."
"I know, I just had to take the tease," Billy defended, then offered James his hand as they finally got up to leave. He was half concerned that James might not go along with it, but there was no hesitation … and a lot of eyes on them in the cafe.
Nate took the opportunity to peek … and had to keep from grinning when he heard the tenor of approval around them. Most of Genosha was enjoying the newly found freedoms, and they had always liked Billy. The positive press on the X-Men and James' good press with Stark Industries on top of that had cemented his status with most of those around them as purely positive. And those that had been on the fence had been swayed by how he'd handled the kids in the cafe. So it was no surprise that most of them were happy to see the prince enjoying the chance to explore his freedom as well.
And while Nate knew that didn't mean the whole island was on board, he also knew that even this little bit of positivity would carry. Word would spread. And the little bit of concern anyone had over James' appearance seemed to be leaning in the direction of thinking that James had gotten roughed up keeping Billy safe. Imaginations were wild on what could have hurt him like that - or who it was that was drawing down Wanda's wrath for screwing with her crown prince.
As for as lost as Nate would have happily been soaking up the good vibes toward his brother, even more prevalent than that was how excited the people were to celebrate Billy and Tommy's coming of age party … the next day.
"Oh, hey, Billy," Nate said as they got moving. "When were you going to tell us about the big public party for you and your brother that's supposed to happen tomorrow?"
James stopped and turned toward Billy looking entirely off guard, and Billy stammered. "I … thought it wasn't going forward?" Nate crossed his arms and James raised an eyebrow at the attempt at a lie. "I don't know. I'm not really thrilled about it. I'm not looking forward to being on a big stage even for a minute knowing that there might be some hidden trigger or phrase word…"
"Hey," James said, drawing his attention back. "... we've got your back. I'll be right there."
"Me too," Kate said, nodding. "Or … as close as we're allowed."
"I'm sure Mom will have a plan," Billy said, though he was blushing lightly at how James had switched so thoroughly to protective at a word.
"Gotta make headlines, don't you?" Natasha said to James and Billy before dropping a newspaper in front of them the morning after Billy and Tommy's big birthday gala on Genosha.
"He is the crown prince," James said dryly, his hair sticking up in points as he leaned on his crossed arms. "That's bound to happen."
"I meant you," Natasha said. "All the tabloids are going nuts. They're going to swamp you."
"I'll bite a few of them. They'll go away," James said in a yawn, which had Billy smirking into his coffee.
"If only it were that easy," Natasha said, shaking her head.
"I didn't even do anything," James said. "I just showed up. Like so many other people."
"Yes, but you were seen the day before overly involved in public," Natasha pointed out, dropping another newspaper on top of the first that showed not only a photo of the twins from their birthday celebration, but of James and Billy kissing at the cafe. "You know better."
James frowned at Natasha, openly ignoring the paper. "Tetushka pauk," James said in the same thick dialect that Natasha used - the one that always got her to lose her angry edge with him. "It was just a kiss. With a guy I've been seeing for over a year. It's not like they caught me in the middle of a hook up with a stranger."
"Yes, but the timing-"
"Good morning," Wanda sang out as she came into the room, beaming with a bright smile and clearly in high spirits. "How are all my boys this morning?" she asked as she pushed Natasha aside and slipped between Billy and James to kiss both of them on the cheek. James tensed up, but didn't pull away from her, even when she put an arm around both of them to give them a little squeeze.
"Hi, Mom," Billy said, smiling as he shifted the papers so she could see them. "Natasha is giving us a security briefing. Or something."
"Something is more like it," James said, though Wanda went ahead and picked up the papers to look over the headlines, the photos, the articles and the bigger spread of photos inside. She didn't say anything for a long moment as she read all of it, then took the stack of them to pull up a seat next to Billy to continue reading, though she never quite lost her smile.
"This is going to be a problem," Natasha said, her tone once again businesslike.
"You two," Wanda started to say, and Natasha tipped her chin up waiting for Wanda to back her up. "You look so handsome together." She looked up with a smile as she pushed a photo toward Billy. "This one caught both of your good sides."
"Neither of us has a bad side," Billy said, smiling brightly again when he had his mom backing him up and building them both up.
"This is true, but look at the way you two are looking at each other," Wanda said. "As if you weren't on stage in front of the whole world."
James frowned at both of them, then looked over to see the picture in question. "We're not even looking at each other."
"Let me have this," Wanda said in a scandalized tone. "You both look amazing. I'm so glad we had a suit in your size."
"You had it tailored and waiting," James said, wrinkling his nose at Wanda as she smiled wider.
"Yes, well, we wouldn't have had to have it tailored if you hadn't lost so much weight," she countered. "Jan sent it months ago in case you needed it while you were here."
James' shoulders dropped and he blew out a breath. He hadn't known that. But he wasn't about to apologize for his appearance. Not when it wasn't anyone else's problem.
But Billy had his back. "Mom. Come on," he said quietly. "I think he looked good."
"Of course," Wanda said, then kissed his cheek and reached over to gently ruffle James' hair as he watched her. "You both did. I just worry about the big change, that's all."
"You should worry about the massive security issue," Natasha said, in total disbelief that Wanda wasn't chewing them out.
"Oh, please," Wanda said, rolling her eyes. "They have you and Tony and Scott and pretty much everyone still in the business after them all the time about that kind of thing."
"The fact that so many people feel the need to remind them should show how important this is," Natasha said.
"Or it shows how much they need someone to just back them up for being them," Wanda argued. "But if it's so harsh out there, maybe they need to just stay here."
"That is not the play to use right now," Natasha said as James and Billy both decided to lean toward Wanda simply to irritate Natasha.
"I think it might be," Wanda argued, smiling brighter while both of them were playing along. Or at least playing along as much as James could.
"James needs to finish his degrees," Natasha argued.
"Maybe not," James said. "I've been skipping class for weeks now. Probably won't let me finish."
"Then you resubmit at a different school," she said hotly.
"No one would take me after this," he argued. "I'm probably just out."
But that was enough to get Wanda to stop her teasing that had been directed at Natasha. "If that's the case, then they're much less intelligent than anyone could give them credit for," Wanda said, barely restraining herself from running a hand through his hair - and instead, she diverted and shifted her attention to Billy. "I suppose she's right. You'll have to go back and finish up. But … if they really are that stupid, James, you know you have a place here."
"I don't think you really need an overrated cabana boy," James said without missing a beat.
"And I'm sure you'd find more to do than that," Wanda shot back.
"I'm okay with that, though," Billy said, obviously for the tease, but James let out a hollow laugh and took his hand. "You don't need a doctorate to lounge the beach."
"No, but I'd probably drive myself nuts like that," James said.
"So we'll figure something out," Billy said. "You and me." He grinned quietly and lightly squeezed James's hand. "This is my turf. I'll decree you a degree or something. You've already more than earned it anyway," he added, still teasing. "I can float if floating makes it more official."
"Oh, always," Wanda teased.
"See?" Billy tipped his head toward his mom. "We've got you covered."
"Love you too," James said then let his shoulders drop before he took the initiative to steal a very chaste, careful kiss. "Keep your decrees. If I don't earn it, I don't want it - and you're too biased to judge that fairly. Floating or no."
"So bossy," Billy teased, though he was too distracted and pleased by James' push of affection to argue too hard with him.
"If you insist on doing things the hard way when you've already proven yourself a few dozen times over, then I guess it's probably high time you headed back to the States," Wanda said, smiling and sounding perfectly put out.
"You know Tony will fight you for him," Natasha said quietly to Wanda as the boys left to get ready to go.
"Tony's not stupid enough to fight me," Wanda said with a smile, then put her arm around Natasha's shoulders. "But I'm going to do what I can to help you get that boy to open up. As pleased as I am to see them being open in public, you're right - he needs to be careful. Even when he's recovering. For both of their sakes."
Chapter 101: Academia Sucks
Chapter Text
In spite of James' insistence that he could deal with MIT on his own, not one person in the tower believed it - and in addition to not letting the Summers family go home to Brooklyn, Tony went so far as to recruit Billy into helping them get to the house in Cambridge the morning after they returned from Genosha so he could help James and Scott wade through the stupidity that was bound to follow weeks of not showing up to class.
"There's no way," Tony insisted, "that I'm going to let them screw you over after all the crap you've gone through because of their stupidity. You should have had all of your degrees months ago!"
And James, for his part, was already convinced that the trip was an utter waste of time. But he didn't have it in him to fight with Tony and Scott or Billy when the three of them insisted it couldn't be over yet. Billy hung back at the house, anxiously pacing on James' behalf while the two adults and James headed for the dean's office.
The man's reaction to seeing James was the first sign of trouble, too. Tony was first in the door - and he'd bribed the secretary to keep it quiet that he had others with him - which she did. The dean lit up just like Tony had expected when faced with a prolific and generous donor … and just as quickly, his expression shifted to one of shock and horror on seeing James standing just behind Tony. He sputtered and belatedly offered to shake both James and Scott's hands before offering them a seat.
And after he heard a rough overview of what had happened to cause James to miss out on so much attendance, he was rapidly trying to cater to them. It was such a wild swing from the last time they'd seen the man - especially for James - that during the middle of it, James and Scott shared a look between them. He couldn't do enough to help, just like before they'd requested James go through their barrage of tests and academic probation. He was practically tripping over himself and not one of them was fooled by the full reverse.
Still, Tony took the lead in discerning what exactly was expected at this point. But even he had to pause at the dean's suggestion on how to proceed.
The only time the dean had stopped staring at James' eye patch and scowl was when he was trying to catch up to kissing Tony's butt. But even at that …."Considering all you've gone through, I would very much like to mark your time off as though you took an early leave for break, even though the break is still almost a week out. You've worked much harder than anyone expected of you. If we take into account your … ah … injuries, I believe every one of your professors would agree that you should take the time. You won't be penalized at all, though we still want you to finish the work on campus. That … I've heard nothing but glowing reviews from your teachers," The dean said, finally, addressing James with a warmth that they hadn't seen from the man.
James had no idea how to reply to that and the dean could see it, so he pressed on. "You're very close to finishing that last masters and the second is under review. I have full faith you'll have them buttoned up well before the end of the year."
"He'll be able to take his work home, then," Tony said, not really saying it as if it was a question.
"Of course," he replied. "But we would love it if he'd continue attending the handful of classes that relate to the work he's doing."
"So more like a regular student, or are you still pushing for insane measures?" Tony asked. "Because at risk of being accused of retaliation, I am not at all happy with how my boy has been treated this year."
"We're not going to require anything like we were asking before," the dean swore. "Just the same standards our other students work by."
Tony looked at Scott, who raised an eyebrow, then he turned back to the dean to nod. "You'll understand, of course, that we'll need to discuss it before we decide if this place is safe enough for James to return to." But that looked like a step over the line for James by the expression he was wearing as he turned toward Tony fully. "We'll be in touch."
The dean tried to protest against them leaving, but James really didn't have a say between Scott and Tony pushing and pulling him out. He started to open his mouth, but Tony cut him off the first time, and Scott did it the time after that, leaving James stewing and sure that they both had thoughts on the matter.
As James was dealing with his school issues, Kate was back at her high school. It was her last semester, and she was due to graduate in a matter of weeks, and she was so, so far behind. Her dad and Annie had already talked to the teachers to let them know what was going on, but more than that, it seemed the entire student body was in on at least the basics. Everyone knew she was Hawkeye, and so the fact that she'd been missing for so long hadn't gone unnoticed.
Kate could hear the rumors flying the second she got back in the building, too. Some of them were reasonable, rumors about a long-term undercover mission, a mission to space, stuff like that. Others were the typical racist crap about her being out and about with dangerous mutants and how she was always bound to get herself hurt.
She tried to ignore it, and usually, she would have been able to. But this time around… she just… couldn't.
By an hour into the schoolday, she was honestly starting to freak out. She couldn't focus on her classes, not even when she knew she needed to buckle down and catch up. She couldn't make herself listen to what the teachers were saying. Every time she heard the word "Hawkeye," that was where her whole focus was - and so she ended up listening to a hundred different conversations in an hour.
But it was more than that. The zippers on bookbags were too loud. The doors shut too heavily. The scrape of kids moving in their chairs kept drawing her attention.
And then there were the crowds.
Kate had never had a problem with people before. She loved to go to clubs. She was a cheerleader. She was used to people. But the first time the bell rang to signal a class change, Kate could hardly breathe. All the kids squeezed together as they thronged the hallways to go to their next classes were too close. Too loud. And they kept touching her.
Every. Single. Time. that someone brushed up against her, she tensed. Especially if she couldn't see who had touched her. And, god help her, when some poor freshmen tripped over her own feet and slid into Kate, Kate could have come out of her skin.
Her second class was math, and she couldn't pay attention to any of it. And then, the bell rang way too soon, and the crowd of people was way too close.
And she tried. She really did. She tried to make it through the school day, because she wanted to be alright. She wanted to finish school. She didn't want Viper to have the power to make her a high school dropout. But when lunchtime hit and she was supposed to be in the cafeteria, she just… she couldn't.
She didn't think to check herself out or call anyone to come get her. She just left, barely aware enough of her surroundings to drive herself home. And then, she sat out in the car for a long time, her heart pounding in her ears and tears stinging her eyes.
Well, that went well, she thought as she pulled the keys out of the ignition and headed up to her family's apartment, not at all sure what she was going to tell her parents. She didn't expect them to be mad at her, not when both of them had been so supportive as she tried to piece herself back together. But she knew they'd ask why she was home.
She let herself in and was halfway through the living room when Natasha came inside as well - she'd just finished grabbing groceries. And seeing Kate home early, she frowned and took a step toward her daughter. "What-" she started to say, but she didn't get to ask anything else.
"Don't. Just don't," Kate snapped, her face bright red, crying in sheer frustration. "I don't want to hear anything right now. I'm done."
Natasha held steady, considered saying something then defaulted to an entirely different direction. "You can help put things away if you're going to skip."
Kate watched her mother for a second, but when it was clear Natasha wasn't going to do or say anything other than to unload the food, Kate let out a breath, nodded, and silently got to work putting things away, scrubbing surreptitiously at her face as she did so.
Natasha let her have a few moment of privacy to gather herself, and waited just a bit longer as she tried to convince herself that she didn't need to handle her daughter like an interrogation …. Yet."Before you go too far, why don't you tell me how you came to the decision to come home for lunch."
Kate let out a long, tired breath. "I just… can't, Mom," she said, unable to put words to the sensation of so much input and the way every sound and touch was too much.
"What can't you do?"
"Any of it." Kate leaned against the counter, away from Natasha. "The classes, the class changes, the cafeteria…"
Natasha considered her for a long moment. "What would you rather do?"
"I don't know," Kate admitted, running a hand through her hair, her frustration apparent in her tone. "I'm down to just eleven weeks til graduation, but I just… it's so … much. It's so loud."
"You have options, of course," Natasha pointed out. "I'm going to guess that you don't want to quit outright, though … perhaps just a change of scenery?"
"I don't think a different school would cut it, Mom," Kate said, unconsciously backed into the corner where the countertops met.
"I'm open to suggestions," Natasha said gently.
"Me too," Kate said just as quietly. "I don't know, Mom. I really don't."
"We could let you finish at Xavier's," Natasha said. "Or we can get you a tutor to help you study for the finals."
"Maybe," Kate said, nodding slowly and then pressing the heel of her hand into her eyes. "I can't keep track of that many people at once, Mom."
"Not this soon, no," Natasha agreed.
Kate held her breath as she tried to get a better hold of herself. "I thought I was doing better," she said in a small voice.
"You are," Natasha promised. "But what you went through wasn't the kind of thing to simply blow off. It takes lots of time to work through that … and it takes luck." She tipped her head to catch Kate's eye. "You're not the only one having trouble. It's part of the job."
"I know," Kate said, giving her mom a tight smile. "I've known since I was little that this job can destroy you if you let it. And I don't want to let it. I just…" She blew out a breath that moved her bangs. "It's so loud, Mom."
"So, you'll need quiet."
Kate nodded. "Please." She paused. "That… um… that tutor thing sounded workable."
"We can do that," Natasha agreed, and Kate pushed off from the counter to head to her room, still worked up but at least feeling better about not having to go back to school the next day.
Natasha watched her go with a look of concern etched on her features against her will. She hated showing her emotions, but when it came to her children and those in her extended family - in her own home - She didn't really have much of a choice but to react in that safe space.
She took a moment to consider the options and started by reaching out to a few of James' old tutors. They'd already been vetted and Natasha had kept tabs on them over the years anyhow … it made no sense to trust that someone wouldn't breach her trust after the fact and try to make a quick buck on some good inside information, after all.
She didn't know which of the small group would be available - or who from that group would be someone Kate would mesh well with. They had time … and they'd absolutely need to see who she could tolerate.
Tony had been sure to take James with him once they got back from dealing with the idiots in Massachusetts- purely as his way of making sure the kid was alright. It was only for a couple of days for a conference in Vegas, but even Scott had to acknowledge that Tony was right in keeping him close to someone adult. He needed to get out - he needed to see that most of the world wasn't going to treat him like Viper and her horrid daughter did. And with James refusing to do any therapy, this was the next best thing … seeing for himself how people responded.
But even Tony wasn't expecting to get back to the tower and find a full court press from SHIELD, let alone from the assistant director herself. The two inventors stepped out of the elevator, caught up in conversation all the way up until AD Maria Hill cleared her throat and made her presence known. "I was starting to wonder if I needed to go looking for you," she said, and Tony smirked to himself as they came to a stop in front of her.
"I'm not that hard to find, you know," he said, full of himself as always.
She smiled tightly. "I wasn't talking to you."
James' eyebrows lifted in surprise as he looked between the two of them, not at all prepared for that. "I'm sorry, what?" James asked as Tony frowned and turned from James to Hill, his body language showing clearly that he wasn't going to be entertaining whatever she had in mind.
But Hill ignored his posturing entirely. "I said I've been waiting patiently to have a word with you, Mr. Howlett."
"Yeah, okay," James said, looking to Tony for guidance - but that wasn't about to be viable as Maria held up one hand toward Tony when he took a few steps to follow.
"I'm sorry, but the director was clear that this is just for him," she said.
"Then he can deliver it himself," Tony said tersely.
"Stark- with all due respect, this will go a lot easier on everyone if you don't try to turn this into a pissing contest."
"The fact that you're playing messenger is kind of proof that it's already a pissing contest," Tony countered. "If this was friendly, he would have sent Agent Coulson."
"This is above Coulson's pay grade," Hill countered calmly. "And I need to get his account of what happened."
"Tony, it's fine," James said, trying to ease the tension, even if he really didn't want to talk to her. At all. "This won't take long."
"Don't tell me that you're going to cooperate with her when you haven't even told your own father what you went through," Tony said hotly.
"I'm not," James said, holding up both hands. "I'm not. But I can still hear her out."
"Already more sense than your predecessor," Hill said, then gestured for James to lead the way.
He took just a moment before he led her down to one of the conference rooms- not naive enough to think she wouldn't use the opportunity to poke around his lab otherwise. He held the door open for her and closed it behind her before he walked over to take a seat at the table, waiting to hear what it was she had to say.
"I'd like to hear your version of events, James," Hill said as she arranged herself and set a recording device down between them. "No reason to make this harder on you by having more people than what's necessary for this, either. I understand being closed off to the people you love when dealing with this kind of situation. And I'm here to support you however I can."
"All due respect, Agent Hill, but if you want to know what happened to me, you can take a number," James said, surprising even himself with his hard response. "I'm not talking about it to anyone."
Hill smiled at that, still sitting with her back straight and her hands entwined. "And I can appreciate that from your angle of trying to protect your loved ones, but this is more a matter of national security."
James frowned. "No, it's not."
"Please don't devolve this into a childish argument," she said in a sigh. "The mental state of the heir apparent to the government's largest and most prolific weapons developer is absolutely a matter of national security. You're set to step in and take over Tony's spot on his word or his death, and seeing as you just spent sixteen days and eighteen hours locked up in Viper's personal labs at her mercy, we have no reason not to think she turned you into an enemy of the state."
James simply wasn't expecting that kind of accusation, or the hard tone Hill's voice took the longer she spoke. "No-"
"That's not a viable argument, James." Hill leaned forward slightly, her eyes taking on a harder edge. "I'm here to get your telling of the chain of events, which you will provide me with. Today. This housecall is a nicety. A privilege that goes with your connections - one that can go away in a blink if I think you're lying to me or hiding information especially since I should just haul you off to the helicarrier to question like anyone else that's been through something even remotely similar to this."
James stared at her for a moment before his temper caught up enough to push back the stabbing shock at the center of his chest. "How do you know how long we were gone?" James asked with a sharp tone himself.
"We were debriefed by other-"
"No, they'd have told you days, but it sounds like you have it down to the hour. How do you know when we were taken? Or when we were rescued?"
Hill stared at him for a moment, and James could practically see the gears turning as she remembered that he'd know if she lied. Finally, she blinked quickly and let her tone shift to the more reasonable, approachable one. "We were in contact with Romanoff during the mission, and as far as when you were taken, the library had cameras, James. So did the street where Maximoff was picked up, and the street outside of the business that Barton was taken. They all had time stamps, and you all were taken within an hour of each other."
James lost some of his heat, partly because that wasn't a lie, and partially because he didn't know it had been so close.
"I am going to need your debrief on this, and I'm going to ask nicely for your cooperation going forward."
"Going forward-"
Hill's expression softened slightly, which to James was a little unsettling to see. "The only reason you haven't been assigned an agent to oversee you already is because until now, you've been either a minor, or you've been safe. Now, you are neither and because of that, you're a liability." She sat back in her chair, rearranging herself as she crossed her arms. "So. Why don't you start your cooperation on the right foot by telling me what happened with Viper?"
James stared back at her for a moment, weighing out what he wanted to say, but also unable to speak for the panic that rose up in the back of his throat. "I'm not really ready-"
"Let me be clear, I don't care what your therapist has to say about waiting until you're ready. This is more important than just your personal take on things and we need to know what happened to you and your friends for the greater good to take Hydra down."
James frowned at that though as his mind finally started to catch up to the rest of him. "Am I being charged with something?" James asked. "Have you interrogated any other Hydra victims like this? And realistically, what are the consequences if I just … tell you no? Because, Agent Hill - if I won't talk to my own father or Tony about this, the chances of me spilling my guts to you is non-existent."
She smiled, her expression holding no warmth. "I could force you."
James didn't even blink. "I've been taught by the Black Widow on how to deal with interrogation from the time my parents died. If you think you can beat her methods, I invite you to give it your best shot."
"On that note, have you allowed Romanoff to work with you, or are you still stonewalling her too?"
"Why don't you ask her?" James countered easily, falling into this role much more naturally the more angry he got. When Hill didn't respond, James answered his own question. "Oh. It's probably because she's refusing to tell you anything about me, isn't it?"
Hill was clearly irritated, but she kept her professionalism in check. "I will need a debrief, James. This isn't a game."
"I know."
"I don't think that you do," she said, once again sounding approachable, though that was about when Scott stepped into the room looking ready to fight. Hill looked up at him with a pleasant smile. "Summers."
"Agent Hill." Scott rested one hand on James' shoulder and took the seat next to him. "Do you have news about Viper that you're willing to share?"
"Not at this time, but as soon as I have something I can share, you'll be my first call," she replied, all business, no sweetness, no threat. She looked between Scott and James, then decided to wrap it up. "I was just telling James that I'm going to need his account of events."
"As soon as he gives one,you'll have access to it," Scott said, taking over for James when he could see how irritated his middle child was.
"Wonderful," Hill said. "Then I'll just take a moment longer to impress on both of you how important it is that should any of this leak to the press, any comment about any aspect of it will land you or whoever leaked it in a private cell on the helicarrier as we're considering this a matter of national security. From here on out, anything that happened in Madripoor since the start of your captivity until now is a 'no comment' answer to anyone else who asks." Her focus rested on James' eye patch for just a moment. "Take the time to take care of yourself, James. You'll need everything you've got to keep ahead of this."
James started to open his mouth when Scott cut across him, instantly defensive and ready to go after her. "Agent Hill - why is it that their recovery is a matter of national security but their actual kidnapping and captivity wasn't?"
She looked bored at the question, but answered it all the same. "Tell me, Summers… or should I call you Scott - because I sure can't call you Cyclops anymore. How long did it take you to figure out who had them?" Before Scott could reply, she kept going. "And you … you knew where Viper's favorite places were, right? You had access to every little snippet of tech that Stark has at his fingertips, too. SHIELD has the manpower, but no one in your little band of heroes bothered to give us the tools we needed to get them out faster. The flow of information was absent from this tower. And once again, I was reminded of how tight-lipped the X-Men always were about sharing anything with the authorities until it was too late to get the help you needed."
"I wasn't here, obviously, but I know damn well that's a load," James said before Scott could blow up. "You can't tell me SHIELD's trying to help the kinds of people out that the X-Men do. You don't care about mutants and you never have. Not unless they were useful to you."
Hill's eyes flashed, but she pushed by James and Scott on her way out. "Believe what you like, James. But it's hard to keep up to your standards of tech when the only ones with access to it are you and Stark. And just so you don't think you're being singled out, I'm going to talk to Wanda and Natasha next." She smiled tightly. "I was just going to start with the one that obviously saw the most first. I thought you'd want to help your teammates. Thought you had that whole selfless thing down. Guess I was wrong."
"That's well out of line," Scott said, his eyes flashing.
"It's the truth."
"No, it's your version of it - just like everything else you've said so far," Scott said, stepping between James and Hill without thinking about it. "You know damn well that no one on my team has one reason to trust you with intel, especially since I know you knew Graydon Creed had the X-Men two days in. The only reason SHIELD cared about that fiasco was that you lost an Avenger. We could have been dead and you'd never have lifted a finger - and you think we'll ever trust you? I know you stood aside and let Shadowcat and Iceman deal with the fallout in Japan and Madripoor. I know you knew Havok and his in-laws were fending off Reaver interest in the remaining mutant children. I know you had intel leading up to damn near every single attack against my kids after the X-Men dissolved, because suddenly, you had to pick up our slack." Hill opened her mouth, but Scott cut her off with a sharp gesture. "You don't get to come in here, interrogate a kidnapping victim, claim superiority, and open up old wounds while acting like SHIELD was ever anything better than a bystander. And that's on a good day."
"Summers-"
"Cyclops." Scott purposefully let the settings on the cybernetic eyes switch to one that glowed. "Or do you think powers are the only reason I ran the team?"
For just a moment, Hill squared up to Scott. Then, with a scoff, she stepped back into the elevator and directed her comment at James. "The next time we talk, it'll be without interruptions, and it will be on the helicarrier." She smiled tightly just before the doors closed, leaving the open threat hanging in the air.
"No, that's not ominous at all," James said under his breath before he tried to just … leave the situation.
But Scott hadn't been there for the start of it and he didn't know what had been said behind closed doors. And considering that he just saw SHIELD's assistant director threaten his son with a private interrogation, he wasn't about to let James just brush this one off.
"She's serious, James."
"What are they going to do, dad?" James asked in a shout, sounding both angry and frustrated - and entirely out of character when aimed at his dad. "I made it through Viper's torture and mind games and poison - if SHIELD wanted to scare something out of me, they should have fricking done it before she got a hold of me."
"And that's exactly what I'm worried about!" Scott shot back, matching James' volume purely out of habit - it was so much like dealing with Logan. Or Nate, for that matter. "Maria Hill has no moral center. She'll do whatever she thinks she has to do for SHIELD's sake, and what the hell do you think is going to happen if she finds something Viper buried in there to make you follow orders?"
"I guess she'd get to be right for once."
"This isn't a joke, James. That visit was a warning shot and a declaration of intent. And considering everything we know Billy and Kate were programmed to do, I'll be damned if I let Maria Hill within spitting distance of you until Natasha and Rachel can be sure the only thing she'll get out of your next conversation is a pithy look."
"Never said it was a joke. I know what she's up to, and it's not happening." James turned to walk off, which absolutely wasn't something that ever happened when these two weren't seeing eye to eye. "And if she wants cooperation going forward, she can shove it."
"And the rest of it?" Scott insisted. "Whatever Viper did isn't going to go away by ignoring it."
"I'll just … quit."
"No, you'll go talk to Natasha and Rachel or Betsy or whoever the hell else you deign to include."
"I'm not letting anyone in my head," James argued.
"Are you sure?" Scott shot back, raising his voice. "Because Viper already got in, and you're a ticking time bomb for Christsakes."
"You don't know that."
"You really think that she brainwashed just Billy and Kate? You're really going to be that willfully blind?" Scott said, his eyebrows high on his head. "You're too smart for this. You know better."
But James didn't want to say what he was thinking - that he didn't trust any of them. Not even a little bit. Especially with his mind. And it could only come out in the worst ways possible. "Are you done?"
Scott narrowed his eyes and then spun on his heel. "Sure. I guess I'll get the call when I need to come bail you out again."
"Don't bother."
"Fine." Scott left in sharp footsteps and made it all the way outside before he had calmed down enough to form a plan. Everything that had just happened back there was wildly out of character for James, no matter how much he was tempted to see it as his father coming out. Even when they were fighting, Logan could acknowledge basic truth. Especially if it was a risk to other people. And he would never settle for letting Hydra have the last word over his mind.
Neither would James, for that matter. At least not in his right mind.
Scott took a deep breath and let it out so he would sound less peeved as he called in backup. "Bets, we're done waiting for James to get around to fixing the damn brainwashing," he said as soon as she picked up - utterly failing at sounding calm.
"What happened?" Betsy asked.
"Hill is staking a claim."
"Like hell she is," Betsy said, her tone low.
"That's what I said," Scott said. "And then James refused to let anyone in. Full stop."
"What about Natasha? Her methods are a little slower but-"
"Asked about her too. And you'd have thought his father's soul inhabited his body to tell me where I could stick my ideas."
"Okay … when do we start, and what exactly do you want me to do about this?"
"As soon as you can get on Cerebro."
"That fast, hmm? Must have been rough." He could hear her moving, rushing to get started if he was that angry.
"He's not even acknowledging the fact that the other two were brainwashed. It's like she trained him to ignore every red flag."
"She may have," Betsy agreed.
"And with Hill staking a claim, we need him back to himself yesterday or we'll have a damn war between Hydra and SHIELD over my son."
"Sounds like neither one of them has much of a chance," Betsy said, trying to tease. "If, like you said, he's sounding that much like his father. Are you sure you want that part turned off?"
"You're hilarious," he said dryly.
"If it's not pointed at you, it's pretty substantial," Betsy said.
"Bets…"
"I'm teasing. He's already like that on his own. This is just the first time it's been aimed at you. Which is a miracle, all things considered. Give me five minutes or so to get oriented and call me if there's a problem once I get going." She paused for a moment. "I'm going to say there's a reason you're not asking someone that doesn't need the boost?"
"Rachel is barely keeping the Phoenix back as it is with what she's already seen and Nate thinks too much of his brother to be able to push hard enough to clean out Hydra if he gets caught up in seeing what they did to him."
Again, Betsy paused. "Do I get a debrief or am I supposed to just … what do you know?"
Scott paused, because he had honestly been too upset to remember who was in the know, and that wasn't like him. "Right," he said through his teeth. "Find a place and sit down."
Scott had taken a walk around the block - twice, even pausing to grab lunch when the rain started up before he headed back to the tower. He wanted to cool off, and he wanted to give Betsy a chance to at least get started, so he didn't want to be too close in case he triggered James into reacting to his presence after the fight they'd had.
So when he got back to the tower, he was pleasantly surprised to find that James had apparently just … gone to his room and laid down to go to sleep. Which made life easier for Betsy while she was working if the kid was out. He just hoped that James would be able to understand why they'd taken the route they did rather than hold it against them when he woke up again. It was also the most restful that Scott had seen James since they'd gotten the kids back from Viper, too, so he hoped that would shift things a little as far as the rest of James' recovery went.
He was still standing in the doorway when Billy showed up, looking for James, and not at all surprised to see him crashed, though the fact that he wasn't waking up when someone was in the door was a big tip off that things were different. "Is he alright?" Billy asked Scott quietly, drawing Scott's attention away from James for a moment.
"Working on it. Actively," Scott told him before he directed Billy away from the door. "Betsy is working telepathically on him right now, so it would be helpful if no one woke him up while she's working."
Billy let his shoulders relax, looking honestly relieved. "How did you convince him to go along with it? Did he finally see what he was doing?"
"Something like that," Scott said, not wanting to trip Billy off into anything if he could avoid it. He'd deal with fallout later, right now, he wasn't letting anyone interrupt what Betsy was doing.
Meanwhile, across town, Alex was trying to help Nate with his homework before Scott got home - a rough case of the blind leading the blind when neither of them really cared about the subject at hand and would have much rather been elsewhere.
Alex was just about to let out a weary, exaggerated groan at the idea of quadratic equations when his phone went off with an unexpected text … from Corsair asking where he was.
"What's going on?" Nate asked, slowly closing his book since he was willing to take any distraction over dealing with homework - school had gotten to be insufferable since Kate left and he just wanted to get out.
"Ah … Dad is looking for us, apparently," Alex said, then looked up at Nate. "My dad. Not yours. Yours knows where everyone is down to the three foot mark right now."
"Yeah, I noticed," Nate said, then took Alex's phone from him. "Were you two supposed to meet up?"
"Not that I remember," Alex said, snatching his phone back so he could answer Corsair's questions. "Why don't you reach out to your dad and ask him where we should all meet up? It's kind of weird for Corsair to show up out of the blue without a reason, so … we probably ought to give him a minute to explain himself."
"Yeah, sure, no problem," Nate said before his eyes glowed while he reached out to Scott.
"I said … okay, I didn't say it but I meant to text him," Alex said, rolling his eyes.
"You act like I'm a mindreader," Nate joked, smiling to himself when Alex gave him a dry look. "Oh wait. I guess I am. Leave me alone. I'm practicing not peeking."
Alex's smile went more crooked. "Alright. I gotcha. Gotta smooth things over with the girlfriend, huh? What did you do - or is this still because you were too worked up with Kate and everyone?"
"Shut up," Nate said, frowning. "Dad says here is fine. Tell Corsair to take his time. He'll come home with pizza, okay?"
"Perfect," Alex said before he sent off the text and the two of them started cleaning up in preparation of the eldest Summers' arrival.
It wasn't long after that when James started to wake up at the tower feeling like he'd gone a few rounds with a heavy weight fighter for how his head felt. For a long moment, he just laid there with his hand tented over his eyes. Telepathic interference was something else … and he knew he hadn't consented to that kind of thing. And on thinking about it, he knew it had to be bad if his Dad allowed it to happen even when he'd so clearly been saying 'no'.
"How are you feeling?" Scott asked from the doorway, his hands in his pockets as he watched James slowly wake up.
"Got a headache," James admitted, then slowly pushed himself upright with a muted 'ow'. A headache was the worst of it, but it wasn't all. He felt like he was dehydrated, and both exhausted and full of too much energy at once. But when he got beyond paying attention to the obvious migraine, he didn't feel quite so … confrontational. "You okay?"
"Always fine," Scott said, shrugging as he leaned in the doorway.
"Okay, don't believe that."
Scott breathed out a laugh and came into the room more to sit at the end of his bed. "I called Betsy and told her to use Cerebro. I'm sorry I went behind your back, but the risks were getting too high."
"It's … I kinda figured it was something like that," James said, frowning at the floor.
"I know it's a huge invasion of privacy-"
"Stop."
Scott held his breath, watching James closely.
"Did she tell you what she found?" James asked. "Because I really don't know."
Scott nodded slowly. "Viper and Katarina were … as thorough as they could be in the time frame they had. The orders that stuck included directives not to talk to anyone but those two about their plans for you, not to rejoin any heroic teams without their say-so, a distrust of telepaths, and several orders concerning your role as Katarina's enforcer and bodyguard, among other things," he said, not wanting to let him wonder.
James was rubbing the spot between his eyes. "Oh, is that all?"
"They were laying the groundwork for more, but that's what stuck."
"So did she clear it out, or is there more to deal with?"
"She didn't have time to clear everything, but she started with the orders not to get help or undo what they did," Scott admitted. He paused. "That… should make everything else easier. Betsy will understand if you want Rachel instead, but she can do the rest herself over the course of a few more sessions."
"Okay," James said softly. "I don't … think I want Rachel to have to do that."
Scott smiled tightly, relieved because it was the most defensive he had been of Rachel since his kidnapping. "Then I'll let Betsy know."
James looked around the room, half glaring at the room itself. "Do I have to stay here?"
"You're not on house arrest, James," Scott promised.
"I know, but I want to get away from the tower. I want to go home."
Scott let his shoulders drop entirely. "Of course." He paused, then reached over to rest his hand on James's shoulder. "If I can help - in any way…"
"I really just want to sleep in my own bed," James said. "Away from the crowd of Avengers."
"That can be arranged." Scott got up to leave, then hesitated. "Corsair's around."
"That's fine, he doesn't really talk to me anyhow," James said. "If anything, he'll want to hear from Nate about whatever crazy stories he has."
"Just giving you a heads up."
"Thanks," James said, then shifted to follow Scott through the living room and to the elevator so they could go. "I've still got my inducer, so we should get out with no trouble."
Before they hit the door, Scott tossed a tired-looking smile his way. "It's good to have you back, for the record."
"Let's not get carried away, alright?" James said. "I still don't … I just don't want to fight, okay? That's all. I'm sorry I've been so much of a pain for everyone." He drew in a breath and held it for a moment to try and keep his composure … which was much harder now, though he didn't know why. "I know I was pushing your buttons, and I know you were just mad, but you don't have to keep bailing me out, Dad. You've already done way more than you should have."
Scott let out a sound from the very back of his throat. "No, that's not - I'll always be there to bail you out, James. And whatever else you need. I was just …" He waved one hand as if the words were floating just out of reach. "Viper made sure you wouldn't ask for help, and seeing you setting yourself up to be used… I'm sorry, James. What I said… I was just so upset."
"You weren't wrong though. I've taken up a lot of time that could be better used elsewhere."
"And now that her orders for you to leave yourself open are gone, that's not the case. It's fine. I blame her, not you."
"Still." he crossed his arms and leaned against the back of the elevator. "You should be planning out stuff with Nate, not dealing with this crap." He tipped his head. "Or coming up with things to do with Ms. Hale."
"Annie and I can still visit the bookshop cafe and split our attention between our schools and you kids. Believe it or not, I did successfully help run an entire team and school and two toddlers at the same time," Scott said with a dry smirk. "You act like giving my son support is optional."
"I'm just very aware of how much energy I'm drawing away from everyone," James said - which sounded a lot like Betsy's coaching and work at play. "And you do have more you can do elsewhere. Especially when I've got extreme levels of stupidity going on." James shook his head. "Like, for example, you're worried about dealing with me when you should be wondering why the space pirate is here."
"James, my philandering father is very low on my list of priorities right now," Scott said dryly.
"You're not curious?" James asked just as the elevator hit the lobby.
"Curious? Yes," Scott said. "I never know what the story is with him." He shrugged. "Guess we'll find out."
As luck would have it, Corsair arrived at Scott's house before Scott did - and as James had predicted, he was overly enthusiastic to make a fuss over Nate and anything he might have to tell him - and Alex was soaking it up since he, too, always got that kind of reaction out of Corsair.
When Scott and James came in with pizza not long after Nate had started telling the story of the dramatic rescue from Madripoor, Corsair did a small double take on seeing James in his faux-Summers inducer … ad started making far too much of a fuss about how good he looked, ignoring the way James was flinching when Corsair put his arm around his shoulders. "You look fantastic! How long have you had this figured out? Did you have Nate help you get this straightened out?"
"No," James said, trying to shrug him off with no luck.
"That's all him," Nate confirmed, though Corsair wasn't done yet.
"I heard you got yourself into some trouble," Corsair said with a laugh, turning his attention to James, who wanted nothing to do with him just then. "It's a good thing you had your brother and sister to get you guys out of it." James narrowed his eyes and Corsair sounded perfectly entertained. "You should wear that image inducer all the time."
"Okay, okay, I'll turn it off," James said, shrugging Corsair off when he just kept it up. Obviously Nate hadn't warned the guy about boundaries - likely because he'd never really been this obnoxious with James before. As soon as he managed to get back from Corsair, James did turn off his inducer, but that only seemed to set off a whole new more delighted state of mind with the 'space grandpa'.
"Oh," Corsair said, his tone perfectly excited when he saw the eye patch. "James, my boy -" The smile shifted from his usual obnoxious self to something much more pleased. "You'll fit in beautifully with my crew!"
And as Scott looked ready to intervene, Nate fell apart laughing at James' reaction - which was plainly clear and impossible to misinterpret as he made a half-gagging noise as he got out from under Corsair's arm paired with a deep, from the back of his throat "No."
James spun away from Corsair with a shiver, then took a few quick steps to put distance between them, shaking his head and repeating 'no' in about half a dozen different iterations, which was at least entertainment for Scott as he could clearly imagine James' mother doing exactly the same thing.
"That's a little bit of an over reaction, don't you think?" Corsair said, looking wholly unamused as he let his arms fall to his sides. "I came all the way here to celebrate the New Year with you-"
"New year?" Alex asked, scrunching his nose. "Dad, it's almost April. I thought you were here for Nate's birthday."
"Or Easter," Nate offered, at least getting a nod and a broad gesture from Alex, who looked more irritated than the kids had seen of him before.
"Hey, you can't blame me for losing track of time," Corsair said, holding his arms out wide. "I'm on the other side of the galaxy. I'm working."
"Is that new then?" Alex blurted out. "Because last I heard you were a common criminal knocking over random ships."
"Not common-"
"Yeah? If you were here, what kinds of places would you be robbing, Dad?" Alex demanded. "You do this kind of crap every damn time!"
"Hey! I was a pilot. I'd still be a pilot, just like I am now! Come on, Alex-"
"No. You blew Scott and I off for most of our lives, and now you try to sweep in like some kind of hero when you're just a crook."
"I thought you wanted me around!"
"Yeah, but not as some kind of … obnoxious, constantly late pain," Alex shouted. "If you show up here, or on Genosha, it's got to be because you want to be a part of our lives, not because you want to … grace us with your presence." He gestured toward Nate and James, who were standing shoulder to shoulder. "Those two and the people they're dating have been through hell and you want to make light of it? Are you kidding me?"
"I have no way to keep track-"
"I'll give you a calendar," Alex bellowed. "Use it as a marker to make a damn call!"
"This isn't really how I saw this going," Corsair said, and Scott could see it was everything his boys could do to keep from laughing at Corsairs' whole demeanor on saying that.
Still, Scott knew his dad wasn't going to admit to being wrong - he never did - and in the spirit of at least trying to keep things from devolving too badly, Scott stepped between Alex and Corsair, both hands held up between them. "Look," he said, addressing his father directly, "this is a bad time. No one here is in the mood to celebrate. But if you're willing to help us rally around our kids to support them, then pull up a chair, because they need it."
Corsair looked exactly as he felt - like he'd been put in a corner and had no choice but to agree even though he was obviously disappointed that things had taken a turn. "What can I do?"
"Right now?" Scott raised an eyebrow. "RIght now, we're all trying to get back to normal despite the fact that three of the junior team are dealing with PTSD. So keep your hands to yourself, pitch in, and help us get everything moved back into my place from Genosha."
"Okay, yeah, I can do that," Corsair said. "I didn't know."
"I know. If you'd known and pulled what you just pulled, I'd have put you out on your ass before Alex could," Scott told him frankly. "But for the record? Call. Unless it's an emergency? Call."
"Okay, okay," Corsair said, holding both hands up. Though he couldn't leave it alone entirely. "The comms work both ways, you know."
"Did you know that?" James whispered to Nate, half startling Nate on hearing it. "Did you wire the string on those cans to go the other way, too?"
Nate snickered. "Must have slipped my mind."
Scott barely glanced toward the boys before he let his shoulders drop and jerked his head, gesturing for Corsair to follow him to sit down to dinner. "I'll fill you in after we eat, but the gist of it is that James, Kate, and Billy just escaped Hydra."
"Nate was kinda going over it, but I thought it wasn't a big deal. It sounded like Nate and Rachel had a daring rescue on their hands," Corsair said, following Scott and leaving the boys with Alex for a moment - though Alex could see the muscle working in Scott's jaw as he passed.
"You're definitely our favorite uncle," Nate said to Alex, just to break him out of the slow rage he was still wrapped up in.
"I'm your only uncle," Alex said dryly.
"Doesn't take away from it," Nate continued.
"I'll be honest," James said to Nate before they started toward the kitchen. "I'd leave if it wouldn't send Dad into a lot worse mood."
"Yeah? Where would you go?" Nate asked, half concerned since he had been worried for a long while now about his big brother.
"Just to grab a burger," James said. "Where it's quiet."
"And pirate free," Alex added as he herded the two of them toward the kitchen. "Tomorrow. We can do that tomorrow."
Before long, though, Corsair seemed to have moved past the awkwardness of his greeting, and now that he wasn't actively acting like the most recent happenings were no big deal, it was easy enough to fall back into the way Corsair's visits usually went: with Scott and Alex listening to their dad telling Starjammer stories and the boys slowly making their way out of the conversation simply because Corsair had always cared more about Alex and his kids anyway, so Nate and James could easily step out.
"You know we'll get in trouble if we run screaming from the house, right?" James said to Nate - and though the tease was accurate and on par, James' tone still hadn't hit right just because he was half serious. "Not for running away from a scurvy pirate, but for drawing attention."
"Yeah, let's not do that," Nate said as the boys took a seat in the living room - close enough to be there when Scott or Alex looked, but out of the immediate line of fire when it came to Corsair's storytelling. "Besides … we've got company coming, too."
"We?" James said, turning his head toward his brother as he melted into the couch. "You have a frog in your pocket or something?"
"No, but you can't really disappear and keep from damaging grandpa pirate's ego, so if I have company, you have company."
"I already told Billy I was going to be dealing with Corsair. No idea why, but he was happy for the warning."
"Yeah, real mystery," Nate agreed, smirking hard. "But, hey, at least my company is bringing burgers."
"Seriously?" James put his feet on the coffee table. "Did you bribe her? And are you two planning on something inappropriate?" He held up both hands. "I don't want details. Just a yes or no and a clue on how I can hide from it."
"Yes and I'll hang a sock," Nate said, smirking - even if he wasn't sure how true that was, considering he and Kate hadn't actually tried anything like that since Hydra.
Sure enough, before long, Kate let herself into the house with the key Nate had given her long ago, bags of burgers balanced in one arm as she flung open the door with the other. "I heard there was a New Year's Eve party going on, but I couldn't find any fireworks, so I settled for burgers instead," she announced - and Nate laughed outright as he crossed the space to help her with the bags.
"Katie, I love you," James said. "I'd ask you to marry me for this if it didn't cause waves and I didn't mean a damn word of it."
"That's okay," Kate said, grinning brilliantly. "I have that effect on people. They just fall at my feet. It's embarrassing."
"It'd probably cut in on my looming career as a cabana boy anyhow," James shot back.
"Oooh, good point," Kate said, pointing at him with a hand that was now free since she and Nate had set the burgers down on the coffee table in the living room. "Hi, by the way. I heard Havok was wreaking havoc earlier. I always miss the shows, huh?"
"Never know when he'll go off, apparently," James agreed, though he had already turned his focus to the food for a change. "I'm sure Nate would project it if you really wanted to see Alex turn beet red."
Nate watched his brother as he dove into his burger, and had to ask; "I thought you weren't hungry after the pizza, but … I'm kinda glad I had Kate bring this by."
"I'm not hungry," James admitted. "But I haven't really been eating for a while … doesn't take much to fill me up right now. Working on it though since I guess I need the extra."
It was as close to normal as he'd come to being - so far - and it was confirmation that he knew exactly how to keep himself from taking in enough to heal properly. Which, Nate considered was probably another thing Viper had done to screw with him. She did want the injury to be permanent, after all.
"Katie," James said, when it was clear she and Nate weren't headed off to parts unknown. "Seriously. I think I needed this. I owe you."
Kate smiled his way. "We can't start keeping score, James. You'd owe me a million just for pushing you and Billy together," she teased.
"I already do, just adding to it," he said.
"Fair," Kate said, then leaned back on the couch and propped her feet up on the end of the table away from the food. They ate in companionable silence for a while before Kate spoke up again. "Actually… if you feel like letting me cash in one of those favors…"
"Whatcha need?" James asked.
"So…" Kate tossed up a wrapper and threw it in a perfect arc into the trash can. "I… sorta… need your help finding a tutor so I can graduate. Because, ah, big crowds and me aren't friends at the moment."
"You want one of my old tutors or you want me to help you?"
"Would you?" Kate sat up almost instantly. "Because I gotta tell you, none of your tutors know what to do with me. I'm brilliant at music and archery, but I'm not a whizz kid like they're used to dealing with, you know?"
"No," he said, shaking his head. "I don't know what you're talking about, but I think I can help you get through whatever sections are giving you trouble."
"Thank you." Kate looked like she might hug him on the spot if not for the fact that, well, everything. "I don't want Hydra to turn me into a high school dropout, you know? And I'm way behind in public school now, and I can't handle going to school, and… and I just want a diploma, James."
"Katie, I already said yes. I'll be bringing in lattes for you just so you can breathe, too."
"I know, I just… I just wanted you to know it means a lot to me," Kate said earnestly. "I kinda sorta maybe fell apart on Mom earlier, so…"
"That's okay. I yelled at Dad," James said.
"Wait, you what?" Nate turned toward James with his whole body. "Since when?"
"Ah, this afternoon," James said. "We got into it after Maria Hill threatened me with a permanent SHIELD babysitter and an interrogation on the helicarrier." He tipped his head and pointed at Nate. "He … doesn't actually know that first part."
"Oooh, that explains why Mom was in such a bad mood when I left," Kate said, her eyes wide as she nodded seriously.
"Yeah, Hill said she was going to talk to your mom and Wanda, too."
"Well, the 'talk' ended with my dad siccing Lucky on Hill…"
"Yeah, ours ended with Dad leaving and arranging for Betsy to rearrange a few things in my head with Cerebro."
Nate stared openly at James, and Kate let out a low whistle and a "wow."
"There was a lot of yelling, Nate. it's fine. It's over. We're good, I think."
"Yeah, I mean, he and I get into it all the time and get over it too, it's just… wow." Nate shook his head, one hand on the back of his neck. "You never yell at him."
James sighed, his shoulders slumping. "He was pushing a few buttons that weren't mine. And I wasn't going to let anyone do anything to help."
"Ooh, yeah. Tommy told me he sort of accidentally pushed one of Billy's buttons yesterday," Kate said, wincing. "He was mostly joking about being scared of being wished out of existence again," she added, though this time, the wince smoothed out into a slight smirk.
"Betsy's going to have to go back into my head for a few sessions anyhow. I think Dad was probably underselling it when he told me what she did and has to do. Honestly."
"Considering I killed a guy for Vojteck, I'm going to assume that's a yes," Kate agreed.
"Well, it'll have to be on her schedule," James said. "She's probably better off staying on Cerebro for it."
"I could look," Nate started to say, but James nipped that in the bud immediately.
"I don't want you seeing that," James said. "I know you're stronger than she is, and you're better across the board, but … you don't need to see that."
"I love you, babe, but he's right," Kate said, pinching Nate above the knee for added emphasis. "You literally went on a stupid revenge quest with my dad the last time you got front row seats to Hydra madness."
"In my defense, I'm kind of in love with you and hate to see you hurt," Nate shot back.
"And I encouraged him," James admitted. "Sorry, not sorry."
Kate smiled lightly his way. "That's okay. We'll add it to your million and one favors you owe me."
"I thought this one fell into the take a penny, leave a penny." He snapped his fingers. "Right. I killed another penny like that, too."
Kate snorted. "You're ridiculous, and I love you so."
"So, I guess, I can tutor you, but if I suddenly pass out in a puddle of my own drool, you can blame Betsy," James said.
"Deal," Kate said, leaning back against Nate.
The three of them were quiet for a while, though since James had stuffed himself, he was ready to crash. "Tell Dad Corsair's stories worked. I think I can sleep for a few weeks now," James said to Nate. "I'm sure no one will be surprised I went up."
"Yeah, you've earned a break for sure," Nate agreed, and James took a second to sign 'thanks' to Kate before he jogged up the stairs to crash, leaving Nate and Kate alone to do what they liked.
Kate was in an excellent mood, too, so she ended up curled into Nate in a way they just hadn't been doing since the whole thing with Hydra, resting her head on his shoulder and her hand on his chest and then occasionally looking up to steal kisses that gradually got longer and more involved. And it was only too easy for them to slip back into old habits, repositioning themselves to get a little closer, to kiss a little longer, until if they wanted to keep going, they really needed to go somewhere else, especially with Nate's dad, uncle, and grandfather just a room away.
"You know, I think James had the right idea about slipping off," Kate said, and Nate grinned, especially since he'd been thinking the same thing.
They were stealing kisses all the way up the stairs to Nate's room, both of them still riding good moods and honestly missing each other. And Kate was more than ready to get back to the way things had always been with them - right up until Nate slid his hand under her shirt.
It wasn't even that big a deal. He wasn't even fully feeling her up (yet). It was just that, suddenly, his hand on her bare back pulling her closer was just…
She stopped kissing him, her breath caught in her throat, and in the quiet, she could hear his phone buzzing nonstop. "You… you should get that," she said, her voice hoarse for more than one reason.
Nate pulled back but didn't call out the fact that he knew that wasn't why she'd stopped. She was trying desperately to save face, and he wasn't going to screw that up for her, even if he hurt for her. He didn't want to do anything to make her relive what she'd been through, obviously, so he just… reached over to grab his phone.
And immediately made a face when Tommy launched into talking on the other end: "Are you watching the news? You should be watching the news. SHIELD is taking credit for all your good work and it's stupid."
Nate glanced over at Kate. "No, we're not watching the news, but we'll pull it up."
"Okay. I volunteer for the next big revenge mission. I'll take a lap in front of the press corps so there's no mistaking who did it."
"Thanks, Tommy."
"Yep!" Tommy hung up, and Nate was left shaking his head.
Sure enough, once Kate got Nate's laptop up and crawled up on his bed to sit next to him with the news pulled up, he saw what the big deal was: SHIELD was taking a victory lap over Hydra's downfall, with public comeuppance for the higher-ups that Nate had pyschically tweaked into turning themselves in.
The way SHIELD was twisting it, they'd done all the legwork. They'd broken up Hydra.
Kate stuck her tongue out at the news. "Oh, sure. Now they're interested in breaking up Hydra."
Nate leaned back in the pillows close to her, watching her reaction. "Not like I set out to do it for the parade. Which I didn't get when I got back home," he teased her.
"Well, yeah, but that's not the point here," Kate said, waving him off.
"The point is that SHIELD has been screwing over mutants since my dad was a kid?" Nate offered.
"Before that."
"Fair." Nate shrugged. "Nothing much we can do about it, but if you want to go yell at Nick Fury, I can absolutely fly you up to the helicarrier."
"Aww, you do love me."
Nate smirked and leaned over to close the laptop. "Sure do."
Chapter 102: Working Through Trauma
Chapter Text
Jan had been reworking some designs for the team, not only because she liked to make changes as a way to burn off her stress but because she knew Tony had some things in the works. And since Kate usually loved to help with the designs, she wanted to get her input on some of it.
... until she saw Kate. It was obvious she was lost in the kind of melancholy that was too common for heroes, so she just sat down beside her on the rec room couch, jolting Kate out of her thoughts - she obviously hadn't been playing the game she had up on her tablet.
"Oh, hey," Kate said, closing down the game to turn toward Jan. "Sorry. I'm just... Trying to find something to do? I've already beaten my high score at darts."
Jan nodded, her eyes wide. "Bored or…?"
"Totally failing at distracting myself more like," Kate said, blowing her breath out through her lips.
"Sounds serious."
"It … kind of is, yeah," Kate said. She glanced around the rec room, only then noticing how empty it was. Cap must have gotten everyone out; it had been fuller last time she'd been paying attention.
"Anything I can help with?"
"I dunno." Kate set the tablet aside, her hands clasped in front of her. "I… I kind of … totally freaked out on Nate. I mean, not totally. More like… froze up?" She let out her breath, put her head in her hands, and groaned. "I'm not explaining it right."
Jan leaned forward, frowning hard. It wasn't like she didn't know what Kate had been dealing with, but she didn't know what she could say. "Okay, well," she said. "It's totally okay to not be okay, right? Like, dating after something like that… I can't imagine it's easy."
"It sucks," Kate agreed, without picking her head up. "Like… we used to…" She glanced up at Jan. "Okay, so it's totally an open secret that Nate and I have been having sex for forever, right? Basically since the day we got together?"
"Yeah, that's not a surprise," Jan confirmed for her.
"And now, I … I can't." Kate was surprised by how quickly the tears sprang to her eyes, even though she felt so stupid. It was stupid, wasn't it? Crying over not being able to have sex? Maybe something was wrong with her that she still wanted to even try.
Jan felt her shoulders drop. "Kate, it's fine," she said. "No one expects you to shake it off. You don't walk away from something that traumatic and go right back to the way your life used to be."
"No, I know that," Kate said. "But like…" She gestured broadly with both hands. "Me and Nate… it's always been so physical. Always. And how are we supposed to…"
Jan held her breath before she decided on what to say. "So, okay. If the only thing your relationship has is sex, that's a problem on its own."
"No, no," Kate said quickly. "No, it's just that… No, I think he's sweet. And cute. And he's so supportive. And totally grounds me. And goofy at all the right times."
"Yeah, I get that," Jan said, smiling fondly.
Kate couldn't help but giggle. "Yeah, we have a type, huh?"
"Oh yeah. We so do." Jan grinned and leaned back. "See? You're not losing Nate over this."
Kate nodded, though tears had started to slip down her face. "I know," she said. "I'm just so sick of being damaged goods."
"Now wait a minute," Jan said, in a sharper tone than she meant to use. "You are not damaged goods, so don't ever say that again."
Kate straightened up. "I-"
"You're not goods. You're not an object. And there is nothing - nothing - that those creeps can take away from you. Guys like that don't get to define you. Ever." When Kate simply stared at Jan, Jan tried to soften her edges. "I get it. It's hard to get back to normal. But your guy is a Summers. He's, like, hard-wired to be a sweetheart, right?"
"Yeah, he's been great," Kate admitted. "And he's been so careful."
"Well, yeah. He would be."
"But I don't want to have to be careful," Kate said.
"So try again," Jan said. "And try again and again until you're okay with it." She reached over to put her hand on Kate's arm. "You're eighteen. You've got plenty of time. Focus on graduating and letting your Summers spoil you, huh? The rest of it will come. I'm not saying it'll go away instantly - I mean, just look at how long it took Scott to get back on his feet - but you've got amazing support, great parents, and literally a tower full of Avengers going to bat for you, right? And if Nate can't see how much you love him and how much you want him, then he doesn't deserve you, okay?"
"Okay," Kate said, her voice small, before she leaned over and hugged Jan tight.
James' books and laptop were still in his book bag at his feet in the kitchen in Brooklyn, and he was still just sitting there, staring at nothing in particular, his head propped up by one hand as he stared at the table in front of him. He was almost physically recovered from everything Viper and her daughter had pulled. The last few sessions with Betsy had been rough, though, and according to Hank, it wouldn't likely be too much longer before he got his eye back to useable condition. His system had been working that whole time to repair massive organ damage and other injuries that were moving a little slow while trying to heal from prolonged torture, minimal nutrition, and rest. But now that James was eating better, he was healing faster. But he was still avoiding anyone that wanted to talk about what he'd gone through.
Yes, Betsy knew more than Rachel did at this point, but she was respecting his choice to discuss it with who he wanted in his own time, even for as much as she wanted to just wrap him up and fix it somehow. And the more Betsy unraveled, the more emotional and reflective James got.
Besides … he knew things that had been tortured out of his consciousness, and there was a special sort of guilt that came from agreeing to trade your life for those you care about. Especially knowing that in doing so, it was likely that most everyone else James cared about would have suffered tremendously. But they would have had a chance to fight back faster if all had gone south.
His coffee had gone cold by the time that Scott caught up with him. It was still jolting for Scott to see his son with a damn eye patch. Almost as jolting to see him so still after all the stress and all the nonsense the kid had been dealing with because of the college and SHIELD and the now rabid press that wanted details on his relationship with the Genoshan crown prince. It was easy for Scott to see that James was adrift, which is exactly what he didn't want to happen.
What's more, Scott was a little surprised to see him there, if he was being totally honest. The team had gathered up to go on a run to help some kids in middle America, and if James was here, then he'd turned them down to go help. Which did not bode well for where his son's state of mind was.
But … considering everything that had happened, and everything that Scott had learned after his lengthy investigations into all of the staff at MIT, Scott was trying to keep his anger from blowing up. No one had known that various members of the staff at the college were being blackmailed or worse. No one had known that they had been terrified to speak up or to try and report it when their own loved ones were being used as collateral by Hydra over the years, some of which were still missing. Tony hadn't known, and it had been buried deeply enough that even Natasha hadn't known. James definitely didn't know that part, either. Yet.
When Scott pulled a chair out to sit with him, James finally looked up and gave him a tight sort of half smile. "Not feeling up to going out with the team, huh?" Scott asked as he sat down.
"No," James agreed, his focus back on the table. "Not even a little bit."
"You haven't touched your books, either," Scott observed. "You planning on actually taking the time to yourself?"
"I don't know," James replied. "Maybe." He sat back in his chair, looking more like Logan with the scowl he was wearing.
"Are you having any trouble I should know about - or something Hank should know about?"
"No. Just …" James sighed, then finally looked up to meet his father's gaze. "Doubts."
Scott frowned but let out a slow breath, nodding in understanding. "Which part is giving you trouble?" Scott asked, sure that it was the fact that after a semester and a half of trying to drive James into the ground, suddenly, MIT had done a full reverse on their stance concerning James and his work. They'd stopped short of accepting his original papers, of course, but they weren't expecting him to hold tight to the strict deadlines they'd chosen for him. "Is it the school, or …"
"All of it," James said flatly. "I don't know that it's worth the trouble to finish at the school at all at this point - or to try and transfer somewhere else, either. Not when …" James stopped himself and shook his head.
"Whatever you're thinking, you can tell me."
But James shook his head, refusing to push forward and too lost in self doubt to even say what it was that he had on his mind. And he didn't want to admit to his father that he'd agreed to do whatever Viper wanted if she'd just let Billy and Kate go. Betsy had told him it was perfectly understandable, and she had even teared up when she told him it was exactly the kind of thing Logan would have done, but that too, was weighing on James.
"I know this won't help, but after the school back pedaled, I started digging," Scott said in a somber tone before he put a file folder on the table that he'd been holding in an iron grip. "We all thought they were just being awful because you were a mutant, or maybe because of who your parents were, but that doesn't seem to be the case at all." He opened the folder and started laying out individual papers so James could see them clearer. And Scott gave him a few moments to start looking at them before he began to lay it out so James didn't have to read the whole file.
"For the past ten, fifteen years, Hydra has been blackmailing scientists and professors all across the globe either to get them to do work for them or to stop promising young minds from stumbling into something that would go against Hydra's interests. Seventy four young people have been in accidents that left them unrecognizable and near comatose if they didn't die outright. More than that were involved in questionable lab accidents that forced them out of their chosen fields of study. Those were the ones that resisted Hydra or tried to report what they saw to SHIELD. Your dean and three faculty members had their entire families being held ransom by Hydra in their attempt to isolate you for Viper. The families were rescued by SHIELD, but not until after you were in Madripoor. It turns out they knew about it, but didn't want to move until it was safe to get them out. I'm still not entirely convinced that the decision wasn't influenced by a Hydra spy inside SHIELD."
James frowned as he looked at the pictures in front of him. Most of the families were young with small kids, and in one case, a pregnant woman looked as if she'd been half beaten to death. But it didn't help his mood. Especially for how quickly he caught up and got ahead of what Scott was trying not to tell him. "They waited for Viper to capture me so she'd be distracted," James said dully.
Scott held his breath for a moment because, for all that had happened, that was one thing that he couldn't deny. "They did," Scott agreed.
"They knew the whole time and they never said anything," James continued, frowning at the pictures, not at the innocent people there, but the SHIELD agents in the photos. "They weren't the ones to come for us, though. They weren't going to come for us, were they?"
"They didn't know that Kate and Billy were with you to start," Scott said with a nod. "I know it won't help you at all, or make you feel any better, but they were more focused on the families. The director took a calculated risk, sure that you'd live through whatever Viper put you through." There was no reason to lie to him, and it was the kind of cold hard move that Scott had been forced to make once or twice with Logan in the crosshairs. The difference, of course, was that Logan always knew it going in, and he wasn't an eighteen year old kid with no training in that area.
This was absolutely Nick Fury's version of tactics where the ends justify the means, no matter the damage it did. What bothered Scott was what else Fury might have in mind for James now that he'd come out the other side. And already, James' view of himself in regards to hero work was crumbling right in front of Scott's eyes. But Scott had already decided that James had the right to know. "The decisions that were made, and the information that was kept from us … I'll handle it. I know that none of this helps, not really, but at least this last push at school will be easier now that it's in the open and behind us."
"At least this explains some of what Hill said," James said dully.
"Which was…"
James kept his focus on his hands. "Mostly that I was overdue for a SHIELD babysitter to keep me in check. Because I'm a liability to everyone around me. And she's not wrong."
For just a second, Scott considered arguing with his son - again - about his worth. About what he meant to everyone. But… he decided against it, if for no other reason than the kid was starting to act like his father, and if this was how they both reacted to trauma, he saw no reason not to take a similar approach.
"James," Scott said carefully, "if - if - it ever came time for someone to step in, if you needed to be stopped, we already have a plan in place. Multiple. For each one of you kids."
"Yeah, I know. I have a few myself," James admitted.
"Then you should know the difference between our plans and SHIELD's," Scott pointed out. "SHIELD will default to protect their interests. They don't know you personally, so they won't be able to differentiate between controlled actions and rogue actions. They're easily infiltrated - they just had a mole, for crying out loud - and they have no moral center. I know which team I'd rather have watching my back."
James looked up at Scott as he thought how to respond. "To be clear, I wasn't advocating for them to step in. Ever."
"Good, because I'd have you committed."
"I just meant she had a point about the rest of it. She can stuff her cooperation."
Scott let out a long breath and then came over to sit down next to James. "Yes," he said at last. "She's right. She absolutely is."
"So, even with all the work Betsy did, I really shouldn't … I don't belong on a team."
Scott shook his head. "Now, that part I disagree with," he said. "Yes, you're a liability. You are. So is Kate. So is Billy. To be frank, so am I, and so is Rachel with the damn Phoenix chomping at the bit at tasting so much misery. The X-Men as a team were always one big bundle of liabilities that never should have worked. But we did. And you do. Which, I think, is kind of the point."
"It doesn't feel the same, though," James said. "It's not a trigger thing, either. Betsy said she got everything that she could find - and that she dug deep. This is …. I guess because I'm not really doing what I should. Every time things get intense, I end up killing someone, and it's getting worse. It wasn't just one this last time, and the only reason I didn't beat the life out of that little slimeball at the tower was because Thor has a hell of a grip."
Scott nodded and let James say his peace, then gestured outward with both hands. "Times like this, I wish Logan were still alive," he admitted. "I wish it so badly, because he… he could explain this to you better than I could. What it feels like to go into the red, like he'd called it. And the shame he carried around afterward… even though it was always in our defense."
"Yeah, I think I got that figured out," James said. "This is different. I don't feel guilty about it like I probably should."
Scott let out a breath, then bumped shoulders with James. "I'll let Alex know you're converting. He'll be thrilled to add another Catholic to the family, seeing as I stopped going when I was a kid."
"Yeah, no," James said, shaking his head. "Not interested."
"You're sure beating yourself up enough," Scott said.
"Well, maybe because I'm letting people call me a hero when I'm actually just a murderer."
"I seem to remember you coming to me with your parents' files and all sorts of questions about X-Force, which I ran."
The corner of James' mouth tightened up for a moment. "You directed traffic for X-Force. How many of those people did you specifically say needed to actually die - and not just be stopped?"
"Well, damn, James, by that logic, half the war criminals in the world are off the hook for not giving out lists of names," Scott said. "You're not suddenly some supervillain because you've discovered the sad truth that the line isn't always as bright in the sand as we want it to be."
"That ship sailed already, Dad. Magneto was right. It's just a matter of time."
"Oh, to hell with Magneto," Scott said, making a sharp gesture. "I tried to put him in the ground my damn self, or did you forget that? Am I suddenly not worthy in your eyes too?"
"I was talking about being on the team." James looked up to meet his gaze. "Are you saying you're joining up?"
"Why the hell not?" Scott said, gesturing grandly. "Wouldn't be the first time I've been on the team in a support capacity only."
"Support capacity."
"I'm out of practice and have no powers, James. And I don't shoot arrows. What do you want from me, here?" Scott said dryly.
"They could use your expertise," James said.
Scott met James's gaze for a long time and then leaned back, crossing his arms. "You sure the fact that I went to Genosha to assassinate its leader doesn't disqualify me? Or the fact that I ran X-Force?"
"Considering it's your team, I don't think you can come up with a disqualifier," James countered.
"You said yourself being a murderer is off the table. I've got plenty of blood on my hands."
"Then I misspoke. Being me is reason to be off the table," James replied with a little measure of heat.
"That's Viper talking." Scott uncrossed his arms and leaned forward. "And exactly why you can't quit, James. The fact that Hydra - not just Viper - doesn't want to face you in a fight? Says you're doing it right."
"No … just … you're laying it on pretty thick, aren't you?" James asked, looking as if he clearly didn't believe a word of it.
"Nope," Scott said. "It's pure strategy. And something I had to deal with myself when it was Emma isolating me from my friends and my team." He tipped his head. "Trying to stop you from making my mistakes."
At mention of Emma, though, James' eyes narrowed. "How much of this do you think she knew about?"
Scott let out a long breath as he thought about it. "I can't say," he admitted. "She's retreated with her contacts since Tony's army of lawyers came out in force." He paused. "But… if she thought for even a second that she could benefit from Vipers plan…" He trailed off, his eyes narrowed. Emma had always been a bit of a blind spot for him. When he looked up and saw James watching him, he cleared his throat. "Besides," he said in an obvious play to change the subject, "what are you going to tell those kids that were following you around like lost ducklings? You're their hero."
"They liked Nate, too," James said in an attempt to deflect.
"Uh-huh." Scott crossed his arms. "Seriously, James. At least…" He sighed. "At least give it some time. I don't want you making decisions because of Viper."
James matched Scott's stance. "I've been thinking it over, and maybe I'd fit in with a more appropriate crowd," he said, gesturing to his face. "Know where I can find a bunch of murderous pillaging pirates? Arg."
Scott rolled his eyes. "So help me God, if you become a Starjammer, I have failed as a parent."
"If I start dressing like him, I've failed as a human being."
"Please don't." Scott couldn't help but laugh, purely at the mental image.
"But I do need to find something for your birthday…"
Scott laughed again. "Tell you what," he said, still smiling, "you stay away from anything resembling a Starjammer outfit and I'll consider that a present in itself."
"Low bar. I'll get you and your dad matching billowy shirts…some fairy boots … you can bond."
"I'm sorry, did you want me to join the X-Men or the Starjammers - I'm losing the plot here," Scott said, smirking hard.
"Let's see what you can do with horrible facial hair before we decide," James said in a quiet tease. "If you start up with Smoky and the Bandit 'stache, or like… I don't know. A Sam Elliot cookie duster… I'll know what you picked."
"Ah, no."
"Miss Hale might like it."
"Doubt it. She's got two working eyes."
"That's one of us."
"Can't toss my hat in that ring either. I have replacements," Scott said, gesturing to his eyes.
"Yeah, Tony already brought up the possibilities…"
"Let's not think about that until you look less skeletal," Scott said gently. "You're still not back to yourself."
"Don't know if I want to be."
"Believe me, I know that feeling. You saw the wreck I was after Jan and I broke up, right?"
"Yeah, it's not the same, though, Dad."
"Just illustrating with bad facial hair," Scott said, his smile tighter than before. He leaned back again and dragged his hand down his face. "I get it. I do. Lord knows there were times I could barely pick myself up. You should have seen me after Apocalypse."
"Was there horrible facial hair?"
"Yes- would you forget the facial hair? I'm trying to tell you that I get it. But that's also why I'm trying to tell you you shouldn't make any long-lasting decisions when you're still reeling from something like that." He smiled tightly. "Take it from someone who had an affair instead of dealing with his trauma."
"Yeah, I understand that." James was quiet again now that he saw deflecting wasn't going to work. Instead, he was just watching his Dad and listening to the sounds around them. "I'm just not … comfortable with anything anymore."
"I know," Scott said. He took a deep breath, let it out, and added, "Feels sometimes like every single sound is a threat. Like you're watching yourself but not in your body… yeah. I know."
"Different perspective after her."
Scott gestured with one open palm. "Yeah. Been there. Emma."
"Yeah, I got the analogy, and that's how I was taking it," James admitted.
Scott was quiet for a long moment as he tried to figure out what to say, finally settling on, "It's… a little bit different." He let out his breath in a long woosh. "What you… what happened to you… well. Emma never… ah ... to be frank, James, she never forced me."
James tipped his head slightly at that and raised one eyebrow. "I think we're having a difference in definitions here."
Scott looked up and frowned at James. "We must be, seeing as you're the one who was poisoned, tortured, threatened, and under Katarina's mutant power-"
"As opposed to you being under Frost's mutant powers and emotionally manipulated?"
Scott held up a hand. "I appreciate your faith in me, but it's different, James. You don't have any reason to feel guilty. You were kidnapped, tortured, poisoned, and forced into every single thing that happened."
"It's not different. I think I know what I did. I have plenty of reason to feel guilty," James argued.
"Absolutely not," Scott insisted. "You were being tortured and coerced."
"I can't figure out how that changes it," James said. "Logistically, I mean."
"Then explain it to me, because there's no way in hell I can understand why anyone who went through what you went through is responsible for their own abuse," Scott said.
James sat back looking as if he'd rather be anywhere else talking about anything else in that moment, but it was clear to him that his Dad simply couldn't see how wrong he was, either. "Fine," James said slowly. "Aside from the basics on how sex even works … I went along with her." He shrugged one shoulder half heartedly. "More or less."
"Consent isn't a 'more or less' proposition, James," Scott said. When James glared down at his hands, Scott sighed again. "I heard about the memories Rachel pulled from Billy. What he saw," he said slowly, carefully, especially when it was clear James wasn't so sure about the details when someone else was relaying them. "I also know you said 'no'. Again. And again. You begged her to stop, and she didn't. Being too drugged to stop her from taking advantage, or to stop yourself from giving in isn't a crime, James. But even drugged and half-aware, you still said 'no'. That means something. It was more than I could manage and I had a much easier time saying it."
By that time, James was staring at the table with no solid argument. Not when he knew there was a decent sized group that had seen Billy's memories or heard about it. Of course they had. Billy was still pissed. "Doesn't change anything, Dad."
"Doesn't change what happened, but you can call a spade a spade," Scott said.
"So could you."
"Oh for- this isn't about me," Scott said.
"Well I sure as hell don't want it to be all about me," James countered hotly.
"I only brought up my experience to show you that you're a better man than I was," Scott said.
"No, I'm not!"
"I didn't fight Emma on anything, but you did. That was my point."
"You couldn't fight her when she'd crawled into your head lying about her reasons in," James countered. "If a telepath could get into my thick skull, do you think I'd be able to fight them off any easier than anyone else?"
"I went along with it," Scott said - not at all realizing how much he sounded like James, too.
"So did I," James said.
"You mean when you were drugged and couldn't stop her?"
"No different than when your father figure and wife told you to trust her, is it?"
Scott had one finger pointed at James, but before he could say anything else, Rachel announced her presence by walking into the room with a loud "Oh-kay I think you've both successfully argued that your experiences were terrible with evil predators. Please stop fighting now before you go in any more circles."
"How long have you been listening in, Rachel?" Scott asked, turning his pointing finger her way.
"Since she was 13."
Rachel gave James a dirty look, but turned back to Scott. "Only once I heard you were thinking about actually following through on the offer to wear an X-patch again. Didn't expect the left turn the conversation took after that, but hey, now that you've both more or less talked yourselves into admitting what happened to you by proxy of the other person's experience…"
"Not the same," both Scott and James said, nearly in unison.
Rachel gave them both dry looks for that. "Right."
Scott pinched the bridge of his nose. "Rachel, is there a reason you came down in the first place?"
"She wants to know what color you'll be wearing," James said.
"Actually? Yeah. Kate and Jan need to conspire," Rachel said, turning the full force of a wicked grin her dad's way.
Scott looked between the two of them. "Seriously?"
"You're right. You're right. You should just leave it in Jan's capable hands," Rachel said, nodding along as James shrugged openly. "If you wanted to, you could even have her redesign it entirely, make sure no one figures out your old identity. Or, you know, just use the Cyclops persona with you're actual X-ray vision…"
"You're having too much fun with this," Scott grumbled.
"Yep!" Rachel said brightly.
"Hey Rach," James called out as Rachel began to bounce her way out of the room. When she turned his way, James couldn't wait to hit her with the truth. "You know, if you ever thought you were in charge before? You definitely aren't now."
Rachel stopped, spun on her heel, and pointed at James. "Rude."
"True."
"Now, wait, I'm not-" Scott started to say.
"Yes you are," James and Rachel said at the same time - in agreement even if the tone was different.
"This is just a supporting - you kids started this team on your own-"
"Hey, Dad?" James said in the same tone he'd just used with Rachel. "Who called the shots behind the scenes when you started up? Just curious." He pointed one finger at Scott. "And … what was the team named again?"
Scott spluttered a few times, but when his kids were both united like that, he finally fell back on leaning back, crossing his arms, and shaking his head. "We're not renaming the team to C-men. The jokes alone…"
"Not what I was going for, but interesting that's where your mind went," James said.
Scott got to his feet, already waving them both off. "I'm sure I'll find you both later, whenever you've recruited Jan."
"Oh, she's been on retainer for this since we started it," Rachel admitted. "Just … waiting for you to catch up."
"She said - and I'm quoting here- 'he's cute, but slow. He'll catch up.'," James said.
"Oh my god," Scott muttered under his breath, simply leaving the room before the two of them could make anything worse.
As soon as their dad had left, though, Rachel made her way over to pounce at her little brother for a bear hug. "What's that for?" James asked as he caught her and doubled down into a hug with her.
"You do see the parallels, don't you?" Rachel asked gently. "Because I need to know you can see that much, at least."
James sighed, and Rachel readjusted to make sure he knew she wasn't letting him go just yet. She just wasn't expecting him to curl in a little more and rest his head on her shoulder in response. So, without doing any digging, she just held on tight while he was clearly trying to control his emotions - and barely managing to keep himself from having a much bigger reaction.
Of course I can see it, Rach, James projected finally. But I can't breathe when I think about it, I can't …
Hey. It's okay. She didn't know what else to say, but with her brother at least admitting it to her, that gave her enough to push back the Phoenix when it started trying to feed off of the despair and misery rolling off of James in crashing waves. It also had Rachel a little wary of what she might say, so instead, she held on to her little brother until he could breathe again. All the things you're thinking about yourself … all the self depreciating things that go hand in hand with the mental torture she put you through … You know it was just another way to get you to give up and give in, right?
James nodded with a shaky breath, but didn't need to say what he was thinking with Rachel right there, and ready to try and help.
Dad's right, Rachel said, which at least got a laugh out of James. They're afraid to face you at full steam. So … continue hiding if you want. Keep your head down, look as miserable as you think fits when there's a chance of cameras, but little brother? I need you at full speed. So does Nate, and Kate, and Billy, and Mia … I'll help you if you want my help, but no matter what … I need you to try and get back to being you.
I'm trying, Rach. I am.
Good, she replied, then smiled warmly before she tightened her hug for a moment then kissed his cheek. "Come on. You and I haven't gone to spend time just us in forever. And as protective as Nate has been, I'm still the big sister. Even if both of you dorks have gotten taller, it's my job to protect you. So … come on. Let's get something to eat. You're still too skinny and Nate is driving me nuts strutting around wearing tank tops with a snowstorm in the forecast."
"He'd be doing that anyhow," James told her, stepping back with a sigh.
"Ah, not as much if you were back to yourself," Rachel countered. "And I'm afraid you won't feel like yourself if you don't quit hiding."
"Workin' on it."
"I know. So. Sushi. You and me. You can buy."
James let out a breath of a laugh as Rachel grinned, and the two of them headed out arm in arm. She knew he needed a little teasing, too … but she wanted to be the one to instigate it. And knowing that her little brother was struggling so hard to accept what had happened and simply admit to what to call it … she knew he needed her more than he would ever admit.
As it turned out, James was actually perfect for Kate as a tutor, if she was honest. He didn't make her feel stupid like his genius-tutors had when she didn't understand something but tried to explain it about four different ways until he found the way that stuck. And he was patient with her, especially since she was brilliant at math (archery, angles, and counting cello music had a way of doing that) but she couldn't for the life of her get through biology. She was pretty good at English, but the economics section of her US Government social science class was doing murder on her brain, too.
She had a feeling she would have been doing even better with James as her mentor if her extended family would just leave. her. alone.
The latest study session was going well until Luke Cage peeked in, not at all subtle about the fact that he was checking up on her. And, well, all things considered and knowing what Jessica Jones had been through in her life, it wasn't like Kate didn't get it. That whole protective male need to check on her. She did. She got it. But she was trying so hard to get her life on track and the constant check ins weren't helping on several levels.
She tried to ignore Luke at first with a waved-off, "I'm studying," but when he took that as an invitation to come in and ask how it was going, she sighed and signed to James, Everyone here does this. Everyone.
I know. If I knew how to make him stop, I would. James signed back, not at all hiding that he was going around Luke so they weren't talking in front of him.
The worst part is that I get it, Kate said. I'd want to check in too.
He already did that, James said. Three times this week.
Yeah. Kate let her shoulders drop. "I'm going to take a break," she decided and started to pack up her things. "I think I sorta get the endocrine system, anyway."
"You'd have it down if you weren't being interrupted by nosy, pushy, well intentioned busy bodies," James said, trying to see how blatant the hints had to be for Luke. "Like the bullet proof mother hen over here."
"Now I know you didn't just call me a mother hen," Luke said as Kate snorted into her hand. "Do I need to smack you one?"
"Please," James replied, perfectly relaxed. "Just don't pull your punch."
Luke looked disarmed by James's invitation - purely because he was, despite appearances, worried about James too. He just didn't have any idea how to approach James, all things considered. And it showed.
"I'll just let you two do this … thing," Kate said, gesturing between them. "I shall find my boyfriend. Ta!" she added over her shoulder in her best damsel voice, flouncing away and grinning.
She had to text Nate to have him come meet her, since she and James were done early and she wasn't supposed to go anywhere alone with SHIELD being stupid and Hydra being pissy, but once Nate did show up, she grinned and bounced over to kiss his cheek. "Your brother told Luke to try and hit him, and I saw the loading screen happen in real time."
"He's going to actually get hit if he keeps it up," Nate said. "How was studying?"
Kate let out a full body sigh and then grabbed his hand, dragging him along with her so she could talk to him without being overheard by one of the many Avengers in her extended family trying to look after her. Tony being the worst, considering he was her godfather.
Once they were hidden in one of the guest rooms the Avengers had for rotating members, she rolled her eyes and threw back her head. "I'd probably be about five times better at studying if this place wasn't full of people asking if I'm okay," she said. "I'm less okay when they ask!"
"You could tell them that," Nate pointed out.
"Yeah, but have you ever had to look Captain America in the eyes, see how much he's torn up inside, and tell him, 'hey, the fact that you're bothered for me is bothering me, so can you tone down your protectiveness?'"
"No, I have not had to do that, but if i makes it easier on you, I fully endorse it."
Kate blew a stray hair out of her face. "You make everything sound so simple," she said. "Nothing scares you."
"That's just not true," Nate argued.
"You're hot and fearless; it's kind of the big turn-on, babe," Kate teased him.
"Oh, well, if that's the context …"
Kate laughed and stole a kiss. "It is. So, you gonna argue?"
"Not even a little," Nate answered with a grin. "I'm also not stupid."
"I keep telling you that," Kate agreed and then stole a longer kiss, in a good enough mood that she wanted to try pushing again for a little more. Which was a great way to settle into a good, long makeout session that they both had, honestly, needed.
It took a while for James to finish out his last paper, and before long, he finally had to admit to himself between tutoring sessions with Kate, that he had to go back to Cambridge just to access the library for a few final touches. What he wasn't expecting though, was for Billy to decide that now was the time to join him.
James had barely pulled up to the house in Cambridge and gotten inside when he realized he wasn't alone - and that Billy had already ordered take out for the two of them and was setting out the plates for dinner.
"Um … what …" James slipped his coat off, looking at the arrangement and watching Billy quietly continue on as if nothing was unusual. "I thought…"
"We're both eighteen, we're busted out in the press, and I can wish myself to the school in the morning - just like we used to do," Billy said. "As long as you're not triggered by me being here with you, I don't mind telling you that I am tired of not being able to be close to you at night. If you want me to take the other room-"
"No, no," James said, then crossed the space for a quiet kiss. "That's not what I was saying at all."
"Then … what's the problem?"
"Nothing. I just had a moment. Little flashback to trying to not piss anyone adult off. Now … I was thinking that if we're going to do this, I don't know how often I'll want to go back before the year is up, so … maybe I want to ask you if you'd help get Kate here for tutoring sometimes. I think she needs a break anyhow. Just … there's a lot of hovering that makes her study time less than efficient."
"Oh no, you want me to get my best friend here too? The horrors," Billy said with a teasing smile before he laughed lightly. "I'd love to get her. She needs a break."
"Okay," James said with a slow nod. "Then … I'll leave it to you to reach out to her. Or surprise her. Whatever you think she'll react best to." He leaned over to kiss Billy's cheek. "Hi, honey. Welcome home."
Billy's smile stretched wider. "When you put it like that, I think I can wait until tomorrow to talk to Kate. I'm kind of looking forward to getting back to our normal."
"You and me both," James agreed, then took Billy's offered hand. "Did you pick the cute delivery guy?"
"I picked the deli," Billy said. "Nice delivery people, but I'm not looking at them."
"Sweet talker," James whispered, and though he was starting to respond closer to the way Billy had missed, he still wasn't comfortable with any references to his looks. But Billy was prepared to help him work on that part for as long as it took. Even if he was hoping it would be accepted sooner than later.
Chapter 103: Cambridge Clubhouse
Chapter Text
"Aww, you've moved in," Kate said from the doorway as she came into James and Billy's place.
"He didn't really move out," James pointed out. "Just about everything stayed in the interim." He took just a moment to steal a quick kiss with Billy. "Hi Kate." He smiled her way before he headed upstairs toward his room. Billy wanted the room and time to talk to her, but James really was trying to finish the damn paper, so he was going to clear out and let nature take its course.
Kate waved at James as he passed by, then turned toward Billy with a smile. "So, what's up?" she asked. "You just wanted to celebrate being a live-in boyfriend again? I can call America for popcorn if you want. You can give us the tour, the whole nine."
"America has had the tour," Billy said. "And she's busy with Rachel right now. I definitely do not want to interrupt that." He waved at her to join him. "But I can give you the tour."
"Ooh, good point. America told me she's pretty much constantly taking Rachel out of our universe to hold off the Phoenix. I mean, it's getting better but, like, she did a lot of heavy lifting for a while." Kate made a face. "Those poor Summerses."
"I think that's the family crest," Billy teased.
"Oh, absolutely. James too. You just want to kiss the heck out of them when they get even a little bit sad, right?"
"Can confirm," he laughed. "So … tour?" he gestured around them. "What you see is what you get … all the basics, naturally ... " he started off taking her through pretty much everywhere on the main floor before leading the way upstairs. He gestured to the open door on one side of the hall where James was working with Morticia curled up next to him purring away. Billy stepped around the railing to take her to the other bedroom up there. "And … we were kind of hoping you might want to make this your room? When you need to get away from oh, I don't know. Everything."
Kate blinked at Billy a few times. "Wait, for real?" she asked, almost bouncing on her toes.
"Yeah, for real," he said, nodding as the smile grew.
"James isn't going to be super weirded out if Nate and I take full advantage of a room away from Scott or Lexi?"
"It was kind of his idea," he admitted. "Not just for privacy, but you know … better quality study time, too."
Kate let out a squeal and then threw her arms around Billy. "I love it! Let's be roommates! I have to get a new shower curtain and - and I need some creative input in the living room, and-"
Billy wrapped her up in a hug. "Well, technically, I already have a room mate ... "
"You have a boyfriend you totally wanna marry," Kate teased. "That is future prep for you. We are roommates."
"I think the term is housemates," Billy laughed. "And I figured you'd want to smuggle Nate here from time to time …"
"Oh, all the time," Kate agreed. "I sleep better when he's around anyway, so, like, I hope that's okay, because we're kinda a package deal."
"I'm sure it is," Billy said. "And you know it's been checked out by your mom, so she can't even say it's not up to snuff, either."
"I love it," Kate said. "And I'm an adult now, so she can't get too mad anyway."
"Great! Then you get to pick dinner," Billy said. "I'll show you where the take out menus are."
"Ooh!" Kate grinned. "Okay, actually? Annie showed me and Nate how to make the best pancakes and biscuits if you don't mind breakfast for dinner."
"I don't mind, but we totally need meat incorporated." He gestured over his shoulder. "Someone's still playing catch up and I am really enjoying seeing him look more like himself."
"Bacon and sausage, got it," Kate said, nodding. She bumped Billy's shoulder. "Nate and Rachel can hear Annie Hale just dying to bond with the family, so we let her teach us to bake sometimes. It's unbearably sweet."
"I think she's great," Billy said. "But do you think she wants to bond with your boyfriend right now? Or … does he need a temporary relocation?"
"Um, he needs to help me move in. Right now," Kate said, grinning. "You are the best, Billy. I don't say that enough, right? I should say it more."
"You should," he agreed. "I'll just drop him straight into the kitchen then? Or do you want to give him a warning text first?"
"What fun would that be?" Kate asked, then giggled delightedly when Nate appeared, and she grabbed his hand to drag him off, giving him the quick rundown on the way to the bedroom.
All three new roomies were studying alongside each other in Cambridge - each of them quietly working on their own projects and minding their own business when there was a quick knock at the door. James let out a weary sigh and got to his feet at the same time Kate did. "Let me," he said. "You're close to a breakthrough."
"Um … looks like you are too," Kate pointed out, seeing as James hadn't touched the references he had around him once in the past half hour, though he had been typing quickly.
"Yeah, just organizing my final thoughts," he replied. "But we haven't ordered food yet, so this is probably either press or … I don't know. I'm not expecting anything." When he opened the door, there were a few boxes and no sign of who had left them. And the flock of press wasn't about to be helpful. For a moment, the press stepped closer, hoping to get a quote or a decent photo with the same handful of questions they'd been asking right along about his eye and why he'd been wearing a patch.
For a long moment, James ignored the questions, trying to look beyond the reporters and paparazzo to see a delivery person, but they were already lost in the crowd. "Come on guys," James said as he retrieved his packages and stepped back. "If I was going to answer any of those questions, I'd have done it already. You gotta have something better to report on than me."
"Just give us something to work with," one of the reporters called back. "We're just trying to do our jobs."
"And I'm trying to study," James said, then smiled tightly before he closed the door, though a few of the less-appropriate questions still were shouted loudly enough that Kate could hear them clearly even through the closed door - all of them centering on intimate details between James and Billy. But James didn't mention it as he dropped into his seat and looked at the two packages.
"Talk about creepy stalkers," Kate said half under her breath just before Morticia jumped up next to her and bunted her hand until Kate petted her.
"Comes with the territory," James replied, setting the odd package aside in favor of the more plain one. He recognized it as from the college and he let out a sigh of relief as he opened it to find his second Masters. He double checked that everything on it was correct then tossed it to Kate and Billy to look over. "Two down."
"Think you can get the last one done before the end of the year?" Billy asked, now totally distracted from his paper.
"I'll have it turned in by the end of the week," James said. "It'll be up to them on how long it takes. And to be honest, I'm enjoying the relative quiet and lack of extreme adult supervision here, so ..." He turned his attention to the other package; long, thin, and oddly wrapped - massively over taped, and with no return sender's address. He didn't remember ordering anything, and he didn't catch any familiar scents on the package, though he figured he might find something deeper than in the first layer.
Two wraps in, there was a card, and James picked it up cautiously. There was an unfamiliar scent combination of spices, body odor, watermelon candy, and gun oil clinging to the paper, but there wasn't anything close to the many many things he'd scented out when he was with Viper, so he was confident there wasn't anything dangerous like that. He considered it for a moment before he carefully turned over the envelope that read 'I have something for you' only to find more strangeness in the inscriptions inside. "You're holding it. Congratulations on coming out! Your boyfriend has a great butt and now no one will be talking about you sleeping with your sister! Take him out, learn to dance, then be super careful when you learn to swing this around. It's what your old man would have wanted."
He stared at the card and read it several times, torn on what part of it was bothering him most, but he kept going back to the jab about Rachel. He read that line half a dozen times before he set the card down and picked up his phone. He hated the idea of bothering his dad - like really really hated it. Especially since he'd just gotten things to even out in Cambridge. He was almost comfortable with Billy and Kate there most of the time - the only people that actually knew what he'd been through because they'd been there too.
James turned toward the package - still wrapped up in another layer at least. He was too curious about what in the world could be in it. He sat the card down on the coffee table then opened the package only to be more confused to find a katana. "What the hell…" The sheath was a shining ebony and James found himself inspecting it with a look of sheer concentration. Then, he simply couldn't help himself and drew it partially out of the sheath to discover the blade softly glowing red.
He'd gotten so lost in the moment that he'd forgotten that he wasn't alone and without thinking, he ran his thumb across the edge of the blade only to hiss when the razor sharp edge cut him with just the pressure of a touch. He wiped the blood off, but … the cut didn't heal and James honestly didn't know what to do with that. "That … shouldn't be happening," he whispered, his brows furrowed as he watched the blood continue to ooze out slowly.
"Poisoned?" Kate asked, worry apparent in her voice - which, of course, had Billy worried as well as he looked over James' shoulder.
"No," James replied slowly. "I would have smelled that or I'd feel off now. I don't know what this is."
"Oh good," Billy said, letting his shoulders drop. "I mean, still weird, but no poison is definitely good."
"It's not carbonadium … that's almost black," James said, once again trying to inspect the blade to figure it out.
"Maybe it's lined with it?" Kate offered. "Just the very tip, you know? The red might be too bright to notice if it's slight…"
"No, that stuff's too soft to hold a decent edge. This thing … stupid sharp."
"Could be magic," Billy pointed out.
"Oh my god, I forgot about magic," Kate said, putting a hand to her head, which was dramatic enough to distract Billy to the point that he missed the crooked smirk James was wearing on hearing Kate's performance. Especially since he hadn't considered magic either.
"I'm offended," Billy said, finally starting to crack a smirk.
"It's okay, still love you," Kate said, nudging him in the shoulder.
James kept a grip on the sword after he re-sheathed it, then picked his phone up again - this time to actually call his dad. He felt badly when he could hear Annie in the background. He even considered just hanging up and letting it go until tomorrow, but that would have had Scott calling him back so fast. But he was still too slow answering Scott.
"James, are you alright? What's wrong? What's happening?" Scott said, his tone one of concern right off the bat.
"I didn't know you were with Miss Hale," James said. "I can just … call you back tomorrow. It's not pressing."
"Are you sure? Because you don't usually call me at this time of day."
James paused before he spoke, deciding to lead with something to soften the panic he knew was coming. "Well, couple things," he said. "For one, I got my second masters today."
"That's fantastic," Scott said, sounding puffed up in a heartbeat.
"But I also got a package … with a card that was just weird. There were no toxins or poisons. No explosives, nothing like that. But the note on the card called Rachel out as my sister."
"Don't open that package."
"I already did. It's fine."
"What was it?"
"A sword?" James offered, freely acknowledging how lost he was on that one, though he didn't mention that he'd cut himself or that the cut wasn't healing. That … he could keep that one to himself. For now. "I don't really … understand it, but the sword is a little weird, too."
"Weird how?" Scott asked.
"The blade kinda has a red glow to it?" James said, feeling as if it was a stupid answer even if it was the truth.
But that instantly had Scott going quiet, long enough for James to know he knew something. "James, be very careful with that thing. What else can you tell me? What was in the note?"
"More or less a strange congratulations, advice to learn to dance, and honestly, it said to be careful with the sword. What's the story?"
Scott sighed into the receiver. "I'd want to see it to confirm, but… your dad had a sword… red blade, ridiculously sharp - that thing never loses its edge, and injuries from it won't heal for you any better than for anyone else."
"That sounds implausible."
"I took care of it for a while," Scott said. "Your dad gave it to me."
"You want a picture?" James asked after a moment.
"Yes." Scott waited until the picture came through, and then he swore under his breath. "That is your father's Muramasa blade. I don't even know where he stashed the damn thing, let alone who might have found it and given it to you."
"So," James said slowly, though he was watching Kate and Billy. "You're telling me whoever sent this knows some of my father's hiding spots and that Rachel's family."
"Yeah. I'm not happy about it, either."
James took a moment to snap a photo of the card, too and sent that without warning, hoping that something there might tip his dad off on the sender's identity. "What am I supposed to do with this thing?"
Scott let out a long breath. "It can't stay there. That's not secure enough. And … I don't know that handwriting, so I'm a little wary of anything known like the tower or the school or Genosha."
"Yeah, that cuts out pretty much anything that comes to mind right away," James agreed.
"You know," Kate cut in, clearing her throat. "Um, I'm eighteen now? Kinda… got some access to… a small inheritance I didn't know about? With maybe a couple, um, warehouses. If you need a place. My parents knew about them when Matt Murdock explained their obligations on the trust fund or whatever, but they've totally redone them. I let them go nuts. Mom turned a few into homeless shelters and women's shelters, and Dad sponsored a few foster group homes for older kids… but there's a couple we haven't repurposed yet."
"I don't know what this thing is for, but I have a feeling a break in by the tracksuits would be a not-good scenario," James deadpanned, though he meant it partially as a tease.
"I might be able to help," Billy said, rubbing the back of his neck. "I've been working on a sort of… magic… locker? If that's … I'm not explaining it right. Basically a way to have stuff on hand with a magic, um, hole, in reality. Kinda."
"Dangerously useful," James said quietly - also a slight tease.
"I… might have maybe started looking into it as a panic room when I couldn't calm down a few days ago…"
"You've been reading too much Harry Potter again, haven't you?" James had to pick - especially when Billy looked nervous admitting what he had.
Billy laughed and bounced from one foot to the other. "Well, yes, but also that's not the point," he said. He bit his lip. "It's not livable yet, but you can store things there. I was kinda hoping it would be a good hiding spot if, you know, Hydra or… whatever…"
James leaned toward Kate with a whisper. "Did you know about his pocket dimension that is clearly supposed to be for makeouts?"
Kate burst into a giggle. "Um, I knew about the panic room, but I like your definition way better."
"Panic room is the cover name." He put up quotation marks as he mouthed 'panic room' again while Scott and Billy were actually problem solving.
"It's not a bad option," Scott pointed out, trying to redirect the conversation.
"Has this 'panic room' lost anything?" James asked.
"No, it stays pretty solid," Billy said. "I'm just not very good at creating an atmosphere in the void of unreality is all."
"That's all," Kate mouthed, still giggling.
"Okay then," James said with a shrug.
"Okay." Billy nodded a few times. "And, uh, sorry to spoil the surprise? It would have been way cooler if I'd actually, you know, had it ready for us to hide in."
"I knew it was your secret makeout dimension," James whispered to him.
Billy laughed. "More like a stress-induced way to keep you safe, but yes. Totally a makeout dimension."
"I love your stress induced stress reduction," James promised.
"Oh good," Billy said, grinning at him before he waved his hand, and a little black window appeared - where James could see Billy had a few essentials on the other side, including, hilariously, an entire bag of Reese's, because his trauma-induced stress reactions weren't always directed.
James handed him the sword. "All sources say to be careful with this…"
Billy nodded and held his hand over the sword, letting it float into his little black locker until it hung on the wall of the room. "Well, it's pretty to look at, right?"
"And it's right where you need it if you decide to kill me, probably," James said with a nod.
"No Romeo and Julieting or whatever," Kate said, pointing her finger between the two of them. "You're dramatic enough."
"Pot - kettle, Barton."
"Oh, I live drama, never said I didn't," Kate said without missing a beat. "Mom says she'd had me adopted for, like, a day and I was talking about what was sporting or not when it came to Tony, so, like, this is just how I am."
"Sorry to interrupt your hot date with Miss Hale, Dad," James said as the teasing started up.
"It's fine. Annie says hi. You know I'd rather you call me when you need help than have you feeling like you can't rely on me just because you're technically an adult now," Scott said. "You'll always be my kid and I've always got your back."
"And tell Kate and Billy hi!" Annie said, obviously over Scott's shoulder.
"Will do. Love you too, Dad," James said.
"Love you, James," Scott said - and James didn't hide his smirk at all when Scott's phone didn't hang up in time to hide the fact that Annie had obviously started to kiss him before it hung up.
…
Nate had been incredibly relieved when Billy had wished him to Cambridge. Kate was so much happier away from the crowd, so full of life, full of fun … like she'd always been before the mess with Viper, so to see her like that again after so long was just … it gave him more hope than anything else had, so far.
But that meant that sitting in a classroom several hours away from his sweetheart was frustrating. More so when he knew she was incredibly close to testing out of high school and he still had at least another semester ahead of himself. Unless he could get his brother to tutor him, too. That was probably an easy sell … And it would give him solid reason to be in Cambridge so much. Especially since in the time he'd spent there with Kate, Nate had seen how relaxed his brother was able to be there. He wasn't himself, yet - none of them were - but he didn't see glimpses of the old James nearly as often as when they were in Cambridge, away from all of the authority figures.
The only positive anymore about being in school was watching Miss Hale warm up even more when it was clear she was wrapped up in thinking about Nate's dad. He didn't even have to try to peek when that happened; barely a brush in her mind's general direction, and he could hear her daydreams about their next date.
Which was good. His dad deserved to be happy, and he liked Miss Hale, too. She deserved someone who made her daydream like that.
But congratulating himself on his excellent matchmaking wasn't enough to keep him interested in school, especially because even time he'd usually like to spend in practice with the different teams he'd always been on seemed like a distraction when he could be practicing for his real teams. Or making out with Kate. And that had picked up a lot since she'd moved in more or less full time with Billy and James.
The place in Cambridge was a whole new setting for her, and it was clear she'd turned it into a safe zone, somewhere she could be vulnerable - and that included being vulnerable with him. They hadn't fooled around yet, but ever since Kate had more or less moved in with James and Billy, she was initiating things a whole lot more. And she was getting handsier, too, which he wasn't going to complain about.
So, yeah, he would much rather have been with Kate.
Yet another facet of irritation was the near-constant barrage of questions from kids in school who still couldn't get over the fact that Kate was Hawkeye. "Did you know you were dating a super hero?" "Are you still dating a super hero?" "What makes you so special anyhow?"
All of it was pushing Nate closer to snapping and blowing his own cover, but every time he felt someone at the school getting close to realizing who he was, self preservation kicked in and he found himself gently redirecting their focus elsewhere.
It wasn't that he was afraid of the kids' reaction. It was more that he didn't want the attention following him home, and as it was, Nate was spending more and more time between school and home hiding in a psychic bubble that no one could see him in. (And floating over the heads of people when the crowd got tight, but he wasn't going to admit that to anyone but Rachel and Kate.) Still … he didn't need trouble following him and finding his dad. Nate knew he was his dad's last line of defense now - even if Scott himself would never admit it.
Sure, his dad had agreed to be part of the team in a support capacity, but he still hadn't done anything more than tell Storm that he'd like to look over the team's practice logs and compile some intel. Which was, admittedly, a lot of work and not something to trivialize. But there was a difference between doing that and being out about the fact that Cyclops was still alive.
But he must have been too focused on what was next because he didn't quite get through history class when Annie called his name. "Nate, can you stay after class, please?"
"Sure," he said without putting any thought into it. He had plenty else on his mind - and any time any attention was given to him, the tenor of thought around him went to Kate and how most of the school was convinced that Kate had used him as her cover for normalcy. But that always left Nate smirking to himself.
Besides, Miss Hale's class was his last class for the day, so he had time.
"What's up?" Nate asked once the class had filed out and Annie had turned his way looking more thoughtful than usual. He knew she was trying to be a good stepmom, so he wasn't going to just brush off… whatever this was.
"I just… I know you're planning to graduate early, so I wanted to warn you-"
"Yeah, I know; I've already had a few Avengers give me a heads up that Kate's school records keep getting requested now."
"Yes, well, the principal said a blonde woman was in here looking too," Annie said significantly. "And that she did talk her way into what he had access too - before tripping Natasha's failsafes."
Both of Nate's eyebrows shot up. "Really?"
Annie nodded. "I already texted Scott, but I wanted to talk to you…" She let out her breath. "I don't want to put Scott in danger. Could you…?"
"Oh, yeah, absolutely," Nate said before she could finish the question, his eyes glowing before he'd finished agreeing. He did a quick brush of her mind and then smiled. "You're alright. The defenses Rachel put in there are holding up just fine."
"And you'll let me know if…"
"Yeah, of course."
Annie let out all her breath at once. "I just… I know the backstory. And I don't want to mess things up."
"Pretty sure Dad would point out she's not your problem."
Annie gave him a dry look. "Your dad has a blind spot a mile wide, Nate. I love him, but he can't bring himself to see the people he loves or loved in a bad light. And that's usually a good thing, but…"
"Not with her. Not anymore. And definitely not since she started poking her nose into Cambridge."
"True." Annie smiled tightly and got to her feet. "As it is, she hasn't started looking into your records yet. But a light brush of anyone's minds here at school will tell her who Kate was dating."
"Or if she's paying attention to the newspapers," Nate said. "I know who I look like, and I've been there for sports. It'll happen eventually."
"That's why I wanted to warn you." Annie said and reached out to put her hand on his arm. "And as a personal favor too me… if she tries anything… let me know."
"Oh, she will regret it so hard and so fast."
"Yes, well." Annie cleared her throat and straightened up. "It may be a recurring fantasy of mine to hit her with a brick after what she pulled with my brother, let alone Scott."
Nate smiled at that. "That can be arranged."
"You're so good to me," Annie said, smiling fondly. "Tell your father hello for me, please; I'll be a bit late. Unexpected parent-teacher conference. Boy was suspended for drugs. Lord help me."
"He'll be crushed."
"I know." Annie smiled and shooed him out the door. "And tell Kate hello from me too. I miss her around here."
"You should see the place," Nate said. "Getting more purple every day."
"I believe it. That girl has an eye for design," Annie said. "She'll be taking over for Jan when she's older."
"She probably will," Nate agreed, smiling in spite of himself. But he had too much of his father in him to let the obvious slip. "You really should come by with Dad … to the Cambridge place, I mean. Kate would love to show you how close she paid attention to your cooking lessons. Her pancakes are really getting to be super fluffy."
Annie smiled warmly. "I may just," she said. "Once your father says things calm down enough to do that."
"Or … we can just make sure you both have image inducers on…" Nate grinned at that before he darted off, waving over his shoulder as he left Annie with something to think about. It was a good way to have a family gathering, after all …
…
Bobby had taken it entirely personally when James and the others had been kidnapped - but especially since he'd been on call to get James that week, like most weeks. And he'd taken it as if he'd slipped in his duty … all because he'd traded off with someone far less paranoid so that he could try and work on things with Johnny.
So now, now that the kid was back at school - now that things were even crazier than their level of normal - Bobby was being downright militant in keeping an eye out for his young Wolverine. He'd already ignored Johnny calling him at least half a dozen times with the same bounce back message through text saying he was working and that he'd have to cool his jets. It was funny to Bobby most of the time, but especially funny when that went out to Johnny. And now, he was just watching.
Something about the day just felt … ominous. It was mid-morning. All of the kids were out of the house. James was at the college, Billy was in Westchester, and Kate was getting started on her testing already. So the plan to watch the school while James was in it might have come across as a little bit of overkill to some. But not to anyone in their circle of influence.
The situation had been stressful enough when it was pre-Viper's evil seeping out all over the place. But now, when he knew that it wasn't just possible, but likely that Viper would take another swing - Bobby couldn't afford to be distracted by Johnny. At all. He still owed Logan in his mind, and letting that poisonous bitch touch James just wasn't an option.
There had been a few questionable vehicles that had come down the road - and he'd been sure to scan the plates on all of them, bouncing the information back to the tower for them to sift through and respond accordingly, but so far, they'd all been press … well. Press and two government plates. But considering where they were, that part wasn't entirely upsetting. Irritating, but not upsetting. Yet.
Naturally, Bobby was entirely off his guard when he realized that his powers weren't working right. He'd been absently drawing designs on the window in frost when suddenly, the frost wasn't radiating from his fingertips and instead, he was leaving broad lines through the intricate designs, allowing the glass to clear up under his touch. Just on the basis of who he was that was wildly inappropriate and unforgivable. He turned his head quickly to look behind himself, but didn't see anyone at first, and what was worse, by the time he turned back, he realized his laptop wasn't functioning right.
In fact, nothing in the car was functioning right. The call button he had didn't light up - the cell phone was dead - and he realized fast that this was it. This was it and he had no backup. He couldn't even start the car to drive off, either.
But he wasn't going to just … roll over. No way.
He just … really wasn't expecting anyone as big, dumb, or ugly to be the guy he'd have to fight. And this guy fit the bill better than just about anyone Bobby had ever met. "Oh, crap," he muttered, even as he squared up. He knew there had to be an EMP device somewhere that had been set off, but there wasn't anything he could do just then to fix it. Not when he didn't know where it was - but he could see the dampening field generator just beyond Crossbones. He just had to get there.
He waited for the creep to get into motion … something that big in motion would have to have trouble stopping, right? Juggernaut rules and all that … and as soon as Crossbones headed his way with what looked troublingly like a billy club, Bobby went into motion too. He just had to evade the guy - or better yet, get him to bash his own stupid dampener. That'd be the best, really.
And for his age, and the many injuries Bobby had sustained and healed badly from over the years, he was still pretty darn spry - even without the ice helping him along. So he managed to keep just out of reach for a while. But … that wasn't something he could keep going. Not on dry land. He just wasn't capable of keeping upright when there was solid traction all the time. He could do miracles on ice, but on dry pavement? He knew he was fighting the clock before he tripped over his own feet.
He ducked a swing - ending up a lot closer to Crossbones than he'd planned -but it was also close enough for him to lift a taser off the guy - and hit him with his own weaponry. With a triumphant 'Ha!' Bobby put the taser to Crossbones' side only to realize that the jerk was wearing armor that blocked that kind of thing. A second later, he was on the ground several feet away, seeing stars and trying to gather himself up enough to fight back seriously. When Crossbones got up to him and took a hold of his ankle, Bobby started kicking. He heard bones break so he kept kicking in that same spot until the guy let him go, then he rushed toward the dampener. He made a dive for it when he heard Crossbones chasing after him.
And though he managed to turn it off, he couldn't understand for a long moment why there was blood on the device. He turned without thinking it through, knowing that was just … wrong, and when he saw how close Crossbones was to him, he didn't even consider another action before he iced up fast, whipped up a snow golem that doubled in size, and then shot the guy across the road with a blast of snow and cutting ice.
That seemed to be the cue for Crossbones to lose his temper though - and the next thing that happened was an absolute assault on Bobby from the creep with every weapon he had on himself. Large chunks were blown out of Bobby's monster-sized ice creature, which wasn't a huge issue since Bobby wasn't really the creature that was causing the destruction. But some of those rounds made it through the golem and into Bobby.
Bobby swore - but it wasn't the first time that he had been shot while he was iced up. The key was not letting the ice get too brittle … but that wasn't a huge issue in the warm weather.
And it was even less of an issue when over the top of the ice golem's head came a streak of fire.
Bobby was distracted enough that he lost his presence of situation for a moment … and ended up with two rounds nearly dead center in his chest.
That … that hurt. Ice or not, that did not feel good at all, and Bobby ended up on the ground, no longer really paying attention to the streaks of fire and furious shouts as Johnny played back up dancer to Bobby's lead. Or at least, that's what he was thinking of saying.
What actually happened was a massive throw down where bullets melted mid air on their way to Johnny while he did his best to direct his heat well away from the injured Iceman and his golem bodyguard that was melting fast.
Once he was sure Crossbones wasn't getting back up, Johnny turned toward Bobby, who looked unsteady even in ice form. "Pretty sure a person isn't supposed to take that many bullets," Johnny pointed out. "Lead poisoning or something."
"Yeah, um … it's not that part I'm worried about," Bobby admitted as he looked down at the damage, his legs almost straight out in front of him where he was sitting in a snowdrift. "More the part where I can't really turn it off right now and live."
"Yeah." Johnny frowned and turned the fire off so he could get closer to see the perfectly shaped holes Bobby had littering his body. The bullets had also taken some chunks out of him, but the ones at center mass were most concerning with obvious shockwave cracks radiating out from the sharp, clean edges. "Hank still at Avengers Tower? You look like a Central Park sculpture," he said, though he wasn't smiling at his own jokes.
"Ah, yeah, I think so," Bobby said, though he looked to be more in shock as he realized how much damage he'd taken on. "I don't know. I need to tell Storm. And Scott. And I don't think I should drive."
"Definitely not," Johnny agreed, wide-eyed, though he already had his phone out and had texted "SOS" to Sue for a faster getaway. Once he'd done that, he sat down next to him. Bobby was alright while he was still ice, but that didn't mean he wasn't acting off, and if Johnny was honest, it was freaking him out. He'd just gotten a chance to make things work with Bobby … he couldn't lose him now.
"I think … I turned the dampener off, but you might want to just … you know. Make it permanent. I doubt Crossbones would leave it unguarded unless it had another purpose, you know? And losing the ice right now wouldn't feel very good."
"Yeah, got it," Johnny said, nodding along to every word and barely even looked toward the dampener long enough to make sure no one was in the way before he just pointed one hand toward it and blasted it with enough fire to explode it - and set off several car alarms in the process. "Problem solved. Sorta."
Bobby didn't really acknowledge that as he looked down the road in the direction of James' place. They were a couple miles off, but that was still way too close for it to be a coincidence. "I think I need to take a walk," Bobby said.
"I think if you take a walk you'll run yourself into a lightpost," Johnny said. "I got it. Lemme check on James. You just focus on being a snowman," he added, getting to his feet.
"James is still in school. Somewhere," Bobby said. "And I've been through worse than this. Ask Scott."
Johnny paused, swallowed, and nodded. "Yeah, I know," he said. "But, hey, kid's not home, so the need's not pressing. We can check for booby traps or whatever later, right? I'll send in Ben first in case there's a water bucket over the door."
"Not funny," Bobby said. "Just … text James and let him know to take his time getting out of the school."
"On it," Johnny agreed, though he'd no sooner sent the text than a red-glowing set of Avengers appeared out of nowhere, the glow fading out once they'd appeared. And to Johnny's relief, in addition to Natasha and Bobbi, Hank had come too. "Oh, good. Now, can you do the same trick to get Bobby to medical help or something?" Johnny called out, frowning as he turned to look for where Tony was, based on the whine of the repulsors he could hear in the distance.
"It's not that bad, Hank," Bobby said. "I just wasn't expecting it and when I get back to just me, I'm in trouble. I was shot before I iced up, too, so … I don't know how that's going to work."
Johnny rolled his eyes. "Yeah, he wasn't expecting to get shot. No one ever is. We're not listening to him right now."
Bobby closed his eyes at that. "Johnny. You're pretty but you really don't know how I work. I've been down to just my head before and come back just fine. I'm worried more about the shot I took before I iced up."
"So am I," Johnny pointed out. "And for the record, I'm about nine steps above pretty, but thanks for noticing."
"Nine steps ten years ago, maybe," Bobby said under his breath just to rile him.
"Hank, he's going blind. Help him quick!" Johnny said without missing a beat.
Hank chuckled, which was a good sign anyhow since if it was serious, he wouldn't be joking around. "The best I can suggest," he told Bobby "Is to treat this as you would a normal injury, but don't thaw out until we get you to the lab where I can stitch you up or put you to sleep for surgery if need be."
"Got it," Bobby said as the ice he was made of started to crack. "Deep freeze. Consider it done." Then, he looked toward Johnny. "You heard him. Doctors orders, I am officially too cool for you."
"Ouch, that line's overdone," Johnny said with a dramatic wince.
"Remind me again what you say every time you're flirting with every single reporter who gives you a second glance?"
"It's a catchphrase; there's a difference."
"Sure."
Hank smirked between the two of them as he brushed his hands off. "Now then, if you'd like to accompany us, Mister Storm-"
"Oh, sure, yeah, I can do a ridealong," Johnny agreed. "But I get shotgun. Or - however that works with magic teleporting."
"Might want to check him for shock too, Hank. He's acting weird since he had to face an Avenger's level villain. Pretty sure if it was one of ours, he'd have just laid down to die," Bobby said, and Hank just laughed.
…
While James had been trying to relax ever so slightly when it came to being paranoid about his surroundings and the people near him that he didn't know as well as those he did, Scott had been paying more attention. Sure, James still hadn't been able to stop growling when a SHIELD agent came around, but that was more a tip off that he didn't trust them - and by extension didn't trust that they'd do anything for him. Which was good for the agents to know, but very bad for anyone else to pick up on.
Naturally, that on its own would have been enough to draw Scott's concern. But … when he really took the time to analyze how Hydra and Viper had been operating for the last ten years or so, and when he took into consideration how badly James and Viper had clashed while she was torturing him and trying to get into his head, Scott knew that she'd be making a move any time.
The kid was too preoccupied with things that might go right, or worrying about what SHIELD was doing, so of course, that would be the best time to crush him if she could. Before he could build up momentum enough to defend himself properly or to build up his confidence again.
So Scott took to taking walks while he doubled up a watchful shift in Cambridge, and he accepted the upgrade that Stark had made with the newest set of bionic eyes. It was far more sensitive, with a much broader reach, and it could even sift through the many, many biosignatures in the city. Even at rush hour. So Scott walked. And he watched, and he waited. It was only a few miles between the school and James' house. That was reasonable to walk and watch. But …
The walks were getting more frequent, especially when he wasn't sifting through intel trying to see who Viper thought was capable of catching the kid the second time around. So he wasn't overly surprised when one of the first people he'd found on surveillance at the nearest airport working on Viper's behalf was her old lap dog, Crossbones. He'd shown up in the right city at the wrong time, but even his version of covert was pretty obvious without the tech backing Scott up. He was too big, too bold, and too stupid to fit into a crowd, but then, Scott wondered if he wasn't the decoy. The means to draw attention while someone smarter and far nastier took a different approach.
And then he got the text from Bobby confirming that Crossbones had shown up near James' school. If he wasn't there for the kid himself, he was there for trouble anyhow. It couldn't be an accident that Crossbones showed up when Billy was at school for a test and Kate was with her family for her little brother's birthday and some tests.
But Bobby had said that Crossbones was neutralized. And there hadn't been a big insurgence of Hydra at his position, which seemed odd if he was there for a pick up. He wanted to have a word with the idiot, to interrogate him in ways Natasha would have learned from. But he knew that was the wrong play.
He reluctantly turned his attention away from Crossbones and started scanning more carefully, looking toward the most vulnerable area of James' neighborhood - the parts that were well-hidden from the street. As he scanned, he reached out to Ororo to let her know to be on the look out. Especially since Bobby didn't know Scott was in town and watching … and he wanted to keep it that way as much as possible so they could cover more ground.
Scott frowned when he didn't see anyone at all near James' place … not even photographers. He turned a slow circle that looked like he was simply trying to decide where to go next. He didn't like the feeling in the pit of his stomach, and he was sure Crossbones wasn't the only Hydra operative nearby.
Out of pure habit, he looked past the quieter streets toward where James was staying again, just to check on him if he'd slipped around Bobby and gotten home early - or if Billy had decided to wish himself and Kate there as soon as they were done with their school work. He tried to respect the kid's privacy and just checked to see if anyone was home first… but then he realized that the one biosignature he saw there wasn't James, Billy… or Kate.
Scott was already in motion before he had fully processed what the scans were telling him. The woman standing in James' room couldn't have been there longer than ten, fifteen minutes - the length of time since he'd checked that direction - but with Viper, that was an eternity. And Scott didn't want to give her the opportunity to lay any more traps than she had to have done already.
He honestly wasn't even aware of making any decisions in his sprint back to James' place. He only knew that he wasn't going to let this woman who had kidnapped, tortured, brainwashed, and blinded his son get away with it again. By the time he had raced up the stairs to James' room, he had also already taken out the gun he kept on him.
He only paused at the top of the stairs to get his breath, and then, he took stock of Viper's position relative to the door, scanning through the walls to make sure he had the angles right, and smiled almost grimly. He'd always been a good shot.
He steadied his breath and his grip, nodded to himself, and then burst through the door, firing as soon as it was open so that she wouldn't get the chance to retaliate. And it was a good thing he was as fast as he was, too, because his instincts had been right: she had a dart in one hand that fell uselessly to the floor when his shot shattered her shoulder.
Viper swore as she turned his way, a snarl on her lips as she switched her grip to her left hand to hold the whip she always carried on her. In a flash, she was already snapping it - and aiming to yank Scott close enough to jab him with another dart that she was now unable to throw. She didn't know who Scott was. All she knew was that someone was getting between her and her quarry and she wasn't about to let him live to tell the tale. "You've made a terrible mistake," she snarled. "You won't get the chance to do it again."
The whip cracked again - this time making contact with Scott's wrist. It wasn't the one holding the gun - he'd turned at the last moment to avoid losing his weapon, but it stung all the same and made it incredibly hard to curl his hand into a fist when it had cut through the skin as easily as if it had been a knife. The very tip of the whip had missed wrapping around him and instead had cut open a gash that had been deeper than Scott realized at first. He was too distracted trying to keep alive to concentrate on the fact that it stung even more than it should have.
Scott fired again, but being shot had a way of screwing with anyone's aim, so he didn't hit her as squarely as he wanted, striking the shoulder of the same arm he'd already hit - not particularly helpful, but horribly painful if her shriek of pain and rage was anything to go by. Still, he squared up again, his lips curled back. "Not a mistake," he spit out. "You won't get to touch my son again."
"Your son," Viper said, narrowing her eyes. "That's not possible." Considering the small space, she lunged toward him ready to kick him backward, out of the room so she could maneuver more freely. One foot came up, aiming for his neck, though Scott caught the motion of her other hand - with the dart in it.
If he'd been in better practice, he probably could have avoided both neatly, but what happened instead was that he blocked the kick with his injured hand - and cried out when her foot connected with his bleeding arm. He focused instead on the dart, using his foot to kick her hand in return so that they were both clutching re-injured hands, a matched set as they fell back from each other.
Viper was nearly cackling at the fight he was giving her. "You can't possibly think you can outlast me, old man."
Scott tipped his head as he caught his breath. "If you were any good, you'd have killed me already. Not my fault you've gone soft."
She looked shocked at the words, but her whole focus seemed to shift as she narrowed her eyes to take a better look - studying him more as they circled each other. "If I wasn't feeling so charitable to a wasted geezer, I might consider ending the fight all together. But I'm having trouble placing you. And I don't want to ignore you if you're someone worth killing slowly."
Scott grinned despite himself. "Oh, me? I like my privacy."
"You must," she said, weighing out the best way to attack and not kill him outright. "Where have you been hiding him all this time…. stranger with my ex-husband's son?"
"Not your son, so not your business," Scott said without missing a beat.
"Not entirely true," she countered. "I've staked a claim and I plan to collect." She smiled widely. "And he'll come along without a fight."
Scott smirked and let out a low whistle. "Wow, and she calls me old when she's that senile," he told Morticia, who was keeping very obvious distance and hissing at Viper with her hackles raised. "Thinks James Howlett is going anywhere without a fight."
"Ah, but for promises to keep, old man." She smiled wickedly. "He'll do as he's told to keep his word."
Scott raised one eyebrow her way as they sized each other up. "See, that might have worked with Logan, but I raised the kid, and around here, promises made to people like you aren't worth shit."
"And how well did that sink in? Hmm? Were you sure to impress that upon his mind at a young age? Was it a regular test because from what I saw … he was just as intent on keeping his word as his father ever was."
"You're hoping based on what Logan did that promises made in desperation will hold up. Not exactly the smart play," Scott pointed out. "Seeing as you still don't know who I am; you don't know how I raised him."
"Go ahead and tell yourself what you must. I've tortured enough people to know his reactions are exactly on par with any other young man with no training to counter my methods."
"Then you agree with me: he's a teenager," Scott pointed out. "Which means he's not going to keep any promises he doesn't want to." He raised his gun to fire again, but she twisted into a kick, and he had to back off to avoid losing his weapon.
She hummed to herself then rushed, arm raised in an attack that never came as she went for his legs instead to drop him to the floor. She pounced, but he reacted on old instinct to grab her arm as she moved, locking her into a position that made it impossible to get the leverage she wanted. She let out a frustrated sound and made a grab for his gun, but he pulled it back from her grip despite the fact that the hand she'd hit with the whip was going numb. She still had a hand on it, so he couldn't shoot her, but he yanked hard on her other arm, hard enough to disrupt her balance. As she fell to one side, he grabbed her gun, though he couldn't close his hand around it fully to use both guns with both hands.
"How dare you?" Viper hissed- and went for the dirty play, sending a knee up between his legs to try and shake him enough to loosen his grip. Scott gasped, his eyes watering as he let go, and Viper didn't miss her chance to strike, either. She drew back her arm and backhanded him as hard and high as she could, trying to knock him out cold, though she fell short of that.
She took a step away from him and tried to clear the chamber in her gun, though she found it had jammed. She switched her grip, intending to hit him with it instead and had even drawn back again then she finally saw something that made it clear on who he was when Scott had one hand over his eyes from the last blow. And for a second or two, she froze - just staring at him while her brain caught up to the rest of her.
"You?" she said in a tone of pure disbelief, reaching for something at her hip. "Why on earth would they have given that boy to you?"
Scott shook his head as he steadied himself again. "Figured it out, have you?" he said as he got his feet back underneath him, taking advantage of her shock to put distance between them so she couldn't knock him out or worse.
But at that, she started to smile first - and then to laugh. "Oh, I should keep you."
"Not interested."
"Not optional," she replied, more entertained than before. "I wanted to take one of his room mates to use as collateral, but … you will be much more entertaining leverage." She made another shot at using her whip, first trying to shake him by snapping it toward his face, and then threatening to disarm him as she tried for the gun. She got the whip around his wrist, but before she could wrench it, he dropped his gun to his other hand and grabbed the whip, yanking it hard enough to pull her toward him and nearly off her feet in the process.
"Cut the crap, Viper. You showed up while the roommates were gone. You just like to play with your food," Scott said through his teeth. She tried to pull against the whip, and he yanked harder.
"Don't act like you don't know how to have a little fun. You did take in your rival's child, after all. There's a bit of twisted logic there, I'm sure." When she got close to him, though, she laughed again, delighted at the fight she was getting … then she stabbed him high, under the ribs. "I doubt I'll even have to threaten him. I can just … show him I've got you," she said before she yanked the blade out. While Scott was reeling, she kicked him back hard. "He'll be tripping over himself to do whatever I ask." She smiled wider. "Maybe you'd like to hear what he already agreed to … you might be surprised."
Scott hit the wall, and his breath left him, but he still had the wherewithal to roll along the wall to avoid her whip. But once he'd done that, he had to get his breath. So he went for a play that he figured would get her mad enough to slip. "I stopped being surprised over a decade ago, but sure, you can try for second prize. Never did actually break Logan, though, did you? I saw what did; you're not measuring up."
For an instant her smile shifted, but when it returned, she moved too fast to track and cracked him square in the face with a hollow crunch echoing the room. "It took years to lay the foundation so he would break. I'm only sorry I wasn't more involved in the footwork."
Scott swore under his breath, grit his teeth, and stumbled - or at least seemed to. She was mad enough and he was hurt enough it was believable, and then all he had to do was strike out, kicking her back hard enough that her head hit the wall and left red there. "You're only sorry you got shown up by a second-bit player in your world, you mean."
One hand went to her head while the other reached out - tossing a throwing knife at him aiming for center mass. But the head trauma paired with the stars she was still seeing didn't play in her favor and she only ended up sinking it into his shoulder. "Whoever he ended up with that died on him again would have fit the bill. The build up was far more fun."
"Damnit all," Scott swore as he yanked the knife free of his shoulder. But seeing as he was bleeding from two bad knife injuries now, he wasn't going to wait for her to stop seeing stars, either, so he threw the knife right back at her, getting a little more success than she had near her ribs on the right side - lower than he'd meant to throw, but then, he wasn't doing well either.
She gasped, but looked even more thrilled. "Oh, you do know how to play."
"Lady, I married the Phoenix. This isn't even on the list of worst fights I've had."
"Oh, of course, what was I thinking. Whips in a bedroom for you must bring up entirely different thoughts."
"And you're not even my type," Scott said, his hand pressed to his shoulder. He was a bit concerned that he could only feel that his hand was there through a haze of tingliness that was spreading up his arm, but since it wasn't immediately affecting him, he could deal with that later.
"I'm sure you say that to all the girls to start," she said, then launched toward him in an effort to take him off his feet. She faked low, then straight up punched him in the side of the head.
"That's it," Scott said. He was seeing stars, but she was close enough to him and her hair was long enough that he didn't need to see well to grab her hair and bash her face into the wall while he had hold of it.
What he wasn't expecting though, was for her to lean into it as she came off the wall, then use the momentum to push into him to steal a very impolite kiss. When she pulled back, blood was on her teeth and she was grinning broadly. "And I thought you preferred blondes." She scrunched her nose up and once again kneed him hard.
Scott went down hard, barely catching himself with one hand. And he just couldn't get back up fast enough. He was reeling too hard. And when she kicked him in the side - right where she'd already stabbed him - all he could do was gasp. And for just a second, at the back of his mind, he could almost feel that same relief from the last time he'd gone up against a supervillain of this calibre, that release of being done. And even though he'd done so well for so long, it was still enticing. So much so that it was hard to fight the pull of unconsciousness as he slipped to the floor - especially considering the alternative was being live bait. If he couldn't stop her, he could at least not be a hindrance to James.
"Damnit Summers, get off your ass and finish the flamin' job!"
Scott's head came up fast, but he couldn't see anything but Viper as she preened. No Logan. No Jean. Nothing but the threat in front of him.
"As entertaining as this has been," Viper said as she applied a fresh coat of lipstick. "I need to take that boy back to where he belongs. So … thank you for the stretch. A fair fight deserves a merciful intermission before the real show." She checked her reflection quickly, smiled to herself and then crouched down to deliver a poisonous kiss. "Don't worry. You'll be healthy enough to remain useful until I have the boy back to where he should be. I'm sure your telepaths have done all they could to mar my good work."
"Damn straight," Scott said, though it came out a little more slurred than he wanted it to. Scott's vision was still a little hazy, but he knew where his gun still was - not far from where he'd fallen, and close enough he could reach it once he'd scooted backward away from her initial advance - and he knew for damn sure he wasn't going to let Viper walk off with James. So in one fluid movement, he brought the gun up fast. She had crouched over him, her hair falling partly around his face, but he fired a single bullet up through her chin.
There was just a moment when he wasn't sure if he'd done the job squarely. Everything in the room was too loud and too silent all at once, and Viper seemed to almost hover for a few seconds before he felt the hot metallic blood drip onto him and she simply toppled, half over him. It took him no time at all to shove her off of himself, and when she hit the floor next to him, a dart rolled away from her fingertips - shining almost too much in the available light of the room. Scott simply stared at it, his arm crossed over his center and the other hand still holding his gun. But she wasn't breathing anymore, and she wasn't moving… He watched her for another minute longer as her fingers twitched, nodded to himself, and sucked in a breath through his teeth.
He finally let go of the gun and dug in his pocket for his phone instead, maneuvering so that he was sitting with his back against the wall close by Viper; he was too hurt to move much more than that. And when Steve Rogers picked up on the other end, Scott simply said, "Viper came to James's place."
"Do you have him?" Steve asked, sounding stressed - as if he was running, actually.
Scott shook his head, even though he knew Steve couldn't see it. "I have her," he said, his voice more strained than he meant it to be as he bit back a cough that came out anyway.
"What?" Steve said, the alarm more clear. "Where are you?"
"At his place," Scott said. "I… I need help to get her out of here. I think the end of her whip was poisoned; I'm down the use of one arm."
"Hang in there. We'll be there in a second," Steve said - and Scott heard him shout for Wanda before returning to the phone and shouting for Scott to hang in there. Scott didn't have to wait long, either - less then a minute later, Steve and Wanda showed up - their presence given away by the bright flash of red light on their arrival.
Chapter 104: Sitting In The Aftermath
Chapter Text
Belatedly, Scott finally realized how much of a mess there was for the two Avengers to stumble into, though he hadn't had time to process all that had happened much less to think about his appearance. "That was fast," he said and tried to wipe his face with his least-injured hand, realizing Viper had been too close to him when she'd died.
"You're bleeding," Wanda said, looking upset as she rushed to put pressure on his wounds. "Don't touch that."
"I'm fine," Scott said automatically.
"You are definitely not fine," Wanda argued. "You're bleeding badly." She looked up at Steve. "I can take him to the tower now. Are you coming or staying?"
"Staying. I'll get SHIELD in here. Secure the scene," Steve said, though he was clearly in shock, too.
"No, you need to finish the job," Scott argued, blatantly ignoring Wanda.
"Which job would you like me to finish?" Wanda asked.
Scott jerked his head in Viper's direction. "If anyone gets hold of her body, we're going to be doing this again in no time. We've dealt with that before, and James does not need to find out she's back with the kind of return she likes to pull."
Wanda blinked at him for a moment as she took in what he was saying, and with little more than a second to consider his words, she looked over to Steve. "I hope you've gotten enough to file your papers," she said before she concentrated on Viper's body and disintegrated it. "I don't believe even the Hand can work without the body. And I don't want to have to call them in to bring you back, so we are going to the tower. All of us."
"It's not that bad," Scott argued - which would have been more effective if he couldn't taste blood and if whatever he'd been poisoned with wasn't spreading into his shoulder and chest.
Wanda held his gaze and put a little more pressure on the wound as she raised one eyebrow and he let out a sound of sheer pain. "Are you sure? Did you want to walk it off? That would require you stand up first, you know."
"Dammit all, Wanda," he said through his teeth.
"Then we're in agreement. You have a date with Dr. McCoy, who I am sure will be perfectly surprised to see you in such a state," Wanda said before she worked a fast spell to get them to the top of the tower and right into the medical suite.
As soon as Scott heard Hank bounding his way and swearing, he shook his head. "I'm fine, Hank."
"One day you may find the good people of Webster's agreeing with you, but for this moment in time, and for all of time before this moment, you, my dear friend, are horribly mistaken," Hank said as Wanda crossed her arms over her chest and took a step back. "People who are fine do not find themselves hemorrhaging all over my floor."
"You should see the other guy."
"I can see bits of the other guy," Hank said dryly. "And smell them. What on earth possessed you to approach Ophelia Sarkissian without a tank?"
"She was in James's bedroom, and I got mad," Scott said, leaning back in the gurney purely because he was exhausted. He wasn't going to admit it, but he had been hurt badly enough that he'd seen the end as an option, so he wasn't exactly operating well.
"As upsetting as it would be to find a woman of that advanced age and ill intentions in your son's room, I do believe you still should have requested back up," Hank said.
"Sure," Scott said with his eyes closed. "Just as soon as you tell me why Captain America and Wanda smell like gunpowder and ozone. They were busy, Hank. I saw Crossbones skulking near the college myself."
"Yes. Well. Hydra mounted an attack as well. Right in Midtown. The good Captain deduced that it was a distraction and our friend in armor introduced your son to his newest creation. Purely as a means of protection." He looked over the top of his glasses. "And Tyler is here to repair the damage you've sustained."
"James is where, then?" Scott tried to sit up better.
"When he arrives, the plan is to sequester him to his lab. The moment there was any indication of an actual threat, Tony arranged for him to be brought here for his protection. From what I've gathered over the comm system, your middle child is not exactly happy with Tony's methods." Hank leaned toward Scott with a smirk. "Your lovely Miss Hale, however was highly entertained with the live news footage. I don't believe James actually saw the yellow and black paint job on the armor Tony sent after him before it wrapped around him and rocketed him out of school."
"Annie's here?" Scott raised both eyebrows - not at all realizing how quickly he'd switched from concerned about James to concerned about Annie seeing him the second he heard Tony had sent armor after James. "She can't-"
"She isn't here yet. She was texting with Jan - and I promise, Annie won't see you until you're clean and healed - and Tyler will help with half of that. I'm afraid the other half you'll have to suffer through on your own."
"You're hilarious," Scott said dryly.
"Be that as it may, you have exceeded expectations on how thoroughly you've elected to announce your non-support status on the team. It truly is as if you never left," Hank said dryly as he pulled over a blood draw kit. "And I'll require a sample to see what, if any medications I can give you since I am very sure you could use a painkiller at the bare minimum."
"I never said I was -"
"All evidence to the contrary," Hank said.
"Look, I was just keeping James safe-"
"Gathering up all of your bumps and bruises you neglected to acquire in the past decade all in one day is over achieving, ol' fearless. Just not in the manner you're used to doing."
"Very funny, Hank," Scott said, though he was smirking as he leaned back.
"Oh, I forgot to levee in that which you brought home after that quick trip to Genosha. Yes, I'd say you've accomplished enough to be ahead of your own scale at this point."
"Both of those were… you know what, I'm not arguing this with you, because I'm not sorry about it," Scott muttered, one hand over his eyes.
"It's like deja vu, all over again," Hank said.
"Are you going to fix the poison or am I just going to die listening to you reminisce?"
"Hopefully you'll survive to be razzed another day," Hank said. "But I've been holding back a decade of sassy quips for just these occasions, so I'm afraid you'll have to contend with that angle of your overzealous collection of contusions."
"Missed you too," Scott said, smirking.
"You need not go to such lengths to catch my attention," Hank said as he brought the blood sample to his machinery. "I'll make sure you have some supplies to clean up as well. Or to let someone help you- oh, bother. That's not likely seeing as you're so fine."
"I am," Scott agreed - which really didn't work when he was tired enough to let his eyes drift shut until Hank's blood analysis was done and the ding jolted him back to reality. He did his best to look less like he'd fallen asleep, but Hank didn't look convinced as he administered some antivenom to what was, apparently, a spider venom.
When Tyler came in, though, Scott tried to make sure the kid didn't have any reason to freak out, toweling off what he could when it was already starting to dry. "You pulled the short straw, huh?"
"Not really a short straw when, you know … this is kind of my job now? But … jeez. You're really a mess," Tyler said as he sat down next to Scott. "I won't ask what happened, okay?" He held his hand out to Scott and waited for Scott to reach out before he put his other hand over Scott's stab wound and started healing everything he could. "I'm going to leave the black eye and the split lip because they're really not that bad, but also, we have someone else in with a gunshot wound already."
Although Scott didn't know it, Hank had slipped him something along with the antivenom so that he wasn't hurt when Tyler healed him - since the healing itself would have been traumatic otherwise. So he wasn't entirely censoring himself as he asked, "Who is it? What happened? Is everyone okay?"
"Don't worry about that right now," Hank said. "They will be perfectly fine. It's not one of the kids."
"Oh, good," Scott said and leaned back again - though he didn't allow himself to drift off despite the sedation because he was too worried. But when he saw Johnny go into the other room with food and heard Bobby, he relaxed a little. Bobby deserved something good, and if things with Johnny were finally progressing, Scott wasn't going to step into the middle.
Which meant he wasn't expecting another person to come into the medical wing and had even closed his eyes before the door opened one last time.
"The hell happened to you?" James asked when he got into the lab, because he was not going to be stuck in his lab, even if Tony had reprogrammed the whole building to fight him on it. He'd just gotten in and pushed his way through the wall of Avengers trying to stop him from going anywhere but his lab.
"James, I'm fine. I just need a shower," Scott said, trying to sit up straighter but still dizzy.
James made his way over and helped to get Scott upright. "Dad. Come on. What happened? This day has been insane."
"Won a fight. Tell me about your day. Are you okay?" Scott asked.
"Well, I was in physics about twenty minutes ago, set to explain part of my last paper to the class when the armor came flying through the windows, attached itself to me and yanked me out," James said dryly. "Happens to everyone, right?"
Scott chuckled, leaning against James without meaning to. "Oh, all the time," he agreed.
"So, that ought to be fun to explain tomorrow," he continued.
"That's alright. When I was your age, I was getting kidnapped by cosmic beings. It happens."
"Yeah, well I was dealing with enough awkwardness in the classroom with everyone knowing that I'm supposed to take over for Tony, the whole Genosha … fiasco, all of it. The armor seemed a little bit like flaunting it. So I've already decided to rig his coffee maker to attack."
"Good call," Scott said.
"I'll help you get to where you're going," James told him quietly. "But you gotta tell me what happened."
"I just need to get cleaned up," Scott whispered back. "If you can point me at the showers…"
"Yeah, I noticed the mess," James said. "So what happened? You have gray matter on your shirt collar and a nasty bloodstain."
Scott looked down at himself, grimaced, and let out a long sigh. "It's fine, James. I'll be alright."
"Dad."
"Look," Scott said in a sigh, knowing if Hank had been able to scent out who was there, James definitely knew. "Viper was in your place in Cambridge."
"Okay. You didn't need to do this though," James said quietly, proving Scott right when he didn't react to the who. "You didn't need to get that close to her."
"James, you're my son; she wasn't getting to you as long as I was breathing," Scott said in a sharper tone than any he'd used with him. "I saw her, and I got the drop on her from the start. She got in a few good shots; that's all."
"Dad, you don't have to … I can take it."
"I don't ever want to hear you say that again," Scott said, his eyes narrowed. "'I can take it.' No. You shouldn't have to. You're a child."
James didn't argue with him, if nothing else, than because of his tone, even if he was convinced Scott was looking at it all wrong. When James didn't try to contradict Scott, his dad simply leaned on him and let James get him to the showers.
Of course, that was really the first time Scott had been alone long enough to think, so once he got himself decently clean, he ended up standing there for a long while, staring at the drain until it no longer looked pink. He still wasn't entirely sure what he'd heard when Viper had stabbed him, but he did know if he hadn't been having a moment of pain-fueled delusion, if he had heard Logan, he'd been too close to leaving his kids to be acceptable. He'd promised them never to do that again, and here he was - once again wrestling with the echoes from the other side.
Not to mention the example he'd set, killing Viper without a lick of remorse. It was bad enough that he'd gone in with the intent to murder her; he couldn't even muster up the sense to mourn the fact that there was no other option, the way he'd done with Erik. This wasn't what the professor had taught him. And all he could think about was the other Logan, the one who'd visited in an attempt to keep Scott with his kids, insisting that Scott wasn't a killer.
By the time Scott got himself dried off, his ears were ringing with the relative silence after the water had stopped echoing the space around him, and he barely registered the fact that Billy had come to find James to delightedly show him the now-viral footage of James being yanked out of class by brand-new Stark armor in yellow and black stripes. And he barely registered seeing Bobby high as a kite and teasing Johnny about how worried he'd been. He only focused on Wanda coming to check on him because she put a hand on his arm - and he automatically yanked it out of her grasp.
Wanda looked openly worried. "Do you want Ororo, Alex, or Annie? I know you don't want the kids yet."
Scott shook his head, his eyebrows knit together. "Not Annie - she doesn't need to be involved with anything to do with Viper," he said over the sound of Billy's laughter.
"I didn't think so, but I had to ask. So that leaves us with Genosha or Westchester." She watched him for a long moment, crossed her arms and made her decision, working up the spell before Scott could answer. "If you decide you want Alex, just say so and I'll get him there fast. I'm going to take over on the boys until you're ready for them."
"Wanda, I'm fine," Scott insisted, trying to get around her, but Wanda stood her ground.
"Then you can be fine with Ororo," she said. "You know I'll make sure they're safe."
Scott finally turned to face her properly, crossed his arms, and let out a breath. "All of them," he said. "She knew where to find him; she's been messing with his records. There's no telling what backup plans she had. And she was aware Billy and Kate were living there and planned to use them again."
"She'll have a hell of a time finding them in Genosha. Especially when she's dead," Wanda said, then sent him off to appear in Ororo's office before he could even attempt to argue with her.
Ororo absolutely wasn't prepared for Scott to show up in her office - as evidenced by the fact that she had been dressing down a student that had been playing a prank on Angel when Scott just … showed up. She looked between Scott and the student for a long moment, then pointed one finger at her. "You are incredibly lucky today," Ororo said. "But this is not over. We'll pick this up later. You are excused."
The girl was on her feet in a blink - literally - as if the air had shimmered in television snow for a second before she darted out of the room leaving Scott and Ororo alone.
"Scott, I cannot say that I was prepared for your secondary mutation to be anything like this," Ororo teased before she'd fully taken in the lost expression on his face. "What happened, my dear friend?" she took a hold of his arm and took him to the couch and sat down with him.
"I'm fine," Scott said automatically.
"You most certainly are not fine," Ororo said. "Every time you say that, you are less fine than before you let those words leave your mouth. What happened?"
Scott let out a breath, his hands tightly clasped in front of him as he tried to explain what had happened, even if he still hadn't fully processed it - and certainly hadn't even told Steve the full story. "Viper was in James' room," he said. He paused, somehow holding his hands tighter in his lap. "And, well, that's that."
"I don't understand," Ororo said. "Did she take him with her again? Or had she set up a trap? Where is she now - and what exactly did she want from him?"
"SHIELD is probably scrubbing his room right now," Scott said. "It was a trap, but James wasn't home. Stark got him out." He absently tapped his temple near his eyes. "James is fine, I promise. Really. She never had a real chance to get him again. Not with Stark fighting back too."
"Then why do you look as if you've got something new to carry on your shoulders like Atlas? What happened with Viper?"
Scott let out his breath and looked past her in the general direction of her desk. "She's dead, so once the room is scrubbed and the Avengers chase down anything else she might have left behind…"
Ororo reached over to cover his hand with hers. "Scott, what aren't you telling me? Nothing you've said so far warrants such a grim expression. Did someone helping you with this die?"
"What? No," Scott said quickly. "Really, it's fine. They're all fine."
"Then tell me how they managed to catch Viper in the act and end her," Ororo said. "I need to know that she can't find a way to come back."
"She won't," Scott swore. Then, seeing that Ororo wasn't going to accept that as an answer, he made a vague gesture with one hand. "I, ah, don't miss, 'Ro."
Ororo raised an eyebrow at that, holding his gaze for as long as he could keep it up. "I see. Did you get powder burns on your hand? Perhaps a sprained wrist from the kick back? Did you empty out every round?" She turned his hands over to see for herself. "Because I would have wanted to use every single bullet I had available."
Scott pulled his hand back and stared at her, honestly not expecting that reaction, especially since she had been running Charles' school this whole time. "I'm fine."
Ororo frowned, knowing that Scott wasn't exactly lying, but he wasn't telling the truth either. Not entirely. "And I'm the queen of Genosha."
"Congratulations on your promotion."
Ororo scoffed. "Then if you're going to be stubborn, I'll have to dig out a bottle of whiskey." She raised an eyebrow. "Yes, I keep them around now for certain occasions."
Scott almost smirked but couldn't quite manage the expression. "There's nothing to be stubborn about," he said softly. "I killed her; that's that."
"Then in this case, we should toast to the end of a horrible era," Ororo said gently. "With all the misery that woman caused…"
"Yeah." Scott let out a long sigh but didn't say anything until Ororo had, in fact, gone to get them both something to drink. He watched her pour and then, finally, said, "It's a terrible example. Coming out of retirement twice, and both times to kill someone. I know we talked about me working with the team again, but if this is going to keep happening..."
Ororo let him take a moment to drink and to let it settle in the air between them. "Both times you were stopping someone intent on hatred and mass murder. As I understand it from my sources, both times also involved someone threatening to use your children."
"Still." Scott let out a long breath, still without touching his drink. "We were supposed to be better than this, 'Ro. I was supposed to-" He stopped. "I was the one to set the example."
Again, Ororo gave him time to breathe before she posed an important question. "Scott. Had you not intervened, what would have come of the children you were setting an example for? What would have become of you? Had you stood down - where would we be now? Where would they actually be now? And where would you be?"
"'Ro…" Scott shook his head.
"I can't speak for where we would be if things had been different with Erik. I can only see that we were headed for bigger trouble than what we had at our worst had he continued on… but if you look at today, where would our children be had Viper won today?"
"I know," Scott said without meeting her gaze. "I know. That's why I had Wanda destroy her body afterward. We can't risk her coming back or getting the kids. I know."
"Scott, I've learned through the years that sometimes, extreme actions must happen. This was one of those times. You've come out of retirement when the situation was at its most dire. That's all."
Scott was quiet for a long time, and Ororo let him come to his thoughts before he spoke again. "I'm a damn coward," he said in a quiet breath. "I can't face losing those kids, and I'm willing to do whatever it takes to save them, but every damn time I think I can see the finish line, I can't wait to cross it, 'Ro."
"Did you cross it this time?" Ororo asked. "Or did you turn away?"
"I don't actually know," Scott said - and finally took a drink, throwing it back in a sharp movement.
"Then what can you tell me that you know for sure? Or nearly for sure?"
It was a mark of how much shock Scott was still in as well as how much he trusted Ororo that he paused, then actually admitted, "Could have sworn I heard Logan swearing at me. Which would have been par for the course, really."
"And what did our old friend have to say?"
"To get off my ass," Scott said with almost a smirk.
"And you listened. If that was him, you'll never live it down," she teased.
"Pretty sure that ship sailed if he saw me with the other Logan that visited," Scott pointed out, finally smiling.
"Good."
Scott shook his head at her and poured them both another drink. "So," he said. "Wouldn't be surprised if Craig pulls you in again. Seeing as I can't be trusted not to run right back where I left."
"If you need it, or want it, you know I'm here for you. Always."
"Thanks, 'Ro." Scott leaned back, closed his eyes, and let himself sit in his thoughts for some time before he got to his feet. "Alright. I should go find Annie," he said, and Ororo helped him to his feet.
"Let me send you with someone," she said, and he was too tired to argue it. "You've been through a lot and haven't truly rested. If you were to find yourself dying from a car accident at this point, you know Logan would never let you hear the end of it." She smiled, teasing slightly, but there was enough truth in it that Scott once again found himself more sober than before.
Wanda had taken a moment after sending Scott to Westchester. She needed to reevaluate everything her old team was currently dealing with in the moment. Oddly, Tony and Steve weren't fighting, though that might have had more to do with the fact that Steve was entirely thunderstruck while trying to come to terms with the fact that Hydra's leader was dead at the hands of a semi-retired X-Man while Tony was working the press over the attack from Hydra that had hit Midtown Manhattan. The team was scattered to the winds, chasing down Hydra leads that were part of both attacks, double and triple checking that the assets that the Avengers had a vested interest in were all safe and secure, and doing so with a smile on their faces for the cameras.
She had no idea how those boys weren't in shambles without her at their helm. Of course, they had Jan … and she was an amazing leader in her own right … especially when the boys quit acting like idiots and got out of her way.
She took a moment to look at everything on the holodeck to see who was where, what was going on, and who needed back up. She wasn't entirely surprised to find that Steve looked the most adrift as he took in the messy scene at James' place in Cambridge.
She let out a sigh and made her way to where James looked irritated and Billy still looked as if nothing could wreck his mood when his sweetheart was everywhere on the news - flying away from the school or landing at the tower in Wolverine-painted armor. Her little boy couldn't have been happier, so she was pretty sure they'd be okay for a little bit.
"Boys," she said, smiling in spite of herself. "I have to go help Steve. Don't go wandering. I'm sure Scott will be headed back this way soon."
"Don't worry," Billy said, a smile on his features and a laugh in his voice. "If we were to leave now, our jet-powered Wolverine would get mobbed. Pretty sure we're just going to stay in."
"Yes, well … I know you both have clothes here. Take a few minutes to help your sweetie pack. When I get back, we're going to Genosha."
"I could just wish us there now," Billy offered.
"No, wait. I told your brother we were going to meet up here first - and I promised Tony I wouldn't sweep you out before he could talk to James," Wanda smiled warmly at both of them before she turned to leave. "I'll be back before you know it. Be good."
"Yes, Mom," Billy sang out, then fell into another delighted laugh when he pulled James over to kiss him silly. "Your mentor must be insane to think you need flight."
"I think it was more about the giant game of keep away," James argued, though he wasn't going to rain on Billy's parade when he was that amused.
"Let's get you packed to go. I guess Mom thinks you need more than a variety of swimwear while you're in Genosha."
James laughed as they headed toward his room, especially since that had been their running joke - that he was studying to be Dr. Cabana-consort.
They were partway through picking out a few things for James to bring along when they were interrupted first by the delighted laugh of Annie Hale when she arrived fresh from school … she had been on the way out when the news hit, so she tried to rush to the tower, knowing that she'd find Scott there, eventually.
James and Billy shared a look and stepped out to greet her, knowing both that she would do best if she had someone to commiserate with while she waited and that there really weren't too many other people around while they were busy elsewhere.
"There you are!" Annie said with a laugh, though she stopped short of the hug she wanted to give James and Billy both. "Yellow looks good on you."
"Thanks, Miss Hale," James said, smirking. "But that wasn't my idea."
"That's a shame," she said, smiling warmly. "I think it suits you."
"So do I," Billy agreed.
"Tell me about your flight!" Annie said. "And what prompted it? I barely heard what was goin' on, but it sure sounded like you were bein' pulled into some serious Avengers' daring-do."
James and Billy shared a look and James' hand went to the back of his neck. "Ah … well, it's complicated…" James looked past Annie with a frown as he heard someone from down the hall near the elevator walking with a determined meter. It didn't sound like anyone he knew by the rhythm of the footfalls, and they echoed ever so slightly in the slick hallway. And while Annie looked perfectly ready to hear a good story, James was waiting to see who it was only to stifle a growl when Maria Hill turned the corner.
"Mr. Howlett," Hill said, prompting Annie to spin in place with a deep frown. "You must be feeling more like yourself."
Annie simply wasn't used to hearing James being called by his name like that. Even the reporters that swamped the building called him by his first name, and even though Annie knew that was his name, she thought of him as a Summers first, so to hear the different surname was enough to throw her off and instantly color Agent Hill as someone she'd rather not know.
James kept his glare steady - it was too late to try and pretend like he didn't care about her. Especially when he was trying so hard to keep from growling. "What do you want, Agent Hill? Too late to help as usual?"
Hill smiled as pleasantly as she could manage. "That remains to be seen. If you would, Mr. Howlett, it's long past time we had a little chat." She gestured to the men flanking her with obvious - and not so obvious - weapons in their hands. "This will all go easier if you come along peacefully."
"What is it you think I did this time?" James asked. "Because I know I haven't committed any crimes."
"No one said you were a criminal, James," Hill replied. "But you were in the vicinity of two major Hydra figures this afternoon and we never did get that debrief. You now owe me two, and I'm not taking any chances on being interrupted." She gestured over her shoulder. "The flight is short. Don't worry."
"How can I owe you two when I had nothing to do with whatever happened today?" James asked.
When he didn't move right away, Hill lifted one eyebrow. "If you're going to be stubborn, this can get ugly."
"No," James said almost in a sigh. "You don't have to act that threatened." He turned toward Billy and gave his hand a squeeze. "Let Tony know what's going on, okay? I don't want to upset my dad anymore than he already is. The Avengers can deal with it when they get a minute."
"Are you sure?" Annie said, her brows drawn together. "He'll want to know."
"Yeah, I'm sure. Billy can fill you in," James told her softly enough that she had to strain to hear it - and neither Hill nor her lackeys could catch it. "It's fine." He kissed Billy's cheek, then turned to go with Hill, though it wasn't very reassuring when the agents with her made a point to shift from flanking Hill to taking up positions on either side of James as they hit the elevator and went up to the roof.
As soon as they were in the quinjet to head up to the helicarrier, the security measures began and one of the men did a thorough search while the other scanned James for devices. He took his cell phone and panic button, then looked utterly confused when he couldn't figure out how to get the little cuff off of James that had been what called the armor to him. "You need to remove this," the agent said.
"Absolutely not," James very calmly refused.
"We'll let him have his security blanket for now," Hill said, an obvious jab that wasn't gaining her any points with James.
"Technically, I can't remove it," James said easily, though he was tensed up and ready to spring.
"I didn't realize Stark had such a good leash for you," Hill said, though that only had James narrowing his eyes and ready to hit her. Which, he realized was likely what she was after.
"Can't be near as short as the one Fury has on you," James shot back calmly, which had one of the guards staring and the other trying not to smile.
"You're sure you want to start this with hostility?" Hill said, sounding incredibly irritated.
"I'm not the one that showed up with an armed escort," James replied.
"You sound just like your father."
"Which one?" James asked, finally gaining a little control over his reactions in time for them to circle in at the helicarrier, which wasn't more than a few minutes out from the tower. Yet, James wasn't naive enough to think that they weren't going to head out as soon as he was on deck.
Hill didn't answer, and the transport fell into silence that disappeared as soon as they landed on deck. The engines were loud outside of the quinjet and the two agents closest to James had no trouble taking a hold of his arms to help him find his way across the open flight deck. He hadn't seen the helicarrier up close before, and he was pretty sure as he looked around that he could have done without a bit longer.
He also was very sure he could have done without the layer upon layer of security clearances the deeper into the helicarrier they got - the screenings and photos taken as if he was a criminal … all of these things made him more nervous the further they went. At least until he very suddenly found himself in the stereotypical small, dark room with one mirrored wall - deep within the belly of the bureaucratic beast full of secrets and lies.
The guards fell back after Hill gestured for James to step into the room, which he grudgingly did. He fully expected Hill to step in after him, but was disappointed when she simply closed the door behind him and left him alone to stew, he was sure.
The little table at the center of the room had two chairs - both of which appeared to be bolted to the floor, and the table too. There was a pitcher of water and a glass … both of which James was sure were collection methods for finger prints and DNA, and when he thought about it, he wouldn't have been surprised to find that the chairs were rigged for something too. So, instead of following convention, James took a look around the room and made his way over to the corner just beyond the mirror to sit down facing the door, tucked into the corner. He was careful not to touch anything, even if they already had his finger prints. He just didn't see any reason to trust them at all.
He pulled his knees up toward his chest simply to rest his crossed arms on and waited, wondering how long Hill really thought she could keep him there. But he wasn't curled in on himself in the corner for more than five minutes before the door opened and James held his breath as the SHIELD director stepped in.
"You're making a lot of waves for such a young man." Fury watched James, who only glared back at him. "We gave you a little leeway for everything your father did both for us, and to keep your mother at bay … but my patience has officially run out. Thought we might have lost you after Viper got her hooks in-"
"Was that a disappointment?" James asked, cutting him off.
"Excuse me?"
"You said you thought you lost me. Were you disappointed when I wasn't killed? It's a pretty simple question."
Fury drew in a deep breath, quiet and calculating as he watched James glare at him. "Whatever impression you have-"
"It's not an impression," James said, cutting him off. "You - or your people - knew Viper was doing what she was doing to me. You knew she was going to grab me - and you let it happen without so much as a warning. Whatever you think you're entitled to? You can go to hell."
"It was a calculated risk-"
"I don't care. I wasn't warned and I sure as hell wasn't trained for it."
"You're not a kid anymore, James. Sometimes the risk of one outweighs the risk applied to many. Your parents understood that."
"My parents were shoehorned into doing whatever you thought was best under threat. You didn't give them much of an option to choose anything."
"We didn't have that luxury - not then and not now. So cut the angry teenage crap and get with the program."
"I'm not talking to you ab-"
"Good. I already know what happened with Viper. I know what she did to your friends and I know what she and her daughter did to you. I know all of it. I don't need you to tell me what I already know. That'd just be a waste of my time." Fury had raised his voice almost to the point of shouting, but still, James hadn't moved. "This isn't about that. This is about laying down the ground rules from here on out, making sure you understand your role in this system we've built."
But at that, James simply started laughing. There was no joy in his laugh, and he was so frustrated he could have screamed instead. "I'm not doing anything for you."
"You're an Avenger, James. You work for us."
"No, I work for Tony Stark."
"Who also works for us."
"Then I'll tender my resignation immediately. I'm sure he'll understand."
Fury looked incredibly frustrated. "This is about your future. It's about moving forward. This is about how your actions have consequences. Your ideas have consequences. The company you keep has consequences, too. Hell, the way the press talks, what you pick up at the coffee shop on a Tuesday afternoon has consequences. You've seen both sides of how this works already. You've seen doors opened for you because of Stark and you've had to pick up stakes and run away when someone got too close to who you really are. Now you know, that was always in the cards because of your genetics, and more specifically, who your parents were. And now that you've met Viper and her special brand of insanity, you know how easy it is for someone like her to decide you'd be better suited as their personal lap dog. Considering how easy you caved for her, you probably already know it's just a matter of time before someone tries it again - and don't say it can't happen. I lost count of how many times your father had his brain scrambled."
James hadn't blinked as he watched Fury build, but it was clear the man was looking for a response. And when James opened his mouth, his mother's spirit seemed to bubble out. "So is this a threat against me, my family, my teams, or my boyfriend and his family? I'm not sure which way you're trying to leverage so that you can use me."
Fury very nearly smirked, though he wasn't stupid enough to deny that he wanted James in his pocket. "Like it or not, you need SHIELD to keep you safe - just like everyone else does."
"Wait. Keep me safe? When did you do that?"
Fury ignored the outburst. "The only difference is that Joe Blow in Yonkers isn't destined to be the head of the most successful weapons manufacturer in the world and he isn't acting as boy toy for mutant royalty."
"So it's both the Stark angle and pushing Genosha's buttons-"
"There are a lot of things we need to discuss and both Stark and Maximoff are toward the top."
"Then I guess I'll take a page out of my therapist's book and advise you to talk to them about concerns you might have," James said slowly, with an expression that clearly read how crazy he thought Fury was.
"That would be a fine plan if I didn't know that Viper has been in your head, or that she got a real foothold." Fury was relaxed as he headed over to take a seat, prompting James to realize that this was just the opener if Fury was just now getting comfortable. "Hill already told you that you're a liability. A big one. But what she didn't tell you, and what I am sure you already know, is that you're just as big of an asset. We want to be on your side, James. And if you're half as smart as they say you are, you'll want us there with you."
"Full offense, but if you were half as smart as your rep, you would have talked to me and warned me before letting Viper get her hooks in me."
"I already-"
"Yeah, you said it was for the greater good. I got that part. But your logic here is just lazy. If I was half as valuable to you as you say - if you knew I was valuable at all, you never would have let Viper near me," James said, still staying where he was with his back to the corner of the room. "Then again, maybe that was your plan all along. Let her screw with my head so I'd be easier to control. Is that why you already know what she did to me? Did you have a deal with her too?"
Fury turned to face him, propping his head up with his elbow on the table. "Is that Viper or Natasha talking?"
"You tell me."
Fury glared openly. "I know your adoptive father probably filled your head with all the same lies he was told when Xavier was alive. Regardless of what you think … we don't get to make our own way through life. There is such thing as destiny or whatever you want to call it. Now and again if we're lucky, we get to add our thoughts as it plays out, but you don't get to choose your path. You think you don't want to have anything to do with SHIELD. Fine. You're just putting your company, your boyfriend, and your family at risk by turning me down."
"No-"
"Yes. Choosing to turn your back on SHIELD is blindly accepting that Viper or someone like her will take over your mind. You have a target a mile wide and no one taking aim wants you for anything as pedestrian as a soldier or a scientist." Fury tapped the side of his head. "Your control over your own mind is temporary."
"So what? You want me to accept that you'll be pulling puppet strings?"
"Could be a hell of a lot worse. Don't get me wrong, son, you've impressed just about everyone who's ever known about your existence. But … all things considered, you would be wrong not to follow in your biological father's footsteps. Yes, he was an X-Man and an Avenger-"
"I have no plans to join Alpha Flight."
Finally Fury smirked, though he continued on, ignoring James' sass. "Logan knew that sometimes, you have to team up with people you don't agree with to make sure that people are safe. He didn't put himself ahead of the greater good-"
"Who determines that greater good, director?" James interjected. "The guy - or the team - that determined it was alright to leave a teenager in Viper's lab just because of his lineage? Or was it because of the mutation? The x-gene generally speaking or-"
Fury pulled a remote out of his coat pocket and turned on a monitor near by - one that was cued up to show James something he'd never expected to see on the helicarrier: Viper's footage of his torture - cued up to the moment when James agreed to whatever Viper wanted. The video was edited to show the most traumatizing parts, of course. And it stopped James in his tracks.
He wasn't quite ready to deal with that - and again, he absolutely wasn't prepared. "That's enough. You can turn it off," James said, his gaze on his hands as he shrunk in on himself once again.
"I don't think it is enough," Fury said, plowing through the fact that the kid in front of him was sick to his stomach knowing that SHIELD was well aware of everything that had happened to him, Kate, and Billy while in Viper's lair. "Do you even know what you agreed to?"
James opened his mouth, then closed it again, suddenly unsure of what he knew and what he didn't … and unable to focus on what Fury was saying when he could hear Viper and Katarina in the recording. All he could hear was his heartbeat in his ears as Fury pressed - he wasn't able to respond, and he wasn't able to argue anything, so he missed it at first when there was a flash of red light and Wanda crouched down in front of him.
"...James, sweetheart," Wanda said, finally cutting through the fog enough for him to look up and hold her gaze. "I think it's time you helped Billy finish packing."
James stared at her for a moment, then belatedly nodded. She pulled him to his feet, straightened him up, then rested her hand on his cheek as she gave him a warm smile - and sent him right back to the tower before rounding on Fury with her eyes and hands glowing red.
"Wanda-"
"Don't you dare try to Wanda me when you were just shoving that boy's trauma in his face," Wanda snarled in a shaky tone.
"I was pointing out that he doesn't remember-"
"You were seeing how far you could push him and what buttons you had available to you while you tried to manipulate him into doing the same crap you made Logan do!"
Fury started to argue, but Wanda waved a hand and silenced him.
"I'm sure you know full well that my son is deeply involved with James," Wanda said evenly. "And you know that I am already finding the lines in the sand with Tony and Scott. I don't mind sharing. I don't… but those are all relationships that James has chosen. I will not stand by while someone tries to make use of everything Viper did to him." She tipped her chin up as she floated a few inches higher off the ground. "Don't push me into anything you'll regret, director. Leave my family alone. All of them."
Her warning laid out plainly, Wanda glared through the mirrored glass then disappeared in a swirl of red - intent on making sure whatever Fury had kicked up hadn't set James back too far. Especially when they should have been celebrating Scott's win .. not fixating on what Viper had done.
When Scott got back to the tower, he hadn't even gotten to the Avenger's levels before Hank intercepted him. James had gotten back already, and though Scott didn't yet know he'd been gone, Hank needed to make sure his oldest and dearest friend was getting back into his head after a nice chat with Ororo.
And besides, he didn't want to give Scott a whole new traumatic episode on returning when he found out that his son had just been interrogated and retraumatized by SHIELD. Nothing good could come of that just then, and as much as Hank knew Scott was a gifted strategist - throwing his kids into the mix was often times just enough to blow Scott's logistical mind straight into revenge rage.
As it was, Wanda was with Annie - assuring her that SHIELD didn't get what they wanted from James and that she would personally see to it that James didn't slip too far again. And there was the little matter of Steve …
Steve, who looked caught somewhere between shell-shocked and awed and had been a little bit aimless for the past half hour anyhow.
It was a perfect storm, really.
Scott was still half in his head, torn in how he felt when Steve walked into the room, looked around himself just long enough to take in who was there before he nodded his head and started toward Scott. He stopped in front of Scott, schooled his expression and squared up. Out of all of the Avengers in attendance, though - only Wanda didn't seem as if she was worried about a dressing down. Everyone else was just waiting for bad news. How could they not?
But then Steve saluted.
For too-long, Scott just stared at him, his lips slightly parted, completely at a loss as to why Steve would do something like that. "You - you don't have to - what -"
"Yes I do," Steve argued, though he didn't have a more concise counter argument. "Thank you."
Scott stared at him again and then lightly shook his head. "Just… looking out for my son," he said softly.
Finally, Wanda leaned over to peek around Steve at Scott. "I'm keeping your son, by the way. For now."
"Oh?" Scott was still too lost after Steve's attempt to convey gratitude or… something, he wasn't sure.
"Yes. I figure we should share equal time. You've had mine for oh … almost two school years. You can get James back when I've had two." Wanda grinned at him, knowing that should blink him out of his shock a little bit.
"You damn well can't have him that long," Scott grumbled her way. "Besides, Cambridge had him for most of this past year."
"Yes, but you were bonding with Billy … private driving lessons and all that."
"Not my fault you take the express everywhere," Scott shot back.
"That's not really a valid argument, Scott," Wanda said with a wave. "Besides, both of our boys are already at my house now. He is done with school, right?" She shrugged, but was clearly teasing. "Time for him to learn what he'll need to know in Genosha."
"That won't take two years," Scott said, shaking his head as he got to his feet - away from Hank. "So if you could just take me home…"
"No," Wanda said. "But I can take you to my home. At least until Steve and Natasha finish checking your house over. As I said… I've already got all your kids there."
"Alright," Scott said - purely because he did want to see his kids. And then possibly sleep.
"We'll take care of everything here," Steve promised.
"Thanks." Scott paused, then turned toward Steve a little more fully. "Really. This has been…"
"Horrifying and absolutely a relief all at once?"
"Yes." Scott let out a dry chuckle. "At least we can put it behind us now. Sorry to leave you stranded with my oldest friend trying to remember how to flirt," he added, tipping his head toward Bobby and Johnny.
Steve let out a sigh as he watched them for a moment. "Don't take this the wrong way, but between you and me, I don't think your oldest friend ever knew how to flirt. Not that I have a lot of high ground there …"
"Then I guess it's lucky he found someone who flirts like breathing," Scott said, smirking, finding it easier to talk about Bobby than about himself.
"Guess so. Looks like there's someone for just about everyone," Steve said with a muted smile. "But … seriously, Scott. Take a rest before you decide to solve the rest of the world's problems."
"Leave some for the Avengers, you mean?" Scott couldn't help but say.
"Yes. Yes, that … is exactly what I mean," Steve said in a self-depreciating tone, complete with a hollow laugh. "We've been doing so well, after all."
"You really have," Scott said, recognizing the tone for what it was. "To be honest, if the Avengers hadn't been there today, I'd have lost that fight. James would be with Viper." He didn't add that he'd have either been dead or detained for use against James, either, because he didn't like dwelling on that thought.
"At least we managed to avoid that," Steve said, then offered Scott his hand to shake. "See you when you get back."
"Keep an eye out while I'm gone; Annie let me know Emma's been doing a little detective work," Scott warned him.
"We all are carrying those little devices James worked up," Steve admitted.
"Good; I'd hate to see what she'd do with the Avengers at her beck and call."
"All due respect? I'd rather not think about it." Steve said as he took a few steps backward in a half hearted tease.
"Me neither," Scott agreed - and before he could turn toward Wanda, that was that - she had already sent him to Genosha with the rest of the family.
Chapter 105: The Great X-Men Walkout
Chapter Text
Scott had slept hard once he got to Genosha, and if he was honest, he didn't particularly want to get up again. It wasn't just that he was comfortable or that the view was nice with Annie sitting out on the balcony connected to their room looking out over the waves and letting him sleep in. He just… didn't feel like doing anything more than sitting right there.
He didn't think Wanda was aware of the fact that she was reinforcing his worries. She'd promised to bring "all" of his kids to Genosha, and apparently, that meant all of the junior team. All of them. May, Mia, Tommy, America - all of them. Not just his kids.
He could see what she meant, though. He was always looking out for them, even before he'd agreed to run intel for them. He cared about all of them, not just the ones dating his kids. They were the X-Men, and that made them family.
But that also meant that, when he woke up and thought of everyone staying with Wanda, he suddenly didn't want to face them. He'd spent a lifetime believing in the dream of peaceful coexistence with every fiber of his being, and he was doing a piss poor job of actually living it, in his estimation. He was far more comfortable with killing than he had been before he'd lost his first team, and he was starting to wonder if he hadn't been irreparably damaged.
He still wasn't even sorry.
That was what he kept circling back to as he lay there listening to the sound of the waves. He was a terrible example for those kids.
Not to mention the fact that he kept tripping at the finish line. He was so ready to be done that he kept trying to get there faster than he should - and this time felt even worse, because he had a good thing going with Annie. He was enjoying teaching again. He had so much that could keep him there, and he felt like he had no right to want to be done, either.
So, he stayed there, caught in his own thoughts, for far too long - long enough, even, that Annie noticed he was awake, smiled, and came into the room from the balcony to sit down beside him. When he didn't sit up with her, she slipped down next to him, wrapping him up and resting her chin on his shoulder.
"Tired?" she teased lightly.
"Yeah," he said in a breath but didn't elaborate.
Annie frowned and moved in a little closer. "If you need something," she said slowly, "please tell me. I know you were hurt…"
Scott sighed and turned her way to kiss her forehead. "I'm fine," he promised. "Really. I'm just tired."
Annie watched him for a while and then nodded. She hadn't seen him in the immediate aftermath of a fight before, so she wasn't sure what was normal and what wasn't. So, she rearranged herself to tuck under his chin and stayed there with him for a while.
By the second day in Genosha, Annie was starting to get worried. She wanted a second opinion before she drew any conclusions, but… she didn't think Scott was just tired. This wasn't bed rest or recovery as far as she could see; he didn't even seem interested in talking with her or sitting on the balcony or… anything.
She had half a mind to call her brother, but there was an odd dynamic there. Technically, she'd be abusing her privilege of being related to his therapist. And besides, she was second-guessing herself because she'd never dated a superhero before. She wanted to ask someone in the business before she got truly worried.
With the excuse that she wanted to bully Wanda into letting her take over the kitchen for a while, Annie slipped out of their room, her frown deepening when Scott hardly moved. This wasn't like him at all. He was always busy. Frustratingly so sometimes.
She was worrying her hands as she headed down the hall, so she was relieved to find Rachel in the living room - sitting with America and reading a book with her head in America's lap.
"Oh, good," she said, hurrying over to sit near the girls. "I need your advice."
"He looks best in blue, if you ask me," Rachel said before she looked up. "But you know … if you're against it…"
Annie let out a disbelieving laugh. "No, of course not, but that wasn't what I wanted to talk to you about," she said, tucking her feet up underneath her where she was sitting, still worrying her hands. "I'm just not sure what's… what's normal after a fight like he had."
"Well," Rachel said with a mild frown as she disentangled and sat up. "That depends. I mean … it's hard to judge properly because this was actually a really big fight. Not just for him - for anyone. Why? What's going on?"
"It's just… a suspicion right now," Annie admitted.
"Has he bothered to eat anything that didn't come in a bowl or a mug?"
Annie shook her head softly.
"Okay, that's a problem."
"He's barely bothering to exist," Annie said. "He'll acknowledge me, but…"
"He's in crisis," Rachel finished. She considered her for a moment. "Has he talked about anything? Anything at all related to the past week? I know he was obsessing and worried before … well. He was right."
Annie bit her lip and shook her head, frustrated tears filling her eyes despite her best efforts. "I don't know how to help him, Rachel," she said.
"Okay, one sec," Rachel said. "Just gonna go with number one …" She closed her eyes for a moment and went for the easy angle first. Hey Dad, she projected out. Haven't seen you practically since we got here. Do you want to get dinner on the beach tonight? Should be a great night for sunsets and fires.
I wouldn't want to get in your way. Sounds like America would appreciate it.
First of all, you're never in my way, Rachel replied. And second of all … so what? You're still at the top of my list, you know. America has had all my time lately. She can share.
Maybe later, Rachel, Scott said, even his mental voice tired.
Okay. If you're sure. I can bring you a s'more if you want…
Appreciate the thought.
Love you, Dad.
Love you too.
Rachel narrowed her eyes as she backed out of the telepathic conversation. "Okay. Plan 2. Annie - we've got this. Just … trust me."
Annie nodded. "I do," she promised. "I just want him to be okay, and I'm not ashamed to say I'm a bit over my head right now."
"All of this was just a bit much," Rachel said. "I'm glad Wanda is intervening, but still…" She turned toward America. "Can you quietly, discreetly, and carefully gather up the team?"
America smirked. "Of course I can, gorgeous. I like Plan 2."
"You don't even know what plan 2 is yet."
"And?"
Rachel smiled crookedly, then turned back to Annie. "Just … go about your business as you were. We've got this."
"Well, I told Scott I was looking for a kitchen. If you need sugar cookies…"
"I'm going to bet we'd all like them when things get rolling," Rachel said, leaving Annie and America to their tasks.
Scott hadn't been expecting anyone after Annie left, so he was a bit surprised when Tommy, of all people, was knocking on his door.
He thought about ignoring the door for a few seconds, but he couldn't ignore the kids, not really, so he ended up going to the door and frowning when he saw both Billy and Tommy standing in the hallway. "Oh," he said as Tommy brushed past him into the room and took a seat on the couch. "Okay, come in."
"We won't take up much of your time," Billy promised. "But … we both thought this was better done in person…"
Scott frowned as he looked between them. "Are you two alright?" he asked, jumping immediately to concern, considering how things had been going lately.
"Yeah, I think so," Billy said, looking toward Tommy, who was already nodding. "It's been a little rough lately, but, you know how that works better than anyone, right?"
"Yeah, it tends to come in waves," Scott said.
"Right," Billy said. "So … you know we all think of you as our de-facto leader - even if you hate it - so we kinda decided that it's time for a serious talk. Not picking or teasing. Promise. Just …" He gestured openly. "It has been a lot. And I think … as much as I liked being on the team, I really need to focus on Genosha. So, I'm staying."
Scott felt his heart drop, though he did his best to swallow that reaction. Billy had just been through a lot with Viper, and he had plenty on his plate as it was. "I'm sorry to hear it," he said honestly. "The team is going to miss you."
"Miss us both, you mean," Tommy put in. "Mom kinda wants me to learn how to do what Billy does. You know, not gonna force Grandfather's hand-picked successor to be the big man in charge if he doesn't want to, right?"
Now, that, Scott hadn't been as prepared for. Billy had been through the wringer and had made no secret of the fact that he was a prince first and foremost. But Tommy? "... are you sure?" Scott asked at last.
Tommy nodded. "Yeah, gotta be done. Can't let Billy do all the prince-ing by himself, right?"
Scott stared at Tommy and then cleared his throat. "I… wasn't expecting…" He cleared his throat again. "I understand your duties come first. I'm just sorry to hear it."
Tommy shrugged. "Yeah, well, we wanted you to hear it from us first." He got to his feet. "Anyway, hope you're feeling better after your secondhand spider bite," he added before he zipped out the door, leaving Billy rolling his eyes at his brother before he disappeared too.
Scott frowned toward the door for a long time before he scrubbed both hands over his face and let out his breath. Losing the twins was going to hit the team hard, and Scott had to admit that he was already worried about how James would take it, since James was trying to do so much as it was. Billy could wish himself around, so at least they wouldn't be separated, though…
Maybe he shouldn't be alarmed. He knew Billy was going to go back to Genosha to run things. He just … didn't realize it would be so soon, or that Tommy would go too.
Scott glanced at the clock on the wall and ran a hand over his face. Dinner would be starting soon. I guess I was there longer than I thought, he vaguely thought to himself before he stood up with some effort and headed off to make sure he was semi presentable. But even at that, he didn't actually look in the mirror as he ran his hand through his hair before redirecting to find the others. Even if they knew it was eventually coming, it was still going to hit his kids. Billy was one of Kate's best friends, after all. And Scott was still watching out for her after everything those three had been through.
To find out Billy was going to stay home after the three of them had lost their shared home together … It was concerning enough to snap Scott partially out of his fog. For their sakes.
What he found in the dining room, though - was the group as they gathered for dinner. Annie had decided to take her frustrations out by cooking. He recognized several of her dishes as he took a seat at the end of the table between Annie and Nate. He kissed her cheek as he took a seat, watching as the last few people filed in. The twins were near the head of the table with Wanda chatting, and he had to do a small double take when he saw Mia and Vision sitting together discussing something that Mia was openly excited about. He had fully expected James to be sitting with Vision … or Billy, but no. He was slightly apart from the twins with May Parker - who was excitedly chatting about how amazing Genosha was. James didn't look too excited, but … Scott was sure that had more to do with his company than anything else - and it made sense that James deal with May. She was the only one on the team that wasn't paired up with someone and Billy was busy.
Then he heard what Mia and Vision were discussing and he honestly didn't know if he was stunned, suspicious, or proud. Considering the subject at hand was Mia's education and the possibility of her attending school in Genosha, he couldn't get mad. Especially when Mia's focus sounded like it was based in botany.
Scott was trying to figure out where to start when Nate caught his attention. "Hey, Dad? So … I have a quick question."
"Okay," Scott said slowly as he turned toward his youngest. "What's up?"
"I need you to sign off so I can take the first tests to finish school."
"Nate-"
"I know, I know, but it's not just because Kate's getting ready to graduate," Nate defended.
"Mom has my test scheduled for next week," Kate told Scott, leaning over her glass of water so he could see her just beyond Nate.
"Yeah, well I'm pretty sure, even with as smart as Nate is, he's not going to match that time line," Scott said.
"Dad, come on. I want to push through so we can start a gap year," he said with a grin.
"Oh, you'll be going to college then?" Scott said, suddenly a bit more engaged since he knew Nate hadn't shared any serious thoughts on what he wanted to do.
"Ah … no? I meant a gap from the team so we can act our age for a little while before going full time superheroes?" Nate said, one eye closed as he shrugged up one shoulder.
Scott dropped his head forward, and his lips parted as he tried and failed to find a response. Kate and Nate had been the loudest supporters of restarting the X-Men; the way they talked, they couldn't wait to be done with high school so they could live the hero life full-time. So, all things considered…
"I don't understand," Scott said. "Is this… does Kate need the time off?" he asked, knowing that Nate would do whatever Kate asked.
Nate shrugged lightly. "I mean, yeah, that's part of it, sure. But I'd also kind of like to - you know - see the world a little bit. Off the clock. Without it being thirty seconds between rescue and leave."
Scott didn't bother to hide his surprise. "Really?"
"Yeah," Nate said, frowning. "Didn't you ever want to just … live?"
Scott blinked at him for a moment, but found himself distracted when he barely overheard America trying to convince Rachel to take a break, too… which left him wondering.
The rest of dinner was fairly simple to get through. Scott could listen in on most of the conversation going around the dinner table, though most of it was mundane enough that he found himself getting lost in thought.
When Scott came across James the next morning, he was drinking coffee with one hand and texting with the other. "Got a minute?" Scott asked as he took a seat nearby.
"Ah … sure," James said slowly, texting furiously as his notifications went haywire. But he didn't set the phone down. "What's up?"
"Are you texting Billy?" Scott asked when it was clear James wasn't going to ignore the phone or Scott.
"No," James said, frowning slightly. "Tony."
"Something wrong?"
"No, he's just irritated."
"Because you're staying with Billy?" Scott asked, only to be surprised when James stared at him as if he had an extra head on his shoulders.
"Why would you think … no, I'm not staying on Genosha. That is a whole different irritated discussion. He's not texting me at all right now. I don't wanna get into it. You wanted to talk?"
Scott frowned. This wasn't like James at all, and considering how the rest of the day had gone, he was sure something was going on. He just didn't know what. "Yeah," he said simply. "Your teammates are all stepping away from the team at the same time, and I don't know what you kids are trying to pull, but I know it's not a coincidence."
James frowned. "We're not trying to pull anything," he said in a more tense tone. The twins have their things they need to do, Mia's looking at Genosha because we're still not there in the States, and Kate needs a break, I guess."
Scott pressed his lips together. "And you?" he prompted, knowing the look on his face.
"I don't know yet."
Scott leaned forward. "James, you have so much potential. You can do whatever you put your mind to."
"So I'm told."
"So walk me through it," Scott said.
James shook his head lightly, almost as if he wasn't thinking about it. "I don't really want to do anything, to be honest."
Scott stared at him blankly. "If you need more time here, with Billy-"
"I don't want to be here."
"Then I don't understand," Scott said, his voice tight. "You have such a bright future. You have someone who loves you, you have the teams, you even have Tony. Whatever support you need, you have it. What's going on?"
"Nothing. I'd just rather go out into the woods, okay?"
As Scott stared at James, Kate let out a loud sigh. "You doofus," she said, not immediately specifying who she was talking to.
Scott gestured toward kate. "See?" he started to say, but Kate cut him off.
"No, you ignorant Greek mythological being. You are the doofus." She came to poke Scott in the center of his chest and then did a passable imitation of him. "'You have such a bright future with the teams and people who love you and so much support' like oh my God how do you not see the parallels. Are we sure Tony didn't accidentally switch off your 'See the Obvious Signs' sight when he gave you infrared?"
Scott let his head drop forward a bit, especially when he realized all eyes were on him. "You can't- you can't stage a walkout."
"I think we did," James said.
Scott shook his head, one hand over his eyes. "This is different," he said.
"You're right. I've probably got a couple hundred years to figure out what I should do."
"Damnit all, James." Scott gestured with his free hand. "It's not the same, okay? When I was on the team, it was my job to keep us on the right path. To live up to the dream, okay? And I damn well muddled that as soon as I came back. You were all doing fine without me."
"If you believe that, then why are you this ticked off at the idea of us doing something else now?"
"Because you kids are better than I am." Scott leaned back. "And that's the way it should be. We're supposed to raise you to be better. It's the one thing I've done right."
"So, you're mad because you think we should what?" James asked with his nose scrunched up.
"I think you should be the X-Men!"
"Well, we think you should too," Mia pointed out, teleporting over to sit by James. "Or do our opinions not count?"
Scott sighed heavily. "Mia…"
"If we're voting, I'm in favor of a Cyclops in the team," Kate said with her hand in the air. "I know I sleep better knowing Viper's dead. You can totally be a non powered X-Man with me. We need more!"
"I don't know," James said. "I'm starting to like the idea of just falling off the map."
"You damn well won't," Scott said irritably.
"Sure I will."
"You have a life and a love and so much ahead of you, and-"
"And you don't?" James challenged.
"That's different-"
"Woods it is."
"I mean, the Avengers are all older than you, so, like, you can't even claim retirement," Kate said, smirking hard.
Scott scrubbed his hand down his face. "Fine. Fine." He gestured sharply. "You want me on the team? Fine. But I damn well better see you all at practice or so help me God I will move to Alaska with Annie."
"Um … I voted woods," James said, knowing he was still riled.
"You're just being a little shit, so that doesn't count."
"No, I really think that sounds better."
"Then Alaska with Annie it is."
"Okay. Enjoy that," James said.
"You don't even have a plan," Scott said, exasperated.
"Nope, and if I did, I wouldn't share," James said. "Security breach."
"Damnit, James."
"This is so fun," Nate stage whispered to Kate. "This never happens."
"Shut up, Nate," Scott said, irritated, before he pointed at James. "You've made your point, and I agreed to rejoin the team, now stop trying to quit."
"Yeah, but see … you've been giving me the consent speech so much I don't want to hear that if it's coerced."
"You're the ones staging a walkout!" Scott yelled in pure disbelief.
James shrugged openly. "Still."
"So you're quitting unless I rejoin, but you don't want me to rejoin because I think it's a stupid move to throw away your potential. This is a no-win, and you engineered it that way, you little punk."
"I actually was really hoping you'd have pulled your head out a lot sooner than when I got involved," James said.
"He likes the option where he asks me to run away with him," Annie put in from the kitchen door, grinning crookedly. "It's temptin', I know."
Scott looked up at Annie and couldn't help but laugh. "You're conspiring."
"Obviously." Annie smirked and came to sit down by him. "You weren't listenin' to anyone else. I tried to tell you that you're never happier than when you're involved."
"Annie…"
"I should have gone with space pirate," James said to Nate - not at all trying to hide it as Nate fell apart laughing. "I threatened that one before."
"James Wagner Howlett."
"Yarg?"
Scott glared at him for a long time before finally - finally - he made a real effort to center himself and his tone. "James, stop. Please."
"Okay," James replied with a half smile.
"Thank you." Scott let out a long breath. "I don't know what you kids need me to say, exactly."
"Talk to Craig," Nate suggested.
"Probably smart," Scott agreed with a self-deprecating smile.
"And then you're gonna have to come to the range with me, right?" Kate said, grinning. "Come on, Scott. Kicking butt and doing it with no powers is so satisfying, especially when the guys your fighting are super powerful, right?"
Scott shook his head, smirking her way. "Knew you couldn't stay out of the hero life."
"You bet your Stark tech I can't."
Annie smiled and put her hand on his arm. "So, about the part where we run away…" she teased.
"Ooh, this feels like a private conversation," Kate said. "Mia?"
"On it," Mia said - and teleported Scott and Annie to Tommy's favorite spot on the island. For privacy.
As soon as they were gone, Kate grinned and toasted everyone else with her water. "Lookit that, X-Men. What a team!"
"Like there was ever any doubt," Tommy said, kicking his feet up with his hands behind his head. "We're just that amazing."
"We should set our minds to more problems. We're invincible," Kate teased as Mia reappeared and immediately settled in with Tommy, grinning with the thrill of victory.
"He's really not that hard to push," James said. "But … okay. Go team."
"Rah rah," Kate teased right back.
"It's a knee-jerk thing for you, isn't it?" James teased. "Want me to find you some pom poms?"
"Oh, would you please?" she laughed.
"Yep. Sure will."
"We did actually promise Chris and Suzie we'd get ice cream with them," Nate pointed out. "We'll find pom-poms while we're out."
"We'll just let Suzie make them," James said. "Out of whatever she thinks is appropriate."
"Perfect. Go get me Suzie-pom-poms," Kate said, grinning.
"C'mon, little brother. I think we've been dismissed," James said as he tapped Nate on the chest.
"We sure have been," Nate laughed, though he stole a long kiss from Kate before they left.
James waited for Nate at the door before they stepped away from the group at large. "I'll just wait until we get back to tell Tony it was a joke," he said loud enough for the others to catch, too.
"Wait … you have real angry Tony texts? What makes you think he won't fly here and slap you around?" Nate asked with a troublemaking laugh.
"He'd have to find me first," James said. "I turned off the locator on the armor recall. You know. Since he didn't tell me what it was."
"So petty payback?"
"Always, with him."
Once the boys were gone, the rest of the team started to laugh. "Okay, but I've never heard Scott swear at James before. I thought Nate was going to die and go to heaven," Kate said, still laughing as she did so.
"I've heard him swear at you before I heard that," Billy teased.
"To be fair, I rope Nate into trouble all the time."
"And he totally already sees you as his daughter. Just a matter of time," Billy laughed.
Tommy snorted. "He's got a point."
"Oh, like I haven't heard that joke five million times," Kate said, waving her hand.
"Must keep happening for a reason," Mia sang out.
"It's so totally not a joke," May agreed. "I didn't think you were even considering another option since you two have been nearly betrothed forever."
"I heavily considered America," Kate argued.
"Damn straight. I'm irresistible," America said without missing a beat. "But let's be real, Princess. I don't play second fiddle."
"Okay, fair, but also, love the energy," Kate teased.
"You're hilarious," May teased. "So are you going to hyphenate? Which name first?"
"Oh, he'll be Mr. Barton," Mia said before Kate could even come up with a response.
"Oooh, that'll roll off the tongue," May laughed.
"Nate and Kate Barton," Mia laughed.
"Oh, please," Tommy said. "What about Katherine Elizabeth Barton-Summers doesn't ring?"
"How do you know my middle name?" Kate laughed delightedly.
"I," Tommy said, "am a spy, Katherine Elizabeth Summers-Barton."
"It needs like … the third at the end or something," May said. "Katherine Elizabeth Summers-Barton the third."
"Then we all agree that I'm a princess," Kate said. "I mean, tangentially, I'd be marrying into the royal family via Alex, but James and Billy, on the other hand…"
"Oh, James is one hundred percent taking Billy's last name," Tommy said without missing a beat.
"Oh my god," Billy said softly, bright pink.
"Like that's not exactly what you want," Tommy pointed out. "You're so head over heels for him you'd be Billy Howlett the second he asked."
"Tommy," Billy said, brighter pink still.
"Am I wrong?" Tommy insisted.
"No, but -"
"And you're both eighteen, so get to it, Your Highness," America put in.
"That's not-"
"You're right. You need way more preparation time than that," Mia said, her eyes sparkling. "You need to be romantic and dramatic."
"Check and check," May said with a nod, happy to join in with the teasing. "Or do you need to like … have him knighted first or something?"
"Actually!" Tommy said delightedly. "There is, in fact, an official process he'd have to go through. I can help. I will be the best man. Let's go."
"Don't you dare," Billy said, though he was laughing, especially because Mia wasn't moving and letting Tommy get up as dramatically as he wanted to.
"What are the chances?" May said, resting her chin in the palm of her hand. "How does it start? A parade? A contest? Oooh, tell me it's something cape worthy."
"Definitely gotta wear a cape," Tommy cackled.
"It's just… to make sure no one is marrying just for a crown," Billy said, practically hiding.
"Is there jousting involved?" Kate laughed. "Or just basic dragon slaying? Or does that not count since you killed Katarina. Does he have to find a new dragon for you?"
"Does that mean Scott's eligible too?" Tommy cackled. "I think it counts!"
"Oh, totally," Kate agreed. "But I think Miss Annie Hale would have something to say about that."
"What's her middle name?" Mia asked Tommy. "Super spy."
"Actually, no middle name, but her full name's Annette," Tommy said. He grinned and stole a kiss. "Yes, I know. I'm amazing."
"Those will be some short wedding invites with no middle names on either side," Mia said. "So a full paragraph to commemorate Nate setting it up, right?"
"Oh, he needs his full accolades. Younger brother syndrome and all that," Kate laughed.
"That what's wrong with Tommy?" America teased.
"Hey," Tommy said, and Mia started laughing.
"He's been like this his whole life," Billy said.
"Okay, fair, but I gotta look out for my twin, right?" Tommy pointed out. "He's practically dying waiting for James to be ready for the marriage conversation; you know that's why he's taking it so hard."
"Maybe he needs to initiate then," May suggested. "I mean … they're living together already."
"Maybe I will - when we're ready," Billy said.
"Can we help?" Suzie called out as she and Chris rushed in ahead of Nate and James. The kids were only about thirty seconds ahead of the boys, but that was plenty close for James to have heard it … and Nate had caught all the telepathic wash going on with the group, so both brothers were wearing expressions that made it clear that they knew everything.
Nate was trying hard to look clueless - a dead giveaway for him - and James was just keeping his head down with a more convincing poker face.
"Ah, the kids wanted to know what you wanted us to bring back," Nate said as Suzie half-climbed Tommy and Chris tackled Billy from behind. "Hope we didn't interrupt anything."
"Chocolate, Suzie. Always chocolate," Kate said - though for the first time since the conversation had started, she was blushing pretty hard, too.
"Yeah, I know what you want," Suzie said. "Duh. I meant to ask everyone else - and you didn't answer my question." She took a hold of Tommy's face to get him to turn her way and bump noses with her. "Is she like this all the time now? Just … ignore all the important questions to answer only Nate-ape?"
"Oh, obviously. She's just that in love," Tommy said seriously. "Weird, huh?"
"Gross," Suzie said.
"That's right. You make sure when you fall in love you don't totally block out other people," Tommy agreed. "Or never fall in love. Also cool."
"Um, I meant it's gross that she's in love with my cousin," Suzie sang out - entirely to rile Nate.
"Mia's in love with Tommy, and he's your cousin too," Nate pointed out, sticking his tongue out at her.
"That's also gross," Suzie said, then, while still hanging on to Tommy, she leaned over to get Mia's attention. "You can do so much better. He drools."
"I do. It's true," Tommy agreed without missing a beat.
"All the time," Suzie said. "Like a saint bernard or something." She grinned. "But not as bad as Nate when he's sleeping."
"No," Chris said. "Tommy's worse when he's been running. For sure."
"Which is all the time, so like … that's a lot of drool," Suzie said. "And you still didn't tell me what you want me to bring back."
"Strawberry, please," Mia said, ruffling Suzie's hair.
"Or," Tommy said. "We could all go."
"Yes," Billy said immediately. "That sounds fun."
"Okay!" Chris said. "I wanna try all of the flavors."
"But what if there's a black licorice one?" Billy asked in a scandalized tone.
Chris did his best dramatic gasp. "How dare you."
Billy laughed. "There might be!"
"You're just making up evil things now!"
"Totally. I'm very, very evil."
The kids once again were in the lead as the group gathered up to go out, with Kate promising May that Genosha would be good to the non-mutant members. "But Kate," May said. "I've been paying attention to how slanted it is here and there is no news out of Genosha. Are you sure you'll be okay?"
Kate smiled and bumped shoulders with May. "I appreciate it, Spidergal," she said. "Really, I do. We've been out before, and I've been fine, I promise. I've gotten some weird looks, but I've got some fans too, so it balances. Sorta like our mutant friends when we're back home, right?"
"That's kind of what I'm afraid of, Hawkette," May replied.
"I'll be okay," Kate promised. "But I'm really glad you're looking out for me. Love you too."
The group was chattering - some teasing the kids, others teasing each other, but James stayed quiet, though he did ease Billy's mind when he reached over to offer Billy his hand on the way out the door.
"So, um, how much…" Billy whispered under his breath.
James tipped his head. "How much what?"
"Don't act like you didn't hear what we were talking about."
"Dunno what you mean, little prince."
"Okay, but you do."
James let out a sigh. "You want to do this here and now?"
"I just… wanted to make sure you're okay?" Billy said, one eye closed.
James pulled him over to kiss his cheek as they walked. "Don't worry so much. But if you want to tell me how that got started, we can do that later. Otherwise, I'm blaming America and Kate."
"Ah, me and Tommy teasing Kate, but then it went sideways?"
"Often does," James agreed, though he let a little silence fall between them before he spoke up again. "Are you okay?"
"Yeah, I just - it's a little awkward when your guy accidentally overhears your, you know, well, yeah, I'm a little… in love. Deeply."
"Anyone I know?" James had to tease.
"Yeah, you wouldn't approve."
"Likely not," he said with a nod. "Probably the kind of slacker that'd miss your birthday."
"Oh yeah. And my family totally disapproves."
"As well they should."
"Ah well. It's too bad for them."
"Better luck next time, I'm sure." James leaned over to steal a quick kiss. "Line you up with a Doom-bot or something that refers to himself in third person only."
"There's a daddy issues joke hiding in there, I'm sure," Billy teased.
"Not… the direction I was taking, but … here we are." With a little squeeze, James shifted to put his arm around Billy's back. "So should we warn Latveria that your mom is going to wipe them out? You know … there's no way she'll approve of that match."
"She's already halfway there, considering how annoyed she is with Doom."
"I know. Just figured you'd want to go bulkier and dumber next time out."
"Not gonna be a next time," Billy said.
"Figured I was on thin ice with the way the last year has gone," James admitted.
"Honestly? The busy study schedule was hard, but we're pretty much past that now, and I'm really enjoying living together," Billy said.
"And yet … part of what you told Dad was the truth," James said.
"What, that I'm supposed to be a prince? I am one. It's a thing. You've known this."
"That your mom wants you to be home more," James said. "And I don't know what the story is yet with that last paper that's taking them forever to close - even while I'm getting hints at work to keep going."
"Okay, but Mom wants you home more too, you get that, right?" Billy teased.
"I did not, actually," James admitted.
"She likes you." Billy blushed. "Which… is … step one in… long-term planning, anyway."
James chuckled. "Pretty sure that's not news to anyone, anywhere. Family that can tolerate … everyone has to do that." He kissed Billy again. "You have a twelve step program or something?"
"Oh, ah, I was gonna talk to you about this eventually, but, like, there's a whole… After Mom and Aunt Lorna married who they did, Grandfather set into law a whole… buncha stuff you need to do if you marry in."
James actually slowed to a stop to turn toward him. "Wait. What? What are you talking about? Really."
"There's a whole… official declaration of intent, and then there's a wait period, and then there's an official presentation and… you know what, we can talk about this when we're ready?" Billy said, turning nearly purple-pink.
James blew out a slow breath, focusing well beyond their group that was already ahead of them by half a block. "Okay, here's how it goes. You can either tell me what the story is, or I'll dig into it myself."
Billy raised both eyebrows, surprised (and pleased) by how serious James sounded. "It's… I can… here." His eyes glowed. "Iwantacopyofthatlaw," he chanted, and a second later, he was holding a parchment so James could see it. "It's a lot of declarations and then waiting periods and some approval processes, mostly to make sure we can't rush in, you know… get too swept up or… whatever…"
James started reading it even as Billy tried to summarize, checking over a few sections several times without saying a word the same way Billy had seen him goig through research papers. "When … did he do this?"
"According to Mom, it was, like, a week after Alex and Lorna eloped."
James nodded and bit his lip. "Well. Have you read all of this yourself?"
"Yeah, I know it's a lot," Billy said quickly. "But Mom isn't gonna overturn it; she thinks it is a good idea to have a codified process to keep manipulators and spies and stuff away from the royal family. Not that you are one, just - generally speaking for the future."
"It … probably is," James admitted, finally looking up at him. "Seriously. Did you read this?"
"I… asked Dad to give me the overview," Billy admitted.
"He glossed over a few things," James said as he handed it back to Billy. "For starters, even if we started the process now, no matter how fast it was hit, nothing can happen until you're twenty one at minimum."
"Wait, really?" Billy snatched the parchment away. "I just asked for a timeline, you know, how long from start to finish…"
"Well according to that, even if I had a ring right now, the process wouldn't really start until then. So…" James shrugged. "You have plenty of time to wise up, it seems."
"Wow." Billy read over the law quickly. "Okay, must have missed that part. Maybe Dad thought - maybe he said it and I wasn't listening? Wow, twenty-one to start." He glanced up at James and turned pink. "Which, I mean, I get why Mom kept it, because we're still technically teen- I mean, twenty-one is still young, really, and impressionable and everything and- I'm going to stop talking now because I feel like I'm digging a hole."
"I'm fine with that," James said. "The law, I mean. Makes sense. A lot of what Tony has set up for me won't be applicable until then, too - and more at twenty five, so … seems like normal legalese to me, for what it's worth." He shrugged then started to walk again. "Of course, Tony's paperwork is framed like it is in part to make sure I have time to finish appropriate college degrees…"
"Yeah, well." Billy cleared his throat. "Okay, we can come back to this when it's more … relevant, I guess. Yeah?"
James nodded, but it was clear to him that Billy was irked. "Hey, lil' prince," he said. "It's okay."
"I know, I know."
"Love you."
Billy grinned, blatantly ignoring some of the Genoshan citizens who were nearby gushing over them. "Love you too."
"Don't ask her to change anything," James said. "I'll go ahead and talk to Harvard and see how long they think their doctorates will take."
"Okay," Billy said. "And… let's find a new place in the meantime."
"Absolutely," James agreed. "One that we pick - not Natasha."
Chapter 106: Easy Mark
Chapter Text
The whole group had mostly gotten used to the massive time change, but Nate had been having trouble keeping out of everyone's business. It wasn't stress, he was pretty sure about that anyhow. But it could have been.
At any rate, he was taking advantage of all of his hyper awareness at every opportunity. And that particular morning, he was taking advantage of it by making sure that everyone was still sleepy before he ran off to pick up a more professionally made latte for his sweetie. Something that wasn't within Billy and Wanda's tastes. With much more chocolate.
He had plenty to think over, but the more serious things seemed to get, the more he wanted to spoil the daylights out of Kate and just spend time tucked away with her. And that was the plan. As soon as he got her the biggest latte they made. He just hoped she was still half zonked out when he got back.
He avoided his sister - narrowly - but he wasn't overly worried about running into his brother or his dad. Both of them were still pretty low, and that usually meant more time asleep or near enough to it to stay in bed. When he got to Kate's room, though, she wasn't entirely zonked, but not really awake awake, either.
"Hey gorgeous," Nate said quietly. "Had to step out for a second. Stretch my legs. Fetch an offering … you know."
Kate peeked up at him and then broke into a delighted smile when she saw him. "Oh, I do love you so much," she said, waving him over. "Gimme."
Nate grinned. "You got it," he agreed, though he kissed her cheek as he handed her the coffee. "No offense to the royals, of course … but …"
"But this is so much better. It's not their fault. They lived on an island all this time run by a man who thought a helmet was the height of fashion," Kate said, savoring her first sip with a smile.
"He had pretty good hair for one that should have been suffering from permanent helmet head," Nate conceded.
"Fair," Kate said, pulling him closer and still smiling.
Nate wrapped his arms around her, snuggling in. "Good morning, by the way. Sleep okay?"
"Alright. Finally getting closer to the right time zone," she teased.
"And just when you get used to it, we'll be zapped back home," Nate finished. "Good thing you can pick the times for your testing."
"Good thing you can do the same thing," Kate pointed out. "I totally overheard Annie telling your dad she's glad you're going to try the GED route. She's a little protective of you in that public school."
"It might have been getting a little distracting for her while I was redirecting the school."
Kate laughed and stole a kiss. "I love it when you flex."
"Not really much of a flex," Nate said. "Not when it's all the same thing, anyhow. And not compared to how the hell you can keep focused while you're being hilarious with your roomies."
"I am just that amazing," Kate said.
"You really, really are," Nate agreed, kissing her again - just because she was close enough.
Kate laughed when the kiss broke. "I'm totally loving this, but just so we're clear - you didn't break anything of mine and bring me coffee to avoid trouble? Because you're being super sweet."
"Nah, I just know that the Maximoff coffee viewpoint is a different flavor than what you like, and I needed to burn some energy. So … what do you mean 'super sweet'?"
"There it is," Kate said, nodding to herself. "What're you twisted about? You always think you can avoid it if you go walking."
"Just watching out for everyone," Nate replied honestly. "You know I do it every time something goes a little sideways."
"Yeah, well, color me worried for you, seeing as this past little while has been more than a little sideways," she pointed out.
"Dad will be okay," Nate said firmly. "He just needs to get his head on square again."
"That's what Craig's for, right?" Kate said. She laid her head on his shoulder, snuggling in a little tighter.
"We should put that on a t-shirt for him," Nate agreed.
"He needs it on a billboard for Iron Man," she teased.
"James would do it."
"Perfect. Let's get him on it."
"Later," Nate said, once again pulling her a little closer, and Kate wasn't going to argue with that.
Scott was on his way to talk to Craig - actually of his own volition, because he was still so mortified with himself despite all the kids had done - when he heard Wanda yelling at someone, loud enough that he couldn't quite place where she was because of the echoing metals. But then, she turned a corner, and he saw her floating, her cloak billowing along with her hair.
"...and I told you before that if and when there is a discussion, I will be the one to tell you when and where that happens," Wanda snapped. "You're pressing your luck, Hill. Keep pushing and you'll get a much clearer glimpse of what my family is known for." She slammed the phone down and let out a frustrated sound before she turned to leave the room, belatedly remembering to stop floating.
"What does Hill want now?" Scott asked, frowning.
"If I had to guess, she wants me to kill her," Wanda replied shortly.
"Not that you wouldn't be justified, but…"
She waved a hand and shook her head. "I've got it covered, Scott. Don't worry about it, please."
Scott raised an eyebrow at that and crossed his arms. "Wanda, come on."
She crossed her arms and considered him for a long moment. "You're going to worry if I don't tell you anything, aren't you?"
Scott couldn't help but smirk her way. "You've met me, right?"
"Ha ha." She sighed heavily. "Alright, but if I tell you, you have to promise to let me handle this round."
"Trust me; I don't think I'm even cleared to handle anything until Craig signs off," Scott pointed out.
"Alright," she said, nodding slowly. "In that case, since you're following doctor's orders, I don't think it would hurt too much." She tipped her head for a moment. "Probably be worse if I don't," she said under her breath. "Okay! She's pushing for another little chat with James first … and then Billy and Kate if she has her way, I'm sure. But she's at least learned some manners after the last time and she's not stupid enough to pull her little games here or when I'm involved."
Scott narrowed his eyes. "I already chased her off of James."
"Well that didn't work," Wanda said. "I thought Hank at least would have told you when you got back from Westchester, but she and Fury pulled a really rotten one when your back was turned." She gestured with one hand, once again floating. "I had to go get him."
Scott went totally still. "What."
"They did it while my back was turned, too - and when you were out of the building. Everyone was putting out fires and that little weasel came in, abused her privileges with the Avengers and dragged him up to the helicarrier for Fury." She tipped her chin up. "So I put them on notice."
Scott didn't breathe for a long time, then finally let it out. "Won't stand in your way," he said at last.
"Good," Wanda replied with a nod. "Good."
"If it happens again, let me know. Please."
"I will," Wanda agreed. "Though, Scott, I really thought you knew about this last one. I would have told you sooner otherwise."
"I think Hank's worried I'm going to have, as he put it, the most dramatic of cardiac events just to spite him."
"Yeah, don't do that," Wanda said with a crooked smile. "We like you around. And if things keep going well, we might just have to plan a party, you know?"
Scott chuckled under his breath. "That's not a secret," he said. "Even if James doesn't realize it."
"He's just too used to keeping everything quiet," she said.
Scott shook his head, but the good mood of thinking about their boys wasn't quite enough to outweigh how upset he was about James being hijacked. "Alright, well," he said, nodding to himself. "I'm supposed to talk to Craig, but if you decide to destroy SHIELD while I'm gone…"
"I'll bust you out to document it if I decide to destroy SHIELD," Wanda promised. "You deserve front row seats at minimum."
"Peanut gallery at best," he teased.
"Presidential Box," she called out over her shoulder.
"Sure, sure," he said, smirking as he walked backward with his hands in his pockets - which was an interesting mood for Craig to find him in. "Sorry I'm late," he said as he came to Craig's temporary office on the island. "Wanda may or may not be taking down an international organization."
"Ah, well, I suppose she needs her hobbies, too," Craig said mildly before he gestured for Scott to take a seat.
"Yeah, can't be too busy as queen," Scott said, shaking his head. "Not to mention looking out for the rest of us."
"She had no trouble getting me here," Craig laughed. "So … now that I am here, what's going on, Scott? It seems like it's been a while."
"Oh, well, you were busy with the kids after Viper, so I went ahead and committed murder while you weren't looking."
"Idle hands," Craig shot back, though he was frowning. "I wasn't too busy, you know."
"I was," Scott said simply.
"With idle hands, yes," Craig said. "I know you were keeping close tabs on James. I take it those concerns were well founded?"
Scott gestured openly with both hands. "Found Viper in his room and got myself poisoned and stabbed in the process."
"What is it with you and evil women trying to kill you?"
Scott pulled a terrible face. "You know, she said the same thing and kissed me? So I don't really want to talk about it."
"Well now I think we have to." He gestured with his pen. "I know you're glossing over things, so … maybe start from how you went from watchful to poisoned and fighting for your life in your son's bedroom."
Scott let out a long sigh, shifting the way he was sitting so that he could lean his elbows on his knees. "I knew she wasn't going to leave him alone, so I went walking." He tapped the side of his head. "Best surveillance on two feet," he added with a self-deprecating smile. "So when I saw someone who didn't belong in their house, I decided it was time to stop this before anyone else got hurt."
"So you engaged."
"I meant to down her with the first shot, but she's a faster snake than she looks," Scott said. "The end of her whip had spider venom, so you can imagine how the fight went from there."
"I can't, but I'll pretend like I can," Craig said.
Scott gestured vaguely. "She fights dirty. Doesn't spare the knees to tender spots."
"Sounds like it," he agreed. "I tell you, Scott, every time something like this comes up with your family, it's light years beyond the level of … I don't even know what."
Scott let out a dark chuckle. "I know the feeling," he said.
"So, to summarize, you … put a stop to another supervillain that was after your kids," Craig said. "What can I do?"
Scott stared at his hands for a long time. He'd promised Jean he'd be there for the kids. He'd promised the kids he'd get back on the team. He knew he needed to get better, but he wasn't sure where to start.
"I'd throw a parade for you if I had the clearance," Craig said. "But I will draw the line at having a session like this in whatever passed for her version of a palace."
Scott let out a disbelieving laugh. "I'm not sure if all this work with heroes has warped your sense of humor or just made you more vocal about it."
"Likely both," Craig replied, almost smiling himself. "But seeing as your son isn't nearly as forthcoming as I'd like and I've heard most of his issues from literally everyone but him, please, tell me what's going on with you yourself so I can try to help someone directly for a change."
Scott barely bit back a scoff. "Wow. That - that is very effective. No wonder Annie thinks you're the best therapist in town," he said, half teasing by that point.
"She said you're as good as family, so I see no reason to keep the gloves on," Craig teased.
"Fair." Scott pressed his hands together for a long moment still. "So," he said slowly, "only Ororo knows this - though I wouldn't be surprised if Nate's in on the secret at this point - but, ah…" He swallowed. "So, I'm really only still alive because Logan saw me crossing the line to the other side and yelled at me about it. He shocked me back to Earth, more or less," he said, looking at his hands rather than Craig.
Craig blinked at him for a few moments as he searched for something to say that would break the ice properly. "So … is that the first time you listened to him, then?"
Scott coughed out a laugh. "I listened to the one that made me come to you, didn't I?"
"But that's a different one," Craig teased. "I promise you though, that advice was the opposite of fatal."
Scott nodded, rubbing his thumb on the inside of his palm. "I don't know, Craig," he said after a long silence. "I got close enough to be relieved to be there. Again."
Craig let out a slow breath. "Depending on what your level of faith is, I think - in this case - it's safe to say that's how you should feel when you get that close. There's no shame in it, and the important part is that you're still here with the people you love, and who love you. Is that reasonable to assume?"
"That's the goal," Scott agreed. "I'm not trying to leave, I swear."
"If you were, Viper would still be alive," Craig said. "That's how I understand it, anyhow."
"You've got it, more or less," Scott said.
"So where is your trouble here?" Craig asked. "You know that whenever it finally happens for good, you've got people that love you there to catch you - and until that time, you've got people that love you here to catch you."
"Yeah, I know," Scott said. "I just…" He let the statement hang in the air. He was terrible at this, no matter how hard he was trying.
"I imagine I'd do just about anything to see my mother again," Craig said.
Scott glanced up at Craig and let his expression soften. "It's hard to say goodbye again, though."
"Hard, sure. But would it be harder to say goodbye to everyone here - right now?"
Scott nodded, though it took him a minute. "I couldn't stay on the other side with the kids still here," he agreed. "That's why I'm trying, Craig. I am. I know I'm terrible at this, but I am."
"Then it sounds to me like you're bein' too hard on yourself."
"'Ro may have said something to that effect, yeah," Scott said with a small smile.
"Then listen to your friends here, too," Craig said.
"Annie tell you about the coup the kids ran on me? I think I have no choice but to listen to them," Scott pointed out.
"Might've mentioned it," Craig said.
"They've already managed to get me back on the roster, and Kate's trying to put me on active duty. Says powers don't matter to active status."
"Clearly they don't," Craig agreed. "She's managed this whole time."
"And she thinks it's hilarious when Nate gets called out by his own dad in team practices."
"As I understand it from Nate, she thinks that's hilarious all the time."
"True." Scott smirked. "I need to stick around. Those two are going to get married young like Jean and I did."
"I think most of those kids are on that same plan," Craig said. "They all act like it more often than not."
Scott chuckled. "We'll see."
"Alright, that sounds like you don't believe it. Who do you think isn't going to go young?"
"Well, James would have to believe he's worthy of something that happy," Scott pointed out. "And I think America and Rachel aren't in a hurry to find rings. They're happy, and I doubt they're going anywhere, but neither of them like the pageantry of weddings. I'd know; they keep telling Toby that," he added, smirking.
"America and Rachel might just surprise you," Craig said, though he wasn't arguing over James at all.
"But we're agreed that Nate and Kate are going to make me and Jean look reserved, yes?"
"Absolutely. I'm keepin' an eye on Mia, to be honest. That girl thinks she's three or four years older than she is."
"She's lucky she's so young she's not getting the same jokes."
"Don't be so sure," Craig said with his eyebrows raised. "I've heard a little of it, but that girl leans into it."
Scott couldn't help but laugh. "Oh, she's so much like Kurt sometimes."
"I see a lot of her mother," Craig said.
"'Ro did an amazing job with her," Scott agreed.
"And you did an amazing job on yours," Craig said. "Don't discount that."
"I appreciate it," Scott said. "They're the reason I'm still here."
"So … celebrate it," Craig advised. "Those kids need a reminder pretty much as often as you do when things are going well. All of you gloss over the good stuff and worry too hard about the rest."
"I know. I'm trying," Scott said. "Annie's like a breath of fresh air for all of us."
"You know, Scott, if you've just about said your piece, you don't need to try redirectin' me by tellin' me how wonderful my sister is. I know how wonderful she is."
"Well good. I'll make sure she knows that too," Scott said, smirking as he got to his feet. "Thanks, Craig. Really."
"Anytime. I've been told I'll be here until everyone goes back, too - so if you or anyone else needs some time, I'm around."
The stay in Genosha had run its course. Everyone was feeling more centered, Natasha and Steve had checked out everything in James' house - and removed all of the kids belongings while Tony gave notice to MIT that James would return to campus when they were finished with his paper. He saw no reason to risk sending the kid back after the town itself had proven to be less than lock tight.
Once they were home, the kids - and Scott - were greeted with new uniforms. It was just a little something Jan had been working on for months … a revamp of the looks they'd been wearing since day one, plus Scott. Jan and Scott had sat down once he'd agreed to be more active on the team to figure out what he'd even wear, because he wasn't ready to return to being Cyclops, really. He didn't have those powers anymore, and he was comfortable with the world thinking he was dead. It helped him stay under the radar.
Instead, Jan had managed to design a yellow and black look for him that looked almost like what he'd worn when he was a kid, first starting out - but she had turned the design inward so that the X accents and black lining almost looked like a suit coat. It was subtle, but Scott could see where she was going with it. He wasn't the professor, but he carried that mantle now, in a way.
Of course, they were barely home a day or two before they found occasion to put them on and do something. But not everyone was pleased with the uniforms.
"I feel like an idiot," James said as he looked at himself in the mirror, adjusting his suit and trying to decide how to handle the cowl. Even with it pulled down to where it should be, he felt odd because this … this was the first time going out with the team since he'd gotten rid of the eye patch. Every movement on that side - now that he could see properly- caught his attention and he was jumpy over everything.
"I'm not sure why," Nate said as he stepped up next to his brother. "Jan didn't have to make any adjustments."
"I know. It just … it's weird. Exposed."
"Hate to be the one to break it to you, but as far as the outfit goes, you've always been exposed. All of us are."
"Remind me why I can't just wear a hoodie again," James grumbled, trying to find a way to stand that didn't feel so revealing. He was built up again, his eye was back and functioning perfectly, and the truth of the matter was that he just wanted to stay under the covers away from everyone.
"Because you can only take after so many superheroes and if you pick Logan, Dad, and Tony, that's already more than most everyone else, so adding Luke Cage to the mix is just selfish," Nate teased, then jostled his brother's shoulder. "Come on. You know the number of people ogling you is way lower than the number that would actually try something."
"That's not real helpful."
"True. I know your following is a little more handsy," Nate said, then smiled a little wider. "But … really. I've got your back. I'll keep an ear open for any nefarious intent."
"Perfect. Thanks," James said, though Nate could see this felt totally different for his brother after everything that Viper had done.
"Hey," Nate said, catching his brother's attention again. "In case I didn't say it? It's nice to have you back with us."
"Couldn't come back until the patch was gone," James said.
"Yeah, you could have, but I know why you didn't," Nate replied. "And as much as I hate to say it, if you don't want to come back - you don't have to. No matter what anyone says. Even Dad."
"Ah, but you're wrong," James countered before he stood next to his brother and dropped one hand on his shoulder. "Viper did everything she could to keep me off the team. Even after Natasha made me work with her, I don't know if my reluctance is her or me, so yeah. I gotta come back."
"Alright, but … if you change your mind-"
"I'm still going to do it," James said. "If there's any microscopic chance you can use someone as underpowered as me on the team-"
"You're not-"
"Comparatively, I am. And I'm okay with that." James forced a crooked smile. "Don't try to argue that, little bro. We have reality benders, a part-demon, arguably the world's most powerful telepath … and then Kate and me. But I'm okay with that because I know I have a few uses even if I'm not a Hawkeye." He turned to take in the expression his little brother was wearing. "Don't fret. Takes away from the tone you're going for. And you are getting beefier."
"Yeah, well …. I still have a way to catch up to your normal," Nate said, then bumped shoulders with James as the two brothers headed for the rest of the group waiting by the jet.
Something else that was new to James was Scott meeting the team at the jet - to give them a solid briefing before they headed out, before they stepped foot onto the jet. But when James and Scott held each other's gaze for a moment, it was clear they were building up to a minor clashing of horns.
Scott hadn't actually been ready to step in, even to this capacity, but in a fit of anger, he'd decided to re-join, and he wasn't about to back down now. He couldn't. If Scott backed out, he'd have no footing if and when James backed down. And he did not want James to give up on something he'd felt so strongly on not that long ago. He did not want to let Viper have won anything with his son. So at this point, both of them were there simply to prove the other wrong - or right. Even they were a little foggy on why other than just being stubborn about it. Not that the team was complaining.
Scott's intel was far more concise and to the point than what the kids were used to- he didn't leave out things that the Avengers had a tendency to hold back, and he even went so far now to suggest who should team up with who according to the most pertinent data coming in in real time. It was very much like stepping into the information age after having lived through the cold war. But with someone to translate everything they needed without being distracted by anything. This … this was Scott's realm and it showed.
And as was the case more and more often, small groupings of mutants were being targeted within the city of New York. Hydra and others like them were trying to draw the X-Men out and they weren't even being shy about admitting it. They were using tiny groups that were trying to emulate what Ororo and the older X-Men were doing in Westchester, but in the city where the boroughs had to learn to deal with it. And for the most part, they were. But occasionally, it was a problem.
Over the past month or so, several of these tiny schools had been opened and consequently attacked, and every time this happened, Tony had come in to cover repairs and fund rebuilding their school with much needed necessities and security. But that did little to reassure those that had been there. It was still a danger. But, the X-Men had been responding to active attacks as they came up, both attacks to these little schools and other, more open attacks.
So, Scott gave them all that he had, information wise before they headed out - and James was half torn between ready and waiting to tear into them and apprehensive at what might happen the next time he faced Hydra. Regardless of the blank possibility out there, James was pretty sure this was Hydra. Even if Scott couldn't say for sure one way or the other.
Just before they loaded up, James compulsively smoothed out his uniform and adjusted his cowl, then took the copilot chair next to Nate - preferring to see where he was going than to have some small talk in the last few minutes before they intervened.
When they got to the site, there was a pretty large crowd of protesters on both sides of the fence. Many of them were protesting the little mutant school in that neighborhood, though they didn't have the same accent that most of the locals did … while those protesting for the school matched up with the accent a lot better, suggesting that the dissidents were shipped in.
But the kids were still stuck in the middle, and the pro-mutant protesters were catching flack as they tried to block the black panel vans from leaving.
"We knew this was a possibility," Nate said to James as he found a place to land.
"Yeah, I know," James replied. "Just really sick of hearing about kids being the target, you know?"
"Yeah. I know," Nate agreed. "But just … go easy if you can, okay? We still don't know for sure who this is."
"Alright, Dad- I mean … no, you're definitely on track. I stand by that."
"Shut up," Nate laughed, unable to shove his brother like he usually would while he was mid-landing. "Could be worse."
"True."
"I could be like Tony."
"You wound me," James shot back, though he was frowning deeper when he saw how young some of the kids were. "I thought this was all mutant kids."
"It is," Nate said. "While you were recovering, you probably missed that some of the public schools have implemented scanners at the doors, courtesy of Baintronics and Oscorp - so … you know. They're finding the mutant genes before they activate and some places are kicking kids out based on just that. There's all kinds of litigation going on. How did you miss it?"
James swore under his breath because Nate was right, he'd been ignoring as much about the news as he could - and this was a pretty big development to miss. "I guess I need to spend a little more time at the office. What are they going to do when they realize most of the schools are filled with mutants?"
"Um … adapt to their own stupidity?" Nate said with one eye open as he checked his own mask one last time.
By the time the brothers got up to head out, the rest of the team was already at the door, ready to roll - and with their assigned partners waiting for them. Scott had been careful to try and keep the couples from teaming up where he could since that pairing on its own had been known over the years to be distracting and problematic. As was that of being with siblings - though with almost half of the team being from one family, that was a lot harder prospect to handle.
But still … some things couldn't be avoided, and Scott knew first hand how substantial working with a sibling could be - and considering the powerhouse combination Nate and James had turned out to be together … he didn't want to break up that pairing.
Kate was working with Tommy and Mia was paired up with Rachel. Billy was with America - all and all solid groups across the board, and none of the kids Viper had gotten a hold of were with each other, either. It was a small safeguard against someone freezing up should a previously missed trigger be tripped or they were inadvertently reminded of something awful that hadn't been addressed.
Because of the pairings though, the team was making quick work of breaking up the crowds and stopping the vans. Only one van got loose before they could get there, but SHIELD had already caught up with them before they could breach the perimeter a few blocks out.
The team was working through the schoolhouse and the surrounding areas trying to find any lost kids that were hiding - as often was the case - when Nate ripped the doors off of the last van that was hidden in the back of the schools' garage.
Inside, he found a little girl no older than five or six. Her clothes were dirty, her blonde hair was tangled, and she turned fast with wide, brown eyes. She took one look at Nate and scrambled backward, shaking her head.
"Hey, it's okay," Nate said, smiling at her even as he looked over his shoulder for his brother. He was good with kids, but terrified little girls was absolutely his brother's specialty. "Are you hurt?"
"No!" she all but shouted, little fists at chest level and still scrambling to hide. "Go away!"
"I'm just trying to get you to safety," Nate said, holding one hand out. "Come on - I'll get you out of here. Get you somewhere with cookies and nice people until we find your family."
But that seemed to set her off, and she started crying hard.
"Crap." Nate started to climb in, but the little girl started wailing, screaming for him to stay away, and Nate found himself in a tough spot. He knew the kid needed help, but the closer he got, the more upset she was. And with the angry crowd just outside, shouting on the other side of the street, he knew he couldn't get away with doing anything telepathically to force a kid to go with him. "Hold on." Nate held up both hands and stepped back, looking for help. Mia was busy … America and Billy were working wonders on the pro-mutant crowd, Kate was about ten seconds from decking an anti-mutant protester … which had Nate doing a double take … he wanted to see that go down, and …
"There you are," James said with one hand over his ear the closer he got to the van. "Making little girls cry?"
"You're hilarious," Nate said dryly, then gestured with one hand toward the van. "She's freaking out whenever I try anything."
"What did you do?" James teased, even as he pulled his cowl off and stepped up to the open door of the van.
Nate shook his head and turned to watch Kate give the bigoted creep a lesson in humility. "I don't know," Nate said. "But she's still screaming and it's you, so … maybe she doesn't trust guys."
"Maybe," James agreed, then sat down in the open door of the van while the little girl stared at him with wide eyes, terrified. His shoulders dropped slightly and he tried for a smile. "Hi. I'm James - this guy is my little brother. Are you hurt?" When she just stared back at him, he held one hand open toward her, offering it to her. "Hey, it's alright. I won't hurt you." The girl sniffled and looked somehow more scared, so James settled in to try and give her a chance to calm down in her own time. "It's okay. I'm not in a rush. I know it's scary out there, but no one will bother you. I won't let them." He turned his head to watch the crowd himself. "When you're ready, I'll be right here - and if you don't want one of us, I can ask one of the older Avengers to come instead, but you can't stay in this smelly old van, sweetheart."
She made a sound of protest, but James didn't push, keeping to his word to let her decide on the timing herself as the rest of the team worked outside. But, after a little while, she quit crying so hard, still whimpering as she started toward him. James waited until she was close before he turned toward her with a smile, though he still didn't reach for her. "Are you ready to get out of this van?" She nodded her head, and James carefully offered her his hand again- palm up and still looking perfectly relaxed. She stared at his hand for a moment and he frowned slightly … something about her scent was just … it was off, but he didn't know what it was.
The ammonia from pure terror was thick in the small space, and James found himself trying to sort out the scents even as the little girl went around his hand to climb up into his lap, going from avoiding him entirely to crowding him with both arms around his neck. "Oh, okay," James said as he gently shifted to wrap her up. His intention was to pick her up and carry her out but when his arms were around her, she squeezed his neck tighter and let out a noise that easily conveyed how terrified she was. "Easy, little friend," James told her in a low, gentle rumble. "I promise I won't hurt you."
"Pease don't be mad," she whispered.
"Why would I be mad?" James asked as the little girl doubled down on her hug, crying. He readjusted how he was sitting, once again sliding slightly deeper into the van so she could feel more protected as he tried to reassure her. "Hey. You're alright. I'm not gonna be mad."
She shifted, and he could tell she was changing her grip on him. But what was concerning was the speed at which Nate turned away from Kate and back toward his brother. James looked toward Nate just as the little girl picked up one arm and jammed him in the neck with something sharp - then immediately broke down in tears bawling when James let out a reactionary sound of pain.
James swore when he felt the needle in his neck, and though one hand went right for the device sticking out of his neck, his other arm kept a gentle grip on the girl. He wasn't going to let her go. Not after she injected him with something. "What was that for?" James asked, though when he was speaking to her, he kept the more gentle tone in place. Even as he felt the drugs burning a path of numbness as they sped through his veins.
"Let me go! I'm sowwy! I didn' mean to!" the girl screeched with tear trails down her cheeks, though she wasn't really pushing to get away from him.
James pulled the injector out of his neck with his free hand, then dropped it in the back of the van. His limbs were getting heavy already and he couldn't feel his extremities, even as Nate got to them and scooped the girl up telepathically. "'s not 'er fault," James said, though by the end of the sentence, James was already starting to slur his words and his eyes were unfocused. He was panicking, but it was doing him no good. "Can't ..."
Before Nate could pull the terrified girl away entirely though, James reached out to her as she screamed and pulled out her front tooth - one that looked too white and a little outsized to fit her face. It fell from his hand next to the injector as Nate caught up to what was happening and the little girl started truly hyperventilating and fighting to get away.
There was a muted crack that caught Nate's attention just a few seconds after James slipped down flat - halfway into the van - and he realized this had been the trap they'd been banking on, so before he even considered anything else, Nate lifted his brother, then planned on picking up the injector and broken tooth that was now leaking a smoking fluid that smelled even to Nate like almonds.
Nate stared for a few seconds, putting it together … then he drew in a sharp breath and telekinetically picked that up too as he reached out to Rachel. Our little victim just drugged James, Nate projected sounding furious.
What? Rachel asked, spinning on the spot to come and help. The crowd was dispersing anyhow - and this was much more important at the moment.
Nate quickly relayed what he knew as he tried to get James to rouse - and Rachel reached out telepathically to quiet the screaming girl and look through her mind to see what had happened - even more furious when she saw that the same telepath that had been tampering with Kate and Billy had worked on this little girl … to weaponize her against James specifically.
"Check her mouth," Rachel said as she backed out of the girl's mind.
"James already got the cyanide tooth," Nate said as they maneuvered everything and everyone to get back to the jet. "Keep an eye open for the recovery team. I doubt Hydra or anyone else would go to this much trouble and not have someone horrible lined up to reinforce it."
And though Rachel was furious, it was Nate that was levitating and looking as if he was ready to murder someone with his bare hands.
Unfortunately for the fresh wave of soldiers melting out of the crowd, Nate was waiting for them - and he was not feeling the slightest bit generous.
"That's enough of that," Nate said half under his breath - furious and not about to temper his reaction for anyone when his brother had been attacked … again. With his eyes glowing, and barely a thought, Nate separated the crowd from the enemy agents with little regard to who was a civilian, a hydra agent, a hired creep, or SHIELD agent from those who held no ill intent toward the X-Men. It was plain to see who the trouble was. He forced them to surrender their weapons, cuff themselves and their allies where applicable, and wait for the good SHIELD agents to step in.
"That's exactly the kind of thing that makes people scared of mutants," Rachel told Nate over his shoulder. "But … nice work."
"Not sure Dad will agree."
"He will," Rachel promised. "Billy is helping me get James to the jet. Just …. Don't get carried away."
"If I was getting carried away, these idiots would be dead," Nate replied with his back to any possible camera angle.
"I know. Still." She gave Nate's arm a squeeze as she headed off. The rest of the team was still getting things settled while SHIELD moved in, though that wasn't going to take long at all the way Nate was handling them.
What the team didn't know, and what James couldn't tell them, was that he wasn't unconscious as Billy and Rachel got him back to the jet on the way to the tower. He could hear everything going on around him, and for as much as his eyes were open, he could see plenty. He just couldn't move - not even his eyes, and he couldn't talk. And to top it off, he couldn't push down the panic far enough to reach out to Rachel to tell her as much. He wanted to scream, but he just … wasn't able to. He could feel the pressure at the back of his throat, but nothing would come out, and it wasn't helpful at all to feel his body being moved for him - secured in the jet, then unloaded at the tower.
He was fully aware of how badly their dad was freaking out when they returned to the tower, though. He also recognized the scents clinging to the little girl now that the cyanide tooth was well away from her. She was unconscious and no longer reeking of fear since her telepathic suggestion was for deep dreamless sleep - and the scents that stuck to her had James wanting to run. But he couldn't. Not as long as the drug coursing through his veins was working. And it was working very well.
He felt the prick of a needle and his heart rate spiked when Hank drew some blood to find out what compounds were in play - and if he could reverse them before James could burn them out of his system - or if he could make an antidote. But that little jump in his pulse had Hank watching him more closely.
Hank set the vial of blood aside for the time being and turned the lights over James down before he checked his pupils and tried to get a response from him. "Can you hear me, James?" Hank asked at a normal speaking tone, though of course, James couldn't respond. He wanted to - he tried, but nothing would come out. And there was nothing he could do to convey to Hank that yes, he'd heard him. But to James' absolute relief, after staring down at James for a long moment, it seemed as if Hank realized what was going on. But it was also plainly apparent to James that Hank had no idea how to handle it. He paused for a long moment, then rested both hands on James' arm, trying to help James see he didn't want to hurt him.
"Hank?" Scott said, looking on in alarm at the scene before him.
"I .. don't think that he's unconscious," Hank said slowly. "But if he is awake, then he can't move enough to communicate either." He frowned, then bounded over to his desk only to return with eye drops and surgical tape that he was prepared to use to keep James' eyes closed. "In fact," Hank said as he tried to help James settle in and James involuntarily panicked. He watched the monitors for a moment longer. "His heart rate and respiration are stabilizing, even as his scent is indicating otherwise. I wouldn't be surprised if Viper had concocted some horrible concentration of a tetrodotoxin for exactly this kind of state. I'll need to monitor him to be sure - though for all the trouble this group went through to target him, I highly doubt that the dosage would be enough to kill him. However, it may be kinder, considering the paralysis, to put him to sleep until this wears off."
Scott's jaw tightened and he pulled out a seat next to James. "That might be how to handle it. For now. But I don't want him on anything else if there's a chance it might interact badly."
"Of course not," Hank said, blustering slightly. "Just try to talk to him for now. See if there's any change in his vitals and perhaps reach out to our telepaths to see if they can help."
James was panicking, but the drugs that had been loaded up in that syringe apparently hadn't met full strength yet because this time, when he knew he faced upcoming paralysis and forced sleep, James' pulse didn't change one beat. Which had him even more freaked out than before, but it absolutely matched up with what Hank had hypothesized. No one knew how terrifying that was for him in a laboratory setting. But the two elder X-Men continued to discuss matters even as James was internally having a meltdown.
James could feel it when Scott rested his hand on his forearm, and even though Scott started talking slow and easy to him, James's ears were ringing to the point that he couldn't hear him properly. Not over his internal panic, anyhow.
He could hear it when Kate came in with Billy, and when Hank checked his blood to see what was in use to avoid giving him anything that would make it worse. All things considered, James had no idea what he could use to knock him out, and he was having a fresh wave of terror as he realized he couldn't relax enough to drop his psychic shields for his siblings.
Rachel and Nate had done what they could to debrief with Steve - filling him in on the thought processes of those they were fighting before they came to see how James was faring. Both of them were sure he'd be up and about, so to find him paralyzed still …
Rachel was barely holding back flames of rage before she pressed to try and communicate with James. When she saw that he couldn't let his shields down, she only got more angry - though reluctant to share the why with her father. Yet. "Nate, I need you to help me out for a second," Rachel said.
The two of them shared a look, and Nate shook his head. "I've got it. I'll go easy. You … take a minute to breathe."
"Are you sure?"
"I'm sure," Nate said. "I can get through without hurting him if I have to, even with the shields up. I just … have tried to respect his privacy."
Rachel took a centering breath and nodded as she stepped back. It made sense, after all. The little bit of effort he'd put into dealing with his school, and the Hydra unit that had come with a plan to catch James … with the right care, she knew Nate could do what he needed to. So instead of trying to run the show, Rachel stepped back and watched James' monitors as Nate carefully did what he could to jailbreak into James' mind.
It took a lot of finesse, but once Nate controlled his own panic and concern for his brother enough to focus his efforts, he got in. And immediately had to push hard to calm James down from what felt like a full blown panic attack. The landscape around him was accented by shifting memories and an overbearing sensation of helplessness and despair at being paralyzed and silenced. And all Nate could think of as he telepathically eased his brother to sleep was that he was glad he'd gone without Rachel because that … that whole knot of emotions would have been more than enough to feed the Phoenix to a level that Rachel might not control.
But, once he got James calm enough to rest dreamlessly, he took a quick look around himself to see how James' mindscape had shifted from the traumas, then, he carefully stepped back to report back to their father. "He's asleep," Nate told Scott carefully as he watched his brother. "Deep, dreamless sleep. It'll fade on its own … my best guess would be at least a few hours."
Scott nodded, and then, even without telepathy, the rest of the team could actually see the switch he made from a concerned father to a furious team leader. He turned on his heel away from James to look at everyone else, and everything about the way he held himself had shifted.
"Rachel," he said with his eyes narrowed, pointing her way for emphasis, "get Betsy. Work with the girl Hydra coerced into this and find that telepath." He didn't wait for Rachel to acknowledge him before he pointed at Nate. "You. Get Ororo and Jan then go talk to Vojteck. He'd know who was slated to run things with Viper's Madripoor leadership out of the running. And make doubly sure he's not getting any messages off to Hydra in the first place. Kate, grab your parents and make sure those damn SHIELD agents share whatever they found at the scene." Once again, he just assumed that the kids were going to do what he'd asked as he turned toward Tommy. "I know Nate was on camera for most of that. I need to know what the damage is and who's reacting," he said - and Tommy immediately zipped away. "Billy, make sure he doesn't get himself caught," he added - not quite as sharply as he'd been talking up until that point, purely because he hadn't even gotten to finish with Tommy. Not that he was surprised.
"Kinda fun getting the Big, Bad, and In Charge Cyclops," America teased Mia, who smirked and nodded.
"Mom says we really should have roped him in sooner."
"Glad to hear you think that, since I need you two to run a mutant pickup," Scott said.
Mia laughed and saluted Scott crookedly. "No rest for the wicked."
Scott shook his head, but it wasn't until all the members of the team had split to their individual tasks that he let himself show how truly mad he was, even if it was just in the form of a frustrated shout that only Hank was around to hear.
"No marching orders for your old friend?" Hank teased once Scott got a hold of himself.
Scott shook his head at him as he sat down close by James. "What, keeping an eye on my son isn't a trusted enough position for you?" he asked with almost a smirk.
"I simply thought you were in a groove," Hank answered with a sly smile.
Scott waved one hand Hank's way. "Yeah, well, half the reason James was hesitant to join the team is because he was worried about exactly this. I was too," he added for emphasis. "But now that the team is out there, I can't let him back away, either."
"Then you may just have your work cut out for you," Hank said.
"I know. But now that the world has seen him, he'll get hounded for the rest of his life no matter what team he is or isn't on. He's already set those wheels in motion. This is about what he can do with the spotlight he's given himself."
"It should be interesting," Hank said. "I have full faith in the boy, though."
"I do too, or I wouldn't have agreed to this position to keep him from quitting. Obviously," Scott said, then leaned back with his head touching the wall and his fingers pinching his nose. "This isn't exactly what I figured I'd be doing when my kids were done with school."
"That's what you get for making plans for them," Hank chuckled.
"You'd think I'd learn, and yet…" Scott took a deep breath and let it out. "Feels like we picked up the rock and all the bugs hiding under it have come out."
"That is what they do best," Hank agreed. "So, what can I do for you to ease your blood pressure while we wait?"
Scott scoffed, though he was smirking hard. "Well, what have you got that skips ahead ten years to when the growing pains of a public-facing X-Men are over?"
"You think ten years will do it?"
"It was about that long for us before Graydon Creed - well, a little longer, but still."
"Yes, let's not ruminate over that too much right now."
"I don't think it'll go that way for them, though," Scott said. "They have so much more backing than we did." He paused. "They're just finding new ways to scare me out of my mind instead."
"They are a creative group."
Scott nodded, letting out his breath. "Pretty sure between 'Ro, Jan, and Nate, our Hydra prisoner is about to get the interrogation of his life, too." He sat up straighter. "Alright. I need to make a few calls - the school administrators are checking in on some of the students that caught up in it. I'll just be in the hall - let me know the second he's awake, okay?" With that, he pulled out his cell phone and headed out - though not before he saw Annie's text:
Saw the news. I knew Nate was powerful enough to hide from an entire school population in plain sight, but wow. You should be proud. I know you are.
PS: I called Ororo; I'll be there with something to eat soon.
He couldn't help but smile at the text, shaking his head. James is still unconscious. He was drugged.
All the more reason for me to bring food for his recovery, Annie responded. Or is it that you just don't want me over?
He chuckled to himself. Like I'd ever say no to spending time with you.
That's what I thought, Annie replied, and he could practically hear it in her sharp accent - which only made him smile more. See you soon.
James woke up a little ahead of Nate's estimation, though the drugs had worn off, and he wasn't exactly expecting … well he wasn't sure what to expect as he slowly started to stir. As soon as he was half-upright, he woke up fast and slid his legs over the edge of the bed he was on, announcing to Hank he was up with one thing on his mind. "Where's that little girl?" James asked, his voice a little raspy with sleep.
"She's safe," Hank said, coming over as James was pulling off the leads.
"Great. Where?"
"Don't fret over that right now," Hank said, then let out a little scoff when James pushed him back.
"If you don't want to tell me, I'll just figure it out myself," he said, sounding a lot more snarly than he meant to.
"Wait for your father," Hank said, stepping in front of him to slow him down. "And let me make sure you're back to yourself."
"I'm fine."
"Oh, come on, Doctor Blue," said a new voice from the doorway, and both of them turned to see Lexi Barton. It looked like she had come down to get a butterfly bandage for a bad cut from her ear to her chin, but now, she was standing there with her arms crossed. "He's worried about her."
Hank gave her a dry look. "Wait for Scott."
"Lexi, where is she?" James asked, neatly stepping around Hank.
"Rachel and Betsy cleared out the rec room with the pool table so they could fix up the telepathic damage," Lexi said, thumbing over her shoulder. "Warren was on his way to join them and we sort of had a small collision because I wasn't looking where I was going…"
James started toward her, slowing just long enough to kiss the top of her head. "Thanks." With that, he broke into a jog to get there just a bit quicker, leaving Lexi rolling her eyes at Hank as he made a point of calling Scott.
When James got to the rec room, it was more or less like he'd expected with Rachel and Betsy trying to make friends after the fact and Warren protectively hovering nearby. He knocked on the doorframe and waited for them to look his way before he stepped in. "Everyone in one piece?" James asked, looking toward Rachel first before he shifted his attention to the little girl, relaxed his shoulders and managed half a smile.
"Yeah, everyone's doing well, so far," Rachel said. "We were just getting to know your little friend."
James started toward her with the same kind of pace he'd used when they'd met, then crouched down to her level, though he didn't reach for her at first. "Are you okay?"
She nodded, then shrunk in on herself a little bit, obviously feeling badly over what had happened earlier, though when James held out his arms for her, she barely hesitated before curling up with him in the bear hug he'd wanted to give her. "See? I told you I wouldn't be mad," James told her quietly. "Not at you."
"Her name is Angela," Rachel said quietly, crouching down next to her brother while he soothed the little girl. She'd been half-terrified up until that point, and it seemed that she almost needed to be shown that James actually wasn't mad at her.
"Angela," James said softly. "Do you remember my name?"
She nodded into his shoulder. "Are you sure you're not mad?"
"Not at you," James promised, then snuggled her in when she tightened her grip on him again. "You're safe here. Prestige and Psylocke will keep you safe. They'll stop whoever was scaring you from getting into your thoughts again." He looked over to Rachel, who nodded her agreement, then held his position as Scott and Annie came in to see how things had gone.
"Making friends?" Scott asked, relaxing slightly when he saw that James was taking care of the little girl.
"Kinda," James agreed, then loosened his grip as soon as Angela let go. "What do you think?" he asked her. "Are we going to be friends?"
She shyly smiled, shrugging one shoulder up. "Uh-huh."
"Are you going to be okay with Prestige and Psylocke?"
Angela glanced over at the two telepaths, then stole a peek at Warren with wide eyes. "Hi."
Scott smiled in spite of himself and James shifted to direct her more clearly toward Warren - one arm around her back as she leaned on him. "Did you meet Angel yet?" James asked. "He's a pretty nice guy."
She leaned in on James and scrunched closer, trying to find a way to hide with him as she waved shyly. "Uh-huh."
"Did you know he loves to play with kids? Especially kids that think he's pretty," James said, his tone much quieter as if he was telling Angela a secret, though the other adults heard it perfectly clearly and both Rachel and Scott had to stop from laughing outright. Especially at the dry look Warren gave James for that. Thankfully, Angela didn't see it as she'd turned to hide in James' shoulder, giggling.
It only took James another few minutes to get Angela to go to Warren readily, and then, he slowly started to back off when it was clear she was absolutely enchanted with Warren - and vice versa.
James gave Rachel a pointed look, and before long, Scott, his kids, and Annie left to let nature take its course with the Worthingtons and little Angela. Scott closed the door quietly behind himself once they were all out into the hall.
James took just enough time to take a deep, centering breath and blow it out in a woosh before he turned to his father looking serious. "Okay, Dad. Just tell me where I'm going and whose ass I'm kicking."
Scott's mouth tightened up, but he managed to run down where the other team members were and what they were up to, except he didn't say a word about Vojteck. That was a point of contention, and he didn't need James losing his temper. Even if it was clear James seemed to know Scott was skipping a few points. "We're not sure who's trying to take charge at this point," Scott admitted. "So you can help who you like, but you should probably take a minute to recharge. Annie brought you some home-cooked food, too."
"No thank you, Miss Hale," James said gently before he turned back to Scott with the fire freshly renewed. "Pretty sure I can take a minute anywhere if we're all just talking to everyone. Who's digging into SHIELD?"
"Kate and her parents-"
"Are going over the field ops," James finished, cutting Scott off and looking like he was ready to just start beating on someone. "Yeah. That's not what I'm asking. Who's tearing into SHIELD itself?"
"James," Scott started to say, but James' attention was drawn as he turned toward the hall that led to the elevators, then simply started toward whatever he'd heard.
The moment a SHIELD agent turned the corner, it was plain that they were in trouble. James moved before Rachel could even reach out to warn him to stop, and a second later after a sickening crack, the first agent was on the ground.
"James, don't," Rachel shouted, rushing to stop him. "I'll find the telepath. You don't have to beat your way through SHIELD."
"Don't have to, but I want to," James growled back.
"Save it," Scott said, drawing James' attention away from the SHIELD agent as Rachel telekinetically picked him up and away from the stunned Agent that had stepped around the corner after the first- narrowly missing ending up on the floor like his partner. "You'll end up in a cell if you start beating your way through SHIELD. Wait and hit the ones that deserve it."
"Where is Natasha? I'm sure I can help her a little," James said.
"I'd rather you stuck around to help with Angela if Betsy and Warren need the back up," Scott said. "Come on. Annie brought up food. You need it to cover your healing."
"Dad."
"Angela trusts you," Rachel agreed quickly - especially since her next stop was to go looking for a telepath on cerebro. "Back me up, Annie. Tell him how good he was with that little girl in there."
"You really were good with them," Annie said. "Besides, the twins will be back soon. I'm sure Billy was worried."
"You're all just trying to put off the inevitable," James said.
"Good. that's the point. Put it off a little longer so we can point you at the right people," Rachel agreed. "And let your sweetheart distract you in the meantime. Come on. I'll help you get some food before you change out of that uniform." She took a hold of his arm and started pulling him away from the still flattened SHIELD agent, leaving Scott with Annie.
"Well that was different," Annie said once the kids were around the corner.
Scott made a visible effort to calm down, take a deep breath, and turn Annie's way. "Not really," he said softly. "Anyone who knows James knows if they push that particular button, they'll get the reaction they're looking for."
"Takes after you," Annie said, trying to coax a smile out of him.
"Came that way," Scott replied without missing a beat. "His parents were the same way."
"Oh, like he didn't also learn from watching you that no one is allowed to mess with children in his presence," Annie said. "Once a hero…" She grinned up at him and stole a kiss. "It's part of what I like about you."
"I'm very lucky about that much," Scott agreed. He stole a kiss, but his thoughts were obviously on James, and he kept looking over his shoulder until Annie reached up to catch his cheek with her hand and steal a more impolite kiss.
"Let him cool off," she suggested. "No one is happy about how that happened. Give him some time to stop being angry."
"Yeah." Scott stole one last look over his shoulder, took a deep breath, and then turned his attention back to Annie. "In the meantime…"
Annie grinned and stole another kiss. "Yes. In the meantime," she agreed, already wrapping her arms around his shoulders.
Chapter 107: There's A Chill In The Air
Chapter Text
Kate had been out with both of her parents for several days as they chased down a few different leads and turned over several corrupt leaves in SHIELD, so even after Nate had gone after Vojteck and gotten nowhere - the guy honestly didn’t know who would be in charge of Hydra because so many Hydra lieutenants would have had a shot at filling the power vacuum with Viper and her kids out of the way - Nate had plenty of time to cool off before Kate got done.
He’d just been talking with a few kids in Westchester, giving a new tour, sneaking over to see little Angela and Warren chatting like they’d known each other for ages and playing board games. He’d never seen Warren melt so hard before. Nate was still shaking his head to himself over it when he got back to his room and realized Kate was in there as well.
She was in the bathroom, actually, just toweling off her hair, and she looked his way when she heard the door, smirked, and went back to what she was doing. Now that she’d showered, she had a few cuts that needed new bandages, and once she was done with that, he had already gotten close enough to steal a kiss.
“Tours going well?” she teased him lightly. “You’ve got that look; you’re always in a good mood when you get to see the new kids lighting up when they get the tour.”
Nate had to shake his head, because it was plainly apparent she was still in her work mode - hyper-observant and more muted in her emotional displays. She was always so much like Clint that he sometimes forgot Natasha trained her - until moments like this when she was still, even relaxed, halfway playing the part of a politely dangerous little Widow. “Yeah, and you’re still thinking about SHIELD.”
Kate bit her lip and forced her shoulders to relax a little more. “Yeah, well, we found an entire cell of Hydra sleepers on day one, so…” She spread her hands out. “Been doing a lot of digging. Yesterday was a little more fun, because Mom asked me to be the emotional one, and I got to rage a little about all the crap Hydra’s put me through. This morning, though? Playing it cooler.”
“Having a little trouble turning it off?” he teased and stole another kiss for good measure.
She laughed when the kiss broke. “Okay, maybe ,” she admitted. “I’m not as good as Mom is. I can’t switch it on and off on a dime - but I’m getting better .”
“No, no, it’s kind of cute,” he had to tease her - just for the huff and the shove at his shoulder he got out of it. “No, really! You’re stuck in mission mode .”
“I’ll have you know I was making Hydra plants squirm -”
“And you loved every second of it, right?” Nate grinned.
“Oh, totally,” Kate agreed, finally breaking into a grin that looked more like her. “Dad just started laughing after the first day and said he was just going to lock every SHIELD agent in a room with the two of us for their semiannual reviews and there would never be another Hydra plant.”
“Like he’s wrong.”
Kate grinned wider and stole a kiss. “So, how about things on the home front?” she teased. “You’re in an excellent mood.”
“Oh, nothing major - just watching in real time as a little girl adopts Angel.”
Kate laughed. “Not the other way around?”
“Oh, definitely the other way around; he’s just way slower on the uptake than she is.”
“Sounds adorable.”
“It is,” Nate said - and then went ahead and projected his memory of Angela following Warren around like a tiny duckling for most of the first full day she was in Westchester, sticking close to him and taking her cues from him as she got used to being in a strange new place.
Kate grinned wider.. “Awww, are all the old X-Men not-so-secretly gigantic marshmallows ?”
“I mean, last I saw Remy, he and Leslie Ann’s family were practically having an accent competition, so…”
“So yes is what you’re saying to me.”
“That and you missed the accent competition.”
“Remy won, right?”
“It was close.”
Kate laughed again. “See, this is what happens when I leave you guys alone for too long. Have all the fun without me.”
At that, though, Nate had to grin and catch her by the waist before she could step around him. “You sure about that?” he teased her.
Kate looked him up and down with her bottom lip in her teeth, grinned a little wider, and then kissed him for an answer, already pushing him backwards several steps until he picked them both up and floated them back into the bedroom.
As much as Annie had been trying to spend time with Scott’s family - knowing they needed as much support as they could get, even if they were doing wonderfully picking themselves back up and getting back to as close to normal as they could get - and as much as she loved being in Westchester and seeing the change that came over Scott when he stepped into his leadership role in the X-Men, she was also still a teacher, and she had finals to give.
And Scott completely understood, seeing as he’d grown up in a school and was teaching in Westchester, so she appreciated that. She’d dated guys who couldn’t fathom why some parts of the semester were busier than others, so, yeah, finding a fellow teacher was great.
She hadn’t told anyone yet, but she was considering her options going forward. She adored Scott’s family, and she wanted to be there for them, but they were in trouble constantly . It was hard to maintain a balance between what increasingly felt like two different lives - the one she lived with Scott and the X-Men and the one where she was a history teacher at a public school. She was ready to take the next step with Scott, but she didn’t think he was, so she didn’t think she could just walk away from the school, but she had been seriously thinking about talking to Ororo…
But she didn’t want to seem like she was pushing, either. And she knew that Scott was genuinely scared of having a family out in Westchester. Moving in over there might be a bit hard for him to wrap his head around.
But she wanted to.
She sighed, stopped chewing on the end of her pen, and tried to focus on the paper in front of her. Her head wasn’t where it needed to be, and she felt bad. She really needed to take the summer, once it came, to think about whether staying on was even viable when she really just wanted to be with Scott and his kids. If there was a way she could teach in Salem Center - it didn’t have to be the institute itself…
She looked up when she heard the door open, expecting a student, but she was surprised to instead see a face that was almost familiar. She hadn’t actually met Emma Frost in person yet, but between Scott, James, and Craig, she was genuinely surprised she hadn’t run into her yet. “Oh,” Annie said and then looked back down at her paper. “I’m sorry; I’m in the middle of gradin’ papers. If you want to set up a parent-teacher conference…” She couldn’t help the dig; she still hadn’t forgiven the woman for anything she’d done to her brother.
“Not something that’s required,” she said, then took a few more steps closer before she looked at one of the desks as if it was covered in filth. “I won’t take much of your time.”
Annie sighed and set down her pen. “I’m afraid if you’re not a parent or a student-”
“What can you tell me about the academic history of Ephraim Williams. He’s applied to a school I represent, and I’d like to get an impression from his teachers on what kind of student he is.”
At that, Annie raised an eyebrow and leaned forward, more engaged for the sake of the football player, since he was one of her best students. “Can I see some identification and proof of your interest? I don’t talk about my students to strangers as a rule.”
She looked almost put upon as she opened her attache case and pulled out a file, complete with the boy’s application and photo. Then, she rifled around until she found an official identification with the crest of the Massachusetts Academy. “Anything else ?”
Annie looked over the documents, nodded, and handed them back. “Thank you,” she said. “I know it’s a lot of trouble, but I’m protective of my kids.” With that, once Emma took back the papers, Annie smiled lightly. “He’s a good kid, honestly. He’s one of my best students, not afraid to ask questions, either. He’s well-liked.”
“So he’s had no viable reason to reconsider his current path.”
Annie frowned and shook her head lightly. “Not that I’m aware of, but I’m not surprised he’s reaching out. He’s talked a few times about wanting to try new things.”
“Has he shown any particular interest in current civil rights issues?”
Annie nodded, treading carefully. “I know I don’t have to tell you if you’ve seen the local news that we had an X-Man on our campus until recently. He’s one of the few that have been supportive before the celebrity spotlight. He’s outspoken when the topic comes up, but he doesn’t cause trouble, either.” She smiled. “Like I said, he’s a good kid.”
Emma nodded to herself. “He’s applied for a scholarship as well,” she said. “And he listed you as a teacher of note.”
Annie smiled, genuinely pleased - she was always glad to hear that she was making a difference, and it was why she wasn’t entirely sure she could leave her job. “I think he’s worth it,” Annie said honestly. “He has so much potential.”
“There are … frankly, dozens of applicants with similar backgrounds. What would make him stand out?”
Annie blinked. She knew this was a standard interview - but for the applicant. Teachers were usually only asked to give an overview, a testimonial. But then, she’d never been listed for this particular academy. “Well,” she said, “he’ll work hard to live up to the chance you give him. Every time I’ve given him an opportunity to go just that little bit beyond, he takes it. He’s ready to be challenged; he just needs the chance.”
Emma hummed to herself. “Our school … is without peers. We do not participate in sports as we have higher interests for our student body. Do you think that he’d be able to handle the stresses of an academic setting?”
“Miss Frost, he’s been able to handle the stresses of an academic setting and a football career. I’m sure he’s aware that your school doesn’t have sports, or he wouldn’t have applied.”
Emma laughed at that. “Wonderful sense of humor, but I meant real academics. Not .. public school.”
Annie’s smile was still there, but it no longer reached her eyes. “Cute. But, Miss Frost, don’t go bandyin’ about your academic record when you don’t have to get accredited with anythin’ but a checkbook.”
“And what are your credentials, Miss …” she checked the paperwork. “Ah. Hale. Of course. What high brow academics have you managed to achieve?”
“This interview isn’t about me, but if you must know, I’ve been a teacher for ten years since graduating Duke.”
“Charming.” Emma gave Annie another once over. “Well. Thank you for your time, regardless.”
Annie smiled tightly. “Alright, sweetheart. Thanks for droppin’ in.”
“Yes, it was a waste of time, but lovely all the same.”
Annie narrowed her eyes. “I see,” she said softly. “Well, don’t let the door hit ya on the way out. Hate to see a woman of your age get hurt.”
“All the charm of a backwoods girl.”
“Thanks, honey, but I already know it,” Annie said dismissively as she went back to grading her papers.
After classes were done for the day, Mia had texted Tommy - and the next thing she knew, she’d been swept away to Genosha for the weekend. Not that she was going to complain about it. As far as she was concerned, that was the best possible way to spend a Friday night anyway.
The funniest part, too, was that Tommy was technically becoming Storm’s “official” liaison with Genosha. He wasn’t the crown prince, but he was still a dignitary by birth, and that on top of all the spying he’d done for Storm meant he was kinda-sorta keeping an eye on things and making sure Genosha stayed as open and welcoming as Wanda had made it.
So technically, Tommy was doing his job running back to Genosha all the time. And technically, Mia had been looking at colleges there, too. She was only two years younger than Kate, so she’d be doing her college applications in a year. And Genosha’s one and only university had Vision heading up the engineering and robotics courses that she wanted to take. Kinda hard to turn down.
So technically, they had good reason to be going to Genosha all the time - and not just so they could get some privacy and alone time.
But they were mostly going for the privacy and alone time.
And really, Mia loved it there. They always opened the windows right before they went to sleep, so that the ocean breeze and sunlight woke them up, and Mia loved to sit right where the light hit the bed and soak in it for a good, long time. She didn’t actually get out of bed now she was awake, but there was something warm and comforting about being so close to the ocean.
Mia didn’t know how to explain it to anyone but her mother, but ever since James had pointed out the lightning in her eyes when she got mad, she’d been paying more attention to how the forces of nature around her made her feel. She couldn’t create her own weather or anything - though her dad was pretty sure she’d be able to when she got older - but being so close to the ocean, another force of the earth itself, she could almost reach for that power. It crackled inside her, and she loved the thrill of it.
And she liked being in the tower, too, away from everyone else. She’d spent her whole life - as far back as she could remember - being part of a larger whole. She could vaguely remember life with the Avengers, playing with Kate and letting Hank read her bedtime stories. And from then on, she’d been at the school, sharing her mom with the students and never being allowed to leave for fear of someone taking offense to her mutation.
She hadn’t realized how much she liked being alone until she got to be alone with Tommy. And then… she loved it. And Tommy, for his part, was thrilled to bits that she liked to get away from everything, too. The truth was that he wore himself out running everywhere. Time moved differently for him, so he always felt like he’d lived three days in the time it took everyone else to live one - and when he fell asleep, he stayed asleep.
So, yeah, staying in bed most of the morning and soaking in the ocean and sun was good for both of them. And fooling around all the time without worrying about getting caught? Also good.
It wasn’t that Wanda didn’t know what they were doing. Or Vision, for that matter. But it was different when they weren’t in an entire mansion full of teenagers looking for drama.
Mia turned toward Tommy, who was still asleep. He’d woken up a bit when she had started to move, but when she hadn’t gotten up, he’d gone back to sleep - and she thought it was ridiculously cute that he’d managed to snuggle tighter as soon as he was unconscious.
This was shaping up to be a great weekend.
When Annie arrived in Westchester that weekend, she was still upset - and it showed. She didn’t even greet anyone on her way past, and she wasn’t headed to Scott’s office, either.
“What are your admissions criteria?” she asked Ororo as soon as she tracked her down.
Ororo looked up at her in surprise. “I thought you already knew that,” she said. “We simply look for children in need - usually mutants, though we’ve taken in inhumans, aliens, mutates … why?”
“Because one of the sweetest football players I know - aside from Nate, obviously - came to me just about in tears today because that witch of a woman in the Massachusetts Snob School rejected him. He put me as a reference, she showed up in my classroom with her damn Yankee elitism and turned him down because of spite .”
“What’s his name? Has he applied here already?”
“I don’t know if he’s applied - if he has, his first name is Ephraim, but he goes by Tim - that’s his middle name. Parents are strict, though, so he’ll use that for official things.” Annie ran a hand through her hair. “It’s not fair to him to lose something like this on my account…”
“That doesn’t ring a bell, though we’ve had a surge of applications since those idiotic scanners started showing up in schools.” Ororo, started toward her office. “Help me look - do you know what his power set is?”
Annie shook her head. “I never press if they don’t want to tell me,” she said. “I know the accent doesn’t help convince people I’m not racist, so I let ‘em figure it out on their own that they can trust me.”
“But you said he was on the football team?” Ororo said. “I’m sure Nate will know.” As they got to the office, Ororo explained. “We try to pair up the right person to talk to them - often based on the powerset, simply so they can get an idea that they’re not alone .”
Annie nodded. “I remember - when Leslie Ann first got here. She still thinks the world of you, you know.”
Ororo smiled as she thought it through. “I think I know who’d be perfect to talk to him.” She smiled wider. “Power set won’t matter one bit.” She started to walk again, this time toward the Danger Room with Annie along side her. “It’s part of the job, after all - and you might enjoy sending Nate on a mission, hmm?”
Annie couldn’t help but laugh. “I’m not really part of the team, Ororo. I don’t think it counts.”
“You need to do this to see the look on his face,” Ororo insisted. “Not to mention the look on Scott’s face. Come on, it’ll be fun.”
Annie laughed again. “Oh, I knew I liked you for a reason,” she said as they both walked the slightest bit faster.
When they got to the Danger Room, a team practice was still in session, so she and Ororo headed up to the observation booth, where Scott was fiddling with some of the controls and watching the group as a whole react. He’d noticed that Billy had a habit of leaning on James and America in a fight, especially without powers, so he was directing the sim so that each of the kids had to manage on their own until one of them could find the dampener.
Ororo had no trouble screwing with Scott’s concentration, too. “It’s like watching their parents all over again, isn’t it?”
Scott smirked but didn’t look her way. “Remember when Logan would run things like this just to remind us all how bad we were at hand to hand?”
“Vividly. How’s his mini-me handling it?” Ororo laughed as she led Annie closer to the window to watch.
“He and Kate have decided it’s a game. They’re handling their fights fine. Enjoying it. They aren’t even trying to look for the dampener.”
“Time to push them, then,” Ororo said.
“Yeah, got a wave coming Kate’s direction that should pull James’s attention too.” He looked up and seemed to suddenly realize Annie was there. “Oh, hey,” he said, smiling as he got to his feet to steal a kiss - then get right back to what he was doing.
Annie couldn’t help but smile seeing him in work mode. “Hey yourself. I see Nate stole someone’s gun again.”
“America dared him. She’s tired of being the only one looking for the dampener,” Scott said, smirking as he flicked a few more switches. “Problem is, once they start teasing like this…” With that, the sim shifted, and several uniformed men seemed to swarm the scene. “...they’re never prepared.”
“Seriously?” Kate said as she picked herself up - having taken a hard hit right off the bat, since the swarm started close to her position. When James started to laugh, she stuck her tongue out at him - even if she knew he was just laughing because he was glad for the shift.
“They’re SHIELD agents - see how many you can knock out,” James shouted. “It’s fun .” Then he had to push it. “Bet you can beat America when she’s out of her powerset!”
Kate smirked - though she hadn’t yet gotten to her feet, so she wasn’t entirely prepared to get picked up off her feet. In the control booth, Scott held his breath, knowing it was a risky move. He could see her eyes go wide and knew she had started to panic - but to her immense credit, she didn’t give in to the panic and fought back well. Scott just hadn’t programmed the sim to let her win - he needed the ones with any confidence in their fighting skills out of the scenario and he wanted to see how Kate and James would react to getting swarmed in the first place.
All things considered, Kate was doing relatively well. Scott could plainly see that she was having a panic attack, but she was handling herself without freezing up, and that was progress. He’d apologize to her after the sim, but really, she was making up a lot of ground.
James, on the other hand, had turned into his mother as soon as he was swarmed - and especially after he’d seen the look on Kate’s face when someone picked her up. Where Logan would lose his temper and pull out the claws, K had always been precise, going right for the quick kill or the quick disarmament. All with a snarl rippling underneath.
As Scott had expected, between Kate’s panic and James’s snarl, the others on the team stepped up their game, finally putting into practice what Scott had known the whole time that they were capable of. So when the sim finally died down, Scott went down to join the team.
“I need you guys to learn how to pick up each other’s slack if someone is injured or incapacitated. Your heavy hitters aren’t always going to be able to hit as hard; I need you to be able to fill each other’s roles in a pinch,” Scott said. “Dampeners and collars aren’t new . You’ve got to take self-defense more seriously.”
Nate had made his way over to Kate as soon as the sim had died and had to tease her. Look at you, heavy hitter. Are you alright?
Yeah, she said, though she had one hand against the wall as she caught her breath. Working on it, anyway.
Anything I can do to help?
Kate shook her head. Just getting my body to stop going into ‘we’re gonna die’ mode. Give it a minute to chill.
As Nate and Kate chatted, Scott turned their way. “Sorry about the ambush, Kate. For what it’s worth, you’re handling it better.”
Kate waved at him with one hand. “I know, I know. Actively working on being less jumpy.”
“That’s what I said,” Scott said, one eyebrow raised, before he turned to the others. “That last ten minutes? That was what this team’s capable of. You did good. Hit the showers,” he said, cracking a smirk as the kids left, checking up on each other and teasing as always.
“Nate, wait!” Annie called out before he could disappear with Kate. “I need to steal you, actually.” When Nate and Kate shared a look and came to a stop, Annie tucked her hair behind her ear. “I’d like you to go give the recruitment pitch to Tim.”
“Oh. Yeah, okay. Is he having trouble?” Nate asked, frowning and not looking surprised at all. “How did you find out?”
“He applied to the Massachusetts Academy.”
“Eeew. Why?”
“I don’t know,” Annie admitted. “But he was crushed when they rejected him.”
“Okay, yeah, I’ll talk to him,” Nate promised.
“Thank you,” Annie said softly. “I really owe this to him. I’m half convinced he got turned down because Emma saw ‘Hale’ on his recommended teachers list.”
“Then we need to celebrate with ice cream for how you saved him,” Nate argued. “The way Dad and James frame it, going to her school is like a one way ticket to indentured servitude.”
“He’s not wrong,” Scott said, reaching out to grab Annie’s hand.
“Yes, well, you should have seen the look on her-”
“Wait.” Scott turned to frown at her. “She came to you?”
Annie bit her lip. “Yes, well … I would have said something sooner, but it’s been so busy, and she had a legitimate reason-”
“No.” Scott shook his head. “That was her excuse to come looking.” He frowned and looked Nate’s way. “Looking into my son’s football team. Didn’t you say she was snooping around after Kate’s identity broke?” he asked Nate.
“Yeah, she was,” Nate agreed. “But I blocked her from me.”
Scott narrowed his eyes. “Alright. Take Kitty with you when you go talk to Tim. I have full faith in your abilities, but just to be safe.”
“Oh… okay then,” Nate said, frowning at his father. “Is that because taking one of my siblings would end up with her dead because I’m not opposed …”
“Neither of them needs that right now, and we both know it. Kitty always knew how to stand up to Emma. You’ll be fine .”
“Okay, but that’s not a no,” Nate teased.
“Don’t you have a mission assignment from Annie?” Scott teased right back.
“Oh. It’s like that. Should I take a shower first, or do you think stinky ex-teammate is the path to take?” Nate held both arms out with a grin. “Uniform? Letter Jacket? Both? Nothing? I need better direction here, Dad.”
Scott smirked and turned Annie’s way. “It’s your op,” he told her, and she gaped at him before she laughed and hit him with the back of her hand.
“Shower first,” she said through her laughter. “And my suggestion? Go in uniform. He already knows you, and to see you in the uniform inviting him to the school… You know he needs the boost sometimes.”
Nate grinned and pointed at his father with both hands. “You heard the lady. I think I can ditch the mask all together if this goes well.”
“Let’s not get ahead of ourselves,” Scott said dryly.
By that time, Nate was in high spirits and jogging backward. “Sure, sure.”
Nate was quick to change, and just as fast to reach out to Kitty. The two of them headed out in uniform as this was less a social call and more an official offer for the school … of course, Nate was the perfect bait, too, and Kitty was both excited for him to be able to tell someone and ready to tear into Emma should she show her face.
“You’re totally taking the lead on this one,” Kitty said. “I’m just going to hang back and be the back up. Keep an eye out for Emma for you.”
“Perfect,” Nate said, taking just a second to adjust his mask - that he planned to take off once he got a moment to talk to the guy. “We’ll be back soon, I’m sure.”
The two of them had silently landed a block over, then Nate had masked his presence from everyone near by so he could go up to the house stealthily. But that made it feel entirely awkward when he knocked on the door and cleared his throat, waiting for someone to show up with literature from Ororo in his free hand.
Of course, he’d been keeping an ear out for telepathic interference, all things considered - and it took him no time at all to pinpoint Emma … two blocks down in the back of a black car. “Oh, that’s real original,” he muttered under his breath, then straightened up and reinforced his psychic camouflage- just in case. With a second to consider it, Nate decided it would be best to simply freeze Emma in place until they were gone. So he did, smirking to himself as he did so.
Just then, the door opened, and Tim gaped for a second before he broke into a grin and stepped back, waving them in. “I knew it,” he said before the door was all the way closed.
“If you did, it wasn’t until after the fact,” Nate said, though he was smiling too as he took his mask off. “Heard you had an encounter with a snooty second rate school. What’s up with that?”
“You know how it is, gotta put applications out there,” Tim said.
“Yeah, but Massachusetts? They have a general lackluster in most of the schools that way, as I hear it,” Nate had to tease, all things considered. “My brother just washed his hands of a school out in Massachusetts.”
“Kinda where I’m at, though - powers-wise, I mean,” Tim pointed out.
“What’s that supposed to mean?” Nate asked with a frown. “You don’t need to be crazy powered up to go to Xavier’s.”
“My folks didn’t even know I had powers until we went college hunting with my brother and I set off an alarm I couldn’t find a way not to walk through.”
“Oh, man, yeah … I know my brother is working on disruptors for that kind of thing, but … there are better options than supporting places that go that way.” He smiled crookedly. “You’ve only got a year left, right?”
“Yeah, but I’ll be eighteen halfway through, so my folks said I need a place that boards,” Tim said.
“I know for a fact you can go to Xavier’s for your senior year, and they carry scholarships for colleges, too.”
Tim’s eyebrows shot up. “Wait, for real? I didn’t even apply there.”
“Most people don’t have to apply there, but … a little bird told me you got shut down by Massachusetts Academy.”
“Yeah,” Tim said tightly.
“No big loss, man,” Nate promised. “Really. I know a few people that would rant against them pretty harshly.”
“Well, yeah, nothing compares to where the X-Men train, right?” Tim said with a crooked smirk.
Nate grinned. “I am entirely biased, and … I went there for a while, too. Only draw back is that they don’t have anyone to play ball with - but now and again, the teachers and the team will play a fun game with the kids that want in.” His smile widened. “Football is hilarious with powers added in.”
“Oh, man, I bet,” Tim said, grinning.
Kitty cleared her throat, hating to interject. “So this is the part where I have to officially cover what Nate’s missed so far,” she said. “Like … are you in any danger where you are now?”
“No,” Tim promised quickly. “No, my family’s actually been pretty cool, relatively speaking. I mean, they’re not super thrilled , but Dad put his foot down, said they’re not cutting me off or anything, I promise.”
“If you want to wait for the fall - or late summer, that’s fine,” Kitty said. “But I’m going to insist on leaving you with a way to get in touch if you need help before then.”
“And you totally need to get a tour first, so …”
“Um, yeah,” Tim said. “I need the tour yesterday, man.”
“Soonest we can offer is today - but that might rile up the family, so …” Kitty shrugged. “You tell us what works for you and we’ll make sure you can get there and back safely.”
Tim looked like he couldn’t stop grinning. “You’re on.”
“Great,” Kitty said, then took her panic button out of her pocket. “Keep this on you at all times. If you have an emergency, we’ll come get you. Otherwise …” she handed him a crisp white business card. “Call. Any time, day or night. Whoever answers will direct you to someone that can do a tour.”
“And, if you think your parents might give you flack, I can swing by in the letterman jacket and jeans instead,” Nate offered.
“I’ll let you know,” Tim promised. “Thanks, seriously. Highlight of the semester .”
Nate laughed, but was smiling all the same. “I don’t know … what about that cheerleader that was chasing you around?”
“The one with the-”
“And that’s enough of that,” Kitty said, rolling her eyes as she pulled on Nate’s arm. “Nice to meet you, Tim. See you soon!”
Annie barely made it to church on time and slid into her seat next to her brother, who gave her a crooked smirk, knowing exactly why she was late. It was getting harder and harder to hide the fact that she was spending as much time with Scott and his family as she could, and she was taking papers and tests with her everywhere to get in some grading where she could.
“You know you’re going to need to talk to him ab-”
“Craig, we’re ‘bout to listen to a preacher; don’t take his thunder with a sermon of your own,” Annie said, and he burst into a laugh behind his hand.
Still, Craig couldn’t help but smile the whole time, because his little sister was the happiest he’d seen her in a long time. Even though she was barely staying afloat with her job, she wanted to be spending her time where she was. She was head over heels not only for Scott but his whole family.
If Craig was honest with himself, the only reason he hadn’t confronted Scott about keeping his sister in suspense was that he was his therapist, and the lines of propriety were different there. Normally, he wouldn’t have kept Scott as a client once he and Annie started dating, but again, this was a different case - and he knew how hard it was for them to find a therapist they could trust .
Still, once church was over, Craig pulled his sister aside and put his arm around her shoulders, laughing when she playfully pushed him away. “Do I need to start having intentions talks?” he teased.
Annie rolled her eyes at him. “You know good and well where we both stand. Truth be told, this is the most involved you’ve been in any relationship of mine, and you know it.”
Craig chuckled. “I still feel like I should be doing more to put the fear of God in him or something.”
“That’s not my problem,” Annie said. “Besides, your job is the opposite, isn’t it?”
“Something like that,” Craig said, though he dropped his teasing tone for a little brotherly advice. “Really, Annie. You need to sit down and figure it out before too long. You can’t keep going back and forth like this or you’ll burn out.”
“I know,” Annie said, finally letting some of how tired she was show. “Believe me; I do. I’ve been meaning to talk to him for a while, it’s just-”
“Yeah, trust me. I know. Hard to get any of ‘em to focus on little things like living when their every day is something out of the news reels.”
Annie nodded. “Don’t worry about trying to act all protective. Anton’s already promised to give him the ‘if you hurt her’ speech if we get around to getting engaged.”
“If?” Craig repeated.
“Craig, this may be news to you, but I’m dating a widower with abandonment issues.”
Craig grinned wider. “News to me.”
“You’re ridiculous,” Annie said, sticking her tongue out at him as they walked toward their cars. She was parked farther out in the lot because she was late, so he was walking her out; that was how they’d been raised.
“It’s just fun to see you smiling more,” Craig said.
“Turns you into the obnoxious kid you were when we were growin’ up,” Annie teased him.
“Can’t help that.”
“I know.” She gave him a hug as they got to her car. “Love you too.”
“Ugh. No wonder the Hellfire Club sent me to break up this moment. It’s sickly ,” said a new voice, and both Hales spun to see a woman in a golden mask leaning against the car next to Annie’s. When she saw Craig immediately stand in front of Annie, she laughed. “Oh, don’t bother. I’d just as soon not waste my time with a petty skirmish.” With that, she hit a button on the keys she was playing with between her fingers, and the locks on the car she was leaning on audibly unlocked. “Let’s go for a drive, Annette.”
“Pass,” Annie said, her eyes narrowed and her hands in fists.
The woman did a full-body sigh as she practically slid off of the car - and then rushed the two of them, switching from lazy to deadly in a second.
She’d obviously meant to try to take Craig out fast and then move on, but she hadn’t counted on him actually knowing how to fight. Craig had been raised by an Army veteran with PTSD; he had graduated high school knowing dirty tricks and had been on the wrestling team. He also knew how to disarm an opponent. So, when the woman rushed him, he grabbed her wrist, and slammed her against the car.
The woman laughed. “So you’re not just a pretty face,” she said. She didn’t sound excited, the way Scott had told Craig Viper was when she found a good opponent. She just sounded surprised - and glad to be surprised. She threw her head back, and Craig had to step back to avoid a broken nose. That gave her enough space that she could yank herself free of his grip, and she made a grab for her side-
“It’s not there,” Annie said, and the woman turned her way to see that Annie had her gun in her hands. “Get out of here before I decide to put this to better use than you would’ve.”
The woman looked between Annie and Craig and made a decision all at once. Instead of putting her hands up or backing away or doing anything anyone reasonable would do, she kicked Craig right between the legs and grabbed his shoulder, putting him between her and Annie while he was reeling too hard to stop her. “That was a neat trick, I’ll admit it,” the woman said. “But I don’t think you understand the situation here. No one turns down an invitation from the Hellfire Club, especially a hand-delivered one.” She reached around behind her for a small pistol that fit into the palm of her hand and held it against Craig’s ear. “Drop the gun, get in the car, and I don’t mess up your brother’s handsome face. Keep playing games, and I’ll make it non-lethal so you can watch him do nothing but drool for the rest of his life. Do we understand each other?”
Annie swore under her breath but dropped the gun all the same. “Now let him go.”
“Get in the car, and I will,” the woman replied.
“Fine.” Annie’s hands were shaking, and Craig could see that she was almost holding her breath. He knew she was trying not to panic and make him feel any worse , but he knew this was bad. And once she was in the car, the masked woman hit Craig hard enough that he was seeing stars long after he heard the car peel out.
“Damnit,” Craig said, dragging himself to his feet once he could see again and then digging in his pocket for his phone. “Scott, someone attacked me and Annie at our church ,” he said in lieu of any pleasantries.
“Are you okay? Where are you?”
“I’m still in the parking lot,” Craig said. “Annie’s gone - they drove off!”
There was a loaded silence on the other end of the line as it occurred to Craig suddenly that he could have called someone else for help - preferably someone who wasn’t his client and who wasn’t half scared to death that being back on the team was going to get everyone he loved killed. But, well, the damage was done, and his instinct had been to call Scott, so… there it was.
Finally, Scott said, “I’m going to have Billy wish you here. We’ll get her back, Craig. I swear.”
Craig nodded, though Scott couldn’t see it. “Yeah, I know,” he said - and a few seconds later, he found himself standing in the kitchen at Scott’s house, where Rachel and America were in the living room beyond the kitchen chatting with Kate, while the boys were still finishing a late breakfast.
As he was taking in where he was, exactly, James reached up to hand him a cup of coffee while Scott started to direct traffic.
“Tell me what happened,” Scott said. “How is she - if Rachel reaches out, will she be conscious enough to show us where she is?”
Craig held up his hands. “I don’t know. Last I saw her, she got in the back of a masked woman’s car so I wouldn’t get shot in the head.” He was starting to feel like his fingers were numb; he knew that was a sign of shock, but it was wild experiencing it himself.
“Masked woman, that was on your bingo card,” James whispered to Nate. “We should get some shoes on so Billy can switch us with Miss Hale.”
“What, you don’t think I can deal with the problem in my shorts and bare feet?” Nate teased back.
“Sure, but who knows what you’d be stepping in,” James said. “You’re more delicate and you want to kick things, right?”
Nate snickered, though not loudly enough to miss it when Craig told the rest of the group about their encounter - and what the woman had said about an invitation from the Hellfire Club.
Scott groaned and pinched the bridge of his nose. “Emma,” he said.
“We’re done with breakfast,” Nate said, belatedly pushing his plate aside. “We can go.”
“Ten minutes, that’s all we want,” James agreed.
“I’m not sending either of you to the Hellfire Club,” Scott said.
“Technically, it’d be Billy…” James said.
“Why not?” Nate asked. “We can handle it.”
“Because they actually do have heavy hitters,” Scott said. “And Billy can just wish Annie back home.”
“Yeah, but … come on,” Nate said. “You stopped James from beating up SHIELD and between the two of us, we wrecked Madripoor … come on .”
“Nate…”
“I’m okay with losing my grip for a little bit,” James said. “It’s warranted.”
“James, no,” Scott said, shaking his head before he turned toward Billy. “Bring her home, please.”
“Will do,” Billy said, smiling to himself as he took James’ hand and wished Annie there.
It took Annie a second to realize where she was, and when she did, she threw her arms around Scott’s neck - and he hugged her tightly to him, knowing she must have been terrified. “In the church parking lot !” she said, somehow managing to sound scandalized despite the fact that her voice was shaking - which at least had Kate trying hard not to laugh at Annie’s priorities.
“Are you okay?” Scott asked, trying to see if she was hurt without letting up on the hug, though that wasn’t working too well.
Annie nodded, holding on tighter. “Madder’n anything,” she admitted. “We didn’t get wherever she thought she was drivin’ me, and she wasn’t much for conversation once we left.” She took a deep breath that shook, so Scott picked her up to move her to the couch so she could crumble like she was obviously threatening to do.
Scott kept one hand in her hair and held her until she got her breath back, and then, he said, “No one - no one - is going to hurt you if I can help it, alright?”
Annie nodded. “Thanks for the quick rescue,” she said, obviously trying to rally, especially with an audience.
“You should grab some breakfast and take a load off,” Billy suggested.
“Maybe I will,” Annie agreed, though she didn’t move from where she was with Scott.
“Everyone on the team has a panic button that the Avengers gave us when we first started out,” Kate said - and tossed Annie hers. “I’ll get a new one from Tony.”
James took his out of his pocket and threw it to Kate. “I’ll make a new one. Tony’s doing … Tony things.”
“Tony’s always doing Tony things,” Kate pointed out with a smirk.
“Yeah, but he’s stressed,” James said. “And insulted over the school nonsense. He’ll get over it, but still.”
“That’s okay. I’ll tell him I got my GED yesterday and he can throw me a party like the over-the-top godfather he is,” Kate laughed.
“There ya go,” James agreed. “Give him something good.”
Kate grinned. “Exactly.” She got up from the couch and threw a smile Annie’s way. “Personal experience from getting Hydra-napped since literally age three - snuggles, comfort food, and privacy. So I’m taking everyone elsewhere.”
“Yeah, we’re leaving, too,” James said as he and Billy got themselves together.
“Other things to do,” Billy agreed. “Come on, Doc. We’ll get you coffee before you go home.”
“Always,” Kate teased - as the kids all slipped out.
Once everyone was gone, Scott could feel Annie relax into him, crumbling once more now that no one was around to see how shaken she was. So, he pulled her tight and let her set the pace. She’d never been through something like that before; he didn’t know what she needed, but he would jump to get whatever she asked for in a heartbeat.
Annie didn’t fall apart for too long, though, before she looked up at him, still crying, and said, “Everyone seems to take it in their stride. I’m sorry I’m so…” She took a breath that hitched.
“Hey, no,” Scott said quickly. “The first time is the hardest for everyone. It’s … it’s a shock. You know what can happen, but when it does happen…” He trailed off, knowing there weren’t actually words for that feeling.
Thankfully, Annie understood what he meant to say without needing it spelled out, and she held onto him tighter. “I just feel so silly,” she said. “Everyone here can joke about it-”
“You can’t use us as a measuring stick,” Scott said, shaking his head and barely containing his laugh, if only because he didn’t want Annie to think he was laughing at her . “Every single one of those kids saw some kind of trauma before they were old enough to drive. They grew up knowing that, at any second, they might lose someone they loved - or be found out by a school nurse, like my kids were. You haven’t had trauma drilled into you since you were a kid; you’re allowed to react to an attempted kidnapping like a normal person.”
Annie met Scott’s gaze, wiped her eyes, and broke into a soft laugh. “I love when you get eloquent like that,” she teased him lightly.
He laughed. “Seriously?”
“You always do it when you’re defending your family, too, so it’s nice,” Annie continued, smiling crookedly, “to hear how much you love me.”
Scott shook his head, unable to stop his smile as he leaned down and stole a kiss. “I thought that was obvious.”
“It is. I just like it when you say it,” Annie pointed out, her smile getting wider with every word.
Scott smiled to match her and then pulled her into a longer, much more involved kiss. “Love you, Annie,” he said when the kiss broke - and then kissed her all over again.
When Mia and Tommy got back home on Sunday night, they thought they had gotten away with their plans scot-free. They were in excellent moods and were already back to stealing kisses as soon as Tommy ran them into Mia’s room.
…but they weren’t exactly alone.
“Mia,” Forge said - and Mia nearly came out of her skin, her tail straight up as she jumped away from Tommy, blushing a brilliant purple.
“Dad!” Mia gulped, blinked, and then saw that Storm was there, too, just sitting on Mia’s bed with one eyebrow raised. “Mom! Hi! I’m back home!”
“I can see that,” Ororo said, and her tone already had Tommy holding his hands up and backing away.
“I . . . am just gonna go sleep. In my room. So I can get up early and study. Obviously.”
Before Tommy could back his way to the window, though, Storm raised a hand, and the window slammed shut in a gust of wind. “No,” she said, “I think you should stay.”
Mia was bouncing on her toes as she looked between her parents and Tommy. “Mom, I thought you liked Tommy…”
“I do, but that doesn’t mean I’m alright with the two of you disappearing for the weekend, Mia,” Ororo said with a flash of lightning in her eyes. “I thought that Tommy would be more responsible seeing as his brother just went through a whole fiasco of keeping distance while he was underage .”
Tommy buzzed his lips. “No one cares what I do. I’m not ever gonna be king.”
“Just because Billy is the crown prince does not mean that whatever Tommy does is off the table,” Forge pointed out, keeping his gaze on Mia. “I know you love him, but you’re moving too fast.”
“Dad,” Mia said cajolingly, “it’s no big deal, really.”
“Oh?” Ororo didn’t say anything. Instead, she took out her phone and handed it to Mia, with a news website already pulled up showing pictures of the two of them locked in a passionate kiss on a Genoshan beach. The headline - and it was on the front page, no less - read:
The Prince and the ‘Porter: Prince Thomas Spotted in Steamy Vacation with Nightcrawler
“Okay, points for creative title skills,” Tommy tried to joke, though he was just as interested in the article as Mia was.
The article started out exactly the way the two of them had expected it to, slavering over the fact that they were out in the open with their relationship and being so overtly sexual, even if they’d obviously thought they were alone. But from there, it went on to talk not just about Tommy’s heritage but Mia’s.
Having recently surfaced with the newly formed X-Men, the new Nightcrawler is the daughter of the late Kurt Wagner, who used the same codename when he was in the original X-Men. Famed for sacrificing himself to save the world from the Phoenix, Nightcrawler left a legacy one can only imagine would be daunting to fill. Still, if old rumors are to be believed about his reputation with the ladies, Nightcrawler’s namesake seems to be filling his shoes in at least that regard.
Mia’s eyes were wide as she kept reading. The article had a link to another, similar, report at the bottom, and she clicked on that one, too, hungrily reading through it all. She’d known that the world knew about what her father had done, and she was, vaguely, aware that he was most famous for his death. But article after article had nothing but praise for him, for his heroics, for his sacrifice.
It wasn’t exactly the message Ororo and Forge had been trying to send her, but she couldn’t help it. She was so used to her friends having to deal with the burdens of their legacies, with Rachel and the Phoenix and James and the weapons groups. But here was her legacy to live up to, in black and white, paraded around like a savior.
It was nice, actually. It was really, really nice to read article after article that heaped praise on her father and that heaped praise on her . Some of them were already talking about how she was living up to his name, even including testimonials from mutants she had saved.
It was flattering, to say the least.
And then, finally, when she broke out of her shock and pleasure, she could start to see what had her parents so upset. Tommy was eighteen, and she was still sixteen - and that had been a huge problem for Billy and James just months ago. Not to mention the fact that the press was already talking about him as if he was only good for celebrity gossip and not much else.
She didn’t want him to be reduced to that.
When she glanced up to see that both of her parents were watching her, she let out a long sigh, letting her tail drop along with her shoulders. “Okay, so, um… I didn’t know about the spotlight. I didn’t know anybody… cared.” She was trying to word it better, but she couldn’t find a way to say it that didn’t sound like she was getting down on herself.
But it was also the truth. She’d spent her life having to hide who she was, only getting to be true to herself when she was in the confines of her own home - and even then, only when she couldn’t be seen by anyone who might be looking for a reason to deem the school dangerous. She’d only been able to be herself in Wakanda and, more recently, Genosha. She’d finally found somewhere she didn’t have to second-guess every move she made… and now she had to second-guess every move she made in a different aspect of her life.
Still, the look on her face was enough to get both of her parents to ease up - at least a little bit. She was still in trouble, but Ororo let out a breath and pulled her into a gentle hug. “The world is seeing you for the first time, Mia - and they love you already. As they should. Now, you have that burden to bear.”
“Don’t worry,” Tommy spoke up. When Mia and her parents turned to look at him, he shrugged with his hands in his back pockets. “Hey, I’m not an idiot. I know better than to screw up a good thing. Even the press likes Mia - because she’s a goddess - and I’m not going to mess that up for her. We’ll be more careful, promise.” He put one hand on his heart, paused, and couldn’t help but add, “And I’m not just saying that because I know she’d hate if we had to date behind your back, but that’s a really, really big motivation.”
“Then let me remind you of another really big motivation,” Ororo said, once again trying to keep her temper in check. “You will not be slipping away for weekends in Genosha or anywhere else while you’re underage - at least . I’ll be speaking to Wanda more thoroughly after she’s had time to decide how to handle you, Tommy. And liaison or not, there is little I take as seriously as my daughter’s best interests. See that you remain on the good side of that.”
Tommy straightened up - especially when he noticed that there were storm clouds on the other side of Mia’s window rumbling a threatening warning. “Got it, yeah. Do we have to call my mom…?”
“We already spoke, she’s waiting to hear back on how this went before she finds a way to contact you appropriately.” Ororo raised an eyebrow. “Especially since she seems to have been under the impression that I was aware of what you were doing before hand .”
“I didn’t tell her anything like that,” he said.
“I didn’t say you did, but she didn’t think you’d take my minor daughter across the world for a sordid soiree.”
“Mom, that’s not fair,” Mia protested. “It wasn’t a sordid soiree .”
“Then tell me what all you two did all weekend,” Ororo challenged, knowing full well it wasn’t a laundry list of g-rated activities.
Mia turned slightly purple, though Tommy tried his best. “Had a blast on the beach, you know?”
“Yes, as does half the world, who is paying attention to that,” Ororo replied, her expression unreadable though she was still amused at his sense of humor.
“Yeah, well, like we said, didn’t realize I was, like, newsworthy , so it’s not like we knew anyone saw …”
“Tommy, of course you’re newsworthy,” Ororo said. “It’s not just Mia or your brother that the world can see are amazing.”
“I mean, I obviously am?” Tommy said with an easy shrug. “But, like, I’m also not Billy? So…”
Ororo gave him a significant look. “I don’t believe that for a moment.” She took Mia by the arm. “Come on … your father would like a private word.”
Tommy pointed vaguely at the door. “Okay, so can I…?”
“No, we can do this here,” Forge said. “Ororo wants a word with Mia as well. Alone.”
Tommy looked between the three of them, shrugged, and then zipped over to where Mia and Ororo were to steal a kiss before they could head out. “Okay, good luck, don’t get zapped.”
“That’s more something you need to worry about,” Mia said quietly, then kissed him back very quickly.
“Nah, I’m always fine,” he promised, watching the girls head out before he spun to see Forge watching him. “Oh. Hi?”
“Hi,” Forge said as he seemed to check his watch. “You can’t really have thought that you’d both get off scot-free with this, did you?”
“Okay, in our defense, we did actually talk to my dad about college in Genosha.”
“Which I think is amazing,” Forge said. “And probably a great move for her when she gets there.”
Tommy grinned. “That’s what I keep telling her!” he said. “And Dad thinks she’s a shoo-in, really. She’s smart but doesn’t show it off, that’s-”
“On the other hand,” Forge said. “Considering all the two of you seem to be up to? It’s probably long over due that I make sure you understand that even if I am usually pretty laid back, I will start taking off parts of you if my daughter doesn’t get to make her own decisions before becoming a mother far. Too. early. ”
“Woah.” Tommy backed up a step and held up both hands. “No, no, we’re not gonna - no, see. Geez, not the conversation I want to have-”
“Too bad. I was eighteen once. I know where your mind is.”
“I do know what a condom is, ya know?” Tommy said. “Geez, I keep saying I’m not an idiot but wow the bar is low.”
“Even at that, accidents happen,” Forge said. “I’m telling you to make sure they don’t happen.”
“Okay, got it, will do,” Tommy said and took a few running steps toward the window and then came to a stop, frowning. “Dampener?” he guessed.
“Nope,” Forge said. “Just had to make sure you understood that I have my own ways to make sure I can get my hands on you.”
“Right, message received,” Tommy said. “Can you turn it off now? Being slow is the worst .”
“Learn to love being slow,” Forge advised. “Fast might just kill you.”
“You know, I was dreading this talk with my mom, but thank you - you know - for the crash course.”
“My pleasure,” Forge said with a warm smile. “And for the record, I agree with Ororo and Mia. Keep it in your lane - at the right speed limit - and I’ll be looking forward to having a much more sedate version of this talk down the road. It’ll be nice to see you realize you’re worth just as much as your brother.”
Tommy blinked a few times. “Okay, whiplash, but thanks, I think.”
“You’re welcome,” Forge said. “I don’t hate you, Tommy. Neither does Ororo. But we’re all worried about both of you.” He smirked crookedly then adjusted his ‘watch’ again. “Good luck with your mother.”
“I’ll need it,” Tommy agreed - and zipped off.
Chapter 108: Rolling Out The Red Carpet
Chapter Text
It had taken Emma Frost precious little time to figure out who she'd been up against - especially after watching a few news reports on this new group of X-Men … paying a little better attention to who was capable of what had her rolling her eyes at the use of magic.
But she also knew that it couldn't possibly be magic in play when it came to blocking her telepathic abilities. That first incident with the doctor had been evidence enough. The Scarlet Witch and her son had been nowhere near her when she'd arranged for Craig Hale to be dealt with. And going to skim through Annie's mind at the school had been exactly the same kind of irritation. So it had to be something tech related dreamed up by Stark's little brat in training.
But that meant it wasn't impossible to undo.
Tech could be so fiddly with the right tools - and not knowing enough about that particular device left her with very few options, but a well placed EMP should certainly do the trick on just about any device that was easily carried.
So that was exactly how Emma prepared for her next attempt to deal with the Hale woman. By setting off an EMP close to her home when she was there, alone. The sudden pop of several electrical transformers on telephone poles nearby told her the device had worked … and the radius that it effected. Which left Miss Hale perfectly susceptible to psychic suggestion.
Annie wasn't aware anything was wrong when she woke up the next morning and headed over to Scott's house for their now-established Saturday morning breakfast. As far as she knew, she had just finished grading the last final the night before and had gotten some well-deserved rest. And now, she wanted to spend time with Scott - and maybe, now that her head was on straight after finals, she'd talk to him about plans going forward.
She let herself into the house and wasn't surprised to find that Scott was the only one awake. Nate wasn't even home; he and Kate were looking at a few colleges while he tried to decide if he wanted to get a degree or not. Rachel was likely crashed at America's, and James was probably asleep still - maybe with his prince charming now that he'd managed to get his third masters and Billy had graduated.
Scott looked up when she came in, smiled, and waved her over, already getting out the sweet tea. "Glad to be done with finals?" he asked.
"Very," she said as she gratefully took the glass of sweet tea. "I've got one of those headaches - you know, the ones from staring at papers for too long?"
Scott winced his sympathy and kissed her forehead. "Well, welcome to summer break, anyway."
"To you too," Annie said, then paused. "You don't really get one with the team, though, do you?" she asked.
"No, but we do get a break at the school itself," Scott said with an easy shrug.
"Just wondering if we'll get to see much of each other," Annie said, leaning against him. "I know how important the team is to you, but it does seem like you're always on-call."
Scott frowned. Annie had been one of the loudest voices telling him how much happier he seemed now that he was back on the team, even if he hadn't yet gone out in the field. "Annie," he started to say, but she shook her head quickly, her eyes wide.
"Don't get me wrong," she said. "You were born to do this. It's obvious. It's just hard to fit into your world when…" She gestured at herself.
Scott let out a breath and leaned forward to steal a kiss. "You act like Ororo isn't dying to have you over all the time," he said.
"It's a little different though, isn't it?" Annie said, looking down at her sweet tea and wondering why she was saying all this. She was thrilled to hear that Ororo wanted her there, and she wanted to apply for a teaching job there - but that wasn't what she was saying, and she didn't know why.
"Annie," Scott said, gently taking her hand, "no one there thinks any less of you because you're not on a team. And they certainly don't think any less of you for being human."
"I know," Annie said without looking up at him.
Scott held his breath as he watched her for a long, awkward moment. "This isn't about the school or the team, is it?" he asked, almost steeling himself. Annie could see him doing it, too, and she wanted to tell him that, no, she wanted to stay with him.
Instead, what she said was: "It's not." And then, after a beat, she added, "I just… I don't know what to do with a life where I'm carrying a panic button and being wished out of danger just for going to church on Sunday."
Scott's mouth was dry as he nodded softly. "I'm sorry," he said quietly.
"So am I," Annie said, horrified with herself as she got to her feet. She'd started to cry - and that was actually genuine. She didn't know what was happening, and she couldn't stop it, and it had her in tears as she felt herself heading for the door, as she watched Scott sitting there stiffly - not even fighting her on it, as if he'd expected it.
And of course he'd expected it. She knew for a fact that he was scared of losing the people he loved, and she knew he'd once done everything in his power to avoid the hero life because of exactly this kind of complication. Somehow, she had managed to hand-deliver his worst fear in their relationship (aside from actually getting hurt or dying, obviously) and she didn't know why she was doing it or why she couldn't stop.
As Annie got in her car, she didn't know what was happening, and she couldn't force herself to go back.
As for Scott, he was simply sitting in his kitchen in shock, letting the coffee go cold. He wasn't sure what he had expected, really. Annie had always been so supportive of him, but she'd never been kidnapped before. And that was such a stark display of the dangers of staying in his life… he didn't blame her one bit. He'd even done the same thing to Jan; he had no leg to stand on.
He should have seen it coming; he really should have.
"Coffee's cold," James said as he stepped into the kitchen, though Scott didn't know how long he'd been sitting there before then. "Want me to top you off?"
Scott looked up, gave James a tight smile, and shook his head. "No thanks," he said softly.
James came to a stop, watching him and frowning at the conflicting scents in the air. "What happened? Where's Annie?"
"Oh, just…" Scott gestured vaguely and cleared his throat. "I won't - well."
"Dad."
Scott let out a long sigh. "It's fine," he said and got to his feet. "It's just part of running the team."
"What are you talking about?" James asked with his nose scrunched up. "What did I miss?"
"James, it's…" Scott ran a hand down his face. "It's fine."
"What exactly is fine, Dad?"
"I, ah, well, Annie won't be over anymore," Scott said. He had turned himself toward the stairs, meaning to get up to his room before he lost his grip on his emotions, but James wasn't letting him get away that easily.
James simply stared at him, at a loss for words for longer than he'd like, and because of that, Scott almost made it to the stairs before he spoke up. "Why? That doesn't make any sense."
"James, it's fine. I made the same call with Jan, remember?" Scott said. "It's - I don't blame her after what happened with the Hellfire Club…"
"It's a bad call." James crossed his arms. "It was a bad call when you made it, too."
"That's not fair," Scott said.
"Since when does fairness figure in with the truth?"
"Since you started comparing me making a bad call with Annie - who never was part of this life before she met us."
"Yeah, but -" James tried to reorganize his thoughts to line up with his gut feeling. "Okay. I get that. But she loves watching you be … you. All of it."
"That's not the same as living in the life, and we both know it," Scott pointed out. "And I'm not having this debate with you, James. It's her choice to make." He turned to leave again. "And I don't blame her."
James let his shoulders drop, knowing there was no way he was going to get through to him, so instead, he closed his eyes and reached out to fill in Rachel. Wake up, Sleeping Beauty. You have some baby sitting to do.
Shouldn't you and Billy get married before you adopt kids? Rachel asked, her mental tone sleepy even if she had managed a good joke first thing.
We decided to practice with you and America. Dad and Annie broke up.
What.
Yeah, that's what I said. He's probably mad at me for asking too many questions, so you're on Dad watch.
Has he lost his mind? Why would he break up with-
She broke up with him.
What.
I know. Listen. I'm gonna go for a drive. Nowhere in particular. Just … keep an eye on him, please. He was pure shock when I found him staring at a stone cold coffee.
Oh man. Rachel was already getting out of bed. That's bad. I'll make sure he remembers to eat, I promise.
Thanks. I'm going to leave a credit card on the table for you in case you decides he needs anything. I'll keep my mind open if you need anything, okay?
Got it. I'll be there as soon as I can.
James rushed up the stairs as quietly as he could to get dressed for the day, glancing toward his door every time he picked up or put something down, listening for Scott and trying to keep track of what he was doing as much as he could. He couldn't hear everything, but what he could hear lined up with being miserable and melting into himself. So at the very least, he knew that when he got to Annie's house, he could say with absolute certainty that his Dad was both heartbroken and not in the right headspace to attempt it himself. And, he decided, if she was overly aggressive about things, he'd back off. For now. But he couldn't get past the idea of them breaking up out of the blue like that. Especially when things were lightening up, schedule wise for them.
Still, he took a longer route than he normally would have - to make sure Annie had time to get home. Then, he sat in his car for a few minutes trying to figure out what to even say. But nothing was coming to him, so he just … decided to see if she'd tell him what happened and take it from there.
James held his breath as he crossed the street, went up the walk to her apartment building, and then pressed the buzzer for her door. He was surprised, then, when instead of screening the buzzer, she simply unlocked the door so he could come up to her apartment door. He frowned, but took off at a brisk pace to knock at her door.
When Annie answered, she looked disheveled, obviously having been crying and wiping at her eyes to try to stop. And she looked downright surprised to see James. "Oh, I wasn't expec- sorry, I'm not really…" She wiped her eyes. "I'm sorry. I thought you were my sister."
"What can I do to help?" James asked.
She shook her head as she wiped her eyes again. "That's really sweet. Really. But I don't…" She took a deep breath. "I'm okay, really. My sister's on her way with some junk food."
He raised one eyebrow. "Whatever he did wrong, I feel like someone has to make up for it."
"Oh, sweetie, no," Annie said quickly. "No. First of all, you don't ever have to carry your father's burdens, and if he had done something, it isn't your fault or your job to fix it-"
"You've met me. I do."
She shook her head. "No, it's - it's me. I can't…"
"I don't believe that," James said softly. "And I don't think you do, either."
Her lip started to tremble as she shook her head, but her expression didn't line up with her words. "I can't - I'm not built for it," she said softly. "And I can't hold him back, either. He needs to be with the X-Men. You know he's so much better when he's got that uniform."
"He's better with you, Annie," James said. "But if you don't want him…" Something was wrong, he just couldn't figure out what it was.
"You're sweet," Annie said softly, though her eyes were wide. "But really, I'll be okay. You didn't have to come all this way." As she spoke, she was starting to step back from the door.
"If you need anything, call me. Please. I don't care how small it is."
"Thanks," Annie said, then closed the door - though he could hear her almost immediately start to cry again once it was closed.
James had his hands on his hips as he listened, frustrated that nothing about the scents involved were lining up. But instead of just leaving, he decided to make a phone call on his way to the car, not even bothering to get in the car before he hit send. "Hey doc, you got a minute?" he said as he closed the door behind himself, then paused because it had been a long time since he'd done this at all. "Ah … it's James. Howlett, by the way. Hi."
"I haven't lost your number - glad you haven't lost mine," Craig said dryly.
"Yeah, I know, worst patient ever," James agreed. "I'm sorry about that, too."
"Something must really be bothering you."
"I know the chances of you not knowing what's going on with your sister is slim to none. I know there are a lot of things that aren't ideal, and it probably sounds stupid coming from me since I don't know her very well and I've been trying to keep out of their way, but … something is off with all this, I know it - I can feel it in the pit of my stomach, but I can't … I can't explain it clearly."
Craig was quiet for a long time before he responded. "To be honest, I'm surprised too. I know she was shaken up, but to hear her tell it, she had the shortest kidnapping in history. I didn't think she was thinking about leaving."
"Just so we're clear, I'm not even trying to advocate for my dad, doc. If she really is done, that sucks, but we'll drag him through it. I'm worried about her. This doesn't make sense - not just from what they've been leaning toward, either. Nothing matches. Her reactions aren't …. They don't line up with what I can sense."
Craig was quiet again, then said, "She told me that she was going to ask him how they could arrange things so she could be at least near the school if not in it on a permanent basis. This is not what she planned to do, as of yesterday."
"She doesn't seem like the kind to give up that easy, either," James said. "I just don't know her well enough to be able to pinpoint it."
"Evie's going to try an talk her down tonight."
"Annie said she was on her way over," James said.
"You are concerned. She'd be thrilled to hear you use her first name."
"Ha. Not so much. I already did, when I came to talk to her," James admitted. "I haven't even driven away yet."
"And she didn't fall over herself with excitement?"
"Not even close. More like pushed me out."
Craig was quiet, though James could hear him tapping a pen. "She keeps that telepathic thing of yours with her all the time since Emma Frost showed up. I can't think what else could be going on unless it's coercion."
"I don't know. I've got Rachel sticking to Dad, so if you have an idea I can run down, I'm all ears."
"I'm just as much at a loss as you are," Craig admitted. "Stay in touch. Please."
"Yeah, call me if you come up with something and I'll do the same. I'll keep my phone on." James frowned to himself as he hung up, then looked toward Annie's house one more time, tapping his phone against his palm before he checked the time and sent Billy a quick text asking him to reach out when he had some time. As much as he wanted to take Billy up on the offer to spend some time in Genosha, he couldn't leave his Dad like this.
Unlike when Scott and Jan had broken up, Scott didn't have the constancy of needing to get the kids to school, and he was technically on summer break from teaching as well. He'd sent Ororo a text saying he needed some time off, but that only meant that he had literally nothing to do and no reason to get going.
For the first day or so, he'd tried to just disappear into his room and try to get his feet underneath him. He hadn't seen the breakup coming, but he wasn't surprised by it either, considering everything that had happened lately. Annie had come into his life exactly at the wrong time, when he was getting back into the job he'd avoided for well over a decade. He had spent years trying not to get caught up in the high risk of a hero's life, and she was well within her rights to do the same.
Especially because she had everything going for her. She had a job she loved, a family that loved her and that were close enough for her to spend time with them. She obviously wanted to settle down with someone, and she deserved to settle down, not to try to squeeze a family life into the stolen moments between missions, like Scott and Jean had done.
She'd seen Kate, Billy, and James get back from Viper's lair; she'd seen the shape they were in. And she and her brother were now targets of supervillains themselves. She didn't need this.
At least, that was what he kept reminding himself. He just… he hadn't seen this coming, and he'd honestly been wanting to talk to her about what to do in the fall. He'd seen her piles of schoolwork in her car and knew she'd been running ragged, and it might have been favoritism, but he'd talked to Ororo, seeing as the school took in so many young mutants that they'd added a wing specifically for the kids who got caught by the scanners at school or who were physically mutated and never got the chance to hide. Annie would be perfect for general education, for history, for whatever she wanted to teach.
That was where his head had been, not… this.
But he didn't want to go to Westchester, because, God help him, he didn't want to resent the team. If he went back now, if he looked around and saw all that he was helping to build after he'd gone so long living a normal life, he knew he might walk out again, and what kind of message would that send his kids?
So, he stayed inside, feeling like the rug had been yanked out from under him, trying to convince himself he was alright and that this was for the best - until the light changed and he realized it was night and he'd spent the day doing absolutely nothing.
He knew Rachel had brushed his mind a few times, and she wasn't even trying to hide it. He knew the kids were concerned. And when, the next morning, Toby showed up for coffee with such an obvious look of concern, he knew he was dragging the kids into his heartbreak. And that was unacceptable.
So, the morning after that - it felt like the day previous had faded into a blur - he told Rachel on his way out the door that he was going on a walk to get breakfast locally. She seemed relieved that he was getting out of the house - and she didn't follow him, either. So that was encouraging. If he could just get himself moving, the kids could focus on their lives, and he wouldn't weigh them down.
He kept his gaze on his feet as he walked to the cafe, half afraid he'd see someone he knew and have to gracefully duck out of conversation somehow, and once he got his coffee, he sat down in the far corner.
"Oh, good. You saved my table," Toby said as he invited himself to sit down with a newspaper and a cup of coffee.
Scott shook his head at that but didn't object. "You don't have to pretend you're not checking on me."
"Who's pretending?" Toby asked. "I'm just not announcing it, and judging by the newly sprouting beard, I thought it best to just be here."
Scott gave him a dry look for that. "I'll be fine, Toby."
"Yes, and you'll be fine with company, too."
Scott let out a breath but didn't have the energy to argue. Instead, he simply kept his gaze on his coffee. He knew Toby had better things he could have been doing.
For a long while, Toby didn't say a word, or push for anything. Then, when it was clear he couldn't remain quiet forever, he cleared his throat. "So … maybe we can go have a chat somewhere more private. I have a few things I could use some help with."
"Sure," Scott said and got to his feet. "I'll follow you."
"Well, it's the kind of thing we should probably do at your house. You want a bagel, or some soup?"
"I'm fine, Toby. Not really hungry."
"Sure, sure. What about your boy? I know he's around because I saw him running yesterday." Toby tipped his head. "He didn't have time to talk."
"Yeah, he and Rachel have been home the past few days. He's been getting a few things done while Billy's with his family." He gave Toby a significant look. "And you know how Billy's family has more complicated problems than normal."
"I was going to ask him about it, but he actually ran away." He chuckled to himself. "First time for everything."
Scott smirked at that. "Don't take it personally. He's eighteen."
"Sure. Then what's his excuse for the past few years?" Toby laughed.
"Same one - teenager," Scott said with a smirk.
"Yeah, yeah," Toby said, waving him off, "and his school, work, sweetie … it's all very busy for that kid. Not that the others are slouching. Is Nate still looking at schools with his girl?"
"Yeah, he had a few football scholarship offers that he's trying to decide if he'll follow through on," Scott said. "He just isn't sure what he'd study - and you know Kate's going into both teams full-time now that she's done with school, so the draw to follow her is pretty strong."
"I'm sure it is. Those two are inseparable."
"You should hear the betting pool up at the institute now that they've both tested out of school and are legally adults…" Scott smiled lightly. "I know for a fact that he has enough saved up for a ring; I just don't know if they're ready. They were before everything that happened a few months back, but… I think he's watching her and waiting to make sure she's okay before they move forward."
"He's a lot like his father, that one." Toby was smiling as they headed toward the Summers' house. "What about the others? I know James has a more complicated everything. What about Rachel though?"
"I think if they decide to get married, it'll be a spur of the moment thing. Neither of them have really shown any interest in being anything more than what they are."
"I think that description fits all three of your kids," Toby said.
"Nah, Nate will make plans," Scott said.
"Fair, fair," Toby said, though he kept his thoughts to himself as they headed into the house. No one was home, yet, but there was a growing stack of mail on the kitchen table that hadn't been touched in some time. So, Toby directed them toward the kitchen, knowing that Scott would either busy himself to cover or just drop into a chair until he got uncomfortable with Toby busying himself.
"I haven't made coffee yet this morning," Scott said as he took a seat.
"I can make it if you like," Toby offered with a smile.
"I don't want you to put yourself out."
"Oh, please," Toby said low. "It'll give me something to do with my hands while I ask you awkward questions."
Scott gestured broadly. "Alright. Must be important."
"Of course it is," Toby agreed. "I could use some direction. All these kids …"
"Ah." Scott understood immediately.
"The families don't want to send them away."
"But they don't know how to face the rest of it," Scott said.
"Exactly." Toby took a few minutes to get the coffee going, then pulled out the chair opposite Scott. "I don't even know where to start. A lot of the schools here - you know what they're doing. So the upset here is what to do with the kids. Most of those kids want to go to big colleges when they're old enough. Hard to get in with an impressive application if they're working from home because of that. Not to mention, it's not very clear which colleges would be safe. I figured you'd beaten that dead horse a few times now."
"Actually, let me give you Warren's number," Scott said. "His foundation provides scholarships to mutant kids, and he's done a lot of digging. He knows which schools are safe and he knows which foundations will give those kids scholarships beyond his."
"That would be helpful, as long as he doesn't mind a thousand questions from well meaning, worried parents."
"He likes to feel needed," Scott said, smirking, as he rooted through some of the mail to grab a junk envelope to write down Warren's number.
"Don't we all," Toby said quietly.
"Here," Scott said, handing him the envelope, though he did a double-take when he saw another near at hand envelope.
"I appreciate the help," Toby said, watching Scott closer. "If it's all the same to you, I'd like to hang around a little bit and catch one of the kids to see if they'd come down and talk to the youth group - maybe back me up that they don't need to completely hide what they are."
"Rachel is really good at that," Scott said, though he was half distracted as he realized that a letter next to the junk mail was from Harvard. Curiosity got the better of him and he went ahead and opened it. He quickly read through it and stared for a long moment. It was an invitation to enroll - for James's PhD.
"You alright, Scott?" Toby asked after a long moment.
"Yeah, I just… James got an acceptance letter to Harvard. I knew he was talking about applying…"
"That's wonderful," Toby said with a smile that almost immediately slipped. "Unless he changed his mind about it."
"No, he and Billy were discussing it - they wanted to get a place together while James got his schooling wrapped up."
"How's that going, then?"
"They were waiting to get the official acceptance…" Scott let out a breath. "I'll make sure they go house shopping when Billy gets back. He doesn't need to hang around here for me."
"Looking for more alone time, or …"
"Just don't want to hold them back," Scott said.
"Didn't think you were capable, even when you did want to," Toby said.
Scott gave him a dry look for that one. "Anyway," he said pointedly. "I'll be okay."
"I never said you wouldn't," Toby pointed out.
"I know." Scott let out a breath. "So, I'll send Rachel to talk to the kids, you've got Warren's phone number… if it's alright with you, I'm going to grab a shower…"
"Sure, sure," Toby said, nodding his head. "Tell the kids I said hello. See you soon." He got to his feet and refilled his to-go cup, then headed out with a wave, wondering which one was going to make it home first, or if Scott was just shoving him out the door.
When James got done with his run, he came in, headed up to shower, and made a point to listen for any trouble - even if he looked like he was listening to music with his headphones. There was nothing on them - and it was just another way to push an interaction. But … so far his wait and see method had been flat. That offer letter from Harvard had come in the day after Annie and Scott parted ways, and he wasn't below taking it to Annie either, if this kept up. Just because she'd want to do … something.
But so far … no dice. Not until he was done getting cleaned up and came downstairs to grab a bite.
"So, are you and Billy going to go look at houses today?" Scott asked from the living room.
"Trying to get rid of me on week one? Nice," James called back, still rifling through the kitchen. "Can't look for a place until I know where I'll be."
"You've had a letter from Harvard sitting here for a couple days," Scott said. "Don't tell me you didn't know."
"Yeah, well, they're not the only one offering," James admitted, both trying to play it down, and redirect his father. "Franklin leaked that I was open to other options, so … I've got a few places trying to catch my attention."
"That doesn't surprise me," Scott said with a soft smile. "Finally catching up to what I've always known about how amazing you are."
James let out a breath of a laugh. "Okay, okay, if you say so. Has nothing to do with all the press, right?"
"No, I'm right about this."
"Sure, Dad," James said, then let out a breath. "Anyhow. Can't really shop for a place to live yet. Might not need to."
Scott raised an eyebrow at that. "Where are you looking?"
"Well, I'm not. I'm just trying to pick a program," James said. "Then I'll take it from there. But, so far, you know about the two in Boston - yes, MIT is trying to retain. Then there's Columbia and Princeton that are both throwing their hat in, too. Better than half of the Ivy League, really. A few bigger Universities... Not too interested in anything in California, to be honest." He shrugged. "There are a couple others, but I don't think they're viable."
"Those are good options, though," Scott said, starting to smile again. "And I'm sure Billy's ready to get back to having your own place. He's been dropping hints."
"Yeah, well … we'll see."
"You're welcome to use the apartment if you want," Scott pointed out.
"I'm not interested in staying that close to Natasha," James admitted.
"Fair." Scott let out a breath. "James, I wish you'd told me about Harvard."
"You've got more important things on your mind."
"Nothing more important in my life than my kids right now; you know that."
"I don't want to say anything until Nate knows what he wants to do."
"James, you're allowed to celebrate your accomplishments," Scott pointed out. "Nate's an adult. He'll figure out what he wants to do."
"Maybe I don't want to celebrate until I've done something noteworthy."
"We still haven't even gotten to celebrate the end of the debacle with MIT - and that was hard-earned," Scott pointed out.
"Not much in the mood," James said easily, then offered Scott half his sandwich.
Scott took the half-sandwich. "Still, we should do something."
"Dad, it's fine. Everyone's been busy. It was forever ago. Leave it be."
"It wasn't that long ago, and Lord knows we could use a celebration of something good," Scott said, though he lost his smile as he realized he was already thinking of how much Annie would jump at the opportunity for a celebration.
"Yeah, see, I'm not really up to celebrating," James said.
"Me neither. Right now, anyway."
"Thought so," James said. "These things only happen alongside something bad, anyhow."
Scott let out a sigh and got to his feet to pull James over in a hug. "Proud of you. Just so you know."
"Love you too," James replied.
The first thing that James saw the morning after his tour of Princeton with his dad was a text from Nate, who was absolutely prepared to give him a hard time.
Have you seen the news yet?
James opened one eye as he looked at his phone then let out a huff as he shifted to his side to reply with a simple 'no' then waited for Nate to get back to him. He was pretty sure that between Nate and Kate there would be some ammunition for teasing if that's what he opened with. And he wasn't disappointed.
The next thing that he knew, Nate was sending links. So, so many links.
Red Carpet Welcome for Tony Stark's Secret Weapon
What We Know About Stark's Successor And What We Don't
Why Are America's Best Universities Trying To Catch A Wolverine
MIT's Loss Could Be A Big Win For Their Hungriest Competition
And about half a dozen more with similar threads that James rolled his eyes over, but one caught his attention. Breaking News: MIT: Anti-Mutant, Anti-X-Men, or Taking a Stand Against Tony Stark?
James frowned and clicked the link, not at all surprised to see that J. Jonah Jameson's face was the first thing to pop up with that kind of headline. Generally speaking, that type of hook ended with Jameson pushing for the least appetizing of the options listed. And he needed to know how bad it was.
To start, the video was like any other … Jameson's news desk was in silhouette until the music ended, but when the lights came on, Jameson was uncharacteristically calm.
"We've all seen the paparazzo and even so-called real press reporting on Tony Stark's replacement for Stark Industries as the only son of Wolverine has been taking up college tours over the past few weeks. As you likely know already, James Howlett has managed to secure three separate Master's degrees from MIT - all before the tender age of nineteen - outstripping his predecessor for speed."
Jameson took a breath and smirked, leaving James holding his breath and wondering where, exactly he was going.
"What we haven't known, until now, is why Howlett has decided to pursue what we can only assume can be a doctorate, at a university other than the one he's already graduated from multiple times now. Why bother looking elsewhere when Stark's old alma mater has been so accommodating?" Jameson's tone was getting harsher incrementally. "Why rock the well-donated to boat unless there was something going on?"
"Oh, shit," James muttered as he sat up and hunched halfway over his phone to continue watching.
"This reporter has spent weeks trying to figure out exactly what Howlett's been hiding behind that highly-marketable image of saving kids from burning buildings and a family legacy that made home-sewn yellow and black striped teddybears commonplace across the country even amid the height of anti-mutant rhetoric that exposed his parent's pasts for the living weapons they were." Jameson paused and leaned toward the camera as it zoomed in slowly. "And have I got a story for you. It has everything - high-powered stakes, massive corruption, Hydra and SHIELD. Not to mention accusations of academic integrity issues and no less than three rejected papers that my sources tell me were never even reviewed."
James' eyebrows shot up … that was news to him. He wasn't surprised at hearing it, but he was surprised that JJ was making it known publicly. He also wasn't expecting it when Jameson went on to outline what he knew … and it was things that James himself had found out only after extreme digging on Scott and Natasha's part, so he was a little confused as to how Jameson had found out.
"Sure, lots of less capable reporters have stuck to the easy stories around this kid," Jameson said. "It's temping when the subject in question seems to be just another pretty face to follow Tony Stark's tabloid legacy from spottings and flings with various young women - and men - all the way up to the questionable affair with Genosha's crown prince. An affair that apparently started just before the downfall of the war-mongering mutant ruler best known as Magneto, whose death is still 'under investigation' according to Genoshan authorities and SHIELD. The fact that young Mr. Howlett seems to be living up to his parents' heroic legacy as well has been one of the more inspiring stories from the past few years to watch fall into place. Howlett certainly doesn't leave a person in my business with nothing to report on, either. But all that is side story compared to the details behind what I like to call MIT's predatory mutant scandal."
James was ready to start cursing when the box next to JJ's head lit up with a silhouette.
"Sources have stepped forward who wanted their story known, though they chose to remain anonymous in an effort to protect their families from the inevitable backlash that could follow spilling secrets about the high-powered games going on at MIT, Stark Industries, SHIELD, and even our government. Games that have toyed with many genius students - both human and mutant. The layers to this story are truly intriguing, ladies and gentlemen, and you don't want to miss a moment of it. Stay tuned as we dedicate our show over the next few weeks to exposing the many facets of the corruption in America's highest rated institutions, the curious bias of Stark Industries, unaccounted for loose ends surrounding Magneto's murder, and how so much of it ties back not only to the son of two mutant weapons, but also to whoever and whatever has been involved in all the years between the fall of the original X-Men and where we find all the involved parties today. We'll return after these message-"
James closed out the window on his phone and threw back the sheet he was sleeping in. "I can't do this without coffee," he mumbled to himself before he set the phone aside and started getting dressed. He also made a point to put in his headphones as soon as his hoodie had been pulled down so he could listen to it without disturbing Scott - provided that Scott hadn't found out about it already. And he was so good at finding out about things like this without prompting.
James texted his brother on the way downstairs, too. I've got it handled. Carry on with kissing your Hawkeye.
If you think we're not watching it, you're out of your big, fat, genius mind, Nate wrote back. But we'll let you or Natasha tell Dad.
So giving. Thank you. Truly.
James was the first one downstairs, so he quietly went about making a pot of coffee - and had the newscast playing over his headphones so he could listen to what Jameson had dug up - and how he was spinning it. He knew Tony would watch the whole thing before he told James about it - that had been the norm for most news stories … the people he considered as parents or close enough to it were absolutely filtering everything for him.
He was cracking a couple of eggs to scramble when Jameson's broadcast started up again, diving right into what James had hoped he'd leave be.
"... the dismissed case of academic integrity alone is suspicious when paired with all the generous donations Tony Stark has given the school over the years, but how it was an open case to begin with is even more questionable when my sources state that the papers in question were ordered not to be reviewed with not one iota of evidence that Howlett hadn't done the work on them. In fact, the sources that read two of the three papers submitted almost a year ago are of the opinion that Mr. Howlett could easily attain the kinds of invitations he's getting now to pursue graduate degrees at any of the schools that he is, in fact, considering after MIT's backstabbing." The camera panned out as Jameson tapped a stack of papers in front of him. "I'll be honest, this stuff is hard to follow, but the experts that have read it have assured me that some of the concepts here could take Stark's weapons company in an entirely different direction. This kid is not anything close to a copy of Tony Stark. Even from what I could get out of this stuff, the kid is on a different level of innovation that could benefit much more than the military-industrial complex."
As Jameson continued, James tried to make his breakfast quietly, careful not to burn anything even with how distracted he was. But the next talking point, while great for television was enough to make James pause as he poured his coffee.
"And that might be why Hydra and SHIELD tried to take him out," Jameson said with a gleam in his eyes.
"Smells good," Scott said, half startling James, who pulled out a headphone and turned his way guiltily as he lowered the volume with his free hand.
"Ah, thanks. Plenty to share, if you're hungry," James said, though he was sure Scott was going to pick up on his shiftiness sooner than later.
"Just coffee to start, thanks," Scott said.
James stepped out of the way as Scott reached for a cup, then he grabbed his plate and his mug and sat down with one earphone in and the other shoved down the front of his hoodie. He didn't realize how distracted he was as he listened to Jameson and played with his food. Not until Scott pointed it out.
"You okay?" Scott asked. He was still lost in thought himself, but even at that, halfway into his first cup of coffee, he realized James hadn't done more than play with his food.
"Fine." James looked up with an open, innocent expression in place. "Yeah, I'm just …"
"What are you listening to?"
"What?"
"What's on the earphones?" Scott asked, gesturing toward James with his mug. "Pretty easy to see you're distracted."
"Just a link that Nate sent me," James said, which was, in fact, the truth.
"And that's distracting why?" Scott said, gesturing for James to let him see.
James hesitated, but when Scott raised an eyebrow his way, he knew he was busted. James let out a sigh and pulled the headphones out of the jack and started to turn up the volume for Scott, who took the phone to watch.
"... MIT is being silent and refuses to answer questions to defend their phony accusations. They refuse to admit their involvement - or the involvement of their staff in the abduction of James Howlett on Hydra's behalf even if some of their braver professors have taken a stand to get the truth out and wish Howlett well on his pursuit of yet another high-level degree in a subject that I'm very sure will be controversial to the status quo."
He continued his rant toward the positive for long enough that both James and Scott were waiting for the other shoe to drop.
"What no one, including the Avengers, SHIELD, Stark, or even Howlett himself have bothered to do is to show the public that time spent in Hydra's clutches hasn't done anything to shift the boy's alliances to anti-American views. Sure, Viper's dead, but what's that saying of theirs? Cut off one head and two more will take its place? Representatives from Stark won't comment on anything surrounding his kid's mental status - which we've come to expect. Genosha refuses to do anything but confirm that tabloid photos of Stark's protege and the mutant crown prince frolicking beachside are genuine, and we can save our breath asking their representatives anything about the mental well being of anyone too close to mutant royalty. They won't talk. I'd be lying if I said I didn't expect, at some point, to be questioning how much about this kid is genuine and how much is carefully manufactured for his image. If we consider who's likely been coaching him in etiquette with the press, we'll probably never get direct answers on any of it, unless one of his companions missteps, that is. For now, the best we can do is to trust the billionaire playboy profiting from both the military and the publicity of his mutant golden ticket when he says the kid's alright."
Scott was quiet when the spot ended, but went right to Jameson's website to see what he had posted so far. And he stayed like that, scrolling and reading for a long moment. "What all did he say?"
"A lot. But …it's not all bad," James defended, one hand up toward Scott. "You missed … well, literally all the stuff leading up to this was almost defensive of me? Sorta. No, maybe just accusatory toward MIT. It's …" he sighed to himself, then dropped any attempt at defense. "I'm sure a transcript will be available."
"Yeah, it will," Scott said and James pulled his half-cold coffee a little closer to lean over it. "He probably won't be done after just one spot."
"No," James agreed. "He said it was going to be an ongoing series. So that's … horrible."
Scott was quiet for a moment longer as he weighed it out - and noted that Jameson's website was still littered with anti-Spider-Man rhetoric. "You know, he's been pretty supportive of the team since you guys started it up again. He's not looking at you like he looks at Spider-Man."
"Well, Spidey's got a special place of distrust for him," James said. "Menace that he is."
Scott nodded, though he didn't do more than that as he read through what the website already had, narrowing his eyes in a few places. "The thing with Magneto is going to be tricky. I wonder what he's got there," he said, half to himself.
"Not like I can run from it anyhow," James said, still halfheartedly playing with his food from time to time.
"Last I heard from Alex, that investigation's nearly wrapped up anyway," Scott said. "You'll be fine on Genosha; it's just the press that's going to be an issue." He tapped his chin. "And this stuff about Hydra… that should go away over time just from seeing you being your own person."
"You know, I was purposely not trying to bring this mess to your attention," James pointed out.
"Uh-huh." Scott kept reading, nodding to himself. "This is actually better than it could be, though. The only parts where he's on the attack are where he doesn't have answers - and that's just a tactic to get the answers, really."
"Right, well, the stuff he doesn't have answers for are the things I can't talk about with him anyhow - and neither can anyone else because that's all wrapped up with SHIELD crap, right?"
"Most of it," Scott agreed, finally leaning back. "We'll need to keep an eye on this," he said at last. "It's not… as bad as it could be, admittedly." He glanced back at James. "Honestly, it's a testament to how well you're doing that you've got him halfway in your corner."
"I wouldn't take it that far," James argued.
"I said 'halfway'," Scott said. He let out a long sigh. "Could be worse. You could be a menace. Or a terrorist."
"I mean … early days. Depending on what the people investigating in Genosha say, that could go either way. Even if I'm clear."
"I think the evidence there is in your favor," Scott said. "I know you're not following it, but some of the proceedings are public record. By all accounts, you'll be cleared easily."
"We'll see," James said.
"I think having the crown prince's sworn statement is going to be more than enough-"
"Again, that doesn't bring into account all the accusations of treachery?" James said. "Or the very deep bias, or the fact that the rule set was probably very different when it came to who it was. So, we'll see."
"God forbid anyone accuse me of blind optimism, but I think you're underestimating how much Genoshans adore their crown prince," Scott said.
"Probably," James said thickly.
Scott let out his breath and leaned further back in his seat, gesturing to the website. "I know you and Stark have a lot of the public image worked out between you, but if something comes up, let me know, please."
"You mean besides th colleges asking to set up tours? You want the press, too?"
Scott tipped his head. "I know you can handle it by yourself; I'm not - I just like to know-"
"I feel better when you do know," James said. "And honestly, if I leave it to Tony's people, things will get cross-scheduled against whatever you have figured out anyhow. If you don't mind…" James slid his phone back toward Scott. "You can have it. I don't want to talk to anyone."
Scott shook his head. "I'm no good for conversation right now either, in case you haven't noticed."
"Then lets go fishing. Forget the college crap. Forget whatever JJ has brewing. I'm okay. And if Billy wants to talk to me, he'll just zap himself wherever."
Scott smiled lightly. "Alright," he said. "And then we'll start looking at colleges."
"I honestly didn't think you'd go for that, but … great."
Chapter 109: The Old College Try
Chapter Text
From the moment James had mentioned to Scott during their fishing trip that some of the colleges had been showing an interest in him, Scott had started to pay attention to his middle kid's behavior and how he was handling phone calls and emails … and the upswing in interest from reporters, generally speaking. And what he saw was a kid that didn't want to play the ass kissing game most of the officials were firing up to lure him to tour their schools.
So he did what any good father would do and stepped in to handle it for him as much as he could ahead of actually meeting these people in person. He covered scheduling out the tours, talks, arranging for recruiters to get time to give their pitch so James could decide who to talk to and who not to talk to, and as the days moved quickly, he chaperoned visits to scan for trouble.
But at every tour, the routine quickly became the same. Once the university press -and others - wanted to take pictures, Scott bowed out. He was proud of the way James was handling things, and he did want to be there for him, but he was hanging onto his last shred of privacy with both hands - not to mention he knew for a fact that he didn't have the emotional bandwidth to handle it if anyone put together who he was and started asking questions.
Scott went to the nearest place with coffee, ordered himself whatever looked decent, and sat down, half shielding his eyes - and not just because he was tired. He was also doing a more in-depth scan for threats since James was a public figure with a target on his back.
He'd just finished a scan when someone sat down at his table, and he quickly switched from his scan back to normal vision - only to frown when he realized it was Emma Frost.
At first, she didn't say anything at all, hoping her simmering silence would speak for itself. But when he didn't give her a decent opening, she went for all she could. "Nice to see that you're alive. I imagine you're with the circus that's taking up too much space with all the board and faculty?"
"Hello, Emma," Scott said, letting his hand drop away from his face. "It's been a long time."
She hummed to herself and picked up her tea. "Why is that, I wonder?" she said, testing the waters to see what he'd do in public. Or how far she could push his manners.
Scott gave her a dry look. "It probably has something to do with having suddenly become a single father," he said.
She arched an eyebrow. "Well I won't go so far as to say I could have helped with that, but it would have been nice to know you were alive."
"No, you wouldn't have helped," Scott said simply. "What do you want, Emma? You wouldn't be here if you weren't after something."
"At the moment, a cup of tea," she said shortly. "I have two students that were expecting a tour today - only to be sidelined by Stark's little protege."
"And he keeps telling them to cut that out and give him a chance to do a normal tour," Scott said.
"Then he's delusional," Emma said thickly. "They're trying to get him to choose their institution. They'll pull out the stops. He has them competing for him."
"Yeah, nice to see them acknowledging how brilliant he is. You remember how the last school was," Scott pointed out.
"I do," Emma agreed. "He should have let me help him. Might have avoided that nasty little affair." She raised her cup again. "It was quite the stir."
"And we're done here," Scott said, getting to his feet.
"What has you so overly sensitive, Scott?" Emma said, her voice raised enough to draw the attention of a few tables nearest them. "I could have advocated to stop those ludicrous restrictions."
"Go take a tour, Emma," Scott replied as he walked away from the table.
"I can't," she said, looking properly irritated. "That boy is disrupting the whole school."
"Stole your red carpet right out from under you, huh? Damn shame," Scott said as he hit the door.
Emma narrowed her eyes as he left, but got up to follow him out. And she made her point to get him to stop by making everyone around them freeze. "Where are you in such a rush to?" she called out. "What did I do this time?"
Scott let out a frustrated sound when he saw everyone stopped around them and turned to face her, gesturing at the frozen kids. "Really?"
She echoed his gesture. "I assumed you were trying to keep from making a scene, but I'm afraid I may have tripped over some hidden issues that I can't even begin to figure out. So rather than shout your name across the quad, I thought I'd go for more subtle."
Scott shook his head at that. "There are six different security cameras just in this area, all of which now know a telepath froze everyone in place, and you're putting me in the middle of it."
She kept her chin tipped up for a few seconds, then let her shoulders drop as she rolled her eyes with a sigh. "Alright, so I'm not used to taking that into consideration. Sue me." She crossed her arms and a second later, everyone fell back into their normal movements.
"Did it ever occur to you that I've managed to stay under the radar for fifteen years," Scott said as everyone got back to moving around them - though they were close enough that the conversation was relatively private.
"Honestly, until today I thought you were dead. I'm in a little bit of shock, so no. that didn't occur to me at all."
"The lack of glasses and the civilian clothes didn't even register? Come on, Emma," Scott said with his arms crossed. "You're smarter than that."
She gestured to herself. "In case you didn't notice, I'm not exactly strutting around in a cape either." She looked over her shoulder then leaned toward him slightly. "Most people go to college tours in civilian clothes."
Scott pinched the bridge of his nose. "Emma…"
"Then I guess I'm sorry to have bothered you," Emma said, honestly sounding put out.
"Well, you showed up to complain about my son and then caused a scene," Scott pointed out. "Not a great opener."
She blinked at him for a moment. "What?"
"You knew I was James's godfather," he pointed out.
"Yes, but I didn't realize that actually meant anything. I thought you were playing helpful handmaid to Stark."
Scott turned her way with his entire body. "The whole point of being his godfather," he said, "was that if anything happened to his parents, I'd watch out for James."
"I didn't realize…" Her whole expression shifted. "Scott, I'm so sorry."
"Yeah, me too," Scott said simply.
"He never said a word when I spoke to him - neither did Stark …"
"Because I asked them not to," Scott said. "No one knows - not outside the team. And I need you to keep it that way, Emma."
"Of course," Emma agreed quickly. "I just meant … Stark thinks of him as his."
"Yeah, I'm aware."
She caught his gaze, smiling crookedly. "Then I truly am sorry. All you've suffered just from co-parenting with Tony…"
Scott couldn't help but let out a soft laugh at that. "Yeah. He's a pain in the ass, but he helped keep James alive, so…"
"Tell me your boy's given him hell at least."
"Oh, he keeps him honest," Scott swore. "He's got his mother's wit."
"I did notice that, actually," Emma said, shaking her head before she let out another sigh. "I believe I owe you a coffee. You left yours on the table. I won't press for anything, and-" she gestured to the nearest camera. "Take a seat and get a drink. I'll go deal with your recordings."
Scott didn't see the point in refusing help, especially since it was a problem of Emma's own making, so he let his shoulders drop. "Thanks," he said.
"I'll be back soon. If you're gone, I understand, but I would like to catch up. Clearly I've missed a lot, and to be perfectly honest, my students are in the little crowd following your boy around."
Scott watched as Emma headed off and then let out a breath and slipped back into the coffee shop. He had never been good at telling Emma no, and the fact was, he was trying to be civil so James could have a tour in peace. And he didn't have the energy to fight with her anyway; he'd halfway dragged himself to the tour as it was.
When Emma came back, it was with a fresh tea and a couple of chocolate chip cookies - one of which she pushed over to Scott. "The guards erased the footage, though I stopped to snap a picture of the look on your son's face when the dean here tried to put a hand on his shoulder. Just for you." She slid her phone over, wearing a smirk as she picked up her tea.
Scott chuckled when he saw the picture. "God, I love that kid," he said, shaking his head with a smile before he handed the phone back to her.
"It is rather entertaining," she admitted, looking almost as though she didn't want to admit that much. "All of them seem to expect a young version of Stark … but that glare."
"It's been long enough, half of those reporters were too young when his father died to know better."
"The reporters, yes. The faculty? I have cataloged several people who had honest flashbacks when they made the connection as the boy gave them that look."
"Yeah? Any I should be concerned about?" Scott asked, leaning forward.
She tipped her head to the side. "I don't think so, but I'll get you a list."
"I appreciate it," Scott said.
"As I understand it from Tony, it's been a bit more subtle with the military that remember."
"Yeah, the Avengers going public with their support for mutants pushed half our problems underground. Not gone, but…"
"It did," Emma admitted. "I'm shocked, honestly. Not that it worked, but that they went ahead with it. Was that your brainchild or Captain America's?"
"His. It was too soon after it happened for me… I wasn't involved," Scott admitted.
"That's a shame," Emma said. "But he always was a little slow to catch up. Glad to see he's sticking to it so hard."
"He lost a good friend too. I think it woke them up to what we'd been dealing with," Scott admitted, letting his gaze drop.
"I don't think anyone was prepared when Logan died," Emma said. "Thought for sure he'd outlive all of us."
"Yeah, I did too," Scott said tightly, then swallowed. This wasn't going well; he'd been trying to get out of the house to convince his kids he was alright, and this conversation was going to do the opposite if it kept on this track.
"You know, I offered to help rebuild the school," Emma said. "And the Academy has a whole wing named for Jubilation."
"I didn't know that," Scott said softly. "About Jubilee, I mean."
"The girl left an impression," Emma said, smiling at her tea while she made a point not to stare at Scott's scars. She had a lot of questions - none of which would be answered in a public place. And she knew she had to make the right impression to get a chance to try in private. Then, she shored her voice up to almost scold him. "You know, I hated it when she went back to your school. I thought for sure it would return a level of respect, but it just became so boring without her."
Scott smiled softly. "She… she took out most of a wing of the institute defending our kids," he said.
"Of course she did," Emma said, matching his tone.
Scott was quiet for a moment and then cleared his throat. "Sorry," he said. "I just…"
"No, don't be. I don't think I've been able to talk about them … ever. It's nice to think of her … and that wretched yellow coat."
"I was going to start training her to take over for me when I needed the break," he said.
"She would have been magnificent," Emma promised, then covered her mouth with the back of her hand. "I'm taking up too much of your time."
"It's fine," he said.
"No, it's not," Emma said as she started to gather her things again. "It was foolish for me to bother you." She smiled, though it didn't reach her eyes. "If you'd wanted to talk to me, you've had years to do it. So … I'll go. But my door is open, and I'm sure you know how to reach me if you want to."
"Come on, Emma, that's not fair," Scott said quietly.
"Maybe not, but, your son's following is starting to disperse a little bit, and I don't mind telling you that if you want to keep your cover, you would do well to go to whatever spot you and he decided on earlier. My students are very sharp and I have no doubt they'd recognize you. Even as you are." She smiled tightly and offered him her hand.
Scott shook his head and got to his feet. "Thanks - it's been a long time," he said and pulled her into a hug.
"Maybe I'll see you around," Emma said. "Though next week, my hopefuls will be on the other side of the country."
"Then you won't see us for a bit; that's not where we're headed next," Scott said.
She hesitated, halfway smiling as she turned to leave. "It all makes so much sense now," she said, half laughing, just because she knew he'd catch it.
"What does?" he asked.
"That kid of yours," she said, raising one eyebrow. "He thinks too far ahead."
"And I'm proud of him for that," Scott agreed, smiling her way, though he was distracted when James's phone rang - and since James was busy, Scott was fielding that kind of thing, in case it was one of the colleges calling about schedules and tours.
"Good afternoon, this is Betty Brant from the Daily Bugle," a pleasant voice said by way of introduction. "I'd like to speak to whoever is in charge of scheduling for James Howlett to set up an interview for Mr. Jameson's program. What times are available this week, and if not this week than next?"
Scott blinked a couple of times, straightened up, and shook his head before he'd even answered. "I'd have to talk to James," he said. "He's not keen on interviews at the best of times, and I don't think now's the best time."
"I understand completely," she said. "But I have to do my job, and unfortunately, that's going to be making a pain out of myself until I can set something up. Is there any time in the near future that works? Even as a pencilled in kind of situation?"
Scott let out a patient breath. "Miss Brant, I appreciate that this is your job, but you also have to know that between scheduling college tours and the multiple teams he's on, time is at a premium. And frankly, he's eighteen and needs a social life, too. Like I said, I'll talk to him, but I doubt this is high priority."
"I'm sure it's not," she said - and the smile was evident in her voice. "Do you have a way to take this number, or - you could do me a solid and make an appointment sometime in the next few days, then cancel it. Mr. Jameson won't know the difference."
"I have your number," Scott said simply.
"Thank you. I look forward to hearing from you, Mr-"
"Thank you, Miss Brant," Scott said and hung up.
"Well that was a little less warm than I'm used to hearing from you," Emma said after a few moments.
"It was different when they were asking after me," Scott pointed out.
"I'm well aware," Emma replied, tapping her fingers on her drink. "You know, if they're being too invasive, I could help-"
"Stark's got that covered," Scott said. "It's the whole damn reason I even agreed to his idea, so he can pull his weight."
"Fair enough," she said airly. "But if you find his style doesn't suit you, this is one of my specialties, darling."
Scott shook his head. "Thanks for the offer, really - but I only trust a handful of people with James. And he's made it pretty clear he doesn't trust you. That's an automatic disqualification."
"I hope that proves to be a temporary outlook," Emma said. "I know Stark has his opinions."
"Emma, it was nice to catch up with you and reminisce, but I've got to go meet up with James now," Scott said as he simply started to walk away. He wasn't in the mood to remind her how she'd lost James's trust, and he didn't feel like hashing it out, so he just left to go find his son.
While James was wildly uncomfortable with the big push from the press and the way each school so far was trying to win him over, he knew - deep down - that it was ultimately a good thing. The anti-mutant protesters at the colleges were sparse. Incredibly sparse. The crowds of fans, though were only growing. James had been sure that his end of things had been quiet, so he wasn't sure where, in the collegiate chain of authority his locations were getting leaked - but they were, and it wasn't just the student press corps and paparazzi that were showing up. Legitimate, main stream news providers were starting to show up, and James tried very hard to keep his focus away from any of them.
He really did want to get a layout of the schools he was considering and an idea of how academia worked for each campus. So it was frustrating when he and Scott showed up here to find faculty waiting for him instead of a student guide like any other prospective student would have. James listened to the dean as long as he could before he finally stopped the tour, not long after Scott left it, to request a student guide.
"I'm not trying to make a scene," James told the man quietly, away from the entourage that the college had sent. "But I don't expect to be with a pack of advisors and staff every minute I'm here, and I'm not planning on teaching, so … please. Any student capable of giving a basic tour is all I'm looking for."
"Our faculty planned out a whole demonstration," the man told him quietly. "Catered to the kind of focus that your previous work from MIT could build on. A student wouldn't know how to show you what we're capable of - not at the level you're working, anyhow."
"With all due respect, I don't need someone to tell me what I can accomplish," James replied. "I do, however, need to know what actually going to school is like here. Your staff can't do that."
The man paused, but seeing as his entire presentation was being derailed, he handled it extremely well. "How about a compromise? I'll call student services and see if there's someone that's not conducting general tours that can meet us after the focused presentation. It would take us that long to pull it together anyhow." The man held both hands out at his sides, palms up. "I'm sorry, we really were expecting a bigger production … your ah … I'm not sure what to call him …"
"Mr. Stark is fine for reference," James said with an understated smile. "That's how most people refer to him when they're talking to me."
The dean laughed nervously. "Of course. It's our experience that Mr. Stark expects pageantry."
"He does," James agreed. "But I am not him. I don't need to be entertained."
The dean relaxed incrementally. "Then I think we may be able to work with that." He cleared his throat and put one hand at James' shoulder to direct him but quickly pulled his hand back when James turned to stare at his hand until the man removed it. "Apologies." He was on the phone as he led the way with James and the entourage of staff and student reporters following to give an abbreviated presentation while the dean called for back up.
James was almost surprised when he turned at the end of the presentation to meet his new guide for the rest of the tour - a bubbly, bright, and very nervous young woman named Lauren, who they had clearly chosen for her appearance first and foremost. So James went out of his way to be kind to her.
He kept his mouth shut as they did their tour, only to interrupt once as she nervously rushed through her script to tell the photographers and reporters to back off. She was knowledgeable - and knew the college inside and out, and she was able to give James answers about what to do and where to go outside of class that didn't sound like it had fallen out of a google suggestion. And the more he asked her about day to day things - down to earth things - the more relaxed she got. Once she'd gone through everything she could think of, and she'd shown him through the library - even to her favorite study nook there - James had one more question for her that he needed to know.
"You've been a great guide," James told her warmly. "And I want to thank you for taking time out of your busy schedule. I'm sure you weren't on the schedule today."
She laughed nervously as she pushed a wisp of hair behind her ear. "Honestly, no, I wasn't."
"Would I be out of line if I asked you about what you've seen on how they treat women and minorities?" James asked quietly. "You can whisper if you're afraid to be overheard, but I got a weird vibe with one of those professors, so … minorities. Mutants - and how seriously do they take women's safety into mind?"
She stammered for a moment, unsure of what he was looking for. "I … I really don't …"
"If they're lax in any of those areas, I need to know," James told her. "It won't make much of a difference on my decision on where to go, but it will make a difference on how to approach this place. Do you feel safe?"
She smiled reflexively, too broadly, then shook her head 'no'.
"I didn't think so," James said quietly. "Who has it worst?"
"It depends on who's around," she said after a long moment of silence. "They're trying to turn their image around on mutants right now though, I mean … they're enforcing a ban on hate groups. So that's good, right?"
"Not if they're not protecting the young women, too," James said. "I've noticed that these places seem to focus on one group at a time. And the groups they don't focus on lose out."
"So … are you looking for the best one?" Lauren asked, frowning lightly and hoping she hadn't messed up.
"Not really, I'm still going for program first," James promised with a smile. "But I like to know what's going on. My last college was-"
"Oh, yeah, I heard all about it on Jameson's podcast," she said, nodding sagely.
"I doubt you heard all of it," James said before he could censor himself. "But … yeah. Honestly, the teachers were great. The students were afraid of me, so I didn't have many distractions."
"But … they blew it on safety," she said with a slow nod.
"On the other hand, they did fine by other students' safety, so that's really not my measuring stick."
They talked for a long while, but right about the time that Lauren was getting comfortably animated in their chat, the staff and reporters began pushing their way closer - which meant the tour was over. So, James thanked her and started the polite, terse 'thank you's and 'I'll let you know my decision soon' that seemed to be standard so far.
The walk to the car wasn't easy though. There was a gauntlet of reporters, paparazzi, students, clubs, fans, and a familiar face from James' first year at MIT. James paused, recognizing the professor from the lower level chemistry classes, who smiled at him, then very seriously shook his head 'no' from behind the dean's back as he pointed at the man.
That was clear enough confirmation of what he already suspected, so he paused to grant the student reporters a few questions and a picture before he headed to the rendezvous - with advisors still trying to win his favor right up until he dropped into the passenger seat and closed the door behind himself with a huff.
But then, his whole expression morphed from 'this is too much' to confusion, stillness, and then to a hard glare before he slowly turned his entire body toward Scott without a word.
Scott held up a hand. "I know. She came in complaining that her red carpet was snatched away."
"Why."
"Because she's used to being the VIP-"
"No. No. No. Why did you let her paw at you?"
Scott blinked, then shook his head. "No - we haven't seen each other since what happened with Graydon Creed. She named a wing after Jubilee; she really did like her, and Jubes always gets so glossed over. It was… nice to hear someone put her first."
James stared at him in disbelief for a long moment. "How much friggin' time did you spend with her?"
"Not that long - mostly, she wanted to get on my case for letting her think I've been dead this whole time, to be honest…"
"I'll bet she did."
"James, really."
"Yeah. Really."
Scott dragged a hand down his face. "Look," he said. "I know - I know - you're worried-"
"No, no. I get it. Don't worry about it. We have to hurry back to the city. I'm pretty sure I have high tea set up with Voj."
"You're hilarious," Scott said dryly.
"Same thing. More or less."
"James, I can't ignore the fact that she was part of my life and she and Jubilee did get along-"
James frowned deeper somehow. "Yes. You can. When someone isn't good to have around, you cut them out and put them in the past." he gestured ahead of them. "Wait. I'm sure Craig will back me up, even if I don't talk to him anymore. So I'll let him handle it."
"For crying out- I have one conversation - James, the only reason we ever talked is that I didn't want to cause a scene or draw attention. I'm trying to keep hold of the one shred of privacy I have left, so yes, I was civil," Scott said sharply.
James lost most of his glare and shifted his focus to his hands. "Okay. I'm just … I need to know you're okay, and I don't trust that woman not to try something."
"Frankly, neither do I," Scott said. He let his shoulders drop. "We're on the same team, James."
"I'll get a new inducer worked up for you tonight."
"Thanks." Scott took a deep breath and let it out. "So… Columbia turned into a circus, huh?"
"Not really. No worse than Georgetown. Just …they're all trying too hard." He caught Scott's attention at the next light, knowing full well that he'd expect a full run down. "They didn't know how to react when I told them I wasn't going to accept any of their prestigious scholarships. It was a nice gesture, but …I don't need it, and when I pick one, I'm not going to take anything away from someone who could use it."
Scott smirked at him for that. "But you haven't made a final decision?"
"I know it's not here." He kicked his feet out in front of himself. "They have a few good programs, but it's not as competitive as I want. It would be good for a different focus, though."
"Then we'll try the next place," Scott said, reaching over to ruffle James's hair. "Haven't said it today, so just so you know - I'm proud of you. You know that, right?"
"You can still be proud of me when grown adults are acting like that around me?"
"They're not my kids. I didn't raise fawning fanboys," Scott said with a crooked smirk. "Not my circus."
"Have you seen Nate around Hawkeye? It's so much worse than fawning fanboy."
"Okay, in his defense, he gets that entirely honestly, because I was even worse around Jean at that age."
"From you?" James teased. "I am shocked at this turn of events."
"Yeah, yeah," Scott grumbled good-naturedly. "Did you want to grab burgers or not?"
"Only if you do," James said.
"Honestly, I could use a good burger," Scott said as the light turned green and he made a left. "It's been a busy day."
"Yeah, these campus tours are like extended press conferences," James said.
"If you prefer, you can use the inducer and you can see the campus and get a feel for the student life without the full-court press."
"Believe it or not, I kinda need to do it this way," James admitted after a moment. "I'm not going to wear an inducer on campus if I can avoid it. It'd just tip people off that I use them… then that'd be a problem eventually."
"Fair enough. Just wanted to give you the option," Scott said.
"Yeah, well… speaking of options," James said slowly. "Jan's new uniform designs. Have you seen them?"
"Yeah, she wanted to run it by me in case it would give me a heart attack," Scott said, trying and failing to give him a dry smirk.
"Then you should know that I wanted to do it eventually anyhow," James said. "But I said a long time ago that I think I need to earn the yellow."
"You have," Scott promised immediately. "And I can promise you - with everything I am - he's just as proud of you as I am."
James' shoulders relaxed at that. "Okay. I also wasn't going to do it until you're okay with it, too."
"I think you'll be amazing," Scott promised. Then, because he couldn't resist, he added with a smirk, "You'll completely outshine him, too. He'd agree."
"Well, then you're probably both wrong, but …I think I'll be distancing from red to draw a line with Tony, if you want the truth." He smirked. "He needs it a little sometimes and the comparisons there are already too much."
"Always," Scott chuckled.
"I don't know about you," Nate said as he and Kate settled in to her new place. "But I don't think I'm cut out for college life."
"Oh?"
"Yeah. I mean … what do I need a degree in anyhow?" Nate asked distractedly as he started pulling ingredients out of the cabinets as if he had done this far more often than he had. "Not like I need it to be a superhero. Which I already am."
Kate hopped up onto the counter, smirking to herself as she watched Nate work. After she'd officially graduated high school, she'd asked her parents for help moving out, and they gave her the apartment down the hall from the one the Summers family used for emergencies. The family who used to live there had moved, so the timing was just right. And all they asked was that she take care of the place. Rent was included in her Avengers salary, so really, all she had to do was figure out groceries with her stipend money, and that was that.
Having a telekinetic as powerful as Nate had definitely helped the move go quickly, especially because he just peeked in her head to see how she wanted the place arranged and had then placed everything where she wanted it to be, too. Which she loved about him. She loved it when he showed off - especially when he showed off by taking care of her.
But now, he was in her kitchen acting like he owned the place, and it was so sexy. She loved how much he felt like part of her home already and how comfortable he was with her and -
"-wait, are you making Miss Hale's banana bread?"
Nate paused to look up at her as if he'd been caught. "... maybe…"
Kate broke into a huge grin. "Did you pluck it from her head and archive it for stress relief?" She clapped her hands together, obviously delighted. "What else can you bake? Did you steal her cinnamon bun recipe? Can I get breakfast in bed?"
Nate let his shoulders drop. "Listen. With all the stupid going on, your choices are let me do this or I can make soup. Your call."
"Did I say I was stopping you?" Kate asked. "No, I did not. I think it's cute, actually. You bonded so hard with your future stepmom."
"Yeah, and now it's all a mess," Nate said. "And she won't talk to anyone, and the way it's going, that might not ever happen."
Kate hopped down from the counter and stole a kiss. "I don't know what's going on with her, because it came out of nowhere, but, I mean, my parents were on and off for years and worked it out. I don't believe in saying 'never' when it works as well as it does like for your dad and Miss Hale and for my parents."
"I'd go peek and see what's wrong myself, but Dad made me promise to keep out of it. I hate this stupid limbo nonsense." he pointed a finger at her. "And this isn't like whatever went on with your parents, I'm pretty sure."
"So… the part where they worked so well that only superheroics could break them up…"
"No, but I bet your Mom would tell you why they were on and off."
"Yeah, okay, so the metaphor isn't a one-to-one," Kate said. "I'm just trying to cheer you up. I know how much Annie means to you." She kissed him again. "I'm on your team, handsome."
Nate kept his focus lowered as he tried to come up with a reasonable response, but barring that, instead he said: "So what do you want in bed again?"
Kate's grin turned a little more playful. "Oh, I love you," she teased and pulled him into another kiss.
While the college tour was still ongoing, Scott answered James's phone when needed. He suspected James was trying to give him a project to keep him engaged with the world, but he also knew he couldn't back down, either. If he tried to turn down the project itself, that would only spark even more worries, and the last thing Scott needed was some kind of damn intervention in his living room with Toby or something.
Still, he was glad to turn down reporters trying to ride in on Jameson's coattails to a story, and he'd even gotten to the point where Betty Brant would call, acknowledge that she wasn't getting anywhere, and joke about it.
That, of course, only lasted until Jameson's patience started to wear thin - and Scott found himself answering the phone to hear Jameson himself on the other line.
"Listen, pal, I don't know what you're trying to pull here. You can give someone else the runaround, but that isn't going to work with me," Jameson said before Scott had even said more than 'hello.'
Scott pinched the bridge of his nose. "I've already said - multiple times - that I can't schedule anything. It's not a matter of trying to block you. He's in the middle of a college search in addition to participation on two teams. What the hell makes you people think that's a schedule open to fit in anything as time-consuming and stressful as a press appearance."
"And I'm very sure that he already knows where it is he's going and all of this is just for pageantry," Jameson shot back.
"No Howlett in this or any life does things for pageantry," Scott said dryly.
"I find that hard to believe considering his ties to Tony Stark. You can't tell me that this whole fiasco isn't a presentation and a way to rub it in MIT"s face."
"I can, actually. I did tell you that very thing."
Jameson sounded irritated, and Scott could almost hear him working over his mustache. "Listen. There is a lot to unpack with everything that has gone on just in the past year with that kid," he said patiently, though his temper was clearly rising. "Any direction I can take on this story is speculation without something from him - or … someone in that group that can be a reliable source. Hell. I'd take your statement. Anonymous. Fully protected from everyone. I just want some facts. You know …something that'll derail the idiots sensationalizing everything.."
"Sure," Scott said. "He's a kid trying to go to college and that's the extent of it."
"He's a kid that's been manipulated by Hydra, who was subverting colleges all over the world."
"Right, so your story is that Hydra has been manipulating people," Scott pointed out.
"No. That's like reporting that the sky's blue."
"No kidding," Scott said dryly. "Listen, I get that you've found someone famous and you're attached to this idea in your head of what you can make of this story, but-"
"Damnit, that's not it," Jameson blustered. "I refuse to let other reporters take my story and use it to sling mud. Unless, of course it's warranted - and my gut tells me that what they're saying isn't the story here. I just need …. Half an hour. Twenty minutes. Tops."
"Like I said, he's not doing interviews while he's touring, but I'll let him know you personally called," Scott said. "I appreciate you're trying to be accurate, and I'm glad to hear you're not throwing mud, but I, unfortunately, was not born with the mutation that lets me grant time outside of twenty-four hours in the day."
"No, you're just the guy writing up what those twenty four hours contain."
Scott laughed; he couldn't help it. "Jameson, if you knew anything, you'd know that there is no such thing as policing Wolverine."
Jameson paused for a moment, long enough that Scott could get through his amusement. "Is that a direct quote?"
"No, just lived experience," Scott said.
"Can you at least set something up after the dog and pony show screeches to a halt?"
"I'll let him make that call, but I will tell him you called," Scott promised, then hung up, still shaking his head at the whole situation.
Somehow, Scott felt as if he'd flipped the old scenario where he spoke in public and Logan kept people off his back on its head - and he wasn't entirely sure how that had happened. He stared at the phone for a long moment before he put it back into his pocket and looked across the quad as James tried to gracefully get away from the group of fawning potential classmates and staff. This time though, Scott was in a new inducer, and no one knew who he was, nor would they be able to, so instead of passively waiting until James could shake them, he made his way closer to take him by the arm and extricate him from the crowd.
And though Scott didn't look like himself, James knew it was him, so he went with it as Scott started to direct him on what was next. "We should get away from the school a little bit and grab some coffee before we hit the road."
"You find a place already?" James asked, though the last couple of hangers-on followed almost all the way up to the car they were using that was registered to Tony.
"Several," Scott agreed as they both climbed in with Scott at the wheel. Once the doors were closed, they fell into a now-weathered routine. "Well?"
James was quiet for a long moment, which at least told Scott that this tour had gone better than he'd expected. "Well," he said after a moment as Scott pulled up to a stop sign before turning onto the main road. "They have some impressive chops."
Scott's eyebrows rose and he turned toward James before he decided on where to go. "You sound surprised."
"I shouldn't be," James said. "But I am all the same."
"So this one isn't out entirely?"
"Not yet," James said, sounding surprised at that, himself.
"Wasn't expecting Yale to make that big of an impression."
"I knew they had good programs," James clarified. "I just … I guess I spent too much time in Cambridge."
Scott smiled, then turned down the road to the coffee shop he'd found that was highly rated by the students, not the adults, since … that might just be a viable place by the way James was talking.
They'd gotten a pattern down, and Scott was pretty in tune with how to handle James based on how he was doing after the tours … but since he was still actively thinking, Scott didn't want to interrupt that train of thought just yet. Not until James got out of his head and more into teasing and joking around a little. And the best way to do that was to give him a little coffee and some food.
The two of them waited in line, made their orders, then found a table to wait for their things to come to them. As was the case most of the time when they stepped out when James wasn't hiding who he was - which happened more and more often- there was a short period of hushed whispers and quiet conversation as recognition flowed through the spattering of college-age kids and other patrons of the coffee shop. And Scott watched as James's eyes shifted from left to right, obviously taking in the general consensus as Scott again scanned for trouble.
Neither of them had much to say while they waited, and it took that long for both of them to get a good handle on what was happening around them, though, when their waitress brought their orders over, James seemed a little more like himself and pulled off a reasonably friendly, if not weary interaction that left the girl smiling brightly at both of them as James pulled his latte over to himself.
Scott watched him as he discreetly sniffed the liquid before replacing the lid for a cautious sip, and the action was so reminiscent of Logan, Scott felt badly over all the kid had dealt with in the past year. Even if he, the original X-Men, and the Avengers prepared him meticulously, the kid was still finding ways to learn lessons he never should have had to deal with … and the paranoia over being poisoned again was well earned.
"Everything okay?" Scott asked.
"Yeah," James said, though he didn't touch his coffee again right away. Scott wasn't sure when James had started up this little habit of tasting and waiting on everything he got from someone else's hands, but since they'd been traveling to colleges, he'd noticed how James did that even with vending machine drinks. "Just easing into it."
Scott hummed to himself, but started on his coffee all the same, then waited until James actually started to relax enough to get partially through lunch with him before he decided to break the ice a little bit and let him know how the phone screening was going. "Hey," Scott started out. "So you know, JJ called personally while you were taking your tour. Now that it's him and not his secretary, he'll keep calling - but I can field him forever if that's what you want."
James looked up at him with an expression straight out of his father's playbook when something was unbelievably stupid. His eyebrows were drawn together, and his nose partially scrunched up. "Why?"
"Why would I field him, or why-"
"Why … as in … why? Doesn't he want to talk to someone that can actually answer him?"
Scott smirked. "He's a reporter, James. He wants to talk to the person he's reporting on first and foremost. Everyone else is just supporting testimony."
"That would be a very boring interview for him," James said, though he looked as if he was thinking it over. After a while, he looked up at Scott again. "And he called my phone? Not … I figured he'd go through Pepper."
"I'm pretty sure Pepper has told them where they can stick it," Scott pointed out.
"She's amazing," James said with a nod before he started picking at his scone. He was quiet for a long moment. "I didn't realize he was pestering that much. I've just been letting it go to voicemail when its not a contact."
"And you haven't been checking your voicemail," Scott guessed.
"Not really, no," James admitted. "I can start texting back some of them."
"I've got it covered. You focus on what school you'd like to go to in the fall."
"Alright, I'll try," James said, then blew out a breath. "Who's next?"
"Just a few more, really," Scott said. "Cornell is coming up after the conference with Tony." He smirked and tipped his head to catch James' gaze. "You just about ready to do the comparisons?"
"Let's get through that one first. This one is actually holding my attention better than I expected."
Scott's smirk widened. "Gathering all the data first?"
"Might as well," James agreed.
Scott smiled to himself. "When you're ready-"
"Yeah, I know. Not there yet," James said with a nod, but that only had Scott relaxing a little since he was thinking, and clearly, he was earnestly taking in all the options if he hadn't ruled Yale out yet. Which … made him feel a little better across the board simply because all of this wasn't just a handy distraction that his kid was using against him.
Jimmy Barton had made a habit of doing what Nate asked - and he had for years. Naturally, he'd give him a hard time about whatever it was, but this time, it just seemed … much more serious. And he knew Nate wouldn't have asked him to tail Uncle Scott unless it was with good reason … but Jimmy was just about as sneaky as his mother was, and getting better every day.
So he did exactly as Nate asked. He followed him, kept semi-close, and paid attention. He vaguely remembered how miserable Scott had been when Jan stopped coming to the apartment. So the fact that Annie had ended things with him … well. The whole Barton clan was watching carefully. But none as closely as Jimmy.
Since it was summer, he had time ad opportunity to follow Scott without the pesky trouble of school screwing up the day. So he used the cover of people milling around and close by parks to follow Scott as he kept his daytime activities far away from his part of the borough.
The first time he followed Scott to that area - well away from both Brooklyn Heights and Bed-Stuy - he wasn't sure what Scott was up to. But … Williamsburg really wasn't a bad area, so he didn't think Natasha would care too much if he followed him to one of the ritzier areas. That was, after all, why she'd been alright with this little assignment anyhow.
But when Scott picked a cafe and took a seat, Jimmy had to find something to do that wasn't overly obvious. Which, he could totally handle. And with all the tourists around trying to get the shot of the Williamsburg bridge, he could play that part off pretty easily.
In fact, just about everything about this coffee spot was one that went against Scott's usual pick. It was pretty public. There were lots of people around that weren't normally part of that area. Lots of extra cameras. Obvious non-New Yorkers everywhere. And it almost felt … uppity. Of course, that matched with the neighborhood, but it made his appearance in his normal street clothes totally a great cover. Touristy.
He was almost enjoying people watching when Emma freakin' Frost showed up and Greeted Scott as if this was a planned event.
"No futzing way," Jimmy said to no one in particular, then snapped a quick picture of the two of them at the cafe to send to Nate with the caption of 'is it just me, or does this look bad?'
As bad as it looked, though, Scott honestly hadn't expected to see Emma there. He was keenly aware of how worried everyone was about him and had started going to cafes to get his coffee and then go back home so at least he was getting out of the house. He didn't think that would get everyone completely off his back, but it would make them a little less overprotective - at least, that was the hope.
But he hadn't considered that Emma would frequent that area of town. And he was trying not to draw attention to himself when he didn't have the mental energy to do more than pretend to be a tourist. And since Emma was well-known, he was just trying to be polite.
If he was honest, he'd been looking for an excuse to get out of the conversation as it was. He didn't have it in him to make small talk with anyone, let alone someone with the complicated history he had with Emma - further complicated by what she'd pulled with James. He'd been scanning the crowd… so when he recognized Jimmy, he let out a soft sound and got to his feet.
"Sorry, Emma; one of my students is playing spy for my kids," he said without explaining himself further before he headed right to Jimmy and put his hand on the kid's shoulder.
Jimmy had been too busy texting Nate to notice Scott was coming until he was already headed his way, so he couldn't try to pretend he wasn't there. Instead, he gave Scott a crooked grin that looked just like his father - which almost looked out of place when he was in so many ways a carbon copy of his mother. "How come you're on a date with the White Queen?" Jimmy asked before Scott could say anything - using a tactic he'd learned from his mom to deflect questioning by playing interrogator first.
And it worked; Scott froze and stared at Jimmy before he steered him out of the cafe. Fast. He didn't even answer the question until they were well beyond the cafe, and even then, he said, "Don't say anything like that in public again."
"No one was looking our way."
"That doesn't mean anything," Scott said. "And you know it. I know your mother taught you better."
Jimmy shrugged his shoulders underneath Scott's hand. "No one ever pays attention to me," he pointed out.
And that much, actually, was true. To some extent. Jimmy was coming into a mutation, and it seemed to operate not quite at the telepathic level but on a subconscious level. He was still learning to use it, so at the moment, he couldn't do more than make people subconsciously ignore him, but Betsy was sure he had the potential to make anything or anyone functionally invisible and ignored.
Scott let out a long sigh. "I wasn't on a date," he said.
"Looked like it."
"I didn't know she'd be there."
"Okay," Jimmy said in a tone that clearly said he didn't believe Scott.
Scott sighed. "Does your mother know you're following me?"
"Yes."
Scott raised an eyebrow at Jimmy and then shook his head, taking out his phone to text Kate: Stop sending your minions after me. Then, he put his phone in his pocket. "Well, let's get you home," he said. "Truth be told, right now, you're my excuse to get out of there anyway."
Jimmy grinned up at him. "Well, look at that. Kate owes me five bucks."
"Do I want to know what you were betting on?"
"No, because if I keep doing it, I get more money."
Scott shook his head, but he couldn't help but smirk. "Alright, Jimmy."
Chapter 110: Light Gossip
Chapter Text
While James was still amazingly on the fence and continuing his tour of colleges and ever expanding options, Kate was preparing for a very important dual-purpose party to announce her college intentions after her own short, but more targeted college tour.
Not that anyone there was surprised by her announcement. She got all the girls together, brought out a custom-ordered cake, and revealed the message: I'm not going anywhere!
Literally no one was surprised, though. Rachel was a telepath and shared everything with America. Cassie, May, and Dani had grown up with her telling any Avenger that would listen that she was going to be a hero her whole life. Mia had been pouring her heart out to Kate about wanting to get an engineering degree and knew Kate wasn't at all interested in college (even though she was very supportive as a friend). And Lexi was literally Kate's sister.
But this was also an excellent excuse for Kate to show off her new apartment, so the "college reveal" also totally doubled as a housewarming party, and that part was more fun. Since Nate had done most of the help setting up the place, the girls hadn't seen it unpacked and without boxes thrown everywhere.
It was the perfect night to have their girls-only party, too. Nate was taking a moment to guilt trip his dad into doing something engaging with him while James and Billy volunteered to go on what all signs said was a simple pick up run in the midwest. Tommy was staying close to the tower to distract his dad - mostly by torturing Tony with his still new 'grandfather' title.
The girls wasted absolutely no time ordering pizza, popping some popcorn, turning on terrible rom-coms, and lounging around in their pajamas for the best slumber-party celebration they could come up with. They took most of the cushions off the couch and all of the blankets out of the closet and off the bed to pile into the living room, so the place was officially broken in, too.
"We should do this for you when you find a place, Dani," Kate said, throwing a kernel of popcorn her way. "Heard you got accepted into the journalism program at NYU."
"Yeah, the way Mom tells it, I'll have two degrees and an internship with the New York Times by the time I'm old enough to drink," Dani laughed, then smirked and poured some of the champagne America had brought. "Legally."
"I mean, she's not wrong. Aren't you applying to internships this year?" Rachel pointed out, telekinetically stealing the champagne back so she and America could have some more. "And doing summer semester if you don't get it the first go round?"
Dani shrugged. "I'm not patient," she said simply.
"Yeah, no one here can relate to that," May teased.
"Never even heard the word. Can you use 'patient' in a sentence?" Kate agreed, frowning when her phone went off with a notification. She checked it - "Hey, Rachel, Jimmy says your dad is getting dinner with the rabbi to talk over some logistical stuff, so no sighting of the Great White Whale- I mean Witch - I mean whatever she is."
"Oh, good. At least that's good news. Is he going to get spotted again?" Rachel asked, smirking to herself since Jimmy had been so proud of his unbustable record.
"He says it doesn't count when your dad has cybernetic eyes. He can't fool electronics."
"So he's got a handicap?" Rachel laughed.
Kate smirked. "Something like that. But-" She leaned forward. "Betsy told him if he can focus better, he should be able to get people to ignore what they're seeing on readouts, too."
"Ooh that should be fun," Rachel said, leaning toward her. "I'll bet I can help him with that if Betsy is irritating him. She's kind of focused on other things right now."
"The adorable little girl they're in the process of adopting, you mean?" Cassie said, grinning widely.
"Yes. Those things," Rachel agreed. "Warren said they really will pick out Godparents soon. I think it'll end up being the whole team the way they're going."
"I mean, who can resist?" Mia pointed out, her tail swaying easily. "Her name is Angela. It's like she was tailor-made for Angel. Everyone wants in."
"She really was," Rachel agreed. "And she's warming up to our team finally. For the longest time it was only James and Nate that she was alright with. Ugh. That was some pretty harsh whiplash for that kid."
"Hard to blame her. Not everyone can get rescued from the mob by Storm for their introduction," Kate teased.
"Yeah, well you're a little spoiled," Rachel shot back. "It's okay."
"I am, aren't I? Can you imagine if Tony had gotten custody?" Kate teased.
"You'd be way worse," Cassie deadpanned, picking the unpopped kernels out of her bowl.
"Probably have to stop hanging out with you," Mia agreed. "You'd be nearing Hellfire Club territory."
"Ugh." Kate threw a throw pillow at Mia, who dodged it. "That's disturbing."
"No way," America said. "Hip holes and bustiers don't mix."
"I like how it's the outfit and not the fact that I'm too good a person," Kate drawled out.
"Well, obviously. This is the spoiled princess version we're talking about," May pointed out - relieved to be back in the inner circle of young heroes. She honestly had been surprised when Kate invited her to the slumber party, and she'd had to pull her mom in on her argument to get her father to back off and let her go hang out in Bedford Stuyvesant.
"The more spoiled princess," America corrected her, and Kate threw popcorn at her. "You know, for someone who trades in aim, you suck, Princess."
"Shut up," Kate said, throwing more popcorn at America - which ultimately led to a popcorn fight.
And that would have gone on indefinitely, too, if Rachel's phone hadn't gone off and America hadn't stopped with a groan to say, "If it's another reporter, I'm throwing your phone into another dimension."
"It's not like I can stop them very easily," Rachel pointed out as she sent the call to voicemail and silenced her phone. "Sorry. I thought I had it silenced already."
"Getting harassed again?" Kate asked, frowning and picking popcorn out of her hair.
"Yeah, they want a statement about one thing or another - the stories change depending on who's calling. But, they can't get to my brother, so they're pestering me." Rachel pulled her feet up underneath her as she tried to look more casual than she felt. She was still bothered by the insinuations the press had latched on to when they first figured out her identity. And it still didn't matter that both she and James denied any fooling around - and it didn't even seem to matter that both of them had been spotted with their respective sweethearts. Somehow, some of the press had decided that America and Billy were just covers.
"And since no one knows the family connection, I'm sure that's been fun," Kate said, rolling her eyes. "I'm getting calls and I'm just on the team with him. I can't imagine the fact that they know you're close."
"It's pretty stupid," Rachel agreed. "Did Nate tell you about their coffee stop after running by the tower the other day? Nate in the inducer, James refused to, and when the guy started pushing, James looked over his head and acted like he didn't exist."
"Yeah, Nate told me he was trying not to bust up laughing," Kate said, grinning. "He's just glad no one's bothering him, because anyone who thinks about asking him about his relationship to me suddenly forgets what they're asking about."
"Well, and he keeps changing his inducer," Rachel pointed out. "Which is great."
"Yeah, one time he came home and tried to kiss me in it and I was like… yeah, no, feels wrong," Kate said.
"Oh, really?" Rachel asked, dramatically re-crossing her legs and leaning into her fist with her chin. "When he came home? Sounds cozy."
Kate looked around to see that the girls were all watching her, and she brushed her hair out of her face. "It's not, like, official or anything…"
"No? Then what are your intentions with my sweet little baby brother?"
"Ummm… yes."
"There's not a good way to answer her," Dani said.
"Probably not," Kate said, though after her initial fumbling, she was starting to get back her good mood. "Besides, it's kind of an open secret that Nate's not moving out of that house until Scott's not post-Annie depressed."
"Oh, I know. Unless you were to go back to say, Cambridge or something," Rachel teased. "Then he'd be right back with you there. In the clubhouse. Playing house."
"First of all, I loved the clubhouse. Second of all? Yes."
Rachel grinned at her. "Good."
Kate brushed her hair off her shoulder and returned the grin. "How is your dad, by the way? I get the stressed-Nate report and the Jimmy spy report, but you've got the inside scoop."
"Torn between the two - and pleasantly distracted with a job to do," Rachel said. "He has his moments, but it's enough work keeping up with the schedules and dealing with the pushy press that he has to keep focus up. Which is actually, kind of nice."
"Mom says Summerses just need jobs to do," Mia said lazily, stealing popcorn with her tail to throw it up in the air and catch it in her mouth.
"She's not wrong," Rachel said. "And I'm more like Dad than Nate is, so I can admit it."
"I told you he was stress baking the other day, right?" Kate said, her eyes alight. "He imprinted on Annie like a duck."
"Yep. Just like a little baby duck," Rachel agreed. "But he only does that when he's here. He's afraid to trigger Dad by baking."
"Which is why my apartment smells like baked goods," Kate said, smiling lightly.
"You did a fine job of domesticating him," Dani laughed.
"Right? Can you imagine once we get married?"
"Are you planning on him staying home with the kids?" Dani teased.
"Oh, totally," Kate said without missing a beat.
"He'll love it," Rachel said as she settled in with America a little better. "He's half kid himself, and probably always will be."
"When James isn't hogging the little kids on missions, Nate's the squishiest," Mia agreed. "You guys need about five of your own."
"After Billy, you mean," Rachel said.
Mia closed one eye. "Billy beats Nate for squishy when James is holding the kid," she decided.
"Okay, I'll let you think that," Rachel said.
"Okay, I will."
"I think the real news here is that Kate's not even denying the marriage and kids plan," Cassie said, and Kate whispered "traitor" her way.
"That's not news," America said. "At all. She's been hooked on him since before his voice dropped."
"Accurate. I saw it," Dani agreed with a delighted laugh.
"I think the first time she said she was gonna marry him, she was four," May put in.
"Long term planning," America said, nodding slowly. "Way to a Summers' heart?"
Mia snorted audibly. "It is. Now do me and Tommy. Demon and the grandson of Magneto…"
"Just watch how fast you're going," America advised. "I don't want to have to kill Billy's brother but I will."
"Oh my lord, I was making a joke and you're acting like my mother," Mia groaned dramatically.
"No, chica, I would do it for your mother. Hands clean. Sneakers … not so much."
"Ask her what college she's thinking of attending," Cassie stage-whispered.
"Is it the one in Genosha?" May asked with a grin. "Its the one in Genosha, isn't it? It is."
"It's got a robotics course taught by Vision," Mia pointed out.
"A future father in law for a teacher. Mmhmm. Thought so," May said, nodding with a grin.
"Better get started on that paperwork," Kate said. "I heard there's a whole official process."
"It's like filling out an application to be considered to take home a puppy," Cassie said. "With a thorough background check."
"Why do you know this?" Kate asked.
Cassie shrugged. "My stepdad wants me to be a detective." Then, she grinned. "Billy's a terrible person to practice questioning. Told me everything the second I even looked like I wanted to ask what was going on with that."
"Wanda offered to repeal the law, you know," Kate said.
"And my brother is an idiot," Rachel said. "Said he wasn't going to screw up anything else over there."
"This, too, is not news," Lexi said, looking up from petting Lucky, who had joined the girls for the party.
"I just wish that stupid report would get out and over with already," Rachel said.
"Tommy said it should be, what, a couple weeks at most?" Mia shrugged. "They want to put it out there, but I think they wanted to talk to Lorna one more time, since she was the one who saw the security footage and they trust her story."
"Before it got magnetized, you mean," Cassie said. "I heard about that, too. Somehow."
"Yep, real mystery that they're not interested in pursuing too closely," Mia said. She let her tail drop a bit. "I think Wanda's been quietly slow-walking the report because of all the other drama that happened."
"She'll be doing that forever if that's what's going on," May pointed out.
"Which is why it's finally coming out," Mia agreed.
"Whatever," May said in a sigh. "She'll just dismiss it if anyone is found to be at fault."
"That's true," Mia agreed.
"It just depends on how they weight it," Rachel added in an attempt to be diplomatic. "It'll be fine either way, though."
"Yeah, worst case scenario, Wanda steps in and pardons him and he can carry on being a cabana boy," Kate said easily.
"Ooh, what if she has to get rid of that law anyhow so he's not just a cabana boy?" May said with a grin.
"She'd do it too," Mia said, grinning. "She's basically let me know me and James are already part of the family in her eyes, and she's literally willing to change reality for family."
"That is very true," Rachel said, then threw a pillow at Mia to redirect. "So … moving on from all that very squishy stuff …"
"Ooh, I know," Mia said, grinning over at Lexi. "When are you joining the team, huh?"
Lexi pulled a face. "Cap says I have to be this many years to ride this ride," she said, holding her hand up to ear level.
"You're still, what, a year-ish from sixteen?" Cassie said.
"Yeah." Lexi sighed and snuggled into Lucky. "Any tips?"
"Puppy dog eyes," Kate said, and Lexi stuck her tongue out at her big sister. "Seriously, though, try Jan. She was our advocate for getting X patches; she's on our side for sure."
"She said she'd work on the uniform designs," Lexi said slowly. "But she didn't offer up any hot tips yet."
"They got spooked by all the spectacularly bad stuff lately," America said, waving her hand. "Give 'em time. They're all ready to drop dead of coronaries every six seconds."
Mia waved her hand. "It's because they're on Avengers level." She lifted one shoulder to her ear. "Mom said they never did deal with the same kind of bad guys. So … here we are."
"Here we are," Lexi agreed, sighing. "It sucks being in the younger group sometimes, just so you know. They're getting more and more convinced we should be, like, legal adults to start. Cap's been muttering about that every time I ask him."
"I promise to try my very best to avoid drama that will make Cap make good on that," Kate said with one hand over her heart.
"Oh please," May said. "How many times have you been kidnapped by Hydra again? All total?"
"Do we count times when I broke out within ten minutes?"
"Yes."
Kate closed one eye. "Twenty … nine. As of two weeks ago."
"Ish," Rachel added. "To be safe."
"Well, yeah, I don't remember all of the times from when I was little and Mom got me out before I was even aware I was in trouble."
"Most of them were lackluster, so you're forgiven," Rachel laughed. "I used to think you were all going to pick up and move like we did."
"I used to think that too, actually," Kate admitted. "The first time I was in real trouble and not just something Mom could fix in half an hour, Mom had just had Lexi, and I overheard her and Dad genuinely discussing whether it was time to take a long break for civilian life."
"She would have hated it," Rachel decided.
"Yeah. Dad moved all the time when he was a kid, so he wasn't thrilled about not giving me stability, either," Kate said. "And Mom still thinks if she stops doing hero work, she's let the scales tip the wrong way."
"She and my dad have more in common than I thought," Rachel said. "Expressed a little differently, but still."
"Probably why they became friends," Kate said.
"Lucky that's all," America said heavily. "Can you imagine the anxiety levels on the children if they got together instead?"
Kate leaned forward delightedly. "Mom told me once that she informed Dad if he didn't want to get married, she'd go after Scott. Swear to God."
"No," America said in a hushed tone.
"Said he had a ready-made family for her, including her little uncle's son and a redhead who keeps her dad in his place…"
"Oh, my god." America was grinning broadly. "And that's the reality that Tony got you."
"And me and Jimmy are Summerses," Lexi said.
"Only if she cheated on him with your actual dad," America pointed out. "Otherwise, they'd be little overly anxious half-Russian spies."
"Jimmy already thinks he's a spy," Lexi laughed.
"Yeah, but … imagine that with laser face or whatever Scott used to do," May said. "I don't know the technical term, I'm not being a jerk, I swear."
"Optic blasts," Mia said.
"Yes. That's it. Optic blasts," May said, snapping her fingers.
"Could be fun," Lexi said thoughtfully. "But then I wouldn't get to talk to Lucky, huh, boy?" She ruffled Lucky's ears.
"Again, you're missing how genetics work," May said in a heavy sigh. "Clearly that's an inherent trait from the Barton side."
"Geez, May, we play pretend and joke around about a reality and you gotta be classist."
"I can't pretend with unreasonable science!" May defended.
Lexi rolled her eyes. "Whatever, May."
"Well I like unreasonable science," Rachel said. "And in this scenario, I want a pony."
"Done," Kate said without missing a beat.
"Yay! I'll keep it in Dad's living room. He won't mind."
"And ride it into battle like a knight in fiery armor," Cassie teased.
"No, I don't want it getting hurt. I'll just ride it into the kitchen for popcorn refills and coffee in the morning," Rachel reasoned, glad to get the discussion off into more ridiculous territory. Especially when she knew May hated it.
"Fair enough," Cassie agreed. "And in this universe, I obviously turn into an ant."
"Different ant depending on your mood," Mia giggled.
"But Nate still comes home to Kate," Rachel teased. "Bringing gifts of fresh banana bread as an offering."
"Damn straight," Kate said. "And since Tony's my dad, my kitchen has the nicest appliances."
"That are never used unless Nate is there," Rachel said. "Unless … he's not your Jarvis, is he?"
"God, no. Please don't make me think about it like that."
"I'll project him in a french maid outfit if you need it," Rachel offered, then held up one finger. "Ooh, wait, no. I'll project that to him. As a suggestion."
"Remind me to stay on your good side."
"Shouldn't have to remind you," Rachel shot back. "You should just know by now."
"Good point. Gotta get that in there now that Nate's coming home with me."
"Yep - but hey, don't worry. We'll plan out your next announcement party for you."
"Perfect. I expect a French maid outfit."
"Depends on the announcement," May said under her breath.
"Better not or Mom'll kill him," Lexi muttered May's way.
Cassie tipped her head toward May and Lexi. "They have a point."
"We already covered that," Rachel said.
"I think this is the part where we start making fun of the movie," Mia said, grabbing a new champagne bottle with her tail.
"Woah, easy little part demon girl," Rachel said, diving right back into her usual big sister mode. "Your mom will lose it if you get home tipsy."
"This is not my first time drinking, Rach," Mia said. "It's legal in Genosha and Wakanda."
"Yes, but I don't want it to be your last," Rachel said. "And how drunk did you get in Genosha?"
"We're not talking about that."
"The newspapers sure are, though," Lexi muttered under her breath.
"I kinda think we should," Rachel said. "Especially since there's been so much attack on Kate and my brother while they're living in sin - or whatever that crowd calls it."
"It's the evil mini-Magneto. Corrupting the goddess," Cassie said seriously. "We should all be worried."
"Oh, obviously," May agreed. "Because no one here would ever break into alcohol before they're of age. Nope. Never ever."
"No one here would ever break into alcohol that her cop stepdad could hear about, nope," Cassie said, grinning. "Especially not when you and me got onto the team. Nope."
"Like I said," May agreed.
"Shhh Rachel's in big sister mode and she might go telling Cap," Kate teased.
"Excuse you," Rachel laughed. "I don't tell." She raised one eyebrow and tipped her nose up. "I arrange for ways that make you never want to do that again."
"That's my girl," America said, smirking and leaning into Rachel as Kate threw popcorn at the TV screen because the Hallmark movie had gotten to the part where the perfectly reasonable boyfriend made a stupid communication error that would kick off the whole movie.
Things had officially gone on for too long with how pushy the media had gotten as far as James was concerned. It all came to a head after the X-Men had done yet another rescue, and he'd taken the time to deal with a few young, barely-teenagers that the team had pulled out of trouble when a few paparazzi-types broke through the barricades the authorities had erected around the scene to aggressively start snapping pictures of the team. And James specifically while he was unmasked and talking to the kids. It was open knowledge that he'd talk to kids unmasked, and it seemed like the kids almost insisted on it to make sure it was really him and not someone dressed like him. But it almost always left a window for the press to abuse, and James was fed up … but not toward the kids.
"Hey," James barked out, turning from the kids and glaring at the press - not in the mood to put up with photographers around kids that were freshly traumatized and displaced. "You know damn well you can't have minors in your shots. Back off."
"Just trying to get a good shot and a quote," one of the photographers called back as police started to push him back behind the line. "What have you got to say in response to Jameson's latest piece?"
"Context would be helpful," Kate pointed out, long ago tired of these guys thinking the whole team could read minds.
"Really just looking for why you're dodging from making any kind of statement, to Jameson or anyone else," the photographer called out. "Give me something, man."
"Something other than pestering minors while I'm working?" James shot back, positively fuming already since they'd been pestering Rachel pretty aggressively, too. Especially when she wasn't with America.
"Okay, well… so not in this situation exactly," the photographer said. "Throw me a bone here. I just want a quote."
"Quit exploiting minors for your greasy rep," James growled out.
"Not helpful. What about Jameson?"
"Pretty sure he'd say the same thing," James called back, then turned back to the kids, though he was hoping that Nate was at least figuring out what that was about while he settled the kids out.
Kate was faster to react out loud, though - with Jameson's website pulled up on her phone, she sucked in air through her teeth. "Well, that's fun," she said dryly. "He's managed to get a SHIELD source who's leaking just enough about the stuff with Viper that he knows Hydra wants a weapon, so he's generalizing it as you're being trained as a weapon by the good guys too." She scrolled a little more then let her voice drop to a level that only James would hear. "I mean, he's got enough right that it's a problem. To be honest though, it almost looks like SHIELD's using him to put some pressure on you, to be honest."
It was enough to put James on the warpath, and he quickly had it in his mind to go deal with matters himself. And his next action was to text Dani to find out what was happening at the studio since she was working with her mother there. "Alright," James said under his breath as he watched Dani's response dance in three dots for a long moment, though he'd already made up his mind. "See you later."
"You should let Leslie Ann's little sister do your makeup before you get caught on camera beating him down," Kate teased.
"I don't need makeup," James deadpanned.
"But a little glitter would be-"
"Kate. No."
"Okay, okay," Kate said, holding her hands up. "Just trying to get a laugh."
"Not now," James said, then started off, leaving the team behind. "Tell the powers that be that I'll catch up later to debrief."
"I'm already watching the live streams," Tommy informed Kate, and she laughed.
"Of course you are. Gimmie."
James made a beeline for the studio as soon as Dani told him that the broadcast had really just started - and that JJ was building up a pretty questionable show based on the bullet points she'd seen. Jessica wasn't happy about it, but she'd been using her time to text Tony … for all the good it did when she got the phone call from security about James pushing his way past them to head up.
Jessica managed to catch him at the elevator, then had to keep from smiling too broadly when she saw that he'd been irked enough that he hadn't even considered changing out of uniform first. "Are you sure you want to go out there in stripes?" Jessica asked. "Not the easiest look to pull off."
"His flying monkeys have been pestering Rachel and Kate," James said, then gestured to himself. "Tony's approach with the business suit isn't making a dent in it, so…what the hell."
"Okay, but let me lead you in," Jessica said, smiling crookedly. "You sure you're ready to tangle with him?"
"No, but he's just going to keep speculation going in the wrong direction if I don't make an attempt at a statement."
"True." She brushed off his shoulders, then gave him a quick kiss on the cheek. "Keep your head out there. Let's go give him his fourth heart attack." She stepped back from James as a couple crew members came up to mic him and Jessica called down to the stage manager's podium to warn them at least.
And while James watched Jessica, he focused on pushing down this gut reaction to so many people he didn't know touching him as they found where they could weave the wire between the lapel microphone and the battery pack. He half held his breath as two technicians worked, trying to remember that they were doing what he'd come there for. But that didn't leave him any time to consider how to respond to Jameson once he got into the interview.
As James started toward the anchor desk, he heard some of what Jameson was saying - and it was clear he still hadn't gotten to the meat and potatoes of his program yet. In fact, he was just getting wound up properly when he did a full double take upon seeing James in the shadows off-camera.
To his credit, James didn't rush on like his mother had done all those years ago, dropping into the seat before Jameson had gotten a chance to do anything about it, though Jameson was certainly having mild flashbacks to those days. Instead, James went so far as to give the old man a chance to shift his approach to his story for a more seamless transition for Jameson.
Not that some of the wide-angle cameras hadn't shifted to capture the whole scene of the anchor desk with a wide-eyed Jameson on one side of the frame and a uniformed, towering, very unamused Wolverine with his arms crossed on the other side of the frame.
"And as luck would apparently have it, it seems we're finally getting some answers today," Jameson said, gesturing to the seat beside him once he saw that James had, in fact, been caught on camera. "And in uniform, too - any particular reason or are you just making sure everyone here remembers what you're capable of?"
James smirked crookedly as he stepped forward. "More like I didn't have time to schedule in changing if I wanted to talk to you at all. Busy day."
"I'd imagine every day is busy for you, considering that's what the man screening my calls keeps saying," JJ said.
"Right now, yes," James agreed, then offered Jameson his hand to shake. "Sorry it's short notice."
Jameson took his hand and then waited for James to get settled into his seat as he tried to recalibrate. "Well, then," Jameson said, nodding to himself and visibly redirecting. "All things considered, I don't know how long I'll have you to myself, Mr. Howlett, so I'll get right to the meat of it - what, exactly, can you tell me - tell the country - to reassure everyone that you won't be running back to Hydra anytime soon?"
"For starters I would have had to run to Hydra at some point," James replied. "I don't think anyone was happier to hear that Viper was dead than I was. But unfortunately, for the finer details I'll have to wait for clearance from those higher up than myself to share."
"The finer details of her death or of your own mental state, Mr. Howlett?" Jameson pressed. "Surely you can answer that."
"I'm doing well enough to continue with my college work," James replied. "And once I have a better idea of where that will be happening, Id like to think things will settle out more."
"I imagine so," Jameson said. "But I'm much more interested in hearing about how Hydra has changed you than in the gossip other organizations might care about - though I would like to circle back to your fallout with MIT if we have the time." Jameson leaned forward. "You have to admit that even my junior reporters could spot that you've changed since then. More aggressive, shorter fuse. It's not an encouraging pattern."
James took a moment to consider his answer, weighing out how much he could get away with before SHIELD came swooping in. "When it comes to Hydra? Absolutely more aggressive and precious little fuse. It's well earned, as far as I'm concerned."
At that, Jameson actually smirked. "No arguments there," he said - which was not typical for him to say. Not that it lasted long. "You can't blame us for being concerned, of course, seeing as you were manipulated at MIT. That's on the record. And it's not unreasonable to worry it could happen again."
"Though I appreciate the concern, I can't let that kind of worry hold me down," James said. "I have a life to live and I'm not letting Hydra dictate what that looks like."
"Can't let those fascists get their hands on anyone," Jameson said, making a broad gesture with one hand. "Though I admit I'm impressed with your own security and screening. It's impossible to get any answers about you from the people around you. I'd imagine being raised in the environment you were helps with maintaining secrecy, too."
James tipped his head slightly at that. "I suppose that depends on who you ask. Hard to maintain real secrecy when you're surrounded by the particular people who have been in charge of keeping me safe all these years. Yes, the Avengers in particular were amazing for protective measures, but so many of them are obvious targets for the press, too."
"Yes, you have managed to give tabloids plenty to talk about - as has the rest of the team. But that's, again, something for a different show entirely. Although if you have any insight into the intrigue that seems to be coming out of Genosha as their investigation into Magneto's death publicly wraps up…"
"I don't think it's my place to comment on anything that's not resolved," James said diplomatically. "And not being a citizen of Genosha, my opinion there doesn't really matter, and I won't pretend like it does."
"Again, it's a bit difficult to believe claims that you're in charge of your own decisions when there's so much you can't discuss," Jameson pointed out.
"Tell me about it," James said with a smile Tony would have been proud of.
Jameson smirked. "So, then, let's talk about MIT," he said. "Several big donors have publicly been calling for a change in leadership there; some prominent names have been fired… what can you tell me that isn't covered by the statements already given? What was your experience, knowing you had done good work and were being forced to re-do everything you had already earned?"
Again, James was careful in how he worded his response, if nothing else than because he knew how much the school had meant to Tony -and himself until, really, SHIELD let it go on for too long. "The teachers and staff that I was in contact with were absolutely wonderful," James said, keeping his expression warm. "I don't agree with mass firings, either. I don't think that the people that were victimized by Viper's actions should be further punished when they already lost whatever they did. It's not as if they were gaining anything. They weren't sworn Hydra, as far as I know. They lost too much already - family members, opportunities … there is a lot they dealt with that I know couldn't have been easy for them. But as far as how I feel about my treatment there? Sometimes, as I'm sure you know, you can do all the right things, do all the right work, follow the instructions to the letter, and after all that, you can still end up getting told 'no'. It happens. Considering the circumstances, I can't hold them personally accountable."
Jameson leaned forward with his hands clasped in front of him, smirking lightly. "An incredibly diplomatic answer," he said. "But I understand that perspective, too. The evidence coming to light about the hostages Hydra took is enough to make the reputations of several of the staff involved unimpeachable, really. I don't know that any of us wouldn't have done the same under the pressure. Which is why, again, I have to keep coming back to what happened to you with Hydra."
"If you really want to know, I discovered that I inherited a large amount of stubbornness from both of my parents," James said. "Pretty sure that's something Hydra would be able to corroborate if they were worth talking to."
"I've met both of your parents; I'd have been surprised if you had none of their will," Jameson said dryly. He shuffled some of his papers. "But since we're on the topic, I understand you weren't captured alone. There were two of your teammates that were captured as well, that much is public record as well. The Avengers aren't speaking up. Genosha has, of course, been tight-lipped about their crown prince, better known here in the states as Wiccan, and every comment from Hawkeye has been a middle finger and a colorful commentary on the lineage of Hydra soldiers."
"Hawkeye is very quotable," James teased. "And not wrong in that respect."
"Hawkeye's vocabulary requires me to put a warning label on her quotes," Jameson shot back.
James grinned. "Wasn't sure which Hawkeye you were quoting, but yeah, that too."
"His are worse," Jameson said. "My point is that we've seen, time and again, your willingness to save those in need. I'm not assailing your work on the team or theirs but asking whether the fact that three of you, all in positions of pressure of your own right, were captured - doesn't that require a little more scrutiny?"
"Out of respect for my teammates, I won't speak for them unless they ask me to," James said. "But - considering the resources available to us, every one of us has been given the opportunities to seek whatever backup we've needed. And of course, I fully expect a reasonably cautious approach. But when the situation involved is so messy and unspeakably cruel, I can't give you hard numbers or graphics, or anything that will make the answer pretty and nicely wrapped up with a bow. It's a process, and we're all trying to do our best to stand up to whatever scrutiny comes our way."
"Considering Hydra's reputation and your ages, I do actually, sincerely, hope you have gotten the help needed," Jameson said. He nodded to himself. "One final question - I have a source in SHIELD that says Viper met her demise at your former residence. That raises a few red flags - for your safety but also for what she wanted, exactly, and what she expected." He paused. "The details are classified, but whatever you can tell me-"
"Yeah, a lot of that is highly classified," James said, tapping his fingers on the table with one corner of his mouth tight. "So … obviously I can't comment too deeply on that incident. However …" One eyebrow lifted slightly and James smirked crookedly. "I can tell you that there were old obsessions in play that Viper had directed to my father. And, I can tell you that if you were to research that a little bit, you might just get an idea of what the crazy old bat was up to. Enjoy following the local stories in Madripoor concerning both of them."
Jameson's expression twisted, and he tapped one finger against the side of his chin as he thought over his next words. "I'll have to look into it," he decided at last. "Still, it's encouraging to see you're able to talk about it at all. I'd hazard a guess and say you're not a fan of so much of your life experience being classified."
"Mr. Jameson, if I could tell you more without SHIELD flooding the studio to blow our discussion and arrest everyone involved, I'd be happy to sit down and chat with you at length. But even at that, most of what I've done has more to do with my schooling than anything else. Pretty boring for most."
Jameson nodded and then turned back to the camera. "There you have it, folks," he told his audience. "Some answers - not all entirely satisfying. But then, it isn't surprising when you consider SHIELD's history, especially where mutants are considered. Rest assured that this reporter won't let good stories get swept under the rug, however - or good people. What other secrets about our safety is SHIELD holding? We'll dive deeper into that next time," he said before moving on into his sign-off to hand off the broadcast to the next show on the hour. Then, shaking his head still, he took off his mic and set it aside. "You interview like your mother did."
"Is that a good thing?" James asked.
"Good for you, maybe," Jameson said, leaning forward to take James's mic too.
"I really do wish I could give you more," James said, shifting to finish removing the battery pack and set it aside as well. "I'm impressed with what you could find, to be honest."
"I've been in this business so long the only organizations left I don't have contacts in are actual infants," Jameson said, waving his hand.
"Still. Thank you for taking a moment today. I will talk to my scheduler about loosening up a little bit, as long as it's not in the middle of a very big push."
Jameson smirked to himself as he turned the battery packs off. "Tell him I said hello," he said, his smirk turning more crooked. "And that he's taught you well. Some of your answers could have been his on the Hill."
James paused and nodded slowly. "That … was definitely a compliment."
"When he decides secrecy isn't feasible anymore - and I don't doubt that will be coming, all things considered - I'd be interested in his side of the story. There's still a lot the world doesn't know about what happened. And from what I've seen, that ordeal didn't end there, either."
"There is," James agreed. "And it didn't."
"Succinct." Jameson got to his feet.
James followed suit and again offered him a hand to shake. "Take care of yourself, Mr. Jameson." With that, James walked off set to where Jessica was trying very hard not to burst out laughing - and Dani had given up entirely. "You two have no poker face." James tipped his chin up toward Jessica after he passed her by. "Do me a favor, huh? Whatever you got on camera yourself … I want to see it before Spidey."
"He's already been texting. He's destroyed that you've managed to come out with your good name and without a menacing title," Dani told him, laughing still.
"Damn," James said before he broke into a genuine grin her way. "Well … year's not over … who knows."
"Go for the gold," Dani giggled.
James shook his head and gave them a little wave as he stepped into the elevator alone, not really letting it sink in what he'd just done, though the relative silence around him had his ears buzzing. He had his cowl in his hands and he was staring at it - second guessing himself again - when the elevator filled with blue light and a moment later, he found himself hit was a blast of hot, humid air and the now-familiar scents of Genosha. He had just enough time to register the wind coming off the sea before Billy hit him with a kiss that knocked him backward a step.
"So, I caught part of your interview," Billy told him when the kiss broke.
"Yeah? Was it any good?"
"I thought so," he replied. "Mom and Dad too …"
"Nice to hear the judges care enough to score it."
"Yeah, you won some major points with some of those answers," Billy said, then kissed him a little more tenderly. "I'll text your dad and let him know where you are, but we're long overdue for a date night."
"That sounds good to me, even if it's already into date night troublemaking hours for you. I need to fill Dad in on the behind the scenes things too," James said, more than happy for the change in subject just as he'd been starting to beat himself up.
"Um, I too, would like the behind the scenes."
"Right. We can do that in privacy, I think."
"Easy enough," Billy agreed, still smiling as they started to walk toward the palace.
James looked over his shoulder toward the handful of people that were out and about that weren't in the royal guard - most of whom were staring at the two of them. Which is when James realized he still hadn't changed. "Ah, so … is this your excuse to take me to Genosha in my uniform?"
"That wasn't my plan, and though showing you off would be fun, I'd like to keep you to myself. The more time we have to spend apart for adult reasons, the more I think that sharing you is highly over rated."
James smiled crookedly at him and took his hand. "That sounds like lots of quiet time. Comparatively."
"Like you said, it is troublemaking hours here. We'll see how it goes after you send your texts or emails or whatever," Billy said. "And you'll need to talk to Mom, too because she loved your answers about Genosha."
James let out a sigh just before they reached the doors. "So … that means all of you were up for troublemaking hours. Something happen?"
"Just … getting back ourselves, honestly," Billy admitted. "Mom and I have an early afternoon meeting tomorrow, but we were in Brazil earlier, so …"
"Globetrotting in an instant," James said, then kissed Billy's cheek. "Alright. If you're all not too worn out, I guess I can answer whatever you like. I'm not tired yet anyhow."
"That's the best news I've heard all day," Billy laughed, though before they were in the palace properly, Wanda and Vision were there to greet him and get the news behind the scenes.
Chapter 111: Just A Little Bit Of History Repeating
Chapter Text
Annie had been through breakups before, but she couldn't wrap her head around what had happened between her and Scott - and it was driving her to distraction.
Every time she thought about going back to his place, trying to fix what she'd inexplicably broken, something stopped her. She couldn't put words to the sensation, but it was almost like a panic attack every time she got even close to putting a plan like that into action. She couldn't even call him. She couldn't text, email… nothing. Nothing was working. Every time she wanted to reach out to him, she felt like she was going to fall apart on the spot.
But she desperately knew something was wrong. Something had happened. Scott hadn't done anything wrong, and this wasn't at all what she had planned. She wanted to ask Craig what on earth could be causing her to have sudden panic attacks, but she couldn't get the words in her mouth. She just kept ending up crying on her brother instead of explaining herself - and while he was always willing to be her shoulder to cry on, she didn't think this was at all helpful, either.
Her sister, Evie, had tried talking to her, but Annie couldn't explain herself either. Anton had tried, too, because he'd always gone out of his way to make sure Annie felt safe around him. And usually, if she couldn't get through to her family in a way they'd understand, Anton could say the right thing to put words to whatever problem Annie was having.
But not even he understood. Because it didn't make sense.
Annie knew she needed more help than her family was able to give, though she did appreciate that both of her nieces had brought her some of their own baking attempts to make her feel better. Leslie Ann's was obviously more polished than Mary Beth's, since she was fourteen and starting to get pretty good at her own recipes, but there was something sweet about a ten-year-old's handwriting on a homemade cake.
Still, something more was going on. And Annie had to wonder if she'd be able to get some help if she thought of it as going to superheroes to ask them to solve a mystery rather than approaching Scott's friends and family.
It was a Hail Mary, really, because she felt like she was losing her mind. Every once in a while, one of Scott's kids would reach out, and she wanted so badly to tell them she wanted to be part of their family. She especially wanted to respond to James. She'd told him that she wanted to marry Scott one day, so she understood entirely why he checked in on her. And she didn't have answers for him. She didn't know why she couldn't even text him to tell him "I don't know what's happening to me."
But maybe all she had to do was get herself to Nate. Nate, who had known that she and Scott would work well together. Nate, who had sent her an email checking in on her as soon as he heard. Nate, who was a telepath, who would hear her panic and despair and at least know that there was a more serious problem than a breakup.
Because the truth was, this wasn't even just about Scott - though that was a big part of it. Before the breakup, Scott had told her that Storm wanted her on the faculty. Annie wanted so badly to follow up on that. She had made all these plans for her future, and she felt like she couldn't move forward in her own life until she understood this issue.
So, she gathered herself up and got into her car, gripping her steering wheel so tightly that her knuckles turned white. She forced herself through every turn until she couldn't force any more turns, pulling over at the front of their neighborhood and already crying hard enough to make her breath catch.
It should not have been this hard just to ask Nate for help.
She held her breath and gathered herself, kicking her car door open in an attempt to force herself into action. She managed to get out of the car and to head down the street, but long before she was anywhere near Scott's house, she simply broke down, covering her face with one hand, trying not to make a scene.
This wasn't working.
She bit her lip and turned around, almost stumbling to her car. And once the car door was closed, she rested her head on the steering wheel, letting her shoulders slump. This… this felt like what going insane felt like, she was pretty sure.
The young team of X-Men had just gotten their newly designed suits from Jan … with a few upgrades Tony and James had come up with to protect all of them … namely, bulletproof panels and stab-proof fabric that were light enough that they could barely tell there was a difference at all between the feel of the new and the old - but the upgrade was necessary with the more aggressive reactions from groups dedicated to destroying mutants. And Scott hadn't forgotten how many times his team had been shot or worse, so seeing how easily Tony had pushed for better protection was a relief.
They hadn't had occasion to wear the new duds yet. Not when most of the things the kids were doing was Avengers' related, anyhow. That was a different uniform all together - and often, because of the threats that had been leveled at James in particular, he found himself in his armor with the fliers more often than not. So James was just waiting for a decent X-Men mission. The armor was alright … but he preferred to be up more close and personal than the Avengers liked to allow him to be. And he wasn't a big fan of how little he could move in the armor.
For every mission James went on while Billy was in Genosha, which was most of them, he'd get a text or phone call where Billy let him know that he'd been spotted, then relayed his critique of their photography and reporting, good or bad.
As for the rest of his free time, James had tried - several times - to reach out to Annie. Failing that, he'd sent her and her family dinner, sweets - or anything else he could think of to let her know she was being thought of. But the truth was that Scott had arranged the college tours in a manner that made it difficult for James to catch Annie when she wasn't already busy, which James was highly suspicious of. He'd gotten into the habit of checking in with Doc Hale at least with a text, trying to get an idea of what was happening when he knew Annie was not okay. But he was starting to wonder if that had made things harder for her, even with Craig telling him it was deeply appreciated, all around.
The worst part was knowing that his father was barely coping - and only coping as much as he was because he was wrapped up in the college tours and fielding all the details for those trips. But it wasn't coping with anything that really mattered. At least, in James' eyes.
So, in the little bit of downtime James had that day, he was helping at the school in Westchester. Nothing major, just making the lists of supplies that needed to be replenished in the science department. It was a favor to Hank, who was a little overwhelmed processing the new kids coming in every day - and since Rachel and Kitty were overseeing the construction crew building another new residential wing, there weren't a lot of options on who knew enough about the labs to re-order Hank's biology and genetics lab supplies. And James liked to poke around in there anyhow and read what Hank had theorized since the last time James had spent time in Hank's genome lab, even if Hank simply took it to be polite interest.
He'd almost finished the restocking order when Kitty phased through the wall almost under his nose. "Look alive, Wolverine - we have a mission."
"Now?"
"Now." Kitty took a hold of James' arm as he dropped his list on the counter and she phased him through the floor. "Massachusetts Academy just called in an SOS."
"Okay…"
"And your dad told me to grab everyone who was available. It sounds bad."
James nodded to himself, though he wasn't sure what kind of trouble they might have. Without any argument, he broke away from Kitty once they were on the right floor and ran to the locker room to change.
As it was, his brother, Dad, Bobby, and Hank were already there, though Nate wasn't any further ahead than James was.
"We'll brief in the air," Scott said to his sons. "I'll prep the blackbird - Nate, make sure you get the secondary moving."
"What? Why are we taking two jets?" Nate asked with a frown as he and his brother rushed to get dressed.
"Sounds like we might have casualties to deal with." Scott gave the boys a grim look before he headed off at a near run, leaving James and Nate to stare at each other for a moment before rushing faster to get there and get help to whoever was hurt.
When they got to the hangar, Scott called for James to join him. "I want you on this team," Scott called out. "If we have people buried, I might need to lean on your senses to pinpoint them."
Rachel was already standing behind Scott, ready to go and looking serious, so James didn't argue as he rushed to climb on board.
Across the hangar, Nate was doing a quick checklist while Hank and Forge loaded up with medical supplies. Mia dove in to help by teleporting extra gear to them as some of the preliminary news reports started showing the damage on live television.
"Tyler," James shouted from the door of the jet as Scott started the ignition sequence. "Come on. You're with us."
The tall blond looked up half alarmed … he'd been behind the scenes at the Avengers, and had started helping at the school since Hank had gotten so swamped, but this? Totally out of his comfort zone. On the other hand, it was exactly what he wanted to do … help people in need, so without more than a moment to grab a case of water, Tyler ran to join Scott's group with the first wave.
There was amazingly little that Scott had to give his team on what they were walking into, but he was more tense than James had seen in a long time. He didn't have long to wait and see why, either.
The Massachusetts Academy was in shambles. Emergency services were en route, but they were slow to respond, and had already wasted too much time getting to the mutant-only school. Large parts of the buildings were caved in, and the insides of the building were strewn in the rubble with papers rolling across the sweeping lawn in the breeze. As soon as they were on the ground with the doors to the jet open, James could hear crying from several people inside - hopeless, muted shouts for help, senseless screams, sobbing, and whimpering.
"James, I need you to do a sweep before we go in - you're looking for secondary explosives, anything that didn't detonate. After it's cleared, we'll start taking stock of what we can move and what we can't to help those that are trapped. Got it?" Scott took a moment to look at each of them and get an affirmation before James broke into a run with Tyler closest behind him.
"You know what you're looking for?" Tyler asked once they were out of earshot.
"Yeah, I know the finished products and the possible ingredients to home cook something," James answered, though it was clear by the almost breathy tone that he was more focused on hound-dogging for the time being.
The two of them took a lap around the grounds, then James radioed to Scott to let him know where the worst of their troubles were as he began to circle inward, carefully climbing over the rubble and listening for people trapped. He had to be careful of where he walked in case the rubble shifted - and he had no idea how many people were in there, what the original layout of the place was … none of it. Which only made it that much harder.
The smoke and dust closer to the section of the building that wasn't destroyed yet made it hard to breathe, let alone look for bombs, so James took his time looking for people and problems.
Most of the people he was finding were already dead, but those that weren't seemed to be alright … just trapped with non-life threatening injuries. He paused to calm them down as he searched, radioing to the rest of the team where they were and what condition they were in. He could hear Nate's jet coming in, so there would be a lot more TK power to move things - and a ton more medical help.
A glance over his shoulder showed him that Tyler was keeping up - and he wasn't wasting his energy on more than scans for most of those that the two of them had found. Beyond him, Rachel and Scott were digging people out and triaging them.
James took a deep breath through his nose and blew it out through his lips as he turned to listen for more. They needed to find a living, conscious staff member. But so far, the adults he'd found were all either dead or unresponsive. He bit his lip and reached out to Rachel. Hey. Even I'm having flashbacks right now. Keep Dad close, huh?
Yeah, no kidding. He's got a high functioning level of sheer panic going on below his work face.
Ah yes. The family motto. Fake it till you break it, James teased as he turned a corner to find a whole new section that was caved in that had been hidden from an in-tact wall. You saw my path … I'm going in the building. Found a new section that's trashed. Smells like … gymnasium, maybe? See if one of these people can share the layout of this place, huh? That might help me if he can share a little. Finding my way with my nose is a little rough.
On it, Rachel said as she crouched down next to one of the less injured students. Within a few moments, the whole team had a better idea of what the building should have been like, as well as an estimation on the number of students that were there, still.
As luck would have it, most of those that would have been in the area the bomb went off were on college tours with various staff members, which meant that most of those that James were finding were the remainder of the Academy's teaching staff.
Part of the building had shifted straight down - collapsing the first floor into the basement halfway, and James looked at the unstable section of building with caution, hoping no one was down there. But his luck wasn't that good.
He saw a shock of bloody hair - he couldn't tell the actual color at first, and the smell of blood was a little overwhelming as he looked into the half-collapsed room. The woman in question was under a bookshelf that had overturned. Glass crunched underfoot as he carefully slipped down into the room. He could see shards in her hair even from where he was - and she was starting to come around, reaching for her head.
"Woah, you don't want to do that," James said as he carefully rushed across the rubble to stop her from touching anything. He took a hold of her hand to stop her and she turned his way with a foggy expression. "I'm going to get you to a medic. Don't touch anything."
She stared at him as he moved the bookshelf, and when she was freed, she let out a cry of pain. James looked over as she held her leg near the ankle, which was facing entirely the wrong way. But that was also when he realized who it was. The bloodstained but otherwise perfectly white pant-suit was the clincher, and for a second, he wasn't sure what to do. If it had been anyone but Emma Frost …
"This shouldn't have happened," she said airily.
James blinked out of his shock as she whimpered with one hand to her forehead, wincing in pain. "Woah. Hold on, I've got you," James said as he simply scooped her up to carry her out. She let out a cry of pain as soon as he had her in his arms, and he gave her a moment to readjust while he tried to figure out how to get out from where they were.
"My head is killing me," Emma said, her eyes closed, though she seemed perfectly content to be carried, so James considered their options. On one hand, they could try to go to the ledge he'd climbed down on. He'd have to put her up there, then pull himself up … or climb deeper through the rubble toward the basement as a way out, which felt entirely wrong to him.
"We've got medical help on the lawn," James said as he started toward the ledge. "I saw the ankle - you have any other injuries I should know about?"
"Just what I'm sure is a concussion," Emma drawled out. "I got hit with the first explosion. I didn't have time to shift to diamond, and I can't now, either." She hissed in pain and leaned into him, which had James slightly more tensed. "Thank you for getting me out of there, Logan."
James blinked, staring straight ahead as Emma continued.
"I like this new uniform," she said, running a finger along the stripe at his shoulder. "Does the whole team have some iteration of this?"
"More or less," James said, unsure of how to proceed with this severe of a head injury on a telepath of her caliber.
"I look wretched, don't I?" Emma asked, sounding honestly distressed and taking on a tone James hadn't heard from her before. Her usual self confident air was gone entirely.
"Bout as good as can be expected from a bombing," James said, then held his breath when Emma laughed. He thought about reaching out to Rachel, but he wasn't entirely sure that Emma wouldn't pick up on it if he did.
They were almost to the ledge that would lead them to the cleared section that Tyler was working when the building around them started to destabilize and Emma held on to him a little tighter. The whole structure slipped first a few inches, then, James watched the level of the ground shoot up another foot as they sunk deeper. But miraculously, the building didn't crumble on top of them. "We have to take a different path out," she told him. "This room is reinforced but it was hit directly."
"I don't know my way around that well," James said, looking for clues in the architecture on what was going to go next.
Emma let out a hollow laugh. "I know this place like the back of my hand. I designed it, after all. Even in this state, I can get us out." She reached up to tap his forehead. "Let me in, I'll show you where to go."
"Ah, no."
She drew back slightly looking honestly hurt. "Logan, this is the quickest way - you know it is. What's wrong with you today?"
He faltered for a second simply because he was struggling with the idea that his biological father had let this witch into his head, and the fact that she was traumatized enough that she thought he was Logan. "You have massive head trauma," James finally said before he'd realized what he was saying. "I'm not letting you trash me on accident."
She hummed as he picked a new route without her input. "I suppose you're not entirely wrong. I doubt I could do you any real harm, however." She narrowed her eyes and pointed to a different passageway than where James was looking. "That hall is reinforced, too. Even if the whole school comes down, we'll be safe there."
With a sigh, James followed her instructions, careful not to jostle her when any misstep had her crying out. It took them a few minutes, but they climbed down into the near black basement. He couldn't smell anything in there for all the dust, but he didn't want to chance major injury on either of them climbing out on that ledge now that the opening there was likely something he wouldn't be able to shimmy through anyhow. He looked over his shoulder toward where they'd climbed down, then started to walk away from it - deeper into the darkness. They hadn't quite gotten to the end of that short hallway when there was a low rumble and the building behind them collapsed, sealing up the way they'd come in.
He'd shielded her as best he could from the flying debris and dust, but when he opened his eyes, even with his vision, he could barely see where they were, let alone where they could go. Very suddenly, he understood Ororo's aversion to small, cramped spaces.
James shifted how he was holding Emma to try and use his comm - but when he hit the button, all he got was static.
"This entire basement is shielded from radios," Emma said with a cough as she patted his shoulder, then shifted a little closer with her arms around his neck. When she spoke, it was at a whisper, too close to his ear. "I hate to say it, but loathe as you are to allow it, the fastest way to get us out of here is to let me into your mind. Just a little mindshare would be enough for me to give you better direction so we can leave."
He was fully prepared to tell her no - again - when another low rumble echoed around them and James found himself questioning the integrity of the basement. She'd said it was reinforced, but considering the condition of the last room they were in … that had collapsed, he wasn't very trusting of her judgment on that, either. "Miss Frost -"
"You know I'm right."
James bit his lip as once again, he readjusted how he was carrying her in an attempt to get back to how she'd been situated before - though she wasn't allowing that, either. When he turned his head slightly, he barely had room to do so with how close to him she was, looking pitiful and almost wide-eyed as she frowned, searching his face. James closed his eyes to try and reach out to Rachel or Nate.
"The shielding extends to telepaths as well, I'm afraid," Emma said, sounding rueful, and though James couldn't see it in the dust and the dark, she was starting to smile. "I'm sorry but your team won't hear you down here. I have several telepaths here that like to cheat."
Rubble falling onto James' shoulders that had Emma tucking into him tighter was the final straw though. He did not want to end up crushed to death with Emma Frost half wrapped around him. "Okay," James said in a breath, and Emma smiled wider as she looked over his shoulder then reached up to rest one hand at his temple.
He'd barely let his shields slip the slightest bit when Emma rushed into his head - cold, hard, calculating, and icy enough that it was just as strong as a physical assault. He had to lean against the wall to keep from passing out as she rushed his mind, still trying to keep her from being hurt. But now, when he wasn't aware enough to pay attention, Emma suddenly showed no whisper of head trauma now that she had a clear path into his mind.
As for Scott, he was only keeping it together as well as he was because he had a job to do. He knew that the students and teachers in the school needed his help, and he couldn't fall apart on them. Not when there were survivors.
But, God help him, all he could see as he looked around was the rubble in Westchester, the way an entire section had fallen apart in a completely different way from the rest because of Jubilee, the smell of blood, the random personal objects that had fallen into their paths as they searched. The broken toys. The bag of chips he'd stepped on. He could hear that crunch with every step he took.
He knew Rachel was sticking close to him for a reason, but he also looked toward the other senior X-Men. Kitty looked as pale as death, and Bobby was completely silent. Forge was sticking as close to Ororo - who looked sick - as Rachel was to Scott. Hank had kept his bedside manner, but Scott knew that was only in place because the survivors so badly needed him.
"They must have targeted it because they knew the Avengers are backing our school," Rachel said quietly, trying to draw him into a conversation that was more work-focused than focused on the tragedy around them.
"Yeah," Scott said in a breath. "Yeah, our school got leveled a few times."
"I've heard the stories," Rachel said, stepping closer to him. "Are you okay?"
"Not really," he said, knowing he couldn't lie to her.
"Yeah, dumb question." She bit her lip. "Anything I can do?"
He shook his head tightly. "Let's just get these people to help."
James could barely breathe in the dark, dusty basement, and he had no idea how he'd gotten from where he'd started to the crack of light that lit the stairs ahead. He felt cold, and his head ached as if he'd been drinking a slushie too fast.
"Almost there, darling," Emma said, and James blinked a few times as he caught his breath and turned her way looking confused, even as Emma coached him through. "You've saved us both. We just need to get up into the light."
James looked around them, drawing in a breath of almost-clean air, trying to place where he was. All he knew for sure was that he was trying to get Emma out. Everything from picking her up in her ruined office until they got to the foot of the stairs was a blur of darkness, cold, and sharp pain at the front of his head as he carried her up the stairs. Once they reached the top and found their way around some half-suspended wreckage, he could see Hank and Tyler working ahead, so with precious little more urging him, he stumbled toward them with Emma holding on to him tightly.
"Hey, there you are," Tyler said, waving him over.
James turned toward Tyler and closed the distance quickly enough, though he didn't have one quip or smart alec remark as he did so.
Tyler let out a low whistle. "Alright, we've got her," he said. "Did you find anyone else?"
"What? No. Wait. Yeah, ah … I flagged all of them - I've got the numbers for you," James said, almost frowning to himself at that much, too. He couldn't remember getting that information, but he knew it all the same. He thumbed over his shoulder. "I'll just … tell Ororo - she's keeping track, right?"
"Ah, no … that'd be your dad."
"Right. Still not used to that," James said, looking entirely confused as he turned toward the rest of the team. He stood there for a second as he got his bearings. He knew he needed to get that information to his dad, but … something felt off, and instead of doing what he should do, he started to take stock himself, trying to remember what had happened in that basement or how he knew what he did. But that only had his head hurting more.
"Hey, you okay?" Tyler asked gently when he could see how off kilter James was. "I can scan you too."
"I ..I just got a little turned around," James said, frowning at his own words when they didn't feel like his.
Tyler didn't look as if he quite believed it, but since he couldn't sense a lie, he shrugged. "Okay. But if you're still disoriented, we might want to check and make sure nothing's wrong."
James turned to watch him for a moment with a flare of defiance in the center of his chest, though his head hurt worse than before. "You know what? Okay. Sure."
Tyler held out a hand, and when James stepped over, he took a hold of his arm and did a quick scan, then frowned. "James, you're fine. Not surprising, but… I don't know."
The headache had shifted from the front of his head to behind his eyes, and one hand went up to shade his eyes as Tyler held on to his arm. "So maybe … the collapse? That was me."
"Ah." Tyler nodded. "Probably healed head trauma. Memories should come back soon, then."
James' hand went to the back of his head, but that didn't even feel like the right reaction because he couldn't remember getting hit by anything - and aside from the dust, he knew he wasn't bad enough off to have cracked his head. He just felt so off.
"James!" Scott jogged over to where they were, frowning over the scene. "What's the story? Who all have you found?"
"I … don't know all their names. Ah, last one I found was Emma Frost," he admitted. "She gave me the numbers … and I'm trying to remember who I found where… I can run back through, but it looks like most of them are accounted for and upright."
"Okay," Scott said, nodding to himself as he looked around. He glanced Emma's way, frowned, and then let out a breath as he turned back toward James and put a hand on the side of his neck to draw his attention fully. "I need you to work with Cable to get the last of anyone you found. Right now, it looks like the death toll is seven, and I'm trying hard not to let it reach eight."
"Sure," James agreed, then gave Scott a word of warning, even going so far as to turn them both away from her for privacy's sake. "Um … she's weepy -she's got a broken ankle and major head trauma." James seemed to sound a little more like himself, even with the headache going strong. "She called me Logan a couple times."
Both of Scott's eyebrows shot up, and he turned Emma's way before he looked back at James. "That bad, huh?"
"I know. It's my own damn fault for switching to yellow and looking like him."
"No, I like the uniform," Scott assured him. "She'll probably be mortified later. She didn't even like Logan, and here she is thinking he rescued her."
James tipped his head slightly, but didn't want to bring up how pushy or touchy she had been. "Sure didn't seem like she had a real problem with him."
"Oh, they got along in a pinch, but she was always happier when he wasn't around," Scott admitted. "He didn't have a problem telling her when she was wrong, and you can imagine how that made her hate him."
"Sure, but, well … she cried on me, so …"
"I'll talk to her," Scott said. "If she's having trouble placing who's who, might as well give her someone she knows. Besides, Hank and Tyler have more pressing cases to attend to."
"Right. Good luck with that," James said as he turned to leave and find Nate.
Scott let out a long breath and then turned his attention to Emma, who was resting apart from the others with one hand propping up her head. He stepped over some of the rubble and then sat down close by, watching her steadily. "Any idea who did this?" he asked her.
"The usual suspects, I suppose," she said, barely looking his way. "There was no warning ahead of time. No escalation of threats."
Scott frowned at that. "Then someone is either making a statement or has a vendetta."
"That doesn't exactly narrow the list, darling."
"Just thinking out loud," Scott replied. "I'll look into it once we've gotten everyone to medical attention. We're sending some of your staff and students to Westchester and a few to Avengers Tower. Frankly, we have too many casualties for just Hank and Tyler," he told her.
"On the chance that this was personal, can I request that you publicly take me away from Xavier's?" Emma said. "The first explosion was just outside of my office. I don't want to drag that kind of attention there."
Scott raised both eyebrows but nodded. "Good call. I can get in a different transport so it's clear which direction you're going."
It wasn't long before Nate and James returned with one of Emma's favorite students between them. And she was trying not to smile at Emma in spite of her injuries.
"Is that everyone?" Scott asked.
"Yeah," James said. "Most of them were with other staff doing college tours."
"Thank God for that," Scott said. He tipped his head Emma's way as he leveled with his sons. "The first explosion was near her office, so it might have been targeted. I'll stick around with her long enough for her to be seen going with the Avengers so no one sets their sights on the school, but I need you to get everyone else shipped off."
"From how she was positioned when I found her, they probably thought she was killed," James said. "I'll help you. I know what her mental state was to start. I can tell you if she's slipping or improving."
Scott nodded. "Probably a good idea," he said, then turned Emma's way. "Somehow, I'm not surprised you managed to find a way to turn surviving a bombing into a production," he said with a dry smirk.
She let out an insulted scoff from the back of her throat. "Scott. Really."
Scott gestured broadly with both hands but didn't say anything else.
"Can I stay with Miss Frost?" the girl between James and Nate asked.
"Of course you can," Scott promised. "We're getting her to medical attention too; you can be with the group that goes to the Avengers." He gestured for her to join them and she let go of Nate to turn and hold onto James a little tighter, smiling up at him. "Nate, I need those jets in the air fast - some of those cases can't wait."
Nate stared at his dad, unable to articulate exactly what he was thinking beyond that stare, because, well, nothing about this felt right. At all. And he didn't even know where to start to point that out.
And yet, the frustrating part was that Scott was right, too; they needed to get the most critical cases to care. James was there and always had their dad's back, so he let out a scoff and took off, already reaching out to Rachel to let her know something was going on.
Of course, with nothing to do but wait on the jets to be loaded - and in the case of the small group with Emma, wait until they were seen getting a Quinjet lift - that also meant that Scott was now sitting in the rubble of a school, and despite the fact that Emma and one of her students was there, he could feel his shoulders start to drop. Without something to do, it was starting to hit him harder, so that he really wasn't thinking of much but how Jubilee's plasmoids had left a smell like ozone and gunpowder hanging in the air or how Graydon Creed's footsteps had sounded as he walked over a picture frame on his way to make his demands.
"Am I going to need to copilot?" James asked in an attempt to draw Scott out of his head.
"Jan's the one bringing the Quinjet, so…"
"I know. You usually copilot for her. I'm asking if you're up to it."
Scott let out a breath, staring at his hands.
"I can't carry you in unless I make trips if that's how it's going to be, dad."
Scott scoffed. "I'm fine," he said.
"Lookin' a little like you need a burger."
"I'll feel better when we get out of here," Scott said in a low tone meant only for James.
"Same," James agreed softly, though he didn't push the girl away that was cozying up and even going so far as to rest her head on his chest.
Scott nodded and then cleared his throat. "Probably safer if you copilot, though. I'll watch these two."
"Can I help?" the girl leaning on James asked, wide eyed and trying to rein her grin back.
"You got a pilot's license?" James asked, facing her fully and keeping his expression mostly neutral, though Scott was at least amused at that.
"No…"
"Then, no," James replied easily and she pouted.
Scott chuckled. "You're concussed," he pointed out, and she smiled crookedly but didn't push it, and instead, she shifted to snuggle in and rest her head on James' chest again, wrapping herself halfway around him- disregarding how uninterested he looked, though he hadn't reacted like he usually did - there was no stiff back or tense expression.
When the quinjet showed up with Jan at the helm, Scott started to direct traffic. James gently helped the girl that was latched on to him make it to the jet and safely buckled her in before he sat down in the copilot chair next to Jan.
"I heard there were deaths," Jan said to him quietly, though her concern shifted right to worry when he saw Scott carrying Emma into the jet. "What …"
"Yeah, they lost seven," James said. "Three were students, the others were staff members. A couple teachers and the other two were support." He was focused on the panel in front of him and seemed to have missed that Scott was carrying Emma Frost.
Jan frowned as she looked between the two X-Men. "James … are you okay?"
"Yeah, just … it was a lot," James said - which was enough to get Jan to relax as far as he was concerned.
"Is … is your dad okay?" she asked gently.
"Yeah." At that, James turned to look, watching his father sit down across the aisle from Emma and her student. "I think he's having some pretty heavy flashbacks, that's all. Doing better than I thought, honestly."
Jan kept her tongue while they got into the air, but kept an eye on both James and Scott since neither of them was acting quite normally. It wasn't until they landed and the guys got the jet unloaded that Jan took a hold of James' arm. "Hey. I thought you were the president of the anti-Emma club. What's going on? You are way too relaxed about her being so close to your dad right now."
James looked a little lost as he gestured almost tiredly. "She was hurt, Jan. I don't know what to tell you. I'm not happy she's here, but it's not like we can just … let her die because it's Emma."
Jan scrunched her nose up at that. "Well no, that's not what I was saying. She doesn't look that bad off though-"
"I pulled her out of the wreckage myself," James told her with his eyebrows raised. "And if I hadn't gotten her out when I did, she would have been crushed. I'm just … trying to wrap my head around that."
"You do stuff like that all the time," Jan pointed out.
"I know," James said. "It's just a little different I guess when it's someone I know. More different when I don't like them."
"Aww, it's tough being a hero," Jan said as she brushed a lock of hair out of his face. "You're doing great, sweetie. This is the hardest part … helping people you'd rather not." She pulled him into a long, tight hug. "Why don't you take a little break while our medical people look these guys over? Wash off that blood, get changed into something more comfy - I have a new hoodie for you, if you're interested."
"Thanks, Jan," James said before he gave her one more quick squeeze.
"I'm sure Jarvis has snacks at least if you need a little bite."
"He always does," James agreed, then slowly headed off to do as she'd suggested. Maybe that was part of the problem - the fact that he had so much of her blood on him and her scent was a overwhelming.
Once he got under the hot water, though, it was all he could do to just lean against the wall and let it pour over him. Something about that whole mission left him feeling cold - and he rarely felt cold regardless of where he was.
Considering the context, and the fact that he knew that he was having mild flashbacks, James didn't think too much about it as he finally pushed himself to clean up, dry off, and get dressed … even if he ended up putting on an extra layer under his hoodie. The air conditioning just seemed to feel too cold for some reason.
When James got back to the kitchen, Nate and Rachel were sharing a look and clearly having a heated telepathic discussion. He paused, looked between them, then stepped around Nate to grab a bite to eat without stirring that pot up if he could avoid it.
Nate tapped James' shoulder. "You want in this chat? We'll pull you in if you work with me."
"No thanks," James said, shaking his head lightly. "You two look like you're solving all the world's problems."
"We might be," Nate defended. "But it'd be easier if you helped."
"What's the story?" James asked between chips.
"Are you kidding me?" Rachel said, halfway glaring at him. "The story is how dad's trying to take care of that dried up old buzzard."
James blinked at both of them for a moment. "You do get that there are extenuating circumstances here, right?"
"Don't look at us like we're stupid," Nate said. "It's one thing to rescue her and something else entirely to do…. That." When James frowned at him, Nate gestured toward where the rescues were. "Go look for yourself."
"I think you're blowing it out of proportion," James replied calmly, then went back to eating while his siblings stared at him in disbelief.
Of course, that was right about when Scott came around the corner looking for a cup of coffee and a moment to clear his head considering how at odds he was with everything that was going on around them. He stopped when he saw all three of them gathered up and let out a slow, measured breath. "How are you guys holding up?" he asked - obviously concerned, considering all they'd just seen.
"Worried about you, mostly," Rachel said, her arms crossed over her chest.
"Rach, I'm fine," Scott said softly. "I'm always fine."
"Then so are we. Next question," Nate said. "What … is even going on?"
"Trying to pin that down right now, actually," Scott said. "It might have been targeted, so I asked Stark to-"
"No. No, I mean what … why are you stepping in for Emma Frost?"
Scott turned his whole body Nate's way. "You mean why am I trying to help someone who just lost friends and students after her school was leveled?" he asked incredulously.
"I mean, why does it have to be you?" Nate countered.
"Who else, exactly, would you suggest?" Scott said. "Who do you know that has watched a school they ran fall into rubble, pulled themselves through, and had to live with the guilt afterward?"
Nate tipped his chin up. "Ororo."
"She's helping the students for the same reason," Scott pointed out. "They need her."
"The concern here is that Emma doesn't want in Ororo's pants," Rachel said. "So less of a conflict of interest. For her. Not you."
Scott let out a breath, leaning against the wall. "Look," he said quietly, "you're right. I'm not okay right now - and that means I need Ororo with the students. If I screw up trying to help Emma, it's not a kid who gets hurt."
"I will go to the students," Rachel offered. "So will Nate. Peers would be just as good." She couldn't help but try to tease and get James to join in, either. "Not James. Too many little fans."
Scott glanced at James, smirked, then shook his head. "I promise, Rach; it's fine. I just know too well what she's going through."
"If it was one of us with a predatory ex, you'd try to protect us, too," Rachel argued.
"Rachel, I love you, but you're not giving me any credit here," Scott said.
"I know that you're more worried about her being vulnerable than you are worried about yourself," she countered.
"Obviously!" Scott shot back, frustrated. "It just happened to her. Do you have any idea what it's like to sit in that aftermath?"
"You're dealing with major flashbacks," Rachel said, then tipped her chin up. "And yes, I do remember."
Scott caught his breath and then let his shoulders drop. "I'm sorry," he said softly. "I didn't mean to … of course you're right. You should work with Ororo and the students."
"I'd rather you worked with the students, Dad," Rachel said. "You're good with them. So good!"
"Thanks, sweetheart," Scott said. He smiled softly and then dragged a hand down his face. "I'm sorry. I'm just… having a hard time. I just wanted to get some coffee and sit alone for a while."
"Which is exactly why we want you out of there," Nate said.
"I'm literally just going to be over here with my coffee - and when she's with it enough to answer some questions, I'm going to chase down some leads on vendettas. That's it."
"Let someone else ask the questions," Rachel insisted.
"This is the only thing I can do!" Scott shot back, finally raising his voice. "Don't you get that?"
"Don't you get the risk you're taking?" Rachel countered, matching him.
"You're the one that wanted me back in the uniform, right?" Scott shot back. "Did you think I was just going to play it halfway?"
"Yes! I wanted you back with the team, not risking your stability over Emma freaking Frost."
"And I'm aware this whole situation is tenuous at best, but this is what I can do."
"Obviously not aware enough," Nate said under his breath, but loud enough to be heard all the same.
Through the whole outburst between the three of them, James had kept quiet, and kept out of it, very much like most of the family arguments had gone while the kids were growing up. And right when it could have really gone either way, Rachel turned to James, frustrated and looking for back up.
"You've been awfully quiet this whole time," Rachel half shouted at James, drawing Nate and Scott's attention to their silent member.
"Yeah, well," James said, looking between the three of them before he held Rachel's gaze. "Dad's right on this one." Both his siblings gaped at him in sheer disbelief as he continued. "Neither one of you have had to deal with her, and I saw how out of it she was at the very beginning of the rescue. She's traumatized. It's professional. Right now it's nothing to be worried about."
"Are you kidding me?" Nate blustered. "After the crap she pulled with you, you're defending her?"
James shifted, glancing away from all of them. "Listen. Like it or not, she was a victim this time out. It doesn't matter what she did before. She lost her school. Kids died. How can you hold that against her?" He frowned at both of them before he pushed away from the counter and took his phone out - already texting Billy.
"Yeah, but … she's safe now, it's not …" Nate faded off and gestured openly with both arms. "What the hell?"
Scott gestured to James with one hand. "Look, I appreciate you kids looking out for me. I really do. I just…" He took a deep breath. "I know you hate her. And I know why. But I won't let her go through the same hell I did."
"She told me she couldn't shift to diamond form right now," James said- mostly for his sibling's behalf. "She's hurt. She's probably not herself anyhow."
"She was calling him Logan," Scott added. "I promise, right now I just want to make sure whoever did this doesn't get the satisfaction of wrecking the only adult those students have in their corner."
"I would have tried to reach you both telepathically earlier in the game if it wasn't for how damaged she was," James said. "I didn't know if she'd pick up on it - and I really didn't want to see what happened with a telepath of her caliber with head trauma." He gave them both a look. "Even if we don't like her, you gotta cut her some slack when she's disoriented."
Scott nodded at James, obviously deciding that was that, though he paused to kiss Rachel's cheek on his way past her to get some coffee. "Take care of yourself too, alright?" he said.
"Yeah, sure," Rachel replied, most of her steam gone when she didn't get the back up she was expecting.
Once Scott was gone and James had walked off as well, though, Rachel thought about it for a long moment, then walked down to James' lab, where James was taking a few minutes to double check that he'd gotten everything done for Tony that he'd promised to do for the week. "Are you okay?" Rachel asked gently, her tone shifted from the desperate panic on Scott's behalf from earlier. "I know you're not alright with that woman sniffing around Dad."
"Yeah, Rach, I'm fine," James said in a breath. "And no, I'm not okay with her bothering him, but this isn't even the first time Dad and I have talked about it. He's just … he's putting himself in her shoes and trying to be what he needed when it was him. I think."
"And you?"
"I … am not very useful - as you and Dad pointed out already. I also don't have any commitments in my calendar for the next week, so I'm going to Genosha," James said as he looked up to meet Rachel's gaze.
"That's it?"
"I'm waiting to see if Mia can go too," James said. "If she can, I figure we can fly there and surprise the twins at coffee - local time."
"And Dad?"
"He doesn't need me. He's got Nate and you," James pointed out. "He hasn't had anything to say to me for the past few weeks but to remind me he's proud when we go on ridiculous ass-kissing college tours."
"He hasn't had much to say to anyone since Annie broke up with him," Rachel pointed out.
"Yeah, I know," James said, frowning. "If you want to help him … maybe get him to take a session with Doc Hale, or if he refuses … try Mrs. Kaplan or … he should talk to someone after this."
"Nate's already texting Craig," Rachel admitted. "Told him about the argument just now, too." She let her shoulders drop. "He's not acting… this isn't like him."
"What are you talking about?" James said, scrunching up his nose. "This is exactly like him. In the middle of a guilt spiral."
"No, that part's…" She sighed again. "I just have a feeling, but right now, all I can get from his mind is flashbacks, so it's hard to pin it down."
"It's too fresh," James said. "He hasn't processed it. I doubt any of us have, except maybe Nate." He shrugged. "But he's quick like that, so …"
"Yeah." Rachel held her arms at her elbows. "It's just…"
"Awful, I know. Hell, I carried her out, Rach. Delusional and living in the past is not a good look on her."
"Yeah, well, my problem is I have a small firebird telling me exactly what Emma liked to do in the past, so …"
James frowned at that. "Oh, that firebird … that … is a little bit sick. Don't give it too much credit." He tipped his head to catch her focus. "Do you want distance, or can I at least hug you?"
"Hug, please," she said - and snatched him up telekinetically to bring him over faster so she could bury herself in the hug. She hadn't been lying to her dad when she admitted she was having a hard time . She was frustrated beyond belief that she couldn't tell what was a legit suspicion and what was the Phoenix trying to claw more power when she was already reeling from walking through a ruined school again. Scott wasn't the only one going right back to what had happened, though she remembered Jubilee's spectacular plasmoids as she'd tried to defend them, and she remembered screaming when the wall came down and she'd been coated in dust and rubble.
James kept a tight hold on her until she let up her grip a little bit, then he shifted to pick her up and carry her over to sit down by the window with him. "What can I do before I go?" he asked.
"It's nice to just sit for a minute," she admitted and put her head on his shoulder. "I've mentioned you're a good brother, right?" she added with a smile.
"Only thing I've heard lately is the g-rated version of what you and America have been doing across the stars, so … no."
Rachel snorted. "Okay, I'll fix that and make sure I remind you how much I love you."
"Love you too," James said. "So … let's just hide here for a little bit. You can tell Nate to join us if he's not going to get wound up and start pacing."
Rachel looked past James for a moment and then smirked. "He's conspiring with Kate. Let him be."
"Perfect," James agreed. "What could possibly go wrong with that?"
"Only everything," Rachel teased. "I think Kate's exact words were 'want me to tell my mom she has a new dummy for teaching me interrogation' so…"
"Rachel Anne, I went through a lot of trouble to pull that witch out of the wreckage. Don't let Natasha turn her into some pitiful thing that we have to tip toe around because she's permanently mentally damaged. Let her heal up first."
Rachel laughed out loud. "There you are," she said. "That's the brother I love."
"So, this firebird thing … you know where I keep the marshmallows, right?" he teased before he kissed her cheek.
Rachel smirked, raised both eyebrows, and then, just for him, held out her hand and let out just a little bit of fire at the tips of her fingers. "I've got it under control, and it's… wild how powerful it feels even for little things like this."
"Of course you do," James said with a grin.
"If it could stop trying to make me lose my fine grip on sanity, we could even get along," Rachel said, smirking.
"I think you have sanity in a choke hold already," he said.
"Since I was five, apparently. Kitty was telling me the other day that I spent most of my visit to Genosha telling people it was okay to cry. No idea whose genes those were," Rachel laughed.
"Wow." James shook his head. "Just … wow. You should probably get a license for that kind of thing … 'it's okay to cry. That'll be $250. Thanks'."
"And put Craig out of business?"
"Oh, in a heartbeat," James agreed.
"Then where would we get our Annie updates?"
"I'm working on that. I still haven't given up trying to get her to talk to me."
"Nate's planning to swing by after his college tour is up, too. He says he gets special rights because he introduced them or whatever," Rachel said, rolling her eyes.
"He absolutely does," James agreed. He thought about saying more, but stopped almost abruptly and settled back in, but the overall effect it had to Rachel was more like he wanted to do more, not say more.
"Hey, have fun with Billy, okay?" Rachel said, not wanting him to feel like it was all on him when he was acting so visibly bothered and needed to get away for a bit. "We've got it."
"He'll probably be too busy to do much with me, honestly," James said. "Mia and I will end up spending all our time on the beach, sending selfies to our princes."
"Mia needs that," Rachel said, smiling. "She had a rough week. Some idiot grabbed her tail when she went for a meet and greet."
James turned her way. "Why didn't you tell me earlier?"
"Umm, because Forge went full Protective Dad on the guy. Mia's still upset, obviously, but Forge put the fear of the Maker into him." Rachel chuckled. "It was amazing."
"Oh, yeah, okay. That kind of stuff just doesn't happen around me too much lately."
"You're getting a reputation for putting down creeps," Rachel pointed out with a proud smile. "It also doesn't happen around Billy, who is now known for killing people who cross lines after that leak to the press from someone in SHIELD that JJ snookered into saying too much, or Nate or Kate… it's kind of nice, actually."
"Catch up, big sis." He jostled her. "Join us …"
"Right, right. Next time, I'll terrorize a creep with fire and there will be zero creep problems on the entire eastern seaboard," she teased back.
"Woof. All that power."
"Like I said, it's wild. And fun. And a little bit addicting, but would you believe Annie's niece is the best at noticing when I'm getting too lost in it? She says the plants start complaining."
"Yeah, I believe it," James agreed. "She's a great accomplice, too."
"She keeps asking to be an X-Man, and it cracks me up every time her dad hears her say that."
"I told her she had to get the official permission slip signed by Officer Wright first. She gave me dirty looks for days."
"I told her she had to be a little older and then she should just tell her dad she's joining the team to get specialized training from you on dealing with handsy men," Rachel teased.
"Oh, that's how it is. Thanks for the bus, Rach."
"Hey, you and I both know that will actually get him to let her join the team," Rachel pointed out. "And she's good. She's too young right now, but for as good as she already is? Dad and I are both on the same page on this."
"Honestly … Kate would probably be a better teacher. I still have problems identifying when it's over a line for me. Just … everyone else."
"Yeah, but Officer Wright still loves the story of how you met, so…" Rachel smirked.
"I suppose," James said, then rested his head on Rachel and let the silence stretch out for a long moment. "You know …I promise it's not anything to do with today, but … I still think about heading off to one of Logan's cabins. To stay."
"I know," Rachel said, putting her arm around him. "I'm glad you don't listen to that urge."
"Yeah, but I think next time something stupid happens, I should go for a while."
"Take Billy. Call it a practice honeymoon." Rachel grinned his way. "I know you looked into what it would take to get married. He was projecting nonstop after that conversation. He's pretty thrilled and trying to play it off. And failing."
James smirked. "Well. We have time. What about you and America? You going to prove Dad wrong and make him cry all over himself to walk you down the aisle for her?"
"We haven't decided yet," Rachel admitted.
"Picture it, Rach."
"I know. Picturing it is why I haven't completely ruled it out," Rachel said, smiling wider.
"I'll pay for it."
"Last time America needed something truly hysterical when I was having a bad spiral? She showed me a bunch of joke dimensions and then stopped at a spa in the remote corners of space and I straight up told her if we ever got married, we'd do it there. She's completely on board with the place."
"I kinda figured you two had worked out the basic plan," James said with a nod. "You should see Nate playing house with Katie. Doting doesn't even begin to cover it. He brought her breakfast in bed for a week solid when they started crashing in Cambridge."
"He's so far gone over her," Rachel said with an affectionate smile. "He started perusing ring websites the second he turned eighteen."
"Let me know if he's short. I'll lose a few more bets."
"Warren already has you covered to throw a few bets. He lost a bet about Johnny and Bobby," Rachel laughed. "He lost spectacularly when Johnny was making breakfast at the institute to take up to Bobby's room."
"That didn't take long," James said, then settled in a little better, kicking his feet up on the coffee table. He was half cuddled up with his sister, enjoying being close to her when he suddenly realized something important. "You're warm."
"I know." Rachel took a deep breath and pushed the Phoenix back a little more. "Like I said, the Phoenix is knocking."
"No, it's not a bad thing," James said. "I got chilled. You're a little intergalactic space heater."
Rachel burst into a laugh. "Not only do I love that, but the Phoenix loves that nickname, which is hilarious to me."
"That has to be a first. I'll take it. And tell your Phoenix thanks for being so toasty."
Rachel settled in beside him too, resting her head on his and falling into silence as the two siblings just got their feet underneath them.
Chapter 112: The Dust Settles
Chapter Text
It took a while for Tyler to get through everyone who had been hurt in the attack on the Massachusetts Academy, and he had to take several breaks just to get through the worst of them. He wasn't healing everything, just the big things like internal injuries, broken bones, concussions - that kind of thing. He had fixed Emma's ankle and was about to leave it at that… then paused, narrowed his eyes, and took her hand again. "That was some concussion," he said, screaming internally. He'd dealt with telepaths making him heal people or making him say horrific things to terrorize the people he was sent after. He knew what it felt like, he knew what was going on, but he couldn't stop it and he hated every second of it.
He would have told Hank, too, but he couldn't get the words in his mouth, so what happened instead was that he let out a low, rippling growl that caught Hank's attention.
"Tyler?" Hank said, turning his way and wearing a quizzical expression.
"Sorry," he said. "I guess I didn't realize I was running on empty until I hit a wall."
"Take a break," Hank advised. "I'm sure Miss Frost is well enough that simple modern medicine will suffice for now." He looked at Emma over the top of his glasses, challenging her to argue it.
"I'll survive," Emma promised, smiling at Hank. "Your young protege is quite the miracle worker."
"Yeah, I keep telling him he'd be great on our team," Scott said as he came into the lab to check on the survivors. "How is everyone, Hank?"
"Mending," Hank answered. "Tyler has handled the worst of it, but that still leaves quite the assortment of contusions and bruises. Internal injuries and most of the broken bones have seemed to be resolved already." He smiled toward Tyler and put a hand on his shoulder. "He was just about to take a break, refuel, and nap."
Tyler's smile was slightly more pointed than usual. "Yeah, just… keep an eye on the concussion cases," he said.
"Oh, Emma, did we get a scan before Tyler worked on you?" Hank asked, just then realizing that he didn't have it in his file.
"I don't believe so, but I feel much more clear headed now," Emma said, wide-eyed.
"I just got off the phone with a few parents. I'm going to take some of the kids home if they're okay to travel," Scott said, thumbing over his shoulder.
"Of course," Hank said. "I'll get you the list of who's cleared."
"Thanks," Scott said, holding the door open for Tyler on the way out.
Soon enough, a handful of students were heading out with Scott - along with Emma, since the parents knew her and not Scott. Scott didn't have a good argument for that; he knew he would have had a hard time dealing with a stranger after his kids had been attacked and he knew he'd have questions that demanded answers from someone responsible.
"Are we doing this without our new X-Men friends?" Emma's favorite student asked, grinning as she helped Emma balance - still shaky on her freshly healed ankle.
"Yeah, James is occupied. Sorry about your luck," Scott said with a self-deprecating smile. "It's just me today."
"Oh, darn. Maybe next time," she said.
Scott shook his head and tried to temper his smirk. He knew the girl had an obvious crush on James, and as long as she kept her hands to herself, he was kind of entertained by how much James didn't realize how popular he was. And for the most part, he had to laugh when, for most of the trip, the kids were all talking about the X-Men and how cool they were and who they'd met. Ororo was already in the process of on-boarding any students who were too young to be heading off to college, too, so they were excited to be going to the original mutant school.
It was almost like being a teenager again, listening to everyone talking about the future and trading plans and crushes - while carrying an X-badge.
Emma's favorite student was the last to be dropped off because she lived the furthest away, but once she had thanked them both for keeping her safe and her parents had chatted with Emma for a while, Scott was ready to be home again. He was handling everything in fits and spurts like that: find something to do, then hang on tight until he found another thing to do.
"It never really changes, does it?" Emma said as she sat down again. "The blatant hero worship."
"I was just thinking it was a familiar feeling," Scott agreed.
"That girl…" Emma pinched the bridge of her nose. "It's as if she hasn't been religiously studying the tabloids for months."
"It's just a crush," Scott said. "It won't get her anywhere. Billy and James are pretty serious."
"Oh, obviously," Emma said. "They can't be in the same city block and not have an article written." She was laughing at the whole concept. "And positive press. Over mutants. Celebrity status on a mutant while not calling them a terrorist. Amazingly novel. I've rather enjoyed it, to be honest."
"I hate admitting it, but Stark ran that play. He pushed to put James in the public eye."
"That first press conference was a genius move. Did Stark know that your boy's mother had inhabited his soul before the conference?" Emma had to tease.
Scott laughed outright. "It happened in a split second. I swear James caught himself by surprise."
"He is quick."
"Brilliant," Scott agreed. "And Billy's been trained since he was little with how to deal with public scrutiny, so the two of them together? I'm not worried."
"No, it's a formidable pairing for the press," Emma agreed, sounding almost impressed. Almost.
"And you've seen Nate's girlfriend. She's been pushing hard to force the press to acknowledge peaceful coexistence is possible," Scott said, obviously proud. "My kids… I wish I could take credit for their good taste, but they're just…"
"You come out in them all," Emma said. "Don't sell yourself short."
"Thanks," Scott said with a soft smile as they got to a stoplight. "Now that the kids aren't here… I wanted to ask how you're doing," he said slowly. "I know this won't be easy."
"I … honestly don't know what to do with myself," she said slowly.
"Yeah." Scott took a deep breath and let it out. "I wish I could give you the right words or the right choices."
"You've already been wonderful, Scott. You always are. It's a bit sickening if I'm being honest. I don't know how you do it."
"If I'm honest? I've been trying to help my kids and the rest of my family because that's the only thing I know I can do," Scott said. "Everything else? Well."
Emma nodded once, then took a moment to rearrange herself. "Where exactly are we going?" she asked after a long moment. "Maybe a bite to eat somewhere civilized would be a good way to plot out the next steps."
"I was going to ask if you had a place to stay," Scott admitted.
"I don't," Emma replied.
"That's surprising."
"Oh? Why is that?" Emma asked. "I was living at the school, you know. Sold the apartment in the city ages ago."
"I just remember you having a few places we used to sneak off to," Scott said, keeping his gaze on the road.
"I need to stay close for my students," Emma said. "And I'm surprised you remember any of those spots."
Scott rubbed the back of his neck. "Yeah, well, I do."
She smiled his way for a fraction of a second before looking away. "Well. Any in particular come to mind?"
"If you kept the one close to the lake, that would be ideal to keep you out of the public eye for a while if this was targeted," Scott said. "But if you've gotten rid of that… I can find someplace else."
"Could you?"
"Emma, believe me when I tell you I know how to keep a low profile," Scott said dryly.
"I don't believe I've seen this side of you, that's all."
Scott frowned lightly. "I haven't changed, Emma. I'm just trying to help. Like always."
"I know. It's the tactical sneaking that seems new to me. I'm sure you've perfected it, but that's not what I remember of you. Show me how it's done."
Scott tipped his head. "If you're not opposed, I know a couple places that have already been security vetted. They're fallback places to the one I have right now."
"What's wrong with the one you have right now?"
"Nothing. This one's for you, not me."
"I thought you might keep me company for a few moments while I got my bearings again."
"And I'm more than happy to help you manage your concussion recovery in a new place; I already said I'd help," Scott said.
"Well I trust your judgment," Emma decided. "It's in your hands."
Scott nodded, going over a few options in his head before he settled on one that Stark had set up instead of Natasha. "We usually stay in small houses or quiet neighborhoods, but I think I know a place - on the coast. It's a private beach house; no one will bother you there."
"Sounds secure," she said, then let her voice drop lower. "And lonely."
"I didn't figure you'd be interested in the ones in suburbia," Scott said with a crooked smirk.
"Scott, darling, you know I don't handle small children well. The teenagers, I can work with though." She scoffed. "Suburbia."
"Beach house it is," Scott said dryly. "What do you know; it's like I know you well."
"That you do," she agreed, smiling to herself, and resolutely refusing to look his way - even if she was hoping he did. The whole dance was incredibly intricate when he was being so protective of his space … and she honestly hated it. But with a little luck … and some privacy off the road, maybe that could be reversed.
He gave her a quick tour, and checked the place over as soon as they got there, and Emma listened patiently all the way up until it looked like he was going to simply … go. "You're not leaving me alone, are you?"
"I was planning to help with the others," he said. "I'll check in…"
"Scott, you're the only one there that I don't have to use small words on," Emma said, smiling crookedly.
"I think you're forgetting Hank," Scott said, leaning on the door frame.
"Hank doesn't know me well enough to anticipate - and when he gets something halfway right, he wants to ask me a dozen questions as to why." She reached for his arm. "Please. At least have dinner with me before you go."
Scott paused. "Emma-"
"I don't want to be alone."
He let his shoulders drop. "Alright," he said. "Just… let me text Mia. She's coordinating things with Ororo and the team's been keeping a close eye on both Ororo and myself. All things considered."
"How different was it today from when it happened in Westchester?"
Scott froze, his mouth tightening. "That's… why I'm here, honestly," he admitted. "It's too close to what happened, and I know what it's like, and I don't want anyone going through it without support."
"I was in Jubilation's wing when it happened," she said. "That's where my office was."
Scott swallowed, his mouth dry as he came to sit down on the couch beside her. "Oh," was all he could manage to say, because everything else in his head was just rubble and the charge in the air. And an icy breeze that he honestly didn't notice floating underneath everything else.
She absently reached over to cover his hand with hers. "I don't think I can keep … I can't go back."
Scott could feel his stomach drop, because that was an all-too-familiar feeling for him. But it was worse, really, because he'd at least had his kids to hang onto. He shifted the way he was sitting so he could see her more clearly, and when he saw the look on her face and the fact that she looked genuinely lost, he leaned forward and stole a long, gentle kiss. "I know," he said.
Emma looked up to meet his gaze, smiled, and then kissed him back, harder, knowing full well that since she'd slipped into his thoughts and made him think he'd started it all, he wasn't about to stop. He wouldn't want her thinking he'd led her on, after all.
Mia had never had such a long flight in her life. It wasn't that she hadn't done it before - she had. A few times, in fact. It wasn't even that she was used to nearly instant travel when Tommy would spoil her with a quick trip here or there. It was that she so rarely managed to surprise Tommy like this. And the only one that had any idea that she and James were flying in was Wanda, who had promised to keep it to herself.
Their flight had been good, too … it wasn't often that James flew them anywhere - mostly because Nate loved to pilot so much. But it was fun to find out an hour into the flight that he hadn't exactly waited for Natasha to clear them before they left. And it was fun to listen to Tony laugh himself silly at James for finding a way to blindside Natasha out of the blue like that. Obviously, the Black Widow had been getting a free pass for too long. And they were on an official mission. Well … partially. Bringing a few of Emma's surviving and scared students to Genosha as they'd requested was the only way James could get his hands on one of the blackbirds. And he'd gotten away with not bringing another team member by insisting Mia needed flight time too.
It was one of those things that he liked to do without consulting anyone. And Mia loved that she and James still had this little connection in common. The twins were amazing, so the fact that one of her best friends and big brothers was right there backing her up and totally smitten with her guy's twin? It really was so much fun.
Her mom had been quick to say yes to the trip - quicker than Mia thought she'd be. At least until she was leaving and saw how her mother was fretting over the newest refugees at Xavier's. She wasn't going to give herself a moment of peace until all of those people were safe and knew they were backed up, and Mia was a little sick of this new wave of prejudice.
But she was surprised that James was willing to go. He'd had plenty of chances to just stay in Genosha for as long as he liked, and she knew he wasn't really going to enroll at the University of Michigan like he was teasing her about. She knew he'd all but decided on Harvard and that the college shuffle was just a way to keep Scott busy and test how far he could push to show MIT how badly they'd screwed up. Or that's what she'd thought. He was being overly tight-lipped about his actual decisions regarding long term anything.
Of course, even at that, the shuffle would likely only get more intense now that the adults were re-traumatized from watching Emma Frost's school go down.
But that was something to deal with later. Especially because now, they could see the island nation of Genosha just starting to lighten up in the darkness as dawn threatened the horizon line. She and James shared a look as they came in for a landing - their clearances already verified once they'd come back down to a reasonable altitude.
Vision met them on the tarmac, smiling and pleased to see both of them as Alex caught up to lead the refugees off to get settled. "The twins have no idea," Vision told Mia and James, who shared a look and broke into twin smiles.
Mia was bouncing. "What's the best way to surprise them?" she asked. "I have like … a dozen ideas, but I don't know which one to run with."
"The one you're thinking of right now," James said. "That's the one."
She laughed, then covered her mouth to stifle the laugh. "Okay. Okay. Got it." She teleported away leaving James with Vision - though that was always a good thing to do anyhow. She wasn't worried about those two … not when she could be sweet and scare the life half out of her guy.
She was quick to gather up his favorite things for breakfast, coffee and juice for both of them, and then carefully made it down to his room to find him face down, half snoring, and drooling into his pillow. She bit her lip and grinned as she almost silently made her way over to set the tray down.
He looked so peaceful with his hair sticking up in every direction - blissfully unaware that she was about to let a little of the demon out. But first … she snapped a picture of him sleeping, slipped her shoes off, and straightened up her hair. The approach … had to be perfect. If he woke up too soon, he'd probably zip out of her reach. Or fall off the bed, which would be equally as funny.
She crouched down next to him and started to carefully brush the hair out of his eyes, though he only stopped snoring and snuggled in a little better. So she decided to try another approach. That was obviously too gentle. "Tommy," she said quietly, one hand on his shoulder. "I hope you're wearing something under that sheet."
He smiled in his sleep and she leaned forward to simply steal a kiss, though when he leaned into it, she had the worst time not breaking up laughing. It wasn't until he reached for her and felt her fur that he realized … she was actually there. His eyes popped open and he startled back, just so he could focus on her before he broke into a laugh and pulled her into bed with him, peppering her with kisses.
"When did you get here?" Tommy asked. "And did you teleport?"
Mia snuggled in, positively enjoying the snuggles and kisses. "About ten minutes ago, and no. we flew." She gestured vaguely to the tray nearby. "Brought you breakfast."
"I'd rather keep doing this." He accented his statement with another kiss that she melted into.
He could get the recap later. This was overdue.
A few doors down, and a little after James had caught up with Vision for a quick recap of the colleges he'd toured and the programs they offered, Billy was about to get a similar wake up call - only James was ready to curl up and sleep if he could. He knew Billy was going to be busy - Wanda had made sure he knew that, and James had no issue with keeping out of the way. This trip wasn't about monopolizing Billy's time. It was about making the effort to be there in the down time. Billy had done it plenty for him, after all. And Wanda was perfectly tickled to see it.
But he also was well aware that his sweetheart liked to sleep in as much as he did, and he slept pretty soundly, so knowing that Billy had a long day of official business ahead of him, James didn't want to disrupt the flow of rest. He just … wanted to wrap around him for a little while. It was such a simple thing - something that they'd both gotten used to before Viper showed up to screw up things in Cambridge. And James was ready to start looking for a new place for the two of them.
James was silent when he got to Billy's room, and he didn't think twice about slipping off his shoes and stripping down to an appropriate level to sleep before he carefully climbed into bed and scooted his way closer to wrap Billy up from behind. He managed to really snuggle in - one arm over Billy's waist, curved around him entirely. It looked like a good morning to sleep in a little. All the way up until James tightened his arm to pull him that much closer, nuzzling into the back of Billys' hair.
That was exactly when Billy realized he wasn't dreaming, and that there actually was someone in bed with him. He startled with a 'gah!' as he launched himself out of bed - only to hit the floor half upside down and scramble backward, staring at his bed with wide eyes… until James picked his head up with a tired smile.
"Okay… I just got halfway comfortable but … get up if you need to," James said, smirking to himself as he rearranged how he was curled up and nuzzled in. "This is what I get for trying to surprise you."
"You scared me out of my skin," Billy said with a laugh before he got up and back into bed, cuddling in with a pleased and surprised smile. "Why didn't you tell me you wanted to come over, I could have just wished you here-"
"Well, then it wouldn't have been a surprise," James reasoned. "And Mia and I brought a whole jet full of kids that wanted to get away from the kind of people that blew up their school."
Billy sat up stiffly. "Xaviers?"
"No, the Massachusetts Academy," James said, then opened his eyes to watch his reactions. "Really. The other mutant school got bombed."
Billy frowned, and when he opened his mouth to ask what happened, James pulled him over to kick off a very involved and not too polite kiss that was much more forward faster than Billy had seen from him since before Viper.
"Not now," James said when the kiss had ended.
"Okay," Billy said as he started to smile slowly and settle in. "But now I don't want to get out of bed. Especially if you're feeling snuggly."
"If it's going to get you in trouble, then I guess I can promise not to be in bed all day."
"That might help," Billy admitted. "If I wanted to move now."
"I thought we were babysitting your dad," Kate said, frowning as she let herself into the Summerses' house with the spare key Nate had given her ages ago.
"We were," Nate said, though he was sitting at the kitchen table staring at his coffee as if he could will it into giving him answers.
Kate perched on the counter close by him and gestured with one hand. "I don't see your dad."
"He's not home yet," Nate said.
Kate pursed her lips and narrowed her eyes, hopping back down immediately and pulling Nate to his feet so she could look up at him and meet his gaze. "Okay, you're talking in monosyllables. Fill me in."
She caught him smirking at the very corner of his mouth as he shook his head. "It's just… he was supposed to drop off the Academy kids, and he hasn't come back yet. When I called at the Tower, Tyler told me he was making sure Emma got somewhere safe after her bad concussion."
"So he's with Emma? That's not great. Especially considering everything Jimmy's reported on," Kate said with her arms crossed.
"Yeah, and I feel like I'm going crazy, because James isn't worried about it."
"James?"
"Right?" Nate pinched the bridge of his nose. "Tyler said he healed her but that she would probably be dizzy for a while, and it's hard to justify getting mad at him when she's not allowed to drive herself anywhere, you know?"
"Okay, so I'll get mad for you," Kate said, reaching for his phone. "Gimmie."
"Kate…" Nate sighed but didn't try that hard to stop her.
Kate let out a triumphant "ha!" and started up a text to Scott. Hey, it's Kate. Nate and I are taking full advantage of the run of the house, and you're spending time with your predatory ex. Be jealous. PS Make good decisions. She's not even close to being in your league and we have STANDARDS in the X-Men, good sir.
She grinned and tossed the phone back to Nate, who floated it onto the counter, shaking his head at her. "Right, now he's definitely gonna want to come home."
"Hey, if no one tells him she's not worth his time-"
"That's what I'm worried about," Nate said. "He and Rachel both were projecting the whole time we were there. Rachel was having flashbacks to when Jubilee died to protect us. I've never even heard her talk about that before. It was bad."
Kate frowned and reached for his hand. "That can't be fun to have blasted in your head."
"I'm more worried about them," Nate said.
"Yeah, but still-" The phone buzzed, and Kate grinned and snatched it up to read the message:
I should tell you the same thing: make good decisions. I'm looking into more intel about the explosion. Don't use me not being home for a while as an excuse.
"Your dad is hilarious, and I have half a mind to tell him we're going to elope if he stays stuck in his head for too long," Kate said dryly as she composed her response: It's totally an excuse. We're young. We're gonna make all the bad decisions. Good luck in your detective work. Try not to think too hard about the state of your house.
Nate laughed in pure disbelief. "You're trying to get us in trouble."
"I'm trying to make him worry about something other than the thing causing PTSD flashbacks and the woman who uses therapy for sexual abuse?" Kate pointed out. "The man needs a mission, so I get why he's diving into an investigation. Mom does the same thing when she's upset: she goes digging until she can find someone to punish. Righteous retribution or whatever." She waved one hand as she used the other to set the phone down again. "I know how to handle Summerses."
Nate shoved her back a step telekinetically. "Oh, you're handling us?" he teased when she laughed.
"Um, yes, pay attention," she said, nodding seriously. "You, my gorgeous Cable, are besotted with me. It's okay. You can admit it."
"Starting to wonder if you haven't been pulling some kind of long spy game," he teased.
"Yes, absolutely," she agreed without hesitation. "I'm after your rock collection."
"I knew it."
Kate grinned and pulled him into a kiss. "Okay, so, we should make sure I'm not lying to your dad about the bad decisions."
"Right," he said seriously as he kissed her back. "Wouldn't want to make a liar out of you."
"Exactly my thought."
Meanwhile, on Genosha, the twins had finally gotten into their day, shadowing their mother and Lorna, learning the ropes and watching carefully on how best to deal with those that were showing an interest in opening up trade with Genosha. There was a whole lot of very boring political dealings to be had, and a whole lot more of learning to control their outward reactions when they knew more than what the person in front of them was presenting.
Luckily, Erik had done a lot of the groundwork with Billy, and his resemblance to his grandfather was helping to keep those meeting with the royal family on their toes. Especially since Tommy looked even more like Erik with his white hair and the two of them seemed to always be side by side.
The gravity of this particular meeting was incredibly lopsided, with the representative from Burundi attempting to recruit Genosha as an ally, though that never had a chance to happen when the country was notoriously vague in their standing with mutants.
There was no chance they'd go forward with an alliance, that was clear from the start, but Wanda wanted to at least make sure those she refused understood exactly why she was saying no - so it was necessary for them to talk, and for the boys to listen.
But that was also about when both twins checked their cell phones. They were both on silent, but it was their little cue to each other and their mother that the allotted time for this particular meeting was past. Except … neither of them was expecting to see a few messages waiting for them.
Not really messages, though. More like a string of photos from down the beach at the spot all the royals exclusively used for swimming and sunbathing. Mia and James had taken it upon themselves to send the twins a series of pictures … artfully shot for each other. James had taken Mia's pictures - as evidenced by the impossible angles while she posed in her bikini, and vice versa. A regular selfie would have been plenty to catch their attention, but no. These two had decided to get creative while using pin ups and models for inspiration.
What's worse, the princes could only manage to peek at a couple pictures at a time before they had to pay attention. But that was pretty well shot as soon as they'd seen there were pictures like that. Both of them looked like the pictures could have come from a professional photoshoot. Which was incredibly distracting with how little they both were wearing. .
It was no surprise to Billy, when the moment the meeting was over, Tommy zipped out. And Wanda didn't seem to think too much of it. Yet.
"We have two more meetings to deal with," Wanda told Billy as he stole another look at the slowly growing stash of pictures. When he didn't respond quickly enough, Wanda stopped, turned his way and raised one eyebrow expectantly.
"Yeah, I know. We're in the home stretch," Billy said, once again stashing his phone to his mother's muted approval.
"Where is Tommy?"
"I'm not sure," Billy said - only because he didn't want to bust his brother out. And Billy was still distracted.
Wanda hummed, but the two of them settled in for the next set of talks. The meeting hadn't yet started when Billy's phone went off - with a photo that James and Mia had taken together … that Tommy had photobombed. Wanda took a quick peek over Billy's shoulder to see what was going on - and knowing he'd been busted, Billy tipped the phone so she could see it.
With a sound from the back of her throat, Wanda waved a hand and Tommy appeared on her opposite side. "You cannot skip out on this," she warned, eyes glowing to emphasize her point, and though Billy wanted to laugh, he knew better than to stir things up.
But the pictures didn't stop.
They did, however start to come less frequently - and with a lot more action shots involved. Which had to mean that Alex was helping. Ten minutes before the last picture was sent, that was proven to be the case when a picture came to both boys - Tommy's was of Mia surfing alongside Alex, and Billy's was clearly taken by Alex when James managed to get in the curl of a good wave.
And that, more than anything else, had Billy turning his phone off temporarily so he could keep from getting in trouble like Tommy was … as Tommy made soft sounds of protest. But the moment that he knew for sure they were done for the day, Billy wished himself out of there even faster than Tommy could break away to run.
"What has gotten into you?" Billy asked with a grin as he wished himself into his own beachwear and dropped down to kiss James the rest of the way into the sand.
"Just … trying to make the most of the sun," James replied, smiling back at him.
"I'm not complaining," Billy promised, laughing to himself when it wasn't until just then that Tommy came zipping by and kicked up a rooster tail of sand next to Mia that sprayed Alex down. "But … I don't think I've ever seen you lean into it like this."
James frowned and turned his way, shifting to his side with his head propped up with one arm as he reached for him. "What do you mean?"
"I mean," Billy said, choosing his words carefully since James had been so tense about his looks for so long. He shifted to put his back to the ocean so it was clear he was only looking at James. "The view is amazing."
To his delight, James simply grinned. "So … how long do you need on the beach before we find something else to do?"
"I … grew up here. I know what the beach has to offer. If you're set, I'm set."
"Then we're all set, huh?"
"Mmhmm." Billy was grinning as he kicked off a long and involved kiss, caught up enough that he didn't hear the clicking of shutters from cameras just on the other side of the fence that kept the royals' beach private.
"Hey - how come we haven't done anything together?" Mia asked, giggling as she and Tommy interrupted the makeout on the beach. She was trying to be discreet, especially since she wasn't expecting James and Billy to get so … caught up that openly.
"Like what?" Billy asked. "I'm pretty sure you don't want to be too near us in a few minutes and we don't want to be too near you once you get going either …"
"Well," Tommy said, cutting in because he knew Mia wouldn't have said anything unless she was concerned about them. "I can think of something… just … we'll have to do something inside … away from the cameras."
That at least had Billy turning toward the small but growing group of photographers. "Okay that's a fair thought," he agreed. "What are you thinking?"
"I'm thinking … that it would be fun to have a little wine," Mia said, grinning mischievously. "We had the best time last time I was here with a little wine."
"Miss Mia," James said with a laugh. "What fun would that be?"
"Um … I like the buzzy, bubbly-ness," Mia said with a wider, more troublemaking smile.
"Okay, but … you're the only one to benefit since I don't like to drink and those two can't get drunk," Billy said, shaking his head at her.
"But is she really the only one to benefit?" Tommy asked with one eyebrow raised. "This might actually be the first time I could have a contender in a drinking contest."
"What are you talking about?" James asked, half smiling.
"I mean my metabolism won't let me get drunk. At least, I've never gotten it done before…"
"You weren't trying hard enough, then," James said thickly.
"Um, what?" Mia asked, laughing delightedly as she turned toward James with a grin and her tail swaying behind her. "You? You've been drinking, you little rule breaker! Have you been drunk?"
"Drunk? No," James said, shaking his head. "But with a lot of work, sometimes I can get a little buzz."
The twins shared a look and as Billy asked "What?" Tommy asked "How much work?"
"Wine and beer won't really do it," James said, then gave Billy a kiss at his jawline. "Not for me, anyhow. Not unless it's a barrel."
"We're doing this thing," Tommy decided.
"Are you sure that's a good idea?" Billy asked James softly.
"What's the worst that can happen?" James asked with a look of pure trouble. "You get me tipsy and take advantage? I give you full permission ahead of time."
"That's not exactly how it works," Billy said, half frowning.
"It's fine," James promised before he leaned in for a more involved kiss. "And besides - Mia actually did want to do something with all of us. It's on the checklist for home under 'proof that we didn't just spend every spare second having sex in hidden Genosha hot spots'. It's a real concern, honestly."
"Yes," Tommy said, bouncing on the balls of his feet. "Movie room. Meet you there!" He disappeared in a blink, and Mia looked delighted at this turn of events.
"I'll pick the movie," Mia said, grinning wider, somehow. "I love it here." With a muted bamf, Mia disappeared leaving James and Billy to make their way on their own.
"So … is this mostly for Mia, then?" Billy asked.
""That and it's something we haven't done before," James said. "Might be fun. And I'm pretty sure your brother will lose this one."
"I'm not sure… that might not be the case."
"We'll just have to see," James replied as he took Billy's hand.
"Let me just … get us both changed-"
"Whatever you want," James said, looking more like trouble than before. It was enough to screw with Billy's focus so that he had to make the wish twice to get James into normal street clothes, but even at that, his grin was still just … playful.
When they got to the movie room, Mia was kneeling on the couch trying to get everything just so while Tommy found the alcohol for their little contest. The boys were barely in the room before Tommy zipped over to hand James a bottle of something that Billy thought smelled like turpentine. So it was that much more confusing when James simply tipped it back without a second thought.
Tommy swore, then followed suit, grinning all the while as the two of them sat down to simply start pounding back one drink after another. The two of them were going at a fast clip … racing to see who could actually get a buzz even before the opening credits were done rolling.
They were playing it up for their sweethearts, too - and Mia was wildly entertained as she sat back with Billy to watch. She had a glass of wine in her hand, but she wasn't even attempting to do more than sip at her glass.
"I think James needed to blow off some steam just as badly as I did," she admitted to Billy in a whisper as they watched Tommy and James get into it. "Things are heavy back home, and it's just… it's nice to have an escape like this."
But Billy only frowned at that, because it wasn't at all like James to try to escape if everyone back home was having a hard time. Quite the opposite, in fact; he never put himself first. "Yeah," he said vaguely, not entirely convinced Mia had it right.
After that, Billy tried very hard not to be concerned when it looked like his brother and his sweetheart were getting along so well and having fun one upping each other in sheer volume of alcohol consumed. That … well that was so rare in Billy's experience, he didn't want to interrupt more than to laugh with them.
Until the two of them had burned through the whole case of rum that Tommy had brought out.
"I'll just go grab more," Tommy offered, and to Billy and Mia's relief, James took a solid hold of his shoulder.
"No way. You'll go zipping away just to burn it off. Forget it. If we can't get more than tipsy on this stuff, we just can't do it," James said.
"Oh," Tommy said, smiling more crookedly than was natural. "I am not giving up until you're drunk."
"Too," James added. "You're already there."
"That's it," Tommy said, pointing one finger at James a little too long as he took out his phone and sent a text. He didn't say what he was doing - and there was still just a little bit in the bottom of both of their bottles before someone on the staff showed up with a fresh case … and James didn't even go through his usual little routine to check it before he cracked open a bottle that the staff member handed to him and threw it back, leaving Tommy scrambling to catch up.
While Mia was enjoying the show, Billy was realizing that something was off. And not just the alcohol in play. Yes, Tommy was beyond buzzed - and was more funny when he lost some of his coordination, but James was pretty … loose, too. Super relaxed and clearly amused with Tommy's hilarious commentary if the crooked smile and laid back stance were anything to go by.
Which was right about when Billy realized the two of them were ready to break into yet another bottle. This was getting out of hand quickly, and he had to wonder if someone had meddled with the bottles they were drinking.
"What has gotten into you?" Billy asked as he took the bottle from James only to get caught up in a stolen kiss before James would answer him.
"Rum," James said with a growing, ever-more-crooked grin.
"That's not…" Billy shook his head, exasperated because it was so hard to stay on task when James was being that physically affectionate. "Are you sure you're… okay?"
"Absolutely. Are you?"
"Well, yeah," Billy said. "I just - it's just - you…" He trailed off, not sure how to word his question. "You seem weirdly happy" just didn't feel appropriate, somehow. So he went with: "Mia said things back home were pretty heavy, is all."
James sighed at that. "I gave you the basics. It's … mostly awful." The smile started to creep back, ever so slightly. "And I totally trashed that new uniform. I'm out until Jan can catch up. Oops. Might as well practice being a beach bunny…or cabana boy or whatever," he shook the bottle in his hand that he'd managed to slip away from Billy again. "Or a pirate. One of those. All maybe."
Billy shook his head in disbelief, though he was smiling in spite of himself. "Seriously, this is a wildly fun look on you. What brought it on so I can do it again?"
"Mia said so. And my lips and teeth are numb, so … that'll take some work to keep going."
"And he's behind!" Tommy called out, clearly drunk by that point, though he was now draped over Mia and stealing kisses behind her ear.
"Not really," James called back. "But you're doing pretty good for someone so much shorter and just … scrawnier."
"Not everyone comes from a family of giants," Tommy shot back.
"Reality check," James laughed. "My biological parents were tiny. What are you talking about?" He toward Billy seriously. "I'm a freak."
"I know; that's what makes it more ridiculous," Tommy insisted. "You managed to inherit the Summers height by osmosis," he said dramatically. "I don't know how, but it happened!"
"Don't be jealous," James laughed.
"Of your osmosis powers? I'm okay," Tommy giggled.
"Yeah. That."
Mia laughed out loud and snuggled into Tommy. "I don't know about you, but I'm going to go snuggle mine in privacy," she said. "He's hilarious and I don't know how long this will last, and I'm going to record a video of these ridiculous ramblings."
"If you teleport him, it'll last a little longer," James suggested. "Pin him down. Don't let him move."
"Done," she said, grinning - and they disappeared a second later.
James pulled on Billy to get him close enough to steal a quick kiss then bury his nose at the side of Billy's neck as he kept him close. "Hi."
Billy laughed. "Hi yourself," he said and went ahead and stole a long kiss that went on longer than he'd expected. He still had a nagging feeling that James had left out some crucial details that would explain why he was suddenly so okay with… all of this… but he'd wanted exactly this kind of response for so long… he'd just … get to the bottom of it later.
Scott was still at the house with Emma, which was not at all what he'd planned to do, if he was honest. It felt like falling back into bad habits, just letting things happen despite the niggling voice in the back of his head questioning it all. But he'd always had a hard time when Emma was hurt. He had cared about her, and he couldn't turn that off.
But staying with her? That… that wasn't what he'd wanted.
He scrubbed a hand down his face and glanced over at Emma, who was asleep. One of these days, I'm going to figure out how to say no to her, he thought, trying not to wake her as he got up for the day.
The worst part - the absolute worst part - of all this was that he felt more like himself than he had in a long time. He didn't feel like he was dragging himself through his days anymore. And hiding away… he hadn't thought about all he'd lost this whole time. And that was nice. Freeing.
His phone started to buzz, and he sighed, snatching it up and slipping out of the room. He was sure it was Kate. Again. He knew why the kids were worried. He was worried, too. Historically, letting himself fall into his worst instincts always came back to bite him. Always. But he couldn't bring himself to go home yet, even though he wanted to.
He knew that was wrong, too. He knew he wasn't the one stopping himself from going home. He knew Emma was in his head, but he just… he was too tired and too hurt to care. No one was getting hurt but him.
But, to Scott's surprise, it was Alex - and he picked up fast. "Hey, you okay?" he asked.
"Just checking in, really," Alex said, though his tone wasn't quite as casual as he was trying to sound. "Ah … I don't even know how to explain it, so …. Pictures headed your way. Worth a thousand words, right?"
Scott frowned, but before he could do anything, he got an influx of pictures of James - who was on the beach at Genosha. That wasn't too upsetting, but there was something about it… the way James was holding himself, blatantly showing off his body in a few of the pictures…
"What's wrong with this?" Alex said quietly, though Scott could hear the sounds of the ocean in the background.
"What… is he doing?" Scott asked. James wasn't one to flaunt his body, even for a joke - that was more Nate's style. And after Hydra and how guarded James had been since then about anyone even looking for too long, this felt… deeply, horribly wrong.
"Honestly? Nothing unusual for most people," Alex said. "But the way he's doing it has me a little off, you know?"
"Yeah, you've checked that he's not a Skrull, right?"
"That's very funny," Alex deadpanned.
"I'm half serious. James doesn't show off like that. Not since Viper, anyhow."
"It's him," Alex said. "And that's not the end of it, either. He's relaxed."
Scott narrowed his eyes, drumming his fingers against the side of his leg. "I wonder," he said slowly, "if he lost more than he thought when the building came down. Tyler said he didn't remember how he got out of the wreckage…"
"If that's the case, it's going to really be awful when it comes back," Alex said ."I don't know what to do with that, Scott. Even before Viper, he never did anything like this. Not that I saw."
"Yeah, I was just thinking out loud. Not sure that's what's happening, but…"
"So … what's the play?"
"Keep an eye on him," Scott said. "Don't let him make any big decisions. And… talk to Wanda. She's protective of him too."
"Alright. I know he spent some time with Vision when he first showed up, but maybe … what constitutes 'big' in this discussion?"
"Anything that has long-term consequences for his relationships, place of living, or career."
"Had to ask," Alex said. "If anything else happens, I'll let you know."
"Thanks. If this keeps up, I may go to Genosha myself," Scott said.
"I honestly wouldn't be surprised if it does, the way he's going. I don't have the pictures on my phone, but … he and Mia … well. They were getting creative earlier. Mia was very proud of her photography skills."
"Ah." Scott almost smirked. "That might be part of it. He and Mia can't stop encouraging each other once they get going. It's almost like watching their fathers."
"Yeah, but … he continued when she wasn't around."
"Okay, that's different." Scott sighed. "Was hoping that was all it was, to be honest."
"If it was just that, I wouldn't have bothered you with it."
"Hey, you're allowed to be an overprotective uncle every once in a while," Scott teased.
"I try not to be that guy too much," Alex laughed.
"Yeah, that's my job, right?" Scott leaned against the wall. "Seriously, thanks for giving me a heads up. We'll pull in more help if we need it."
"Any time," Alex said, then paused. "Before you go - how are you holding up? I heard the rundown when the kids came in."
"I'm-" Scott glanced back at the room he'd just left. "-dealing with it."
"Yeah, that's what I'm worried about," Alex said dryly.
"Thought I wasn't allowed to 'wallow and mope' as Kitty put it," Scott said just as dryly.
"Well, you're not," Alex agreed. "You used up all those punches on your card already? So … sorry 'bout that."
"It's fine," Scott said. "I'm fine. Really."
"Of course it is. It'll put hair on your chest, too."
"Sure." Scott thought about telling Alex the truth, because, really, he wasn't sure what he was doing there or why he'd just let Emma in. "Anyway," he said instead, "tell Chris and Susie hi for me, huh?"
"Yeah, Okay. Um … try to get some sleep, huh?"
"I'm fine, Alex, really. Save your worrying for the kids."
"I know. I know. But you know … genetics."
"Yeah, I know. See you soon, okay?" Scott said, then hung up and leaned against the wall, suddenly tired. There was a part of him that knew he was fighting too hard just to get his mind on his son and on anything that would take him back home. But almost as soon as Alex had suggested he get some sleep, both Alex and Emma had agreed with that assessment.
And he really didn't feel like arguing.
Chapter 113: Gut Punch
Chapter Text
"Evie's taking the girls to the movies, so I'm your food delivery service today," Anton said as he let himself into Annie's house. His squad car was parked outside, and he was run-down from a long shift and an even longer argument with one of the new officers who didn't see why Anton cared about the uptick in anti-mutant hate crimes lately.
He still hadn't told anyone on the force he was a mutant, though a few who had been on calls with him where he'd had to pass through detectors knew. So far, no one had said anything, though.
"You look beat, Anton; you really don't have to look after me like this," Annie said as she let him in, frowning at him. "I'm alright. It's just a breakup."
"Annie, you haven't cooked a meal for yourself since it happened. If that ain't a neon red sign that you're more depressed than I've ever seen you, I don't know what is."
Annie gave him a tired almost-smile. "I thought I'd spend the rest of my life with him," she said.
"Yeah, you told me," Anton said, setting down the Tupperware Evie had given him before she'd headed out with the girls. "Still not clear why you broke it off it that's the case."
Annie swallowed, fighting back tears again. She wished she could tell him the reason. She couldn't get past this breakup because she was still so confused. At least if she had a reason, she could get closure, but this?
Well, there was a reason she could barely even touch her oven.
Anton watched her for a second before he sighed and sat down next to her, putting his arm around her shoulder to pull her into a hug, letting her rest her head under his chin. "Can't pretend to know what's going on in your head, but ain't gonna let my family suffer, you know that, right?"
"I appreciate it," Annie said, closing her eyes. "I wish I knew how to fix this."
Anton nodded. "Meantime… your sister sent me with that golden mushroom chicken y'all can't get enough of."
"Mom's recipe," Annie said, smiling lightly. "She must be worried too."
"We all are. Half worried you're gonna make a bad decision or nine if we let you outta our sights, too."
Annie chuckled. "Oh, yeah, I'm definitely the rebel in our family."
"Surprisingly, you kind of are," he teased. "Didn't see anybody else in the family dragging the original X-Man out of retirement."
"It's a skill," Annie said, smiling into the hug.
"So." Anton straightened up. "You gonna be okay if I just turn on a show? Not much for conversation right now."
"Me neither."
Anton got to his feet and pushed his hand through her hair backward. "Just so it's clear, love ya, sis."
"Oh, go turn on Sound of Music," she teased.
"Right, right, just for that, we're watching Snow White."
"You hate me, don't you."
"Sure do, Annie."
The stay in Genosha didn't last nearly as long as James or Billy would have liked, and the truth of it was that the longer James was there, the more he started thinking … maybe a gap year would be a good idea after the way things had gone for him at MIT. He'd been threatening it to his father for a while, but … it actually started to sound good. What had him a little confused though, was that he was halfway thinking of staying in Genosha - not finding a wooded cabin somewhere. But he didn't want to focus on that too much. Spending most of his time half naked by the pool or on the beach really wasn't awful. Billy liked it, not just for himself but to walk out and find James like that had yet to elicit anything short of a delighted grin.
Then again, maybe the trouble wasn't going to school. Maybe it was where that school was. Genosha didn't have the level of study in physics or engineering that James wanted, but … there were other options overseas. Some of them could even offer competitive options… including access to CERN.
He was sitting on a balcony, overlooking the city, but not really focused on anything there - until someone caught his eye with a burst of colorful light and James shifted his focus to the little family halfway down the street with three little kids … all of whom seemed to share similar, yet different, mutations. Just like that, his mind started to wander to the point of distraction.
He'd spent a lot of time trying to keep his focus away from genetics because of what Hank had said when he was a kid, but once he'd gotten an interest in it, it was hard to put down, and though he hadn't made a big thing about it, James was up to date on not only Hank's research, but on genetic research on the x-gene from around the globe. He'd shifted away from it because of Hank's insistence, but it still fascinated him - though from a different angle than when he was a kid trying to get rid of it.
Now, he wanted to know why some families seemed to share a common thread in their mutations and others … he wondered if those mutations were more alike than they seemed to be. Nate and Rachel both had their mother's gifts from the x-gene, and neither of them seemed to have anything remotely like their father or uncle. So did that make telepaths and telekinetics more likely than concussive blasts? How did that work out with Billy's family, too? The twins didn't seem to have the same powerset, but was that because they were created out of chaos magic?
And that didn't even cover how sometimes, occasionally, a pair of mutants would end up with a human child. Science had declared the x-gene recessive decades ago … was that changing? And if so- how?
Most of the research was still geared toward stopping it - and all of that had been failed science. As if the genes themselves were mutating to prevent being eradicated on their own. But that wasn't possible. Mutating too fast for anyone to predict or control though …
For the first time in years, out of the blue, James found himself wondering if he should look into genetics. It wouldn't do anything for his position at Stark, but there were other, more interesting callings than weapons, energy, or even space travel.
He could talk to admissions at Harvard - they were the best in that field anyhow - but maybe he was tying his own hands by sticking to New England. Stanford was good … in California. But that felt like it was too far from Billy when he was in Genosha. Oxford, though … that was an amazing university with stellar ratings for genetics. It was one that the professor had gone to, and it was half as far away from Genosha as anywhere in New England. That was the definition of meeting Billy halfway…
But that would entirely blow anything for James being on either team.
It was a lot to process, and an entirely fresh avenue to consider. One that left James staring well beyond the city, lost in thought for a long time. When he finally snapped out of it, it was to pull up a browser on his phone and start putting out feelers. The more he thought about it, the more Oxford sounded like a good option to consider. And it wouldn't hurt to inquire. The worst they could do is say 'no', after all. Harvard still wanted him - and they were higher rated in the field, technically. Before long, James was chest deep in researching how he could go about applying to Oxford.
By the time Mia came over to talk to him a few hours later, James had put out several well-written inquiries and had began working up a real application. But Mia looked frustrated. She was dressed in shorts and a t-shirt with her arms crossed and a mild frown on her lips, and James quickly realized something was a little off.
"Have you been checking your phone?" she asked.
"No," James admitted. "Turned all my notifications off while I was reading. Why?"
"I thought that was the case," she said. "Your siblings are freaking out and I just got a message from Jan saying that if you didn't get your butt back to the tower, she was going to come here and drag you back. Something's up."
On hearing that, James was already looking through his missed texts. "Wonder if my siblings are all knotted up over Dad being … Dad."
"I mean, that's a safe bet," Mia pointed out.
James groaned as he got to his feet, though Mia was at least entertained by that. "Alright. Give me a few minutes. Gotta catch Billy between diplomatic moments."
Mia smiled crookedly. "I can text Tommy and he can deliver it to him in their creepy twin code."
"And let him get in trouble like Tommy did for not paying attention? No way. I'll get packed up and hose off. Even if the flights' just a few hours, you probably don't want to be that close when I'm sweaty anyhow."
"I do appreciate your consideration," Mia said with a smile as she walked with him to Billy's room to pack up what little he'd brought. "Of course .. you could just leave your stuff here, too. Not like you won't be back."
"Feels a little invasive," James said.
"Yeah, right," Mia laughed. "As if you two aren't on the right track. You'd probably make Billy's week - even if he can't come with us yet."
"Not pushing things with Wanda. We're not too far off from having to sit down and chat, though," James said. "But I appreciate the effort to help move things along."
She swatted him with her tail before he rushed off to wash up, then she texted Tommy anyhow - which meant Billy caught up to James more or less as he got out of the shower - freshly cleaned up, and still not shy or self conscious about his looks at all.
"I heard you're going back early," Billy said before he stole a quick kiss.
"Yeah. Jan was giving Mia a hard time because I've been ignoring my phone. It's probably time to go back anyhow. Dad and I are supposed to go to a couple more colleges and I really want to get a hold of my laptop."
"I like watching the gossip channels when you do your rounds anyhow," Billy teased. "I should be back next week."
"Alright. Try not to get too distracted with the next cute guy while I'm gone."
"Same," Billy said, then stole a longer, more involved kiss before he had to go back to helping his mom and James had to go.
As for Jan, she'd been building her reasons to worry for a long time by that point. It had started with Emma showing up, obviously, but that … she could kind of excuse that if the whole thing had just been limited to helping her after her school was destroyed. Jan understood that she didn't have to like someone to help them. And she even understood why Scott was being nice to her, because she had dated him herself and knew how he felt about the dangers of the hero life and all that.
But then Scott had sent her a text that he was spending some time alone to get his head back on straight and do some digging on the attack, and the timing was super suspicious.
Then, Jan had found out through Pepper instead of through Tony that Tony's lawyers had decided to take Emma up on letting her settle her case instead of going through with the full court press they'd been working up. Her therapist license was suspended, not revoked, and she'd have to pay some heavy restitution, but it wasn't at all what Tony had been pushing for, and Jan just knew that having Emma in the same building as Tony had screwed up that case.
And the damage was done. Irreversible. At least, it was irreversible without any new charges. But she had no proof that Emma had manipulated Tony, and even if she did, the court system wasn't exactly known for being up with the times. They probably wouldn't know what to do with a telepathic wrinkle like that.
Tony was acting a little off, too. He'd been super guilty after the original X-Men had died, so Jan wasn't surprised by how much help Tony was offering those that had been affected by the Academy's collapse. It wasn't out of character for him to help; Jan just felt like the methods were off. More monetary than concrete. Yeah, Tony liked to throw money at problems, but he threw money at the solutions, not just… cash in a vague direction.
So while Jan was tearing her hair out wondering if she needed to call Rachel or if she was just overthinking everything and misreading Tony's trauma response and Scott's mental health… she really, really needed a second opinion. Someone close to the situation who knew both of them as well or better than Jan did, respectively.
James. She wanted James. He knew Tony, and he knew Scott, and he was smart enough to catch the same subtle differences Jan had caught with a skill set that would let him catch more.
Finally, when James got back from Genosha, Jan rushed over to him and grabbed his hand. "Your dad is missing and Tony isn't acting like himself and I think he might have gotten a telepathic spanking from Emma while she was here because the legal team backed off of her and Scott's been saying he's taking time off for himself, but none of this feels right and I don't know what to think and maybe I'm just looking at it wrong because Emma dated both of the men I care about and I just need someone with clear eyes who knows them both to please tell me if I'm crazy or not?" Jan said, all of it coming out at once, her eyes wide and pleading.
"Okay, slow down. What?" James said, as if he couldn't absorb the information that fast - which was also wrong.
"Look, I know. I know we talked in the jet right after the school took a hit, and I agree with you that it was the right call to help her, but I think she took advantage of our kindness in the time she was here, and I just need someone to help me see how right I am, okay?" Jan bit her lip. "Please? I'm worried."
"Of course. Absolutely. Where do you want me to start?"
Jan let out all her breath in a whoosh and grabbed both of James's hands. "Your dad says he's doing some solo work, and while I can understand it, he shouldn't be alone right now ..."
"Okay. That should be easy to check," James said, taking out his phone. "Let me start with the simple route first." He held up one hand and texted to see if Scott would respond. Just a simple, single line. 'I'm home from Genosha, so I thought I'd touch base and see where we are for our next college visit. When is it? And where? "If he doesn't respond or blows me off, I'll step it up."
Jan nodded. "He's been taking hours to respond to me," she admitted. "I know, I know, he was depressed to start with, and he took thirty-six hours when I texted to check on him after Annie broke his heart, but he also knows it's different when he's not around anyone else."
"He shouldn't take that long to reply to me," James said. "He's never taken that long before."
"I hope you're right." Jan bounced from one foot to the other. "Tony told his lawyers to take Emma up on her deal to settle the case against her license."
James frowned at that, though. "Why?"
"You know, I asked him? And he said something about it being a bad look for the case to wrap up right as the school is leveled and it comes out that he's taking her for everything she's got."
"Maybe it would look bad if he was losing, but he wasn't." James tipped his head at that and turned to go to Tony's lab with all the subtlety of a tank. "So, after everything you went through to get the witch on the ropes, suddenly it's okay for her to touch me inappropriately … I know I'm your back up, but that is a step too far, Tony."
Tony looked up and then turned his music down as he waved James into the lab. "Hey, you're home early. What's with the warpath?"
"I'm not warpathing. Yet," James defended. "I just wanna know why it's okay for her to do the whole … inappropriate pawing routine on me. Did she touch you in the bad place when no one was around?" James asked, then crossed his arms over his chest. "That kind of thing requires decontamination at minimum with someone that doesn't have advanced healing."
"Jan already got onto me about the whole thing," Tony said.
"Oh, great. Jan needs decontamination too."
Tony groaned. "Okay, fair shot. I meant Jan wanted to know why I didn't push for more blood."
"Yeah. Me too. You had the pitbulls on her. So … explain it to me in small words that make sense all strung together. I'm not a genius, you know."
Tony gave him a dry look, then shook his head as he turned away from him, the words coming out roughly, as if he wasn't sure of the order. "I mean, it would be way too easy for her to turn the whole thing into 'The Avengers Kick Mutants While They're Down'..."
"So let her try," James said. "The fact that the filing dates are months ago, or the fact you have me as your second goes against that theory entirely, doesn't it? Or … is that all I am is a cover?"
"No. That's not- no." Tony sighed and set down the tool he'd been fiddling with. "Okay, you want to know the truth?" he said and leaned forward when James nodded. "It was just… pure reaction. The last time I pulled mutants out of rubble…"
"No, that's not true," James said, shaking his head and frowning deeper. "You've pulled mutants out over and over since I was little and you never reacted like this. And you're frustrated. What's the story, Dad? What's really going on?"
Tony blinked and then broke into a grin. "So am I Second Dad or Better Dad or…"
"You have always been a Dad Tony; take it however it makes you feel warmest and fuzziest." James smirked. "But … you know, Steve is still Uncle Steve."
"I love everything about this, and I'm going to have Jarvis mark the occasion. Every year, on this day… Tuesday? What's the date?" He glanced at his computer. "It's Wednesday. Whatever…."
"So tell me what's really going on," James said, shifting to a more open expression that had never failed him on anyone in the tower.
Tony stopped what he was doing to look up at James, and James could almost see the cogs whirring behind his eyes. But the more the cogs worked, the more Tony lost his smile - and he still didn't give James an answer. As if he wanted to, but couldn't force the words out. Which was when James suddenly got it.
"Okay. Okay, don't push. Please. I've seen that look before." James reached over to rest his hand on Tony's arm, trying to impress on him that he knew what to do. "Don't worry about it. It's okay. I shouldn't have pushed."
"Kinda feel like I need to worry about it."
"No, I'm sorry I asked," James said.
"Hey, no, don't be," Tony said quickly. "Because now I'm starting to wonder what the answer is myself, and I'm the one who did it."
"Don't do that. Just … I need to make a few calls, I think." James shifted gears quickly. "You want a coffee? Second shot at a decontamination with Jan? I think that's a good call."
Tony frowned, though he found himself fighting the smile tugging at the corner of his mouth. "O…kay. Not gonna turn down decontamination with Jan, but I'm gonna need an explanation later. You know that, right?"
"Yep," James agreed. "I'm just going to try to call my other dad… don't worry about anything. The Emma thing isn't the end of the world, and you're right. We have more important things to deal with."
"Yeah, working on those too," Tony said, settling back in to work. He trusted James enough to know the kid had a good reason for all this, but he was going to want to talk to him once… whatever it was blew over.
James didn't leave as he tried to call Scott, and when Scott didn't answer, he looked across the bench at Tony again, to try and shift subjects and see if he could get his Tony back. "So. I know it's sacrilege to ask, but … if Dad doesn't pull it together, I might have to ask you to be a media side show with me on a few of these college tours that are left over. It'd be a really good middle finger to MIT, media wise, too. I have a few that I know might be good options."
"Your dad still reeling that bad, huh?"
"Probably. If he doesn't reply faster, I'm going to have to go hunting for him." He reached across the workbench to take Tony's laptop - and started looking for Scott by backtracking his cell phone. No reason to wait, after all. But that trace was going to take some time. "Okay. Um … I'm going to let this run. Don't play with it. Please. I've got it running under the parameters I want." He smiled at Tony as he got up to leave. "Go … eat something solid and clean up. You stink."
"Wow. This has been a whole journey today," Tony said with a laugh. "Harsh. I went from Dad Tony to stinky."
"To be fair, you were stinky when I walked in…and by comparison, I had a shower before we flew back. Just ... listen to Jan. Eat real food. Spend time with her and take a break from this project … whatever it is … or I'll have to set off the boobytrap that I left in here last time we had a prank war going strong." As James walked by Jan he kissed her cheek and let his voice drop to just over a whisper. "Don't let him work until I get back, please? It's just a hunch, but I don't think he should be overly focused on work. I shouldn't be gone forever."
"I've got Tony covered," Jan promised and kissed his cheek. "Thank you again."
While Jan was distracting Tony, James headed off, distracted enough himself that he forgot to grab his inducer - something he never did solo. But he had things to get done and he wasn't thinking about things the way he usually did. He also didn't care about those details. And as he got into his car, he hit the call button to reach out to Craig Hale.
It only rang twice before Craig picked up, which helped James' level of impatience. "Hi Doc," James said as he got moving. "I know there's a whole … confidentiality thing, but I'm not looking for details. Can you just tell me yes or no … has my Dad talked to you since the disaster in Massachusetts?"
"No, and I've been trying to get in touch with him," Craig said, sounding stressed. "I managed to get him to pick up - once - and all he did was say he knew why I was calling and would set up a session as soon as he was done helping the people who were hurt."
"Okay. Next question, do you have any free time this afternoon?"
"Yeah, absolutely. My clients are all superheroes at this point, so, you know - pretty open when it's not slammed," Craig teased.
"Sorry about that," James said flatly.
"Don't be. I'm happy to help where there's a need - and there is."
"If it's alright, I can head over to your office now. I wanted to talk to you, but I don't want to be anywhere near the tower when I do. If you need some time, I'll grab lunch first."
"I just finished lunch, actually. You couldn't have called at a better time. Just give me twenty minutes - Evie was going to call and give me an update on Annie."
"Great, it'll take that long to get there anyhow," James said. "Thanks, Doc."
"Hey, glad to hear from you," Craig said before he hung up.
James shifted into the next gear before the line went dead, rushing to get going since at that time of day, it really should have been a longer drive - but he wanted to get moving on this quickly. As it was, the traffic gave him a chance to think it over, and more time to reach out to his dad again. But by the time he got to Craig's place, he was in deep thought. He walked up to the door and just after Craig greeted him - before he crossed the threshold - he very nearly stopped entirely, half freezing in place as a chill swept over him and he found himself dealing with a thick brain fog that twisted his stomach and brought back flashes of unintelligible whispers as he leaned against a basement wall. But he hadn't actually stopped, and simple momentum carried him forward before it hit him fully.
Craig didn't bother trying to hide his concern as he took James's arm and pulled him inside, guiding him over to sit down, even as he was reeling. "What… are you okay? Are you hurt?" he asked.
It took James a moment to answer - psychic backlash was wicked regardless of who it was dealing with it. And he was grasping to remember what felt just out of reach. "Yeah, yeah, I'll be fine," James said, one hand tented over his eyes. "Damnit. Sorry. I wasn't expecting this."
"I'm operatin' in the dark, here," Craig said, frowning at him hard.
"I know," James said, finally looking up at him with one eye open, and looking more angry as the seconds ticked by. "Can you get Annie over here - but … maybe have someone else bring her here without telling her where she's going? I think I know what's going on."
"Okay," Craig said slowly.
"I know, it's a weird request. The alternative is that we just … go over there. I don't want her to disappear, though. And I think she would if she knew I was coming."
"Yeah, neither do I. But I would like some clarity when, y'know, it's my sister we're talking about here."
James let out a sigh. "I have been freezing since that stupid school blew up," he said. "The only time I felt even halfway warm was on the beach in Genosha - on the equator. That's really weird for me. I haven't been able to think clearly, but I couldn't quite see it that way." James raised one eyebrow and pointed at Craig. "Until I walked through your door."
Craig understood all at once and narrowed his eyes. "I'll tell Evie to bring Annie by," he said, getting to his feet.
"Bring her device, too. I'll bet everything it's not working."
"Yeah, and I'll tell Evie not to let Annie know she's got it," Craig promised.
"Okay, and while we're waiting, I can tell you what else I know - and suspect." He took his phone out. "But I need to tell my brother to relax a little and play it cool. He's doing an amazing impression of Dad right now."
"Great. We'll compare notes after we talk to our siblings," Craig said - off to tell Evie that he wanted her to tell Annie it was his professional opinion she needed to get out of the house and go for a drive.
Once Craig was done and James was off the phone too, Craig turned back to James. "What's the damage?" he asked seriously.
"In some spots, it's pretty bad. I'm not sure yet, but I sent a text to Jan telling her where the back up devices are in my lab - and to turn one on next to Tony," he said. "I think Frost attacked him while she was at the tower. Made him settle on that lawsuit." He worked his jaw as he thought it over. "I got her out of the wreckage myself, and I can't remember half of how I did that. So I'm going to have Nate look in my head - see if he can find what she screwed with, because I know there's no way she could get into my head if I didn't let her - and I don't remember giving her permission."
"And you don't remember even in my office?" Craig asked. "I thought the device you gave me blocked telepathic interference."
"I can remember flashes, but the device stops current telepathic interference. If she messed with my memory, it's not going to instantly fix itself. It takes a lot for a telepath to modify memories, though. It's not usually worth the time. I'd need Nate to see if she locked them up, changed them, or just … erased them entirely."
Craig nodded. "And Annie?"
"I don't know. I don't think that Frost would take the time or put in the effort to do more than keep her back until it was too late to do anything else. Like I said - it takes a lot of effort to mess with memory, and telepaths have trouble with me anyhow. She might have had to do more in case her grip on me slipped."
"Annie won't talk to me or Evie or even Anton about the breakup - and Anton's been her shoulder to cry on when she needs someone she didn't grow up with."
"Yeah, but when I saw her … it's weird," James said. "I saw the same look on Tony's face, just less intense. I think she's blocked from talking about what Emma doesn't want her to talk about, regardless of who she's with."
"We'll see soon enough," Craig said, though he was pacing, and his accent was getting deeper, obviously showing how worried he was.
After plenty of pacing, though, eventually, Craig's sisters showed up at the door to Craig's office - and Craig saw on the security camera that Evie was struggling even holding Annie in place. "She's acting like you did," Craig said, gesturing at the video on his way to the door.
"Pull her in," James said.
Craig didn't need the prompting and had already thrown open the door to yank Annie inside - and into a hug. "Sorry 'bout the theatrics, but we think we know what's goin' on," Craig told her as she clutched onto him in the hug.
"Whatever it is, I feel like I'm gonna throw up," Annie said, and Craig helped her sit down.
"Sorry it took so long for me to start fixing this, Miss Hale," James said. "I knew something was wrong, but I didn't dig into it hard enough."
Annie glanced up, saw James, and promptly burst into tears. "James, I am so, so sorry. I don't know what happened and I didn't mean a word and-" She gasped in a breath as she started to cry harder. "I don't know why I did that. I was there, and I don't know why I did that!"
"You didn't," James said. "It was Emma Frost." He turned toward Evie. "Do you have the device? I just need to check my theory." He had his hand out as Evie dug it up, and in a couple of quick, hard twists, James cracked it open on the coffee table and started tearing into it until he found the fried circuit. "Do you have any other electronics that don't work at your house all of a sudden?"
"Oh, we had a power surge on the block a while back. The neighbors and I got together while we waited for the power company," Annie admitted.
"Power surges wouldn't kill this," James said. "Was it right about the time all this crap happened?"
Annie's eyes went wide as she caught up. "Night before," she said, gingerly reaching for part of the device, then holding a screw in her fingers and turning it almost compulsively. "I've been half out of my mind trying to figure out why I broke up with him," she said softly, her tone starting to harden into anger instead of desperate confusion.
"I really am sorry," James said. "I knew something was off that day - I should have dug deeper sooner. I went into damage control instead."
"We all knew something was off," Evie assured him as she came to sit beside Annie. "But seein' as you whipped up the telepathic thingy, we didn't even think about that option."
"Exactly," Annie agreed, wiping her eyes. "I thought maybe it was stress or… Craig has been helping me trying to see if it was anything in his specialty…"
A knock at the door announced Nate's arrival, and once Craig let him in, James held his gaze. "Telepathic disruptor is on, so for you to do what you do, it'll take the big guns."
"What will take the big guns?" Nate asked with a frown as he ran one hand through his hair. "And how big of big guns?"
"You'll need to either hit the feedback for any telepaths for a radius of your choosing, or push through the disruptor. I need you to dig around my head. Don't worry about being nice, I'll be fine. Emma Frost was playing with my memories and my perception. Figure out what she did and fix it, please. Whatever it takes."
"Oh." Nate blinked, and then his eyes started to glow as his shoulders dropped. "Okay, don't take this the wrong way, but that's actually a relief to hear, because otherwise, you'd have been backing Dad up on alone time with her of your own free will."
"You'll probably want to start at the school wreckage," James said, stretching to touch the wall with one hand to steady himself as Nate reached out to rest his fingers at James' temples. "Halfway through the recovery effort, I lost time."
"Got it," Nate said, his eyes glowing brighter, though he took it a step further and levitated both of them in case James did lose his balance anyhow.
To the Hales, it didn't look like Nate was doing much of anything, but when his eyes stopped glowing, he gently let both of their feet touch the ground, then he sat down and looked like he'd just been running laps as James crouched down where he was and covered his eyes with one hand - reeling from all Nate had to do so quickly.
"Well, that was fun," Nate said, shooting at glare at James. "What the hell were you thinking letting her in in the first place?"
"You were just poking around there, you tell me," James countered, his tone almost as short as Nate's was.
"It sure looked like you let her sucker you into it," Nate said. "Just because she called you Logan!"
James let out a breath. "Yeah…that wasn't all of it, but yeah. I know; she threw me off." He closed his eyes as he tried to reach for it. "But I don't think that was all it took. What am I missing?"
"No, it wasn't just that. She told you she needed to get in so she could show you how to navigate through the secret basement," Nate said. "Which is almost reasonable, but still."
"Its not clear to me," James said. "So, whatever you did in there to knock it loose is probably going to take some time to straighten out."
"Yeah, I just salted all of the ice in your mind, for lack of a better analogy. Once the salt melts the ice, so to speak, you should get it all back," Nate said. "I'm going to want the actual play by play. And you need Rachel or me to go through your mind when the ice is gone."
"Okay. She leave any suggestions in there I should know about?"
"Mostly to back Tony and Scott up on whatever decisions she had them make. Give them legitimacy so it doesn't look like it's purely her influence." Nate paused, not wanting to trigger his brother by telling him she'd locked up a lot of the trauma surrounding being touched or looked at. "And then she wanted you to move to Genosha so you wouldn't be as much of a pain as Logan was to her."
"Alright then," James said as he slapped his knees with both hands and stood up. "She did call me Logan. I guess I have to deliver."
"Do you think you could do the same thing for me?" Annie asked Nate, reaching out to grab his arm.
"Yeah," James said as Nate smiled at her. "Take care of Annie, she's been dealing with direction and suggestion for weeks - and you need to make sure she's okay with getting some pretty substantial shields. Then, do me a favor and go hit Tony too, please." He had his keys in his hand and was headed for the door. "I'll call in a little while."
"Wait - where you going?" Nate asked.
"I'm getting Dad," James said, giving Nate a determined look.
"When you find him, tell him he needs to schedule a session with me now," Craig said. "Even if Nate cleans him up, this… this is going to take some unraveling," he added, crossing his arms as he looked around the room at the varying degrees of shock and anger.
"He will be coming back with me, and we'll be headed to the tower. You've probably got a few hours to get there, and like every other big dirty mess we make, you'd be better off to go there ahead of the carnage."
"Got it," Craig said - though James was already halfway out the door by that point.
And as soon as the door shut behind him, Annie smiled lightly and raised an eyebrow at Nate. "He must really be mad. He actually called me by my name."
"Yeah, that's a special level of angry I wouldn't wish on anybody," Nate agreed as he held out his hand to her. "Now, Miss Hale, let's get your head back on straight."
James had a few ideas about where Scott might be, and he had asked Jan to tell him where Scott's phone was pinging. But as all the options that Emma would have allowed were upstate from where they were, James started out by heading north out of the city - and shifted course when Jan confirmed where the phone was last active anyhow. Even if it was off, that would be a starting point for James.
He still had a solid hour and a half drive while speeding ridiculously, but the burn he had going in the pit of his stomach was so much more pressing than other concerns. So he put the pedal to the floor and wove through traffic - disregarding the fact that showing up in that car would blow that location entirely.
He knew he had the right spot when he pulled up, especially with the familiar plain white SUV outside.
Before James had shown up, Scott had of course known that something wasn't right, but he'd already been blaming himself for doing what he had always done. For letting himself get so caught up in trying to be okay in the face of the worst the world could throw at him that Emma had always felt like a relief.
Jean, Annie - they were refuges. Being with them let him feel safe. He could tell them what was on his mind, and they would sit with him. Emma - she had always been a way for him to not address what was going on. To not think and to just… just be selfish for a change. And he always hated himself for it, because really, what was he doing when he was with her? But he'd never been able to bring himself to hate Emma. Didn't matter what Craig said or what the kids thought; he knew the truth of it was that he'd always - always - liked that Emma didn't ask him to face the aftermath of the worst traumas of his life. She let him hide from them.
Which, admittedly, was incredibly unhealthy. But it was also such a draw that Scott honestly did believe that he was just falling back on an old crutch. When she'd started to suggest that she might like to go back to Westchester with him now that she had no place to go, he'd started to realize she might have been orchestrating more than just a relationship, especially when she knew how everyone there felt about her.
She also knew that all of the new group of X-Men and so many of the older X-Men trusted him, so that if he vouched for her…
He wasn't comfortable with the idea, though. It had happened that way once before, after all - even if he couldn't quite compare the two scenarios. And that was the one boundary he kept holding the line on - anything involving his family. Especially the kids. He didn't want her to come home with him, and he didn't want her on the team that his kids had built themselves, from the ground up. And when she kept pushing, and he stepped away from her … that was when he finally realized that he felt colder than usual. This wasn't just about Emma pushing her way into his life again. She'd been planning to use his influence. Again. And her touch was in everything about the team.
When James had shown up at that hideout, Scott had already been outside for a while because he'd wanted some air - and so he'd seen the car and gotten the silent alarms that flashed at a frequency his cybernetic eyes picked up. His phone buzzed to let him know about the alarm, too, but he didn't need that one.
James got out and held Scott's gaze as he slowly closed the car door. "You're not answering anyone's calls or texts. You okay, Dad?"
What Scott had intended to do was to have James help him get Emma somewhere else - preferably with one of the telepathically-interfering devices James had created - but as soon as Emma had realized who was coming and knew James wasn't going to put up with her games, Scott felt like his entire mind had frozen.
Not as if it had stopped - like it had literally frozen over, and he was trapped behind layers and layers of ice.
Scott instantly knew what had happened. All the time Emma had been around, she must have been laying the telepathic groundwork for just this possibility. She knew he wasn't the same man who had let her run the X-Men with him for a short time; he was much more guarded. So she'd already made a plan for if he decided he didn't want to use his good name to make his family open their minds to her like he'd done before. She'd just force him to tell them to do it instead. Or make them do it to save him.
With a frustrated shout, Scott set to work trying to break out of the icy prison, though he could only do so much work when he was distracted watching James confront him, watching Emma talk to James through him.
"Sorry; I slept in," Scott said - which in itself wasn't too different from how he'd been acting since the breakup as far as James was concerned but ...
"You slept in for two days solid?" James asked, simply because it still didn't feel right. "Rachel has been getting worried."
Scott winced and rubbed the back of his neck. "Sorry. I didn't mean to be out of contact. I guess I didn't realize it had been that long."
James glanced toward the end of the driveway. "Well … let me help you fix that. Tell me what you want to say and I'll text one while you call the other. Nate's pacing, too." He started toward the cabin, ready to stroll right in - especially when he could smell Emma's perfume drifting off of Scott.
As he passed Scott at the stairs, though, Scott reached out to catch him by the shoulder. "You brought your car, James. Without the camo. You know that means we'll have to scrub this place."
"Yeah. Oops. I'll buy you three more to make up for it."
"That's not the point," Scott said. "It was reckless, and that's not like you."
"You're right. I'm not okay. I can admit it. But this place was already compromised, Dad," James said, holding his gaze. "No visitors, remember?"
Scott frowned, and James could see the exact same struggle he'd seen on Tony's face. "I thought you were on Genosha."
"I was. Then I realized I can't tan and don't like the tropics," James deadpanned.
"Did something happen with you and Billy?" Scott asked, sounding concerned.
"Yep. Mia and I blew up a couple of diplomatic meetings for them. So we came back. Surprised you didn't even read Alex's texts."
"He sent pictures. We talked. If anything, he was concerned you were acting too much like a Spring Breaker. That's not like you." When James simply kept his gaze, not about to let Scott deflect the conversation onto him, Scott crossed his arms. "Tell you what, I'll call Rachel and let her know I'm fine."
Something in how he said it … the meter was a little off, and it came across as if he was sending off Toby … not James or his siblings. So James planted his feet so Scott couldn't just brush him off. "Great, call Rachel. I'll stick with you while you do that, and I'll text Nate and let him know you're lying to my face."
"Excuse me?"
"You. Are. Lying." James held his ground. "You're not anywhere close to alright. Or fine. Or whatever synonym you want to go with today."
"You act like every one of us hasn't said that anyway. It's not newsworthy, James."
"Dad."
Scott let out a frustrated sound. "Fine. So I'm not sleeping well."
"I thought you slept in."
"Yeah. Because I'm not sleeping well," Scott said.
"Probably because you're not sleeping alone. Can't exactly ignore that."
Scott narrowed his eyes, and his entire demeanor changed. Instead of looking like he was tired and trying to get back to sleep, he threw his hand out to point at the car, anger dripping in just the two words he said: "Get out."
"No."
"You show up in your flashy damn car, blow my security, act like you know a thing about what it's been like, and now you're calling me a liar? Get out."
James made a point of holding steady as Scott got angrier, watching his facial expressions and body language closely, though he had never been in a situation where he had to take this level of anger from him. "Dad, you are lying, that's the definition of a liar. And you're turning your back on everyone that loves you. You're not yourself - so NO, I'm not going anywhere. Not without you."
"How dare you," Scott said, pointing a finger in his face. "I take a few days to myself after a damn school collapses and you think that means I'm-"
"Never, in your life, not even after your own school and your own people were in that situation, have you ever turned your back on your family, so no, I'm not buying it."
At first, Scott couldn't help but be proud of his middle child. James had figured it out - of course he had; he was as smart as a whip. And he wasn't taking Emma's crap, even if it came out of Scott's mouth. That was impressive itself - being able to separate the person talking from the person supplying the words. Not always easy to do.
And then…
"You don't qualify as family," Scott said through his teeth. "Take the damn hint, James. I've been trying to find you somewhere - anywhere to go so that you're finally out of my hair. That's been the case for years. From the start. That's why I kept sending you away while you were growing up! I should have known they couldn't handle you being around them either!"
"Well you haven't managed it yet," James said, though there was a mild shake to his voice. "And I'll be damned if I let Emma Frost dictate that for anyone but the clones she abandoned when they were done growing in their test tubes."
"Get out," Scott said in an icy tone. "I never should have taken you in. Just you breathing has only ever made life harder and more dangerous for everyone around you and I am sick of wasting my life and risking my family trying to pretend like it's not all your fault. I don't want you here or anywhere near me- don't you get that?"
"No-" Whether it was an argument or breathless shock, the tone alone was hard to decipher.
Emma, when I get out of this, I'm going to kill you, Scott snarled in his mindscape from behind the ice, taking a mental ice pick to the wall between him and his consciousness with all the force of a desperate parent trying to get to his son. Because what he heard Emma saying in his voice went so far beyond just crossing a line… God, that was going to stick with James forever. The kid knew it wasn't him, and it was still going to stick, because it was exactly what James had always been afraid of hearing from Scott and-
And Scott knew that it meant Emma had been in James's head too.
How much of that damn explosion was even real? Did you stage the whole thing? Scott shouted in his mind, once again sending ice shards flying as he put a small dent in his prison. He wished he had Rachel there, with her warm telepathic touch that would be so naturally opposed to Emma's, but Jean had left him with good enough tools that he could get out of this. He just needed time… something he didn't have when Emma was traumatizing James using Scott. But James seemed determined to follow his mission through - giving Emma more time to spew out increasingly horrifying things.
Outside of his mindscape, Scott pinched the bridge of his nose. "Your father couldn't take a hint either, and you are just like him in all the worst ways." He turned to walk away, only to spin and shout some more. "You are the real reason everything fell apart, James. I guess thought I could help you be better than the animal your father was, but I was wrong. So wrong. And maybe I didn't make it clear enough when I told you how it happened all those years ago. But our lives fell apart that day the moment Jean saw you. She gave up and I should have left you there instead of trying to save you. Maybe it's not your fault. Maybe it's just because of what you are. I don't care - and I haven't been able to since you proved you're nothing but a cold blooded killer - no matter how hard Tony Stark tries to polish you into something more. I'm done," he said, accenting his last word with a sharp wave before he turned and headed for the door.
For just an instant, James stared at him in shock before he moved without processing what he was doing. With a slam, James pulled the door shut before Scott could get there himself. "Get in the car, Dad," James said as he took a hold of his arm.
"Absolutely not." Scott yanked his arm away from James and again pointed a finger in his face, accenting his harsh words. "Don't call me dad. You're not my son and you never were."
James held his breath, then barely managed to speak clearly again, but it came out in a warning tone. "I don't want to force you to go with me, but I will."
Scott scoffed at that. "Get the hell out of my way."
"Sorry, Scott," James said, then moved too fast for Scott to counter him. With a sharp crack, James struck out - and knocked him out cold. He had to take a moment to steady himself after Scott hit the ground, and he blew his breath out between his lips before he turned his attention to the front door. "Frost, it's over. Come after me again and you won't live through it. Come after him or anyone else I love again, and I will drag it out when I kill you."
Scott was nearly beside himself, only staying upright in his mind because he needed to break through. Sure, not having any idea what was going on around him meant he could focus on his own mind, but it also made his defenses fuzzier. Dreaming and unconsciousness were like water; he could still move, but slower than normal. And everything was darker. And it was harder to concentrate, because dreams and unconscious thoughts started to come out of the doors of the hallways in his mind, taking strolls through memories and fears alike.
A few times, Scott forgot why he was even behind ice - or else he got distracted by a dream or nightmare. And when he did remember what he was doing, the damage he'd managed to do to the ice was gone, and if anything, he felt like the walls were thicker and the bubble he was confined in had gotten colder.
He shivered and stomped his feet a few times, trying to focus. But he was losing ground.
With a shaky breath, James picked Scott up and headed for his car. He didn't care what might belong to Scott in that place. All he wanted to do was get distance between them and Emma - the faster the better. He gently settled Scott into the passenger seat, then rushed to climb in and peeled out as they headed back to the city. He was several miles away from that first town when he had to pull over and take just a moment. He hadn't ever considered hitting his dad like that. Scott. Whatever. His hands were shaking, and he needed a breath. So he took a couple of minutes on the side of the road, hyperventilating, to get a better grip on himself.
She'd been in my head. She knew where to hit because I gave it to her. He had to remind himself that. And because he'd stupidly let her in, Emma knew exactly where to hit, what to say, and how to do it to make it sting hardest. But he couldn't get over the fact that knowing all that, his gut reaction was to hit Scott with a right hook. Again, he'd let his instincts take over - and he hated himself for it.
Regardless of the nightmares he was bound to get from that little encounter, he knew it wasn't Scott. Yes, it was his voice, his anger … his gestures … but he wasn't in control of himself. He just had to hope that Scott wasn't going to hold it against him. Especially when he hadn't pulled the punch, either. He was too angry and hurt to hold back.
And if Scott did hold it against him … if even some of what he'd said were actual thoughts of his own - if somewhere deep down that really was how Scott felt … at least he would be back in his right mind for Rachel and Nate.
Once James finally got back on the road, he hit the button on his phone to call Nate. "Yeah, hi. I'm on my way."
"How'd it go?"
James let out an anxious laugh. "Well … I've got him. Ah … get … Hank and Tyler to meet us."
"That bad, huh? You stab her or something?"
"Something." James scrubbed his hand over his eyes for a second, then shifted gears to go faster.
"Wouldn't blame you," Nate said.
"Yeah, no. She got off with a warning," James said, then braced himself because they needed to know ahead of time. "I knocked him out."
"Dad?" Nate sounded shocked even over the phone. "Why?"
James' breathing was still a little shaky. "Ah, she had completely taken over his mind. He wasn't going to come with me on his own."
"And you didn't stab her because…"
"I just wanted to get him out of there," James said. "Listen. I'm going to drive faster, okay? I can't exactly feel my extremities right now, so I probably did a number to myself. Markers for shock. Ah -have them ready to help him when we get there."
"Oh man," Nate said in a breath.
"Right. So… I didn't really care about Emma at the time. I… am almost positive I broke his face, too.."
"Hey, it's okay," Nate said quickly. "Pretty sure that's allowed in mind control cases."
"Don't tell Rachel what I did, please," James said.
"Yeah, I'm not stupid," Nate said. "Rachel hears about this before we get Dad clear of ice and she'll burn it out of him."
"It'd be quicker," James deadpanned. "Just … listen, I know you're strong enough, and you've been downplaying it for years. Can you jail break his head and block Frost from doing anything before we get there, because I don't know if I can do that to him again."
"Yeah," Nate said. "I'll see you guys when you get to the tower. I need to concentrate."
By the time Nate showed up in Scott's mind to find his dad half distracted by a dream that drew from old memories, Scott was lost. The ice Scott had managed to chip away had drifted through his memories and turned to snow, prompting his unconscious mind to remember Alaska - to remember the extreme chill in the air when he and Alex had been alone in the woods with nothing but the burned tatters of a parachute.
As Scott watched the memory play out, Nate stepped toward him, and it shifted the memory/dream so that Nate was the one with Scott in the woods. But Nate didn't have the dreamlike quality the rest of the memory, did, so Scott frowned, paused, and asked, "That you, Nate?"
"Sure is," Nate replied. "There is a lot of ice in here. You still you?"
"In here? Yeah. Out there? Definitely not," Scott said, obviously frustrated as he went back to chipping away at the ice. "This would be easier if I was conscious," he muttered.
"You don't want to be awake right now," Nate said. "You wake up and it's going to hurt."
"More or less than the fact that James is hearing his worst fears from me?" Scott said, gesturing sharply.
"Well, he's not hearing that anymore," Nate said. "He called and told me he knocked you out and you're on the way to the tower. Emma was screwing with Annie. He fixed that before he went for you." Nate frowned to himself and drew up a psychic pickaxe. "Pickaxes work better, right?"
"Right," Scott said, glancing down at the tool in his hand. "Sorry, it's… hard to concentrate."
"I can help a little with that," Nate said, then did what he could to bolster Scott up. "It's not a lot, but I'm not exactly right next to you, either."
"Yeah." Scott gestured with both hands at the ice bubble. "I already told her she's not walking away from this. This is a line she can't cross."
"I'm still surprised James didn't just stab her," Nate said.
"She wasn't outside. For exactly that reason."
"Oh, no. A door. However would he manage that?"
Scott chuckled. "You know what I mean. She used me as a human shield to protect herself from him." His hands closed in fists at the statement, and he slammed one hand against the side of the bubble. "I have to get out. I need to talk to James. Now." On the last word, Nate heard a strange zapping sound, and the next second, there was a hole straight through the middle of the bubble in a direct line from Scott's eyes.
"Or … that … would work better than a pickaxe …" Nate was starting to smile.
Scott let out a disbelieving laugh. "I told you; I'm having a hard time concentrating. If I'd been thinking, this would have been my first option."
"Shutting up," Nate said, holding up both hands. "But that was very cool, by the way."
"Not what I meant," Scott said, shaking his head, though even Nate could feel the chill as that only prompted Scott to think, At this rate, I'll manage to insult all my kids even in my right mind, which Nate could hear, since he was right there and Scott's defenses were so weak.
To be fair, if Billy were here, I'd have him wish me to Westchester so I could boost with Cerebro and turn her into a doorstop. Mentally. He frowned, and paused in his attack on the ice to widen the broken section. No. It's probably better if he just stays in Genosha if we're doing telepathic takedowns.
Probably, Scott said, though he couldn't focus much on Nate when something else was swimming in his conscious mind - and he realized he was waking up. He saw James in the driver's seat and wanted to apologize, wanted to promise that he believed absolutely zero of the words that had come out of his mouth … but as soon as he was even a little bit conscious, he was also aware of how much pain he was in.
James was focused on getting home fast, though he had to side eye Scott when he started to stir, making soft noises that obviously indicated he was waking up - and wasn't feeling good.
"Ow," Scott said quietly when he tried to sit up better and got a wave of pain for his trouble.
James glanced over, not at all sure of what he'd do if there was trouble. "We gonna have a problem?" He hadn't meant to sound so much like Logan just then, but he didn't trust Scott at that moment, either.
The ice around Scott's mind made looking at his conscious awareness like looking through a prism, and Scott could swear that was Logan driving the car, even if he knew better. Scott frowned at James for a longer time than his question necessitated. "I'm not starting a fight in a speeding car," he decided at last, his voice thick from his injuries.
"I wouldn't recommend doing it when we stop, either," James growled out, hating that he hadn't meant to growl at all, but it was rolling like an undertone when he spoke.
Scott let out a sigh and reached up to gingerly touch his face. His nose was broken, and his jaw was already swelling where it was broken, too. He wasn't sure, but that might not have been all that had cracked in either the punch or whatever he hit when he fell. He could talk, but it didn't feel great, either.
That was all Scott could manage before Emma, operating in the shadows of his mind even then - pushed him back, jockeying for control of his body by using an overly distracting memory in tandem with her psychic attack, this time of exactly how betrayed Scott had felt when he realized Jean had actually pursued Logan. And that Logan had gone along with it.
Scott fell back a step, but he had the advantage this time of being awake, being angry and hurt, and knowing that James was in the car with him and that he couldn't let Emma speak to him again. So, as Nate watched and worked to keep the ice from overwhelming his dad, a different memory came to mind, this one of Jean getting in Emma's face, throwing her out of the living room with a bit of fire chasing Emma out in the process.
Scott glanced toward Nate, who was watching the memories with both eyebrows raised, and smirked. "That was after Jean came back from the dead," he explained. "I wanted to go back to the way things were with Jean, Emma disagreed, and Jean decided the argument was over."
"Go Mom," Nate said quietly.
Scott nodded, smiling fondly. "You should have seen the way she told Emma we were expecting," he said, and the memory shifted to show Scott laughing as Jean showed him the fiery baby announcement beamed directly into Emma's head. The two of them had hoped then that it would lessen Emma's overtures, because Scott was a father now, and Emma didn't do children.
The memory shifted again, this time to Jean doubled over laughing as K casually informed them that Emma wouldn't be continuing to stay at the institute, because she suddenly decided her interests were better served where people didn't shove claws nearly up her nose because she dared to suggest that a baby was only a speedbump in the grand scheme of things.
"She looked like she was thinking about doing something I'd have to make her regret," K had said primly, and that got Scott laughing too.
It was obvious that the memories of Emma being stopped or having to face consequences were doing more to break her hold on Scott than anything else they'd done, and Scott grinned triumphantly when he realized he was back in control of his body.
"We should go home," Scott told James softly.
"Maybe after you're patched up," James said, stewing on the fact that Nate was right. He should have taken a moment to stab Emma.
Scott frowned and watched the road for a moment, still obviously not himself. "Alright," he said at last. "Yeah. Probably should get patched up."
James tried not to react, though he tightened his jaw and flexed his hands on the wheel. They were getting closer - and James was more than happy to break a few more speeding laws to get there now. He didn't trust that Scott would stay in the car on his own when they inevitably hit a stop sign, and though he was no longer as shaken up, he really didn't want to chase him down and knock him out again. But he would if he had to.
And then, Scott was once again lost in his mindscape and couldn't see - and he realized quickly that Emma had dragged him and Nate into a different memory. And in the pitch black, he heard Sabretooth laughing over the sound of a fight.
"Oh shit," Scott said, and Nate turned his way with his whole body. "Nate get out-" Before he could finish, they both heard a soft, barely contained sound of pain, and Scott looked pale. He'd heard K die, and while he hadn't seen the gory details himself, he had heard enough injuries and bones breaking in his lifetime to know what fatal damage sounded like.
Nate didn't recognize some of the voices or have the full context, but soon enough, he could hear the others who had been there. The loudest was Jean, who had been right beside Scott at the time, trying and failing to hold back gasps. Even in the memory, Nate could feel how hot Jean's touch had been as she grasped Scott's arm.
And then, everyone started screaming, and Nate nearly fell over when he was hit by the pure despair Scott had felt when he realized K was dead. It left both of them reeling even through the sounds of the overly short fight between Logan and Sabretooth.
They heard the scrape of keys in locks, and Nate glanced toward Scott, realizing his dad looked green and had stumbled to sit down - even though it sounded like everyone was just… talking.
And then… snikt.
Nate had heard a similar sound with James, but not like that. Not metallic and sharp and - and so final-sounding. It had ended hollowly, unlike when he'd heard Logan's claws when the Logan from another dimension had trained them. There was no echo- and there should have been.
Then, Kurt started to panic, and Nate understood all at once what Scott was reliving. This was the moment he'd lost Logan too - and Nate could feel in that memory just how much Scott blamed himself for not seeing it, for losing his sight and being useless.
Nate could see that his dad was clearly spiraling, and he had to stop this before he wasn't able to fight back at all. It was already headed that way. So, he reached outside of the memory and yanked a better one, any better one. He didn't even know what it was; he just knew that it felt warm and loving and was behind a door that Scott had been pulling other good memories from.
The next thing he knew, he was watching himself as a little kid, leaned on Scott with his mouth slightly open as he tried and failed to stay awake to watch a movie. James had already fallen asleep on Scott's other side, and Rachel was on the other side of Nate, frowning at the three of them. But instead of trying to get into the snuggle, she left the room - and came back with two of her favorite stuffed animals that she tucked in next to each of the boys.
It was a little memory, but what Rachel hadn't known was that Scott had just been mentally drowning and worried that he wasn't going to be able to do right by those kids. And just at that moment, Rachel had come in with all the love a little girl was able to give, and, well, he knew he must have been doing something right.
The memory was enough to push the darkness of Scott's blind memories away - at least enough that Nate and Scott were able to push them the rest of the way back behind the door they were supposed to be locked in. Most of the ice had returned while they'd been distracted, but all at once… the ice wasn't expanding, either. And no new attacks were coming.
Rachel stepped in, already starting to melt some of the ice with her presence alone. "Did you need an intergalactic space heater?" Rachel asked brightly - just because she was so glad her dad was away from that witch.
"What?" Nate asked with a crooked frown.
"Nevermind. You would have had to have been there. How hot do you want it, Dad?" Rachel asked.
"I have a high heat tolerance," Scott said, though he was grinning as he rushed over to her to hug her. "You've got it under control, right?"
"Oh yeah. We're working pretty well together, honestly," Rachel promised.
Scott smirked at that. "Woe be the telepath that makes you and the Phoenix mad."
"Yeah, seems like the Phoenix wanted to try behaving when every single person around me wasn't pushing to turn it off or control it entirely," Rachel said.
"I'm not complaining. I need to get out and find James," Scott said.
"Good," Rachel said as she started to turn the heat up. "I think he's planning to head to his lab - but you need to talk to Craig first." She turned to Nate. "If you haven't had time to clear any suggestions, now would be great."
"We were playing defense," Nate pointed out.
"Thought you were good at that," Rachel teased.
"Yeah, well…" Nate gestured around. "Believe it or not, this was an improvement."
"I believe it," Rachel said, and Nate and Scott were watching literal mountains worth of ice melt astonishingly fast.
Chapter 114: Hard Reset
Chapter Text
When James and Scott finally parked at the tower, James was quick to get around to the other side of the car before Scott could drag himself out, sure to direct him properly, though Steve met them to help, too.
Steve looked shell shocked as he took in Scott's appearance and joined James in escorting Scott upstairs, holding him fast when Scott suddenly tried to get away from them. But it wasn't until they were halfway up to the top floor in the elevator that Steve actually spoke up. "You alright?" he asked, though since it wasn't clear who he was talking to, James simply kept staring ahead of himself as he kept a tight grip on his dad. "James?"
"I'm fine," James said in a flat monotone. "He needs to get to medical."
"Yeah, I can see that. Hank's waiting. Tyler wants to talk to you, too."
James nodded to himself, but didn't speak. Not when he had so much going on in his head. But the interesting part didn't happen until they reached the top floor and the elevator door opened. As soon as they forced Scott to step into the inclusion zone of the telepathic dampener, he was hit with the psychic backlash from Emma being forced out of his head, though the triggers she'd established were still causing reverb. It was extreme enough that Steve had to help to hold him up, though James managed to restrain himself from doing the same as he started to distance himself from his dad.
"Come on, I'll get you to Hank," Steve said as he guided Scott around the corner. James hung back until they were out of sight, then headed for his room, though Kate caught him on the way.
"Hey, you alright?" Kate asked. "I know Nate needs to take a minute with you to see how that whole … everything went."
"Nate's got to take care of him first." James shouldered past. "I know the disruptor stopped her from continuing, but he'll need to stick close for now." He thumbed toward his room. "I'll be here. Nate's got his work cut out already."
"Are you sure?" Kate asked, frowning. "Because … you look like you're ready to leave."
"Where the hell would I go?" James asked, both arms out and palms up.
"I can think of a dozen places or more," she answered. "Maybe Genosha?"
James shook his head impatiently. "His telepathic defenses are tight. Nate needs his edge to keep from hurting him, and he's not going to be able to sit down for a session with Doc until he's cleared," James reasoned.
"Yeah, I know," Kate agreed, though she was frowning. "So, you know that Rachel knows what's going on, and she is absolutely helping with your dad-"
"Good," James said, then gruffly turned toward his lab instead where he could lock everyone out, avoiding letting anyone touch him as he left.
Once the ice was gone from Scott's mind - though plenty of water and steam remained - Nate and Rachel backed out to regroup and wait for Scott to wake up. They knew it wouldn't take long. Not when he was so determined to talk to James. But that had the two of them deciding on a plan of action before it could even be discussed.
"You go talk to James," Rachel said. "I saw some triggers and commands in Dad's head that I want to deal with before they get set off accidentally."
"Perfect," Nate agreed, then zipped off past their friends and family, who were all waiting for news.
When he got to the lab, where James was, he noticed right away that James had no music on - no television news report in the background, and he didn't even look up at Nate when he stepped into the lab. "If you're ready, I really want to see how that went down," Nate said. "And after the fight we just had in Dad's head, I have a better idea of what to look for that Emma might have done to you, too. I was kinda rushed earlier."
James glanced up at him, nodded once, then set his tools down before he led the way to the couch, where he simply stretched out and closed his eyes, looking wildly uncomfortable.
"You alright?" Nate asked with a frown. He'd honestly gotten used to James fighting him on letting him into his mind, but after the quick interaction in Craig's office … this was worse than Nate was expecting from him. All things considered, James' reactions were … off.
"Yeah, I just want whatever she did undone," James said. "My only stipulation is that I don't want to talk about anything that happened before I brought him back."
Nate didn't need to know that whatever it was had to be really bad if James' reaction was that, but he wanted to help his big brother in any way he could. "Okay. I can try to hold to that."
"Knock me out when you're done, too," James requested. "Please."
"Yeah, alright." Nate watched his brother with concern as he settled in, then wasn't surprised in the least when it took longer for James to drop his mental shields enough for Nate to be able to look painlessly. And even at that, Nate was making little sounds of displeasure at what he was seeing right off the bat.
The Hale family didn't have much to do as they waited for any one of the Summers family to come out and talk to them. Craig and Annie were both holding their breath to talk to Scott after so long and so much strife, but Craig would have been lying if he'd said he wasn't worried about James too, judging by how he refused to look at or talk to anyone on the way to his lab. It was such a shift; he knew something bad had happened.
Tyler was distressed because he needed to tell one of the telepaths that he'd had a forced repression experience too. He felt guilty that he couldn't say anything sooner, because in his mind, had he been able to, Scott never would have gotten caught up in Emma's clutches.
But he was going to have to take a number. The Summerses were all heavily involved in looking out for each other first, then minimizing the damage to those they were closest to that were also affected. So … Annie, Craig, Tony, and whoever else thought they might need a once over were going to take priority.
Upon realizing that, Tyler sought out guidance from someone slightly outside of the Summers inner circle. He just wasn't sure right away who to talk to. He'd had a terrible headache since the telepathic disruptor had been turned on at the tower, and to be perfectly honest, he was a little hesitant to talk to Rachel or Nate anyhow if they were powerful enough to be working with their powerset inside of the disruptor zone. That was either slightly terrifying on the scope of their power, or an amazing trick on James' part to exclude his siblings from that kind of stopper - which was also slightly terrifying.
Either way, both of them were busy even if he'd wanted to talk to them. So, for a long moment, Tyler watched the Hale family support each other until Jan came out to do a round and make sure everyone was alright. He watched her from the far side of the room, his expression caught between longing for the family bonds that the Hales were showing and awkward teenage discomfort at being the odd man out.
But Jan had a sharp eye for all kinds of things - and unsurety in teenagers was somewhere near the top of her list. Before Tyler could speak up, Jan was headed his way looking concerned. "You alright, big guy?"
"Um … I mean," Tyler looked toward Craig then lowered his voice. "Not really, no. I know there are big things happening, but … it wasn't just them, you know? She hit me, too. She made me help her hide her fake concussion-"
"Ty, sweetie, I'm so sorry," Jan said, bouncing on her toes. "We need you to get some help, too - and you shouldn't have to wait for Summerses to finish up and recharge, either!" She squeezed his arm. "I'll call Betsy. She's more familiar with your mind anyhow, right?"
"Right," Tyler said in a sigh, half shaking his head at himself for not thinking to call Betsy himself. Part of Emma's manipulations had been instructions not to get help, and that didn't go away just because the telepathic interference was working again. "I just … need them to know everything, you know?"
"I know. And I'd bet my fall line that those Summerses aren't going to let her get away with this one bit."
"Yeah, obviously not," Tyler said. He hesitated, rubbed the back of his neck, and added, "And, well… they should know that this isn't the first time I've felt a presence like that. The telepaths the department had - their telepathic touch was very similar. If I hadn't gotten to work with the Summerses and Betsy, I'd have just assumed all telepaths felt that icy, but…"
"Oooh, I do not like the sound of that at all," Jan said, taking his arm and leading him to a more quiet spot, patting him all the way. "Don't you worry. I know Betsy can set you right. She said she got a lot done your first few times, right?" With her free hand, she was already texting Betsy with a 911 message, even if her tone was calm.
"Yeah, she's been amazing," Tyler agreed. He had never known how to handle the fact that Jan immediately had taken a liking to him and seemed determined to be on his side since so many people had an immediate aversion to him because of his biological father. But he also wasn't going to stop her from patting his shoulder, either.
"Great! Then when she's all done, if you still feel the need to talk to one of the Summerses, we'll grab whoever isn't in full freak out."
"Are they ever not freaking out? Feels like there's something going on all the time," Tyler pointed out with the ghost of a smirk.
"I mean … there's definitely a sliding scale, and the amount of anxiety from living the way they have for so long is kind of … well. It's well earned, you know?"
"Yeah, no, I get that. I mean, I spent a good amount of time trying to stay out of trouble myself, you know?"
"I know. I wish we could figure out how those creeps found you to begin with," Jan said. "But, I'm glad they were dumb enough to send you after the team."
"Me too," he agreed. "Knowing the kinds of missions they liked to run? I'm glad I wasn't in as long as I could've been."
"Yeah, let's not think about that too much," Jan advised. "Let's … do something pleasant while we wait for Betsy to come up. What do you think this group is going to need?"
"About fifty pounds of coffee and a therapist who doesn't sleep."
"Um, with all the anxiety flying around already, you really think more coffee is the right call?" Jan teased.
"According to Kate, if there isn't coffee, then the world falls apart," Tyler teased right back. "What do I know? I don't drink the stuff."
"I know. You're too sweet to need it anyhow," Jan said. "Kate's doing her Summers family audition anyhow. Pacing a path in the carpet. And I just had it installed."
"I'm surprised every day that passes and that isn't official. She's practically had "Kate Summers" written on everything she owns since the day I met her," Tyler teased.
"Oh, way before that," Jan laughed, glad to pull him out of his stress with a little redirection.
"That's the story I've heard," Tyler agreed.
Jan smiled to herself at her excellent work to get Tyler calm and refocused, knowing that Betsy would be there soon - and that in the meantime, Tyler would be excellent to help get things prepared for whenever Summerses started to step out of the very very quiet rooms they were in. "You ever just sit around and listen to the Southern Gossip?" Jan asked, just loud enough for the Hale family to catch it.
"Best way to spend an afternoon!" Officer Wright called out to Jan.
"Yeah? You got anything fun for us? Us poor, bored, sad little New Yorkers?"
"Sadly, you don't have white water rafting in the city," he teased her.
"Now you're just being mean," Jan said. "But I'm sure we can get you somewhere with watersports the next time you need a break."
"I'll hold you to that."
Rachel had her work cut out for her, but honestly, so did Nate. The damage Emma had done and the suggestions and blocks she'd put into James' mind were mostly subtle, and some of them almost helpful. Like how she'd repressed a lot of the trauma around being touched, or the more physical aspects of his romantic life, and the slight encouragement to do what he wanted to, but it was blatantly obvious that the intent was to keep James distracted - and away, on the other side of the world, if possible.
Ultimately though, Nate removed everything. Anything that Emma had shifted, adjusted, repressed, or even tried to erase, Nate repaired and set back to James' natural settings, flawed as they were. Even if by doing so, he knew that his brother was likely to withdraw again once he was awake. Especially when Nate had seen how strongly James wanted to go. Not to Genosha, but to one of Logan's cabins. It was such a deep longing that Nate honestly didn't know how James had been ignoring it for so long if not for the fact that he knew James had been trying to help Scott get it together. Which really just was going to make that pull so much stronger with the visceral damage James was trying to shove down after the fight with Scott.
Nate couldn't relate to how tenuous James' grip on his place in the family felt. Especially when Nate, Rachel, and Scott had never questioned if James was part of the family or not. James was his brother. Unconditionally. He'd always been there for Nate and Rachel and Scott, so the incredibly sensitive, raw fear and hurt around pretty much everything Emma had forced their dad to say was jarring. It felt unfounded if not for how Nate could finally clearly see how those fears connected back to little things that people had said to James for years and how James had processed those sentiments.
They were meant to be compliments. Nate knew that. And he knew it was likely a very normal means of thinking, too. After all, there were whispers of those same fears in Scott's mind - and Alex's. And even Kate's. It just wasn't as obvious with them when they had all either dealt with those fears, or mostly grown out of them.
After seeing Scott's memories of all three Summers kids, it was hard for Nate to unsee how clear those fears had always been in so many of his brother's actions. All he could think of was trying to find a way to fix it for his brother.
At a loss for words, or even feelings on how to take any of it, Nate let his curiosity get the better of him as he peeked at James' perspective of a few moments from their childhood that Nate had been confused by, or scared, and though James at the time had accepted whatever was happening around him outwardly, it was clear to Nate now that he'd been terrified at every hand off, including those that saw him back with the family. He was always unsure of how long he'd be with the Summers family before he went back to Tony, or Storm, or Kitty. Because of so much turmoil, he always felt like a spare part.
It didn't matter that those changes were out of necessity, or that the adult James understood it better than most. Everything Emma had hit him with using Scott had cracked open the delicate shell James had tried to build up to stash those fears away, and there really wasn't anything Nate could do to stop it - in good conscience. Damming it up now would only make him reliant on a telepath forever.
Somberly, Nate double checked his work then took a few moments just to look around one more time, stricken at the fresh tone of pain that discolored everything. Knowing what he did now, Nate had no issues whatsoever in giving his brother the suggestion of deep, dreamless sleep. He needed the time to figure out what the hell he might possibly say to his brother when he woke up anyhow.
When the job was done, Nate stayed there for a little while watching James sleep, second guessing himself, and trying to come to terms with all of it. And after he realized he was upset beyond words himself, he chose to go to Kate. He didn't want to talk about any of it. He just wanted to get a hold of her, wrap her up and just be for a while.
Several hours passed, but as soon as Scott was awake, he was pushing to talk to James - no matter how many times everyone around him kept telling him that he needed to talk to Craig first. That was out of the question. He had to find James, and he had to make sure his son was okay, because he knew what Emma had said to him and he knew how keenly it had to hurt.
God help him, he was terrified that the damage was already done.
"Dad, you need to-" Rachel started to say, but he skirted around her and out the door before she could say anything else.
"No, what I need is to talk to my son," Scott said, not about to slow down.
"Dad, would you take a breath before you go busting in there?" Rachel said loudly.
"No, I need to fix this," Scott said, expertly pulling his arm out of her reach before she could catch him. "You don't know what I - what she said to him."
Rachel drew back slightly, her frown more firmly in place. "What did Nate not tell me? How bad was it?"
"Bad," Scott said simply.
"I'm asking because he went to work on James while I was working on you."
"And you didn't peek at what happened while I was trapped?" Scott asked.
"Not … when I was batting clean up," she said. "Should I? We can do that right now."
Scott thought about it for a second and then waved her off. "You don't need to hear it."
"Are you trying to protect me while Im trying to help you?" Rachel asked in faux disbelief.
"Ah, yeah. I'm your father," Scott pointed out as he turned the corner with Rachel at his heels. "Emma was in his head. She said exactly the worst things she possibly could say to him."
"Yeah, how did the Hales know that before me?" Rachel said almost sullenly.
"Don't ask me; I wasn't involved in any of the cleanup," Scott said, his frown deep in his forehead; even without telepathy, Rachel could see that he was blaming himself for once again trusting Emma when he shouldn't have.
"Fine. But if you're going to insist, I'm just going to warn you - as soon as you step out of this talk with James, you will be going straight to Craig."
"Fine," Scott said, not about to argue it, rounding another corner and nearly walking into Peter Parker.
"They went to talk in the lab a while ago," Peter said. "Nate said he made him sleep? So he wouldn't take off or something."
Scott froze in his steps, blinked at Peter - and then took off at a run toward James's lab.
"No! I meant Nate said he needed to rest! Come on, don't …he's alright!" Peter threw his arms up. "... don't listen to me," he said softer.
Of course, Scott heard exactly nothing of what Peter said as he sprinted to the lab, all but skidding to a stop before he opened the door to find James sitting on the couch, rubbing his hands over his face. But he was awake, and that in itself was a relief.
And yet, now that Scott was actually there, he found himself frozen as he stared at his son and tried to figure out what he could even say to mitigate the damage Emma had done - the damage that had come from his mouth.
James had heard someone come in - vaguely. One of the more irritating side effects of dealing with all the work Nate had put in to fix things left his ears ringing along with a wicked headache, even after the nap. So James didn't exactly jump up to see who it was. No one came to the lab anyhow, unless they wanted to talk. And they could get there when they got around to it. He still didn't quite feel awake and aware enough to fake anything.
"James," Scott said softly, his mouth suddenly dry, especially when James looked up at him, and Scott could see the toll the last little while had taken on him. It was like night and day from when he'd seen James at the safehouse - or in the car.
"Yeah," James replied, one eye closed as he peeked past his hands.
Scott swallowed. "James, I'm so sorry," he said, taking a step into the room, half afraid that James didn't want him there. "I'm so, so sorry. You should never have been put in that position."
"Was there someone else who would have been able to do it at that point?" James asked.
"That's not the-" Scott let out a breath. "James, she knows what you mean to me. I'm so sorry. I tried - I tried so hard-" His breath caught. "I'm so sorry. Nothing she said-"
"Wasn't you. It's fine."
"It's really not," Scott said, especially because he recognized James's dull tone from his parents. He really did sound so much like his father and years of watching James grow up showed him all of Logan's minute tells that Scott had never known were tells. "You're my son, James," he said, his voice wavering. "I don't want - I can't let her diminish what you are to me." As he spoke, he sat down on the other end of the couch, his hands shaking slightly, so he folded his arms.
James really didn't know where to start, and he was more gunshy than he'd expected to be when faced with Scott after all that was said and done. "Not your fault." He shrugged and then leaned back into the couch. "I let her into my head."
"You were manipulated into that too," Scott said. "And I let her into mine."
James shook his head at that. "I don't believe that."
"James, I know what her presence in my mind feels like. I should have kicked her out."
James thought it over for a few moments. "Did she rush in when you said yes? Because she did that with me."
"No, it wasn't-"
"When did you let her in?"
Scott stumbled over his words a few times and made a few vague gestures before he let out a soft breath. "I… well…"
"You didn't let her in, then. But I did. It was my own fault."
"I'm sorry, James," Scott said. "She targeted you - and it wasn't just because of your connection to Stark Industries."
"She's been after me for a while," James said with a wave.
"She also knew that if you backed me up, I'd trust you, and I'm sorry that she used you like that," Scott said softly.
"I'm sorry it worked."
Scott smirked tightly. "I'm not," he said. "I'm not sorry I trust you with my life. You came and got me, didn't you?"
James was softly shaking his head at that, though he didn't realize it. "I took off without a plan. Or a destination."
"Yeah, I've done that," Scott said. "When it's someone you love on the line, you can't be still. You can't wait. And I am honestly relieved you figured it out, because I thought I was…" He trailed off. "I thought I was making the same mistakes as always, really."
James blew out a breath and let some quiet hang in the air before he refocused and shifted gears. "She started out by setting off an EMP at Miss Hale's house," he said.
"Oh," Scott said - as that piece of the puzzle fell into place too. He had genuinely believed Annie had broken up with him on her own terms, after all.
"I should have dug harder when I saw the conflict with her, but I didn't want to overstep."
"No, I…" Scott looked like he was still processing the whole thing, completely unsure of himself.
"Nate, Rachel, and I have been sending random meals to her house this whole time. Enough to cover her whole family if they were over there with her."
Scott let out a disbelieving laugh and then reached over to put his hand on James's arm. James flinched automatically, and it had Scott's heart in his throat.
"Sorry," James said, his focus on the floor. "Nate said he got rid of a lot of stuff that shouldn't have been there… she'd messed with things."
Scott couldn't find his voice for a long moment before he decided on a simple nod instead. "No, I'm sorry. I - I know you know I'd never - but it was still me and my voice, and I don't - I don't blame you," he said, his voice tight.
"It's not you," James said. "I don't want anyone to touch me."
"Right." Scott let his gaze fall to his hands. "I… I should check on Annie."
"Prepare yourself," James said in an attempt at a tease. "She feels awful."
"I may know a thing or two about that," Scott said, also trying to tease, though both of them knew they weren't quite hitting their marks.
James nodded and got to his feet. "Don't let anyone take it personally, but I need to get out of here."
Scott got to his feet as well, though he was obviously taking it hard. "Just, please, don't disappear."
"Controlled disappearance ," James said.
"As long as you come find me when you get back," Scott said. "Please," he added, softly.
James nodded at that, shoving his hands in his back pockets and wearing his heart on his sleeve for how hurt he was. "Okay." There was a moment that hung in the air for a little too long as it was clear neither of them quite knew what to say or how to say it, but finally, James drew in a shaky breath and turned on his heel to lead the way out. As Dani approached with a smile, James expertly avoided coming anywhere close to making contact - then made a sweeping arc to avoid the groups of people in the living room on his way through.
Scott wasn't surprised when he didn't go toward his room, instead making a beeline toward the elevator.
Scott let out a breath, scrubbed a hand over his face, and started walking back the way he'd come. He wasn't at all surprised when Rachel fell into step with him to make good on her promise that she was going to make him see Craig.
"Not right now, Rachel," Scott said quietly.
"I thought you agreed with me," Rachel said, matching his tone.
"That was before I knew Emma had gotten to Annie," Scott said, on eyebrow raised.
"Oh. Well. If it's for Annie," Rachel said, smiling, then had to lean toward him. "She got first-named, you know. I think it held her over until we got you back."
Scott finally cracked a smile for the first time since he'd woken up. "I know it did," he said, knowing exactly what that would have meant to Annie - and then subsequently immediately losing the smile when he thought of how hurt James had looked, and how he hadn't once called him "Dad" during that whole talk. Especially with the memory of James calling him 'Scott' with so much pain in his voice ringing clearly in his mind's eye. It felt like a step forward and ten leaps backward. "She must have grinned so widely."
"The real tragedy is that I don't think he saw her reaction … either time."
"Twice?" Scott's smile started to return.
"She'll tell you about it," Rachel said. "But he's back to Miss Hale. I think." she popped up on her toes to kiss his cheek. "I'll tell Craig he's been bumped in favor of his sister. But you are not getting out of this."
Scott held up both hands. "I never thought I was getting out of anything," he promised. "I just know where my priorities need to be - especially after telepathic damage like we're dealing with."
"Speaking of damage … Hank is running your blood tests," she sang out before she left him standing there - and that easily made it clear that she knew pretty much everything.
Scott pulled a face. "Oh. Great."
"It's a real concern," she insisted.
"That really doesn't make me feel any better, Rach."
But Rachel had started nearly cackling at that - not because it was funny by any stretch, but because he was saying more than short, single syllables while he was riled about that.
"Really?" Scott said, turning the full force of a dry look her way.
She turned to face him just to shrug openly. "Keep it rated G, lover boy. PG at best."
"Wow." Scott spun on his heel away from her. "Really feeling the love, Rachel. Don't lay it on so thick."
"I'm just glad to have you back, Dad. We missed you. All of us."
"I wasn't actually gone that long," Scott grumbled - and Rachel, for his sake, decided not to point out that they had missed him when he'd shut down after the breakup, too.
Still, Scott was worried about Annie, half convinced still that they'd stay broken up after everything she'd been through - but he cared about her too much not to make sure she was okay first and foremost. So, he made a beeline in the direction Rachel pointed him and found Annie chatting easily with Jan; at least that part was normal, since the two of them got along exceedingly well.
"Scott!" Annie nearly started when he came through the door - and then, she couldn't stop talking. "I'm so sorry! I wasn't trying to say any of what I - I couldn't stop myself and it was the most infuriatin' thing - I kept trying to call you and I couldn't - and those sweet kids of yours sendin' me food - you know, Nate's really perfected - you know what, that isn't - I'm gettin' ahead of myself here…" She trailed off helplessly, obviously at a loss to put to words everything she had been through.
Scott held up both hands. "Woah, slow down; it's okay. Rachel told me what was going on-"
"It's absolutely not okay, you maddenly self-abasing nincompoop!" Annie said, pointing her index finger his way. "In what God-forsaken universe do you think it's okay that a horrible worm of a woman slunk her way into the minds of the people you love-"
"Okay, first of all-"
"And you ignored your family under her orders!" she said, talking over him. "You are a great many things, Scott Summers, but the day you stop putin' your family ahead of your own fool self is the day that cottonmouths grow wings and fly on rainbows."
Scott still had both of his hands held up defensively. "Annie," he started to say, but she managed to make pointing her index finger at him look even more aggressive, somehow.
"Don't you go tryin' to smooth things over with me," she said sharply.
Scott sighed, but when she didn't have anything else to add, he let his hands drop and gestured outward. "I'm sorry," he started to say. "I know it must have been hell, having someone controlling you like that."
"You're close," Annie said, eyeing him carefully. "It was hell letting her hurt you, watching it with my own eyes. Lettin' her hurt those beautiful kids of yours. You know they never gave up tryin' to figure out what went wrong?"
"Yeah, I know," Scott said with a tight smile.
"And you're so convinced that the world is never going to let you be happy that your damn fool self let me walk off without a fight," Annie said. "I love you, Scott, but you can't do things like that. A girl likes to be fought for, you know?"
"I was trying to respect-"
"You believed every single word that woman made everyone around you say is what the problem is," Annie said, crossing her arms. "How you thought I'd come over to break up with you when I was trying to ask you if I could move in is beyond me, you absolute potato."
Scott blinked at Annie in genuine shock long enough that Jan - grinning madly over the show she'd just witnessed - leaned over to hand Annie a drink in a blatant display of solidarity. Which was enough for Scott to at least attempt to say something, anyway. "You were… really?"
"That's not the point."
"No, I get that part," Scott said, though he was starting to smile. "I know. I'm an idiot. I just… I was going to tell you there's always an opening on staff if you…" He paused, the smile dropping. "That is, if this hasn't - well, if you're still…"
Without a word, Jan got up, turned toward the other heroes in the room - including Nate and Kate - and just gave them a look that made it clear it was time to get out and leave Annie and Scott alone. She didn't want to draw attention to the fact that Annie was making serious progress, and she remembered all too well how Scott had said, so long ago, that he was nearly incapable of stringing two words together around a beautiful woman. So it was already long past time for the room to clear.
Annie was blushing brilliantly, especially when she realized what Jan was doing. But on the other hand, she appreciated the gesture and knew she wouldn't have liked having an audience now that the conversation had taken the turn it had. She brushed her hair behind her ears almost convulsively before the door closed behind Nate and she tried to organize her thoughts.
"I still think you give that woman way too much leeway," she said to start with, and Scott held his breath, obviously expecting the worst. Annie saw him do it, too, and she hated that, because she wanted to soften the blow for him, somehow. He always expected to be hurt, to be left behind. It was obvious - and even more so now. But she wasn't comfortable with him giving Emma Frost free passes, either, and that needed to be said. "And I don't like thinking that if she comes 'round again-"
"Annie, she made me tell James he wasn't my son," Scott said, so much anger and tension held in the few words that she could feel it in the air between them until it took her breath away. "She's used up what was left of my good will - and then some."
Annie's mouth dropped open, and she found herself staring openly at Scott. "I… I didn't know that," she admitted, much of the wind out of her sails at an admission like that.
Scott gestured with both hands out. "Annie, I'm sorry," he said softly. "I really am. I should have known something was wrong, and I was so caught up in my own fear that I let you get hurt. And I can never apologize enough for that."
Annie let out a long breath and then stepped toward him. "It's a good thing I like you so much, because this whole thing has been quite a ride," she said.
Scott tipped his head to the side. "If you think it's too m-"
"Do not finish that sentence if you value your ability to speak with a working jaw," Annie said - and Scott couldn't tell if she was joking or not. "You are the hardest person to agree with, you know that? I'm allowed to say that this was one of the worst times in my life, and you get to agree - and then you don't get to try to tell me that's grounds for dissolving the relationship I'm trying to salvage, you idiot!"
Scott found himself trying not to smile, because she was so worked up in defense of them still dating that it was hard not to. "Okay," was all he said.
Annie pointed at him again, huffed, and then stepped the rest of the way toward him to kiss him. "Y'all really need a history teacher or did you just pull some strings with Ororo?" she asked when the kiss broke.
"Annie, to be honest, almost no one there went to school to teach. We're doing the best we can, but I can guarantee you'll help as more than just one of the teachers," Scott promised, smiling at little more at the stolen kiss, too.
Annie nodded slowly as she thought it over. "So," she said at last, "about that next step…"
Scott started to say that she didn't have to go through with anything she didn't want to and then realized that would only get him in more trouble with her. So, instead, he said, "If you're still interested, I know a couple telekinetics who could make the move much easier."
Annie sized him up for a second and then let out an affectionate huff. "I think Nate's probably headed there right now, eavesdropper that he is."
"Wouldn't surprise me one bit."
"It's nice to have approval," Annie said, smirking at last.
Scott nodded and then leaned in to steal a kiss. "You know, I've got a place in Westchester too where I've been crashing when I can't get home from missions or the commute is too much hassle."
"So you're saying I should buy more toothbrushes and spread 'em out. Don't you also have a place by Kate's parents?"
"Yeah, but we haven't stayed there much. It's been where we've hosted visitors so that our home stays safe, but…" He shrugged. "Clint and Natasha will probably give it to whichever couple gets married out of the kids."
"Kate's already got a spot in that building, So that narrows it down to one of your other kids," Annie said with a mischievous smile.
Scott laughed. "Fair enough," he said. He ducked his head to catch her gaze. "So, can I make it up to you? Start with some sweet tea?" he offered.
"Yes, god, get me away from Stark and his coffee," Annie agreed, grinning as she wrapped her arms around his neck. He grinned and picked her up to find somewhere else to continue the conversation, or lack thereof. They had weeks to make up for, after all.
"You will not go anywhere near him," Jan scolded, standing in front of Tony with a threatening finger in his face. "Give the kid some space."
"I was fine with that until he turned off all his tracking capabilities," Tony countered. "How do I know it isn't because someone with nefarious intent snatched him? Again!"
Jan put her hands on her hips. "Because all of your trackers are off. Who even knows how to do that?"
Tony looked like he was ready to argue, but ended up swearing under his breath because even the smallest ones were off … and only he and James even knew about them. "That kid is too damn smart for his own good," Tony said finally.
"Just the way you like him," Jan pointed out. "Give him some breathing room before your overprotective, smothering self comes out." She gestured toward the empty slot where usually, the armor Tony had made for James stood. "I know you're worried and he's hurt, and you got called dad, but sweetheart…he's screaming for alone time."
Tony made a little sound of disapproval at the back of his throat, but turned to go back to what he was working on … shortly before a familiar surge of blue light illuminated the living room as Billy appeared with a bright smile.
"I just want to know if it's a broken phone situation, or …" his question drifted off when he saw the grimace Kate and Nate shared. "What now?"
"Just … high drama," Nate said. "James' phone is probably either in the lab or his room. Guessing it's dead, anyhow."
Billy frowned. "Okay. Where is he?"
"No idea."
"How long has he been gone?"
"A few days."
Billy blinked at him several times. "What?" He asked dully, then gestured wildly with both hands. "Why aren't you looking?"
"It's been a really rough week. He needed to breathe. Like, really, really needed it."
All at once, Billy started to float, and it was clear he didn't realize it was happening as his presence went from happy-go-lucky to very Magneto-esque, complete with a costume change that brought with it a billowing cape. "Why does he need to breathe? He was breathing perfectly fine when I saw him last! What happened now? Who the heck decided to- we were finally getting back to normal!"
Nate tapped his fingers on the back of the couch behind Kate, weighing out how much to tell him, and deciding, ultimately, that hey … maybe Emma had whatever it was Billy might do coming to her. "If you can calm down for a minute, I can project everything you need to know. But you have to promise me not to go full Magneto."
Billy scoffed, but lost some of his steam when Kate cleared her throat, pointed to his feet, and stage-whispered 'floating is a sign of supervillainitis'.
He rolled his eyes, crossed his arms in almost a pout, and forced himself to the ground, though he didn't change out of his uniform, and his cape didn't stop magically billowing around him.
"He has to be dramatic, babe; it's in his blood," Kate whispered.
"Close enough," Nate said as he got to his feet, blew out a breath and then reached out to touch the side of Billy's head. His eyes glowed for just a few seconds as Nate relayed all of it in a quick telepathic dump that set Billy back a few steps.
When he was done, Nate kept a close eye on Billy, even reaching out to take a hold of his arm to keep him upright from the influx of information. "You okay?" Nate asked. "I know that much at once can be disorienting - but you wanted to know, and I didn't think you'd listen to all of it in order, so this seemed like the smartest route. I wasn't sure where to start, anyhow."
"Yeah," Billy said in a breath, though his eyes and hands were glowing and his tone was rough and tight. The lights flickered then dimmed as the wind around them increased with the glow around Billy, before all of it suddenly stopped. There was a pop, and the lights came back on as Billy touched down.
He blinked a few times then cleared his throat. "I'm going to go find James."
"Wait," Nate said, on his feet and trying to slow him down. "What just… did… Did something just happen? What did you just do?"
Billy looked mildly abashed as he adjusted his clothes - before the spell was over, he had switched from his far more dramatic caped attire to a much less conspicuous black jeans, Dazzler t-shirt, and sneakers. "I fixed the problem."
"What does that even mean?"
Billy took a deep breath and then let it out while buzzing his lips. "So, anyone who screws with James deserves to get screwed with right back, right?"
"Obviously," Kate said airily.
"And anyone who makes Annie cry is evil," Billy continued.
"Also obviously," Kate said, leaning forward with her eyes gleaming because she could tell he was building up to something good.
"And anyone who uses their powers to trick someone into sex doesn't get to have their powers anymore, so…" Billy gestured with both hands. "I took her powers."
"Wait. You did what?" Nate said after a few seconds of silence passed by. "You can't …"
"I mean, there's a little bit of a tradeoff," Billy said. "Totally burned myself out for a few days, but… yeah. I can, actually. And I'm not at all sorry about it. Absolutely worth it." As he spoke, he was texting Tommy. "I'll just get a lift from my brother…"
"There is no way this doesn't cause some kind of major problem," Nate said as he watched Billy warily. "Wait. Where are you going now?"
"Oh, before I yanked her powers, I did a quick spell to figure out where James was," Billy said, glancing up from his phone before he went back to texting. "Middle of nowhere, of course. So… I'm gonna find my guy, go camping, and try to fix the rest of this mess."
"Of course you did that," Nate said in a breath. "That might not go the way you expect, though."
"Um, yeah, I noticed the part where she forced him to be okay with me touching him, too," Billy said, starting to float again. "But you asked me not to go full Magneto, so…"
"Restraint. Nice," Kate said, nodding along. "It's a good look."
"I am so tempted to ask what you think full Magneto would even be in this situation," Nate said with a tone of disbelief.
"I'm picturing him floating through the Hellfire Club yanking powers indiscriminately - oh and Emma definitely dies in that scenario. Like, first thing," Kate said.
Billy pointed her way. "Pretty much."
"Okay, but … if you and Tommy are going after my brother, make sure he doesn't just disappear when you get there," Nate said. "I know where his head is right now, and it's not pretty, okay?"
"Yeah, I know," Billy said - though by that point, Tommy had zipped over and looked ready to go. "See you guys later. I'm gonna go find my boyfriend." With that, Tommy just picked up his brother and zipped away only to drop him off on the go, knowing Billy didn't want him around when he was trying to help James feel better.
James had been working on the cabin, without any real idea of what he was doing … just trying to fix things that had fallen into disrepair since the last time he'd been there with his parents from another world. He'd spent a few days just sealing up holes and chopping wood, and he was trying to decide what to do next - but at the odd woosh that followed Tommy everywhere, he knew something was up. He didn't have much time to decide how to handle that when he saw Billy, and stopped what he was doing, trying to find the right words and feeling more lost and conflicted than he could express.
He wasn't ready to be around anyone. Anyone. So when Billy spotted him and started toward him with a relieved smile, it was crystal clear things were off between the two of them. "What are you doing here?" James asked, looking somewhere between irritated, shocked, and half scared.
"Nate filled me in on what happened," Billy told him. "All of it. And I wanted to make sure you're okay."
"I'm not," James admitted. "And I'm not alright being near people, either."
"Yeah, I get that," Billy said. "So I-"
"No, you don't," James said, cutting him off. "I came out here to be alone and to figure out what I'm supposed to be doing. I can't do that with anyone around me. I love you, I swear that I do, but this… I need this to be a hard reset."
Billy blinked a few times and then took a small step back. "Oh," he said, sounding small.
"This is my problem," James said in an attempt to clarify. "I can't let anyone try to fix this for me."
"No, I … I just wanted to be there for you," Billy said. "I already - I kinda burned out my powers anyway, but even if I could, I wouldn't want to! But even then, I can't and - and I'm talking myself into a circle now, aren't I?"
"Not really," James said, his tone easing a little. He turned to look toward the woods for a long moment as he thought it over. Even knowing that Billy knew everything, James wasn't mad at him. He just didn't know what he wanted, and he knew he had to figure that out before he could be around the people he'd set himself aside for. "They don't know where I am, do they?"
"No, just me and Tommy, and only because I needed his help getting here," Billy admitted. He held his hands out to his sides. "Temporarily powerless. I'll get over it."
"I have a lot of questions about that," James said. "And I'm sorry, but not now. As much as I hate saying no, I really need to be alone."
Billy let out his breath. "Yeah, okay," he said softly, then pulled out his phone to text Tommy again.
"You can take my armor," James said.
"No, that's okay," Billy said. "I don't want to strand you, because if you want to come find me before I get my powers back, you totally should - I love surprises."
James considered it for too long. "No, I think it would be better if you took it. You can come back when you get your powers back - or wish the armor to me if you don't want to bother."
"I don't actually know how long that'll be, though," Billy said. "And I love you, but I'm gonna be honest - you make me nervous when you talk like that? So consider the way back to me a security blanket for me, huh?"
"I just hate to send you off reliant on Tommy."
Billy shrugged easily. "It's okay," he promised. "Worst case, if I underestimated how long I'm out of power, I've also got Mia and America for fast travel. Or Rachel if I'm feeling adventurous. Or Mom. She likes you too, you know."
"You may have mentioned that before," James said, then turned as his nearest neighbors started to melt out of the woods. "Maybe you should wait on that call for a little bit. Don't want Tommy running face first into one of these guys."
Billy nearly startled out of his skin when he realized that a decent sized pack of timberwolves were headed their way, and he moved closer to James - or as close as he could, knowing James didn't want him close but also needing the protection. Especially without powers and especially when they were growling.
"They're friendly," James said, easing out of the tension. "Just don't reach out to touch them until they more or less force you into it." Though Billy was fairly close, he followed that kind of direction well as James petted the big one nearest them.
"You know it's so cool when you do this but also so, so scary, right?" Billy whispered.
"Says the guy who goes on lion safaris with his dad. Or … was it shark diving?" James gave Billy half a smile, then dropped down to sit on the ground and let the big wolf get in his face - growling, and even snarling as James scratched its ears.
"Okay, fair. So I'm a small adrenaline junkie," Billy said, smiling in spite of himself as he watched James with the wolves.
"Yeah, I figured that out, actually." After a few moments, the wolf James had been messing with dropped down over his legs and rolled over to get belly scratches. "I'm sorry you came out here for nothing."
"No, it's okay," Billy promised. "I still got to see you for a minute. And, I mean, I know everything Nate knows, so, um, I get it. Really. I totally had an almost-Magneto moment until Nate and Kate told me to tone it back, so, like, I get it."
"Yeah? I think the big Summers has it worse." It was subtle, but he couldn't quite make himself say 'Dad' just yet, even if he felt stupid for having trouble doing so.
Billy swallowed, recognizing James' mental block and feeling awful about it, even if it wasn't his fault. "Yeah. That was… bad."
"He's got Miss Hale, Nate, Kate, and Rachel and America."
"And me and you," Billy pointed out. "You know, when you get back."
"Well, he doesn't need me," James said. "That's what I was getting at."
"Pretty sure we always need you, but, like I said, I get it. Take care of yourself first. I don't want you to fall apart on anyone."
"I already did," James said. "Pretty sure that's what I do best."
Billy held his breath. "So, um, fall apart on me next time?" he offered with one eye closed. "I'm a really, really good listener. And shoulder to cry on. And stuff."
"I did that last time."
"Yeah, and… and thank you for trusting me," Billy said, rubbing the back of his neck.
"Billy, this-" James said, gesturing around them. "-is not a matter of trust or not trusting anyone. This is just … I was fried to start with. I should have come out here a while ago. You know this is way overdue."
"No, I know. I just… I meant… you know… I know it isn't easy to admit when you hit that wall. And when you fell apart last time, I just… I'm glad you felt safe with me."
"Who else would I be safe with?"
"Love you too," Billy said, blushing.
They didn't get much further in their discussion before one of the wolves tried to test Billy, and nipped at his leg only to be reprimanded instantly when James snarled viciously at it. From there, a whole lot of noise erupted with the pack falling into snarls, growls, yips and howls as they scattered with Billy and James no more worse for wear.
"Probably time to get your brother or America in," James said.
"Yeah, probably," Billy said, though he would have been lying if he said he wasn't really into James at that moment. He cleared his throat and texted Tommy as the wolves melted back into the woods. "So. Um. See you soon."
"Yeah," James said softly. "If I'm not back by the time you feel like zapping …"
"Then I'm coming over and camping out? Perfect. I like this plan," Billy said.
"Sorry, lil' prince."
"Promise I'm not mad at you," Billy said.
"Yet, anyhow."
"Try doing something I'd actually be mad about," Billy teased - just as Tommy showed up, looking a bit bewildered. "Hey, Tommy. Can you take me back where you got me?"
Tommy gestured between the two of them. "Umm… I can…"
"Thanks," James said to Tommy, knowing full well he'd be all over Billy's case until he was satisfied with the explanation of things.
Tommy did a full-body turn, frowned, and then threw up his hands. "Okay, taxi service it is," he said, picking up his brother and already demanding an explanation before he'd even set Billy down - which was, of course, how Nate and Kate heard that Billy was giving James space too.
"So… are you still going to make banana bread when you're depressed or is that off the table now that your supplier is back?" Kate asked, coming up behind Nate as he was hanging up his keys at the front door to her new place to wrap her arms around him from behind. "Because you're making that face again, and I legitimately bought a ton of new kitchen stuff with my Avengers stipend, like, last weekend. It'll be here this afternoon…" She put her chin on his shoulder to try to catch his gaze. "Is any of this tickling your fancy? At all?"
Nate let out a breath and covered her hands with his, leaning into her touch. "Maybe later."
"Oof. That bad, huh?" Kate kissed him behind his ear and then shifted her hands under his to lace their fingers together. "That calls for serious snuggles, huh?"
"If you say so," Nate said; he knew better than to argue it. So, he let Kate lead him back to the bedroom, more than happy to curl around her for a while in silence.
For the past several days, he'd simply been hiding in her embrace - and she hadn't pushed him to talk. But this time, she ventured a quiet, "I know your family isn't good at talking, but… you're not okay. It's really obvious. And I just want to know how to help you, because I love you."
"Love you too," Nate said.
Kate snuggled into him a little more and then raised an eyebrow. "Okay, so… are you going to give me any clues here or should I start interrogating or…"
"Depends on the interrogation methods," Nate half-teased, though his heart really wasn't in it.
"I do actually want answers, so I will dangle you upside down in a dampener," Kate said, also half-teasing, though she did mean it lightheartedly.
"Lift with your knees."
Kate rolled her eyes and then turned to face him and tickle him mercilessly. And she let that fight escalate until he had her pinned and they were making out - and then she stopped and grinned up at him. "And now," she said with her eyes lidded, "tell me your secrets."
Nate smirked. "You already know my secrets." He raised one eyebrow. "Or do you want to know other people's secrets that are bothering me? Because I could start with how irritated Cap was that the Patriots wanted to hire him to do a spot for their football team."
"I grew up with Cap, Nate. I'm more interested in what's bugging you. But you knew that."
"I'm pretty sure you know what's bugging me, Kate," Nate said. "Just not the finer points."
"So fill me in," she said. "I don't know what of the many things that could be bugging you is the biggest problem."
"You sure?"
"I want to help," she said. "You're always there for me. I want to do the same for you. It's only fair."
Nate thought about it for a long moment, looking like he was carrying the weight of the world before, after a little while, he nodded and looked back at her with glowing eyes. "Okay. But it's a lot." When she didn't back down, Nate gave her a more gentle rush of information than he'd done with Billy. Not for any reason other than he'd done exactly this with Billy for the same information - and though it was bothering him terribly, like any normal therapy, speaking about it - or sharing it helped lessen how hard it was to share it.
Kate closed her eyes and took a deep breath as she took it all in. "Well." She cleared her throat and nodded. "That all… sucks. And there's not much I can do to help, which also sucks. And there's not much you can do to help without controlling anyone, which has to be driving you nuts."
"Pretty much."
Kate took a deep breath. "I know it was a shock for you, but I'm not surprised by how James feels. I don't think that fear ever goes away," she said softly. "My parents have had me since I was three, but there's always that nagging fear that being different is going to change how they feel." She chewed on her lower lip. "I thought I'd get sent away like James did, you know. When I was little."
"I didn't know that," Nate replied softly.
She shrugged. "I wasn't even old enough to understand what was going on. I get now why he moved around, so it didn't seem important to talk about a little kid's understanding of the crap we went through," she pointed out. "But, yeah, I don't think Emma could have chosen a single word differently if she wanted to destroy James. That…"
"And he just wants to be alone now. That's … perfect."
She nodded again. "I'm not gonna say something empty and promise he'll be back. But… he knows the truth. And he loves our family. Deeply. I don't think he can stay away. Does that make sense - he might not come back but he won't stay away?"
"Kind of," Nate said. "I know Dad's just holding his breath, too. That … for him was ugly, too."
"Well yeah. He's adopted too. Grandpa Charles. He'd get that particular flavor of worst possible nightmare."
"I hate not having anything I can do," Nate half grumbled under his breath.
Kate thought about it for a long moment and then nodded to herself. "Okay, so you need something you can do," she said.
"I can't force feed him banana bread just for your entertainment, Katie. He bites."
"Damn." She grinned at him. "Buuuut maybe you could help me keep some stuff off his plate while he's gone. I'm getting some press inquiries because the twins and I are some of the most visible team members."
"Yeah, and Rachel's just making them not talk to her," Nate said with a smirk.
"So - help me manage the chaos?" she asked. "JJ's particularly hard to handle."
"Sure. What do you want me to do?"
"The Bugle has been inquiring about the X-Men since the school was leveled. They know some of the rescuers were in the original team. We're doing hard 'no comments' on mental state, obviously, but JJ actually has some really good questions about the similarities between the two. I think he's actually got some good intel that SHIELD isn't sharing with us."
"Okay, but that just makes me want to go get that from SHIELD," Nate said. "All upside down floaty rush."
"Perfect. I'll be good cop. Want to find out what they know about Emma's school?"
"Who's the lead on it?" Nate asked. "Anyone we know or care about?"
"Know? Yes. Care about? No. It's that idiot who tried to recruit me into the intern program a couple years back - remember him?"
"Kinda," Nate said. "Want him to think he's a teapot?"
"Can you get him to dance with his handle and spout?" she teased.
"I can get him to sing 'Be Our Guest' at his next briefing."
"Do it."
"Consider it done," Nate said, smiling with a much more trouble making gleam.
Chapter 115: Fast Annie
Chapter Text
While Nate and Kate each were capable of sneaking into SHIELD on their own - with Kate's training from her mom and Nate's telepathic abilities - Kate had a much easier in. Her dad was good friends with Phil Coulson, and Phil, in turn, had a soft spot for the kids who had grown up with the Avengers. He'd been around often enough because he had to give the Avengers mission specs and had provided both the Avengers and the new group of X-Men intel and back up, so he'd gotten to see the kids grow up and become heroes in their own rights. He was unbelievably proud of each and every one of them.
And Kate was more than happy to take advantage of that to ask a favor.
It worked out anyway that Phil hadn't been happy with how things had been shaking out since the attack on the Massachusetts Academy, especially after how Fury had handled the disaster with Hydra. So, yeah, he was okay with them "chatting" with the agents on the case.
"To compare notes," Kate had said, and Phil nearly laughed on hearing it when they met up at the Triskellion.
The agent in question was in his office when Kate let herself in - Phil hadn't specifically said she couldn't pick the lock and be dramatic about her entrance - and was deep in thought over whatever he was working on on his work computer. So he didn't act quickly enough to get out of his computer program before Nate telekinetically pushed him away from the computer so Kate could see the files.
"Thanks, Barry," Kate said, leaning over the computer to scroll through it all. From what she could see, the actual measurable destruction done to the academy was totally different from what she and the others had seen. But that in itself was ridiculously impressive. Emma alone couldn't have fooled them all that well. "Cable, babe, ask him what SHIELD's working theory is for what or who is helping Emma fool everyone. Or control everyone. Whatever made us all hallucinate on-site."
"He can hear you just fine, babe," Nate replied. "First person interrogation. I'm just here to hold up the furniture."
"You're so cute when you're the backup, you know that?" she teased him, still scrolling through the information. Looks like Emma messed with everyone's perceptions. The damage here looks more like a basic IED. What we saw looked more like what I've seen in news footage from Westchester's Graydon Creed experience. She was straight up trying to trigger PTSD in everyone she could hit.
Knowing what we do already anyhow? This is my not-surprised face.
Nice to have it confirmed, though. Kate nodded to herself as she looked through the notes on the explosion before she whirled around and pointed at Barry, who was stuck backward in his chair. "Okay, you've got to have an idea of where Emma Frost is getting her boost," she said, flexing her hands in a way that showed she was wearing her mom's jewelry.
"Not … confirmed, but we believe it's from one of her students," Barry said, looking almost distant as he answered.
Kate tried not to smirk too hard. She liked getting to play the Widow part, but it was so fun to watch Nate do his thing. And they'd wanted to get out and get intel so he could feel like he was fixing something, so this was perfect, as far as she was concerned. "Which one?" Kate asked. "What kind of powers is SHIELD nosing into that could get them looking?"
"We're not sure which student," Barry said. "And SHIELD is looking into anything useful."
"Always," Kate said. "Don't know why I asked." She shifted so that she was leaning against the table. "Okay, we'll look into the students. Simple enough. Second question. This was an actual attack. This wasn't just Emma staging. Top suspect?"
"Confirmed that the attack was spearheaded by Sebastian Shaw." There was no hesitation from Barry on that answer.
"He's Hellfire," Kate said. It wasn't a question, though she did have her lips pursed. She'd been brushing up on Hellfire intel since the attack. "I know they have a rocky relationship at best but what did she do to piss him off that bad?" She paused. "Besides existing."
"As far as we can tell, those two have fought over who's the top leadership there for decades."
"Yeah, but he put real work into getting the Academy running in the first place," Kate said thoughtfully. "She must've done something to trigger something this big." She held up a hand. "Unless he's interested in using the boosting student she found. He could do real damage if he had orders of magnitude stronger powers."
"Our science department is trying to find the student responsible to see if the powerset goes both ways," Barry told her.
"Of course you are," Kate said in a sigh. "SHIELD would love to be able to turn off powers." She rolled her eyes toward Nate, who smirked until she smiled again. He was enjoying watching her interrogate even if she didn't have to work for the answers. Dork, she projected his way.
I am literally just standing here. What did I do now?
Nothing. You're always a dork, she teased before she turned her attention back to Barry. "Does SHIELD know Emma's current situation?"
"Yes."
"Okay, that's not great. And you're not high up enough for a good look at whether SHIELD thinks a depowering power like Billy's is worth the headaches from Genosha if you want to deal with him. Fun." Kate blew her hair out of her face.
Pretty sure it's not just a headache from Genosha anymore, Nate pointed out.
That could be considered a point in favor of recruiting him. Two for one with James if they apply the right pressure. That's what I'd do if I was manipulating James.
I've seen in his head. He's a lot closer to killing someone than they realize.
Something to watch for long-term, though.
Oh sure. If I get another chance and remember to look, I'll find out exactly what Fury did last time he was in the interrogation room.
Hey, Nate. This is your reminder to look into that, Kate teased - just for the dry look he gave her.
Oh. You are so. Helpful.
Always. She fluttered her eyelashes at him.
Okay. I don't think this guy's going to be good for much else, Nate said. And we're not going to go chasing down my brother to get answers to questions we can wait for. So …
So I think the next step is talking to Storm. She's onboarding the students from the Academy; she'd know who our boosting student is. And as much as I hate whoever it is for helping Emma, we need to hide them or Shaw and SHIELD will get their grubby fingers all over 'em.
Or, we just go to the school and I'll find them myself, Nate said.
Kate raised her eyebrows but nodded her agreement. She'd been planning to involve the older X-Men just so everyone was on the same page, but… Go, gorgeous. Go rampage.
If it's the one I think it is, she's trying to follow in Frost's footsteps. And I'm not having it.
Then it looks like we're done here, Kate said.
We should find out why Fury's got Uncle Phil working on a soft-ball assignment, too. I mean … he should still be helping us.
When I was a kid-
Back in the day …
Shut up. I'm just saying I got to see him around the Tower and he was always sent on softball stuff when he was getting too soft with the team. I actually haven't seen much of him at all since we restarted the X-Men. And he was thrilled with us but I didn't get to ask him what he thought specifically.
Yeah, sounds right.
Gotta love Uncle Phil, Kate teased.
When he's got permission to be around. I'm sure he's got all kinds of thoughts about all the crap that's been going on lately.
Colorful ones, I bet. He still has the drawing Lexi made for him when she was six. He's protective and squishy as anything.
So we should reach out to him and make sure he's not in need of a rescue.
Perfect. Kate grabbed Nate's arm as they headed out and waved over her shoulder to Barry. "Have fun with the paperwork," she called out.
On their way out, Kate made sure to stop by Coulson's office, too. Before he could get up from his desk, she skipped over to him and kissed his cheek. "I missed you, Phil!" she sang out. "You've been on that space station forever."
"Hard to come by when I'm on assignment," Coulson told her, trying to keep his dry smile in place.
"Yeah, yeah. Thanks for letting us come and play good cop/psychic cop," Kate said, grinning crookedly.
"Funny. I thought this was a possible tour to take the academy into consideration," Coulson said. "At least, that's what I put on the forms."
"Awww, I'd totally be interested if your agency wasn't full of people who side-eye my boyfriend for being born too awesome for words."
"They're intimidated," Coulson said with a shrug. "It's not an excuse, just the truth of the matter. Stupid as it is." He smiled tightly at Nate. "See what you needed to, Nate?"
"Yeah. Enough to know SHIELD now knows about two mutants who can strip other mutants of powers," Nate said.
"They knew about one for a long time," Coulson said. "But that's probably a chat better suited to a less formal situation."
"Probably," Kate agreed. "Meantime…" She looked toward Nate, who immediately linked them up. You doing okay, Phil? You're looking more haggard than usual.
You know how it is when Fury and Hill are trying to keep secrets, Coulson said. I'm this close to making them a matched set.
Kate snorted. She'd consider it a step toward promotion or something.
I just feel like you kids had a better idea of the trouble down the road when I was more involved.
Yeah, I did notice your glaring absence when Viper freaking kidnapped me.
I was off world. Fury still heard me swearing at him. He's damn lucky that no ones mothers got involved sooner than they did. Wanda was livid, and your mother made sure he was shaking in his boots, but if K had still been alive she'd have probably dropped the helicarrier with Fury keelhauled to the bottom.
Mom doesn't cross Fury often, but… yeah. It was bad all around. She sat down in the chair opposite him. "So are you gonna be back in the tower now?"
"The way things are going, either I'll get reassigned to where I should be, or I'll be looking at retirement and a position in the private sector. I've already gotten an offer, if you can believe it."
Kate sat up straighter, immediately engaged. "No way. What's the offer? Tell me please."
While Coulson smirked, trying to play coy, Nate busted him just because it was too good not to. "Uncle Tony. Doing what he does best," Nate said .
"Oh, you'd be great," Kate said happily. "And we'd get to see you all the time. Win-win!"
"Like I said - either I'll stay with SHIELD and go where I'm needed - at the tower - or I take all my intel with me when I go. I'll bet I know someone with access to good lawyers that can work around the contract language."
Not to mention I know a telepath who could just, you know, 'overhear' anything the lawyers can't get you cleared for.
About that, Coulson projected, directing it more to Nate. SHIELD is extremely interested in that device your brother came up with. We have dampeners and disruptors of our own, but that … is not on any of the servers SHIELD has access to. I hope it stays that way.
It will, Nate said with no hesitation.
Just know that they're looking at ways to target every one of you kids.
Yeah, we know. That's been apparent for a while.
Especially after Hydra, Kate put in - because she was never going to forgive SHIELD for how that went down.
Tell your little brother to keep away from the life, Coulson said to Kate.
He's got Mom's stubbornness and is functionally invisible. This is a lost cause.
Oh great, we're all going to die then. The tone Coulson used, even mentally was perfectly dry and cheerful.
Exactly. Kate clapped her hands together and got to her feet. "Well, thanks for the tour, Phil. See you at the tower!"
"Does that mean I'm disinvited from the fireworks?" Coulson asked as he got to his feet to see them both out.
"Oh, no, Fourth of July is still totally on. I was just kind of hoping you'd be at the tower before then; it's a little bit away still."
"We'll see."
Nate was much more zeroed in as they headed for Westchester than he had been going to SHIELD, because this time, he knew the student they were heading for had an active hand in blowing up his family, hurting his brother, and screwing over his dad.
Kate didn't say anything, though she could see his eyes glowing long before they actually pulled into the driveway of the school and knew he was actively scanning to find the student in question. And when he smirked and nodded to himself, she knew he'd found whoever it was.
So, she just killed the engine and waited.
It didn't take long at all before Nate turned back to Kate, his eyes their normal shade once more, and gave her a grim smile. "Well," he said, "that was fun."
"Okay, so tell me what the story is, handsome," Kate said, laughing as she pushed his arm. "You're keeping the juicy details for yourself?"
"Just trying to reorder my thoughts and keep my temper," Nate replied. "All things considered."
Kate's smile died. "Okay, catch me up. Do I need to drop anyone into a dumpster…?"
"No, just … so, you know the girl that I was telling you about that we pulled out of the wreckage?" Nate said. "The one that was a little too handsy for everyone involved?"
"Yeah, I remember thinking she'd learned it from her teacher," Kate said.
"Yeah, well, she was boosting her teacher."
Kate's eyebrows nearly scraped her hairline. "Ah. So which dumpster?"
"Doesn't matter. Any old one will do. Maybe the one outside of the fishmonger … anyhow. She won't be doing that again."
"Definitely the one outside the fishmonger," Kate decided.
"I didn't quite … do anything like Billy, but, she isn't capable of that level of boost." He shrugged, trying to make it look more easy-going than he felt. "Turned her way down."
"Probably a good call, actually," Kate said, trying to match his serious tone. "Taking her powers just makes you a target."
"This will probably be more frustrating for her," Nate replied. "And she'll realize who around her isn't actually friendly. Looked like most of her pals were just using her."
"That actually doesn't surprise me, but it's also pretty sad, you know?" Kate said.
"Yeah, well, not everyone dealing with supervillains are of the same caliber. I'd say she's lucky it was me, all points considered."
"Yeah, can you imagine if Billy's grandfather had known about her?" Kate said, pulling a face.
"He'd have had the sun revolving around himself."
"And James has to play chess every morning," Kate said.
"Somehow, I doubt that'd be the case," Nate said.
"Yeah, I was going for a smile," Kate said and leaned over to kiss his cheek. "So, we should probably let… someone know."
"I suppose. They'll figure it out eventually anyhow. I just … ugh. If that's how young women are taught to treat guys they like at Emma's school …"
"We'll just let Leslie Ann know and let her channel her father. Just imagine it: the spirit of Officer Anton Wright inhabits everyone…"
"Only if we let the good officer know, too … you know. So he can be proud in that field, too."
"I'll record his baby girl letting the girls from that school have it about sexual harassment. He'll - what's the phrase Annie uses? - he'll bust his buttons."
"Sure. Whatever that means," Nate teased. "It'd be good for a few people to see, I'm sure. Educational."
"Then this is definitely happening. I've got his number from when the Hales were all on Genosha with us."
"Set it up," Nate said as he leaned back. "I'll make sure Dad's there to see it too. Reminder, you know?"
"Yeah… how's he handling this, by the way? Hard not to call it what it was this time, I think."
"He's torn between falling apart sick with worry for everyone else and drunk-happy over Annie. He hasn't really applied much of this to himself unless it's negative." Nate gestured toward the building. "And this side? He hasn't acknowledged that at all."
"She messed with his head and slept with him. I mean… he can't ignore that."
"Oh wow. You must be new here."
"It's more, like… I lived trying to ignore it, you know?"
"Okay, but like … explain to me both my dad and my brother then, because I promise you neither of them are even looking that way."
"And they're models of mental health."
"I'm just saying, you said he can't ignore it. He is."
"Yeah, should have clarified. He can't ignore it and keep it together. It'll fester, you know?"
"I know. You know. Those two? I don't think they got the memo, or they're leaving it unread if they got it."
"Probably leaving it unread. I doubt Doc Hale hasn't been shouting that message at the top of his lungs."
"I told him he should put it on a billboard."
"Might work." Kate sighed and leaned over to kiss him. "Well, at least someone got some justice. Are you feeling even a little bit better?"
"Maybe … this much," Nate said holding his thumb and forefinger very close together.
"Okay, so, new proposal: we go back to my place, you cook for me, and we don't get any sleep tonight."
Nate did a fair job of looking as if he was thinking it over for a long moment before he finally nodded his head slowly. "I … accept your proposal."
At the same time that Nate and Kate were conspiring to do borderline treasonous activities, Scott had been helping Annie get moved into his suite in Westchester - and into his house as well. They'd spent half the time dealing with everyone from Toby to Bobby to the students all giving some form of approval - and asking the usual probing questions.
Annie's way of handling it had Scott laughing, too, because at first, she'd just blushed and stammered her way through agreeing that she was excited for this next step and for moving in and all that, but the more comments came their way, the more she found her footing. By the time Warren had said something about it not being too late to back out - obviously joking - Annie just looked at him like he was crazy, shrugged, and went back to work with a, "Scott, someone else thinks I don't know what I signed up for," tossed over her shoulder. "Poor damsel that I am."
Scott laughed as Warren held up both hands with a muttered, "You've clearly got this," as he stepped back. And once they'd gotten the last of her boxes in the door, he stole over to where she was for a kiss.
"And you thought you wouldn't fit in," he teased her.
Annie let out an affectionate huff. "You only have to deal with Anton and Craig and Evie. I have to get approval from a small army."
"Anton is a small army," Scott teased her.
"Fair," Annie laughed. "Which reminds me - he invited the two of us for Sunday dinner. Says you've been skirting by on good will and he needs to grill you over your intentions or something," she teased him.
"I thought he already did that."
"I guess he thinks it needs to be done every time we do something new," Annie said, shrugging easily. "Craig can't properly threaten you when he's your therapist, so Anton is going to overdo it. Fair warning."
"I'll take notes so I can overdo it when the first of my kids gets engaged," Scott teased her.
"Oh, so, next week?" she teased him right back.
"At the rate they're going? Probably."
Annie laughed as she started to unpack the box she'd brought in, unpacking a few books and school supplies into the small bookshelf. "It's too bad the boys have an age limit or they'd join the race," she said as Scott unpacked some of the family pictures she had in the other box - some precious pictures with her mom that she kept with her.
"It's not a race, Annie - the girls don't even know if they-"
"They will," Annie said. "Rachel's more like you than you think."
"You think?"
Annie smiled as she arranged a few of her notebooks in the right order for the next school year. "That girl wants you to walk her down the aisle. You can't tell me you're not the same - you care about those moments. She's not going to give that up."
Scott smirked. "I'd love that too."
"Of course you would," Annie said, tipping her head back to grin his way. "You can't wait to be there for every milestone in their lives. It's part of what I love about you."
"Oh good," Scott teased. "Hate to think you moved in with a single father and didn't like the 'father' part."
"Ha ha." Annie tossed a rolled-up shirt at him. "Like Nate would ever let us forget he's the one that introduced us in the first place."
"Good point," Scott laughed.
"Probably include it in every conversation. Bring it up at our wedding. The whole nine."
Scott blinked and genuinely couldn't come up with anything to say - and Annie then realized what she'd said.
"Oh!" She spun around so that she was facing him. "Oh, I mean… do you?" She turned bright red. "Want to? I mean? Oh, I had actual plans for this!"
"You… had plans?" Scott repeated, still in a bit of shock.
"Well, yes, of course. I knew you - well, I love you, Scott, but I know taking that step scares you, so I thought I'd do it," Annie admitted.
Scott stared at her.
"Too fast?" Annie asked, wincing both shoulders up. "I know we just got back together, but I was going to get a ring before we broke up…"
Scott swallowed and then shook his head, slipping over to where she was to steal a kiss - because he still hadn't found words yet. "Not too fast," he promised at last when the kiss broke.
"Oh good," Annie said, smiling before she leaned in to steal a deeper kiss.
There was no way Annie was going to be able to keep news this big to herself, especially when Scott's kids were telepaths. She knew that Nate would know what had happened - and she wanted to actually tell them before that happened. Herself. Out loud.
She knew the secret was already blown by the pure amusement in Nate's mental voice when he agreed to make sure Kate, Rachel, and America were around at dinner - though they didn't quite make it to dinner, either.
Instead, what happened was that Scott and Annie were holding hands and walking outside, trying to steal a celebratory date before anyone really knew what they were celebrating. They'd gone into the city and planned to just walk around until they found someplace that tickled their fancy. Whether that was pretzels or ice cream or a steakhouse - they genuinely didn't know.
Annie had her suspicions when she saw Kate and Nate, but Kate laughed and swore up and down that they were actually on a date and weren't trying to find them - but now that they'd run into each other, Kate insisted on treating them all at her favorite place in town for Korean barbecue.
Which would have been an excellent time to tell them the story of the sort-of proposal as it had happened. So, they invited the others. Billy got there fast, and Rachel and America were on their way.
So, of course, someone else invited themselves to the party.
"Scott Summers," Emma shouted, perfectly enraged, and obviously intent on screwing with all he'd worked for. "I see you, Scott! Cyclops!" She was marching toward them, her hands in fists and her eyes flashing. "Where do you get the gall to tamper with my mutant ability just because you no longer have yours."
Scott spun on his heel to face her, immediately furious upon hearing her using his name and his codename. He saw Nate's eyes glowing and knew he was doing as much damage control as he could, but that didn't mean Emma wasn't trying her best to screw things up. "What the hell do you think you're doing?" he shouted back at her.
"Your little brat screwed me over, so I'm returning the favor," Emma said coldly. "I hope you've gotten over the idea of anonymity."
Scott glared at her, stepping in front of the kids. "Stop before you make this any worse," he said. "I won't warn you again."
Emma wheeled away from Scott, ignoring his glare as she headed toward the kids anyhow. "Make that boy of yours fix this. I know it had to be him - he's just like his horrible mother."
Before Emma could take another step toward the kids, Annie lost her temper. And Emma obviously hadn't expected anything out of her - which meant Emma wasn't expecting it when Annie decked her hard enough to send her sprawling.
And while Emma was still picking herself up, Annie fell into a solid stance. "Bitch."
"You don't know who you're meddling with," Emma hissed, furious and directing herself toward Annie. "Go back to your trailer park, where you belong, you trashy little southern fried succubus."
Annie smiled sweetly. "Oh, honey, you're all washed up and lashing out. It's sad, really. Go home and sober up, sweetheart."
Emma scoffed, and before Annie or anyone else saw it coming, she slapped Annie across the face.
For just a second, Annie put her hand up to her cheek, and Scott, Kate, and Billy were all ready to step in (with Nate still trying to make sure everyone around them didn't see what was happening). But then, fast as anything, Annie knocked Emma's legs out from underneath her and dove to lay into her, letting out all of the anger over what Emma had done to break her and Scott up, until Emma had stopped trying to fight back.
Annie sniffed, got to her feet, and looked down at her hands. "Oh, damn. I got blood on my hands."
"You're my new favorite," Kate whispered gleefully, almost bouncing on her feet.
Annie smiled her way. "I don't abide anyone insulting you kids, and I certainly don't abide people speaking ill of the dead."
"I'm not letting this go," Emma said, low, well beyond angry, and Scott, at least knew it was a serious threat, even if she was without her powerset. "I will figure out what you did, reverse it, and enjoy every second of how your lives come apart unless you fix. This."
"You're barking up the wrong tree," Billy said, glaring down at her as she wiped blood from her obviously broken nose. "Nate and Rachel didn't do this. I did."
Emma was entirely dumbstruck for a long moment - it had never occurred to her that Billy would step in … or that he was capable of doing something of this caliber. "Reverse it."
"No."
"Your grandfather-"
"Would have killed you," Billy said calmly wish his chin tipped up to look down his nose at her, his tone very much like Erik's when he was pontificating. "And for the record? You're only alive now because Nate requested that I not kill you. So you should be thanking him. Or are you even capable of that?"
"I need my abilities," Emma said, shifting gears to the point that Scott and the rest of the family could have been invisible. "Surely, this was an overreaction."
"To what, exactly? What you did to my boyfriend? What you did to Annie? How about what you did to Scott? In every case, this is no over reaction."
"You can't do this. I did nothing against Genosha or any of their citizens."
"You came for the man I'm going to marry," Billy said, his eyes flashing as the wind shifted dramatically around them. "And anyone - anyone - who uses their powers to trick someone into getting in bed with them? That is clearly crossing a line. The last two people who did that died in seconds. While I was wearing a collar. I wouldn't give you your powers back if you were groveling."
Emma was still glaring as the group gathered up to leave, but had to try for one last shot. "I'll take it up to a higher power, then. "
"Good luck getting an audience with her," Billy said before he turned his back to her and forced himself to walk away.
Emma straightened herself up, then couldn't help giving the group a sneering once over as they were leaving before she had to ask, "What's the occasion? It's not every day you can drag Cyclops into the public eye so willingly."
"Emma," Scott said, his eyes narrowed. "Stop."
"You're celebrating," she said. "Perhaps I might want to offer my congratulations."
"Aww, thanks," Kate said brightly. "I am pretty proud of my boyfriend for graduating early."
Annie smirked Kate's way. "We're proud of both of you, Kate." She threw her arm around Kate's shoulders. "Come on. You said this was your favorite place?"
Emma waited for them to get a few steps out before she had to call out to them again. "I thought you were celebrating something entirely different. It must be such a relief."
Scott froze, his hands in fists. "Back off, Emma."
"Scott, you act as though I can't be happy for you since you've finally gotten rid of your problem child. Just a matter of time, really. At least he didn't stab anyone first."
Scott spun on his heel, but he wasn't the first to react. Kate and Billy were. Kate carried small Widow's Bite everywhere for handsy creeps (especially of the Hydra variety), so Emma got a blast of electricity to the chest at the exact same moment Billy swore and said, "Iwishyouwerebackunderyourrock" - his voice echoing eerily as he spoke.
Emma disappeared without so much as a sound. Kate laughed and turned to high five Billy before he'd gotten his temper under control, but her glee did wonders to help him along. "Where did you send her?"
"A … rock. I don't know. It wasn't super directed?" Billy rubbed the back of his neck. "I didn't know my powers were working that well again. I was just mad."
"I love when you just get mad," Kate said, flinging her arms around his neck in a hug.
Billy hugged Kate back tightly in pure relief, but when he let her go, Scott had turned his way with both eyebrows raised. "Let's get we're somewhere more quiet, you have some explaining to do," he told Billy.
"You're in trou-ble," Kate sang out to Billy.
"I doubt that," Billy replied in the same sing-song tune.
Kate giggled delightedly and looped her arm through Nate's to make sure he got into the restaurant with the rest of them, and when his eyes stopped glowing, she kissed his cheek. "You are amazing, gorgeous," she told him.
"Talking to yourself is a sign of something, beautiful," Nate shot back without missing a beat.
"Good thing you still like me," Kate laughed, in an excellent mood. "You didn't get to fully appreciate me laying her out, which is a shame."
"Oh, no, I caught that," Nate said. "Sorry if I looked distracted, I was doing a lot of modding on the fly."
"She's not going to let it go," Scott said in a sigh as they got to a table.
"She's also not stupid enough to say anything like that around James," Nate said. "He's not going to be that generous if she does that around him."
"Oh, so she has a brain cell," Annie said airly, trying to wipe her hands on her jeans ineffectually before she gave up and grabbed a few napkins - at which point Kate reached over to grab her hand.
"Come on; Nate can order for us. You need to wash your hands before you catch something," Kate said. "I'll fill you in on Billy's story, too."
"Oh, okay," Annie said, looking between the men at the table before she let Kate lead her off.
Annie wasn't even out of earshot before Billy crossed his arms. "I'm not undoing it."
"Good, because if you did, the first thing she'd do is go after you," Nate said.
Scott pinched the bridge of his nose. "Walk me through what happened, Billy. I didn't know you'd done anything."
"Oh, well…" Billy let his breath out through his cheeks. "I decided anyone who destroys people's lives like that doesn't get to be a telepath anymore, so… I yanked her powers. Diamond form too, because it's easier to just yank all of it instead of being precise."
"How many other times have you done something like this?" Scott asked.
Billy held his breath and closed one eye. "Umm… twice. For my grandfather when I was younger." He paused again. "Well, it only worked twice, I should say. Because I only wanted it to work twice because both times someone tried to hurt my family."
Scott's eyebrows were high on his head. "Uh-huh."
"You can't be surprised by that," Billy said.
"No, I just - it's easy to forget," Scott said, shaking his head. "And you said you didn't have your powers?"
"That … you knew about one," Billy said. "That was when we were in Madripoor? Or do you mean … now? That … it takes a lot out of me, so …yeah."
"So you took her powers and lost yours for a while," Scott said. "Why didn't you tell anyone?"
Billy blinked at him for a moment. "I thought you knew the basic laws of magic from working with my mom?"
Scott waved his hands. "I get that part. But if you'd told someone what was going on-"
"We knew," Nate interjected before Scott could get wound up in worry.
"Nate…"
"Dad, you've got a lot on your plate right now - and we're trying to celebrate the good stuff, okay? Or are you going to tell Billy he shouldn't have made Emma actually face consequences?" Nate challenged.
Scott held Nate's gaze for a long moment before he let out his breath. "Right. So. How close are Rachel and America?"
"About five minutes out," Nate answered. "Last I checked."
"And we want to hear the story," Billy said, grinning. "I can't peek, and no one who can is spoiling the story for me."
Scott looked beyond Billy to see that Annie and Kate were headed back - and had picked the girls up from the front on the way over. "Well, Annie was the one who asked, so… I'll let her tell you," he said - to Billy's absolute delight.
Up until recently, Kate had been utterly ignoring JJ when he or the Bugle reached out to her for any comment on anything to do with the team. But after everything she'd learned from SHIELD, she wanted to know why J. Jonah Jameson seemed to know more about what had happened with Emma than the Avengers did.
So when he called her again, she actually picked up.
"Hey, this is Hawkeye," she said in the same bright voice she used whenever she was talking to the press.
JJ seemed so shocked that she picked up that it honestly took him a minute to respond. "Hawkeye. It's good to know you're capable of answering your phone."
"Cute. How did you know more about what happened to the Massachusetts Academy than I did?" Kate said, getting right to it. She wasn't in the mood to dance around it.
Once again, JJ was set back enough to pause. "We need to talk," he said.
"No kidding."
"Not over the phone."
Kate blinked a few times, gripped the phone a bit harder, and nodded. "Okay, I'll just stop by your office, then? Not like the world doesn't know you want an interview."
"That's fine," he said, though Kate could hear he was pleased.
She set the phone down, drummed her fingers against the table, and sighed. "Well," she told herself, "might as well see what he knows."
Kate made sure that both of her parents knew where she was going before she headed out to meet JJ. She sent a text to Nate but didn't go out of her way to bother him; he was struggling that morning because another day had passed without any word from James. He needed space more than he needed to worry about another person.
But she wasn't dumb enough to go anywhere alone with so many things up in the air. Especially not to the Bugle offices themselves.
Still, she appreciated the JJ seemed to have a sense of how important this was. And he wasn't asking her to come on air or anything like that. And he had been one of the most vocal supporters of the X-Men when they returned. And he had been especially vocal in his support of her role - saying that it was a good thing that the teams weren't forming exclusive clubs based on genetics alone.
So, she brought along a little something Tony had invented ages ago to prevent recordings in a small space. It wouldn't last long, but anyone who wanted to listen in would only hear a wavelength that, if played back on recording equipment, blasted AC/DC. Because Tony thought he was hilarious.
She tried to ignore the questioning looks that got even more surprised when JJ actually waved her in. He hadn't told anyone she was his appointment, then.
He closed the door behind her and gestured for her to take a seat, so she made sure to sit in it backwards, like her dad would, and rest her arms on the back of the chair. He shook his head at her as he sat down across from her with his arms crossed. "You're hard to pin down, Hawkeye."
"Yeah, on purpose," she said with a crooked smirk. "Don't know if you've noticed, but people keep trying to screw with the people I love. I'm a little busy, and I've got my mom's paranoia. So the fact that you knew more than I did about what happened with the Academy - I'm gonna be honest, it's freaking me out a little bit," she said. She'd started out sounding like her mother, but by the end, she sounded like her dad, her honesty peeking out purely because she was worried for everyone back home.
"My impression was that the Avengers were supposed to be working with SHIELD for exactly this kind of thing, especially after the spectacle Captain America made of himself when the original X-Men died," JJ replied. "It's noteworthy you didn't know."
"Yeah, but you don't seem surprised."
"I'm not," JJ agreed. He leaned forward, and she could see the look he often got on TV, the one just behind his eyes that said he wanted a scoop so badly. "They didn't bother to warn you about Hydra, either."
"I'm not here to talk about that," Kate said, losing any friendliness she might have had.
"You've made that clear." JJ sounded grumpy about it, but to Kate's surprise, he wasn't pushing. "You have to have noticed the timing, Hawkeye. SHIELD started pulling its intel back from the Avengers as soon as the X-Men debuted again."
Kate crossed her arms, matching his frown with her own. "My mother and the director of SHIELD-"
"Damnit, girl, this isn't about personal connections," JJ said heatedly. "The moment that original team died, SHIELD had that much more power over the remaining heroes. Believe it or not, having Beast and Wolverine on the team did in fact mean that the Avengers heard about what was happening. Maybe they didn't act on it, and maybe SHIELD mitigated the reports, but they did know more about what SHIELD didn't spoon-feed them." He put his hands down on the desk, got to his feet, and leaned toward her. "You and your freewheeling X-Men might answer to the Avengers, but you don't answer to SHIELD, and you have too many alliances with Genosha and the damn visitors from the stars." He paused and got his breath. "You really think SHIELD doesn't have feelers in the Hellfire Club? You think Emma Frost getting her fingers in the X-Men, breaking things up the way she does, isn't good for SHIELD?"
Kate didn't know what to say, but she couldn't manage to summon what her mom had taught her about hiding her emotions. It had already been a crazy past few weeks, but if what JJ was saying was right, then SHIELD was not only not giving them intel - and sending Phil away so his good heart didn't compel him to help them - but they were actively trying to keep the X-Men from gaining enough traction to be an independent group of superheroes.
"Listen," JJ said, still standing but no longer raising his voice. "You're eighteen. You're a child. By all rights, you shouldn't have been allowed to risk your life at the age you did - and I'm going to make sure the adults who signed off on child endangerment don't forget it."
"The point, Jameson. Get to the point," Kate said in a breath.
He glared at her for a second and then shook his head. "The point, Hawkeye," he said, "is that my source in SHIELD is telling me they'll do everything they can to pressure you kids in particular into joining their ranks. You're young; you're easier to fool. And if Hydra traumatizes you along the way, well, damn, that makes their life easier. You're more likely to ask for help then, right?" JJ made a noise from the back of his throat to communicate his disgust. "If your team wasn't so damned likeable, they'd already be well into their plans to make superheroes register or work for them. They want to be the only power players on the board, and your group is too good at what you do."
Kate blinked at him for several too-long seconds, cleared her throat, and then leaned forward. "Whatever you've got, publish it. And I will find you whatever you need to back it up. There's no way in hell I'm letting anyone back my team - my family - into a corner like that."
"I hoped we'd come to an understanding," JJ said. He sat down and took out a recording device to set on the table between them. "So, Hawkeye, let's get to brass tacks. Tell me everything I can legally print about how SHIELD botched Hydra's attack on you as well as the Hellfire Club's attack on the Academy, and we'll go from there."
Chapter 116: While You Were Sleeping
Chapter Text
"...so now I'm kinda sorta unofficially J. Jonah Jameson's source for the team?" Kate was sitting at a cafe with Billy, enjoying the privacy of one of his spells that kept people from listening in. Now that his powers were working again, she knew he was dying to get back to James, but everyone was highly stressed still, and they'd wanted to take some time just to hang out before going back to their respective traumatized Summers brothers.
Billy shook his head in pure disbelief. "We leave you alone for five minutes…"
"Yeah, I know. But he's not terrible when he's on our side."
"That qualifier is doing a lot of heavy lifting."
"Isn't it, though?" Kate leaned back and drank in the steam from her coffee. "Anyway, long story short, Nate's pulling his hair out and I've spent most of the last day cross-checking what's actually been classified by SHIELD and what I can get away with just pointing JJ in the right direction."
"Sounds stressful."
"Yeah, it is," she admitted. "But it's also way too fun to get around SHIELD and stick it to them."
"Right, I forget sometimes that you were raised by Black Widow," Billy teased.
"Peeks through about as often as Magneto peeks through for you."
"Touché."
Kate grinned crookedly at him. "Anyway, I'm totally wiped. I may take a page out of James's book and go re-center myself. Nate's family had a few safe houses stashed away, and a cabin in the woods does sound tempting."
Billy smiled and leaned forward, his eyes sparkling. "Take it from me: it can be a hugely romantic getaway."
"You're totally looking forward to camping with him, huh?"
Billy blushed and looked down at his almost-finished croissant. "I keep putting it off. I don't want to push him away by trying to be there for him when he wants to be alone."
Kate reached across the table to put her hand on his arm. "He knows you're respecting his boundaries, and he knows you love him. There's absolutely nothing wrong with showing up and then popping back home if he's still not ready. You can tease America. She and Rachel have agreed to keep an eye on Scott to prevent stupidity while Nate and I are gone for the weekend, and you know America hasn't had nearly enough teasing about integrating into the Summers family."
"Because she hasn't," Billy pointed out.
Kate pointed at him with her plastic fork. "Exactly. We totally need to razz her about how she and Rachel are always hidden away and conveniently escaping the drama."
"She'll point out that they're being smarter than the rest of us."
"Yeah, but we still have to tease her. It's a rule."
"Fair enough." Billy leaned back in his seat. "How's Nate, by the way?"
"Distraught, but that's no surprise. We all know how much he looks up to James, and I think I shook him when I admitted I had abandonment issues when I was a kid too."
"Yeah, you told me about that. And I feel bad; I know for a fact nobody ever wanted to make either of you worried that you weren't wanted."
Kate shrugged. "I'm okay. Mostly. I mean, we all have hangups. But it's different with James. I don't know how to explain it, but it just is."
"Yeah, I know."
"And I'll bet if he's ready to see you, being around you might cheer you both up," Kate said.
Billy smiled as he took another bite of his croissant. "I like how you have this Disney version of our relationship where love always conquers all the bad stuff we have to face."
"I'm not that far off."
"If you say so. But you know this means when you two get married you'll need to look like a Disney princess, right?"
"I will find the sparkliest tiara I can find just for you. I'll put Tony on it and everything. But that means you have to be in full princely regalia for yours."
"I mean … that was always going to be the case, but … sure. Deal."
When Billy finally wished himself to the cabin James had been in, he had a moment where he wondered if James had cut and run on him just for how quiet it was. There was a fresh blanket of snow on the ground with no tracks anywhere near the building, and Billy had a moment of worry on seeing not only that, but wondering how far north they were that felt like it needed freaking snowfall in June.
He turned with a shiver to go look in the cabin, since … he had nowhere else to go, no spell to work until he knew if his guy was gone, and if that was the case, did he even want to be followed?
When Billy got inside, the cabin was almost silent, and after quietly looking around the place, he found that James was curled up in bed, just waking up on hearing Billy come in. He didn't bother picking up his head when he saw who it was, either. "There you are," Billy said as he stepped into the room the rest of the way.
"Hi," James said softly.
"I stayed away for as long as I could. You're missing all the news," Billy said as he came over to kiss James' forehead since that's all that was sticking out of the blankets. He paused just before he did so, and James held his breath, but relaxed quickly as soon as Billy had kissed him.
"It's fine," James said, though he made no effort to move. "I've been sleeping."
"I see that. It's freezing in here. You're usually so good about keeping the fire up," Billy said before he simply kicked off his shoes and made his way around to the other side of the bed before he gently climbed in, sure to make a big deal out of carefully snuggling in and getting comfortable. It was a solid effort to allow James a chance to react without freaking him out, and Billy hoped a solid method. He was expecting James to freak out. It only made sense - though it was Billy that ended up holding his breath for a moment when James turned toward him and curled up with him, which was a vast improvement all the same. "How long have you been … are you okay?"
"I dunno. I'm just … tired," James replied, knowing that 'fine' would get him an argument he didn't have the energy for. Then, he snuggled down until he had his head on Billy's shoulder and his arm draped across his middle. "Thanks for giving me a day or two."
"It's … been longer than that," Billy said, resting a hand on the back of James' head and curling in a little better himself. "You missed some pretty big stuff. James - seriously. Annie asked your dad to get married! Nate and Kate took off for a break, Mia and Tommy are in trouble with Storm and Forge, and your Dad almost made it through his big announcement dinner without falling to pieces, but … sweetheart, he's so worried about you and you're just … hiding."
James didn't say anything though, and instead, he blew out a weary breath. He didn't know how to process most of what Billy had just said, but he knew that everything was a lot simpler when he was just out of everyone's way. Before he'd left, he'd heard plenty of speculation in the tabloids, after all, and none of it was something James wanted to listen to or deal with. "Can we not talk about that?"
"Right now or ever?"
"I don't know yet."
"Okay, but I think you're lost in your own thoughts," Billy said before he kissed the top of James' head.
James smirked to himself, relaxing a little better with Billy there, and surprising himself at how relaxed he was with him. "I don't want to think about it."
"Smart alec."
"You here to drag me back?"
"Um … no. I'm here to be with you if you want me to. We'll figure out when to go back later."
To answer, James gave him a little squeeze. "What part of this makes you think I don't want you here?"
"I had to check," Billy said, doubling down on his snuggle. "You're cold. I thought that never happened."
"I'm fine. Just got lazy."
"Lazy or depressed?"
"It's the same thing. I think."
"I don't think so," Billy said, then looked past James at the fireplace and wished a crackling blaze into existence as he pulled the blankets up a little better. He let a little time pass, then had to say what he thought James needed to hear. "You know your dad didn't say any of that, right? That was all Emma Frost."
"I know."
"Okay, but you don't know that I dealt with her. She'll never be able to do that to anyone ever again."
James didn't react more than to blink his eyes open for a long moment before he picked up his head to look up at Billy more squarely. "What does that mean - you 'dealt with her'?"
"I stripped her powers away. She's no longer a mutant." When James stared back at him in honest shock, Billy continued. "And then I wished her back under her rock."
It took a few seconds, but finally, James let out a breathless laugh in disbelief, then started to chuckle quietly - the infectious kind of laugh that Billy ended up being caught up in quickly as it built up, and when both of them were smiling, James grinned crookedly at him, then whispered out 'My hero' as he leaned forward to start a kiss that kept them curled up until Billy needed to wish the fire back into existence.
The boys couldn't stay tucked into the cabin in the Canadian Rockies forever, even if James would have preferred that above anything else. Eventually, Billy got the chance to fill in what had happened with more detail and made it clear that … they really couldn't stay there much longer. Both of them had responsibilities to go back to and James had several nervous parental figures that were pacing a hole in the floor - even if James' whole outlook on his family was temporarily skewed.
So, the boys started to close up the cabin - fully intending to return for a more relaxing week once things had settled out a little bit. But, James knew he needed to deal with trying to straighten things with his family, finish up a few more college tours, then officially announce his intentions for school once he'd gotten all the paperwork squared away. He just hadn't decided what order to deal with everything, so when they were ready to go, James made a point to give Billy a kiss and promise to meet him at the tower as soon as he could fly back.
But that gave Billy ample time to make sure Scott would be at the tower - if he wanted to.
By the time James flew in, the family was gathered and waiting, but Craig was the first one to greet him. He was waiting by the elevator so he'd be sure to catch the kid. When James stepped out, Craig was careful to keep a light touch. "Welcome back."
"Thanks," James said, understated and quiet, like he usually was when he was still hurt.
"Somethin' like that can't be easy to let roll off your back. Why don't you come have a seat with me for a little while?"
"Maybe another time," James said. When Craig looked openly let down, James clarified. "I'm not dodging you. I promise. I just don't have the energy to do that right now." Before he could get much further down the hallway, though, Tony caught up to him and pulled him into a tight bear hug.
"You alright?"
"Yeah."
"No you're not," Tony said, triggering James into holding on to him a little tighter. It was familiar for Tony because he had seen this look on James before - years ago when he was small. And drifting. And it only had Tony doubling down on his hug. "That's what I thought. You scared me, kid."
"I just wanted some quiet," James said. "I wasn't trying to mess anything up."
"Yeah, I know. Hey. Come on. You didn't mess anything up, but kid... you leave for a few days and half the city loses their minds," Tony said, gently guiding James down the hall even as Craig followed them a few paces back.
For Craig, it was like watching the two of them before, the two of them echoing each other and making sure to take care of each other, with Tony being exceedingly careful with James every step of the way. Tony held back from his usual teasing and picking just because contrary to popular belief, he could be incredibly tactful; he knew when not to pick. And he knew how to take care of his kid when he was hurting.
Scott was waiting for them in the living room - and was barely being held back by Jan.
And James, being James, couldn't help but try to break the ice when everything felt so … off. "Is this an intervention? What did I do now?"
"Not a thing wrong," Scott said as he pulled away from Jan and yanked James into a hug that , thankfully, was returned, even if James felt tense in Scott's arms.
"Are you alright?" James asked.
"Definitely not," Scott said, not about to let go as he half buried himself in the hug. "You know how it is when I can't fix something, especially for my kids."
"You don't have to fix anything," James said, though he held on a little tighter.
Scott didn't say anything in response except to pull James harder around the shoulders. James could hear the others leaving the room, and he could barely register Annie's hushed whispers, but he wasn't going to let up on the hug until Scott did, either. And when that happened, Scott still kept a hand on James's shoulder, like he was afraid to not be touching him and to lose him again. It was a familiar gesture - one that he'd done when things had gone sideways back when James was still little … and Scott had come to get him from whoever he'd been with. Mostly Tony.
"Come on," he said softly. "Let's go somewhere a little less busy."
James drew in a deep breath, but didn't argue it, instead falling into step with him, unsure of which way the talk was going to go, but sure it had to happen anyhow.
Once they got to James's lab, Scott shut the door behind them and then immediately pulled James into another hug. This one didn't last as long, though, and he stepped back to look James in the face, obviously searching his expression. "Not a thing she said was true, do you hear me?" he said, making sure to meet James's gaze.
"I know it wasn't you. I knew it then, too."
"Good." Scott rested his hands on James's shoulders, nodding to himself as he tried to find the right words and James waited. "Still, I just…"
"I'm sorry I broke your face."
Scott nearly laughed. "I'm really not worried about it," he promised. "Tyler fixed it easily enough, and besides, you did me a favor."
"I didn't pull my punch though. I shouldn't have been that rough."
Scott shrugged. "I promise, it's fine. Ask Alex sometime about the fights we used to have. If anything, it just shows she pushed strong buttons." He smirked. "But yeah, it was a good hit."
"Still feel bad about it," James admitted, shrugging his shoulders up a little.
"That's okay," Scott said. "I feel bad about everything else." He winced. "Sorry I managed to teach you my own bad habits like that."
"Like what?" James asked. "Did I miss the chapter where you beat down the pirate?"
"And swore at him. And hit him over and over again…"
"He probably liked it."
"Yeah, I know. I'm just saying…" Scott took a deep breath and let it out. "It bears repeating, you know? You're my kid. I literally had to fight off Tony Stark for you and I'm still not sure I won," he added, trying for a small tease. "You're always gonna be my son. I know Emma did everything in her power to screw things up every possible way she could, but I'm never going to stop loving you." He gestured vaguely with one hand. "So… right. That's… what I needed to say."
James' shoulders relaxed slightly at that, though, even if he was trying not to do anything that Scott might take wrong. "Tony didn't win. Obviously."
Scott couldn't hide his smile at that. "Well, small miracles," he said, then nodded to himself and let out his breath. "The rest of, well, everyone is going to want to say hi. I can absolutely redirect them if you need me to - except Annie. Obviously. Having a hard time telling her no right now," he said, his smile looking more natural at that.
"Yeah, Billy told me," James said. "Um … Congratulations - I can get out of your way if you're ready to go into planning mode with her."
Scott laughed. "We're not quite to that stage yet. She wanted to talk to her dad's memory care unit to see what she needs to do to make sure he's taken care of so he can attend. He's on oxygen and a few other things. Waiting to see what the timeline is before we do anything, really."
"So … you're eloping. Got it."
Scott smiled wider. "That's a real possibility," he admitted. "Might just be family-only. We'll see. Although I think Jan would die of disappointment. She's already following Annie around with dress sketches."
"She'll be fine." James had his hands in his hoodie pocket. "She always is."
"Something we have in common, then, huh?" Scott asked before, without a warning, he pulled James into another long, tight hug. "Missed you, by the way," he said softly.
"I wasn't gone that long," James said as he snuggled in. "And it sounds you had plenty good things to keep you occupied. But I'm sorry I left the way I did."
Scott shook his head. "No, you needed the space. God knows if I'd heard the professor say something like that I'd still be in Alaska, Emma Frost or no."
"Yeah, love you too. I know most of what she said was crap, but … I think I may have to prove her right on something."
"My first thought is 'please, God, no,' but…"
"Keep that in mind next time she's around," James said. "Because I am not going to give her the chance to screw with anyone again. I know Billy took away her powers, but I won't bat an eye when I kill her."
Scott was quiet for a long minute - though James had expected that and was just waiting for it. But then, Scott let his shoulders drop, and he closed his eyes. "I hate admitting it," he said quietly. "But, well, seems like you're following my lead again, huh? Crossing that line when the other side goes too far to come back."
"Following my nature, so I'm told," James said dryly.
"Sure, she can think that," Scott said, matching his dry tone.
"She's not the only one," James pointed out. "Jan told me to ignore the news, but I've never been able to block it out entirely. I try not to care about that, but it's hard to do."
"Good, don't," Scott agreed. "Probably the same people who called Kurt a demon or my team terrorists or Kate brainwashed for being an X-Man…"
"Sure, sure. But genetics do play a role and the world knows who my parents were. On top of that, I'm lined up to run the most successful weapons company in the world. It's just going to get worse. Might as well live up to it when it needs to be done."
Scott let out a breath and put his hand on James's shoulder again. "Just promise me you won't lose yourself to it. That's all I ask."
"I don't know what that even means," James admitted.
"Then trust me and the rest of your family - including Billy, by the way - to tell you if it happens," Scott said. "Deal?"
James nodded at that. "Okay, but … if you felt the need to intervene, wouldn't it already have gone too far?"
"Probably," Scott said. "But you're not there, and we're getting ahead of ourselves," he added. "Annie's dying to tell you about how she proposed. She knows Billy told you, but she's still dying to tell you anyway."
"Honestly, Im not surprised it went that way," James said. "Did she bring you flowers?"
Scott chuckled. "No, nothing like that."
"Bad prep…"
"It was a spontaneous proposal."
"Did she at least ask Nate and Rachel and the Phoenix's permission?"
Scott laughed. "No, nothing like that either."
"Strike two."
"Ah, but she asked me not long after telling me to pull my head out of my own ass, so she'd set a mood," Scott teased.
"So she angry-proposed. Alright, then. That wasn't on my bingo card." James returned Scott's gesture, resting one hand on his shoulder. "Are you safe?"
Scott laughed. "Very. I promise."
"Do you need a Panic button just for Southern rage? Blink twice if you're scared of your Southern Belle."
"I think I'll get by," Scott laughed again. "But the thought is appreciated."
"Just want to make sure you're going to be okay," James said with a muted smirk.
"Love you too," Scott said, smiling as they headed out - and predictably ran almost right into Annie, who wasn't even pretending to not have been waiting for them nearby.
When Annie saw that the two of them were doing better than when they'd stepped away, she broke into a grin and rushed over to James, throwing her arms around him in a hug. "Thank you," she said - which wasn't at all what James had expected.
"Oh, okay - we're hugging," James said, entirely off guard at the hug, though he carefully returned it. "Hi. You're welcome?"
She grinned wider and then stepped back, brushing her hair back. "Thank you for not giving up on me," she said and then hugged him again for good measure. "You have no idea what that meant to me."
"Yeah, that really was something I should have gotten around to sooner," James admitted. "Sorry for taking so long, Miss Hale."
Annie laughed, but couldn't quite hide her disappointment as her shoulders dropped. "Oh, we're back to that? But I finally got you calling me 'Annie'!"
"One time. And I was trying to manipulate a reaction out of you. Which didn't work."
Annie raised both eyebrows and then smiled somehow wider. "Wow. You are just like your dad. It was twice. Not once."
He frowned at that, trying to place the second time he called her by her given name. "You'll need to be more specific," James said dryly. "Which one are you calling an emotional manipulator?"
"Definitely Stark," Scott said, smirking. "Annie, James says he's a little lost, so you'll have to revise your statement on which dad you mean."
"I'm pretty sure the one you're implying hasn't had an emotion in years," James said.
"Oh, lies," Annie laughed. "He floats like a cloud around Jan."
"But everyone loves Jan," James argued.
Annie gave him a dry look and then shook her head. "Come on," she said. "I should tell you about how I snagged your dad. You're coming to the wedding, obviously, so you should hear the tale properly."
"He's in the wedding," Scott clarified.
"I thought you told him how it was going to go and he wasn't stupid enough to argue with you about it," James said. "That's what I heard."
Annie laughed delightedly as she looped her arm through his. "Oh, yes, exactly, but details, James," she said.
"I don't want anything past PG. I've got enough trauma, thanks."
"It's a deal," she promised, laughing, as she led him off.
Chapter 117: Extra, Extra!
Chapter Text
Scott had never really gotten out of the habit of answering calls meant for James. He knew that James had mostly given him that job to keep him distracted and busy, but, well, James wasn't in a fit state to answer calls from anyone, so it was actually still needed.
Not that Scott himself was in much of a state to talk on the phone. But enough colleges were hoping to get in some last-minute kissing up that he didn't want to miss, among all the wooing, something important.
He was ignoring most calls from the press - except for the fact that J. Jonah Jameson had called multiple times.
And it wasn't a matter of a couple calls every few days. No, this was multiple calls that day.
So when JJ called again, Scott actually picked up.
"Must be something important," Scott said in lieu of a standard greeting.
"No kidding," JJ said dryly. "I'd have called your phone, but I don't have that number."
Scott raised both eyebrows. "I'm not a story," he said, though he hadn't even finished the last word before JJ cut in.
"You are now."
Scott scoffed and hung up. He didn't have the time or the patience to deal with JJ being pushy. He might have been coming a bit out of retirement, but he wasn't using his old moniker, and he wasn't going to take attention off of his kids.
And then, the phone rang again.
Scott glared at it for a long time. He considered just letting it ring, but he picked it up just as it would have gone to voice mail.
"I"m trying to give you a chance to get ahead of this thing," JJ half-shouted into the phone. "Like it or not, you are the story."
"The hell I am," Scott shouted right back.
"Try explaining that to all of New York once that video of Emma Frost outing you on the street goes mainstream," JJ replied, his tone clipped. "We don't have the exclusive, but what I've seen in draft from my competitors is not flattering for you or your group."
For just a second, Scott had to process that information. Nate had wiped everyone's minds, but even he wasn't good enough to scrub everything. He could tell people to stop recording, even to erase it, but cameras without operators…. "What have they got?"
"You know, that boy of yours and the young Hawkeye have been about as good to talk to as anyone in your line of work, but I don't think they can spin it for you or brush it away when it's Frost outing you by name and codename on the street. There were witnesses that claim not to remember any of it - and considering the content of what Frost was shouting on why she outed you … that is not going to look good. You know what I'm talking about."
Scott let his shoulders drop, and he sat down. "Okay, the first thing you need to know is that Cable did not take her powers."
"No, the Maximoff boy did," JJ said.
"Damnit," Scott said, because if they had that on camera, they had Billy explaining what Emma had done to earn his wrath. And that was going to bring up all sorts of questions about his past with her.
"I can show you what I have so you can get ahead of this, but you'd need to get down here fast."
"Done." Scott hung up on him and then immediately called Mia. "I need a teleport to The Bugle."
"Oh my God, why? Is there going to be a murder?" Mia asked - only half teasing because she'd been joking with Tommy all day.
"Not today, anyway," Scott said through his teeth.
"Oh, that's a relief. I'm too young to have a rap sheet like that. Be right there!"
Scott nodded to himself, setting his shoulders and letting out a deep breath. When Mia arrived, he gave her a tight smile and put his hand on her shoulder. "Just trying to get ahead of something," he explained.
"Okay," Mia agreed, nodding along with him. "I'll stick around and wait then for when you're done, right?"
"Yeah." Scott squeezed her shoulder a bit tighter. And after a few teleports, they were in the Bugle's offices - about a foot away from Jessica Jones's desk.
Jessica greeted them with a loud curse as she dropped her coffee mug, then covered her face with one hand and gestured toward him with the other. "What the f-"
"Hi, Jess!" Mia sang out. "I don't know either."
Jessica blinked at them a few times, then gestured wildly around them. "Hi … mister. What … I mean … what the f-"
"I'll explain later," Scott said. "Your boss is in, right?"
"It's daylight, so he hasn't disappeared into his cave, yes."
"Perfect." Scott went to JJ's office and knocked on the door.
"Busy!" JJ called back. "I don't have time for whatever it is you want - figure it out yourself. I'm waiting on an interview."
"Open the door, Jameson, or I'm going to a competitor."
There was a scrambling behind the door before Jameson opened it, looking positively unprepared to see Scott standing there, and if the curse was any indicator as he stepped back to let him by … he really had forgotten how the X-Men could operate.
Scott pointedly didn't say anything until he closed the door behind him. And then, he nodded Jameson's way.
Jameson had rushed over to his desk, but seeing the mood Scott was in, he didn't try to tapdance around it before he turned his laptop for Scott to see. "You're quicker than I remember."
"Nightcrawler's faster at answering her cell phone than the last one," Scott said absently as he sat down, frowning at the footage already queued up.
"Apparently," Jameson said, then he let Scott take the time to watch - and listen to all that was recorded. Once Scott had finished the video, Jameson let the silence hang for a long moment as he tried to organize his thoughts. "I have no idea what a lot of that was referring to, and I'm not trying to dig up anything on those kids. I want to make that clear. But … I can't see most modern reporters looking past the headlines and shock factor to see the real story. Which is clearly Frost's misdeeds."
"Billy doesn't use his powers like that on anyone who doesn't cross a line," Scott said. "I want to make it clear he's not in the habit of doing that - to anyone."
"I honestly can't see that being much of a concern for most of the mouth breathing idiots that will be reporting on this," Jameson said frankly. "If anything, they'd be pushing for him to do more of it."
"That's my worry too," Scott said. He leaned back, his hands up to his mouth at the index fingers as he tried, hard, to refocus.
"I am a little more concerned about the lackluster eyewitness reports showcasing how they didn't know what the videos were on their own phones until they found them later - at least as far as things concerning those on the tape."
Scott nodded. "That's my fault," he said at last, nodding to himself. "I asked my team to let everyone continue to think I was dead."
"Considering how protective your family is of each other, I don't think it's a fault," Jameson said.
Scott nodded. "Mr. Jameson, I heard your reports after what happened to my team, and I appreciate all you've said about them. Which is why I'm sure you can understand why it was better for everyone involved at the time for me to step back and raise my children without a target on their backs."
Jameson tapped his fingers on his desk. "Mr. Summers, considering the storm that's about to come after you just based on your appearance after all these years, I do not envy your position - and I don't want to report on that. I want to keep the focus on what this woman could have possibly done to rile up a defense from those kids that was that total when they've been solidly conservative in their approach against those trying to make life miserable. I don't want them to be the target when they're doing well. I think that spotlight needs to be on where the problem is." He pulled out a file and dropped it on his desk. "I know she's been misusing her abilities for decades, but … the most appropriate ammunition I have to outline it is this lawsuit that was recently, mysteriously shut down. I'm sure you can give me more details, and I'm hoping that this story won't be stopped by telepathic interference."
Scott nodded to himself, texted Mia again, and then looked up. "Nightcrawler's coming back with a device for you that we've found will keep Emma out of your mind entirely as long as you have it on you."
"I was under the impression that Emma Frost wasn't a telepathic terror any more."
"She has other telepaths she could call on," Scott said.
"Of course she does."
Scott tapped his fingers against his arm. "Alright," he said slowly. "You'll want to talk to Stark. I'll vouch for you in this case. We don't have concrete proof, obviously, because telepathic proof isn't yet allowed in court. But it was no accident that the lawsuit went to settlement shortly after she was housed in Avengers Tower."
"And you're telling me that Tony Stark will corroborate that? On record?"
"Yes," Scott said. "He's mad as hell about what she pulled. If you've seen what's in the public file for that case, you know how she treated some of her clients. No one takes that lightly."
"Sounds like we have a lot to get through - and not a lot of time to do it." Jameson took back his laptop and opened a fresh file. "So … probably ought to have you dive in and tell me your side of things."
Scott took a deep breath and let it out slowly. "I know you've been working with Kate about the attack on the Massachusetts Academy," he said.
"Your boy has been helpful, too," Jameson said. "Even said he'd be open to another interview. If I can get a hold of him for five minutes."
The corner of Scott's mouth twitched. "Jameson, I'm about to tell you something deeply personal, and I would appreciate it if you could find any way to report this without causing more emotional damage than has already happened to my son."
"Summers, the story isn't your boy. It needs to stay that way."
"The story right now is what Emma did to make Billy mad enough to yank her powers, and part of that is-" He cleared his throat. "Well." He cleared his throat again. "After the Academy came down, she slipped into my head. And she, to be honest, had complete control when Wolverine came after me, and she told him using my voice that he wasn't wanted. That I didn't want him. She told a little boy who lost his parents at three, who was adopted into a family in hiding, that he was nothing but a burden. And that's why he's not picking up your calls right now."
For a long moment, Jameson just stared at Scott silently before finally, he too cleared his throat and very roughly gestured for Scott to continue.
"What you have there on video is Billy standing up to someone who tried to use the aftermath of an attack that put most of the senior members of the team back on their heels to regain the power she used to have with the X-Men." Scott waved his hand in front of his eyes. "It's obvious why I'm not on the team right now. But you and I both know that the team will listen to me if they need me, that I'll be there for them if they ask. She knew that too, so she crawled in my head and intended to return to the X-Men and install herself at the head of the team - through me. Stark's lawsuit, the X-Men, all of it was a play for her to get back the power she had before most mutants were forced underground."
"To what end?" Jameson asked.
"That part, I couldn't tell you. She didn't share it with me," Scott said. He swallowed a few more times than was necessary. "You've been working with Kate. I don't know what she's told you about what happened with Hydra. I don't know how much she can tell you."
"We don't really discuss that," Jameson admitted. "Though I do know roughly what happened through my other contacts."
"Do you know enough to understand why Billy in particular would react the way he did to knowing someone was-" Scott gestured at the laptop.
"Yes."
"Alright then." Scott cleared his throat. His foot was bouncing. "So." He nodded again. "So, ah. Consider my public past with her and, ah…" He trailed off, cleared his throat. "I don't - if it can help explain why Billy reacted the way he did, I'd rather you use my name than reveal anything that happened to him or Kate or James. Please."
Jameson nodded. "Of course. I think we can paint the picture clearly enough without trying to dissect that conveniently garbled section of audio. People will draw their own conclusions if we lay it out right so that we don't need to name names."
"Thanks. That's… definitely not the story I'd prefer hanging over my head when people find out I'm still alive."
"Like I said, I'd prefer we keep the crimes on Frost's roster."
"Talk to Stark. He's got plenty to say there. He built a big case and has plenty of evidence of how she used her license to manipulate vulnerable mutants. Not all of it even went into the case itself."
"I have a testimony from a secretary at a rather prestigious college that will back that up," Jameson said.
Scott nodded, then took a deep breath. "So," he said. "Tell me what you want to ask. I know you'll follow up on the Emma thing, but to be honest, we both know you have questions, and I'd rather you had the answers than get blindsided by a different reporter."
"I take it you got my message from your son," Jameson said. "You … are caught up in this story - and once it hits, the focus will swing quickly to what happened to you after the disaster in Westchester. I don't have to spell out what you know everyone is curious about, and I am sorry, but if you can give me … an updated bio … essentially… I can have whatever answers you can give ready to roll before you get blindsided."
Scott let out a mirthless laugh. "I'll do you one better," he said. "Because you had the decency to warn me, why don't you and I sit down for an official interview. Whatever questions you want answered. The only thing I ask is that you give me time to warn my girlfriend her face is about to be on national television."
"My office is always open when you can - but … sooner is better than later. Obviously."
"Obviously."
He pointed a finger at Scott. "And I won't bring your son into that interview. At all. I understand the need to keep that quiet … for all your kids as much as possible."
"Alright then." Scott let out a controlled breath. "I'll give you a few answers to the ones I know you'll get immediately. We'll schedule something more… public… later. But to start, you have to know why the original Wolverine did what he did…."
When Scott was done talking to Jameson, Mia and Jessica both were watching the door to the office with crossed arms and raised eyebrows as he shut the door behind himself again.
"...well?" Jessica said, sweeping one hand out to indicate, well, all of him.
Scott shrugged lightly; he didn't much feel like talking after he'd had to go over pretty much everything Jameson would need to keep the pressure on the right people and keep the press away from the worst conclusions they could come to without the facts (not that some outlets wouldn't get there all the same). "Long story," he said.
"Yeah, obviously. You were in there forever," Mia said, tapping her foot.
"Sorry to keep you waiting."
"That wasn't…" Mia let out a frustrated sound, teleported over to Scott, and then, in a couple teleports, got them to the grounds of the school. One more 'port, and she had them inside - in her mother's office, to be more precise. "Mom, Scott spent, like, two hours with J. Jonah Jameson and I want you to check and make sure he's not a Skrull or something," she announced before the smoke had even cleared.
Scott scowled as he waved away some of the smoke of the teleport. "Thanks, Mia," he said dryly.
"You're welcome!" she said, meeting his scowl with a bright smile.
Scott shook his head at her, but when he looked up to see that Storm was looking at him in genuine concern, he sighed and sat down in the nearest chair. "News story will run in the morning at the latest," he told her. "It looks like someone's personal security camera for their business caught Emma on tape outing me. They sent it around to the press, and, well, Jameson called to get ahead of the story."
"Well that sucks," Mia said, pulling a face.
"Not much we can do about it now," Scott admitted. He leaned back in the chair and gestured vaguely with one hand. "I'm absolutely expecting Kate to start asking when I'll be back in the field at this rate, too. Already had Jameson ask that."
"Really?" Mia lit up.
"I'm not-"
"Hold that thought!" Mia said, and teleported away, leaving Scott and Ororo alone for the time being.
"How are you feeling?" Ororo asked. "This has to be a hard shift for you."
Scott let out a soft sound from the back of his throat. "More upset that she managed to out Nate and put Annie in the public eye in the same move, honestly," he said. "I'll deal with the rest. Always have."
"I know you will, but that doesn't answer my question, not really."
Scott sighed again. "To tell you the truth, I haven't really had time to do more than react," he said. "Jameson called to warn me there was a tape, so I went to give him clarification - get ahead of the story before it can get spun the wrong way. Especially for Billy."
"I wonder what it was that got him to be proactive to protect."
"He's been working with Kate lately too. The best she can tell, last we talked, is he saw the patterns in all the crimes that ramped up when the team was gone, so he's invested in seeing a team independent of SHIELD like ours was."
"That might be difficult to manage all things considered."
"We'll figure it out." Scott cleared his throat. "I'll need to call Wanda and warn her, too. The Genoshan court findings are about to come out, and Billy's on tape admitting to yanking Emma's powers, so that could get precarious for him…"
"By all means," Ororo said, gesturing to her phone.
Just about that time, though, Mia had teleported back into the room, with Kitty in tow - just in time for Kitty to hear what Scott had said.
"I'll be back!" Mia declared, teleporting away again - gleefully.
"Um … what … what did I miss? It sounded like something I want to hear," Kitty said, frowning at Scott.
This time, Scott couldn't help but smile her way, knowing her history with Emma. "Billy took Emma's powers - permanently, as far as I can tell."
"Oh, my, God. Why isn't there a telepath when I want one that can project this to me?"
"You could always ask Annie to retell it. She can also tell you about how she punched Emma - you might have heard-"
"Annie got to see it and I didn't?" Kitty half-shouted sounding just like when she was fresh to the team.
Scott and Ororo both couldn't help but chuckle at her reaction. "In my defense," Scott said, "Emma showed up when Annie and I were announcing our engagement to my kids-"
"Why do I always miss all the good stuff? It's like you purposely wait for me to be doing something else before- "
"Yes, Kitty, I absolutely waited until you and Spiderman were investigating that organized crime ring to get sucker-punched by Emma," Scott said dryly.
"I knew it, you big jerk, you!" She climbed into a chair, sitting cross legged. "So you need to tell me every detail so I can imagine it. I don't want to miss any more."
"Wait, wait, wait!" Mia said, teleporting in with Bobby and Warren in tow. "Wait, I've got more!"
"Mia, what are you doing?" Scott asked, exasperated. He hadn't been expecting Mia to turn this into a spectacle.
"Oh, nothing, just gathering people to hear about your triumphant return to the public eye okaybyeseeyoulater!" Mia said and disappeared into a puff of smoke.
"Bring snacks!" Kitty shouted.
"This is starting to get crowded," Scott said, crossing his arms.
"We're your biggest fans, fearless - what did you expect?" Kitty said with a grin.
"And apparently always out of the loop. When did you decide to go public?" Bobby asked, grinning as he put his arm around Scott's shoulders.
"Wasn't my idea," Scott said.
"He got tired of the new team doing soundbites when they could be off doing dashing and daring feats," Kitty teased. "And someone ticked him off and hit a big red button, probably."
"Which reminds me." Scott put his arm around Bobby's shoulders in return. "Next time you're headed to the Baxter Building, I need to talk to Reed Richards. I need his contacts in the academic world."
"You wanna hitch a ride with me?" Bobby asked, looking surprised. "What are you doing with the academics exactly?"
Scott shrugged, though his eyes were flashing. "Nothing yet, but a little research into how to make Emma toxic to the academic world and cut off her supply of influence, to start."
"Oh. So it's war," Bobby said, nodding slowly. "Well. It's about time."
"She publicly outed me and Nate, not to mention everything she did to James," Scott said.
"How are the kids taking it? I know it's kind of … um. Yeah," Bobby said, finishing with one hand on his neck.
Scott hedged. "They don't know the story is going public yet," he admitted. "This just happened, and Mia got ahead of me."
"Oh, crap," Bobby said. "Want me to text them to get here?"
"I'll reach out to Rachel," Scott said. "If Mia doesn't end up teleporting all of us into the living room at this rate."
"She's about at the end of her abilities for as much as she's been porting around already," Ororo said. "Soon she'll shift to text. Or Tommy."
"Or both," Warren chuckled.
Almost on cue, Mia appeared, this time with Hank - and plenty of Twinkies, which she handed to Kitty before she collapsed in a chair nearby. "Okay, that's all, folks," she declared. "Talk among yourselves."
"Mia, my darling girl," Ororo said. "Let Scott reach out to his own children, please."
"Okay, that's fair," Mia said, though she was pouting as she put her phone away.
Hank chuckled as he took in the scene. "I'm assuming something momentous has happened."
"Yeah, Scott's pissed enough at Emma to do something about it," Bobby said - and Warren jabbed him in the ribs with his elbow. "Ow."
Scott sighed as he looked between his old friends. "Alright," he said - and gave them the quick overview of the situation, particularly what was on the tape that would be playing on the news soon. He made sure to emphasize that in telling his story, he hadn't told any of theirs and that he had done everything in his power to keep from dredging up any questions from reporters that might pull old memories to the surface for them.
"And anyway," Scott said once they were up to speed, "Jameson's got enough information from what I gave him and his own research to make Emma the story. So I was thinking I'd reach out to Richards about what I can do to lessen her influence in academia and-" He turned to Warren. "When Betsy gets home-"
"Yeah, whatever you need, from both of us," Warren promised before he could finish.
"Thanks." Scott nodded to himself. "I'm sorry about all this. I'm sure it's a little too familiar - me trying to clean up after her again."
"Um … totally different because we're going to stomp her, too," Kitty said.
"And throw Billy a parade," Mia put in.
Bobby pointed her way. "She makes a good point."
"I love that kid," Kitty said with a grin.
"We'll throw one for Annie too," Warren chuckled. "I'd have loved to see that in person - I'll bet the White Queen never saw her coming."
"She'd never admit it if she did," Kitty said. "Although … she did put a telepathic headlock on her and made her break up with you…"
"Yeah, I don't think Annie's ever going to forget that," Scott said, smirking, though by that point, he had pulled out his phone to text his kids in a family chat - including Billy, Kate, and America. And James.
Heads up. Video of Emma using my name and codename about to hit the news. I've already talked to Jameson to get ahead of it. Video attached, he wrote and added the video.
You can't just say things like this and not expect people to die of heart attacks! Kate replied within seconds.
My mom is going to have a fit, Billy said after enough time had passed for him to watch the video.
Nate, didn't you wipe minds?
I can't wipe security cameras. I'm not a technopath.
I can banish Frost to a dimension made entirely of glaciers to make her match her name, America offered.
We'll call that Plan 3, Scott replied, unable to hide his smirk at that response.
Impressively high up on the list, Kate replied.
"Sounds like the kids just found out," Warren said, smirking at Scott's buzzing phone. "How are they taking it?"
"Hard to tell. America offered to banish Emma to another dimension made of ice," Scott said.
"That's a fair opener," Kitty said, nodding along. "Better than she deserves."
"I'd rather let her see her influence drain away," Scott said simply. "If we just send her away, all she'll take from it is that she should stay away from Billy and America."
"It's fun seeing this side of you," Bobby said, grinning.
"Hey, she crossed a line," Scott said.
"Or twenty," Mia said under her breath, now furiously texting with Tommy since the story was officially out there in the younger crowd.
"In the meantime," Hank said and put a hand on Scott's shoulder. "What can we do to help? It's obvious you have plans, but I doubt being dragged into the spotlight was one of them."
Scott let his shoulders drop. "Just… help me make sure this doesn't come back to bite the team the kids built. They've got a good thing going. I don't want to be the story and overshadow them."
"You know we've got your back," Kitty promised. "And theirs too."
"Come on, Scotty. You heard from us and the kids - let's get going to see Reed," Bobby offered.
Scott smiled at that. "You were already headed to the Baxter Building when Mia came to get you, weren't you."
"I wasn't, but it's a damn good excuse and she's not up to teleporting you there, so I'm going to run with it," Bobby said.
"Fair enough," Scott agreed. "Lead the way."
Jameson had been right about the need to move quickly on the story Emma was spreading. JJ's piece about Emma's crimes ran at almost the exact same time as the piece about Scott's identity, and the tabloids couldn't seem to choose which story they wanted to pay attention to more.
The thing that had Scott the most frustrated, though, was that his kids had no hope of privacy anymore either. Nate had been outed, and James had been connected to him, and it was all a mess - and too soon after James had returned.
He did not need to be answering questions about Scott raising him after all he'd been through. That was already a tender subject.
So it was a good thing that Scott and JJ had already planned a quick turnaround on his public appearance. The story was only a day old when Scott drove up to the offices of The Bugle, but already, it was causing headaches in his personal life, and he was ready to get this over with, do what damage control he could, and then apologize to Annie for the fact that her face - and her quick fists - were all over the news too.
Scott wasn't entirely sure how everyone else in the family - or on the team - was taking the revelation, because he'd been busy writing and rewriting notes to himself, trying to figure out how best to say what needed saying when his mind was occupied by the fact that James was staying in Avengers Tower. It was hard to deal with a crisis like this when his son was so obviously putting distance between them.
But he couldn't do anything about the timing.
Still, by the time he got to The Bugle, in an inducer so he wouldn't be hounded until he actually got to the set, he was starting to fall back into something familiar. He'd done public appearances on behalf of the team plenty of times before. Hopefully, he could draw on that experience.
The show wasn't set to start for another ten minutes after Scott arrived, but that, too, was by design. He wanted to see how things were set up, get used to the people running things in the background, watch the introduction so he could see eyelines. He wasn't so out of practice that he'd forgotten the basics, anyway. And one of the more important things was a good relationship with the people who weren't in front of the camera.
JJ was on fire, as usual, jumping into the introduction to remind his viewers of his view of the X-Men and all that the original team had done that wasn't apparent until they were lost - which was a good lead-in to introducing Scott, who, try as he might, couldn't make the scars on his face look any less bright without employing a makeup artist. And he had considered it, because of what it might do to Logan's legacy despite the truth being out there.
Scott nodded to JJ as he sat down, his hands resting on the desk in front of him. "Thanks for having me - and for the introduction."
"There are many things our viewers would like to know, but before we dive into borderline gossip, why don't you tell us where you've been all these years? After all, fifteen years have passed since anyone heard or saw anything about Cyclops."
"Yeah, I'd have preferred to stay out of the spotlight a little longer, to be honest."
"That seems to be a repeating theme with those closest to you."
Scott took a deep breath and let it out. "We're trying to be careful," he said. "You touched on it in your introduction, but my team disbanded for a reason. We lost a lot of friends - family. And more." He gestured to his face. "So I just tried to raise my kids. I know the video going around shows more of my family than I'd like, so I'll just say that's where I've been. And I'm damn proud of those kids."
"They've certainly picked up where you left off," Jameson agreed, then gently tried to shift the conversation back on track. "Can you tell us what happened between then and now? Anything made available to the public at the time was sparse at best, and though I'm not looking for intimate details, a solid overview might answer a few questions without making an ordeal out of it."
Scott nodded. He'd known JJ would ask about that - which was why he was doing this with a semi-friendly face. At least JJ had the decency to warn him. "I know they released a list of those that died in public, and my wife's name was toward the top," he said. He took another deep breath and let it out. "Before the incident with the Phoenix, my team and I were captive for weeks. I won't go into details. You don't need them. Just know that those that died in captivity died in the worst ways." He made a vague motion with one hand. "That's how Jean ended up losing control of the Phoenix. That entity feeds on the worst emotions, and that was all we had by that point. After losing her - and watching everyone else hurt - I called it. The team wasn't going to survive. Not as it was. So, we split, and everyone did what they could to recover. I know Storm and Beast were Avengers - not everyone left the life. But we don't get to choose how trauma like that changes our lives, you know?"
"No, we don't," Jameson agreed. "And even though you left the life, it seems like all of the kids from your team decided to pick it up again. How are the older members handling it?"
"Honestly, it's been amazing. It's almost like having the old team back. Those kids are full of hope, just like we were at that age. It's a good reminder of why we started the team in the first place: we just wanted to help, and that's what those kids are doing."
"The new team has gotten what seems to be unconditional support from the Avengers," Jameson said, not at all phrasing it like a question. "What, if anything that you're aware of, could be holding up that same kind of support from those higher up the food chain?"
Scott smirked at the corner of his mouth. "I'll have to choose my words carefully here," he said, though his smirk pulled harder out as he said it.
"I've heard that a few times before from your group," Jameson said.
"I'll just speak to my own experience - in the past and the present," Scott said. "I can tell you when I was leading the team, SHIELD didn't give a damn about mutants unless they could use us. I won't sugarcoat the past."
Jameson tapped his fingers on the desk for a beat or two. "Can't expect that to change when the leadership hasn't."
"I don't deal as directly with them as I used to, but I can tell you the few interactions I've had with them have been depressingly familiar."
"And are any of the young X-Men getting suckered into dealing with them, or have they learned from those past mistakes as well?"
"I'll give those kids all the credit they deserve," he said. "They're too smart to trust any institution with the kind of history SHIELD has. They're careful. Are they willing to work with agents who've proven they can be trusted? Sure. But you've reported on everything Hawkeye has told you about her experience - and they've actually been more helpful with her than usual."
Jameson didn't look overly impressed with the idea, but did what he could to keep his opinion from turning into a rant when SHIELD had been such a pain about everything recently. "That doesn't exactly surprise me,and I'm sure it doesn't surprise you, either."
"Not even a little bit," Scott said. "They weren't worth a damn when half my team died; I don't expect much out of them."
"Then I hope the Avengers are smart enough to keep those kids as close as you have."
"They're protective of those kids. They helped my team in the immediate aftermath of what happened, and I don't think they've forgotten what happens when the all-mutant team gets sidelined."
Jameson frowned slightly. "Without getting too close to prying into the lives of those kids when they were small - how involved were the Avengers with them?"
Scott nodded. He didn't mind talking up his allies - and wanted the world to know how much good the Avengers had done, too. "When the team dissolved, we still had a lot of enemies. The Avengers helped those of us with kids to keep them safe. They were personally involved with helping me make sure my kids were never threatened again."
"Until SHIELD ignored all the warning signs," Jameson said dryly. "I'm not pointing the finger at the Avengers. I'm simply pointing out that SHIELD uses them and only provides information when it suits them."
"That's part of why they never liked my team," Scott said. "We're not beholden to them. So we're not useful."
Jameson looked as if they were getting closer to what he'd wanted to discuss at that point. "Do you think that SHIELD withholding information on this new team, when they were attacked parallels their lack of involvement when your team was left for dead?"
Again, Scott smirked. "I'll say this much," he said. "SHIELD seems to ignore the ones who wear the X-patch until someone with an Avengers ID takes an interest."
"Hard to manage when, if I understand it correctly, all of those kids wearing that X-patch are also card carrying Avengers."
"Interesting, isn't it?" Scott said. "I think that's part of why the Avengers insisted that the kids train with them."
"And yet, some of them have already been detained on the helicarrier."
"I can't speak to that," Scott said. "I'd like to, but…"
"I'm sure once something leaks from an outside source and it's public knowledge, we can come back around to it."
"Probably." Scott smirked again. "Still, the one thing I'll say has improved is that people like you and the Avengers are more willing to take our side. I'm proud of the team for proving the peaceful coexistence hypothesis true."
Jameson leaned forward slightly at that. "To be perfectly honest, aside from the reassuring lack of forty foot tall murderous robots being scattered across the boroughs, I really don't see much of a difference in what the new team is doing, and what the old team did."
"I appreciate it," Scott said. "My team did their best. I think these kids just have a more receptive audience. Hard as it is to accept, my team's absence did more than half our missions."
"Good PR can only take you so far," Jameson said. "Turning the opinion of a pair of princes had to have made a solid impact as well."
"Oh, thank Hawkeye for that. You've met her; it's impossible to hold Magneto's beliefs around her," Scott said, smiling fondly. "We should have had a human on our team originally. I was worried the hate against our team would get anyone on our team killed, but Hawkeye has proven me wrong."
"That's on tape now," Jameson teased. "And I'll be sure she gets a copy of that."
"You've seen the video of my outing. You've seen her with my son. I'm fully expecting her to light up my cell phone before this interview is over."
Jameson almost chuckled at that as he reorganized his notes. "You weren't the only one she proved wrong on that count," he said, then drew in a breath before shifting into a more sensitive topic. "The slide of public opinion can be quick when they're left without enough information - or too much, as it were. Before we talk about how we got to where we are now - with your forcible return to the public eye - I know that if we don't touch on this one question, the public at large will continue to speculate and draw their own conclusions. You know what I'm leaning toward, Mr. Summers. The hauntingly familiar pattern of scars. We all want to know why, and how."
Scott swallowed but nodded. "As I'm sure you know, and as more has come out since the original Wolverine's death, too many people and organizations wanted Wolverine and K to be weapons. Greydon Creed was no different. And to force Wolverine's hand-" He took a deep breath. "He had all of our kids. The youngest was barely a year old. So when I tell you that Greydon Creed forced Wolverine to mete out his judgment… it wasn't his fault." He put both hands on the desk in front of him. "You and I know that Wolverine and I didn't get along as well as we could have. So when I'm vouching for him for my own injuries, I hope people will give that the weight it deserves."
"And still, with all of that over your head, you carry on the promise of hope that the general public can do the right thing. You're some kind of optimist, Mr. Summers."
"I have to be," Scott said. "We lost Charles Xavier that day; I'm not going to give up on his dream. It's a way to keep him alive."
"You and your kids are all doing a fine job of that," he said in an undertone, then again reshuffled his cards, cleared his throat and went back to what sounded like hard hitting questions, but Scott knew was simply the tonal switch as he started firing out the things that the public at large wanted to know - and some simple ones about his opinion on various moves the team had made, if he was directing them, how long and how deeply he was involved … the little things that some people had been saying on the morning news or in the papers, carefully trying to avoid things that had been running in the gossip columns all year.
Scott did his best to set the record straight, too. Yes, he'd been helping the team with some intelligence and strategic work lately, but he made sure the kids got their due. They'd come up with the idea and ran with it. He'd just been focused on keeping them safe and working with the Avengers to do so.
As for the gossip, well, he did what he could for Annie to keep her out of it, with JJ's help. He did confirm that he was engaged - someone had spotted Annie's ring. But, again, he and JJ managed to turn it around to talk about the way both the Avengers and the X-Men were trying to make sure history couldn't repeat itself and heroes would still be able to have families and lives of their own. And that was all he really said about Annie.
They laughed a bit about the press wrongly thinking James and Rachel were a couple, and Scott talked a little about Nate and Kate as a couple.
And then they tackled more of what Emma had been saying. Scott knew the public report ton Erik's death was coming, so they touched on that briefly before tying it back in to Billy's spell on Emma. And Scott didn't mince words.
"Listen," he said, leaning toward JJ. "I know in the past I've defended Emma. I know my relationship with her was public, so I know how this comes across. But in all the time I've known her, she has only ever been interested in her own power, her own goals. And this time, she crossed a line. She purposefully manipulated the perceptions of every single hero who came to rescue her from her own school, purposefully sent several people into PTSD episodes from when our school was leveled. And she went on to telepathically meddle in an ongoing case and violate the minds of as many people as she could. I won't go into details to protect her victims, but I'll tell you this: Billy was being kind. If she'd kept her powers, she'd see a jail cell. She just might still see one, if Stark's lawyers can clear the legal brouhaha of telepathic interference." Scott waved his hand in irritation. "She's a villain, and I'm sorry that she used my team and my name to convince anyone that she was ever anything but. And I'm done apologizing for her."
With that, JJ grinned and turned back to the camera, wrapping up the segment with glee. He had his sights set on Emma and on SHIELD, and Scott had, hopefully, given him plenty of ammunition in addition to building up his defenses.
Scott waited until the camera was off before he checked his phone and chuckled. "Yep. Dozen different text conversations and counting."
"Nothing I'll see leaking out though, I'm sure," Jameson said as he tossed out his notecards and took the mic pack apart.
"You've dealt with Kate. You probably already know the first twelve texts are just her being pleased I admitted she was right," Scott said, pocketing his phone.
"I'm still sending her the tape."
"She'll love it." Scott got to his feet and extended his hand. "Thank you for letting me tell the truth."
"Thank you for coming in and scooping the other networks," Jameson said. "I already know I'll hear back from Hawkeye before too long, and you were right - the information from Stark's lawyers is pretty extensive, even if there's nothing I can actually report on right now."
"I look forward to seeing what you unleash." Scott smirked to himself and headed out, not at all surprised to see that his phone was still chiming. But the text from Jan with an open invite to watch the show on the big screen was intriguing enough that he headed that way - and was immediately attacked in a hug once he got there.
"Hey, Jan. Think I did okay?"
"You were amazing, not that I was surprised. Natasha brought popcorn to watch act one … and act two in progress. You really know how to come out of retirement, don't you?"
"Apparently," Scott laughed. "It helped that JJ and I chatted ahead of time. I gave him an exclusive scoop; he helped me preempt the gossip channels."
"It's a fair trade off," Jan said as she took his arm to direct him toward Tony's lab. "What's that like, to get around the gossip channels?"
"No idea," Scott laughed and threw an arm around her shoulders. "So, how mad is your SHIELD liaison?"
"At the moment more panicked than anything," Jan admitted. "See … once that turned against SHIELD, Tony's systems started to ping, so someone took offense? And now it's kind of maybe a little cyber war?"
"Good."
"My guy and your kid are getting nasty in there. They're doing that thing. Tony's having a blast."
Scott's smile faltered slightly, though he still maintained it. "Sounds like them."
"Not for a long while," Jan said. "And this was kind of out of necessity, so…"
"Yeah. If I'd known James was going to get outed as mine, I'd have tried to warn him…"
"He's not upset about that at all," Jan promised. "He was just threatening to go take a walk without an inducer to rile up someone with a camera that had been super nasty to Rachel? But then the alarm went off, so the vindictive got re-aimed at that instead. I think he's more mad that you and Nate were outed, honestly."
"Yeah, don't worry about that," Scott said. "I've got a few things in the works. When your husband gets a minute, I wanted to talk to him and you about the appeal."
Jan gestured grandly. "Go ahead. He does better when he's multitasking anyhow."
"No, I'll wait," Scott said. "I don't want-" He paused. "I'm adding my testimony. James will get distracted if he hears that."
"So don't say that part yet. I know they were nearly done and Tony was swearing a few minutes ago when James passed him up."
"He's mad." Scott smiled and glanced down at his phone. "Anyway. I need to call Betsy, too. We were going to work on cutting off Emma's financial interests in as many places as possible, and she knows better than anyone how to do that."
Then, over the low hum of music, it was easy enough to hear Tony's outburst of "Woah, too far!" followed by James telling him to fight back for once.
"Okay, don't even act like you don't want to know what that's all about," Jan said, once again pulling on Scott to go with her past Natasha and Billy, who were both grinning and sharing popcorn.
"Channeling his mom, no doubt," Scott said, though he let Jan pull him along.
"He absolutely is," Natasha confirmed with a low laugh. "And overdue, too. I think Fury needs the reminder."
"What, you don't think my public appearance was enough?" he teased her.
"For the public?" Natasha shrugged. "Maybe. If they saw this? Definitely."
As they stepped into the lab, James barely glanced up with an understated "Hey. How'd it go?" though he kept working with Tony sputtering next to him.
"I think it went alright," Scott said.
"So … would it be too much to send JJ a button with your fan club on it, or …"
"He's sending a copy of the tape of me admitting to being wrong about Kate to her cell phone, so…"
"Ooh, fair game!" Jan laughed.
"Exactly." Scott smirked and leaned against the doorframe. "Hey, Stark, meant to talk to you."
"Can you get him to just … dial it back a little?" Tony said, sounding exasperated.
"Absolutely not," Scott said without missing a beat. "Besides, I'm here to ask you to help me obliterate someone too."
"Can you do it after I stop him from embedding that code?" Tony said as James chuckled to himself.
"Nope."
"Whatcha doin' over there anyhow?" Jan asked, since … she could count on one hand the number of times Tony had ever tried to slow James down on anything … and she'd still have several fingers left to count with.
"He … asked for defensive measures," James said as innocently as he could manage when he looked that aggressive. "So … I put in some really prime consequences for nosy SHIELD and Hydra types trying to poke where they don't belong."
"He's put together a worm that'll destroy all of the navigation on the helicarrier if they so much as touch our servers," Tony said. "They try to push through it or work around it and it'll drop the damn thing out of the sky after it locks up their capability to transmit data…" He looked up at Scott. "Help."
"Oooh, something else that should be given to Kate in some kind of commemorative form," James said almost distractedly.
Scott smirked. "Should probably warn them that they'll drop before actually going through with it."
"There are warnings up before they get that far," James said before he hit one last keystroke then turned toward Tony with a smirk.
"Then that's called consequences," Scott said.
"They started it," James said - purely to rile Tony, though Jan couldn't help but laugh at that.
Scott smiled outright. "Atta boy," he said, then tapped Tony on the shoulder. "Seriously, we need to talk. I need your help."
Tony tossed his hand into the air as he gestured at the laptop in front of him. "Yeah. Sure. He did it anyhow. Damnit. It's going to take me hours to unravel that mess."
"That's the whole idea," James defended.
Scott tipped his head for Tony to come away from James, though it wasn't until he was sure James was distracted talking to Jan and Natasha and they were well out of earshot that he said, "You know what your legal team is capable of, and you know your world better than anyone else. I'm looking for help cutting Emma off. Finances, her good name, any power she might have had - I want it gone."
"When did she get a good name?" Tony deadpanned.
"Point is," Scott said, "I'll help with the appeal. Add my testimony."
"That's … yeah. I'll let the legal team know. We retained everyone that was part of the original lawsuit."
"Great. I know it'll be a new case, might help if the appeal doesn't work. The justice department rarely listens in telepathic cases." Scott took a deep breath. "I also know some of her hidden places."
"You could just have your kid drop a helicarrier on one of them," Tony said with a grumble.
"I'm not letting James anywhere near her," Scott said pointedly.
"So if and when he hears you're throwing your hat into the ring, I should what … forbid him from doing the same? That works with him. Because even if she didn't get nearly as far … he wants a chunk taken out of her, I know."
"Let's just focus on doing what we can and deal with that later," Scott said pointedly. "Anyway, I have some more contacts to make."
"You know you're welcome to whatever you need," Tony said, looking slightly less frazzled now that he was focusing on something else.
"Thanks. I'll actually take you up on that this time, too," Scott said, already heading out to let Tony and James get back to the good work they'd already been doing. He managed to skirt around Jan, though he didn't quite make it out before he heard Steve call out to him.
He let his shoulders drop and turned toward Steve. "I know I should have given you a heads up about the interview," he started to say.
"I'm not really worried about the interview - not like you think," Steve said. "Are you okay?"
"I'm fine," Scott said automatically.
"I'm sure, but … that was rough."
"Yeah." Scott swallowed. "Couldn't avoid it, though. Not when Emma threw it out there after her own school got leveled."
"Yeah, I get it. Still. How can I help?"
"I've already talked to Stark about the legal side of things, trying to appeal the court case on telepathic grounds-"
"No. How can I help?" Steve gave him a perfectly open look. "I want in."
"Oh." Scott blinked a few times and then gestured for Steve to sit with him on one of Stark's overly-large couches in the main area. "I'm… digging into everything she had her hands in. It's a lot," he admitted. "But she's still a threat while she has influence, and I don't want her targeting Billy or James again."
"I think if she tried that, it would be a very short attempt," Steve said. "I know where they both stand with her and she'd be self destructive to try it."
"Even still," Scott said. "She's never faced consequences for everything she's done, and it's high time she did. And I have enough knowledge to do some damage - with enough help from people who swim in her circles."
"I'll let Tony know I'll handle the Avenger's public statement."
Scott looked surprised. "I didn't know you were putting out-"
"Scott. We're backing you up. That's part of it."
At that, Scott frowned. "Can I ask… are you just-" He cleared his throat. "Can you tell me what you're planning to say so I can get ahead of it too or…?"
"I'm throwing in my full support for whatever you plan to do. And I never really know what I'm going to say before I say it so …" He smiled sheepishly. "If we let Tony or Jan speak up, they'll look at it as them trying to save face with Tony's successor. If I do it …"
Scott swallowed but didn't say anything, still half convinced that he'd have to resign himself to James aligning himself with Tony instead of Scott rather than in addition to. "Well, right now my plan is just to tear influence out of Emma's hands and then go back to what I was doing before, helping the team strategize and gathering intel. Not very exciting, really."
"Then when they inevitably ask, I'll just back up your account of things. For now. As much as I hate it, she'll play hell calling me any kind of deceitful thing. Use it when I have to, you know?"
"I appreciate it. Really," Scott said. "I know you don't like the attention."
"Worth it though," Steve said.
"Let's hope so." Scott got to his feet. "By the way, Kate told me Phil Coulson's back as your SHIELD liaison. Should help things."
Steve smiled at that. "I may be on a streak of throwing my weight around. Don't tell him that, though."
"Your secret's safe with me," Scott promised, though he was smirking as he headed out.
"You know," Annie said, leaning over Scott's shoulder where he was working at his laptop, "I really thought that we'd be spendin' more time together now that we're engaged an' all."
Scott let out a breath that was almost a laugh and looked up at Annie. "Sorry. I was just following up on something Betsy wanted. I know a few of Emma's old haunts - ones that others don't know about."
Annie shook her head, smiling lightly but still somehow looking like she couldn't believe him. "You finally decide you've had enough of this woman and she's still taking all your time from me," she said, only half-teasing. But only half. She did like to see that he was, in fact, capable of standing up for himself. Even if he was mostly doing it because Emma had hurt his kids.
Scott winced an apology. "Sorry. I've been-"
"Distracted? I noticed." Annie smiled and leaned down to kiss his cheek. "Really, it's okay. Frankly, she deserves whatever you're getting ready to throw at her. Just…" She took a deep breath. "It's almost the Fourth of July. You and Betsy can take a break from rooting out all traces of her evil empire to watch some fireworks in a couple days, right?"
Scott let his shoulders drop and reached out to take her hand. "Just let me finish this email and I'll take you somewhere tonight," he promised.
"That sounds more like it," she said, grinning before she stole a kiss.
Chapter 118: Ooohs and AAAAAAAAH!
Chapter Text
It had been a rough couple weeks, all things considered. James was still having trouble relaxing around his family and friends. Anyone but Billy, that is. The whole time James had been instinctively reacting, Billy had been careful, understanding, and he knew how to gently get James to relax around him. And though Emma had thoroughly screwed with his head, James did have the memories of how nice it had been for both of them while he was free of his trauma. So he was trying. But it was long overdue when they finally got to step out and celebrate now that Wanda had given Billy and Tommy a little breathing room. Tommy was out with Mia, of course, and James had asked Billy to pick out his favorite spot for a more romantic retreat. And Billy had jumped at the chance to do something just the two of them in the city - even if he had to cast a spell to avoid most of the onlookers and press.
"Okay, but I actually grew up in the Indian ocean, and I'm telling you - this is the closest I've found to anything like good Indian food," Billy said as he and James got seats at the restaurant Billy had chosen.
"I'm game for whatever you want to do," James said - again. "Since you know what you're doing, you're running the show."
"Perfect. I'll order for us," Billy said, grinning. "There's this amazing spiced grape salad for an appetizer and I can't stop eating it."
James rested his chin in the palm of his hand. "It's really cute when you gush about things you love."
Billy blushed high on his cheeks. "It's just… been a while since we've gotten a romantic dinner."
"At least, since we weren't making it ourselves," James said, still halfway smiling.
"You know what I mean," Billy said, though he couldn't stop smiling with James smiling at him. And once they got into their dinner, Billy was having even more fun, telling stories from home and talking about his dad's graduation present - they were going to go shark diving again, this time in South Africa.
The boys were having a good time, entirely ignoring everyone around them until a tall, muscular woman approached their table with her chin tipped up, looking down her nose at the two of them. She stopped in front of their table and cleared her throat, waiting for them to acknowledge her.
Billy turned her way mid-laugh. "Hey, we're kind of in the middle of a date - is it okay if whatever you want waits?" he said politely - just in case this was someone who wanted an autograph or something.
She looked between them with a raised eyebrow. "I won't take up much of your time," she said. "I'm simply here to deliver a message for the rest of my associates." She offered her hand to Billy as she introduced herself. "Monet ."
Billy's eyebrows rose, and he smiled lightly. "I know your name," he said. "You were in the X-Men - the old team, I mean."
"Junior team only," she said, smiling lightly, though it didn't reach her eyes at all.
"Still counts in my book," Billy said. "What can I do for you?"
"May I?" she said, gesturing to the table before she pulled a chair over to sit - though she had yet to look James' way more than to asses the situation. And now that she had Billy's attention, she was moving in to business mode.
And James was purely entertained since this had never happened outside of Genosha.
"You are annoyingly hard to reach out to," Monet said. "I've been trying to speak with you for several weeks."
"I've been busy," Billy said, frowning at the fact that she was starting out so snobbishly. "School, you know?"
"Yes, well, that hasn't been the case for a little while now," Monet said. "My secretary did attempt to make contact at Xavier's first." She waved her hand before continuing. "I have some rather sensitive matters to discuss. Privacy would be best, of course."
"Alright," Billy said, muttering a quick spell before he turned his attention back to Monet. "There you go. No one can hear or record us - what's up?"
Monet didn't seem to relax at all, though, and finally barely glanced toward James. "Are you sure?"
"Very. It's just the three of us."
She tutted softly, then shifted how she was sitting so she couldn't really look toward James at all - which had him somehow more entertained. "There are several major things we need to discuss, William. One of which being the membership that you inherited upon your grandfather's untimely death and the duties that go along with it."
"Membership?" Billy repeated, frowning.
"I'm surprised that you weren't informed sooner," Monet said, then picked up her purse to pull out an envelope with a wax seal to hand to him. "Others have attempted to get this to you. Or they claimed to have tried."
Billy frowned as he quickly opened the envelope - and pulled a spectacular face. "Yeah, that's a hard no," he said and pushed the envelope back across the table. "See, to be in the Hellfire Club, I'd have to associate with people I want to wish out of existence, and I already have enough on my plate, thanks."
Monet smirked. "The trouble, William, is that the spot has to be filled, and as your grandfather elected when he took the position - it needs to go to someone that he chose."
"You don't need a Gray King; you made that spot up in the first place, and it can die in oblivion along with the other things he's done," Billy said firmly.
"You don't exactly have a choice in this," Monet said. "You inherited the membership upon his death. You can't just … shake it off. Ask Ororo. Or Warren. Elizabeth. There are many people you know who are members."
"In name only," Billy pointed out.
"They have all participated," Monet said. "And unless you do something to help to restore our members of the inner circle, we'll be forced to make sure your name is attached publicly."
Billy narrowed his eyes - and though he wasn't aware of it, James could see power sparking at Billy's fingertips as he crossed his arms. "I don't like being pushed around," he said. "Say what you're looking for and I'll decide if it's worth a second thought."
She was much less subtle with her attitude at that, though. "That's information only for members." She looked toward James. "You should leave."
"I'm good here, thanks," James said, settling in and very sure it was about to get interesting. "Don't really have any respect for your power hungry club either, so…"
"I'd tell him whatever we discuss anyway. Just spit it out so I can get back to my date. This is getting melodramatic - and I'm a Maximoff. That's saying something."
"Fine." Monet rolled her eyes. "Give us Frost back. Fully."
"Absolutely not."
"There is no reason-"
"St. Croix," Billy said, sitting forward with his eyes literally flashing, "I don't think you understand the position you're in. I think you're so used to being catered to, to being the powerful one in the room, that you forgot I'm the heir to the throne of Genosha and can wish you out of existence without losing a wink of sleep. So I'd be very, very careful whose side you take here - mine or a washed-up White Queen."
Monet stared back at him for a moment with a blank expression, weighing out his words. "You feel as if this is a personal attack. That's simply not the case."
"I'm not undoing my magic," Billy said. "She deserved it." He seemed to be completely unaware of the fact that the table was floating slightly along with several small items around them. "And now, I'd like you to deliver a message," he said. "Nopowersnopowersnopowers." The table landed with a slight thunk, and Billy sat back, smirking at Monet as she fumed. "That will last for a couple days. Enjoy."
Monet was beyond words as she got to her feet and turned on her heel, furious but unable to fight back - for the moment - a fact that was accented nicely when she did turn back to them and James let out a low, warning growl.
"Tell the Club to leave me alone, would you please?" Billy called after her. "That, Ms. , is what we Maximoffs call a 'warning'."
As she left, James didn't say a word, just smiling crookedly at Billy while Billy glared after Monet, but the second he turned toward James again, James had to go back to what he felt was his best response to just about anything Billy did when he lost his temper momentarily. "So hot."
Instantly, Billy lost the flash of power at his fingertips and eyes, and he blushed brilliantly. "I… um… maybe I lost my temper…"
"No, no. That was amazing. Very well balanced 'tremble, peasant' going on."
"Really?" Billy blushed again. "You don't think it was too… Magneto..y?"
James was already slowly shaking his head. "No way. No cape, for one thing."
Billy cleared his throat and straightened up. "Yeah, well, I guess that's a new wrinkle we'll have to deal with, huh? I'll talk to Ororo about it when we get home."
"Wrinkle? Where? You bein' all … badass everywhere you go? I don't see a problem, little prince. You got your 'fear me' turned up a little bit -but she was asking for it."
"She kind of was," Billy agreed.
James leaned toward him. "No offense, handsome … this dinner's been amazing, but are we done talking now?"
Billy grinned even wider. "Yeah. We totally are."
James took a moment to throw the cash he had with him on the table. "Well?"
Billy didn't need any more prompting than that to wish them back to one of James' cabins - conveniently leaving out that he was very much out of magical energy after that last spell, so they were temporarily without instant transportation after that. Not that James would be making requests to do anything that required leaving until they had to.
The Fourth of July party started out early for the Summers family as they packed up to head out to the school. The day promised to be a good one as the first holiday post Emma Frost's manipulations and misery toward the family at large. And it was the first big holiday since Scott and Annie had gotten engaged - so both of them were excited to share the day with their extended family in Westchester, as well as their close families, who were all meeting them there.
Annie was newly minted on staff at Xavier's after all - and proudly wearing the honor of being the first human teacher to work full time at the school since it's inception. It was cause for celebration no matter how you looked at it.
The twins were already at the school, helping Ororo to set up for the festivities, and James had promised to meet them there after an obligatory stop at the tower since … it was also, fittingly, Steve's birthday and James refused to let the day pass without taking a moment with 'Uncle Steve'. The rest of the Summerses would have joined him too - if not for the massive influx of press that had been harassing all of them, and the fact that they had to get to Westchester ASAP to help set up for the day.
Scott was working at the grill, smirking lightly over at Annie as she laughed with her niece. Leslie Ann was already begging her dad to let her be on the X-Men, and Annie was outright encouraging her, even if she wasn't quite old enough yet. But she and Lexi Barton were both making cases, and it was fun to watch that enthusiasm. He remembered how much the junior squad had wanted to be heroes, and it reminded him of that feeling again.
Annie caught his gaze and waved at him, though she was in the middle of telling Anton that his little girl wasn't so little anymore, so she didn't break up the conversation to join him. Which was fine by Scott, because he was preoccupied with his own thoughts anyway. He had been working hard to patch things up with Annie, and he knew he was lucky she wasn't fully holding Emma's manipulations against him. She wasn't thrilled with how easily he'd fallen for it, but they were back on good footing, as far as he could tell. He was still making the extra effort - the occasional note on her pillow if he woke up before her, that kind of thing - but things were alright there.
With James… it was another story. He knew he couldn't take back what had happened, and he was worried if he tried to push James, if he tried to insert himself back into James's life at the level he used to be involved, that James would resent it. He knew James needed time and space, and Scott was trying to give him that.
He just… hadn't expected to find a letter from Oxford in the mail the morning before the fourth. And all at once, he couldn't stop thinking about that possibility - about James being on an entirely different continent for school, getting far away from Scott… Scott knew that James had to have reached out to Oxford before everything that had happened, but he also knew that there was suddenly an intense awkwardness between them, the feeling of losing his family… that had the potential to drive James away.
Scott was trying to brace himself for that, for the idea that James might not ever get past what Emma had said through Scott. And Scott couldn't blame the kid; no one could be expected to shake off their dad telling them they weren't wanted. Scott hadn't shaken it off, and he was fully grown.
He'd just… have to make sure he looked out for James from the sidelines. He wasn't going to stop caring about his son; he'd just have to do it from further away. Maybe reach out to Moira and some old contacts…
"Lost in thought again?" Annie asked, coming over to wrap him up from behind and peek around his shoulder at the burgers. "I didn't realize grilling out was such a serious adventure."
Scott shook his head at her and picked his arm up so she could duck underneath and he could pull her into a hug. "Just imagining the X-Men being led by your niece," he teased her. "She's already well on her way. Taking after Jubilee and demanding her spot on the team…"
"She'd be thrilled to hear you say it, too," Annie said.
"And you're encouraging her."
"She's almost as old as Mia was when she started," Annie pointed out. "Anton's going to have to realize that sooner or later."
"'Almost' isn't the same," Scott said.
"Oh, are you taking his side?" Annie raised both eyebrows. "I don't even know if I can speak to you right now," she teased.
"You and Leslie Ann already have a superhero name picked out for her, don't you?"
"And you will hear it when she makes her debut. Jan has an outfit designed for her and for Lexi."
"Of course she does," Scott said, shaking his head.
The food wasn't ready yet, and it wasn't dark enough outside yet for fireworks. Nate and his old teammate, Tim, had been tossing a football back and forth as they waited for the food. When Kate spotted them, she challenged Nate to face off - because neither of them could resist competing with each other.
It sort of spiraled from there, especially once the older X-Men caught wind of what was going on when Leslie Ann delightedly pulled Lexi along so that they could get in on the action. Before anyone knew what had happened, they were actually organizing a game. Bobby and Johnny got roped into being referees by an enthusiastic Mia. Angel and Kitty volunteered as coaches, and a bunch of the students at the school were gathering to either watch the show or join in the game.
Obviously, as soon as Kate had declared war, she'd roped America in - who brought Rachel along so that the two Summerses could start ragging on each other long before the game even got going. Kate's sister, Lexi, had to join in, too - with Leslie Ann siding with her best friend at the school, obviously.
Mia and Tommy had to be split up - both teams agreed to that. A teleporter and a speedster on the same team just wasn't going to happen. So, Mia joined Nate and Tim's team, which now also included May - and James and Billy once Nate flagged them down. Throw in a few students from the school, and it was shaping up to be a good game.
James had been late to show up, and then did a fine job of avoiding the crowd once he'd gotten in from Steve's birthday bash, so he wasn't really up on the teases for the day - yet. Though, he stopped cold when they started lining up across from Kate's team and he had to blink at her a few times, just … processing that something was very different about her. He was trying to put his finger on it - but wasn't fast enough to avoid being teased for spacing out. Especially since he very suddenly got it, and his whole expression fell flat.
And then, Nate hiked the ball, and the game got started in earnest, with Mia teleporting down the field and already calling for Nate to throw to her. When Tommy started to zip over to intercept, Billy cast a spell to slow his brother down - and Tommy started swearing up a blue streak that made Leslie Ann blush down to the tips of her toes.
Kate was headed right for Nate with a crooked smirk, and America was right there with her wearing a smirk to match - especially when Rachel let Tim run into a telepathic bubble when he tried to defend Nate so he could get a clear shot to pass the ball. And before James could get between Kate and Nate, America plowed into him, laughing when Kate tackled Nate - and Nate's pass fell short of Mia.
"Nice hit, Miss America," James said from the ground before he picked himself up. "You planning on making me your tackle dummy for the whole thing?"
"Depends," America said, grinning crookedly as she popped up to her feet. "I'm also partial to taking May down. I like a challenge, and she's stronger than anyone else on your team."
"She absolutely is," James agreed in a heartbeat before he called over to May. "Hey Mayday- Miss America said she wants a piece."
May grinned their way, then took a wide stance to point at America. "You're going down, princess!" Which had America grinning.
Laughing, James looked down the line as they gathered up again and he leaned toward May. "We're so gonna lose though."
Nate overheard James and let out a loud scoff as May laughed loudly. "Seriously?"
"Um … yes," James said, gesturing to the other team.
"You're so underestimating us, handsome," Billy said, grinning widely.
"Mmmm. Nope," James argued, then reached over to give Billy and Nate both a shove. "Feel free to prove me wrong though."
"My pleasure. So. Let's do a link-up," Nate said, nodding to himself.
James did a quick double take. "Nope. Not happening." He hadn't meant to let that slip out so harshly, but from what he'd just sussed out about Kate, there was no way he'd let a telepath into his head - especially Nate. Kate needed to figure it out for herself, and Nate needed to hear from her that she was pregnant. James wasn't going to mess that up for either of them if he could help it.
"Are you serious?" Nate gestured toward the other team. "Rachel's already got them linked up!"
"So link up with everyone else," James said, rolling his shoulders as America and Kate shared a trouble making look.
"James, it's not going to hurt you to-"
"No means no, little brother."
Nate glared at James and then threw his hands up. "Billy, your boyfriend is sabotaging the game."
"You act like I have any control over him," Billy shot back, laughing.
"Whatever," Nate grumbled as they got into position for the second down, and Kate shot him a smirk across the line because she recognized his grump.
"Still mad I tackled you?" she called over to him. "I kissed you to make it better!"
"No, he's mad he's going to lose to the cheerleader," James called back, just to get Kate off her game, too.
Kate blinked at him and then grinned, but before she could say something sassy in agreement, Nate hiked the ball and moved fast to hand it off to Tim, faking the other team out so that they had to scramble to stop Tim.
"First down," Johnny said, and Nate blew a kiss toward Kate.
The game continued like that for a while, with both sides trading taunts and barbs and getting under each other's skin the way only good friends and siblings could. Tommy threw Billy off his game asking if there was going to be any American football in Genosha now that he knew he had an open excuse for slapping James's butt in public. Billy faked America out by pretending to wince away from her tackle only to wish her frozen instead. Mia kissed Tommy after teleporting into his path and made him fumble the ball. May completely sidelined America hard enough to get her to skid in the grass and start laughing delightedly. And Rachel and Nate were telepathically trash talking to each other the whole time. James got a good play in when he realized Tommy was taking the same paths toward the end zone and clotheslined him - which at least got Nate to back off of pushing to link up.
The game was gearing up and they were all getting a little rougher - especially once it was clear that the princes weren't off the table to take a hit after James peeled Tommy off the ground. But that had James watching who was going after who consistently. When he saw Kate gearing up to take Nate out when he was lined up for a throw, he utterly abandoned trying to stop Rachel like he was supposed to and rushed to tackle Kate instead… as gently and carefully as possible. Nate had no idea that James was trying to keep Kate from getting hurt, but Kate caught on fast when the tackle turned into a clearly protective Calvin and Hobbes style roll that Kate barely felt. But being that close only had James more concerned with ending the game faster after he got a more concentrated whiff of the shift in Kate's scent.
"What, are you trying to play softball? You got money on us winning or something?" Kate asked as she hit him hard in the shoulder. "You goon."
James shifted and hopped to his feet, already offering her a hand up. "Why in the world would I bet on you winning?" James asked with a smile he knew would throw her off - then made a point to kiss her cheek. "You are paranoid."
"You're playing dirty," Kate shot back, though she was starting to relax a bit, figuring he was trying to get in her head.
"How … how the hell am I playing dirty?"
"I haven't figured it out yet, but you're definitely up to something."
"Wow. Your Widow is showing … just … peeking out a little bit."
"It was there the whole time," Kate teased him, saluting him with two fingers as they lined back up again. There wasn't much time left in the game, and the scores were close enough that everyone was playing harder now, too.
James leaned over to give Billy a quick kiss on the cheek and make a quiet request outside of Nate's telepathic team link. He just wanted Billy to handle America, who he knew would be gunning for him after that last clearly protective move on Kate.
Billy, of course, took it as an invitation to show off, so as Nate called the last play, Billy simply wished the entirety of the other team to freeze, then bowed and gestured dramatically for Nate to walk the football down.
The scores were dead even, so the extra point would decide the game, then - and that had everyone ready to throw a few superpowered elbows. May lined up to take the kick; the rest of the X-Men scrambled; and James saw Tim headed for Kate.
He darted around America, who was going for a little payback, then shifted direction fast to slam into Tim a lot harder than he'd ever come close to hitting Kate -making a clear line between the two and completely confusing the rest of the players on both teams as he took Tim entirely off his feet before knocking him into the ground.
May still made the kick, but she was staring at James. "So, um, what the hell was that?"
"What?" James replied as if nothing had happened, then pulled Tim to his feet and dusted him off.
Tim pushed his hands away. "I'm on your team, you lunatic!"
"Oops. Forgot."
"Used to haze new guys way worse than this," Bobby said, grinning with his arm around Johnny. "But points for waiting until you won."
"Hey. No one has ever accused me of being a team player," James said, holding both hands up. "And Nate didn't tell me what he wanted me to do, so I had to improvise."
Nate rolled his eyes and threw up one hand toward his brother. "If you'd have let me loop you in-"
Kate was laughing as she slipped over to him and stole a kiss. "Pretty sure the burgers are done now," she said. "It smells amazing. We should make your dad show off his skills for Annie on every holiday."
Nate smirked and shook his head. "Just wait until she's got her hands on Thanksgiving."
"Even better," Kate declared happily.
James, meanwhile, had made a point to try and smooth things over with Tim, though he saw Scott watching them out of the corner of his eye. "I was just having a little fun. Mayday had it in the bag anyhow. If it would have been someone else where you were, it would have been them."
Tim shook his head with a disbelieving laugh. "Hey, no harm, no foul," he said. "That was a good hit."
"Just a game, right? You've been covering Nate for a couple years now, haven't you?" James asked. "Pretty sure I saw him bossing you around at the high school."
Tim laughed. "Hey, don't worry; we always knocked him down a few pegs when he got like that."
"Sounds like you have a lot of work on your hands," James said with a smirk. "He's a horrible little brother. Almost as bossy as Rachel."
"Wow, yeah, you got a double dose, huh?" Tim said with a growing smile.
"Pretty sure they kept me around just to keep those two from killing each other."
"Oh, sure," Tim agreed, chuckling. "Every family needs one, right?"
"Probably?" James said with one eye closed.
Tim shrugged easily and socked James in the shoulder, experimentally - he hadn't really been around the rest of the X-Men his age, but he wanted to get to know the group better. "C'mon, let's go bust Nate's balls."
"Like it's a challenge," James said as the two of them fell into an easy chat - mostly about how Tim was settling in and what he wanted to do after school because James knew Nate wanted the guy to feel welcomed. And he wasn't above using the positive impression most of the school had when it came to using his popularity to brighten someone's day. He didn't say anything to Tim, but he could already hear a few younger students on the sidelines that were whispering about how tough Tim had to be after that hit. The kids knew Tim had played ball with Nate - and that was proven by how well the two of them had worked together, so after that game, they were already talking about if Tim was going to be joining the X-Men or not.
But, as soon as Tim had headed off toward his new group of friends, Scott came up to stand next to James, quietly looking for an explanation. "Kind of playing favorites out there, weren't you?" Scott said, and James was careful about not reacting too guiltily.
"I haven't had a chance to screw with Nate … this seemed like exactly the thing that would work."
"Uh-huh. I've got a stack of mail for you," Scott said. "Lots of colleges looking for answers. And one that I didn't realize was on the list."
"Yeah, I already said I wasn't interested in Stanford," James said distractedly. "Reed told me they'd probably send stuff anyhow."
"Wasn't Stanford I was looking at," Scott told him, and that got James to turn his way. "No, it wasn't Cal Tech, either."
"Okay …Who was it from?" James asked, distracted from the rest of the crowd now. "Or did you just schedule something out?"
"I wanted to talk to you about it first -and I didn't want to open it for you," Scott said before he stepped aside with James and lowered his voice to keep it between the two of them, looking stressed around the eyes and unable not to at least ask. "Oxford?"
James instantly lost his ability to not look guilty as he held his breath and tried to find a way to answer him. "Oh. Okay … I didn't think they'd be that quick to reply." He shook his head lightly and tried to downplay it. "That - probably wouldn't be a real option until next year anyhow … deadlines and …. Yeah." James looked toward his siblings, and the twins before he turned back to Scott, frowning. "I sort of reached out to them on a whim? I don't know if they'd be interested or not, to be honest."
Scott's eyebrows lifted in surprise. "Why wouldn't they be interested?"
"Well … foreign schools have different application criteria for one thing," James said with a wave. "And different tests they need covered. Might bomb it on stupid spelling alone."
"James, you're internationally known as a genius. Why wouldn't they want you?"
James let out a nervous laugh, but didn't answer as Scott gestured for him to join him. Most of the family was already sitting down to eat, and from the hushed gossip James heard as he and Scott sat down a little apart from the group, Annie was just looking for another reason to celebrate. Scott handed him the letter, and James blew out a breath, reminding himself that they might not be interested at all. The staff at that college were known to be less than impressed by flashy Americans, after all.
James glanced up toward the rest of their group, who all tried to act as though they weren't watching what was happening as he opened the letter. He looked up at Scott when he laid it out for both of them to read, fully expecting a rejection. So of course, that's not how it went. A rejection would have been easier to explain, but … a fairly excited response welcoming him to come for a tour of not only the Physics department and the Engineering department … but also to tour and test for their Physiology, Anatomy, and Genetics department? He'd almost forgotten that he'd even put feelers out for that area of study, and he realized quickly that … was something Emma must have poked at, though she couldn't have known anything about that particular hobby of his had it not been for whatever she'd done while she was in his head.
But he could feel the moment that Scott read that line next to him, and he could tell that Scott hadn't expected that at all.
"That's… are you diversifying your degrees?" Scott asked haltingly, trying to rally. "I didn't know you were - I thought you were doing more with… Stark's kind of thing…"
James rubbed the back of his neck as he worked out how to explain it since he really hadn't thought this was a remote possibility. "I mean, that's one way to look at it, yeah," James said. "It's been an interest?"
Scott nodded more times than was necessary. "Alright, well - of course, if that's what you want to do, you'll be amazing at-"
"It was just a passing …," James said. "Doesn't mean anything."
"You said that," Scott said. He let out a soft breath. "I know we talked about - well, I don't want you to hold back from pursuing whatever it is that you want to do… and, really, Oxford is, well - I really am proud of you, James. That's where the professor went, you know…"
"Yeah, I know," James said quietly. "Kinda part of why I didn't think I'd hear back, honestly."
"Really?" Scott frowned. "You're more than qualified. And if that's where you want to go… I can help you…"
"I don't know where I want to go. Not really. This sort of throws a monkey wrench in things."
"I know. I just… if you need… well, if you want me to reach out…" Scott gestured vaguely with both hands as his gaze dropped.
"I think Tony would have an actual heart attack if I took that route right now," James pointed out. "And there's still a lot between this," he tapped the letter. "And getting in."
Scott nodded. "You know it doesn't matter what Tony or I think, right? You should go where you want to go," he said gently. "I mean, I'd like it if you were close, obviously, I just… don't want you to feel…" He gestured vaguely again.
"Dad," James said, quietly stressing the word. "There are conditions I'd have to meet if I actually pursue going that route. Big ones. Like the whole criminal conviction thing? If the findings in Genosha say I'm going to be tried, that would probably be it anyhow. Instantly over."
Scott blinked and then suddenly reached over to yank James into a hug, pulling his arms tight around James's shoulders and almost burying his nose in his neck. "You'll be fine," he said, trying to stick to the conversation at hand, even if James didn't need his senses to know Scott was that emotional.
James returned the hug just as tightly. "What, you psychic now, too?" he had to tease.
"Oh yeah. Late secondary mutation."
"Tertiary. Throw 'em all for a loop."
Scott chuckled and hugged James a little tighter before he finally let go enough to look at James fully. "Alright. Well." He cleared his throat. "I just… I'm trying to look out for my boy," he tried to explain.
"Love you too," James said, then started to fold up the letter. "But … I don't know if I want to commit to a program that long in London. What I will do is take them up on a tour to keep the door open, and bring this with me when I renegotiate with Harvard."
Scott broke into a genuine smile. "That's my boy."
"I mean … if Oxford is willing to welcome me to that program, seems like I should be able to take a few classes at Harvard to see if it's something I want to play with, right?"
"Oh, absolutely. Never have a Plan B; always a Plan 2 and beyond."
"I'm sorry I didn't say anything about Oxford," James said. "I really thought that letter would be shredded."
Scott let his shoulders drop and couldn't help but reach out to touch James's hair like when he was little. "Sooner or later, you'll realize you're as amazing as the rest of us know you are," he said, then gestured to the folded letter. "Got the proof right there, after all."
"We'll see if they're right or just … going along with the circus."
Scott shook his head and got to his feet. "Saw the whole game, by the way," he said as a means to change the subject.
"Do I win the medal for unsportsmanlike conduct?" James asked with an obviously fake smile.
"I just want to know if you're cushioning Kate on purpose," Scott said.
"Well, yeah. Obviously," James said, frowning at Scott as if it was unreasonable otherwise. "Have you seen how she gets bumps and bruises just walking down the street? Put her in a semi-real football game and she'd be in traction until her birthday."
"Pretty sure she's specifically asked not to have special treatment, James. And you've been right there with her supporting that," Scott pointed out.
"Did she or did she not play harder?"
"I just don't think it's a good idea to undermine her," Scott said, frowning. "Unless there's a reason."
James tipped his head. "I blocked Rachel from getting hit, too."
Scott let out a slow breath, but he didn't want to push things when things were still weird with James. "Alright. Well. Annie's just about to convince Ororo that her niece is ready to be an X-Man."
"Oh, we already discussed that," James said. "She's got to get by Cap first. That's why she's mad at me right now."
"Nice," Scott said, smirking. "And since Cap doesn't want anyone too young getting hurt…"
James nodded. "Yep. It's a conspiracy."
Scott smirked. "If she can get up the nerve to face him, I'll take her side," he said - half serious, because he knew Leslie Ann was intimidated by Captain America.
"Yeah, but Cap has age limits he won't budge on now," James said.
"So no harm in taking Annie's niece's side," Scott said, smirking a little wider.
"Nope. He's solid on his 'no'. Said Mia was too young and had a couple too many close calls, so … he won't do it again. At all."
"Honestly, I agree with him. Sixteen is a better age cutoff," Scott said. He tipped his head toward Leslie Ann and Lexi, who were talking to Kate. "But our junior squad members were thirteen, so I can't talk, can I?"
"That was a long time ago," James said. "Before you had the Captain America hurdle."
"Hey, Bobby was fourteen; I was fifteen…"
"Bobby's still fourteen," James said dryly.
"Fair enough," Scott said. "He flirts with Johnny like an awkward teenager too."
"It works for them," James said. "But … I don't think he can pass the Captain America hurdle right now."
"That's okay; he's going for a spot on the Four," Scott said dryly.
"He's got it already," James said. "Reed said so."
"Well, there you go," Scott said as he and James headed back toward the others - and it took all of two seconds for Annie to grab Scott and drag him over so he could join her and Ororo. By then, they were knee-deep in talking about the upcoming school year; and Leslie Ann and Lexi had gone off with Kate.
James, meanwhile, slipped over to sit down with Billy, and as soon as he did, he just leaned his head on Billy's shoulder. With all the trouble Nate and Kate were about to pull down on their heads, even if he wanted to go to Oxford, he couldn't not stick around to help them when it all came out. It was exhausting.
"Worn out?" Billy asked, shifting to get more comfortable.
"Emotionally, yes," James agreed. "But I can still blow shit up. It's the American way."
"Oh, of course," Billy said thickly. "You learn that right after your letters, right?"
"With Tony? Yes. You need to read enough to get the right compounds."
Billy laughed. "Okay, fair enough," he said.
"What did I miss?" James asked before he picked his head up and kissed Billy's cheek.
"Well, my family and I are going back to Genosha after the fireworks for a bit if you want to come be a cabana boy for a few days," Billy said.
"I might, but I kinda need to make some official business be official," James said since he and Billy had already talked about the options he knew were good. "And technically i have one more tour before I talk to my pick."
"Right, time to make headlines," Billy teased. "That's alright; I have to go make a few of my own. Mom heard about the Hellfire Club, so we have to do a little domestic political stuff just to prepare for if they try to pull anything publicly."
"You can wish me there later if you need back up," James said.
"I may just. We're probably just going to tell the press on Genosha that the Club wants me to take Grandfather's spot and I don't want it. Get ahead of it, you know?"
"Yeah, probably smart," James agreed. "And more mature than the option of letting the Hellfire club say what they want then laugh out loud when the press asks. But I think a properly placed snort of laughter would make the statement for you."
Billy laughed. "I'll do that," he said. "But I do actually need to go to this interview."
"I know," James said. "You know where I'll be, right?"
"If I don't, I'll wish to find out," Billy teased and stole a kiss before he stood up. "I'll find a nice, private spot to watch the show." He smiled encouragingly, leaving James not far from Wanda and Vision - who had been planning things out with Billy before then.
While James had a moment to himself, he took the letter out to re-read it, once again weighing out options he didn't realize were open. And overthinking every aspect of it.
"Is that where you've decided to go?" Vision asked as he came to sit down by James. "Billy told me you had basically made up your mind - though he did mention you kept second-guessing yourself."
"Yeah, I do that a lot," James said, then slid the letter over to him to read himself. "This was out of left field. I'll be going to Harvard … this year at least."
Vision read over the letter and smiled to himself. "This doesn't surprise me," he said. "Nor does your second-guessing. I would be concerned if, presented with many good options, you were overconfident in choosing just one."
"Truth be told, Oxford would be a statement. Harvard's still the top in every subject I want to study that's not at MIT."
Vision nodded thoughtfully. "It would be," he said. "The distance can be overcome with Billy's help, I'm sure. You travel farther with him to Genosha now than you would from London, after all."
"Yeah, half as many time zones, anyhow," James agreed, then shrugged. "Well. Maybe in a year or two."
"I'm sure it's worth revisiting," Vision agreed. "But there are always other considerations beyond the statement."
"I know. I'm keeping them all in mind."
"I'd never suggest otherwise. I know you don't make decisions lightly." Vision smirked. "You learned that lesson well - from multiple teachers. "
"Yeah, and all of them get thrown off by my impulsive streak, too," James laughed.
"Imagine, then, the look on Tony's face when I showed impulsivity," Vision said, smiling broadly.
"Considering all he had involved? He shouldn't have been surprised at all."
"You make a good point." Vision looked toward Wanda. "I should tell you, from experience, how difficult it is to leave a team like the Avengers or the X-Men, even if you only mean for it to be temporary or if the change is good for you. Living in a different part of the world does make it difficult to maintain membership." He turned James's way. "Despite Captain Rogers' insistence that we were never off the roster, of course."
"It was a challenge even when I was just in Cambridge," James agreed. "It's good that they don't rely on me."
"Of course they do," Vision said, frowning his way. "Just because the two teams are led by brilliant tactical minds that are able to find strategies that don't require you in order to give you space to live your life does not mean they don't rely on you - it means they love you enough to inconvenience their own plans."
James tipped his head. "No, I think they have better paths. It's fine, though." He smirked crookedly. "I'm the most underpowered on the team, outside of well. Kate, maybe. But she makes up for it with the sass and the aim. I'm really just there to take hits."
Vision shook his head lightly and called Wanda over. "Wanda, dear, our young friend is underestimating himself again, and you always know just what to say."
Wanda looked up from the article she had been reading - she was still doing some last-minute research into the journalists talking to Billy, just to be quadruple-y sure. "Oh, that's normal," she said, though she was already headed over. "I've never known Scott or Logan to have any idea of their true worth, so, really, it's Tony's fault this sweet boy has any self-confidence," she teased.
"Yeah, don't let me interrupt your reading," James said. "That's more important."
Wanda waved one hand. "Not really. I've already read it. I'm just nervous for Billy, that's all. Though I heard he handled Monet spectacularly, so…"
"He's got it covered," James agreed.
"I know he does, but he's a little nervous too," Wanda agreed. "So, knowing that, what can I do for my future son-in-law?" Her eyes were sparkling with trouble. "Don't try to deny it; I know you've got the official process started. I'm the queen. I do actually talk to my advisors."
"Figured I'd get the ball rolling," James agreed. "But you don't need to do anything for me. I'm set." He gestured to Vision. "He's trying to stir up trouble."
"Yes, that is precisely my aim," Vision said dryly.
Wanda smirked and kissed Vision. "Oh, always."
"Full confession," James said.
"I called you over because he believes the team doesn't need him," Vision said.
Wanda sighed. "Oh, that argument. The same argument that Scott and Logan had every two days while I was in the X-Men - and more often, as I heard it, when I wasn't?"
James held up both hands. "I'm not complaining," he said, trying to clarify. "It's just a fact, and that's good." He tipped his head toward Vision again. "He's the one that thinks I'm whining or something."
"Devaluing yourself, not whining," Vision said.
"Rachel said it was whining."
"She's also your big sister, and if I have learned anything watching Wanda and Lorna, that's her job."
James put on his best scandalized expression. "Are you saying she's blowing things out of proportion? That … just isn't possible."
"No, of course not," Vision said dryly. "You would never do such a thing either."
"That's what I'm trying to say though. I'm okay with not being needed with the teams."
"As long as you understand that you're wanted," Wanda said as she sat down on James's other side.
"That is not what he said," James replied, attempting to skirt around an answer.
"I'm not him," Wanda said. "So - you do understand that you're wanted, yes?"
James frowned at that, though. "That's not really up for discussion right now," he said finally.
Wanda sighed and brushed his hair back from his face. "And that is why Vision called me over," she said. "I love him and his faith in my ability to say the right thing, but honestly, I get it. After everything that just happened, everything Billy's told me? I get it." She leaned over and kissed his forehead. "But you're very wanted, James. And I can't wait for you to officially join my family."
James sighed heavily - he really wasn't expecting to have to deal with all the heavy emotions flying around, but he knew he needed to respond appropriately. "Love you too," he said quietly.
Wanda smiled at him and got to her feet. "I'm sure I'll see you in Genosha, James," she said and took Vision's arm so they could flirt in private before returning to Genosha.
Chapter 119: Multiple International Incidents
Chapter Text
Everything about the tour of Oxford felt … different than the other college tours - for both James and Scott. It wasn't just because of their unresolved awkwardness, either. Most of that had melted away during their discussion during the Independence Day celebration at Xaviers. Of course, they hadn't discussed anything between them about how both of them were off, but that wasn't quite it either.
For James, it was the incredibly attractive approach they took, completely devoid of the rush of press that had been overly familiar stateside. It was quiet. More professional. And they didn't have entirely the same tone of pushing the other schools had taken, though it was clear they were still trying in their own way.
Campus was busy, but quiet - and though there were still clear moments of recognition, the students and teachers seemed more capable of keeping it to themselves.
The only time James hesitated at all was when he took the time to sit the exams, which left Scott to his own devices, even if he was wearing an inducer at the time. The proctor was quiet, but even then, James felt like the man had a penetrating stare that was uncomfortable, and not just because he wanted to do well if he chose to pursue something entirely different.
Scott, for his part, couldn't help but think about Charles while he was there. He'd even at one point spotted him in an old picture - obviously from when he was much younger and before he'd lost use of his legs. It was strange, like looking at a yearbook picture of his parents or something. Like looking at someone else entirely.
Yet it was easy to imagine the professor there in those halls. He fit it almost too well. It was nice, considering the recent resurgence of questions about the original X-Men, to think about the professor without thinking about loss.
Maybe it wouldn't be too bad if James went there.
Eventually, he met up with James again and nodded to the proctor, who seemed intent on what he was doing and barely looked up at Scott before going back to reading over the test results without a word spoken. But he was smiling to himself, and Scott waited until he and James were well out of earshot before he couldn't help but say, "Looks like you're impressing people everywhere you go. Not that I'm surprised."
"Well when their expectations are low to begin with…" James couldn't help but say as they started off to leave … taking a route that one of the staff had advised Scott to go. "How bored were you?"
"Actually, not terribly. I found an old picture of the professor featured with some other famous alumni," Scott said. "It was… odd. But he looked like he was happy here."
"I'm still not sure what to think of this place," James admitted. "Little bit of whiplash, you know?"
"Totally understandable," Scott promised.
The two of them didn't have a whole lot to discuss for a while, though they made attempts using the school and the competing schools as something to talk over not only on the winding path off campus but most of the way back home. James took the time to hash out a plan with the advisor from Harvard in the plane, though he hadn't told Scott that if Harvard didn't want to work with him on the genetics side of things … he might have to lean more to London.
But that wasn't how it worked. Everything seemed to be falling into place nicely, which left James wondering when the other shoe was going to drop.
And then, they had a safe landing … and an easy passage through customs … and aside from an excited group of teenagers begging for pictures - that James went along with - it was quiet. Until it really, really wasn't.
Scott had turned off the inducer on the plane, and had kept it off to go through customs and hadn't turned it back on now that they were in the States. He was still getting used to being in public again, but considering the way the press was coming after James because of Emma's video as well as leaks from the upcoming Genosha press release on the investigation into Magneto's death, Scott thought it was the right call to make sure it was clear, publicly, that he was always going to be there for James.
But that also meant that both of them were targets for the press the second they were through customs. And the reporters
\ weren't pulling punches on their line of questions.
To James, the questions started about Oxford and the absolute circus that had worked itself up surrounding his choice of college, but those got drowned out fairly quickly with the tabloid stuff that shifted from the usual romantic entanglement questions to some nasty stuff directed at both of them:
"British press doesn't have a picture of the two of you together in London," one of the reporters started to say, but Scott made a sharp motion with one hand to cut him off.
"He was on a school tour and I'm not going to encourage dragging attention away from him or distracting him when he's got a big decision to make. Which you're trying to do right now," Scott pointed out.
James did a fair job of covering how surprised he was that Scott was diving in so quickly, but was smirking quietly to himself as he watched Scott do … apparently what he used to do years ago.
"Seems like there might be more of a reason for the distance," the reporter tried again. "Seeing as this is the first time we've seen the two of you together. Even in the video that outlined Emma Frost's power loss - James Howlett wasn't there with any of you. Even if Billy Maximoff was."
"Seems like you're reading too much into it," Scott shot back. "I'm supporting my son. Part of that is not entertaining the media circus I got myself dragged into alongside his media circus. I think we can all agree you guys can be too much, right? Mobbing us the second we got here was a nice touch."
"It's the first opportunity anyone's really had to find out what's really happening behind the scenes," another reporter said. "And this is kind of what we do. You shouldn't be surprised by it."
"No, not surprised. Just pointing out that you're aware this is what you do and somehow shocked that I tried to keep James from having to deal with just one big news story without adding mine to it at the same time," Scott pointed out. "Really, guys, this is simple. He's a genius, I'm proud of him, and wherever he decides to go to school will be lucky to have him."
James tipped his head slightly when Scott looked his way - an old silent gesture to try to get out of wherever they were a little quicker, though James hadn't had to use it with Scott since he was younger. It was no longer a case of neither one of them being comfortable with single moms hitting on his dad. The situation still had a lot of that same kind of feeling … In James' opinion, they were using him as an excuse to push Scott. And he wasn't okay with that. Even if it was pretty mild so far. Lord knows they'd hit James with worse, even if it hadn't made the rounds.
They started to move through the crowd, and for the most part, it seemed like Scott was handling himself well. James had been too young to remember Scott's public appearances as Cyclops, so it came as a bit of a shock that Scott was genuinely good at this, considering how hard Scott had tried to stay away from publicity of any kind.
In fact, Scott was doing a fair job of redirecting most of the juicier questions to be about how proud he was of James, or how proud he was of the team - he was handing them good press about the people he loved that they wanted to report on. But the loudest among them didn't seem to be looking for a feel-good story.
Just after Scott had talked up the team, someone else stepped in: "So you're proud of teenagers like Billy Maximoff dispensing absolute justice without the benefit of a trial? Proud that he's stealing people's powers out from under them like he did with Emma Frost?"
Scott turned fully toward the reporter who asked the question. "Emma Frost hasn't faced nearly the consequences that she should have faced for all that she's done over the years. Not that anyone's surprised to hear a privileged rich white woman-"
"I'm sure you could tell us all about her activities," the reporter said with a smirk.
James saw the trouble and found himself pushing a growl down as he stepped between Scott and the reporter that was successfully pushing his buttons. "And that's a step over the line," James said, drawing himself up and looking a lot more threatening just by stance than he had been a moment before. "If you want to support Frost in the kind of predatory crap she's pulled for decades, that's your option. Keep your kink to yourself. And while we're at it - let me make myself perfectly clear: my dad, family, and Billy Maximoff are off-limits." He was glaring hard at the reporter that had pushed, and his tone had shifted to a rougher, more gravelly tone that sounded far more like Logan than himself. "You've been writing anti-mutant garbage since before I was born. I'd imagine mutants going after each other with some of them walking away without their gifts would be something for you to celebrate, not show your bias toward whoever will pay you the most. Get your damn facts straight and mind how you speak to those I'm closest to, or I promise you, as far as I'm concerned, you'll never get another response from me for the rest of your career."
For just a second, everyone - even all of the reporters - fell silent. And then, Scott couldn't help but smile - because James really was so much like Logan sometimes, and it felt familiar in the best way. They'd always gotten along best when they had each other's backs like that.
"C'mon," Scott said with a quiet smirk as he put his arm around James's shoulders. "Let's get home."
"Good idea. Jet lag has me wanting to punch someone in the face," James said, not trying to keep his volume down at all. The reporter that he'd dressed down looked properly abashed and backed off as the two of them stepped past him.
"Yep, jet lag will do that," Scott said, grinning wider, though he did drop his voice to add, "Billy's going to blow up your phone when he sees that air; you know that, right?"
"Well you're holding it, so … enjoy."
Scott chuckled. "Yeah, love you too."
"Scott," Wanda said as soon as he'd picked up the phone. Her tone was relieved and rushed and anxious all at the same time. "I'm so glad I got through to you. I"m so sorry, but I had to warn you before the media breaks it."
"Take it easy, Wanda," Scott said as he took a seat with a serious look. It was clear something was wrong - if nothing else because Wanda simply didn't get this frazzled. "What's going on?"
"The tribunal finished their investigation, and they're going to announce the results of their findings - along with charges against you and your kids. You need to get a legal team in place right now if you don't have one already. I'd advise you find at least one mutant to defend you, too. An all-human team won't play well here."
Scott stopped, double-checked that the door to his room was closed, and held the phone a bit tighter. "When are they announcing?" he asked. "Do they have - God, we just got through with one public debacle…"
"They'll make their announcement today. But they aren't assigning degrees to the charges right now. They'll be keeping them as open charges as far as I know, to let the jury decide what would be most fitting."
"Okay, Do you know what they're pushing for?"
"They're hoping that you'll be found responsible for first degree attempted murder and conpsiracy. Nate and Rachel will be up for accessory and conspiracy. James will be facing conspiracy and open murder, though I know they're gunning for first degree there, too."
Scott pinched the bridge of his nose and held his breath as he thought it over. "Logan had Matt Murdock on retainer. I'll talk to him… I think Jamie's got a good partnership…"
"Jamie … Madrox?"
Scott chuckled despite himself. "Yeah, after the team broke up, he got a position at one of the big firms here in New York. He made partner a couple years ago. I keep tabs on the old team, you know."
"That … okay. Good. When you solidify that, let me know and I'll be sure to get them copies of the laws."
"Yeah, they'll need to familiarize themselves with Genoshan law." Scott nodded to himself. "I'll talk to Jan, too. She knows a few good lawyers…" He trailed off and leaned back, tipping his head up to the ceiling. "I knew it was coming, but …"
"I held them off for as long as I could," Wanda admitted.
"I know," Scott said. "And I appreciate that. It gave James a chance to be a kid." He sighed. "I read some of the leaked interviews. Someone leaked Billy's deposition - or parts of it, anyway. I know Billy's staunchly insisting James didn't act until he was stabbed. We can work with that," he said, already strategizing out loud.
"He didn't," Wanda agreed, then let Scott know at least enough to ease his mind. "Lorna didn't destroy the tapes."
"Good. That's good for James," Scott said, knowing full well that the tapes would also show him stabbing Erik.
"I'll have Vision bring you everything I can find that will help the four of you," Wanda promised. "But I had to let you know it was coming so you can prepare. I'm sorry, Scott. It shouldn't have gone this far."
"Hey, you may be queen, but even you can't -" He paused, chuckled, and said. "Well, you could."
"They would have bent for my father," she agreed with a little smile in her voice.
"Then we'll consider this a sign that you're a better leader than he was - more accountable," Scott decided.
"That's a kind spin on things," Wanda said. "I'll be in touch. Call if you need anything."
"Thanks. I'm sure you'll hear from me as soon as I get a team together," he said - and immediately called up Matt Murdock as soon as Wanda hung up. Wanda was right; they needed to get ahead of this.
When the kids heard the news, obviously, they took it hard. Even though their dad assured them multiple times that the footage of the fight would show that they hadn't done anything but try to stop him from dying, the fact that this was going to trial was downright terrifying - and frustrating proof that Magneto's acolytes still had enough power in Genoshan government that they couldn't just move on.
Billy was furious, too, because he'd practically shouted from the rooftops that his grandfather had brought on his own demise, and he was muttering to himself half the time about having to fight the universe just to keep the man he loved from getting torn away - which was about when America suggested that they all go out and at least try to relax or the Summerses and Billy were going to wind themselves up into knots they could never untie.
Kate jumped on the suggestion, and the next thing anyone knew, they were out to dinner at a little Italian place that Rachel suggested when America all but demanded she pick somewhere she liked. The food was good - and so was the wine - and Rachel half hoped that would be good enough to keep attention off of dangerous conversation, anyway.
The waitress didn't bother checking all of their ID's, and as soon as she set down a glass of red wine in front of Kate, James casually knocked it off the table without looking at her or the glass.
"James," Kate said, exasperated.
"What?" James asked, turning her way as if nothing at all had happened.
"I was going to have that!"
"No, you don't want to do that," James said with a mild frown as he straightened up a little. "Too many cameras around. Don't want to get you wrapped up in bad press with us."
"The protective look is cuter when your brother does it," Kate said irritably as she picked up her now-empty glass and whispered an apology to the waiter.
James shrugged, then turned toward America as he gave Nate a look that said he'd do it to him too if he wasn't careful.
Nate sighed and pushed his glass toward Rachel. "Anyone else weirded out that James is the responsible one here?"
James raised his hand slightly. "Totally."
"Okay, as long as it's not just me."
Rachel shook her head, smirking hard. "He's not wrong, though. Three different tables with reporters since we came in."
"Yeah, I noticed."
"And still ordered wine."
"Yep. It's that kind of day."
Kate sighed and leaned over to rest her head on Nate's shoulder. "We'll just have to order extra dessert. Oh no."
"How is that unusual?" Billy asked quietly.
"Fair point," Kate said. She let her shoulders drop when she saw Billy's expression, though. "Hey, chin up."
"This is exactly what I didn't want to see happen," Billy pointed out.
"Yeah, but I grew up around Jen, and I know Matt got my dad out of some trouble - well, lots of trouble - plenty of times."
"They met in a dumpster, didn't they?" James asked
"Okay, that is the joke, but to be fair, that was the second time they met. The first time was when he was dating my mom, so they just don't talk about it," Kate said, pulling a face.
"I have no room. Turns out I inherited my father's lawyer … extended retainer. And … I don't know how that even happened," James said.
"Hey, I'm not asking questions like that when it means you have really good lawyers on your side," Kate pointed out. "And I know it's a trial and all, but it's also Genosha, and literally the whole royal family has made it clear they don't blame you guys, so that's going to count for a lot, like it or not."
"We'll see," James said. "It is what it is."
"I thought the whole point of going out was to not talk about depressing legal stuff," America pointed out.
"I'm not trying to bring you down, Miss America," James said, and his tone wasn't going against that. He was trying to keep a neutral stance as much as possible, considering the charges he had.
"Besides," America said with a casual shrug. "If it goes too far south, I'll just-"
"No," James said, shaking his head.
"Okay, but conjugal visits-"
"Oh my god," Kate said, covering her face with both hands. "Subject change please."
"I dunno," James said. "Kate might be suddenly single again…"
"Tempting, but I like the firebird I've got," America laughed, and Kate threw a wadded-up napkin at her. "You had your shot, princess."
Just about then, though, the waiter returned - and let them know as he put plates in front of them that their meal was going to be completely covered. "Dessert too."
"Why?" James blurted out with a frown, always far more suspicious than his siblings about things like that, even if it happened now and again.
"About four different tables offered," the waiter explained, gesturing over his shoulder, and Nate did a quick scan to catch the others up on which tables had done so.
"Okay, but … why?"
The waiter smirked quietly. "Probably has something to do with the news," he said. "People don't forget when a supervillain destroys their city - and they don't forget who stopped him either."
The group of kids were quiet as the waiter stepped away, but once he was out of earshot, James turned toward Nate with his tone incredibly low and quiet. "Oh, I do not like this."
"Quick scan says one's an older mutant couple, table of teenagers who think it was 'badass', a family who lost their home to a car flying through their apartment on a Magneto rampage… only one table offered to comp because they're anti-mutant and think we did them a favor stopping him."
"I'm sorry, what the hell?" James asked with his nose scrunched up. "How does that make sense?"
"I mean, not to defend my grandfather here, but he was actually effective," Billy pointed out.
"He was," James agreed.
Kate was watching Nate, though. "Is that… the consensus?" she asked quietly, waiting for his eyes to stop glowing for the answer.
And Nate didn't look like he entirely knew how to react. "So, uh…" He switched to projection. Sounds like almost everyone's on our side, he said, but James was still blocking him. "James, you dork. I'm trying to keep this private."
"Then keep it private, I'll catch up later."
"You could literally just let me project to you like we've done our whole lives."
"Hard pass."
"James, seriously. Whatever the hell this is, it's not funny anymore," Rachel said. "You're not letting either of us in."
James turned her way with a sigh. "I am dead serious. Not trying to be funny at all."
"So you're purposefully giving us both the cold shoulder because, what, you feel like it?"
James knew it had been brewing for a while, but he hadn't expected them to feel the need to use telepathy … until the charges came out, and he was running out of ways to say no. But he couldn't hide the background concern he had going for Kate's sake, and he knew better than to let either of his siblings get even the slightest peek. Especially now that they were both overly curious about why he wasn't going along with them. It was too tempting, and it would blow it for Kate; she deserved to announce when she was ready. "I am … extremely uncomfortable letting either of you know what I'm thinking lately." Better to take the fall, he decided.
"Since, what, since Emma?" Nate asked in a harsh whisper.
"It's not too late for me to go full Magneto on her," Billy offered, only half teasing.
"No, I want to keep that charge for myself," James teased, then turned back toward Nate. "Not just Emma. Please, carry on without my input. I doubt I have much to add."
"That's stupid. We'll just talk and I'll put us in a telepathic shield," Nate grumbled. "Besides, I was just going to say it seems like just about everyone around us is on our side for one reason or another. That's all."
"Okay," James said, then sat back in his seat. "Weird, but good to know, I guess."
"It makes sense," Kate said slowly. "I mean, Genosha was secluded for so long that most people away from the island don't know him as anything but the ruler of a faraway island who sometimes came and threatened humanity when he was raging."
"It was also the safest place for mutants to be for over a decade," James countered. "And he didn't threaten humanity when he stayed home."
"Right, I'm just saying when he was out and about, he was scarier," Kate shot back. "Thus the support here. Heck, I was relieved when I heard he was gone, speaking as one of the humans he hated. No offense, Billy."
"None taken, but it is a little weird," Billy said, cringing slightly.
"Yeah, we'll just let it be weird," Kate agreed. "Probably going to be that way the whole trial, honestly. Like, yeah, this guy was genuinely the only reason a lot of mutants survived, but…"
"He was only scary because he was terrified of something happening to his family," James said. "Again."
Billy bit his lip as he glanced toward James. "Well, yeah," he said slowly, "but let's also not forget the part where he was okay with killing all the people me and Tommy dated or with just dictating everything we did."
"I didn't forget the overprotective thing," James said. "The extremely overprotective thing."
"Or the death threats or the enslavement threats or the pissing off Doom," Kate listed on her fingers.
James shook his head at that and half waved it off though. "Now you're just nit-picking."
"Right, I forgot you don't care when people threaten you. Me, on the other hand, I don't forgive or forget."
"And you shouldn't," Rachel added, frowning at her brother. "This definitely took a weird turn, guys."
"Yeah, let's focus on something else. Like - oooh, hey, America, what's the best place for you to bring Scott and Annie for an extradimensional wedding?" Kate offered.
"Wherever I can find with a sweet tea fountain," America said without missing a beat.
"Sold," Kate agreed. "Absolutely perfect."
As Kate and America got rolling, though, Nate and Rachel locked gazes. Even without telepathy, they both knew they were going to have to talk to their dad about the fact that James was going quiet and defending Magneto ahead of the trial. That didn't bode well. At all.
The team was finally starting to get into a groove again, and everyone but the press had relaxed after James grudgingly did a small press conference after the tour at Oxford. It was a tough call after having seen the campus, but ultimately, he was pretty sure he'd be convicted … and he didn't want to be kicked out of a program halfway though for reasons like that. So, instead of taking the chance, he stuck with the surer thing and decided to go with Harvard.
The school was supportive, optimistic, and close to home - which was a much larger factor than James had initially thought when he considered all the non-Genosha family matters. Besides … after Genosha announced their intentions to prosecute half the team, they were no longer being touted as Magneto's lackeys. The details weren't all out there, but the fact that he was the only one being charged with open murder made the findings pretty clear. But beyond that - everyone had an opinion, and most members of the general public outside of Genosha seemed to be relieved that Magneto was no longer wreaking havoc. And a large number of those in Genosha felt the same way.
But that didn't stop the hate groups spewing their vitriol toward mutants in general and the team specifically. A lot of it was the same tired rhetoric that had been used when Scott's team was young. The new angle they were pushing, though, was to blame the X-Men for the damage that Magneto had done, saying that Magneto was the product of the X-Men's meddling and refusal to simply go away and stay on Genosha.
"You think they just saved those signs from twenty, thirty years ago?" James asked as the team came in toward the anti-mutant rally where the men being labeled by the news as 'domestic terrorists' were waving signs calling for an end to mutantkind and burning effigies of a few of the different team members. "Same stupid mottos. Looks like they didn't get the dust off of them, either."
"That's a really twisted heirloom if that's what they did," Rachel said, the fire dancing in her eyes as she took in the scene they were headed toward.
"So, the answer is probably yes," Nate said in a slow meter.
"Likely," Rachel agreed as she and Nate scanned the crowd for trouble and Kate looked over the intel they had on the display.
"Good news is that the police think they're the problem right now, so … yay us?" Nate said as he backed off of scanning. That much raw anger in one place gave him a headache if he wasn't careful about it.
"It doesn't look like something we'd need to call in help for yet," Kate said slowly. "But … that … will probably hinge on what the futz they're doing with those kids they have surrounded."
"They're new teen heroes," Billy said from over Kate's shoulder.
"They're not coming back as mutants on the scanners, either," Kate said. "So I don't know … what?"
"The idiots rioting are grasping to compensate and are dumb enough to think that all hero kids are mutants?" Billy suggested with a shrug. But that only had Kate letting out a little sound of irritation and muttering something about racists.
"Alright, everyone to their usual positions," Rachel said. "Kate, Mia, Nate, and I will work on getting to the kids in trouble - James, America, and the twins - deal with crowd control, please."
"Oh yeah, we get the best job," Tommy said with a smirk as he bumped James' shoulder and smacked his fist into the palm of his hand.
"Hit idiots real hard?" James said, smiling at him. "Sounds like fun."
The little group lined up, ready to head out as soon as the jet touched down - with Nate in the pilot's chair - and just before the hatch opened, James stole a quick kiss from Billy as the kids pulled on their masks, cowls and hoods - depending on who you were looking at. The jet was cloaked, of course, so when they did deplane, it was almost as if they burst out of nowhere.
Tommy was first out and on the far side of the rally by the time James and Billy were out of the door and headed for the most troublesome-looking groups to try and make a path for the rest of the team to get the rag-tag team of new heroes out of the crowd and to safety.
What they hadn't counted on was the group they'd come to rescue immediately rallying when they saw the X-Men arrive. There was a kid in a black and red hoodie wearing a mask and goggles that started bouncing off of one guy after another - ricocheting and swinging from trees as he fought back roughly against the angry, circling mob. The girl next to him was wearing a blue tunic and red leggings with a long, red headscarf that only revealed her eyes as she grew her limbs well out of proportion and showed a clear level of super strength as she, too, tried to push back the crowd that was pressing in on them.
Beyond those two, there was another teen in what looked to be a Nova Corps uniform, though the helmet … and everything else … was clearly too big for him as he worked alongside a massive almost Hulk-looking kid with dark hair and a wide grin doing what Hulks do best. But all of them were fighting, and all of them were obviously untrained.
This is the kind of thing Dad's been worried about, Nate projected to the rest of the team. They're doing good work, but it's over their training level.
From what I can see, they showed up when the rally was still gathering, Rachel added - taking the more tactical route of gathering whatever intel she could from those around them. They tried to observe, but the outfits had someone in the crowd on edge. She narrowed her eyes as she watched the group. I'm going to try reaching out to one of them.
Not the rocket-man, Nate said. He's likely to crash into something if you say hi.
Rachel smirked at that and reached out to try for the kid wearing the hoodie and goggles as he was perched in a tree near the makeshift stage. Of course, the moment she reached out, the young man startled with a loud "Augh!" before he fell out of the tree entirely, crashing into a group of rioters under him. Which was what had Rachel swearing to herself and rushing to get him out of that mess on her own, if need be.
It's alright. I'm a friend. I'm Prestige - I'm one of the X-Men!
Give a guy some warning! The young man replied, one hand over his heart as he tried to get his breath back. I mean, hi, big fan and everything, but Jeez.
Rachel tried not to smirk too hard. Hi. We came to break up the riot and saw you in trouble. You're not mutants by our scans, though.
No, but we've got powers, so people assume we are, the young man said. I'm, uh, well, everyone's just calling me Spidey until we can figure out something else?
Just hang tight, we're coming to you. Try not to get hurt if you can help it.
"I'm with you, Prestige," Kate called out before Rachel could ask for back up - especially when it was clear that the little spider-wannabe was in trouble with the crowd.
The two of them floated over closer to where the young man was - but had to get to ground level when the crowd started throwing things at them. Rachel was excellent with her powers, but under high stress, she was still learning to do multiple things at once - and TK to float along with a telekinetic barrier was still tricky. As they touched down, America made her presence known - grinning from ear to ear and both hands still balled up in fists from the damage she'd been doing as she 'cleared the crowd'.
"You got a real light touch, Miss America," James teased over the comm - though between the two of them, James was the one trying to gently persuade the angry group closing in around him to move along peacefully… with mixed results.
"You worry about your side, I'll worry about mine," America shouted back as she cleared the path for Kate and Rachel. When the little group of girls got to the obviously overwhelmed spider, Rachel cleared a path while Kate zipped over to the new guy.
"So, do you swing around too, or do you just have the spidey name and look?" Kate asked. "Because I've got a grappling arrow that can get us out if you don't web-sling."
"No! No, I can sling, it just … requires more than a short tree every now and again," he replied. "And I don't really want to leave my team behind." He rubbed the back of his neck and puffed his chest out a little. "You know how it is."
Kate gave him a brilliant smile. "Oh, I totally get it. It's just that my team is getting your team out, so you're not leaving anyone behind, I promise! It's just riot time, and you do not want to be around for riot time."
"Got the memo, thanks!" he said, ducking and taking her with him as something that looked heavy flew at their heads.
Kate grinned, turning as they both popped their heads back up. In a smooth move, she brought her bow around with her to fire a smoke arrow into the crowd, effectively dispersing them as several people ran away, coughing. "Ha! Take that!"
He stared after the smoke cloud for a moment. "Okay. that was cool."
Kate grinned and twirled her bow. "Hey, I'm a Hawkeye."
"I thought Hawkeye went for precision … wasn't that kind of a … broad way of dealing with the issue?" He held up both hands quickly. "I'm not criticizing! Just an observation!"
"Oh, did you want me to try to pick them off one by one in a crowd this size?" Kate said, one eyebrow raised.
He laughed nervously, clearly trying to regain a little bit of cred. "No, no that would be ridiculous, no I just … um … Where is Miss Marvel?" He turned to look behind him halfway through their awkward conversation. "I thought she was closer …"
"Which one is she?" Kate asked. "I can ask Prestige or Cable to look."
"She's the only girl on our team," Miles said. "And she's a powerhouse. She can change her size, she's super strong … she heals …"
"Sounds awesome," Kate agreed. "Girl power, right?" She tossed her hair over her shoulder. "So that means the helmet-wearing someone is a guy. Good to know. Can't really tell when everything's too big on him."
"Sa- I mean …. Nova. That's Nova."
"You're pretty new at this, aren't you?" Kate said with a kind smile. "I mean, no judgment. I was kinda - I mean, look at my teammates. Second generation is a whole other level of prepared."
His shoulders dropped and again, he gestured widely. "It's that obvious, huh?"
"Hey, everyone starts somewhere. Totally no judgment here," Kate swore. "Just easier to spot for me when I grew up in it, you know?"
"We've been doing stuff for a while, but you know. Neighborhood-level stuff. We didn't think this was going to be as big as it is."
"Yeah, these guys seem like they're feeding off each other," Kate agreed, looking around before she quickly reached out to Nate telepathically to let him know the story, then tapped the side of her temple. "So. Cable says he and Speed are talking to Nova. Speed says he's a dork. Just so you know."
"Is that … is that a good thing?" Spidey asked.
"Depends on the mood Speed is in," Kate said, grinning wider before she seized his arm. "Come on. We've got a riot to break up - and your team to reunite and keep safe."
"Yes, please," he agreed, rushing to keep up as Kate led the way back. "So … second generation, huh? Does that mean you all have like … parents or mentors … how does that work?"
"If you want, you can head back with us and talk to some of the Avengers," Kate offered. "We all had to be Avengers first to get training to become X-Men. So yeah, we all got mentored. They're kind of careful about young heroes after what happened to the first X-Men, you know?"
"Not really," he said. "But I'm willing to learn - at least, if you've got someone that might know anything helpful …"
"Well, I know a friendly neighborhood Spiderman who just sent his Spider-gal off to college."
"For real?"
"For real." Kate grinned at him. "And hey, I share a name with the first Hawkeye. I'm sure Spiderman can work something out with you too."
"Hey. Don't … don't make offers you can't follow up on." Spidey had one hand up as he pointed her way. "That's just not nice."
"Um, I will make him work out a name," Kate said, one hand on her hip. "But I won't have to, because he's a giant sweetheart, so he'll totally work with you without me sticking an arrow in his face, I swear."
"Lead the way, Hawkeye," Spidey said, gesturing to the crowd, but when they only got a few steps into the mess before the crowd seemed to notice them there, Spidey grabbed a hold of her and swung them high up into a semi-nearby tree, all while apologizing profusely for doing so. "Oops! Sorry! I should have asked before I swooped!"
Kate was already laughing before he'd even finished his apology. "Seriously no problem," she promised. "I'd rather be swooped than stomped on."
"Yeah, well, me too. Being a spider kind of goes against the squish factor, so … woosh." The two of them landed next to Rachel and America, who were already chatting with Miss Marvel.
"Hey look, Spidey, now you're the odd one out. Welcome to the girl squad," Kate couldn't help but tease.
She's just like this, Spidey, Rachel projected to Miles - even as Miss Marvel was telling Kate about their team. And she gets more competitive as you go. Fair warning.
Oh good. Because what I need is a competitive girl who got mentored by the Avengers in my life.
She likes to share, too, Rachel said. I'm sure she'll teach you whether you like it or not.
Okay, that part I'm actually okay with?
Rachel was smirking a little wider to herself as she turned toward where the other half of this new team was trying to keep out of trouble - relatively speaking. "Who's the big guy, and what is he trying to do?"
"Oh, um, our … Hulk? I guess? We don't really have a better name?" Spidey rubbed the back of his head. "He's just like that. He flirts with everyone." He gestured to where his friend was trying to charm Mia - who was turning up the charm in return on pure instinct and only feeding the whole thing.
"Well … it's actually kind of hilarious from here," Rachel said. "I think they're trying to one up each other on flirting."
"Oh no," Miles said.
Kate laughed. "Oh, Nightcrawler's just like that. Competitive, charming - poor Speed. He hasn't really had competition before." She cackled and clapped her hands together.
"Well, he does now," Miss Marvel said.
"Step up your game, Speed!" Kate called out, her hands cupped around her mouth - which got the driest look out of Tommy, since he was in the middle of vibrating a sinkhole to drop a few rioters into.
Billy was clutching his stomach laughing. "I love this. Let's keep them."
"Hawkeye already said we could maybe, you know … find mentors through you guys? Maybe?" Spidey said. "And I think it's pretty clear that we need a little guidance."
"Yeah, the Avengers will definitely want to talk to all of you and work out some training or something," Rachel agreed. "We all had to work with them before we could go on missions. They've got a thing about making sure young hero-"
"Yeah, I gave him the spiel," Kate cut in. "Super protective older generation, yadda yadda - I want to see Spidey's face when I tell him he's got to share his name like Hawkeye and I do because he so has to share!"
Rachel laughed at that before she turned to Miles. "Come on," she said. "Let's get done and get out of here."
What the group hadn't seen was that the section of the crowd that James had successfully managed to settle out enough to let the women and children away from the riot had only done so to get the women and children out of the way before they attacked him. James had been on his guard as much as he could be, all things considered, and he was ready for the fight.
James knew it was a risk- but the crowd had stayed back a respectable distance as the women and children slipped out, and he'd ignored the vitriol from the troublemakers almost stoically as they called him every name in the book and started hurling the old tried and true accusations of being nothing better than an animal. The second the last of the kids passed James by, the crowd closed in behind him and shut off his exit to leave too. He could feel them behind him and he turned in time for one of them to spit on him and another to throw a brick. It was a solid hit - cracking him in the back of the head and making him see stars as he stumbled forward.
The hit pushed James toward the crowd in front of him, and even as he reached out to stop from bumping into them on instinct, one of the biggest guys in the crowd hauled off and cracked him in the face wearing a pair of brass knuckles paired with a foul anti-gay slur that James … honestly hadn't heard directed his way before. He didn't entirely catch himself as he hit the ground, either. And before he could push himself up, they were taking the pot shots.
With a growl, James fought to get back on his feet - but even that was a trick when the rule was 'don't kill' and the crowd was pushing him closer and closer to a berserk break with the dirty hits and foul names. Adding to his troubles, he could hear the shuttering of camera lenses as several people snapped pictures of the whole thing. The sensation of being pinned down just by sheer numbers was getting to James, and he could feel the growl rising up more with every hit. He took a nasty kick that broke his arm as soon as he managed to get on his hands and knees - and he let out a snarl that had some of them backing off, but others seemed more excited to get in there and help take him down, shouting horrible things from every angle.
One thing the crowd had going for them was that James didn't want to kill anyone. Definitely not when he knew it was all being recorded. If he snapped now, it could sink the team. So, fighting his instincts to let loose, James managed to hit the button on his belt that would call in backup - and alert his team to the fact that he was in trouble - if they hadn't noticed it already.
Nate glanced down at his comm with a frown and turned to see what was wrong - especially since the last time he'd looked, James was doing better than the rest of them had been with breaking up the crowd. It was a mark of what kind of trouble he was in when Nate couldn't get him to respond to his telepathic check in. Blocking his siblings from telepathic link ups off the field was one thing … he never did it during missions like this. "He still won't let me in," Nate said to the gathered and mixed team with a hard frown.
"We can help," Miss Marvel offered - then started to grow to giant size as the rest of them tried to make a new, clearer path out of the crowd, but Nate was watching her with a look of curiosity. He recognized her voice… he just couldn't place where.
"Not without me you're not," Kate called out cheerfully as she and Billy took off with Miss Marvel to help. "He's kind of our damsel in distress, you know."
"You'll need someone to watch your back for the mood these guys are in," Billy added. "And unfortunately, he seems to bring out the extremes in people."
The three of them rushed in while James was doing his best to block the hits - but with as many of them as there were in the angry crowd, and for how willing they were to play dirty - James didn't have a lot of hope of fighting his way out without killing someone. Which was hard enough to keep in check from just the beating he was taking. It was bad enough he had to back off and try to protect his head… but when someone pulled out a knife … he only saw a flash of silver before he took a swing to protect himself, but he was a little to punch-drunk and beaten down to follow through on his hits. The swing went wide, and someone dove to grab his arm, followed by several others that rushed to secure his arms and legs to keep him from fighting back. There were way too many of them for him to get a foothold.
The men holding James down made it clear what their intentions were as they wrestled to hold him still and James began to truly panic. He couldn't handle being restrained like that. Not after Viper. He shouted for his team, and lost his breath with a heavy punch to the stomach an instant before he got stabbed, but to his shock, it didn't go much further than that before some of the men were tossed aside. The mob started to scramble, and James was mostly forgotten as they stampeded to get out of there. He didn't notice what was going on, and he rolled to his side, curling around his injury. He didn't even pick his head up until someone picked him up with one very large hand - and then the young woman that had picked him up began to immediately freak out. But considering that she had gotten him away from the people that were trying to beat him to death, James didn't even try to say anything to her other than a muted, rumbled out 'thanks' then relaxed for the time being, hands on his knees and half bent over.
"Are you hurt?" Miss Marvel asked, looking concerned even as she headed for the gathered group of X-Men.
"Yeah… but I'll heal," James said, then gave her a crooked, bloodied smile. "I'm feeling better already."
"You don't look it," she said, though she was smiling at the very corner of her mouth. "I'm Miss Marvel, by the way."
"Oh, good, you found my favorite idiot," Kate called out as Miss Marvel got closer. "Maybe don't try to beat bad guys with your face next time, huh, Wolverine?"
"It didn't start out that way," James defended. "And they had cameras going like crazy. Had to keep it cool."
"Still. You had to have something better than using your face. Our resident Wiccan likes it the way it is!"
"I was using my fists and feet until they swamped me," he said flatly, half holding on to Miss Marvel's offered arm to keep his balance, quick to turn his attention to the wide-eyed Miss Marvel as the crowd regrouped. "Thank you, seriously."
"No problem," she replied, smiling crookedly as the little group took in the problems around them. They were gathered up in a small group as Rachel and Nate dealt with the rest of the rogue teenage crime fighters. As Kate and Billy turned away from the slowly dispersing crowd that was still shouting obscenities at them, someone broke ranks from the mob and shouted something descriptive and foul at Billy. He turned, eyes narrowed just in time to catch a fist in the face that dropped him - and before the others could respond, the sound of gunfire echoed around them.
Miss Marvel had crouched down for Billy already, and at the first sound of gunplay, Kate turned toward the sound like it was a challenge - only to get a full body tackle when James took her down and kept her down by blocking her entirely from moving.
"Would you quit squirming and keep your head down already?" James said as he stayed over her while the gunfire was still going - and even shifted to block her head with his. .
"Get off me, you lunatic," Kate said. "You're acting like I'm new!"
"Kate, you got shot," James said. "I'm not moving."
"I got grazed," Kate said. "Get off."
"Make me." James let out a huff. "I'm not letting you up until that gets under control. So just … deal with it."
"James, I know how to take cover by myself. We've got genuine newbies to worry-"
"When's the wedding?" James asked, just to see how she'd handle it.
"The hell - is this really the time?"
"Yeah, I think so," James said, nodding lightly. "Besides, Miss Marvel has Billy down flat on the other side of you, so they're covered already."
Kate blew out a breath that moved her hair. "It's whenever he proposes, now get off. Why are you like this, you weird interrogator?"
"I'll move when Nate and Rachel give the all clear. Like I said - cope. Fifty bucks says your parents will be fine with this."
"Well, I'm not. I can stay down without you forcing me into it, and you're just… this is stupid!"
"Kate, they were still firing and you were looking for the shooter instead of taking cover. What kind of dumbass move is that?"
"It was a reflex," Kate said. "And I don't know if you noticed, but I was also in motion to go down before you forced me faster."
"Is that the same reflex that lands you in dumpsters?" James asked. "You were in motion once I hit you, genius."
"This is a crappy way to tell me you don't trust me with my own safety," Kate shot back, genuinely mad about it, too.
"It's not that, Katie and you know it," James said with a little heat. "I'll get over it a helluva lot faster than you if I'm the one to catch a bullet the wrong way."
"And I hate letting you take hits, so how about get off and stop treating me like you're a bodyguard instead of my teammate."
"Katie, I was your bodyguard a lot longer than I've been your teammate. Besides, I'm just doing what my dads told me to do."
Kate wriggled a bit more but truly couldn't move. "You know I hate this, right? You know I hate when you actually treat me like the breakable one."
"I know, and I'm really, honestly sorry. But I'd do the same thing with anyone else that got shot and had a laser on them." He pulled back enough to look her in the face squarely. "They were aiming for your heart, Kate. I'll apologize for making you feel bad, but I'm not going to apologize for blowing their shot."
Kate met his gaze and then sighed and dropped it. "Damn, that's a good reason, but I'm still pissed about it."
"You can hit me later if you want."
"Takes the fun out of it if I have permission."
"You can use me for target practice?" James offered with one eye closed.
"Again, it's the principle of the thing," Kate said, smiling in spite of herself.
"Okay … fine … Don't you dare hit me, you mean old Hawkeye."
"You're ridiculous," Kate said, shaking her head even as Rachel and Nate headed their way.
James turned to see them coming then quickly got to his feet and offered Kate a hand up. "Sorry, Kate."
"Yeah. Just… next time just tell me, okay?"
"Step in front of it? Okay."
She slugged him in the shoulder. "No, you goon. I don't mind you pushing me out of a laser sight but, like, don't lie on top of me and act like I'm not gonna be pissed without a good reason."
"Katie, you can be pissed off even with the best reasons," James said as he offered Miss Marvel a hand up, too.
"Oh, I'm definitely still pissed about it," Kate promised. "I'm just also gonna get over it faster if, you know, you let me stay down on my own by telling me what the futz the problem was in the first place, you dork."
"Noted," James said with a nod. "Is this going to be on the test?"
Kate shook her head as she headed over to Nate. "Your brother is driving me up the wall today, which is endlessly annoying because he's usually my favorite and I can usually count on him to beat up the people treating me like the fragile human. You can dangle him upside down and get on his case when we get home, right? For me?" She fluttered her eyelashes - and also shot James a look and stuck her tongue out at him for good measure, truly acting the part of annoyed little sister.
"Oh, absolutely," Nate agreed, though he'd started looking over her injuries while James tried to help Billy with Miss Marvel hovering around them in helpful concern. "Upside down to start. How dare he?"
"I'm very sure you're not taking this as seriously as I want you to," Kate said, shaking her head at him.
Nate looked at her and blinked, then did his best to put on his most serious, angry face. "Is that better?"
"Closer, yes," she said and kissed his cheek.
I don't know what his problem is, Nate projected to her. He's been acting stupider than usual. He still won't talk to me telepathically, either.
Yeah, I've noticed that too. It actually makes me feel better to hear you say that? I thought maybe I was just sensitive. She blushed lightly. Sort of… you know… a tender spot for me. The whole… breakable human… yeah.
I just don't know if this is leftover Frost issues or … what.
Oooh, yeah definitely please look into that, Kate agreed. That would make way more sense than me thinking I'm just overly emotional because I'm due to, y'know, start any day now. Pretty sure the Emma-related stress made me skip one, so now I'm all emotional and my calendar is off. Ugh. Which reminds me… you're on deck for banana bread. Totally craving it. I got shot, you know. Whatever excuse you want to use.
Nate chuckled at that. Banana bread it is, he said, purely for the grin she gave him.
"We need to get back to the jet," Rachel decided, breaking into the back and forth between them. "It's time - things are settling down - the crowd is pretty well dispersed -now that they're not beating on our Wolverine or shooting at Hawkeye." But that had James and Kate both giving her an honestly betrayed look.
"Is that because the press says we're the team leaders?" James said just for the glare he got from Rachel - and the fresh grin and slow, confident nod from Kate as she crossed her arms next to him.
Rachel rolled her whole body as she pointed one finger at him,. "Oh, shut-"
"SHIELD is handling everyone that hasn't gotten a clue," Nate cut in, getting an affectionate kind of smirk from Kate when she saw he cut Rachel off. "And it looks like the crowd is dispersing nicely."
"Are you okay?" Billy asked James, who was still a little dazed and buzzing from all the healing he'd been doing. He'd reached out to help steady James, and James had taken his hand without thinking about it to steady himself.
James nodded, then he scrubbed his hands off on his pants to wipe off some of the blood, though now that he was wearing mostly yellow instead of black, it was a whole lot harder to brush off. "Yeah, I'm fine. I might need Hank to reset the arm they broke-" He covered his left arm just below the shoulder where it had been broken. "-but I'm alright. You're the one that got knocked out."
"Yeah, but they were really wailing on you," Billy said, earning himself a quick kiss on the cheek.
"Come on, guys," Kate sang. "Take the post-mission make out session off the field. We have new people to show around - and you know how excited Wasp is going to get when she gets to design for new people!"
James and Billy shared a look, and James tipped his chin toward Kate with a bloodied, crooked smile. "Go ahead. I'll cover your back, little prince."
"I'll save you a seat," Billy replied, matching his smile before he started to fly to catch up to the others.
James smirked at that and paused when he heard a different kind of shout from the crowd on the far side of the park. Just as angry as the people that had been beating him before, but the tone was somehow more serious. He paused and turned back to the crowd, earning himself a few more shouts closer to where he was. Something was off, but he didn't know what. He did a double take when one of the men behind a barricade was glaring hard and screaming 'traitor' at him, but that was enough to turn him back to his team. He had more pressing things to work out and he was exhausted.
He wasn't far enough behind the team to run yet, and he had to figure out how to explain what he'd just pulled with Kate. He barely dodged his dad at the football game on the fourth. This? Totally different and hard to worm out of. He drew in a deep breath as he turned to start after the group, adjusted how his cowl was sitting, then decided to try and drop Kate a hint. He was taking too much flack for refusing to link up with his siblings. That was going to bite him - and she needed to know so she could be more careful. He nodded once to himself and took all of two steps before a single shot rang out and he crumpled, mid-step.
Chapter 120: Who's James?
Chapter Text
The rest of the X-men knew something was wrong right away. Not necessarily because of the gunshot itself - but because of the sudden cheer from a small cluster of very obvious mutants that were nearby shouting "Justice for Magneto" against the harsh echoes from the other crowd bellowing "the only good mutant is a dead mutant". For an instant, they all froze and took quick stock of themselves - and each other - but it was Nate that saw James on the ground first, oddly still but for a few rhythmic twitches that did not look like anything James would do. Nate could barely see that James' eyes were still open; his limbs were sticking out at awkward angles and a puddle of blood was spreading quickly around him.
"Rachel!" Nate shouted - both mentally and out loud as he broke from the group of young heroes and simply started to run toward where his brother was laid out and bleeding horribly. Get them on the jet; I have to get him out of here!
Rachel was quick to redirect Billy in particular, but that wasn't easy to do when the new Spidey began babbling "Oh man, is he - that - oh, crap!" She did, however, notice that a large number of those that had been shouting against mutants were staring in horror … not that it helped at all.
In a panic, Nate had to focus on not lashing out in favor of levitating James from where he had fallen to where Nate was, cocooning all of them in a psionic bubble that no bullet could breach. As soon as James was within reach, Nate did what he could to staunch the bleeding as he moved James to the jet. And for the first time that any of them could remember, he surrendered the pilot's chair to Mia, who was watching with wide eyes and a very still tail.
They were celebrating, Rachel projected to Nate as the two of them got to work, debating the positives and negatives of trying to remove James' bloody cowl. I just can't figure out if they were out to get him specifically or just one of us. They were aiming for Kate earlier…
I'll deal with them later. Right now, I really don't care, Nate replied, clearly a little more pulled together now that he had a job to do. And it was evident how much he was concentrating by the fact that his eyes were glowing. Kate spared him a concerned look, but she was holding Billy together practically on her own, wrapping her arms around him to keep him from freaking out.
Rachel and Nate were busy working on James, even if it was clear that a large part of their new group - and some of the old group - was already convinced that James was just … gone. But the Summers kids had grown up on stories of how resilient the Howletts were - and though James had never been hurt nearly this badly before, they thought they knew the basic rules in play. It was obvious that James had been shot in the head, and even though for 99% of the world that meant one outcome, Nate put pressure on the wounds without removing the cowl and tried not to stare at his brother's unseeing eyes before Rachel reached over to close them.
On the other side of the country, Scott was treating Annie to a night out to real barbeque.
It had taken some doing, but he really wanted to give Annie something special. He knew that there had been so much drama lately, between everything Emma had pulled and then the public finding out that he was still alive and then Genosha wanting his head on a platter… he was making her life harder, and he knew it.
Sure, she promised that she'd known who he was when they got engaged, and she was handling all of the new twists and turns better than he could have hoped for. But that didn't mean he didn't feel bad. The most dramatic thing he had to deal with on her side was that her father was getting meaner on his bad days when he was suffering from dementia… or that her niece wanted to be an X-Man.
So, he had asked Remy for help finding someplace with authentic food. And Remy, as always, was more than happy to talk about soul food and to point him in the right direction. He also borrowed the smallest jet in the hangar to fly down south.
And Annie didn't know what he was up to, just that he'd promised her plenty of spoiling to make up for all the drama. She didn't think he had anything to apologize for, but he was so insistent that she let him - and was completely gobsmacked when she realized what was going on.
A short drive from the airport, and they were at a little hole in the wall barbecue place, where the tea was sweet and the cornbread was made with the right kind of flour. The sauce was just right, and the accents matched hers so well that Scott could hear hers getting deeper the more she talked with the waitress.
Annie was thriving. She was in her element, surrounded by the tastes and smells of home, and Scott couldn't stop smiling at her. He loved to see her like this, happy and carefree…
He was definitely going to have to do things like this more often.
Annie caught him staring at her and blushed, tucking her hair behind her ear. "You're doing an awful lot for just a date," she teased him.
"Well, you've been through an awful lot," he shot right back. "And now that I'm doing more with the team and putting in more public work… well, I remember what it was like. I know how important it is to steal moments together when the opportunity arises, because you never know how long it'll be before the next chance to spoil you."
Annie smiled and reached over to take his hand across the table. "You're really so sweet; you know that, right?"
"I try to be," he said, smiling back at her.
They were both absolutely stuffed full of good food when the waitress came around to ask if they wanted dessert. And although Annie insisted that she couldn't eat another bite, Scott asked if they could get some pecan pie to go.
And Annie grinned so widely that it made Scott's ears burn.
She hardly looked away from him as he got out his wallet to pay, and so he looked anywhere but her, embarrassed by the knowing look the waitress was giving them.
And that was when he saw what was playing on the news.
The waitress had left to go run his card, so Annie was the only one who saw Scott's initial reaction. She saw him go pale, and she saw him go still. And then, she saw him go into motion to grab his phone, checking first to see if anyone had sent any messages to update him on the situation. But there was nothing. Nothing that told him how James was doing.
Which meant no one knew - or that the situation was so dire they hadn't had time to tell others what was going on.
"Annie, we need to go," he said, getting to his feet.
By that time, she was watching the news as well, so pale that the freckles on her nose were standing out. "Get the car started. I'll grab your card," she said, and he didn't need more than that to rush off to the parking lot, start the car, and pull to the front of the restaurant, throwing the door open for her as she rushed out and then speeding off.
The flight to Westchester was anything but quiet as the comms lit up - hailed from both Avengers and Storm - who advised they start CPR immediately. The directive was a shock to most of them, even if the Summers' weren't going to argue it one bit. Nate had his hands on James' head and Rachel was half frozen - so it was Tommy that dove in to start compressions while Rachel situated herself to back him up.
They were halfway to Westchester when out of the blue, James started to cough and a wash of relief went through the jet. He was breathing on his own - and his heart seemed to be working fine. Which was a massive relief to the Summers kids - and Billy, of course. But James hadn't woken up by the time they reached Westchester - and Hank was ready and waiting on their arrival to scoop him up and take him to the lab.
Hank hadn't been working on James for long before Scott came rushing in, looking green. He'd been far enough behind their travel time that everyone else had already been seen to, but Hank was trying to help James's healing along as much as he could with IVs, antibiotics… anything to treat him the old-fashioned way while his body did the rest. He even took some X-Rays to address the broken arm and set the bones the right way while James was asleep.
It had been maybe an hour, and Hank was seeing some results, but no one dared to move or speak, not when they didn't know what was normal after an injury like that.
Tell me everything, Scott projected to Rachel and Nate, too stressed to say anything when his jaw was locked down as tight as it was.
It was a quick moving thing, Nate said. Everyone in the crowd just wanted us to leave - which we expected, but there was a couple small groups that weren't acting the same … James had said some of them were taking pictures, and I know they were pushing him to snap, but he didn't. Nate shook his head. It was all taken care of until we were on the way back. We were all headed to the jet when someone just … someone shot him out of the blue, Dad.
I saw the footage of the beating, Scott replied, the stress obvious even in his mental voice.
Then you saw as much as we did, Nate said.
Scott nodded, rubbing a hand over his face as he watched Hank work. This is exactly why I didn't want you out there. He hadn't meant to project it, Nate was sure, but with their minds already connected and with Scott so stressed and distracted, Scott's thoughts were out there for Nate and Rachel both to hear.
I couldn't focus on anyone enough to tell if this was directed by someone outside of the crowd or not, Rachel admitted after a while. But they weren't going after anyone else that hard. Someone did try to shoot Kate.. but now I don't know if it was for Kate or … Rachel sighed and wrapped her arms around herself a little tighter.
If they were trying to get him to snap… Scott shook his head. Damnit, James. Wake up so I can tell you I'm proud.
At that, Nate and Rachel shared a look and decided to stay quiet. It was beyond clear that their dad was stressed and not even aware he was still projecting - and considering Scott's telepathic defenses- that, more than anything else, told them how upset he was.
Hank was shaking his head as he finished his work. "There's nothing I can do but clean him up," Hank told the gathered group. "Whatever injuries he had are healed - externally anyhow. I suspect it will still take some time before he wakes up, though." He looked toward Rachel and Nate. "Unless you know of any injuries that I haven't addressed."
Rachel shook her head, already reaching out telepathically to let the rest of their team know the latest - and also reaching out to Annie, since she was sure Annie was freaking out too. James is okay. He's healing up.
Oh good, Annie replied, not even bothering to hide her relief. I'd like to see him, but I don't want to be in the way.
I think you might believe the progress better if you saw him. She paused as she thought it over. And Dad could absolutely use your company.
I'll be down with bells on. And with Billy. He's a mess. He told me he came upstairs to try to get some air, but he's been crying in a corner for God knows how long.
Then he definitely shouldn't be alone. Please bring him, Rachel told her.
It didn't take long at all for Annie and Billy to teleport down with Billy's magic - and Billy went right to James, looking like he was on the verge of crying until he reached over to hold James' hand reassuring himself James was still there.
Annie went right to Scott to sit down next to him, wrapping him up until he finally blinked out of his shock to pull his arms around her in return.
But the family wasn't alone for long.
A little while later, Wanda appeared in a pop and a swirl of red light. She paused only long enough to orient herself before she rushed over to Billy and wrapped him up tightly, giving him a chance to let go while they waited for James to come around. And he was grateful that his mother was there with him.
"Okay, so, like, does this happen all the time, or…"
Away from the lab, the newly-discovered heroes were practically bouncing with nervous energy. Tommy and Mia were doing their best to reassure them, but it was hard to hide the fact that they were also shaken by everything that had happened.
"This isn't normal," Mia told Spidey, though she wasn't sure how reassuring that was to hear, especially because he was still bouncing.
"I dunno," Tommy said, though he wasn't on solid ground yet either. "Our Wolverine seems to have a pretty big target on him." He snapped his fingers toward Spidey. "Stay out of stripes."
"Is he serious? Is that a thing?" Spidey asked. Even with the mask on, Tommy and Mia could tell his eyes were wide.
"It's more about his powers… and I guess the whole Magneto thing…" Mia trailed off. "I think you guys are perfectly fine, though. And - and-" She said, seizing on a new line of thought in a desperate attempt to get everyone calmer. "-you need to meet the Avengers. You guys wanted some mentoring and stuff, right?"
"Oh, right! Hawkeye said we could talk to… I mean… if it's okay…" Miss Marvel trailed off, nervously twisting the long scarf that was part of her costume. "We, ah, could maybe meet some people who could maybe help with our powers?"
"Absolutely," Mia said, holding up both hands. "In fact - depending on how old you are, you might have a fight on your hands to join? We have a restriction … and all our parents made us be Avengers… so …"
"Oh, right, yeah, Hawkeye said something about that," Spidey said. "We're all sixteen… well, Miss Marvel's close enough for horseshoes anyway…"
"So … wait until you see an Avenger and ask," Tommy said, then paused as he thought about it. "But … maybe … wait for the second Avenger? The first one you see is probably going to be trying not to have a stroke."
"I mean, for good reason," Nova pointed out.
"So… now what?" the new Hulk asked.
"Umm… I'm not sure," Mia admitted. "Probably need to get you guys settled in… or if you need to get home…?"
"Yeah, we can't, like, have a sleepover or anything," Spidey said, laughing nervously.
As they were discussing how to move forward, The front door banged open and Tony came in looking like … Tommy was right. "Where is he? How's he doing? Hank didn't-"
"Hey, breathe, Uncle Tony," Mia said, teleporting into his path. "He's in the lab. Need a 'port?"
Tony looked like the question was insane. "Yes."
Mia and Tony disappeared in a blink, though she returned quickly enough, dusting herself off and shaking her head.
"Bet that was fun," Tommy said.
"Between him and Scott, Hank's probably gonna have another patient. It's a tossup who will blow a vein first."
"Grampa IronMan has a bum ticker," Tommy pointed out.
Mia giggled. "I love when you call him that. It's hilarious."
"And true!" Tommy said, grasping on to any joy he could find.
"Do you wanna maybe go get Cap?" Mia asked. "I think that's probably the next step, maybe?"
"Sure. You can entertain for that long, right?" Tommy asked before he simply disappeared in a streak. And came back with a very windblown Steve before the new kids could get their bearings over how that went down.
"Hi, Uncle Steve," Mia said, fluttering her eyelashes.
"Tommy," Steve said, holding his hands out. "You gotta warn me before you do that."
"That's not as fun," Tommy said. "Besides, look at all the new heroes we found for you!" He gestured dramatically toward the newbies. "They were actually holding their own really well before things went south. We even found a Spidey and a Hulk!"
"Oh, okay," Steve said, then looked toward Mia. "Tony get here already?"
"Yeah, I took him to the lab. I wasn't there long, but Hank did say it looks like he's at least healing. They're just waiting for him to wake up to assess the damage."
Steve nodded, though he looked a little off kilter. "Okay. That's a plan anyhow." He turned toward the new kids. "So. We should talk. Mia - you have a place we can sit down without the resident students getting in the middle?"
"Oh, yeah, sure!" Mia said quickly. She was tired from the fight earlier, but she did lead the way down the hall to an office that was hardly used. "No one comes around here. It's mostly storage," Mia admitted.
"If your mom isn't too busy, she might want to sit in with us," Steve said before awkwardly introducing himself to the new kids.
"Oh! Right. Sorry, still…" Mia shrugged up both shoulders. "Still processing. Be right back!" With that, she disappeared to go find Storm, leaving the newbies and Tommy with Steve.
Every one of the new heroes looked perfectly nervous, though Spidey was bouncing the most. "Right, so, I mean, we're not mutants or anything, but we're kind of new to this whole thing and… and how does this work?" he asked.
"Generally speaking, it's not too different from anything else you'd get into at your age," Steve said. "And I'm sure you'll hate to hear it, but the first thing you'll need to do is get your parents to agree to let you train." He gestured to the door. "Which … I'm not going to lie. That'll be a hard sell now."
"No kidding," Miss Marvel said, her lower lip pushed out.
"If it helps, after things settle out a little bit, we can sit down with Tony too - see what you think will be the best fit for one of us to go talk with your parents."
"Oh, could we please?" Miss Marvel asked.
Just then, Mia reappeared with Storm, who smiled when she saw the group of them. "A little Nightcrawler told me you four wanted to learn more about your powers?"
"Yeah, I mean, we're not mutants," Spidey started to say.
Steve smiled at that. "Not a requirement to ask for help with your powerset. What is a requirement though - you have to be at least sixteen to be considered to join the junior team."
Before the chorus of disappointment could rise up, Ororo cut them off with a warm smile. "You all have been through a terrible ordeal today. Let's talk about this over something to warm you up - and hydrate all of you." She rested her hand on Kamala's shoulders. "Then we can talk about how best to discuss this with your parents."
It took several hours before James blearily began to wake up a little before dawn, and when he did, he simply started to look around himself, taking in the lab and everyone in it. But he wasn't in any hurry to move or let anyone know he was awake.
Billy was the one to spot it first, since he was so close, and he let out a breath of relief and kissed James' cheek. "Oh good. You're cute, but I didn't want you Disney princess levels of cute if you were going to come with Sleeping Beauty problems." But Billy's smile slipped when James just stared at him as if he was trying to figure him out. "Hey, come on. It's me. Billy? Wiccan? You know … little prince?"
"Give him a little space," Scott said suddenly, sounding even more tired than he already was.
"What's going on?" Nate asked, looking between Scott and James.
"Trauma must have messed with his memory," Scott said, watching James with a careful frown. Try projecting to him.
Nate frowned but tried it all the same: Hey, James. What do you remember?
James looked around the room, clearly not placing the voice, but at least thinking clearly enough for Nate to pick it up. Where is that voice coming from? He thought to himself.
Nate held his breath and waved to catch James' attention. "Hey, it's me," he said out loud. I'm projecting to you telepathically. You can just think loudly, and I'll hear it, he explained, though he would have been lying if he said he wasn't freaking out at the total lack of familiarity.
Who are you?
Nate. Your brother, he said. What's the last thing you remember? I know i kind of look like Dad, so that might be confusing…
James frowned deeper and his gaze went to the ground for a moment as he tried to think, but finally, he just started to shake his head slowly along with a deep panic setting in for both of them.
That's okay, that's okay, Nate said quickly, even though his eyes were wide. Okay. Let me help, then. You had a serious head injury, so that's… that's what's wrong right now. But uh, I'm your brother, Nate… our sister's Rachel - the redhead. Our dad is the guy with more gray than brown hair, and his girlfriend is Annie. We like her, but you have insisted on calling her Miss Hale instead of Annie… Your boyfriend is sitting next to you quietly freaking out because he's worried about you… That's Billy…
James was very still as his focus slid from one unfamiliar face to the next, trying to make the connections Nate was talking about, but something was bothering him to a point of painful distraction, and he couldn't hold the thought back any longer. Who's James?
Nate stared at him in pure shock, then swallowed. You. That's you.
Oh. James closed his eyes and leaned back, though it was pretty clear he was trying to calm himself down and going the other way entirely. Okay.
Nate looked toward Billy, and Billy didn't need the prompting before he climbed up next to James and took both of his hands in his. With Nate's help, he projected, Hey, I'm right here. You and I are going to get through this, okay? He smiled and pushed back some of James' hair, though he was obviously freaking out too. "I'm not going anywhere, handsome."
"M'kay," James mumbled thickly, sounding as if his mouth was numb. He was concentrating hard to make the sounds come out and taking far too long for anyone to be alright with his sudden and profound inability to communicate properly.
Billy let out a sigh and then rearranged himself to snuggle in with the blanket over both of them, though Scott was watching the whole thing with an almost resigned expression. His parents had memory problems, he projected to Nate and Rachel, who also looped in Annie. Without the adamantium, injuries like this… this makes sense.
How does this make sense? Nate asked.
Like I said, they had memory issues. Especially from before they had adamantium.
So you're saying someone did this to them on purpose? Rachel asked.
Yes.
Why?
Because they wanted to use them. Because they wanted weapons, not people with personalities and memories and lives. Scott was glaring the more he thought about it. Look at him. If he'd woken up in a weapons facility like this, can't you see how easy it would be for someone to take advantage?
Ummm. Nate looked wide-eyed. This is bad.
How long will he be like this? Rachel asked.
I'm not sure, Scott admitted. The professor worked with Logan for a long time on his memories, but that was from repeated memory wipes and torture. For one traumatic event? I don't have much of a time frame. There were a few times Logan seemed… off… after a bad mission. But nothing this massive.
That really doesn't sound like something that should be repeated, Rachel said.
Definitely not, Scott agreed. He shook his head. You know I'm proud of you kids, but this? This is exactly what I've been trying to protect you from.
Yeah, but I don't think they were trying to do this to him, Rachel said.
No, Scott agreed. No, they were trying to get him to lose his temper so they could prove what an animal he was - or kill him if he wouldn't do that for them. He closed his eyes, and for just a second, Rachel caught a memory of Graydon Creed telling Scott more or less exactly that: use your powers the way I want you to or lose them and your life. Which, again, fed into exactly why Scott had been so stressed about them being X-Men.
So what can we do to help? Nate asked. There has to be something we can do to get him back to himself. Right?
Don't push him, Scott said. Let him remember things on his own - but if he asks for help remembering something, don't hold back. Give him whatever information he needs to piece together whatever parts come to him.
So. Is it good or bad if I had to tell him who he was?
Bad, Scott said. But you needed to tell him that much. Let him ask for the rest of it, though. Otherwise, let's just treat him like we normally would. Let him slip into his life without us spoon-feeding it to him.
I'm going to head upstairs and tell Tony he's not coming in until further notice, Rachel said. He can handle any press in the meantime and James should at least remember he works there on his own before he goes in to deal with that mess. I know he's worried about long term damage but if we're trying to let him go slow ...
Agreed. That could be definitely overwhelming, Scott said, though it was the first time he'd started to smirk.
We'll just have to keep an eye out, and I'm sure that you two can keep an ear open for him.
Absolutely, Annie put in, though she looked like she was still in shock and processing all that was going on.
What's the story with those young heroes? Scott asked. They still interested in moving forward after they watched James get shot?
I think it shook them, Nate admitted. But I think it pushed them into wanting mentors, not into quitting.
Rachel smirked. Which gives us a little hope they can actually make it.
Then we should probably figure out who's going to stick with James - and keep an eye on him until things start to come back. Scott looked between all of them. I think you'll need to let Billy know how to handle this right, and I'm sure he'll fight anyone that wants to take the first shift.
Oh yeah. Absolutely, Nate agreed, nodding a few times before he shifted his focus to let Billy in on what was going on, with Billy nodding along and holding James' hand a little tighter with every word.
The lights, sirens, and yellow caution tape were just starting to ebb after New York's Finest and SHIELD had a clashing of horns over who, exactly, had jurisdiction over the shooting that had taken Wolverine out of the game and winged Hawkeye. But that didn't mean that there was no trace for other interested parties to follow.
The crime scene clean up crew hadn't even been there to deal with the obvious disaster of a puddle that had soaked into the grass and dirt, but … this mercenary knew for sure that a blood sample that size would be too tempting for those with nefarious intent to pass up. It was just … sitting there, full of unlocked potential and genetic markers that sent evil scientists aflutter.
Which was why he started out his first pass of the crime scene by emptying several gallons of bleach on any and all blood he could find.
He'd already killed two Weapon X cronies that had been circling the site - and the guy from AIM was trussed up quite conspicuously with the guy from HYDRA who had also gotten a little too close for comfort. They each had their ID's from their naughty groups duct-taped to their backs with a little note written in crayon that explained what they'd done to get put into time out .. stripped down and facing each other. Both of them gagged. Both of them holding what they thought was a grenade in a position that they couldn't let go …
Or was that a real grenade?
The merc paused, his head tipped to the side slightly as he tried to remember if he'd gone all the way on that one or not, then a second later, he shrugged and continued on his way. The shooting suspect was in custody … but he didn't know yet if it was the NYPD or SHIELD that was holding him. And that's all he was waiting to hear. He just wanted to know where the guy was before he found him and killed him. He didn't particularly care who thought they had first dibs. This creep had tried to kill his little baby nephew - and he wasn't about to let that stand, even if he ended up having to go screw up the security for Nick Fury or Genosha. He had priorities, after all. And he'd let that kid hang out with the likes of Avengers and ex-X-Men for too long.
If the mini-Wolvie was getting shot in the head before he'd even gotten to be old enough to drink … legally… in the states … and have a beer with him, then clearly those so-called heroes had taken a wrong turn. And there was no way that Wade W. Wilson was going to let it stand … not without his input anyhow.
He leaned against a nearby tree after a quick free-throw to dispose of the empty bleach container, trying to keep his head down and his ears open to find out where he needed to go next. His thoughts were interrupted only when his cell phone went off with a muted ding from a text that told him that the delivery to the x-mansion was on the way. Well … at least Cyclops would get something to ease his anxiety until Wade could get to the mansion himself.
But not until after Wade had handled the idiot that had shot his nephew.
The chirp of a police radio caught his attention and Wade waited just long enough to hear which way he was going before he ditched the overalls and slipped into the shadows to get moving.
Chapter 121: The Eyes Have At It
Chapter Text
While James was finally healing a little, Scott finally left the room, if for no other reason than that he knew James was overwhelmed, and he was trying to lead by example and give Billy and James some space.
Besides, he needed to make sure Annie wasn't overstressed. This was a lot to take in, especially on top of everything else.
The two of them went upstairs, and Scott sat down with her in the living room, making sure to kiss her and promise her that things would work out. He'd seen James through a hundred childhood illnesses; they could see him through one more. But just as they were both starting to finally relax, a replay from the late night news in the background caught their attention. Scott hadn't had time until now to pay closer attention to the news. It just didn't seem that important when he was so anxious on James' behalf…
The anchors on the news had their most serious expressions on as they covered the riot and shooting, and though they showed the same footage of the crowd beating James down - obviously from one of the rioter's camera's up close - for the first time that Scott could remember - they hadn't aired it until well after they'd warned their viewers that it was disturbing footage.
They detailed what had happened after the beating of course, though they stopped short of the video that was circulating the internet of the actual shot, and instead started talking about who this young Wolverine was in a manner that sounded … different to the kinds of reports Scott had heard about his team in the past, or even the most recent reports on him now. Scott braced himself, unsurprised when the first clip they showed was of Tony presenting James as his heir apparent. From there, though … Scott found himself watching footage of the night that a hate group had dropped a building on his kids - and the film they were showing of James started as he came out of the wreckage with a little kid attached to him. All of the footage they were using of him was like that too - taking care of little kids, helping people out of danger, fighting thugs and Hydra, and half the time he had his cowl off to do so. Scott almost missed the tone the commentary was taking as he was caught up in the footage they chose to use - but that was just as positive.
Which was when he realized the anchors were angry - on James' behalf.
Scott was honestly stunned. This had never happened to his team. When there had been issues, the X-Men had always taken the blame. The news had always sided with their attackers. Even with the semi-positive spin Jameson had been using … this was … new.
"They're doing so well," Annie said, breaking into his thoughts.
"They are," Scott said, a proud, surprised smile starting up in the corner of his mouth. "That's probably why they went after James. They wanted the team to be scary terrorists again."
Annie nodded and then tucked into him again, watching the news and the anchors talking about the heroes on the team - and smiling the more she could feel Scott unconsciously nodding along and puffing out his chest just the slightest bit. She didn't think he was aware of it, but that nonverbal cue told her that he was proud - and that he would be alright.
Which was good. She liked her fiance to be less stressed.
Billy was floating, so Kate knew he needed someone to sit with him. She was tired and coming down from adrenaline after everything that had happened, so she couldn't think of much more to do than to grab him by the hand and pulled him down to the ground and hug him - but, hey, that was probably what he needed, right?
Billy startled when Kate grabbed him, but by the time he caught up to what was happening and wrapped Kate up in response.
"This happens to the Summerses a lot," Kate whispered. "This is why we have a support group."
Billy coughed a laugh of disbelief as he doubled down on the hug. "You're ridiculous."
"I am, but that's why you love me."
Billy smirked and buried his face in her shoulder for a good, long time, and Kate just let him stay there as long as he needed. "It just feels like everything's happening at once," he muttered.
"Yeah, I know," she agreed.
"Like… this on top of all the stupid from what happened with my grandfather…"
"I know," Kate agreed again.
"And I feel like we just got done cleaning up after Emma…"
"I can start investing in bubble wrap, if that would help," Kate offered, and Billy snorted.
"No, I just… I'm just really tired of things going wrong, Kate. I'd like for something to go right for a change."
Kate sighed and hugged him tighter. "Okay, so, I can't do much to help you right now, but I'm going to suggest something a little out there, and I want you to try it anyway. But, I mean, when Rachel gets this overwhelmed, America takes her to a vacation in a better dimension. I bet you could ask her to take you too."
Billy glanced up at her, genuinely considering it. "Maybe…"
"And you can spend however long you like there," Kate pointed out. "Time gets kind of bendy with interdimensional travel."
"Personal experience?" Billy teased.
"Mile high club in the middle of the school day," Kate said without missing a beat.
"That kind of thing is off the table right now," he pointed out.
"Yeah, but you personally need to relax. You're floating, and you're starting to wallow, and if you get too caught up in how unfair life is, you're going to turn into your grandfather. So let's not do that."
Billy scoffed. "Really, Kate?"
"I'm right, and you know it," she said. She ruffled his hair just for dramatic effect. "Take a break, Billy. You need it. Go get a tan on a beach or hang out at a space spa. Whatever. But you're going to snap if you don't get a break, and the way things are going, you might need an artificial break, you know?"
Billy let his shoulders drop but started to nod along the more she talked. "Okay," he said slowly. "Okay, I'll talk to America."
Kate beamed at him until he wished himself away - and then leaned against the wall and dragged her hand down her face. It was exhausting keeping up with all these dramatic superpowered gods.
Meanwhile, Rachel was keeping herself busy, running interference between the other team members, the newbies, and the adults. She was mortified on how badly she'd frozen up on James and Nate. she'd never lost it like that … she'd never seen either of them hurt or scared so badly that she froze and she was so frustrated over it she was sick to her stomach.
She couldn't quite bring herself to go down to do as Nate had and try to reach out telepathically to James. The Phoenix flames were licking at the edges of her flurry of emotions and she just knew that if she had been the one to discover how utterly blank James was, she would not have handled it as well as Nate did. And she hated that right now, in this crisis, between the two of them, Nate was the more in charge and in control.
She was pacing the ready room - four different television screens showing the flow of information on everything that had just happened and more. She saw the way that the news anchors were handling it, and she was at least glad to see that the overall consensus was in James' corner, but … it was still a lot.
It also didn't help that half way through the traffic and weather report Rachel found herself drifting - lost in the what if worries that had plagued their father for years. What if … they'd actually lost him? What if he didn't get his memory and personality back? What if … what if the last time she'd spent with James had been weeks previous. She couldn't remember what their last conversation was. She couldn't remember if she'd given him a hug, or gotten angry with him over minor irritations that truly didn't mean anything in the long run. Did he go into that mission thinking she was mad at him? Or that she didn't want him around? What if she never got the chance to fix it …
The screen on one of the television monitors went black, and for just a few seconds, Rachel saw her reflection - outlined in fire, her hair levitating around her head along with various objects in the room as they floated, too.
She was letting the Phoenix get the better of her. And she'd been doing so well.
She had to get a hold of herself. And that wasn't going to be easy to do as it stood. She had to make a decision on how to handle it and go forward. Nate was more or less attached to James' side, regardless of who was on schedule to stick with him, and though she hated to admit it, if James wasn't going to recover, she had no idea on how she was going to handle that. At all.
But she didn't have to face that yet. Not when there was a lot of work to be done, and official commentary to be had, which for now, was officially 'no comment'.
"Authorities say that residents should exercise caution after a rogue gunman attacked a trans-agency escort early this morning. The attack was marked by a wake of destruction that left every single vehicle attached to the escort disabled or ablaze. There are early reports that several SHIELD agents died or were severely injured as a result. No civilians were harmed in the attack.
The escort was carrying the suspect from last night's shooting that left X-Man and Avenger, James Howlett Jr, better known as Wolverine, with a head wound after the X-Men broke up an anti-mutant riot near Washington Square Park. Authorities say the suspect was a vocal supporter of Magneto, the former ruler of Genosha and noted terrorist. Witnesess say that police have already begun a search of the suspect's home to see if his attack on the young superhero was a lone act, or one that was supported by a terrorist cell that was angered by the charges that were levelled at Mr. Howlett regarding his involvement in the death of Magneto last year.
We now take you live to a press conference with the NYPD."
The reporter broke away as video played of what was clearly a formal statement from the NYPD. As usual, the police were fairly tight-lipped on what little they knew - stating that the suspect was being moved to SHIELD custody at the time of the attack and that all officers involved were relatively unharmed, though the person who had shot James was now dead as a result of the attack.
When the video ended, they went back to the solemn reporter. "There has been no comment from anyone attached to the X-Men, Avengers, or Stark Industries regarding Mr. Howlett's condition after the shooting, but we'll keep you posted on this story as it develops."
Scott had been pacing as he listened to the news report, though when he heard about the lack of comment, he had to admit to being relieved and frustrated at the same time. No one needed to know how much danger James had been in, but at the same time, he didn't want rampant public speculation.
With a sigh, he sent off a text to Tony asking him if SI could handle the updates, knowing he wasn't in the right emotional state to know what to say. And, James's phone had been ringing for a while…
He had decided to pick up when Harvard called and he had assured them that James would be able to attend. With the start of the semester looming so close, though, he had intimated that James might need a gap semester before he could get started simply because brain injuries took longer to heal from. He promised the administration that they would be kept abreast of the situation - as well as the developing one in regards to the trial - and assured them, again, that James would be back to his old self soon enough.
And Scott knew that was true. He did. But that didn't change how hard it was to watch James look like a passenger in his own body or to know that he had no idea who his own family was around him.
Scott was still on the phone with Harvard when someone knocked on the door, so he didn't answer - though he did do a quick scan through the door and saw that it was a delivery man carrying a bouquet of some kind. Well-wishers, probably. Scott couldn't see anything hidden, nothing electronic, no sign of explosives either.
He hung up with Harvard and then opened the door after the delivery man was gone, shaking his head when he saw the cookie bouquet… only to stare at the note on a red card.
I know. It's rough when your kid is hurting. Especially when they're hurting because of some asshat with a vendetta. But it'll be okay because this asshat has a vendetta, too. Give my lil nephew a kiss for me. First head shot's the hardest. It'll get better. He'll heal quicker next time, too. Kisses!- DP
Scott closed the door and leaned against it. Deadpool. It had been since before the X-Men disbanded since Scott had heard from him, and he'd been happy not to question the guy's disappearance. But he did remember how Deadpool had been overly attached to Logan to the point of delusion… it almost wasn't a surprise that he'd feel protective of James.
He sat down with the bouquet and dragged a hand down his face. This… complicated things when he absolutely didn't need anything more complicated on his plate. He didn't need a mercenary with a warped sense of humor trying to "look after" his son.
However, Deadpool also hadn't shown up himself. And based on the news reports, he was probably the one who had gone after whoever shot James.
Once Scott thought about it, the handwriting on the note was suspiciously similar to the one that had come with the Muramasa blade.
Scott pinched the bridge of his nose and then set the note down. For now, with everything else going on, it was best to just let this go. As long as Deadpool operated in the shadows, as long as he didn't get the X-Men implicated in his actions, as long as he was watching from a distance, that was about the best Scott could ask from him.
More than likely, Deadpool would want to be more involved. To actually meet the kid and confuse or irritate him with a long comparison list to his father.
But Scott could deal with that later. For now, he had more important things to focus on. And if Deadpool was going to look out for James, Scott wouldn't stop him. He was skilled, even if he was nuts.
After all, the Summers family was about to stand trial for Magneto's death. And they'd pissed off the Hellfire Club. They each had a media circus following them around. Scott knew, even if he didn't like it, that he couldn't be choosy about his allies when so many interested parties were out for their pound of flesh.
Scott was still deeply in thought, trying to strategize on how to move forward when his focus was blown - and he couldn't stop worrying about his middle child. Even with Stark and Wanda both offering to take him away from the school, the commotion, and protect him from all of the outside pressures that were all quickly building, he couldn't hand him off again, not after everything he knew - not after realizing how much handing him off for his own safety had left his son with such a low self worth. He had to be there, regardless of the risks, to help him come back to himself.
Especially when there were still major risks in sending him off. As much as Wanda wanted to help, Genosha wasn't safe when the man who'd shot James in the first place had done so because they were worshiping Magneto. Stark Tower wasn't safe when the military and SHIELD was going in and out so freely. As protective as Tony was, he still had to answer to them - and there were a few times when he had straight up hidden or sent James away and out of his care to avoid military connections confirming his existence.
He'd left the texts from the Hudsons and Moira unanswered, though he had read that both of them were offering safe haven as well. It was a generous offer in both cases, but neither of them had been close to James since he was a child. And even if James would ever agree to spend time with them again, the Hudsons were still too close to Canadian military contacts. Moira felt too far away both in distance and in how well she knew James. Not to mention the fact that Muir Island had always been vulnerable in its isolation and lack of real defenses.
There were precious few places left to hide a fully grown, empty slate of a Wolverine - and that wasn't even taking into account the paternal need to protect him. With Deadpool circling, it was likely that he'd have a lunatic option to shoot down, and Scott was trying to keep his focus on how to stop Deadpool if he decided that he had a perfect hiding spot - and Scott was very sure that was going to be an eventuality now that Wade was being bold enough to let his continued existence be known. That … was also something Scott had on his mind, and he'd started sifting through possible interactions that they hadn't looked into as suspicious but now seemed like too-lucky moments. How long had Wade been sticking his nose in the middle of the kids' work?
He'd been in the ready room, going over intel and news, reports, questionable movement of forces that normally would have been handled by Natasha, and generally trying to remember if there was anything at all that would help James move forward in his healing, when the ambient lighting in the room switched from a warm white to red.
He looked up and switched the cameras to see where the threat was coming from, fully braced to see a military incursion to recover his son. Or … to arrest all of them, he wasn't entirely sure, but that wasn't off the table, either. But he was still disappointed to see the black helicopters and convoy of military vehicles coming down the drive that led up to the school.
Upstairs, Bobby had taken up a protective stance, fully focused on the approaching black-clad units marked with SHIELD's logo. He had reached deeply into the ground and had ready enough water and ice just under the surface around the mansion that it would take a lot more firepower than SHIELD had ready to breach, but he waited until the first armed units exited the convoy with guns drawn to form the ice into a ten foot thick barrier fully around the school.
"This is a gun-free, drug-free school zone," Bobby shouted. "No military or paramilitary allowed!"
"Mr. Drake," Fury's voice came back after the hum of shouts and threats on the other side of the ice-wall died down. "If that's the case, we have reason to believe you're in violation of both of those laws. Take the ice down and I won't have you arrested for obstruction."
"Why are you here?" Bobby shouted back, even as he could hear the sounds of the soldiers working on setting charges to break his wall down. Not that it was going to slow him down from making it stronger and thicker at those points. Idiots.
"Don't you watch the news, Drake?" Fury called out. "One of your guys attacked a SHIELD convoy transporting the accused shooter. SHIELD doesn't take lightly to anyone taking the law into their own hands. We're here for everyone involved in X-Force."
Bobby took a visible step back. That … hadn't been in effect for … well … for fifteen years at least. "Is your intel ever out of date," Bobby said just loud enough to carry. "X-Force … there is no X-Force."
"You have several members from that team in-house right now," Fury replied. "Including its old leader. We have arrest warrants for those that we know are here: Psylocke, Angel, Forge, Storm, Deadpool, and Cyclops."
"Oh, is that all?" Bobby said sarcastically.
"No. Not even close." Fury sounded well beyond his usual brash, over confident tones. "Warrant. Keep this up and we'll come in for all of you on charges of conspiracy and terrorism."
"Damnit," Bobby said under his breath. "Like I haven't heard that before." The truth was that for him, he wasn't afraid of Fury or his prisons and charges. SHIELD at least followed basic rules that were expected of them - even with mutant prisoners. He'd lived through a lot worse than SHIELD would throw at him if he was arrested. But he also really didn't want to do that when he had spent so much time in prison already. And things were going so well with Johnny, too.
Bobby looked over his shoulder at the slowly growing crowd of both X-Men and students, then started to let the ice recede. "Students should probably go to a safe room. Just in case," Bobby said quietly, though the message was relayed easily enough, even as Storm and Scott stepped past a few curious onlookers.
"Probably safest with you, Bobby," Scott said. "Impressive wall."
"Kinda wanted to see them try to break it down and fail," Warren added as he stood at the door, directing some kids inside.
As soon as the ice was gone enough to permit SHIELD's troops inside, they swarmed, barely a few steps ahead of Fury, who himself came with a couple of agents he was clearly trying to teach, judging by how young they looked. A member of the tech division looked toward the group of mutant teachers and students nervously and set up a device on a tripod, then hit a switch, leaving the school's residents sharing looks.
But in an instant, Bobby's powers were gone - and he looked human, no longer made of ice. And once the dampener was in play, the agents seemed even more emboldened. They rushed in, ordering the students into classrooms to get them out of the way and then pushing even deeper into the school, while a few remained close to the X-Men they had warrants for.
The ones that did try to go too deeply into the school, however, came on the wrong end of Nate, who laid them out with psychic feedback, not from his powers but from something he and James had set up forever ago, using both his powers and James's knowledge of tech. It was a way to make sure no one could get into the lower levels, even if the school's defenders were down. And the SHIELD agents got to experience firsthand the worst headache they'd ever had. And it would last for an entire day, just to teach them a lesson for trying to get where they weren't wanted.
So any of the students or X-Men who had been downstairs were safe, but the rest were herded into the classrooms. And Leslie Ann was almost shaking, scared and worried and texting behind Lexi Barton's back.
Dad, a bunch of agents are in the school, she texted. I don't know what's going on, but they've got big guns, the powers are off, and it doesn't look good. Help?
There were three dots floating on her screen for a minute before she got a response: Hang tight, baby girl. I'm sending backup.
…
Outside, once the students were inside and SHIELD was swarming the place, Fury looked smug as he headed toward Scott - but Scott was already heading toward him, his hands in fists and then his fingers stretching out and then back in fists again.
"You want to tell me why you're on a power trip or should I assume it's a late-life crisis?" he asked, his eyes glowing green as he scanned Fury to see what weapons he had on him - and there were plenty. "The hell do you think you're doing at our school, terrorizing our students?"
"Oh, no. You don't get to come at me like that. Not when you're running your old black ops missions sending lunatics after anyone that crosses your little dream team."
"You're losing your touch, Fury. I'm not running a damn thing, especially not when you know full well I've got my hands full right now." He narrowed his eyes and pointed at Fury. "Some of us actually take care of our families."
Fury glared. "That's not on the table for discussion, but your knowledge and direction of one of the most wanted mercs on the planet is."
"And I'm telling you I didn't even know he was alive until he pulled what he did. Now get off my damn lawn."
"That isn't much of a threat these days, Cyclops."
A muscle at the corner of Scott's jaw was working as Ororo came to stand next to him and put her hand on his shoulder. "No, he's right," she told Fury coldly. "You're looking in the wrong place. Your intel is out of date - so much so it's laughable. Any real legwork would have told you that. So why are you really here - now that you have a semblance of an excuse?"
"We're trying to get better intel on the merc, for one thing, and for another, we're here to help, believe it or not. You have a target on this place in neon right now."
"That's not new," Scott said through his teeth.
Fury raised an eyebrow, then took a step forward. "When was the last time you had someone like your boy that blank?"
Scott closed the distance so that he was almost toe to toe with Fury. "Anyone comes close to my son, they'll learn firsthand how Viper died."
"He needs to be in a more secure location," Fury said evenly. "Unless you're alright with all these kids risking their lives too."
"Tell you what, Fury," Scott said, his tone low and dangerous, "you turn around and leave now and I won't hold it against you. Keep pushing your luck, and I won't stop what's coming." He brushed Fury's shoulder off. "We're not as unprotected as you think we are."
"This isn't about your pissing contest or territory marking," Fury insisted, even managing to come off sounding like he almost cared.
"No, it's about your pissing contest and territory marking of my son."
"I am trying to do my job, which is to protect this country. You knew that once."
"I stopped believing a word you say when I found out you knew what Greydon Creed was up to. And if that hadn't done it, when you knew what Viper was doing, you lost any credibility."
"And if the wrong people get a hold of that kid, it'll be on you."
Scott narrowed his eyes, but before he could say anything, a flash of red light filled the woods beyond the area of effect of the dampener. And then, the part of the ground where the tripod was set up simply opened up, and the dampener dropped into the center of the earth, with the ground sealing itself back up once it was gone.
And then, Wanda came stalking up to Fury, her cape billowing out behind her, her eyes flashing with red power that was still lingering at the edges of her fingertips as well. "Tell me something, Director," Wanda said, angry enough that her accent was sharper than usual - and so much so that Scott stepped back from Fury, smirking - "do you enjoy testing me?"
"You don't have any authority here, Wanda. Don't make this into a bigger mess than it already is."
"So you're not here trying to come after exactly the children I told you were under my protection," Wanda said without touching down.
"I wasn't aware that Summers and his group of hired men qualified as your children."
Wanda waved her hand impatiently. "Don't." She pointed at Fury, and both of the agents beside him simply dropped unconscious. "Don't pretend I'm other people, Nicholas Fury. You may be here with some delusions about arresting my friends, but I know you, and I know your version of protection. And that boy is my future son-in-law. I'll not have him hidden away like some asset of SHIELD's."
Fury kept a steady expression as he glared at her. "That is entirely beside the point," he said. "Keeping him here, in the condition he's in, is like rolling out the welcome mat to every black ops underground unit on the planet. They will come, and they will kill anyone in their way. You can't say it hasn't happened before."
"Do you think, for even one second, that he isn't safe under my protection?" Wanda shot back.
"You can't protect him all the time, Wanda."
"Neither can you," Wanda replied evenly. "But I'd bet my power and the X-Men against your pitiful attempts at relevance any day."
"He's a security risk as it stands. Nothing he did. Nothing anyone here did wrong, either."
"That's interesting, because I thought you were here to arrest us just for once upon a time working with Deadpool," Angel drawled out from the doorway.
"I'm here to arrest you for sending Deadpool out in your mutant kill squad," Fury shot back, glaring at Warren. "We didn't even get the chance to interrogate his mark."
"Which is how you know damn well Scott didn't run it, because he didn't get to interrogate the guy who tried to kill his son," Warren pointed out. "You really think Cyclops wouldn't want answers? The man has more plans than you do."
"Considering how he ran that team in the past? You want me to answer that?"
"Everything you know about how he operates since becoming a father… you want to be that wrong in front of all these witnesses?" Warren shot back. "You're slipping, Fury, and you're too desperate to be in charge to see it."
"That doesn't really counter my argument well when everything he's done while operating in charge as a father has been vendettas!"
"Because you wouldn't do your job!" Scott shouted. "It's the same story - it's always the same story! You won't step in to save our lives, you won't stop anything unless it suits you."
"Sometimes, Summers, it's not as simple as you want to lay it out. The decision that was made while Viper was playing her games was to save the greater numbers. There was more at stake than one kid, or even three."
"And you never gave them a choice. You never warned them. You did nothing. You did nothing to save my team. You did nothing to save my people. You did nothing to stop Magneto unless you thought it would boost your power. SHIELD is a glorified police force full of delusional has-beens, and you have always hated that my team doesn't answer to you." Scott was back in Fury's face, nearly flanking Wanda. "And if you would just get out of our way and stop acting like we're the villains, fewer people would have died over the years."
"It all boils down to something very simple," Ororo said, joining the two of them, her eyes flashing with lightning. "You have no proof that anyone here was even remotely involved with whatever insanity Deadpool is involved in. You have no proof that anyone here has had any contact with him in well over fifteen years - because lets be honest. That team was defunct long before the Graydon Creed mess. You're here to bully your way through and to force an already marginalized group to listen to your bullshit - but you have nothing. And the idea of you … you being a safer place or a safer person for James to be around when he is in the state he's in is so far beyond laughable it verges on parody. Lawyers have already been called. Go back to your little floating warship before we end up suing you badly enough that it becomes our floating warship - and I assure you, we'd put it to much better use."
As Fury looked between the three of them, obviously realizing that he'd been outmaneuvered, he had nothing to say, and so, Wanda touched down on the ground and held her hands to her sides.
"We're going to forget this happened," Wanda said pointedly. "You'll take your agents and leave. I'll even help." She snapped her fingers, and every agent who had been inside was suddenly outside. "You and I? We're going to come to a better understanding, or this is going to keep happening." She tipped her chin up. "Genosha has always looked out for the well-being of mutants. Consider the X-Men part of that interest. Act accordingly." With that, she snapped her fingers again, and the entire SHIELD group, tech and all, disappeared.
Wanda held out a hand to catch Ororo's shoulder and steady herself. "Well then," she said, nodding once she had better hold of herself. "While I'm here, I'll stop in and check in on James myself, I think."
"You alright?" Scott asked, making an active effort to calm back down after how furious he'd been with Fury.
Wanda waved off his concern. "When I lose my temper, I'm not as good at holding back the consequences of my magic," she explained.
"And consequences mean you need to recharge with snuggles?" Bobby teased.
"Obviously," Wanda said with a fond smile. She tossed her hair over her shoulder as she straightened up. "Oh, Scott, would you call your future brother-in-law and let him know we're alright? Leslie Ann texted him, and I gave him my number last time you were all in Genosha."
"Anton?" Scott was surprised into a smile. "I'm surprised he didn't come down himself."
"He's probably on his way," Wanda chuckled.
Scott let his shoulders drop. "I should probably check on Leslie Ann, too," he said, and Warren smirked, jerking his thumb over his shoulder.
"Second classroom on the right," he said. "You know this isn't helping to slow her down on wanting to join the team, right?"
"She did wonderfully," Wanda said as she walked past them on her way to James. "She'll be an excellent X-Man."
"I heard that!" Leslie Ann called out, grinning, as she poked her head out from the doorway with a few other kids, who had seen the agents disappear and were coming out to see what the story was.
Wanda grinned at Scott. "Have fun," she said and headed down to James, leaving Scott shaking his head.
"You did good," he promised Leslie Ann as she came skipping over.
Leslie Ann grinned and threw her arms around him for an excited hug. "Are you okay?" she asked, her eyes wide. "That was crazy!"
"Yeah, calling backup was the right move," Scott promised. "Thank you."
She bounced on her toes, her eyes alight as she leaned toward him. "So you'll talk to Captain America about me joining the team?"
"I will talk to him," he said - not promising anything more than that.
"Thanks!" Leslie Ann grinned and then flounced off again, off to join Lexi to gossip about everything that had happened.
The group of family and friends were incredible about making sure James had someone with him at all times, but eventually, James found himself alone with his thoughts and an incredibly fast-growing frustration. Billy had to rest, too … and there were always going to be gaps between the family members that shifted out to sit with him. It was hardest, of course, when he was left without a telepath because James hadn't yet figured out how to make his mouth say what he wanted and the concentration involved even for yes and no answers to their questions was frustratingly difficult to manage. He might not remember much, but he knew speaking had never been this hard.
The rest of his coordination was even worse though. He couldn't force his limbs to do what he wanted to the point that the first time he managed to hide his face in his hands was after a failed attempt to write a response for Hank. He couldn't hold the pen right, let alone make his hands direct it. He knew how … he just couldn't force his body to do what it was supposed to. And he couldn't explain it to anyone, either.
The telepaths helped with that, but that left him with a different level of frustration because then he had to rely on them to explain for him … and that was quickly wearing thin.
As James thought about all of this - while concentrating hard to make his hand grip a pen at all - forget properly - he felt a low rumble rolling out from his chest. Across the room, he saw Hank and Tyler lift their heads and turn his way. But he didn't register the growl until a moment after his fingers shifted wrong and the growl changed pitch and got louder. The pen fell to his lap and James let out a frustrated sigh as the growl cut off.
"James, my boy," Hank said in a warm, reassuring rumble as he came toward him from across the lab. "I know you're frustrated, but you are doing amazingly well considering the extent of your injuries."
But that just sparked up a fresh growl because James was frustrated enough that he couldn't find the right words. He couldn't hold a damn pen, and he couldn't say what he was thinking when he couldn't speak properly, so James closed his eyes tightly and put his head in his hands, frustrated beyond words as he tried to figure out what good he was to anyone when he couldn't even function.
"James, wait," Hank said as James tried to push himself more upright.
His legs felt heavy, but he needed to get out. The antiseptic smell along with the complete inability to do anything had James' skin crawling with frustration. He had one leg over the side of the bed, and already he was swaying, unsteady. He couldn't remember feeling like that before … not that he had much to measure by, but he had a driving urge to get out of that lab.
"James," Hank said more firmly. "You're not healed enough to go anywhere. It's alright. You need rest and to work on your-" the second Hank touched him, James let out a snarl that honestly startled everyone in the room … including Nate, who had just stepped through the door.
He couldn't stop the growl as it rolled on, even after Hank backed off and let him sit there - swaying.
"Woah," Nate said in a breath, then reached out to James telepathically. It looked like James simply wasn't trying to reply, but what Nate found was that his mind was going a hundred miles an hour; he had thoughts and impulses he was trying to make good on, but instead of anything working, nothing was doing what he wanted. The level of frustration and hopelessness was palpable. "Hey, wait. I can help if you let me."
James looked up at him, then forced himself to throw his other leg over the side of the bed. With a lot more effort than he should have needed, James tried to force himself to his feet, only to utterly fail at coordinating enough balance to even stand, let alone walk.
Before James had even started to fall, Nate rushed forward to catch him, and found himself at a complete loss as his big brother slipped from frustration to pure hopelessness for how little control he had over himself. Nate looked a little deeper, and could actually watch as James' mind made new connections between memories. Physically, he was mostly healed. Mentally, there was a lot to repair.
So Nate decided to try a different route. Hey big brother, Nate projected, and that at least got James to look at him as Nate helped him back to a sitting position. It'll all come back.
You don't know that, James shot back sounding angry.
Yes, I do, Nate said. You're making all kinds of progress. James scoffed as Nate tried to convince him. You are. Nerves heal last, right? Making everything work goes along with that. Come on.
I can't even stand up, James replied bitterly. Or hold a pen - or freaking speak.
Nate's shoulders dropped, and he saw how easily it would be for someone nefarious to misdirect his sense of self worth at this stage of recovery. You will, Nate promised. You're slower than you want to be, but you are recovering well. Let me help you. Between the two of us, I'm sure we'll have it covered in no time.
Sure, James answered, very clearly sounding as if he thought Nate was nuts.
It's okay-
James snarled again as he snarled telepathically, too. No it fucking isn't.
Nate blinked at him. Woah. Dial it back. Alright. Fine, it's not okay. But … we're trying to help.
James' growl was rolling freely, and it was clear he was agitated -unable to tamp it down. All at once, James looked like he was on the edge of a different kind of breakdown.
"It hasn't been very long," Hank said, taking advantage of how lost and off kilter James was to put him back into bed and help him get somewhat comfortable before he turned the lights off over his head and covered him up - very much like he used to do when James was small. "And though I know you're motivated to do more, you still need to rest."
With some serious effort, James shifted onto his side and halfway curled up, though Nate could see he couldn't even get his limbs to cooperate with that and he'd given up on trying to make himself comfortable before he allowed himself to drift off in an awkward position.
Nate shared a look with Hank before reaching out silently. What can I do to help him? He asked. He's so … I've never seen him like … he's going crazy, Uncle Blue.
What is primarily the issue?
What do you mean? Nate asked, alarmed. He's frustrated that nothing is working the way it should. Nate turned toward his brother and reached out gently to check on him again only to find that he'd gone back to sleep. He's …
Asleep, Hank said, gently redirecting Nate to where he and Tyler were reading research. We're trying to determine what we can do to help. I know he thinks he's overly slow, but the fact is, he's improving faster than we can get the proper materials to assist him. I am a great many things, Nate, but I have never had to deal with a patient progressing through this severe of a traumatic brain injury before. And certainly not as quickly as he is.
But he can't talk.
And most other people that had suffered that kind of damage would be dead. Those that weren't would still be in the emergency department on watch to see if they were strong enough to attempt surgery. I've reached out for help. We need someone far better prepared and knowledgeable about this kind of injury. And until we have better guidelines on how to help him, all we can do is try to keep him calm and not let him push too hard.
But-
His mutation will repair him. Of this, we know for certain. It's simply a matter of time.
And while we wait, he gets to go crazy trapped in his mind with no way to communicate or move his body right.
Hank sighed. As I said. We'll wait for Doctor Strange to come and evaluate him. He'll be far more capable of telling us how we can help.
Nate half glared at Hank because very little of that was useful or helpful right then. And he knew, by brushing James' mind, his brother wouldn't be asleep for long. Frustrated depression and cat naps were only going to let him hide for so long, and he knew James wouldn't be able to just … wait and hope it all fixed itself. So, he took out his phone and made his way over to sit with James and wait for him to wake up so he could try to help James at least move better. Even if that meant cheating with TK to help him balance enough to get upstairs and outside.
It was almost dinner time when Scott went looking for Nate, only to find him looking pensive outside near the boathouse. He was sitting in an adirondack chair next to his brother, who was asleep in a matching chair, entirely passed out. It didn't miss Scott's notice that he wasn't curled up like he normally would have been, either.
How's he doing? Scott asked Nate, unwilling to speak up in case he woke James.
Instead of answering, Nate just gave his father a look and shook his head, letting the silence hang between them for a long moment.
Nate?
He was going completely crazy in the lab and had no idea why. So I helped him try to walk up here. That … didn't go well. His balance is non-existent. He focuses so hard on what he's trying to do, then he can't make it happen anyhow. Two minutes out here in the fresh air and he passed out cold and hasn't moved a muscle more than to breathe. He doesn't remember why he hates being in the lab, but he knows he does. He can't remember much of anything past waking up and he's going crazy for it. On top of that, his coordination is non-existent and that's frustrating him to the point that I can't repeat what he's screaming at himself in his head … because he can't coordinate himself enough to speak and he knows he never had trouble with words.
Scott looked toward James and let out a careful, controlled sigh. This was a good call. Getting him out here.
He was growling, Dad. A lot. And snarling when he couldn't put the word to things. So … that's happening.
Scott nodded softly. His parents had adamantium to protect them from exactly this and they still had moments like this. Bad enough hits, their brains bounced around in adamantium cages, that kind of thing. And… no one could get close to them when it happened. I guess it didn't occur to any of us what they were dealing with.
Well no. If they did what he's doing, they were probably pushing everyone away.
Again, Scott found himself drifting to silence, thinking of how often Logan and K had snarled at him when he tried to talk to them after missions that had been rougher than normal. Yeah. Probably.
He's so angry, Nate told him. I don't think he can pull it back yet.
We'll just have to be there to keep that anger from turning inward, Scott said. That's the only place he can direct it right now.
Yeah, he's already cursing himself, so …
Logan and K used to call me curse words I didn't know existed. I guess we'll call that the next benchmark, Scott said, almost but not quite smirking.
He doesn't usually curse that much, Dad.
Yeah, well, you've heard me when you kids are in trouble…
Ah. Yeah. that's … like not even a warm up. He dove straight into f-bombs.
Scott raised both eyebrows. Huh. Not sure who to blame, then.
He can't think of the right words for what he wants half the time, but the swearing? Sailor level.
Scott pressed his lips together. I wish we could fix it for him. This has always been the hardest part of loving someone with a healing power; you can't do anything to help them when they get hurt and you're stuck just … watching their bodies pull them back together.
Yeah, well … I don't trust him not to pull himself into the lake with how frustrated he is, so.
So we'll do the same thing you did for me after Magneto. We'll get a rotation to keep him safe from himself.
Baby alarm? Nate teased.
Scott smirked at last. Something like that.
Nate took a moment to reach out to check on James again before he reported back to Scott. He's out. Like. really, really out.
Good. Hopefully, his mind and body run with that. He'll need much more rest before this is over. Scott got to his feet and tipped his head toward Nate. "Do you want the first shift? I was going to go talk to Rachel and Ororo about a rotation anyhow…"
"Either way," Nate said. "I'm just going to hang out if you want to do that first. I'm sure I can talk Kate into grabbing a bite with me if I ask nicely."
"I'm very sure," Scott agreed. "Alright. I'll be back to take over for you."
Kate had just gotten the run-down from Ororo on what the story was with James and with the rotation of people who would be looking after him, so she knew Nate would be on his way up from the boathouse. She'd only just gotten back from talking with the new kids - and advocating hard for Steve to let them join up, even if Kamala, the youngest, was a few months shy of sixteen.
But her good mood from hanging out with the enthusiastic new heroes completely evaporated when she saw Nate's expression, and she ran to close the distance between them so that he wasn't even halfway across the lawn before she skidded into him and hugged him.
"Hi, gorgeous," Nate half-whispered as he picked her up in a bear hug.
"Hey, handsome," Kate said, holding on tighter. "I heard the story, and I'm already on Ororo's schedule. How are you holding up?"
"Well, I'm okay. He's … very angry."
"And you've been in his head this whole time," Kate said, wincing lightly.
"No? I mean, when he was awake I had to - he's not really able to speak right."
"Oh, that's actually really good - I mean, that he's sleeping, not the -" Kate waved her hand.
"Yeah, well, I think we'll have to put a warning label on him when he can speak right because … wow. The mouth."
Kate raised both eyebrows and then, to Nate's surprise, giggled. "On a scale of your dad to Cap when Hydra drugged him…"
"Absolutely Captain America," Nate said with no hesitation.
"Now I get to tease him about being a bad influence, and I love this for me," Kate said delightedly.
"Okay, but … Captain America with a growl about 90% of the time. Snarls go with f-bombs." Nate held up one hand. "And … whatever you do, don't tell him he'll be okay or anything close to that. Instantly pissed off."
"Which is a problem, since your family says 'I'm fine' one hundred percent of the time…"
"No, that's okay. It's when someone says it to him. To say it for yourself - that's acceptable. To tell him that he will be fine … nope. Don't do it. I think Uncle Blue is marked for death right now." Nate leaned forward to steal a quick kiss. "Good news though … he's not coordinated enough to stand up or to hold a pen, so I"m pretty sure claws as a threat are a ways out."
"Well, that's good news when he's still that mad," Kate agreed. She took a deep breath and let it out. "But… you've been spending all your time taking care of your big brother, so I officially declare it's time for me to take care of you, okay?"
"Yes. Let's go. Don't know what you want to do or where you want to do it, but let's go." There was no hesitation and he stepped on the last few words she spoke.
Kate let her shoulders drop before she stole a much longer, less polite kiss. She could see how hard this was for him, because his big brother was his hero. And he was going to tear himself apart if it meant he could help James, so her job, as she saw it, was to keep him together. "I was thinking we'd start with dinner, obviously."
"Oh, obviously," Nate agreed with a grin.
"Remember that wing place Jan always used to order from? They have a whole new selection and I feel like this is perfect comfort food and burn-your-nose-out adventure at the same time," she teased.
"Perfect. And probably ice cream after," Nate said. "To salvage dying tastebuds."
"Precisely," Kate said, grinning up at him. "And then we'll curl up and watch mindless shows until we fall asleep. Or decide to do something else. Depends on if you crash as hard as I suspect you will." She reached up to brush his hair out of his face.
"I will not," Nate said, sounding insulted, though it was all for show.
"Sure, sure. We'll test that theory," Kate said, grabbing his hand to lead him toward her car. She was sure she was right, though. Just the past few days had been so stressful, and he hadn't really slept. She'd know; she'd been by his side the whole time. The stress was affecting everyone. Even the newbies were freaked out. Kate wasn't sleeping well either; she was an emotional wreck, too. And she was so stressed out she'd skipped right through her period - again - which really only happened when the pressure was bad. She'd done the same when Scott had nearly died when he fought Magneto and after all the Hydra crap.
But she wasn't going to tell Nate that she was worried about James or that she'd cried about it or anything like that. And she didn't have the emotional bandwidth to double check that she wasn't more than late, because everything was already too overwhelming; they didn't need anything else on their plates. Besides, she skipped all the time from stress. No biggie, right?
She'd talk about all of that with him later, when James was better. Right now, he needed her.
Chapter 122: Pure Stress
Chapter Text
Tony stepped out of the boathouse, half holding his breath from the string of curses he'd just walked away from as Steve took over to try and help James walk … mostly because James wasn't accepting his own body's response to go a little slower as he healed nerve connections when he wanted to push. And no one wanted to argue with him when he was so … aggressive.
"Wow," Tony said, still looking toward the door. "Didn't realize you X-Men were so blue."
"Yeah, this isn't on us," Scott said. "I've never said anything that colorful around the kids."
"If I let myself speak like that, I'd be making a lot more headlines," Tony said. "That … is not like him. But points for creativity, I guess."
"It's still progress. It took him almost a week to speak reliably with little stuff. He's frustrated that he's not healing as fast as he'd like. Then he gets more mad when you tell him how well he's doing."
"Back it up. What he just called Captain America is progress?" Tony nodded to himself. "I'll change Cap's security clearances to that."
"I thought Captain America handled it well," Scott said.
"Handled what well?" Annie asked, meeting the two of them on her way down. She'd been coming to get them to let them know dinner was ready. She was stress baking again - and had been since James had been shot more than two weeks prior. To her, James was blazing through recovery. She'd seen firsthand what happened to regular folks after much smaller brain injuries than this, so she knew that James' progress was unbelievable. Even if he didn't see it that way.
"The directive and the less than patriotic name he just got called for trying to help our young friend," Tony said, then had to cover his mouth to hide the smile when James responded to Tony's commentary from the other side of the door by giving him a directive, too.
Annie smiled when she heard Steve's hearty laughter. "Have you two really never spent time with veterans?" she teased.
"Almost exclusively active duty." Tony was quick to point over his shoulder. "But, that one for sure. All the time. He won't find friends."
Annie smiled wider. "Then why are you surprised at the language? I heard worse growing up from my daddy's friends, especially once I was eighteen."
"For one, it's Captain America. For another, it's not the idea of it," Tony defended. "It's more that we've," he gestured between himself and Scott, "both tried to be careful around the kids."
"Oh, sure," Annie said. "Explains why you're so surprised, doesn't it, sweetheart?" She took Scott's arm. "I'm sure your Air Force dad was censoring around you."
Scott blinked at Annie in disbelief. "Really?"
She smiled back at him sweetly. "Really," she said, then pointed at Tony. "And besides, it's nice to hear him talking again. Even if most of it's swearing."
"I agree. I'm just … surprised to hear that Captain America swears more than a space pirate," Tony said.
Scott burst into a surprised laugh. "I didn't even think about it that way."
"Now you won't be able to not think about it," Tony said. "I know I won't."
"No kidding. That'll fester."
Annie shook her head at the both of them. "Everyone has their vices," she said. "Yours, apparently, is dawdling on the lawn when you know good and well there's not a thing you can do right now to help and there's food on the table for you gossips."
"Hey. That's my kid in there. And I'm backing up Cap," Tony defended.
"Then have fun with your vocabulary lessons," Annie said, pulling Scott along with her - and Scott was still laughing lightly and not about to argue with her.
News reports were flying in from all angles, giving all sorts of reports - Tony was handling the press' questions about James so Scott could focus on helping him recover more effectively. And across the Atlantic, Wanda had been fighting a battle of her own.
As soon as the tribunal had announced the charges they had filed against the Summers family, they'd started the process to extradite them from the United States to Genosha to stand trial. And it was one of the few places that she had little to no sway in stopping them or even slowing them down much. They were set to push…. Or they were until the news broke in Genosha about what had happened to James. It took her several days even with that in consideration to talk them down and convince them that they had to wait. Just a little bit. But … considering that all of her digging had shown that the person responsible for shooting James in the first place was a young acolyte … Scott needed to know what to watch for. If there was one, there would be more.
When Scott answered the video call, Wanda looked worn and tired despite her best efforts to the contrary. It was obvious she hadn't gotten much sleep - but she wasn't resting yet, either. "I won't take up much of your time," Wanda said. "I just wanted to let you know where we all stand. The courts are pushing to extradite - or they were. I convinced them to wait, but they won't stay back forever, and the only reason they are holding back is because it's James and he's the one they can go after for the actual murder. As soon as he's capable of standing trial, they will push - and whatever you do, don't come here for anything right now."
"I'd like to say I was surprised, but Alex already told me it was rough," Scott admitted.
"He's playing it down," Wanda said. "If there's anything you can do to help him along faster …" She sighed heavily.
"Yeah, we'd like to put this behind us, too," Scott said in a somber tone. "Whatever happens, we need to face it."
"I will do everything I can, Scott-"
"I know, Wanda. I know. You've done so much already. I'll make sure you're kept in close contact on all of his progress. We know he'll heal, we just … it's so bad, but it could be so much worse."
"I'm very glad it's not," Wanda said. "I'll see you soon, I'm sure. I want to check in with Billy and I know he's not ready to leave while James is … like he is."
Scott was not expecting to get any visitors in Westchester … outside of his brother, that just never happened. So when Toby showed up, out of the blue in a borrowed car - it was enough to take him off-guard. He only got an early warning about him because Nate saw the car come in when he was with Kate by the barn.
Toby was more than happy to check in on Scott as soon as he saw him. There was the usual greeting, the usual warm tones, and then a friendly, bracing hug. "I can't imagine what you must be going through. The neighborhood is all aflutter," Toby said. "And knowing your aversion to phones, I decided to go ahead and just come to you."
"You didn't have to go to all that trouble, Toby-"
"Actually, I did," Toby said, then gestured toward the car. "The whole neighborhood has been asking me to pass on gifts and well wishes for you and the family. Everyone has been upset that they haven't seen anyone from the family - and with all this talk of murder charges going to court… everyone is worried. So, to keep your secrecy, you're probably doing exactly what you need to. Still." He turned toward the car, leading the way for Scott. "I told them you weren't sitting shiva. Those that believed me decided it was as close to bikur cholim as you'd allow, instead." He shrugged. "You have a following."
Scott couldn't hide his smile as he followed Toby. "Somehow, I'm not surprised," he said softly. "James has that way about him." He paused. "But I wouldn't suggest a visit right now. He's not himself. Traumatic brain injury."
"From the angle they got on the news, I would have been surprised if you told me he was fine," Toby said.
"Yeah, Tony's been handling reporters for the team," Scott said. "He's a pro at telling them off without sounding angry and making them think he answered questions when he didn't."
"He is," Toby said with a smile. "Anyhow, I don't want to press, I just needed to make sure you all knew the neighborhood is in your corner. And that they know enough to go to me instead of to your house."
"Tell them I appreciate it. Really," Scott said, running a hand through his hair. "I… don't really know what to say other than that. This doesn't usually… happen…"
"All the more reason that I had to tell you." Toby smiled warmly. "Let me know if you think of anything you might need - otherwise, I think I'll recruit whoever you have peeking through windows to unload all of this." He leaned toward Scott. "I promised to bring it. From here on out, I will tell them to donate somewhere instead."
"I'm sure if you give Kitty half a minute, she'll tell you where your best bets are," Scott said, still wearing a half-disbelieving smile.
"How are you handling all of this?" Toby asked. "I'm sure the kids are …. Tense."
Scott let out a long, tired sigh. "You could say that," he agreed. "Nate's hardly away from James, even when he's not the designated lookout. You know how much he worships his big brother."
"And now he's worried about getting him back, hmm?"
Scott sighed. "Right now, James can only get around with help. Nate cheats and helps him get places, but… It's hard to watch. James isn't in control of his own body. He's relearning everything. And Nate can hear his frustration even though James can't do much more than swear and snarl. He's re-making language connections too." He gestured vaguely toward the boathouse. "He's progressing, though. He's making more progress every day, taking more steps, saying more words…" He ran a hand through his hair. "But he's beyond frustrated, and he feels trapped in his own body. He knows he knows us, but he doesn't remember everything, either. He's just…" He sighed and let the sentence hang in the air. "It's hard to see him like that."
"I can't imagine," Toby said. "You do expect him to get it back, though - right?"
"Yeah, I do," Scott said. "He's making enough progress that I think he can get it back. Wouldn't be surprised if the memories are the last to come back, though. His parents had the same problem."
Toby nodded thoughtfully. "Then I hope for your sake that the recovery is quick."
"Thanks, Toby." Scott rested a hand on his shoulder. "And, hey, while you're here, make sure to stop through the kitchen. My fiance hasn't stopped baking since this happened, and I don't think anyone can keep up with her."
"The string of broken hearts in our neighborhood just keeps getting longer when anyone hears about her."
Scott laughed. "Sorry to disappoint."
"Not disappointing me," Toby said, holding up both hands. "I'm glad to see you all happy."
"Me too," Scott said. "To hear Jan tell it, the whole wedding is already planned for us, too - they just need a date and a guest list."
"Why don't you give them what they need, Scott?" Toby laughed. "It's a simple matter. Just grab a calendar and pick an open day."
"Oh, little things keep getting in the way," Scott said dryly. But then, he broke into a smile. "Actually, Annie had an idea for an officiant. I hope you're not offended. But she and Wanda have become very good friends the last few weeks. Wanda's been hovering over James almost as much as Nate has, honestly."
"I'm not offended," Toby said. "Billy already said I get to do theirs."
"Well, there you go. Wouldn't be surprised if you got to do my other kids' too, especially the way Nate was thinking when I talked to him around the Fourth of July."
"I'd be honored for anyone who wants me to be a part of their special day, regardless of the capacity."
"Oh, good, because you're absolutely invited to mine," Scott said. "You're a good friend, Toby."
Toby reached out to pat Scott on the shoulder. "So are you. But you are definitely dealing with full hands right now. I won't keep you from your kids or your wedding planning. Just let me know when I can come see that boy of yours, hmm? I miss our chats, too."
"I'll send you a message as soon as he's back to himself," Scott promised.
"Perfect. In the meantime, how about a very abbreviated tour? You said something about baking, and I need cheerful volunteers to unload the car."
Meanwhile, in the lab, Hank was going over a whole slew of scans with his most recent colleague as Doctor Strange had finally gotten around to checking in after hearing about James' problems and taking updates from afar while he found himself overly involved in Sorcerer Supreme-level issues.
"There really isn't anything I can do," Strange told Hank, though he was studying the scans pretty thoroughly. "He's healing up faster than I've seen anyone else. Not that it's a shock, all things considered." He turned toward Hank, more interested than he wanted to be. "I suppose my telling you that simply him being here is in itself remarkable isn't enough."
"No, it's not," Hank agreed.
Strange took a few more minutes to look between the images for progress. "I wish I had better insight. This kind of healing doesn't happen. Not in a matter of months or years - it just doesn't happen. So to try to predict what is going to happen with him, or how far he can take it … I don't know. There's not enough information to make a reasonable guess. How much does that regenerative healing cover? Is it purely physical, or will it reach to personality and memory?"
Hank paused. "It's hard to estimate," he said as Strange turned toward him for elaboration. "His father had to have gone through similar trauma, but he wasn't even sure of his own name for decades."
"And you don't know if his memory issues were from a single incident, many incidents, or as a side effect of the adamantium bonding process," Strange said, his focus flitting up for a moment as Billy came a little closer. He'd gotten to the lab as soon as he'd heard that Strange was there - as a doctor, not a wizard. He was doing better after America had taken him on a two-week vacation that had only lasted a few hours of time in his home dimension, but that didn't mean he wasn't still anxious.
"We're very sure it wasn't from the adamantium, though that did deliver a blow," Hank said. "K went through the same process yet could remember most of her life before it. After, however-"
"And that could be a matter of them being rougher with him, more traumas, or simply variation between different patients," Strange finished. "Unfortunately, the best I can offer you considering the kind of mutation you're dealing with and the level of, frankly, miraculous recovery I'm seeing is to continue active surveillance and keep monitoring his progress." He looked over to Billy. "How are his communication skills coming along?"
"With a lot of four letter words, growls, and snarls," Billy said without missing a beat.
Strange hummed to himself and turned toward Hank again. "If he's having trouble with speech as well as motor functions, it would probably be wise to handle him like a stroke patient. For now, anyhow."
"That is what we've been doing, actually," Hank said. "I was hoping for something more …"
"Without knowing what areas of the brain were affected, I can't possibly tell you what long-term deficits he may be facing. But if it's a lot of swearing and growling, he may simply be taking a walk in his father's footsteps." Strange looked between Billy and Hank. "If he's awake, I'd like to see him. Might give me a better idea of what you're dealing with."
"He's … sort of crashed out," Billy said. "He got mad at Nate for coddling him and sort of blew up at him, then immediately felt awful and pushed everyone away. Nate's still with him, but …"
"Yeah, you'll have that," Strange said. "If you're lucky, it'll lighten up, but I've never seen it go away entirely."
"Maybe I could-" Billy started to say, then dropped off as he realized he was treading dangerously close to saying something he should not in front of the Sorcerer Supreme.
"You could what?" Strange asked, fully focused on Billy. "Wish it away? Don't even think about it."
"I know-"
"Good. I'm sure your mother explained to you the ramifications of playing with magic - and reality, even if your mutant ability has handed you a powerset that is insanely dangerous," Strange said, and Billy could see already he was up for getting chewed out on principle. "Do not tamper with his mind. There's no telling what might happen - and we do not need a nearly-unkillable feral with a centuries-long life expectancy dealing with the repercussions of a spell gone wrong that was aimed at his head."
"No, of course not," Billy muttered, slightly red around the edges. "I would never …"
"Which reminds me. For all the magic you've been working, it's long since overdue that you got a more focused instruction." Strange looked part irritated, part inconvenienced. "For someone as powerful as you are, you simply can't just go … hacking your way through life with just the basics under your belt."
Billy blinked, genuinely surprised. "My mom's been working with me," he said.
"Your mother has been playing soft-ball with you."
Billy narrowed his eyes, his feet slightly off the floor before he thought about it. "You know, where I come from, it's considered rude to talk down to people."
Strange raised an eyebrow at him then pointedly looked at Billy's feet. "And if it was simply a matter of manners, you wouldn't be breaking one of the basic rules over a temper tantrum."
Billy couldn't actually get back down, though. "It's a tell," he said.
"It's a temper issue," Strange said. "One that tells me that you have precious little control of yourself."
"Look, did you ever see my grandfat-"
"Are you using Magneto as a defense?" Strange asked flatly.
Billy stuttered a few times before he managed to say, "You're the one giving me the third degree for being worried about my boyfriend!"
"I'm not giving you anything over being worried for your boyfriend. I'm giving you grief as the protector of this reality."
Billy blushed deeply. "You've been talking to America, huh?"
"No. I've been talking to your mother."
"Wait, what? For real?"
"Since the first time you tampered with this reality, yes. We've been in close contact. And I'm not surprised that you don't know that. As I said before, she's been protecting you."
"In my defense, the first time I tampered with reality, I was nine."
"You are no longer nine, Mr. Maximoff."
"Yeah, I know, I'm just saying- look, it doesn't matter."
"Don't try to argue with me, please," Strange said, sounding tired. "The fact of the matter is that you have an unlimited potential if you were to learn how to use it properly - and when to use it properly. Unless you get some help with that, then you'll have leveled out with what you can do. And it does matter. Far more than you realize."
"Then maybe I need to know what you know," Billy said, frowning, though he had touched back down on the ground.
"I wouldn't even consider it until you could show me you can take criticism without threatening the fabric of reality."
"Because I fly when I'm emotional?" Billy shot back, annoyed.
"Because you can't control your emotions," Strange said as he handed the files in his hand back to Hank. "Thankfully, I didn't come here to try and talk sense into you, but I will be back if you don't get it under control." He turned away from Billy to face Hank. "Let me know if anything changes for the worse."
Billy stared after Strange as he left, stumbling over his words too late before he gestured wordlessly at Hank. "...what?"
"It appeared to me as if the good doctor would prefer you were a bit more conservative with your power usage," Hank said. "Though I might be wrong … I don't speak Sorcerer Supreme."
"That's ridiculous. I've never hidden what I am."
Hank snickered to himself at that, shaking his head as he started back toward his desk. "Obviously not. How plain to see that we all don't have the same experiences in life or the same neon signs on when one should reconsider their options." He smiled warmly at Billy, then gestured behind him. "Extra blankets are in that closet."
"Thanks." Billy headed for the closet, then paused. "I mean… he was saying I could do more, though."
"Not under the current circumstances," Hank corrected.
"Yeah, I got that part." Billy sighed and pulled down a blanket. "I don't know. We've still got a couple years before we can get married, and he's going to school. Maybe some sorcerer studies wouldn't be that bad." He rubbed his hand through his hair. "He's got me curious, okay?"
"I would hope that you would be curious to improve yourself," Hank said, smiling quietly, but otherwise keeping his amusement under control. "Perhaps if you discussed matters with someone else that was aware of the situation?"
Billy tapped his foot a few times. "I'll text America," he decided.
"Yes, likely a wise choice, since I'm sure Strange was planning to speak with Wanda … again."
"Thanks, Hank," Billy said. "That definitely makes me feel better."
"You have time to speak with whoever you like," Hank promised as he put a hand on Billy's shoulder. "James will be out for a while - and I plan to be here should he wake up."
"Yeah, I'll just…" Billy trailed off and pulled out his phone, already texting America - and then rolling his eyes when she texted back:
Hey, he's not wrong. You've literally got the power of a god. You could do a lot more. And after all that time you spent relaxing in the tropics I sent you to, you're not in danger of blowing yourself up or turning into a supervillain out of pure stress. I say it can't hurt to learn more, right?
Billy leaned back and pinched the bridge of his nose. Apparently, he was going to need to talk to Strange.
Just… once James was doing better.
James' level of frustration wasn't ebbing … at all, regardless of the progress he was making. And no one knew how best to help him out when the problem really stemmed from his body not catching up where he wanted when he was pushing so hard in one area or another.
Pushing hard to make physical progress left him with minimal results (in his eyes) but gave him much better results when it came to the speech issues - but at a cost. Yes, he was speaking more, but once he got better control of being able to say words, he found himself unable to find the right words.
It was in moments like that he found himself accidentally making physical progress when he'd throw something across the room, or, more recently, hit the wall with a punch that cracked the siding on the other side of the wall … and broke his hand. Frustrated didn't even begin to cover it.
And while his family and friends were trying to keep their positivity up and keep him going, James was tired of himself. He'd barely liked who he was before all this mess, and now? He'd quit growling all the time, but he was the picture-perfect example of a miserable SOB. He was constantly on the brink of an argument - and now that he was much more mobile - a fight, too.
Even James had noticed, though, that once he really got frustrated, he started to lose his balance easier. Just another reminder to him that he wasn't the person he used to be. As if he needed another reminder.
He couldn't watch television - not when everyone was so sensitive about him seeing anything from the news, which had him only wanting to see why they were all protecting him from it so much. It was irritating at best - and after a long session with Nate ready to catch him with TK the second James lost his balance a little, he was tired from a lot more than the walk they'd taken.
He kept looking toward the lake, wondering if he knew how to swim - and not really caring much if he did or not when the water looked inviting. Which was, of course, when he had a major misstep and twisted his ankle sideways … he couldn't even blame it on a divot in the lawn or a tree root. That was plain and simple just a matter of getting tired and tripping over his own feet.
But before he hit the ground - Nate caught him. And then, Nate started trying to reassure him that he was doing well - which James knew was just … wrong. He saw the body language shift from the cautious, watchful stance Nate usually had around him to barely restraining himself from rushing over to give James a steady arm. There really wasn't anything Nate could have done or said to make it better. Or easier. Or … okay at all. Not when suddenly everything he did was just … pissing James off. And when Nate finally did speak up, James started growling almost as soon as Nate opened his mouth.
"You went a lot farther this time," Nate said, then half held his breath when the growling started. Even after weeks of near-constant growling, Nate never seemed fully prepared when James started growling at him. "You even ran the flat sections. That's … huge."
"Stop."
"Okay," Nate said, stepping back a pace or two with both hands held up. "I'm just … I'm trying to help."
"Don't," James snarled out, swaying slightly where he stood as Nate got the hint and gently backed his telekinesis off. But not entirely.
"James - I can't … I'm not going to stop trying."
But that only got a lower, nastier sounding growl that Nate hadn't heard before. And it was about then that Nate realized that James - once again - was angry and frustrated enough that words were just out of reach. So he did what he'd done almost every time before this and gently reached out to hear what James had on his mind. Only to back out fast enough that he stumbled back a step at the raw emotions he saw there.
James turned slowly to start walking the rest of the way to the boathouse, sure his point had been made for him and feeling equal parts satisfied at pushing him back and guilty for doing so. He wanted to speak. He wanted to tell his little brother what he was thinking, why he was so mad and why he desperately needed him to just … go back to his girlfriend and more functional things to do. Better ways to help that weren't attached to a lost cause. But he couldn't get any of that out. He was too wrapped up in how upset he was that he did finally lose his balance and coordination entirely - and again, even against his directives, Nate caught James before he could get hurt. "Damnit!"
Nate started to rush forward, and this time, James didn't fight him - though he didn't help much either. Not at first. He would have let Nate get him into the boathouse. He really would have. But Nate was upset too. It was hard watching his brother struggle so much with things that he'd always made look so effortless and graceful. Before Nate could censor himself, it slipped out. "It's okay. You're doing really good."
And just like that, James had enough. He pushed back on Nate hard, shoving him away with enough force to knock himself over. And before Nate could get there, and before James could get himself even partially off the ground, he had his hand out. "Get out of here. Go find Kate."
"You are-"
"Would you just … leave me the f-"
"No," Nate shouted back, cutting him off and setting him back simply because Nate didn't do that with James. "I'm not gonna run off and leave you to beat yourself up. And quit telling everyone to go away before they do." James glared hard at him. "You don't mean it. I know you don't."
Nate tried again to help, and again, James managed to push him back.
"I'll get it. Stop."
Meanwhile, Annie was just inside the boathouse. She'd been trying to get to know the kids a little better - she'd gotten a chance to be around Nate and Rachel, but James had been hard to pin down before the incident - and now that he was easy to pin down, he wasn't himself. The strain was clear on the whole family, though Scott seemed to know more than the kids when to just … give him space. But this … Annie had seen this argument between Nate and James coming from a mile away. She didn't need to be a telepath or a superhero to see how crushed Nate was - or how hard it was for him to watch James struggle with every little thing.
So she took the time they were out working on James' physical improvement to pick up around the boathouse and bake where the kids would get to it - though she had noticed James hadn't touched anything.
But now the boys were arguing, and in spite of everything Nate knew, he was trying to convince a very frustrated and depressed James to let him help. Every time Nate got too close, James would abandon his efforts to get forward motion in favor of pushing Nate away - and losing his footing. By the time they came into the boathouse, Nate looked entirely defeated as he just kept the path clear for James, who kept a hand on the wall for balance - even then swaying and forcing himself to be careful.
Annie stopped what she was doing to watch, any whisper of a bright mood gone entirely on seeing how far James had slipped since they'd left - and at how close to panic Nate was.
Once James was to the hallway, he put his other arm out, too - and though he was walking slowly, they both knew he'd get himself to where he was headed.
Annie put her hand on Nate's arm, signaling him that she wanted to talk to him, though she waited until James was well out of earshot before, just to be safe, she took Nate's arm and led him in the opposite direction, until they were sitting out on the dock overlooking the lake together. And then, she took a deep breath, let it out, and rested her hand on his arm, meeting his gaze.
"Nate, you're doing everything you can, and you're doing everything right. You've been a great help to him, and he knows it," she said, first and foremost. "But you're not seeing him where he is, and you're usually so perceptive."
Nate set his jaw and nodded. He'd already heard it from his dad, that this was just evidence that he relied too much on telepathy and was letting his ability to read people without his powers atrophy, that he wasn't always going to have access to his powers and he didn't need to get lazy. "Yeah. Well." He cleared his throat. He liked Annie, so he didn't want to say what was on his mind, that he was trying and nothing was working and he didn't need one more person telling him he was wrong.
And then, Annie said, gently, "He's going to be mad at you no matter what, because he's not actually angry. Anger is just what happens when other emotions explode." She tipped her head to the side. "Have you ever been trapped in your own body, Nate? It's terrifying. You feel helpless. Scared. Frustrated. And to lose his mind on top of that? I can't imagine."
Nate frowned at Annie and couldn't help but brush her mind. He wasn't too surprised to see that she was reliving the time she'd spent trapped under Emma's commands, but she was also thinking about her dad. And while it wasn't quite the same thing, he could see how she had watched her father lose everything that she loved about him. She'd watched him go from warm and open and generous to lashing out and angry and unable to feel comfortable in his own house because he didn't know who anyone was. As he lost his mind to Alzheimer's, he'd been angry far too often - on top of losing the open-mindedness he had acquired later in life, as Nate and James had seen themselves.
Annie met his gaze. When she'd first started dating Scott, she hadn't known enough to know when Nate was brushing her mind like that. But now, after having been in the family for so long, she knew exactly what he was doing. And she let him do it and waited for him to look up at her.
"I know this is going to be hard for you to hear, because you and your father are determined to blame yourselves for every little thing," she said, the barest hint of a smile tugging at her expression as she said it, "but you are doing everything right, and he's still going to be mad at you. And that needs to be okay. You're going to have to make peace with the fact that he feels trapped in his own body, and you're going to have to stop telling him it's going to be okay. Maybe it will be. But it isn't right now, and you're only reminding him of that."
Nate took a deep breath, held it, and then let it out as he pressed his finger and thumb into the corners of his eyes. "Yeah. Yeah, James said something like that when I asked him for advice helping Kate," he admitted.
"He's smart. Not that we didn't know that already." Annie smiled and leaned over to give him a hug, then smiled some more when he turned to give her a proper hug. "You're doing fine," she promised him. "You're a good brother."
"Thanks," he said quietly and held on to her that much tighter.
Annie held him as long as he needed and then let him leave to go find Kate, before she made her way to where she knew James would be resting after all the exertion he'd put into doing things on his own. And sure enough, he was sitting outside on the far side of the boathouse, barely outside, glaring toward the water.
Annie didn't try to touch him or anything, but she did sit down next to him. She didn't try to fix the way he was seated, even though it was obvious he'd more or less collapsed where he was. He looked exhausted. So, she just leaned back on her elbows, letting the sun fall on her.
"It's not quite the same, but I was telepathically trapped in my own mind not that long ago," she said. "I spent half my time crying. It was awful. And I don't think people who haven't lived anything like that understand what it's like." She tipped her head toward James. "Everyone's so focused on the recovery it's like they forget how horrible it is in the moment."
When Annie didn't get a response from James, Annie sighed and got to her feet again. "I'll try to get them to back off a bit," she promised. "Love you, James." With that, she headed off, seeing clearly that he was beyond exhausted and not up to a conversation.
But she did text her brother to ask him to keep a quiet eye on James. She recognized the look on his face, and that family didn't need any more tragedy.
Rachel had held back and let Nate handle things with James, for the most part. She knew, for one thing, that he'd already established a good rapport telepathically with James from the start, so she didn't want to add in another person trying to help James.
And on top of that, the pure hurt of watching her brother act nothing like himself had the Phoenix rattling its cage in her head, and she was honestly worried about that aspect of things.
She had been about to peek in and encourage James, but she'd reached out telepathically to check the temperature beforehand and had overheard Annie's discussion with Nate. Which, honestly, was helpful for her. If she wanted to see her brother, then she couldn't do what Nate was doing; she'd just say hi and make sure as he knew, later, that she'd been there for him.
So, she waited a bit until James was sitting in one of the chairs on the deck of the boathouse and then sat down in the other one.
"If it's okay with you, I just want to sit with you for a minute," Rachel said, wincing into a smile.
James held her gaze for a long moment. "What did I do to you?"
"Oh, no, it's just-" Rachel took a deep breath, held it, and let it out again. "It's my own problem. Got a fiery passenger in my head. But I wanted to check on my brother."
"Okay …" He looked over his shoulder to see who else was around. "And how's that working out?"
"I'm not sure," she admitted. "I think it would be stupid to ask how you're doing, but I … I don't know. I just don't want you to look back on all this later and wonder where the hell your big sister was in all this, even if I know I can't do much to help, you know?"
"I'm sure you have bigger stuff to deal with."
"Actually, yeah, which is why I'm taking a break to just sit with you, if that's okay."
James shrugged at that, though. He didn't really have much of an opinion on how it had all been going, but he had the feeling that precious little of this fell into the category of normal.
Rachel sat with him for a while until she saw Tony headed over and got to her feet. "Thanks for letting me sit with you," she said. "Is it okay if I come by again? I can't read your mind; it's peaceful just sitting with you. It always is."
"Okay," he said, relaxing his shoulders just a bit. "Sorry."
"Nothing to apologize for," she promised.
"Feels like it."
"Yeah, me too." Rachel waved at Tony as she passed, feeling utterly useless and not at all sure that she'd done anything helpful. She headed back inside and didn't notice that the very ends of her hair were starting to catch fire until Warren stopped her in the hall.
"Oh, woah, hey, wait," Warren said, blocking the entire hall with his wings. "What can I do?"
Rachel glanced up and instantly realized what was wrong. "Sorry," she said quickly and patted her hair out so that it was no longer on fire.
"No, no, no, no - no, totally understandable, all things considered." Warren looked over his shoulder. "So … Betsy's not around, but … I know where her gelato is if you wanna take a minute."
"That actually sounds amazing, thank you," Rachel said, letting both of his shoulders drop as she followed Warren back.
"My pleasure," Warren replied, smiling softly at her. "I'm not going to ask what's wrong because I already kinda know, you know?"
"Yeah…" Rachel pressed her hair down again, just to make sure it was safe. She didn't say anything until they were getting into Betsy's gelato, and then, she blurted out, "It's just… I'm his big sister, you know? And I feel like I can never protect him enough, and I should."
"Well that's a losing battle," Warren said thickly.
"I know, but that doesn't mean he's not my little brother, you know?"
"I mean … we never could figure out how to keep his parents out of trouble - and I know it's different, but it seems like the players are the same? It sucks, but you just need to be as there as he'll let you be for now." He dropped a hand on her shoulder. "You're doing great, though. Really."
Rachel nodded and leaned into him. "Thanks," she said, then threw her arms around him in a hug.
Just about everyone in Kate's life was too busy to take care of things like press, which was why she and Mia had been handling that when she could to fill the gaps for Tony and Rachel. She was trying to take care of Nate, yeah, but the world kept turning. And the world had seen James get shot. Which meant she was fielding calls, too.
"Hey, JJ," Kate said as she picked up the phone. "Sorry, no new comment for you. But if you've got something new to throw at me…"
JJ let out a frustrated noise over the phone. "Your father had a colorful comment this morning when the Times-"
"They literally caught him while he was getting coffee, he quipped about Deadpool's calling card, and he moved on."
"Still."
"I don't know what to tell you about the guy, JJ. Dad's told me a few stories, but he hasn't been around in my lifetime. I mean, he has been, but - you know what I mean."
"I do." JJ paused. "Off the record - how's Wolverine?"
"Off the record? Not great. But he's got good support."
"Good."
Kate couldn't help but smile. "You know," she said, "someone is going to figure out someday that you have a soft spot for-"
"I'll talk to you later, Miss Barton," JJ said and hung up.
Kate smiled to herself as she pocketed her cell phone. She hadn't smiled in a while, and getting to fluster JJ instead of having to constantly respond to him - that was worth smiling about.
That and stealing Annie's recipes.
She peeked around the doorway, where Annie was gathering ingredients for monkey bread. "Sorry about that. JJ gets annoyed if I ignore him," she said, smirking to herself.
"Oh, don't apologize. I know you're keeping so much off of everyone's plate and filling the gaps for Stark, too," Annie said, waving her over and handing her an apron.
"Yeah, but you said this was a good stress relief, right?"
"There's something satisfying about creating something in the middle of chaos," Annie explained. She paused, smirked, and added, "And pounding bread into submission is fun too."
"And I'll get to totally throw Nate off his groove when he realizes I've got Annie skills too."
Annie laughed and slid the recipe book toward her. "He'll be thrilled," she agreed.
The day was hot, humid, and generally unpleasant when the wind wasn't blowing, and James had decided he was taking a shower, come hell or high water. Even if he was worn out from all he'd done earlier in the day, he was ready to crash, hungry … but more than that, he wanted to hide in the water. And he stayed under the water long after he'd cleaned up, just … sitting on the floor of the shower in the spray trying to make sense of everything. Weighing out his options. Wondering how long he should keep making everyone miserable around him.
His memory was still trash. He knew who everyone was around him … because they'd told him. He knew the relationships because they'd told him. But he didn't know anyone yet. And at the rate he was going, he didn't know if he should bother.
Finally, James realized the water had run cold, and he sat there for a few minutes longer, enjoying even the cool water for as warm as it was outside. But he knew it wouldn't be long before someone came knocking to make sure he hadn't gotten hurt. Again.
So, he forced himself to his feet and swayed there for a long moment, even with his hand against the wall. He was dizzy, and the headache that had been building all day wasn't going away. It was just getting worse. He turned off the water and wrapped a towel around himself, then towel dried his hair and took a long moment pressing the heels of his palms into his eyes before he stared at himself in the mirror for a while, trying to figure out who he was. Sure, he knew his name and the bits and bobs that he'd been told, but … that was next to nothing.
The harder he tried to reach for it, the more his head hurt, until he was getting some nasty migraines that were distorting his vision and making his ears fuzz out. With one hand on the wall, he returned to his room and rushed drying off, only to pull on a pair of shorts and the first t-shirt he touched before he flopped down on the bed - entirely devoid of any grace. He pulled a pillow over and punched it into a more comfortable shape, eyes half closed before he had laid down entirely.
He was suddenly hungry … hungry enough that as he drifted off, the only thing that slowed him down was how loud his stomach was. But that would have to wait. This lure of sleep felt much more pressing to James' stressed and depressed mind.
While so many people were focused on helping James and the Summers family, there were still the newest heroes to deal with.
As far as Steve was concerned, they were all right on the cusp of being old enough to join the teams, but they weren't trained enough - that much was obvious from how quickly the riot had gotten away from them. They had genuine talent, but they needed help with the logistics of being heroes. They had heart, but not understanding.
And that, of course, was where Lexi Barton came in.
Steve had promised to talk to the kids' families, which was itself a big deal for them, because who else could say that Captain America was going to personally advocate for them to become heroes? That kind of thing didn't just happen. But part of the deal he'd made with the new kids was that they needed training with their powers, and while they could absolutely work with the Avengers, they were young enough that, really, the best training they could get would be at the school.
But Scott had made sure to tell each of the new heroes that they wouldn't start anything until they'd gone to talk to their parents first on their own, to tell them about their powers and their plans. He'd told them to take their time and not let anyone pressure them into anything they weren't ready for, which a lot of the kids had appreciated as well.
Still, they wanted to know more about the school, and while Mia was helping Tommy deal with Genosha drama while Billy was distracted, Lexi had volunteered to take her usual spot giving a tour.
Which was how the newcomers found themselves being led by an enthusiastically bouncing Barton down the halls of the school as she gushed about everything from the classes to the teachers to the team.
"...and summer vacation's just about over, so there will be more students here pretty soon," Lexi said as she finished up the tour, ending up in the gardens so she could take any questions they might have without anyone around to distract or pressure them - a trick she'd learned from Mia. She grinned and sat down on one of the benches lining the path. "So, you guys excited?"
"I mean, how could we not be?" Miles asked, looking around. His eyes had gotten wide toward the start of the tour, and Lexi was pretty sure they'd never gone back down to normal size.
"This is pretty cool," Sam said, not bothering to try and hide his enthusiasm like some of their friends were. "Where do we learn to fight like … all the idiots?"
"That would be the Danger Room," Lexi said, grinning. "Which you'll get to see later. I know it's a total bummer to skip it, but, like, the only reason this school hasn't been leveled again is because of advanced paranoia, so you'll get there when you're on the team, I promise."
"I mean, that does make sense," Amadeus said.
"I thought students got to learn stuff about self defense and things, too," Sam said - not quite arguing, but clearly on the path.
"Yeah. What, did you think we only have one training room?" Lexi rolled her eyes as well as her entire body toward Sam.
"Um. Yes." Sam threw his hands up. "Obviously."
"Sam, there are, like, three different gyms on the lower floors alone, and several different training rooms depending on what you're working on. Betsy runs the coolest ninja class ever, by the way."
"I am totally taking that," Sam said without missing a beat.
"You should," Lexi said enthusiastically. "It's always a challenge, and it keeps you on your toes, and honestly, it's one of my favorite classes in the whole curriculum."
"So, is it a requirement to join the team, then, too?" Amadeus asked. "I'm not exactly built for stealth."
Lexi shook her head quickly. "No, you just have to be able to fight without your powers, so you can protect yourself if you're ambushed. So self-defense and then at least one type of training based on where you want to focus in the team. Like, my baby brother is the best at stealth, so he's been taking some low-key basically-theivery classes from Remy."
"I am already focused on tech and smash," Amadeus said with a crooked grin.
"Well, there ya go. You should totally ask Kitty about tech, then," Lexi said reasonably.
"Is there a limit on who can take which classes, if we're all going to be on the same team - eventually?" Miles said, though the last bit was tacked on hastily.
Lexi shook her head. "No, you just find something that works for you, you know? But Storm likes to nudge everyone to take different classes even once you're on the team, because you never know if you'll need to cover for someone, you know? Even the adults are always trying to learn more and keep their skills sharp. My dad still sometimes comes over to get his butt handed to him by Betsy in a good swords matchup."
"So … do all the Avengers come around for scheduled fights?" Sam asked, bouncing around Amadeus to cut him off.
Lexi shrugged easily. "It's not, like, a scheduled thing, you know?"
"So who's the more hardcore team?" Sam asked with a broad grin.
"Oh, I am not answering that on the grounds that telepaths live here," Lexi said, laughing as she held up both hands. "And either answer gets me in trouble."
"Oh, come on," Sam said, still grinning at her. "Your sister's on both - you gotta have an opinion."
"I mean, here's the thing," Lexi said, blushing high on her cheeks. "The literal worst trouble she has ever been in was because of Hydra, and they're usually an Avengers problem, right? But in terms of quantity of yuck, the X-Men deal with just a downpour of awul. So which is worse, right? The occasional absolute-worst-thing-ever-facing-literal-Nazis-evil-to-the-point-you-almost-die or constant uuuugggghhh?"
"I mean … how bad is the downpour? Like … people being jerks or is it common that they shoot at you in public? Like, I know we walked into a bad scenario, but …. How often is it that bad?"
"Oh, we can't possibly include Wolverine-specific problems in our calculations, because that's unrelated to what team he's on," Lexi said, waving her hand. "He got shot because of the whole thing with Magneto. Which I guess is X-Men related?" She blew all her breath out so it vibrated her lips. "Look, the downpour is hard to measure what's from being on the team and what's from being a mutant…."
"But if you take out Wolverine issues entirely … then … which one is more hardcore?"
Lexi sighed. "It's not a competition."
"That sounds like a Stark-sponsored cop out," Sam teased.
"No, it's a realistic one," Lexi said, rolling her eyes again. "There's layers to it. The original X-Men were literally wiped out and sent into hiding, so, like, are you asking about them? Because yeah, they're a whole level of badass above everything else for very obvious reasons."
"And still … someone said no one joins the X-Men without going through the Avengers first," Amadeus pointed out quietly. "Sounds kinda weighted."
"Because of the aforementioned genocide?" Lexi goggled at him. "Like, after everything that happened, having the Avengers take a vested, active interest in the X-Men is life-saving. Having a second team that notices if you're, you know, dying? Big deal. I mentioned the levels of paranoia we live with, right? That's a thing."
"Chicken and egg scenario?" Amadeus said to Miles, who nodded sagely with him.
"With what we know right now? Sounds like."
Lexi waved her hand. "Anyway," she said pointedly.
"They're just like this," Kamala said. "Boys and their competitions that no one cares about."
Lexi smirked Kamala's way. "My mom says that's half the reason the original two teams didn't get along. Testosterone instead of actual communication."
"Maybe," she replied slowly, not willing to bust herself out on what she had learned over her time reading every bit of information she could on both teams.
"Anyway," Lexi said, "I meant to ask if your parents had any questions or anything - or how that's going, I guess." Lexi winced slightly. "Sorry, I've never had to have that conversation…"
Amadeus shrugged lightly and looked down at his hands. "Not much to do for me, honestly," he said. "No parents to talk to, just transfer paperwork to do…"
Lexi touched her nose. "Right. Dad said you were at the Massachusetts Academy. Were you there when it blew up? That was insane."
Amadeus shook his head. "No, I was at a science conference that weekend, thankfully."
"And my mom already knew," Sam said when Amadeus had been quiet for a minute; the Massachusetts Academy had been home for him after his family died, so that was still a rough topic. "I mean, my dad was an alien, so… hard not to know, right?"
"Fair point," Lexi said, laughing in spite of herself. She looked Kamala's way. "So…?"
"It's a work in progress," Kamala said haltingly, half holding her breath.
"What's to work on? You have awesome powers!" Lexi pointed out, grinning widely.
"I know, but, like … they will totally flip out if I just saunter up and blurt it out. It's just … I'll get there. I have to ease them into it."
"Yeah, same," Miles said, nodding quickly. "My dad's not a big fan of superheroes as it is? Especially with everything that's been in the news lately, you know?"
Lexi bit her lip. "Yeah, okay, fair point on the news. It's been crazy lately. Seriously." She looked between Kamala and Miles. "But…" She paused as a butterfly landed on her nose and had a serious discussion with her for a second. "Right. Yeah, no, you're right. No pressuring. You did hear that right." The butterfly left, and Lexi sighed. "Anyway, um, I think that's it for the tour, unless you guys had any more questions?"
"Not right now, anyhow," Miles said. "I know we have to get through the talk first."
"I wish I could give you some advice," Lexi said earnestly.
"So … how is the team doing," Kamala asked, trying to sound casual. "You know … with everything … lately."
Lexi grimaced and leaned back on the bench. "About as well as you'd expect. Everyone's worried. But James is healing, so that's something, anyway. Just sucks that everything always seems to happen at once, right?"
"That's what everyone says," Miles agreed.
"Just means we're due for something good, right? After this trial is over, maybe. You know Cyclops is engaged, right? My Aunt Jan is already designing for the wedding." Lexi grinned. "It can get pretty rough being a hero, but we know how to party. Just wind Tony up and let him loose. It's a blast!"
"Yeah, can we go back to the whole Cyclops getting married thing?" Kamala asked, her eyes wide. "Because that- I mean - like it wasn't even that long ago he was dead, I mean as far as anyone knew, right? And, like… what?"
Lexi threw her arm over Kamala's shoulders. "Strap in, my friend," she said in a conspiratory whisper. "We need to catch you up on the saga that is the Summers family."
James didn't move at all once he fell asleep. Not for days. It was more than enough to get the rest of the family concerned, and America was even nice enough to (jokingly) hold a mirror up to his nose to prove to Rachel that he was still breathing. But, eventually, James woke up … groggy, sore from sleeping in one position - and hungrier than he could ever remember being. It took him a long moment to get his bearings once he sat upright, and with his eyes half closed, he got to his feet and silently padded to the kitchen of the boathouse where they were temporarily staying. With his focus plainly on just food, he didn't realize he wasn't struggling nearly as much as he had been physically.
It was almost three in the morning - no one was awake, no one was around to spot him silently moving through the boathouse, though Nate was passed out on the couch, fitfully sleeping… and James sure as hell wasn't going to bother anyone. Not like he wanted to talk to them anyhow. His head was still killing him, but he was starving. And dehydrated. So he spent nearly an hour stuffing himself with anything he could get his hands on, then drank as much water as he could hold before he went right back to bed, curled up in a little ball, and passed out hard. He was better off staying out of everyone's way, and he was disappointed that he'd woken up at all, if he was being honest, so sleep seemed like the best case scenario … for now.
He could have waited for someone to get up - he was pretty sure Scott would be up at dawn, anyhow - but that was bound to come with questions that he didn't want to think about. This? Sleeping was much easier. Once he fell asleep again, he slept hard enough that he didn't hear the confusion when Scott did get up to see that the place had more or less been cleaned out of anything edible. He also didn't hear it when Scott came in to check on him. Or when Nate did the same.
After Scott let out a hollow, disbelieving laugh with no amusement, the rest of the family was clued in on what Scott already knew: that not only was this not a surprise, all things considered, but that it was a good sign if James kept crashing to coma-like levels of unconsciousness after gorging himself.
But because they didn't know where he was in his healing since he wasn't talking to anyone, the whole of the Summers family started taking watch in shifts to try and catch him so they could talk to him. Naturally, that wasn't going to work.
Over the course of the next several days, James slept without moving, essentially repeating the first coma and worrying his little brother sick. Moreso when Nate realized that the second time out, James managed to sleep for a day longer than when he'd fought with his brother. And still, when James woke up during the wee hours, he managed to evade them all again.
But Scott was quick to adjust to James' off-kilter schedule, and after the second round of late-night fridge raids ended up spaced far enough apart that Annie was worried, Scott caught James on his way to get a drink when he got up for round three of refueling.
"I'll join you," Scott said, getting ahead of James to pour them both coffee but letting James pick what he wanted from the fridge and pantry. And when James sat back down with a plate full to bursting, Scott smirked quietly into the coffee mug. "Annie's been making everything she can think of hoping you at least enjoy these little late-night raids."
James watched him for a long moment, refusing to speak until after he'd gotten through his first few bites and washed it down with the better part of a mug in one go. "Is that why she hasn't had time to get you to shave?"
Scott absently raised a hand to his face but couldn't help but smirk - since that sounded much more like the James he knew, even if he was a little gruffer than Scott was hoping for. "Been distracted."
"Anything I should know about?" James asked, going right back into his food and not really looking up at Scott.
"Just honestly glad to have you back," he said.
James made a low sound in the back of his throat at that, though. "Don't feel like it."
"Yeah, I know. Recovery sucks. I never had the patience for it either."
James let the quiet stretch out for a long while, obviously trying to avoid talking if he could - which wasn't necessarily like him and was a reminder that things were still off. "Now what?"
"Now… you focus on healing, and when you're feeling like you're ready to get back on your feet… I was hoping I could help you with your new apartment. Assuming you're still going to Harvard."
James let out a sigh. "You think they still want me after … that?"
"Absolutely. If anything, it would be a big win for them. Big story."
"I don't see how. Left my brains in the park."
Scott raised his eyebrows, realizing that James knew more than they'd wanted him to; he must have seen the news. So, he let James in on the rest: "Kate and JJ have been colluding. Not as much recently, but … he's actually been ginning up good press for the school, railing against hate groups… you make a big recovery and go to Harvard and dazzle them like I know you will, and that's just one big middle finger to the people who tried to knock you back down."
"Yeah … well … they ever figure out who it was?" James glaring at the table, though that softened slightly when Scott got up to bring the coffee pot over and refilled his mug. "Or are they waiting to see what happened with my 'big recovery'?"
"Acolyte," Scott said simply. "He's dead now. Mercenary came after him."
James kept his focus on his coffee mug. "So what… immediately next?"
"Right now? I'd just like to share a cup of coffee with my son."
"And maybe give me some input on the next project."
Scott smiled broadly. "Yeah? What are you thinking?"
"Thinking Tony was on the right track. Gonna have to bulletproof the uniforms."
Scott raised both eyebrows, grinned, set his mug down and pulled James around the shoulders for a hug. "Perfect. We'll work with Jan." He hugged him again. "Missed you."
"I still don't feel right, so … be aware."
"That's alright. We'll deal with it as it comes."
"I know I'm missing something," James said as he went back to eating. "And you can tell Annie whatever you like. I haven't been paying attention to what I'm eating. At all."
"Then I'll make sure she knows you loved it," Scott said. "She's doing her best. Wants to help, especially after you saved her from Emma."
"Nate would have figured it out."
"Eventually." Scott left his arm around James's shoulders. "Still, she adores you."
James frowned as he thought it over. "Uh-huh. Where's my computer?"
"Billy's got it. He's been monitoring your email just to make sure no college things go past."
"They'd send a letter to revoke," James said. "More official that way. Even if it would look bad on them for doing it after I lost-" He stopped himself from saying what was on the tip of his tongue - only because it was his dad he was talking to.
"Like I said, we'll take it as it comes," Scott promised. He ruffled James's hair affectionately, seeing James's empty plate and tired shoulders. "And I'll let Annie know you first-named her. She'll be grinning for days."
"Doesn't count if I don't remember doing it," James replied as his eyes drifted closed. He wasn't quite ready to go back to sleep, but the headache was building again. "Did they get the bullet?"
"No, it was a through and through."
"Damn. I was kinda hoping that was why…"
Scott let out a long breath. "You know," he said slowly, "your father used to disappear after a bad hit like that. My guess is the adamantium stopped it from being this bad, but it was still bad enough that he needed to heal for days. I can't say I understand this mutation as well as he did, but if I were to guess based on how long it took him… I think a few more days of eating and sleeping will do it."
"And if that doesn't cut it? Eventually, there has to be a point where I just … get away from everyone."
"You're more yourself than you've been since it happened. That's a good sign," Scott pointed out. "No reason to give up on the downhill."
"How long has it been?" James asked.
"Long enough to grow a beard," Scott teased.
"For you? That … isn't much of a measure. Why aren't you shaving again?"
"On top of all the drama with the Genosha trial, you didn't remember who I was, and I only just felt like we were making any progress after Emma…" He drifted off, rubbed the back of his neck, and let the statement fall.
"Is Nate okay?" James asked after a long moment of frowning and staring out the dark windows.
"He's been staying at Kate's place. She's determined that he will be, like it or not."
"Yeah, but - nevermind."
Scott watched James for a long moment but decided he was too happy to have his son back to press the issue. So instead, he squeezed James's arm. "Get some sleep, James. It's good to see you." He ruffled James's hair backward. "Love you."
"Yeah, love you too." He failed to stifle a yawn. "See you in a week. Maybe."
"I'll tell Annie to restock the coffers."
"I went easy because you were here. And scruffy."
Scott chuckled. "Love you. See you when you wake up."
Chapter 123: You And Me And Baby Makes Three!
Chapter Text
Kate felt like, for the first time, Nate was able to breathe - and so, she was able to breathe. It had been almost a month and a half since James had been shot, and she had even been blowing off JJ despite the fact that they were on the same side in the quest to unmask SHIELD's machinations. Everything felt like it had come grinding to a halt when James got hurt, and now, slowly, they were all starting to come out of the fog of panic and try to remember what normal felt like.
It had come faAster for other people, obviously, but Kate loved Nate, and she couldn't stand to see him look so crushed. She knew how much he openly worshiped his big brother, and she knew that he would do literally anything in his power to help James. So she'd spent, what, five, six, seven weeks taking care of him? It had all blurred together; she'd lost track of time. It hadn't mattered, anyway. What mattered was making sure she had Nate's back so he didn't fall apart while he tried to be everything for James.
But she'd also been hit hard by what happened to James, especially because before he'd been shot, the last thing she'd done with him had been to argue with him when he was trying to keep her safe. She'd gotten so upset with him, and she didn't even have a good excuse.
Kate frowned as a thought occurred to her that, frankly, she had been ignoring for a while. It was unusual for her to miss a period here and there when there was so much stress from her job. She'd skipped two from the stress of everything that happened with Viper, and that in itself had screwed with her anxieties on a level she hadn't thought possible. And she just figured she was stressed.
But…
She went to her calendar and flipped through it, counting the weeks since her last period. She'd already been a little late when the shooting happened, so…
She swallowed hard. This… this was…
She sat down and scrunched her hand in her hair, staring at the calendar. Eleven weeks. That was how long it had been since her last period. And, god, if there was a reason for it beyond stress and if James had known, it would explain so much. Her head was spinning as she tried to pin down when, exactly, James had starting acting like an overprotective pain in the-
"I think I'm gonna throw up," she said out loud - which was of course horrible timing, because that was when her mom had let herself in without Kate hearing her. Kate had been keeping Nate going, but Natasha had been fueling Kate. So she was instantly worried when she heard Kate say that.
Too late, Kate registered her mom's presence, and she dropped the little planning calendar she had in her hands, tried to catch it, missed, and couldn't even try to play it off. "Gah!" She bent down and picked up the calendar, blushing with frustration. "Sorry. I just… hi. I didn't hear you coming."
"Clearly," Natasha replied with one eyebrow ever so lightly arched. This could quickly slip into an interrogation.
Kate gripped the calendar tighter until it bent slightly, and then she set it down. "It's okay. Probably a false alarm. So let's start with that and not panic, right? That's the smart thing to do here is not jump straight into assumptions."
"What exactly are we not jumping to conclusions over?" Natasha asked, keeping her expression and tone neutral.
"Oh. Well. Um." Kate took a deep breath and let it out. "It's just… and please, Mom, remember what I said about maybe this not even being a big deal because I've been stressed out and-"
"The more you talk like that, the more it sounds like something to be concerned over."
"Okay, you know what, that's fair. I'm sounding a lot like Dad and that's not a good sign, right? Dad says it's a tell. I'm trying to work on it. You're totally right."
"Spit it out, Katherine."
She winced and pulled her shoulders close to her ears. "I… skipped a period. Um. Twice."
"That's not usually how this works." She barely blinked. "Have you taken a test?"
Kate shook her head. "No, I … I just did the math. I just figured it was stress, right? It's got to be stress. I missed two after Viper. It's just stress. Nate can't - I don't want to tell him unless it's actually something to be worried about because he doesn't need anything else on his plate right now and - I mean, what if I get all worked up for nothing and that's not helping anybody, really-"
"Take a test," Natasha said. "Then you'll know if it's something to be concerned about."
"Right. Yeah. That makes sense." Kate took a deep breath and tried to get it together. "Sorry. You literally walked in right as I did the math. I'm still processing this."
"Does anyone else know? Or suspect?"
Kate bit her lip. "I can't be sure," she said slowly, "but I think James at least suspected. He was flat-out playing bodyguard in that last fight."
Natasha sighed, letting her shoulders drop. "Test. Now."
"Yes. Right." Kate got to her feet and scooted out of the living room, making a beeline for the bathroom. She had a couple tests because, well, she and Nate weren't idiots, and they knew birth control could fail, even if they were careful. And she'd always sort of figured the tests were for peace of mind; she'd never gotten a second line.
It took her a few tries to get the stupid wrapping off of the stick, because it was hard at the best of times. But even after she waited the few long minutes she was supposed to wait, she didn't actually want to see the test results either.
She peeked over and let her shoulders drop. "Okay," she said, nodding to herself a few times. "Okay, so… so this is happening now." But she didn't leave the bathroom for a few minutes, either, because she knew her mom was going to be furious - but in her quiet way, where Kate knew someone was going to get murdered and she didn't actually want that either.
She made her way to the living room, where Natasha was waiting on the couch. The groceries were already put away, and Natasha was watching every move Kate made. It looked like she already knew the answer.
Still, Kate tried her very best to spin this in a positive light. "So, ah, want to be my plus-one at the doctor's appointment? Can we go to Hank and make him swear not to tell anyone or is that wildly optimistic?"
Natasha took a calming breath. "He'll be discreet."
"Okay. Okay, that's good," Kate said. She took a deep breath to calm herself down too. "Mom… don't kill him, okay? You've known for a long time we've been having sex, and we're on birth control and everything, so we were safe, and-"
"I don't make promises I can't keep, and I don't plan to start doing so now."
"Yeah, but I don't want you to kill him," Kate said, shifting her weight from one foot to the other.
"Let's just get you to see Hank," Natasha said.
Kate was wringing her hands the entire way to Hank's room. He wasn't even in his office, since it was the evening. But this felt like the kind of thing they needed to talk about in person. And Kate suspected her mom thought she would chicken out if they didn't start acting on it now.
Which was true. Kate wanted nothing more than to pretend nothing was wrong and go back to living her life. Which she knew wasn't a thing. Sooner or later, she was going to start showing.
And she still didn't know what she was going to tell Nate.
She hoped to god this was just a false alarm. If it was, she was going to tell him that. They could laugh about it and curl up with some popcorn and talk about a future when they would be ready. Because the whole marriage and kids things was totally in Kate's plans… long-term. Not short-term.
When Hank opened the door, Kate untwisted her hands long enough to wave and then went almost right back to twisting them. "Hey. Um. How - um - how likely is it that I got, like, a false positive on a pregnancy test? Tell me good numbers, Hank."
Hank raised an eyebrow and readjusted the glasses on the end of his nose. "Near zero." He cleared his throat as he watched Kate hold her breath. "That's not to say it is zero, but the liklihood of someone your age getting a false positive with the possible other outcomes is rather slim - and generally far more unwanted."
"Okay. So… second question." Kate was trying to hold it together, but she genuinely didn't even know what emotion she was feeling. It felt like all of them at once. "Can you tell me… y'know… when…?"
"My dear girl, I absolutely can. In my office. I'm not as adept as Logan was at estimating without the proper testing supplies." He smiled to himself, trying to lighten the situation a little. "It was stupidly frustrating."
"I actually didn't know he could do that," Kate admitted.
"No one could surprise him with that particular brand of news unless they simply hadn't approached him leading up to the discovery themselves."
"Huh." Kate bounced slightly on her toes. "So, um, listen, I haven't talked to Nate yet or anything-"
"Ah. Understood. As always, matters of privacy are of the utmost concern. You're secret is safe with me until the time you choose to share it."
"Thanks." Kate brushed underneath her eyes.
Hank took a moment to rest his hand on her shoulder and met her gaze. "Kate. You'll be wonderful. I'm sure of it."
She gave him a tight smile. "I'm really not ready for this, Hank."
"No one ever is. Even if they go into it thinking they are."
"Yeah, well, at least that's consistent." Kate took a deep, steadying breath. "We… um… we sort of talked about… it's not like I don't want to be a mom someday but I'm, like, eighteen and…" She swallowed. "This is crazy, right? This feels crazy."
"It's actually not that crazy," he promised. "A bit hurried, but not crazy." He couldn't help but tease Natasha. "Though most people can't wait until their seventies to start having children, it is a bit fast. But not uncommon."
Natasha smirked. Barely. "Not everyone has my patience."
"Yeah." Kate wrung her hands. "I… I'm still processing it. Maybe… let's… go to your office? I think I want to … I just…"
"Of course," Hank said.
Kate followed Hank down to his office, watching her hands while he got everything set up. Her mind was going a hundred miles a minute. On the one hand, this felt too fast. It was too early. There were too many other things going on. They weren't even married, and their families were old-fashioned.
But… this was actually what she wanted. And she genuinely didn't have any other plans for her life besides being an Avenger and having a family with Nate. Like, that was her whole life plan. So it wasn't like anything was stopping her, either.
And it could be fun, right? Totally hard and exhausting and frustrating - she'd seen her parents with their kids and knew that part. But it was an adventure.
But on the other hand, she knew Nate's family's hangups about teams and kids…
At some point, Hank was ready for her, but she didn't register that fact until he put a hand on her shoulder and she nearly jumped out of her skin. "Sorry, sorry. Just got a lot on my mind," she said quickly.
"Yes, I'm very sure you do," Hank said warmly. "I'll give you some things to read - what you should be aware of, vitamins to take - all of that. But after we give you a few tests that are more specific than yes or no."
"Yeah, if you could give me a date range, that would be nice," Kate agreed. "Because I kind of did some math, but my whole brain is a cotton ball, so who knows what my math skills are like."
"This kind of math is particularly stupid," Hank assured her before he simply got started with everything she needed to know - and everything he needed to know to advise her properly.
Kate was in a little bit of a daze, though she did pay attention to the ultrasound that would give them a better idea of the date - just in case she had skipped a period from stress somewhere in there. But, no, she was very pregnant. Heartbeat, little features, the whole nine. According to Hank, in a few days, she'd be in her second trimester.
He wrote "March 6" on the printout he gave her, which she clutched to her chest for a long time. Then, she launched herself at Hank and wrapped her arms around his neck in a deep, long hug. "This is… a lot," she said, hiding her face in his fur.
"Yes, but you'll make it work in your favor, I'm sure."
"Yeah, you know me," she agreed, though she stayed in the hug for a long time. Then, finally, she turned toward her mom. "So, ah… now what?"
"Now, I'll reserve my judgment until I see what his reaction is."
"Thanks, Mom. That definitely makes me feel better." She wiped her eyes again and swallowed hard. "I… I just want to go home and sleep. Can I do that?"
"Yes, you probably should," Natasha answered in a more warm tone.
"And then… and then we should tell Dad," Kate said. "But after I don't feel like I'm drowning, okay?"
"Oh, he'll likely figure it out before you tell him," Natasha said.
"Just let me tell him myself. In the morning. Over coffee."
"I didn't say I was going to tell him," Natasha said. "I said he'd figure it out himself."
"Hide your plans to kill Nate," Kate couldn't help but tease.
Natasha scoffed. "As if I'd write any of that down."
"Love you too, Mom," Kate said before she practically buried herself in a hug with Natasha.
Kate put the picture from Hank's office in the back of her drawer and then paced in her room for what had to have been half an hour as she tried to figure out what she'd even say. She was still in shock. She and Nate had been so careful. She was on the pill and everything, and - and she wasn't sure she was ready for this. She'd just started being an independent adult and now this?
Finally, after her thoughts had circled around from panic to excitement to horror to terror back to panic again, she sat down on the edge of her bed and watched her feet as she kicked them back and forth a few times. She and Nate were supposed to go on a date that night, and she couldn't just cancel, because her Mom knew now, and - and-
Yeah, this was bad.
She got up and went to the dresser again to pull out the ultrasound picture. She didn't feel pregnant, but there was the proof, looking like a little person in there. Hank said she was about twelve weeks in… that was so fast. And there was a little person in there.
She stared at the picture for a long time, at the outline of the head and - and the notations on the bottom of the picture about due date and oh Lord, she had a due date. She had six months to figure out how the futz she was going to do this, and she wasn't anywhere near ready for it.
A knock on the door caught her attention, and she shoved the picture back into her drawer, slammed it shut, and rushed over to let Nate in, her voice higher-pitched than usual as she brushed her hair back. "Oh, hi!"
"Hi," Nate answered. "Are you alright? You sound a little … tense."
"Oh, I am super stressed, but that's a whole thing," Kate said, her eyes wide as she nodded along to every word she said.
"Okay…. So … is this a super stressed don't want to go anywhere or a super stressed lets get out right now?"
"Let's get out right now," Kate agreed, taking his arm. "Please, oh please."
"You know all you have to do is say so," Nate promised with a crooked smile as he offered her his arm, and Kate hung onto him tightly as they headed out - in inducers, as usual - to her favorite Korean barbeque place.
Kate traced her fingers over the menu several times, trying hard to keep Nate out of her head when all she could think about looking at the food was "Okay, which ones am I allowed to eat again?" and "Something about seafood?" and "Was there something about… I don't even remember what the list said!"
She decided to get whatever she felt like, and she'd just be careful… not to let Nate know… except… he needed to know…
This was going to give her a headache, she was sure.
And he was looking at her weird, so …
"Are you even hungry for this stuff?" Nate asked, frowning a little deeper than just dinner conversation would have been.
Kate glanced up and cleared her throat. "Yeah, um. So. Yeah, I just… am stressed. And, um, Hank said I need more iron or I'll be wrecked, so… this is good, I think. Yeah."
Nate raised an eyebrow, clearly not believing all of it. "O… kay… is that all?"
"Well, he's, um, you know, worried about some… health...stuff…" Kate twisted her hair around her finger a few times.
Nate had propped his chin on one hand as she faltered. "For as stressed as you are, this feels more like an ice cream conversation."
"Maybe, yeah," she agreed, glad for the excuse to postpone - and glad that Nate fell into easy, relaxed conversation about how things were going with their friends, plus some updates on how Kamala and her friends were doing in training.
It was enjoyable, the kind of date that she loved going on, and she almost forgot that she was carrying around a whole extra person by the time they went to ice cream. Except she didn't, because that wasn't something she could forget.
"To go?" Nate suggested quietly.
"Yeah," Kate said. "Back to my place?"
"If that's what you want to do," Nate agreed. "You're making the calls, gorgeous."
She smiled at the nickname and took his arm again, though she barely thought about anything but what she was going to say to him as they headed back. And even then, the ice cream was gone by the time they reached her room, so she didn't have anything left to hide behind.
So, she sat down with him and laid her head on his shoulder, curling up into his side as she'd been doing for a while now.
She was starting to get tense again, and out of nowhere, Nate shifted and got up. "I'll take care of your trash if you're done," he offered, looking like he usually did when he was running little errands like that.
"Thanks," she said, automatically handing him her wrapper.
Nate smiled as he took it, then zipped off to the next room over, though he was slow getting back to her. When he did come back though, he looked like he wasn't sure of where he was going for a moment. Then, he redirected to Kate's side of the bed, drew in a deep breath with a crooked smile and then got down on one knee. "So…I think it's time to go there. It's been … crazy lately, but … Katie, even though this is earlier than we talked about, would you consider marrying me?" He had the ring box in his hand, though he hadn't opened it, instead waiting for her to react at all first.
Kate stared at him for a long time, her lips barely parted, shaking her head in pure disbelief without fully realizing she was doing it. "Oh, God, Nate. Do you know?"
"I … know I'm waiting for an answer," Nate countered carefully. "I mean, if you want to look at it first before you decide, that's fine… sure."
"I don't care about the ring, and I wouldn't if this was- this isn't-"
"Well damn."
She shook her head. "It's not that - I mean I'm not shallow enough to say no for a ring, you jock."
"Okay," Nate said slowly, though he had lost some of the smile.
"Tell me the truth, Nate. Do you know?" she said, outright ignoring the box in his hand to meet his gaze.
"For the record," Nate said. "I had brought this with tonight for a reason. I didn't know anything until you were panic-projecting. This was my plan anyhow, so I was trying to be tactful and not … nevermind."
Kate shook her head, one hand over her mouth. "It's just… it's just a lot, Nate," she said through her fingers. "It's a lot all at once, and we're still teenagers."
"Yeah, okay. That's fine. Whatever you want."
Kate let her shoulders fall when she heard his tone and then slid down to join him where he was still kneeling. "I do love you, though," she said. "Just so you know. So we're clear. You know that, right?"
"Yeah, sure. I know. And I know you're upset, so … I'm sorry?" Nate shrugged one shoulder up. "I don't know what you need to hear from me. Or what you want to hear from me."
"I don't know either," Kate admitted. "This is all… it's all kind of terrifying," she admitted, finally finding words now that she didn't have to tell him. "I mean, there's a whole person in there. Right now. A whole person."
He took a chance and kissed her cheek. "So tell me what I can do."
She let out a breath and leaned into him. "I don't know," she said. "I've never done this before."
"Yeah, I think I would have noticed if you had," Nate teased.
She smirked and let out a chuff of a laugh. "No kidding," she agreed. She rearranged herself so she was curled into him better and then kissed his cheek in return, echoing his attempt to calm her. "I don't know. I just - I don't know. I wish I did, but I don't."
"It's alright, Katie. I didn't mean to pressure you."
She nodded, though for some reason, she was starting to tear up. "It's just a lot," she whispered.
"I know. It's okay. It'll be okay. I'll do whatever you want me to - whatever you need."
She nodded again, fruitlessly wiping her eyes. "Maybe… maybe ask me again after this is over, okay? I can't - I can't handle one more big thing or I'm gonna lose it, Nate, I swear I am."
"How about I leave it open and if and when you decide you want to, you can wear the ring whenever you're ready. And if you don't want to, that's okay, too."
Kate sniffled but nodded. "Okay, yeah. Yeah, that would work." With that, she simply leaned into him a little more, though they did end up curling up on her bed instead when the floor got uncomfortable.
Eventually, Nate did head back home, since neither of them were particularly in the mood to say or do much of anything, both of them still reeling in their own ways because of how that had gone down. Kate did kiss him goodbye, but once he was out the door, she curled up in bed again with the blankets up to her ears - and Nate drove back to Westchester in a daze.
Kate curled up in a ball and was so caught up in her own head that she honestly didn't notice her phone going off - until Billy teleported in looking concerned and immediately rushed over to where she was.
"Kate!" Billy said, still looking like the rug had been pulled out from under him. "What is even happening? You haven't answered anyone's texts; you ignored the Summers Support Group chat…. What is even happening?"
Kate sat up and tried to wipe her face, but it wasn't doing any good. "Oh, hi, Billy," she said with her best attempt at a smile.
"That's all I get? 'Hi, Billy'? What … did you two break up?"
"No," Kate said quickly, then hedged. "I don't think so?"
"How do you not know?"
"He… there was… Billy, it's… complicated…"
Billy made his way over to sit down with her. "So uncomplicate it for me."
Kate sighed and leaned on his shoulder. "So, um, that's not really possible," she said.
"Fine. What has gotten so complicated? I thought you were madly in love with your not so superior Summers."
"I am," Kate said. "I'm just not ready to, you know, rush off into domestic bliss and be barefoot and pregnant or whatever," she muttered.
"Who said you had to?" Billy asked with his nose scrunched up. "That doesn't sound like him - not when he's staring in awe at you every chance he gets while you're sticking baddies with arrows."
"Well, no, he didn't say anything like that. I'm just… freaking out."
"Because what? You just realized he's hopelessly in love with you? Kate."
She sighed and picked her head up. "He proposed, Billy."
"How is that a bad thing? I wouldn't mind a proposal."
"Yeah, well, your guy didn't bring a ring to a pregnancy announcement," Kate muttered, looking away so she didn't have to see Billy's reaction.
Billy paused at that. "Wait, what?" he said, then tipped his head to try and catch her gaze. "You did a what now? Who … what?"
"You heard me," Kate said, still avoiding his gaze, biting her lip because she was emotional again and she hated it.
Billy sat back and let it process for a long moment. "Are you sure?"
"Hank confirmed it today," Kate whispered softly.
"And it's you."
"Billy, I had jelly on my stomach. There's a whole futzing person in there with a head and hands and everything."
"A whole futzing Summers."
"Yeah, I know." Finally, Kate picked her head up to look at him. "And I love Nate and all, but I literally can't deal with even thinking about anything that big because I still can't wrap my head around this."
"Okay, so I guess that's an alright reason to ignore us for a minute," Billy said as he pulled her into a better snuggle.
"Yeah." She fell silent for a long time before she spoke up again. "I always figured we'd get here, it's just… so fast and too soon and a lot."
"So … the Summers has rubbed off," Billy said slowly. "You're upset that your plans aren't going to itinerary … and you didn't make enough plans to back up your plans in case of deviation … from the plan." He turned his head toward her. "You lettered your plan instead of numbering it, didn't you?"
Kate laughed and shoved his shoulder lightly. "No, I'm upset because I wasn't ready."
"Well what do you need to be ready?" Billy asked. "And you can't say time, because I can't fiddle with that without making a big mess."
"I don't know," Kate said. "I've - I mean, I helped Mom and Dad with my siblings, and Dad's pretty much always teasing Mom that since she's still so young, they can keep going, so it's not like I don't know what to do with a baby? I just don't know what to do with one inside me, Billy. It's freaking me out thinking about it!"
"Obviously give it a few months and start evicting," Billy teased. "Don't think about it too much. You have other things to think about."
"Like what? The fact that my dad's going to turn into an overprotective mess?"
"Oh, he's not an overprotective mess?" Billy challenged. "Here ... " he took the time to concentrate hard, doing his best to keep his spell non-verbal, though he ended up covering his mouth so Kate couldn't catch it right anyhow. And in no time, there was a perfectly wrapped purple gift box. "I'm going to guess I'm the first to congratulate you, because even though it's a lot, you're going to be amazing."
Kate shook her head at him and then pulled him into a hug. "Love you too," she said - though when she tore open the box, she just started to laugh, because inside was a perfect replica of her uniform - but as a onesie set of jammies. And for good measure, there was a replica of her dad's, just so either Hawkeye style was represented. "Nice, Billy," she said, still grinning.
"See? It'll be okay. Just … I don't know. Go one step at a time. You can talk to my mom if your mom loses it. My mom loves little kids and babies. It's ridiculous."
"My mom already said the only reason Nate is still alive is that she likes Scott too much to give him a heart attack," Kate said, and Billy laughed.
"Sounds like her."
Kate smiled and leaned on him again. "Thanks, Billy. You're a good friend."
Billy wrapped her up in another hug. "Love you too."
Now that James was starting to act more like himself and at least remembered on his own who he was and who the others were, Scott was trying to help him along without making it feel like a chore - and that ended up being a game night between the two of them.
What had started as friendly ribbing had escalated once they'd gotten into arm wrestling, and while they'd been low-key teasing each other over that, Scott had off-handedly mentioned that Annie had been wiping the floor with some of the older X-Men in board games…
Those were good for mental exercise, too.
So, between Annie's stash of board games, a ton of junk food, and the occasional thumb war, the two of them had honestly been having a good time.
Which made it that much more concerning when Nate walked in, looking dazed. He looked at the two of them and then shook his head, deciding he didn't want to interrupt what looked like a good thing for James. He was glad to see it. He was. He'd been hoping for more progress like that. But he just didn't have it in him to do anything but try to walk past them, going around James's side because he figured James wouldn't try to stop him like Scott would.
"Hey," James said, and reached out to get a hold of Nate's arm before he got to his feet. He didn't say anything more for a long moment as he frowned, taking a few seconds to process the scents and Nate's demeanor before he took a hold of his arm again and pulled him over to very carefully wrap him up in a bear hug - and held on to him.
Of course, as soon as that happened, Nate latched right on, practically burying himself in the hug, since it had been way too long since he'd felt like he had his big brother. He couldn't find the words to explain his situation, but having James there meant the world.
"What happened?" James asked, whisper quiet just for Nate.
Nate tried. He really did. This was the most James had felt like James, and Nate wanted to rise to the moment. But what happened instead was that he just kept hanging onto James tighter and shook his head with a muttered, "She just…" that didn't explain anything at all.
"Okay, you wanna go out on the dock?" James asked.
Nate nodded. "Yeah." He stepped back and let James lead the way, still feeling numb. He could see Scott watching the two of them, but it was plainly apparent that Scott didn't want to get in the middle of their moment either, not when James was the one reaching out to help. Still, Nate knew the look his dad was wearing and knew they were going to have a talk when this was settled.
He'd kind of expected that, though. Even if things had gone well, he'd have needed to tell his dad. This was just… well, Kate was right when she said it was "a lot."
The two of them sat down at the end of the dock, feet dangling over the dark water as the sounds of frogs and insects rose up quietly. James didn't push, wanting to give Nate a chance to breathe, to find his voice a little, and to decide for himself which direction this was going to take. He knew that he hated it when someone else would tell him how it was going to be discussed - whatever it was. Especially when he was overwhelmed. And Nate was definitely overwhelmed. But finally, when it was clear Nate was still in shock, James tried a different angle to open discussions. "So … I am very sure Dad doesn't want me to drive anywhere, but … if you're game, the Jeep is here, and when we crash, no one will be surprised."
Nate almost couldn't help but snort a quiet laugh at that approach, and he grinned and shook his head. "Yeah, we probably shouldn't give Dad a heart attack like that," he laughed.
"I'll even tell them I did it …" James said with a crooked smirk.
Nate leaned back, smirking in response and shaking his head. "No, but I appreciate the offer," he said. He took a deep breath and let it out. "So. Um. You probably already… I mean, maybe you've picked it up when she's visited… but… Kate's pregnant."
"Oh. That."
"Yeeeeaah." Nate drew the word out and looked out toward the water.
"Sorry, it took me a while to put together what it was, and I might be an idiot, but I know blurting that out would be wrong."
"Yeah, not your fault," Nate promised. "She's just freaking out at the whole idea, you know?"
"Totally understandable."
"Right, obviously. It's just…" Nate winced as he prepared to tell him the rest. "I … proposed."
"From your elation, I'm guessing she said no," James said dryly.
"Yeah, good guess," Nate said just as dryly. He blew his breath out from his cheeks.
"She's in shock, too," James said, then tapped the side of his nose.
"Yeah, she… said something to that effect. More or less."
"It's thick enough it's still clinging to you, so I'm going to guess you totally backed off?"
Nate swallowed, not entirely sure how to classify what had happened. "I… well, I told her I'd do whatever she wanted me to do. And she freaked out at the proposal, so I just… kind of… gave her the ring. So she could be in control, I guess? I was trying to say it's on her timetable?" He sighed and dropped his head in his hands. "I screwed up, James."
James reached over to rest a hand on Nate's shoulder. "No, I don't … there probably isn't a right way to approach a spazzing out Hawkeye."
"Probably not," Nate agreed without picking his head up.
James gave him a few moments as he figured out how to move them both forward. "So … what's plan two?"
Nate shrugged. "I mean, the ball's in her court now, isn't it?"
"Yeah … but … be irresistible."
Nate picked his head up, smirking in spite of himself. "I am?" he laughed.
"You wish."
It was such a James response that Nate couldn't help but grin, even though he was the target of the teasing. "Yeah, yeah," he said, still smiling.
"I just mean …" James tipped his head slightly. "Be more irresistible. Baseline ain't gonna cut it."
"Yeah." Nate sat up a bit straighter. "I'm gonna give her a little space first, you know? She's still freaking out. I mean… it was bad."
"Put yourself in her shoes," James said. "And look in the mirror. Anyone with half a brain would be terrified of your giant head."
"Ha ha," Nate said dryly, bumping James's shoulder with his.
"Pour on the charm, little brother. Concentrated Summers. Be adorable and attentive, lay it on thick, but don't expect a thing back from it. That's what you want to do, I'm sure. And that will remind her of why she was stupid enough to fall for you."
"You know, you were doing so well until that last bit," Nate teased him.
"Brain damage."
"Oh, sure, use that old excuse." Nate laughed and then, unexpectedly to James, just grabbed his big brother into a hug. "Thank you. I needed to break out of my head."
James wrapped him up tightly in response. "I can pull you into the lake if you still need help." And he even went so far as to start leaning forward, threatening to do exactly that.
Nate laughed and held onto James tighter to offset his leaning. "No, no, I'm good." He grinned and let go, then rubbed a hand down his face to reset himself. "So. Right. The plan is to give her time to get her feet under her again and then just… be there for her. For everything."
"Charm the shit out of her."
Nate laughed. "Yeah, that, too."
"You might need lessons from Rachel," James said as they got to their feet, slightly off balance at the upward rush.
"I think I'll manage," Nate said, automatically moving to put his arm around James as they turned to go inside. "Any tips on how to keep Dad out of a heart attack range when I tell him Kate's pregnant? You've had good advice so far."
James sighed as he thought it over. "He can't possibly be that surprised. He can't."
"I mean…" Nate bit his lip. "I think part of why Kate's freaking out so hard is she's been picking up so much slack while everyone else has been having five-alarm fires all over the place, you know? Dad's been talking with Wanda and trying to help Annie get used to Westchester and plan a wedding and all that, you know?"
"So we'll take some stuff off her back," James said. "She doesn't need to push herself that hard. I'll … figure something out. Make it a little easier for her. Any way I can."
"Yeah, me too," Nate agreed as they got inside - where Scott was, in fact, waiting to see what the story was, one eyebrow raised as he took in the sight of the two of them.
"He was going to throw me in the lake," James said - just to get Nate to laugh.
Nate laughed, as expected, and lightly shoved James in the shoulder - but not enough to send him reeling when he was cheating with telekinesis. "Snitch!"
"I was going to take you with me," James said. Which, was incredibly believable with the way the boys had always roughhoused. "Not the first time. Pretty sure."
"Definitely not," Nate agreed, then looked toward Scott, who was still watching both of them closely - though he was smiling at that point because it was great to see the two of them getting back to normal together. "Hey, Dad. So, um… how do you feel about being a grandfather? Like… soon?"
Whatever Scott had been expecting to hear, a pregnancy wasn't very high on the list - though, to his credit, it had been in the back of his mind since the Fourth of July; he just hadn't had time to think about it with everything else that had been going on lately.
"He's so happy he can't talk," James said in the space of stunned silence from Scott. "Awwww."
"Of course he is," Annie said from where she had been in the doorway with a fresh bowl of popcorn for the game night. She was grinning widely as she watched the three Summers men teasing each other back and forth. This was much more like the family she had been excited to marry into. "He's a family man through and through; who wouldn't be happy?"
Something about the way Annie emphasized the word "wouldn't" prompted Scott to clear his throat. "Right," he said, though he was having a hard time deciding what to address first: the pregnancy or Nate's reaction to it.
"So are you going to have them call you 'grandpa' or 'pappy', what with all the Southern flair around here?" James asked, since he knew for sure Nate was in need of the bolstering.
Scott shook his head. "We'll talk about that later," he said, focusing on Nate. "You alright?" he asked.
Nate nodded.
"Is Kate alright?"
Nate nodded again, though he added, wincing, "She's still… in shock, really."
"No kidding. You're both eighteen," Scott said, shaking his head and running his hand through his hair. "I thought you were being careful!"
"We were!" Nate shot back. "I swear, we were."
James stepped around Scott to stand next to Annie to watch, looking toward the ceiling as he tried to work out a little math in his head, then leaned toward Annie to corroborate the numbers just so Scott had a whispered background of discussed failure percentage rates, even when everything was perfect. And Annie was sure to add to their whispered discussion a case or two she knew of personally that this had happened to - with near perfect care.
"And what's the plan now?" Scott asked, gesturing broadly with both hands. "You're past the shock, and now-"
"I proposed, Dad," Nate cut in, which got Scott to fall back into stunned silence. And when Scott wasn't pressing for more information, Nate explained, "She's not ready for anything like that right now. She's barely processing the fact that she is pregnant. Right now, I just need to be there for her. We'll talk plans when she's ready, okay?"
Scott searched Nate's expression for a good long time before he finally let his shoulders drop and then stepped forward to pull Nate into a hug. "You'll be great," he promised, pulling Nate tighter. "That kid will be so lucky to have you both."
"Thanks, Dad," Nate whispered, latching on hard to the hug. He needed his dad there, and he hadn't realized how badly until he was hugging him.
It took a minute, but finally, Scott stepped back - just in time to see James handing a twenty dollar bill to Annie. "Really?" he said dryly, and Annie just blinked at him in perfect innocence.
"What are you talking about?" James asked, keeping a more straight face than he ever had before.
"This has nothing to do with you," Annie agreed, her grin turning crooked. "Go hug your son again; he needs it."
Scott honestly couldn't figure out how to react to the two of them being in cahoots, especially because he could clearly see that Annie was thrilled to bits to be bonding with James like that. She'd wanted so badly to get to know him more and to feel like part of the family, and there she was, conspiring.
How was it that everyone that came into his family managed to so quickly learn how to tease him?
He shook his head, smirking to himself, before he put his arm around Nate's shoulders and pulled him deeper into the boathouse. "We've got a pretty competitive game of Boggle going…" he said. "James keeps throwing in engineering terms neither of us knows, but Annie has some older English words no one uses anymore."
Engineering terms? Nate projected to James, already suspicious.
Totally fake, James projected back, though he kept a flat expression. Waiting for them to catch on. Getting more ridiculous as we go.
Might take a minute, considering Dad's so thrilled you're acting like yourself that he's willfully blind, Nate teased.
Yeah, well, apparently if I eat like a pig and sleep for a week, things start to fix themselves. Weird.
Yeah, weird. Nate grinned and sat down at the game table between his dad and James. "Okay, so, definitely can't cheat and steal James's new words, right?" he teased.
"Just because they don't know them doesn't make them new," James said evenly, then waved one hand lightly. "I already told him to go ahead and look them up if he doesn't trust me."
"I think I might," Annie teased as she started to shake the box to get the letters settled.
"Go for it," James said, though that had Nate smiling wider because it was getting hard to see when James was lying.
Yeah, this was going to be fun.
Chapter 124: Kate's Warpath
Chapter Text
Nate had known that, at some point, Kate's parents would track him down and make sure to put the fear of God into him. What he hadn't realized - but, in retrospect, should have known - was that Natasha wouldn't be the one to do it.
Instead, what happened was that at the next Avengers team practice after Kate had broken the news, Clint had pulled Nate aside before the training had even started. They were nearly the same height, but Nate had him by a few inches. But that didn't seem to matter to Clint once he had enough weight on Nate's shoulders to pull him down so that Nate's head was lower and they could talk at that level.
"You understand, right, that your punk ass is on thin ice?" Clint said in a whisper that was so dangerous it sounded odd coming out of his mouth. Even facing bad guys, he was usually a lighter touch.
So he really wasn't happy - and a brush of his mind confirmed to Nate that, yes, Clint was ready to throw down with him, but he didn't want to upset Kate, so he didn't.
And, honestly, Nate understood and had expected that reaction. He wanted to protect Kate, too, and she was so upset that he'd want to hit the problem if he could. As it was, he was already beating himself up over the absolutely dejected look on Kate's face when Steve had benched her from the practice. Kate loved being a hero; he didn't like that this was hurting her already.
And he didn't want to hurt her more by getting into a fight with her parents, so he simply nodded. "Yeah," he told Clint. "I got that."
"Good." Clint released him from his grip, stepped back, and then slipped into his usual grin as he headed back to the rest of the team for practice.
And, Nate noticed, Natasha had been watching the whole thing. And when he met her gaze, she simply smirked and projected, I've had a plan since the minute you two started dating for what I'll do if you hurt her.
I know, he said simply.
I'm sure you do. She paused, smirked, and kicked off of the wall to catch up to Clint. Let me know when the wedding is.
But that, of course, just had Nate sighing, feeling more dejected than before, all things considered. He knew everyone wanted him to step up - and he wanted to. But he had to do it on Kate's terms. And he would have appreciated it if everyone would, in the meantime, back off.
But Kate was upset, so they were protective, and he got that. He did.
He'd just deal with it. Nothing else for it.
"I feel like I'm supposed to grab a shotgun or something," America said easily, leaned back on the couch where she, Kate, and Billy were hanging out. It had been two days since Kate had told Nate about the pregnancy, and seeing as things were still awkward between them, Billy had called an emergency meeting of the "Dating a Summers Support Group," as Billy had dubbed them. They had plenty of snacks on top of the pizza they had ordered, they had music playing in the background, and Billy was in charge of Kate's phone so that she wasn't totally overwhelmed by the well-meaning people trying to check in on her ever since the news had spread.
He glanced at the messages to make sure she wasn't missing anything important, obviously. And any time Nate texted her, he made sure she had the option of responding - and she usually did, so that was a good sign.
He was genuinely worried about them. He knew they'd get through it, but right then, in that moment, neither of them knew how to act around each other. Nate was trying to give her space, and Kate was obviously flailing at the sudden loss of her support system - but also wasn't sure how to ask him to be her support system when she'd shut him down so hard despite the fact that they had both discussed wanting to get married and had been on the same page until the baby situation.
"Pretty sure you don't need a shotgun to threaten anyone," Kate teased, munching happily on some chocolate-covered pretzels. "Besides, Mom's already ahead of you."
"Yeah, but my way's more fun," America pointed out.
"Pretty sure Rachel would be annoyed if you shot her brother."
"It wouldn't be fatal."
"I'm not sure that's comforting," Kate said, though she was smirking hard.
Kate's phone buzzed, and Billy glanced down at it. "Jan's sent, like, ten texts in a row now," he said.
Kate tipped her head at him. "Okay, I'll bite," she said, holding her hand out for her phone - and Billy made sure to pull up the right thread so she didn't have to see all the others. There were a lot, and even he thought it looked overwhelming. Once Kate read through Jan's messages, though, she started to smile. "You know, Jan's probably my favorite Avenger. She's the only senior member who hasn't gotten on my case about being too young or about birth control or whatever."
"She's practically been waving pom-poms at you since the day you were born. I don't know why you're surprised," America said dryly.
"True," Kate admitted as she read through Jan's multiple texts outlining options for a baby shower. "She wants to throw me a party."
"Of course she does," America said. "Why are you surprised?"
"I don't know," Kate admitted, flushing brightly. "I just… everyone else - all the senior members, anyway - is treating this like… I don't know. Like an inconvenience? A mistake? And, I mean, I get that this is faster than we meant to do it, but this was actually what I wanted. I want to be an Avenger and raise a family with Nate - that's, like, my whole life plan."
"Well, you did skip an entire trimester before anyone knew, so it's an adjustment, I guess," Billy teased. "But hey, I get it. I've got more or less the same life goals."
"You mean besides the part where you're going to be king one day?"
"Yeah, besides that part."
"Small details."
"Easy to slip my mind," Billy shot back, grinning.
"What's Jan got planned for the party?" America asked.
"Um, everything."
"Great. I'll help," she said, snatching Kate's phone out of her hand to start texting Jan.
"America-"
"I'm going to give your baby the sparkliest damn pair of shorts ever made for babies," America said, grinning steadily wider. "You can't stop me. I'm going to give Jan full permission to go overboard."
"Are you serious right now?"
"Yep." America grinned over the top of Kate's phone. "And you're going to love it, because you love parties, and you're teetering dangerously close to your dad's levels of moping and second-guessing yourself. So… party."
"Can't argue with that logic," Billy pointed out.
Kate looked between the two of them, but when neither seemed to be willing to budge, she laughed and threw up her hands. "I guess this is my life now."
"Yep. And considering who your godfather is, I'm pretty sure you'll be spoiled rotten. The horrors," America said with real relish in her tone.
Kate laughed and threw some pretzels at America. "You guys have the weirdest ways to cheer me up; you know that, right?"
"Yeah, but they work," Billy pointed out.
She threw pretzels at him too. "Yeah, yeah. Love you both."
Things were a bit awkward between Kate and Nate, even though both of them were doing their best not to let it be too weird. But Kate did feel bad that she'd freaked out so badly that Nate looked like he was walking on eggshells around her, and she did want him to be involved in this part of things. They were going to be parents together, after all.
So she took him aside after a team practice - which was itself frustrating for her because Cap had benched her - and grabbed his hand.
"Okay, so," she said, biting her lip, "I have to go to the doctor for, like, all these checkups and do you think maybe you want to come with me?"
Nate had been exceedingly careful about keeping well away from her thoughts - paranoid himself about knowing too much if she didn't want him to, or saying something without making it clear he was listening to her, but that also left him a lot more awkward than he usually was. "Absolutely," he said quickly, then lost his usual edge of confidence as he second guessed himself hard. "If … you want me there, I mean."
"Yeah, I do," she promised quickly.
"I mean, I get it if you don't," Nate said.
"Nate, I wouldn't have asked if I didn't want you there," Kate promised, squeezing his hand.
"Okay," he said, still half-holding his breath. "Okay. Yeah."
"Are you gonna be okay, big guy?" Kate asked, desperate to dispel the awkwardness, even though she knew that was impossible, because she didn't feel like she was on solid ground either.
"That's like … my fourth middle name," Nate said. "Obviously, I'm fine."
"Oh, I forgot who I was talking to," Kate said dryly, then took his arm as they headed out. Once they got in her car, she glanced over at him and swallowed. "Really, though… I, um, I don't want to do this by myself…"
"Katie, I meant it when I said I'd do anything you want me to. I don't know where I fit in yet - and that's up to you, and there's no pressure, but I'll do whatever you want me to."
Kate let her shoulders drop, and she leaned over to kiss him. "Well, let's start with getting used to 'mom' and 'dad', huh?" she said.
"Okay," Nate agreed, nodding a couple too many times.
Kate fell back into silence, which she hated, because she didn't want it to be weird. But it was weird. And it was weirder still once they got to the OBGYN, because, well, it was obvious that they were teenagers and that they were lost, and Kate was suddenly very aware of that fact.
They weren't in the waiting room for long before Nate turned her way and quietly offered her his hand while signing with his other hand that she could start breaking fingers if she needed to.
Kate smiled at him for that one. Let's save that for when the baby gets here, she projected to him. That's how it goes, right? Dad says Mom nearly broke his arm when Jimmy came.
I mean, that's one way to go, Nate replied, though he didn't point out that he - or Rachel - were perfectly capable of blocking that entire section of the brain that registered pain.
Kate nodded. Should be a boring visit, sorry. Last time was just 'yes, you're pregnant' and this time is tests and general checking in…
Nothing is boring with you, Katie. Ever.
Love you too, Kate said, blushing with pleasure.
She'd been right, of course, that it was a basic visit this time around, though the doctor did go over with them the possibility of doing some genetic tests - which would also allow them to find out early the gender of the baby.
As the doctor talked, Nate found himself caught up on the idea of genetic testing. Kate was listening carefully, but Nate had his focus on the man's shoes while he halfway unfocused his eyes and started to very gently sift through every single thought the guy had ever had in his life. There were a few things that had Nate a little less than comfortable, too. Like the testing that he planned to order that wasn't on the recommended lists. But the doctors and the midwives there had stellar reputations.
But more importantly, he didn't want to put Kate through the turmoil of looking for services elsewhere because of the possibility of what Nate had brought to the table, genetically speaking. So, instead of inconveniencing Kate at all, he just … changed a few things.
Kate squeezed his hand, and Nate turned her way only to put on a smile that he felt a little bit better about wearing even as he decided to start going through the whole office of providers, all while nodding along with Kate and half-enjoying the momentary look of confusion on the doctor's face while his brain rebooted.
Kate glanced at Nate. Something I should worry about or just being protective and scanning? She asked, knowing from his expression that he'd been using his powers.
Absolutely nothing to worry about, Nate said, not elaborating because he was still, technically working. He hoped she didn't pick up on his concentration level just yet, either. I've got your back, Katie.
Kate smiled. "So, what do you think, babe? Do you want to find out early or sweat it out?"
"I want whatever you want," Nate said.
"That's very cute. You have opinions too, babe."
"Um, no. No I don't," Nate argued. "I want to do whatever it is you want to do. As long as you're healthy and safe, the rest is like … frosting."
"Okay… then I say we try it," Kate said, nodding to herself. "I feel like we came late to the game, so we should find out as much as we can early to make up for it."
Nate nodded quickly. "Sounds good to me."
Kate grinned, genuinely excited about it. Or she was, until she saw the doctor's setup and all of the glass vials for the blood draw to run the tests, and all of a sudden, her hearing fuzzed out, and she just started to shake her head before she could even verbalize what was going on.
Nate saw it happening and took a hold of her hand before she could get too far. "You don't have to do anything you don't want to." He looked toward the doctor. "Right doc?"
"Right," the doctor said without missing a beat. "No sense in raising your blood pressure needlessly." The doctor shrugged. "A lot of these tests aren't entirely definitive anyhow."
Kate nodded, though she wasn't actually processing what he was saying, either. Not until the doctor started to gather his things and leave. And then she felt like everything was suddenly too loud instead of too fuzzy.
"Kate?" Nate said, trying to get her to focus on something. "Hey. Are you okay? You look a little … pale. I'm not carrying any chocolate with me."
"Yeah," Kate said in a bare whisper and then swallowed and cleared her throat. "Yeah, I - I'm okay." She bit her lip. "Sorry."
"No, no," Nate said, shaking his head. "You're fine. You just … are apparently terminally low on ice cream."
"Yeah. Chocolate chunk, I think," Kate agreed.
"You got it," Nate agreed, though he stayed right where he was, watching her carefully until she was ready to move.
Kate took a deep breath and let it out through her nose. "So… I guess we'll do it the old-fashioned ultrasound way," she said, trying hard to get it back.
"That's fine with me," Nate said. "No one will give you any hassle, either."
"Always looking out for me," Kate said, wiping her eyes with her thumb. "God, that was - I didn't even think about that being a problem…"
"It's not like you have extensive experience there," Nate pointed out.
"No, not at all," Kate said.
"So how could you preempt it?" He dipped his head to catch her gaze. "Did you go precog on me and not tell me?"
Kate laughed. "No, nothing like that," she said. "No, I just… okay, so, now I gotta figure out how to be okay with this, because having a baby is, you know, a thing you do in the hospital. As a medical procedure. That's - why I didn't think about it that way is just… this is a thing. Gimmie a minute."
"Take all the time you want," Nate said. "I'm not rushing you."
"Yeah, just talking out loud," Kate said. She took a deep breath, let it out, and got to her feet. "Okay. Ice cream. And then can we please curl up at my place?"
"Yes." Nate's answer came on the heels of her question so quickly, it was clear he was just waiting for her to finish.
Kate blinked in surprise and then laughed. "I think it's cute that you're this… it's cute. I don't even know what to call it but it is." She leaned over to kiss him. "Let's get lost."
"Yes, Cap'n Hawkeye," Nate teased quietly.
Recovery had been a lot faster than James had thought it was … he had no idea exactly how impatient he really was until he had to slow walk himself into … pretty much everything. He'd been pushing himself too hard from the start all the way up until he'd started binging sleep and food, and then he felt like an idiot for not realizing that was exactly what he needed. His memory was coming back in leaps and bounds, and his muscle memory was also getting on a fast track, too. He was even tooling around, getting reacquainted with his lab in the tower.
So it was time to find a place to live if he really planned on going to college again.
The thought had crossed his mind to simply not. It would be easier, and it wasn't like he hadn't earned a break, but almost as soon as he mentioned it to Billy in a text, he got pushback that he was not expecting. Especially since Billy had been right there with Nate on continually telling him it was okay to go slower. And his response wasn't via text as Billy stalked into James' lab a few moments later. Which was a bit of a surprise for James, who hadn't realized Billy was already at the tower with Kate.
"Oh, no you don't," Billy said, looking somewhere between crestfallen, panicked, and confrontational. "I don't want to go to school alone - you're back up to playing in your lab! Come on!"
James had frowned to start, but then he got hung up on something that seemed important. "Wait, what do you mean you don't want to go alone?"
"You don't think you're the only one that was planning to go to Harvard, do you? Because I thought … it is a great school, and I want to try it out, and I thought it might be nice to at least be on the same campus for a change."
James started to smile at that and pulled Billy over for a kiss that went on for a long while. "Why didn't you say something sooner?"
"Oh, I don't know. Maybe because you were on the fence for so long? Maybe because as soon as you made a choice someone tried to kill you?" Billy let his shoulders drop. "It's been a really bad month or so, and I would like to keep going forward."
James kept smiling at him for that, though. "And you're not worried about something else going wrong?"
"At this point, I'd be stupid not to think something horrible was going to happen down the road." Billy shrugged. "Besides - I'm sure you and Tony and your dad and mine will have all sorts of things in place to protect us … but we're going to need to pick a spot first."
"Dad has a list."
"So does Mom."
"Then we should probably figure that out."
The two of them were just starting to get a little wrapped up when there was a light knock at the door and Kate cleared her throat, announcing her intentions. "Hate to break it up, but … we were just headed out when you tried to give poor Billy a heart attack," Kate said.
"Hey stranger," James teased lightly. "Am I in trouble with you, too?"
"Hey yourself," she said with a crooked smile. "You're not in trouble with me, promise." She paused, bit her lip, and bounced on her toes as she considered something else. "Actually… I've been meaning to find you and, um, well…" She gestured outward from her hips with both hands. "So… you knew before I did. And… thanks."
"You must be concussed. Wasn't me."
"Ha ha." Kate shook her head, though she was still smiling. "I meant, you know… thanks for not telling me. I probably would have been a wreck if I'd known what I know now when all the crazy was happening, you know?"
"Not really, but I'll take it," James said and waved her over. "I haven't seen you to congratulate you, dork."
Kate beamed and crossed the room quickly to throw her arms around him in a hug. "Billy's taking me out shopping," she said into the hug. "Sorry I'm stealing him, but not that sorry."
"It's fine. I wasn't trying to screw anything up," James promised as he pulled her in as tight as he thought was smart. "I wasn't expecting him to come in all … like that, either. If you need anything special …"
"Nah, just wanted to make sure I got a hug," Kate said and kissed his cheek. "I was, like, yelling at you and giving you a hard time and then you forgot who I was, so, like… the hug is very needed."
"I don't remember it, so it didn't happen," James decided. "Wasn't me as far as I'm concerned. But I'll always give you a hug if you need it."
"Well, when you remember it, please keep in mind that I didn't know you were protecting two people when you literally put your body on top of mine to prevent me getting hurt."
"Kate, I can't imagine being mad at you anyhow," James said. "And Hank said I might not get that back, so … don't worry about it. Please."
"Okay." Kate gave him another solid squeeze. "Oh, you should ask Nate about the doctor visit next time you talk, because I'm about niiiiiinety percent sure he was tweaking the doctor."
"Probably had it coming," James said. "Wouldn't worry about that either."
"He got a little nervous about genetic testing," Kate explained. "Which, in hindsight - totally legit."
"Fair, considering the tests that are available," James agreed.
"Yeah, well, I wanted to find out what we're having is all."
"You're having a baby. Duh." James couldn't help but tease her a little bit - just because she looked like she needed it.
"I am?" Kate did her part pretending to be shocked.
"Oh, shit, I shouldn't have told you."
Kate laughed and shoved him in the shoulder. "You're such a dork. I love you. Missed you too, by the way."
"Love you too," James replied with an almost distant smile. "But I still don't feel right, so don't count on much, huh?" He tipped his chin up. "You and me are good. Don't worry about any of that, okay? Just have some fun."
Kate grinned, though all of a sudden, her lip was trembling. "Yeah, thanks. Sorry, I know I'm - I just get-"
"Oh, no. Come on, Katie," he said quietly before pulling her back into a bear hug.
She tucked tightly into his hug and buried her face in his shoulder. "I'm sorry. I can't stop crying over stupid things."
"Just tell me who you want killed," James teased, even if it didn't sound like a tease entirely.
Kate laughed. "I totally lost it crying because I dropped my ice cream cone when Mia startled me. You'd be way too busy if you tried to avenge all my emotional outbursts."
"Valid reason," Billy said, perfectly happy to watch the make up.
"It is, this is true." Kate straightened up and wiped her eyes. "Yeah. I … I may cry on you pretty often for the next few months. I'm not sick or anything, just crying all the time. It's horrible."
"Thats what I'm here for," James said with a little shrug. "Been getting that reaction a lot lately, so you're not alone."
"You should have seen your dad when I started crying earlier." Kate shook her head, laughing to herself. "I could have asked for the moon, and he and Nate would have brought it to me."
"Well … yeah."
Kate smiled and pushed her hair behind her ears. "Anyway." She cleared her throat. "Thanks, you know, for the shoulder. And for not being mad at me. I'm going to go baby clothes shopping, because that makes this feel real, and I'm trying very hard to wrap my head around it."
"So … do you know what you're having, or …"
"What, you think any son of mine can't pull of a pretty princess dress? Or any daughter a dinosaur suit?"
"I think they absolutely could," James said. "But I guess I thought you'd have peeked at the answers by now."
"Oh, well." Kate blushed. "I kind of had a panic attack in the doctor's office…."
"So that's the only way to find out?" James asked, raising one eyebrow.
"Well, I do a little better with ultrasounds, and Dr. Blue has one in the lab because of all the internal injuries we get…"
"There is a giant blonde doofus following Uncle Blue around like a puppy dog. I would bet you a mocha that he could tell you if you halfway breathed that you wanted to know. And if I'm wrong, I'll buy you a mocha. Or mocha ice-cream if the caffeine is making you too Summersy."
"I thought he was more about injuries. Which this is not."
James sighed. "Bet."
"Okay, well, I'll try it out when Nate's around. I don't want him to miss out…"
"If only you had a handsome best friend who could make that happen with a wish," James teased.
"Oooh, yeah, that sounds super handy," Billy said, grinning crookedly. And then, when Kate rolled her eyes at him, he grinned and wished both Nate and Ty into the lab.
"This is …. New?" Tyler said, looking as if he simply wasn't ready to be wished anywhere. "Is everyone okay?"
"No, Kate's dying," James said. "Actively. Dramatically."
"I am. This is true," Kate said.
"Are you…" Tyler shook his head, sure that he was missing a joke somewhere.
"James thinks you might be able to check me over and make sure, you know, everything's okay?" Kate winced. "I'm not really doing great with actual doctor's offices."
"Oh! Yeah, I can do that," Tyler said, nodding lightly, though the smile was slowly growing. "I didn't think you needed that kind of insight, but … yeah, no problem."
"Yeah, I… literally can't do the blood tests and stuff without freaking out. And maybe… if you can… we could find out if it's a boy or a girl? Pretty please?"
"My pleasure," Tyler said, then he made his way closer to offer Kate his hand. "Did you want to sit down first? It shouldn't bother you at all, but …"
"Yeah, maybe a good idea," Kate said, waving Nate over so he could sit next to her, since she really badly wanted him there for all of the big stuff like that.
Once she was settled in, Tyler got situated and took her hand in both of his before he tipped his head down and concentrated hard, smiling to himself before hardly any time had passed at all. "Well, you're a little dehydrated," Tyler said. "But otherwise healthy as can be, and so is the little guy."
"Okay, is that a gender-neutral 'little guy' or, like…" Kate was biting her lip, her eyes wide.
"No, its a little guy-little guy," Tyler said with a grin. "Congratulations."
Kate let out a squeal of delight and then practically tackled Nate in a hug - though before Tyler could leave, she all but threw herself away from Nate to grab him in a hug too. "Thank you thank you thank you!"
"No problem," Tyler said as he very gently returned the hug. "That's easy to see, and a lot less stressful than looking for injury. Really. Nice change of pace from you guys."
"Thank you again," Kate said, beaming at him before she tackled Nate again, still delighted.
"Don't run off, Ty," James said. "Kate's off to shop, so Nate and I can get you started on a uniform."
"Oh. Uh. I thought that was going to wait until after I finished my medical training…?"
"You don't have to go into the action," James said. "But if you end up going with us for anything, the new deal is that everyone's getting bullet proof gear." He gave Tyler a once over. "And I don't think you'd fit a standard spare."
Tyler laughed as he gestured to himself. "Yeah, definitely not," he agreed.
"You should loop in Jan," Kate suggested. "She was fully on board with Ty joining up, like, the day we met."
"I'm sure if you mention it at louder than a whisper on your way out, she'll be down here all riled up that we're working around everyone," Nate said. "Seeing as I know Cap wasn't consulted on this."
"More fun that way," Kate assured Tyler as she looped her arm through Billy's.
"Not for the Avengers to worry about anyhow," James said. "Loophole. Other team."
"Well…" Tyler was starting to grin wider and wider. "Sounds like it's already decided anyway, huh?"
"You wanna fight for it?" James challenged with a straight expression on his face.
"Nah, Billy'll get jealous again," Tyler shot back without missing a beat.
"Only if you can't keep your lips to yourself for round two."
"I'm not the one to watch," Tyler laughed.
"Sure. That's what you say now in front of everyone. You know what you're missing though."
Kate grinned and pulled her arm tighter in Billy's. "Let's go," she whispered. "They're just gonna be ridiculous for forever. Like the lovable dorks they are."
Although both Scott and Steve had benched Kate from any physical aspect of being on the team, both of them had been more than willing to let her work more in the intelligence side, because she was going to go out of her mind if she didn't have something to do. She knew from Billy that Genosha was starting to get tired of waiting, and she wasn't thrilled about the fact that her boyfriend was going to have to stand trial soon. While she was pregnant.
Yeah, that was still hard to wrap her head around.
And thinking about the pregnancy, thinking about Nate's family's latest drama, thinking about all of it was stressing her out, so going to work was totally, absolutely necessary for her mental health.
And besides, it meant she got to spend a lot more time with her mom, who was giving her all sorts of refresher courses on code breaking, criminal shorthand, and that kind of thing.
Kate honestly didn't know how she would have survived all this without her mom. She always knew when Kate needed space and when Kate needed to fall apart in a puddle of stress and tears, and that was a hard line to walk. Even Nate had to cheat to do it.
They'd just walked into the living room to take a break and grab some lunch together when they saw the breaking news banner on the tv. Steve was watching the news, and he scooted over so that Kate had plenty of space when she came to join him.
She thought that was weird, too - the fact that everyone was treating her even more like she was breakable. She hadn't liked it when it was just because she was the only human on the team, and she liked it even less now.
But she stopped thinking about how weird Steve was being when the anchor showed a picture of Viper on the screen… and then immediately launched into the breaking news that new leaked information had established who, exactly, had put an end to the head of Hydra.
Kate went still, and she heard her mom swear in Russian under her breath. Especially because as soon as the anchor identified Scott, she started talking about the Genosha trial.
"They're painting it up like he's-"
"A terrorist," Steve finished for her. "It's what they always called the X-Men before."
Kate narrowed her eyes, flexing her hands against her knees. "The only people who knew about this were us and SHIELD," she said through her teeth. "And they've been practically yelling at me and Billy and James for even thinking about-" She cut herself off and got to her feet. "This is stupid. I'm taking a walk," she said. She didn't know where she was going - not yet - but she already had her phone out.
Her first instinct was to call Nate, but… a slow smile spread over her face. No, it would be better if she called him with some ammunition in hand. Cheer him up. Things were still awkward between them, and she liked it better when she could make him laugh.
And screwing SHIELD over… that sounded like fun.
So, she redirected and burst into Hank's office - which, considering her condition, nearly startled him out of his skin.
"How classified are medical records?" Kate asked. "Yours specifically."
"You needn't worry about someone prying, Kate-"
"No, that's not what I'm worried about," Kate said, waving him off. "I want to know if SHIELD has put any of my medical records in lockdown."
"No, they'd need access to them and that would require me handing them over - which I will not."
"Perfect!" Kate said, her smile pointed and so much like her mother's in that moment. "Okay, I need everything you have from when you rescued me and Billy and James from Viper. All of it in my file. Pretty please."
"Is there something I should know about?"
"Yeah, I'm formulating a plan. It's happening in the moment," Kate said, hopping up onto his desk - with a little less oomph than usual; she felt like the second she'd learned she was pregnant, she was suddenly way too aware of her body. "SHIELD just leaked that Scott was the one who killed Viper," she added, because he deserved to know one of his oldest friends in the world was in trouble. She'd have wanted to know if it was Mia or somebody.
"Kate, I'm afraid I can't endorse this plan of action - whatever it is," Hank said as he opened up his file cabinet that was locked with a DNA encoded pass. "However, I cannot stop you from looking at your own file whilst my back is turned."
"Dr. Blue, you and I both know that SHIELD leaking that Scott killed her when Genosha is chomping at the bit to extradite him for killing Magneto is not an accident-"
"I also cannot tell you that the copy machine code is the same as the address in Westchester."
Kate grinned widely and jumped down from the desk to rush over and kiss his cheek. "You know I love you, right? Favorite doctor ever?"
"I have to take that with a grain of salt considering how few doctors you know."
"Fair, fair, but I still adore you," Kate agreed, already slipping over to the cabinet. She was nodding to herself, almost psyching herself up for her plan. "Mom's so mad already. The words she was saying in Russian are even worse than usual, and I'm absolutely not allowed to repeat them," she said, only half a smile at the corner of her mouth.
"Balderdash. I believe you're old enough to say whatever you please."
"Yeah, but I was also raised to be polite," Kate said with a winning smile as she pulled out her file and started to thumb through it for the right records. "Anyway, I'm already expecting to hear that Mom's hanging Fury outside the helicarrier by his manly bits."
"I'd check with your security experts who have been monitoring SHIELD's activities to see for sure."
"Yeah, James needs a good laugh," Kate said. She glanced up at Hank. "You know I can't let this go, right? I need Scott around when Nate and I become parents, and Fury's - this feels like he's trying to get Scott locked up for good, painting him up like this," she added, a bit more openly. She was having a hard time keeping her emotions in check lately.
"That," Hank said as he pushed his glasses up his nose, "or someone else entirely is attempting to show the kinds of attacks our so-called terrorist leader has led."
"Yeah, I mean, we know that Magneto and Viper crossed a bazillion lines, but-"
"And you think that Viper has a following here?" Hank said with a smirk.
"In New York?" Kate teased. "Yeah, I know it actually; they wolf whistle at me when they try to kidnap me."
"Ah, you speak of Hydra low lives … that's not what I'm referring to. I mean those that aren't simply hiding in a shadowy organization to compensate for their mis-deeds. I mean even those within Hydra … who follows her out of loyalty? I believe you'd be hard pressed to find more than a handful."
"Just the ones she liked enough to not kill," Kate said, pulling a face as she thought of what Daniel had said about how Viper could be good to work for, when she wanted to be.
"So only two or three, world wide."
"Maybe." Kate let the sentiment drop and pulled out the large section from her file that Hank had written up after the rescue. She made a face at it but headed to the copier all the same. "If someone's trying to point out that Scott only goes after the worst of the worst, I'm going to help him. Because damn it, I can't do much else right now."
"Just be careful in who you trust, my dear," Hank said.
"Don't worry. I know exactly who to talk to."
J. Jonah Jameson nearly startled out of his skin when Kate had Mia teleport her right to his office, though when Kate - teleporting for the first time in a while since she'd found out she was pregnant - immediately went a bit sideways, he couldn't quite start ranting, either. Not when she looked green.
"Ooh." Kate grabbed the back of the nearest chair and dropped her head lower than her shoulders. "Mia, I love you, but let's not do this again for a little bit, okay? I think I'm gonna hurl."
"Not in my office-" JJ started to say, but Kate waved him off with one hand.
"Shush, JJ; I've brought you an exclusive. Just shush until the world stops spinning."
"What kind of an exclusive?" Jameson asked, frowning as he leaned forward.
Kate was still trying to get her bearings, but Mia just shrugged with her palms outturned. "Don't look at me. She just said she wanted instant transport."
"Looks like you're going to need a cab to get back to wherever you were," Jameson said in an undertone.
"Want me to grab Nate?" Mia offered, and when Kate nodded, Mia teleported away again.
Kate took another few seconds before she looked up again. "Sorry," she said and pulled herself into the seat across from him, sliding him the file she had clutched to her chest. "Okay. Before you look at that," she said, trying to regain her composure to look more imperious and less green, "you have to understand this is the most vulnerable I have ever been with a story. But…" She took a deep breath and let it out. "SHIELD didn't classify everything about what happened with Viper. I can't actually tell you what Viper did, because technically, all the stuff I debriefed on is classified. But that-" She tapped the file. "That is a copy of my medical record immediately after I was rescued. Because I'll be damned if I let SHIELD leak stuff about Viper and I don't have anything to say about it." She made a sharp gesture with one hand. "When Scott kills the head of Hydra, they can leak it, but when I want to complain about their handling of my own experience… screw them."
"You do realize that they may still try to come after you - loophole or not," Jameson pointed out. "Are you sure you want to poke that bear, young lady?"
Kate took a deep breath. "I'm going to tell you something off the record, and I need you to agree we're off the record right now, because it's really personally important to me."
Jameson ruffled, but nodded. "Of course."
"I'm pregnant."
"That would explain the whole .." he gestured with both hands to indicate her reaction to Mia's teleportation.
"Yeah, no kidding." She grimaced. "And I can't - I can't - let SHIELD use the story of how Scott protected us from someone who did this-" She tapped the file again. "I can't let them use that against him when he's about to stand trial for protecting us from Magneto-"
"Us."
"Yeah, well, I only have access to my file, but I'm sure a reporter like you can put two and two together," Kate said. "Just… just take a look. My file alone should tell you why Scott knew if she got her hands on us again… on any of us… God. It would have been bad, JJ."
Jameson took a long moment to weigh it out, tapping the folder with the end of his ballpoint pen. "How do you see this story going - what's your involvement besides handing off a stack of medical records?"
"Honestly?" Kate said. "Whatever you need from me to establish that SHIELD did shit to keep me safe, and Scott had to step out of futzing retirement to make sure this-" She pointed at the folder. "-didn't happen again."
He was once again quiet - and Kate couldn't tell if it was a very good sign or a very bad one. "And SHIELD has a muzzle on you to keep you from talking. This … even with the records, this is going to be hard to corroborate."
"I know, but it's all I can give you," Kate said in a breath.
He nodded and blew out a breath. "I'll work on it and let you know if I can do anything with this."
"Thanks." Kate bit her lip. "I'll just… my ride won't be here for a bit, so if you want to… if you have questions, I guess…"
Jameson took a moment to start going through the file silently, looking more and more irritated the further he got, and he didn't even get all the way through before he closed the file and looked up at Kate. "Are you sure you want to go forward with this?"
"I already told you-"
"I heard what you said, but …" he sighed, letting it fall and looking as if he wasn't sure he wanted to yell or dive into the work.
"That's what SHIELD doesn't want me talking about. As if it's not my story."
"Tell you what," Jameson said. "It is your story, but it's not just your story. Clear it with your other friends before you push though this. I'll absolutely report it, but those boys … the implications will come around to hit them, too, and as much as I want to hit SHIELD with something like this, ... They should be warned at minimum."
Kate let her shoulders drop. "Yeah," she agreed. "But, I mean, I'm the only girl in the group. Was kinda hoping-" She let it drop.
"There is so much more than just that angle, Barton."
"Yeah," she agreed, getting quieter and looking down at her hands. When she glanced up again, she could see him watching her keenly. "I'll talk to them," she said at last. "But… please, just…"
"I'll wait to hear from you," Jameson said. "It'll take me some time to sift through this and make it reportable."
"I was sort of hoping you'd be keener," Kate said with an attempted smirk.
"Don't get me wrong," Jameson said. "I would love to run with this for a few reasons - but considering that we know where that murder happened, and all that your group of friends has been dealing with lately - I just want to avoid getting hammered from the other angles before I go forward. Now … if you want to press and you think they'll fight you on it - I can push and let them know they need to suck it up."
"Can you do that anyway?" Kate asked, smiling.
"I've only got a number for one of them, but sure," Jameson replied with a smirk.
"Thanks. As you can imagine, this is the one thing I'm really, really bad at standing up to them about."
"I'll wait to hear from you before I get assertive," Jameson promised.
Kate smiled and got to her feet. "I have a few phone calls to make, then," she said, though she paused at the doorway. "You know something? You're alright, JJ. Don't worry; I won't spread it around."
"You better not," he said gruffly, in a loud enough tone that he could be heard outside.
Kate smirked to herself and then let herself out, already calling Billy. "Hey, heads up," she said once Billy picked up. "News story in the works. I'll tell you more when I can, but it's about our shared summer camp experience."
"Oh, no. What now?" Billy grumbled.
"No, I did this one on purpose."
"You what?"
"Just…" Kate pinched the bridge of her nose. "Did you see the news?"
"Yeah. Mom says once it hits Genoshan news, they'll want to throw Scott a parade. Not like Hydra was known for being pro-mutant."
Kate paused and then couldn't help but smirk. "Fair. He should get one, too."
"I'll wish him one," Billy teased. "So what's the story?"
"Well, I kind of wanted to give some context for why-"
"I thought we weren't allowed," Billy put in. "And I don't think we could handle anyone else being in any legal trouble right now."
"Yeah, well, Hank's notes aren't classified," Kate said.
Billy was quiet for a long time - way longer than usual. "Kate…"
"I know. And I won't ask you to make yours public. But it is going to bring up some questions, so I wanted to give you a heads up. But like you said, Genosha is probably going to think it's a good thing - but he's already getting labeled a terrorist, and - and he deserves a break, you know? And I think it's stupid SHIELD won't let us tell our own stories, and-"
"Hey, Kate, slow down," Billy said as she started to pick up speed. "I'm not- listen, if you're okay with it, you're okay with it. And I can always wish myself away from reporters if I don't like what they're asking me. But are you sure you can handle all the questions you're gonna get?"
"That's literally all I can do, since I'm not on the team and SHIELD won't let me do anything else," Kate said bitterly.
"Have you talked to James?"
"Not yet."
"Okay. Talk to him, okay? Because you know he's going to get questions too."
"Yeah, I sort of stormed out halfway through the news report, so I didn't realize they'd announced she was in James's house when she died. I kind of assumed they wouldn't release that information. I mean, it's been hinted at but official SHIELD corroboration? That actually makes Scott look like a hero?" She pinched the bridge of her nose. "This is a lot."
"Yeah, no kidding. Understatement of the century."
"Yeah, story of my life," Kate teased him right back. "Okay, I'm going to talk to James. But you're okay if I put this out there?"
"Like you said, it's your story. I mean, I'm not thrilled with the questions I'll get, but… I'll manage. I'm not going to tell you what to do."
"That's … about as strong an endorsement as I can expect under the circumstances," Kate said. "Thanks, Billy."
"Good luck."
Kate had stepped out into the stairwell to finish the conversation, and she leaned against the railings for a moment, closing her eyes. Then, she bit her lip and called up James. "Hey," she said, already nervous. "So, uh, don't freak out."
"If you name that kid after Clint, I'm going to disown you," James said, half distracted when he had two of the new guys in his lab checking the place out and alternating between asking questions and freaking out over what they were finding. "So you know…"
"Dad has already made us swear to pick normal names, so he is safe, I promise."
"Normal like Boris?" James said dryly in a very bad, Rocky and Bullwinkle accent.
"You're hilarious. Listen, I actually called for a reason."
"Okay, well … get it off your chest already," James said. He'd never been too big on phone calls, but he was definitely worse now when it came to patience. And doubly so when she could hear Miles in the background freaking out in geek-speak over the new armor James was printing for Tony.
"I'm going to give Jameson my medical record from right after Viper."
"What's that supposed to do?" James asked as he turned away from Miles' excited ramblings to focus on Kate better.
"Have you seen the news or are you holed up in your lab right now?"
"Holed up, obviously. Amadeus and Miles stopped in to check on me and let Tony brag a little. Trying to snipe them now, you know?"
"SHIELD leaked that your dad was the one who killed Viper, but they won't release any information on the lead-up."
There was a long pause, though not as long as when she was waiting for Billy's reaction. "Oh, did they now?" James asked in a much more interested tone.
"And I say screw them and their gag order. It's my story, and frankly, your dad is my hero for putting her in the ground, and I think the world deserves to know that," Kate said, nodding to herself as she affirmed her own decision.
"So … what? You need back up or something?"
"I just - JJ pointed out that if he publishes this, people are naturally going to start asking questions of you and Billy, and I didn't want you to not know."
"That's all you're worried about? Because … if that's all, you know … whatever. But if you're giving SHIELD a reaming, I want in."
"Consider yourself in, then. I want SHIELD to regret every decision they made about that whole situation."
"Great. When's the interview?"
"The what?"
"Interview, Kate. They usually go hand in hand with big stories." He sighed. "You know what - I'll just text JJ and find out. You get a green light from Billy yet?"
"Yeah. He's not thrilled, but he also thinks that your dad being outed as Viper's killer is a good thing, so he might be wearing rose-colored glasses."
"It is a good thing," James said. "Big, bad Cyclops handing out justice. But it's not enough."
"Which is why I'm trying to make sure the world knows he was protecting us," Kate said. She paused. "And… I might be biased. I'm terrified of what'll happen when you guys go to trial, and-"
"Nate will be fine," James said. "The case they have on him is weak."
"I know, but I want you and Scott to be in this kid's life too, you know," Kate admitted, more emotional than she'd meant to be.
"Don't worry about it, Kate."
"Yeah, sure, I'll just turn off the anxiety that's been plaguing me."
"Hey, when you figure out how to do that, teach Nate and Dad, would you? Probably Rachel too - she's been a little off balance lately."
"I'll pour the cure directly into their brains," Kate teased. She leaned back. "Seriously, James, thanks."
"Don't thank me yet," James said with a wicked laugh.
"Gonna do it anyway. It's nice to have my partner in crime on my side facing SHIELD down."
"SHIELD can suck it." He shifted gears and she heard him snap his fingers. "Forgot to tell you, I'm officially not an Avenger now."
"What? Why?" Kate asked - and she could hear Miles almost echoing the same sentiment in James' lab.
"Ah … just trying to keep the reputation of the club stellar," James said.
"So you'll rejoin once you're cleared," Kate said in a tone that wasn't a question.
"We'll see."
"Yes, we will." Kate felt her phone buzz in her hand and looked down. "Hey, Nate's here to pick me up. Turns out teleporting makes me want to puke, by the way."
"I can go along with that when there are a bunch of jumps, but hey. You're the first to know about the whole … one team only thing. Well, you, Miles, and Amadeus. Eavesdroppers. Share if you want, but …"
"Nah, it's your story," Kate said. "And besides, once Tony knows, everyone will know. So…"
"Well, Tony and Steve already know. They're not exactly happy or fully accepting it. Tony seems to think I just need to heal up a little more."
"Nah, you just need to get through this trial. But before that, we'll spill as many of SHIELD's screw-ups as possible, right?"
"Oh, I've got that covered, Katie."
"Love you too," Kate said before they signed off and she slipped out of the stairwell to take the elevator down to where Nate was waiting for her.
"Hey gorgeous," Nate said - standing outside of his car and ready to hold her door open. "Something going on I should know about?"
"Yeah, I'm on the warpath," Kate said, though she paused, grinned, and stole a quick kiss.
Nate smirked and kissed her back; the awkwardness that had lingered between them was starting to go away, and he was glad for it. "Anything I can help with?"
"Not really. It's intelligence warfare."
"Oh, that sounds fun." He grinned, glad to see her in her element. She'd been missing hero work; this was good for her. "Who's the target?"
"The general public." Kate bit her lip, holding her breath and almost wincing away from him. "I… sort of gave JJ my medical files from after Viper."
Nate went entirely still and even stiffened up without meaning to. "Kate…"
"I know," she said quickly. "I know. Billy already-"
"Kate, this is a bad idea," Nate said, shaking his head. "You're opening yourself up to so much-"
"I know that too," Kate said sharply. "But SHIELD leaked all that stuff about your dad killing Viper, and I'll be damned if our son grows up with his grandfather behind bars!" Despite the height difference between them, she was drawing herself up taller with every single word. "What am I going to tell him, huh? That I didn't do everything I could to make sure his grandfather's name was cleared?"
"Dad would never ask you to-"
"Your dad doesn't know how to advocate for himself, and you know it, so don't start," Kate said. "This is my story, and I don't need you trying to rescue me from it." She didn't say it, but Nate heard her projecting how much she'd been hurt when he had gone with James and Clint to Madripoor to kill Viper's guards.
And that - that memory of how upset she'd been when he'd left her out… that was enough to give him pause. He still didn't think this was a good idea, and he was sure she wasn't thinking clearly about the many, many ways this could backfire on her, but…
Well, he had a hard time telling her no as it was. So, he let his shoulders drop and pulled her into a kiss. "I just worry about what happens when people start drudging up everything you don't want to relive," he explained, trying to temper his argument into an explanation. "It was bad enough at the doctor's office. Think about some of those sleazy reporters coming at you with the gross questions you know they might ask."
Kate swallowed hard and nodded. "Yeah," she said softly. "You're right."
He smirked, but before he could say anything else, Kate went on:
"But I still want to try. It's worth it to me, Nate. I don't think I'll be able to handle it if something bad happens to your dad and I didn't do everything in my power to help."
Nate reached out lightly to brush her mind, finding only a deep, burning desire to do something useful. And a terror over the upcoming trial, which still loomed large over his family even if they hadn't been extradicted.
"If you're sure," he started to say, and she seized his hand to give him a reassuring squeeze.
"I'm not. But I'll never be able to live with myself if I don't give it a shot. I know that for sure. So it's really the only option, you know?"
Nate shook his head and leaned in to kiss her. You need to take care of yourself, too.
You knew I was a hero when you proposed to me. You must like me enough to marry me, right?
Yeah. I still want to, by the way.
For a brief instant, Nate saw in her mind that she had responded positively, but what she actually said in response was: I know. And I love you too.
He sighed and kissed her deeply. They weren't quite as back to normal with each other as they wanted to be. But they were getting there.
Chapter 125: Tag Team
Chapter Text
Surprisingly little time passed before Kate was called down to the studio for an interview that was to be aired live to accompany the scoop she'd handed Jameson. She wasn't sure what he could ask that she could answer considering how tight SHIELD had been about anything the kids had experienced that would have made SHIELD look as if they'd dropped the ball, which was everything. But she wanted to give them a big middle finger, so she figured that even saying how much she wasn't allowed to legally say would be damning enough. Nothing in that file constituted a threat to national security as Hill and Fury had implied, but it was too late to take back their under-stress agreement that went with the gag order.
Nate was right there with her wearing that worried expression on his face that left little wrinkles on his forehead as he tried to not look so worried. Their drive to the studio was mostly quiet - mostly just because Nate wanted to tell her a dozen times over for that short trip that she didn't have to go through with this - even if she'd started up the story. She didn't have to lay her trauma out there for the world to see. He wanted to tell her that he'd scoop her up and sweep her far, far away from the studio, the city - anywhere she wanted to go - and make Jameson and everyone around him forget what she'd shown them. If she just said the word.
Instead, he opened his mouth a few times only to snap it shut, feeling as if he was overstepping while desperately wanting to prove to her that he was behind her for whatever decisions she made - unconditionally. Because he was. But he also wanted to protect her while beating himself up for maybe protecting her too much when he shouldn't have. He was second guessing everything. Every single move.
When they parked at the studio, he rushed around - like always - to open her door for her with a smile that wasn't quite as confident as she'd grown accustomed to over the years. "In case I forget to say it later - you look amazing, and you're going to knock 'em dead," Nate said as he offered her his hand.
Kate smiled and took his and so he could help her out, then quickly stole a kiss and gestured down at herself. "Like what you see?" She couldn't help but fall into that old tease when he looked so desperately wound up like that. She wanted him to be okay, even if she knew he didn't exactly approve of what she was up to.
"Definitely," he said, making sure to give her a long, obvious once-over just because he knew it would get her laughing.
She slipped her arm through his and switched to projecting now that they were semi-in public. Cutest bodyguard ever, she teased.
You know it, he shot back without missing a beat, and she laughed again.
And, hey, just in case it wasn't clear… thanks for having my back on this, she said as they walked to the elevator together.
You should know by now I'll always have your back, Katie.
At the nickname, though, her smile turned more mischievous, and she waited until the elevator doors were closed to kiss the sense out of him - until the elevator dinged and they broke apart and quickly pretended nothing had happened.
And Nate knew she was proving a point not doing that telepathically, too. Reminding him that she still wanted him around even though things were awkward.
Which he appreciated so so much.
After the two of them had a quick, nerve-building chat with Jessica Jones and Dani Cage, who were trying to get the angle on the story before it aired entirely, Kate made her way over to her seat off stage where Jameson could see her as he prepped for the segment himself. She was stretching her hands out in front of her to try to calm down as he went through his last minute final touches and mic checks, though he kept looking toward the elevators as the PA's scrambled to make everything ready. It was pretty clear Jameson was looking for someone … that was just trouble generally speaking. But she had to be ready for this, and now that it was right there with cameras and hot studio lights, her emotions were starting to creep up with her nerves.
When she looked back at Nate, he wasn't alone anymore. Billy was there with him - and so was James, though he'd abandoned his usual oversized hoodie and looked pulled together … in a fitted t-shirt and jeans with the addition of one of Billy's bracelets from his uniform. And almost as soon as they'd shown up, she watched for a second as Billy stole a quick kiss and James started to head her way … already mic'd up.
"You don't mind company, do you?" James asked Kate as he sat down next to her.
Kate blinked a few times and then grinned. "Fury's gonna be so pissed," she said delightedly.
"Fury can suck it," James said.
"You didn't have to go all out for me," Kate said. "I mean, it's sweet, and thank you, but-"
"Not just for you, Katie," James said. "It needs to be done, right? Besides - according to everyone out there, the two of us are running the place, so you know …part of my job as co-leader is backing you up."
Kate grinned at him. "Like always," she said. Then, she switched to sign. You're going to be such a good uncle.
Maybe, James signed back.
Love you too, Kate signed, then messed with her hair one last time as the producer signaled to them that they were getting ready to start.
For the opening monologue, Jameson was by himself, somber rather than spitting mad as he laid out the topic of the day - at least to start. He explained why this was news: everyone knew that Hydra was capable of terrible crimes, but this was context for the recent news about Cyclops and was part of Jameson's larger crusade against the campaign SHIELD was waging against accountability and transparency. He got wound up as he gave an overview of what Kate had given him, and he was back to his usual purple as he finished it out with: "...and there is absolutely no reason that any agency should want to cover up the abuse of teenagers. The very idea that hushing up victims is a national security issue is laughable at best." He glared into the camera and then cleared his throat. "To that end, let me introduce my guests. Joining me today are two young heroes that found themselves at the heart of the fiasco that Viper stirred up. I'd like to welcome the young, and arguably better Hawkeye, and for the first time since an attempted assassination, Wolverine."
Kate reached over and squeezed James's hand before strolling onto the stage, looking to anyone who didn't know better just as lighthearted as she usually did, her smile bright and her hair perfectly placed, with James right beside her, artfully disheveled. They were a united front without even trying.
"Thanks for having us," Kate said with a winning smile. "This is literally the last story I want to talk about, but I loved your speech."
"Glad to hear it," Jameson said, then leaned toward her. "What can you tell us - in your own words - about this fiasco that happened before Viper was killed? Most of what I have available to me is from those records or a few unsubstantiated claims - the sources are solid, but simply can't provide anything concrete, as I'm sure you know."
Kate grimaced into a smile. "Yeah, it's frustrating," she agreed. "I'm not legally allowed to go into details, but that itself is kind of the story, isn't it? I've been seeing a therapist, and she says it's important to name what happened to me, and here I am… not allowed to do that. Thanks, SHIELD. Really appreciate it."
"I'm just trying to figure out why so much is classified," Jameson said. "Do you have any insight there?"
Kate held her breath and then nodded. "I only have a theory," she said, "but it wouldn't surprise me to hear that SHIELD doesn't want people knowing this kind of thing happens on their watch." She looked toward James. "Right?"
"It goes a little deeper than that," James said easily. "But, basically, yes."
"Deeper how?" Jameson pressed.
"For starters, SHIELD has footage of everything that happened to us in Viper's hideout," James said frankly. "Doesn't seem like something they'd want known publicly on its own. Especially with all the demands for silence and secrecy."
Jameson's eyebrows looked like they were trying to scrape his receding hairline. "How?" he asked, flabbergasted.
"That's kind of the question, really," James said.
"Yeah, I want to know too," Kate said sharply. "You spelled out what happened, right? I'm not happy about SHIELD having footage."
"Actually, Katie, I never debriefed with anyone, and I never signed anything agreeing to their gag order," James said, allowing the smirk to stretch out a little. "So, technically, whatever I have to say isn't classified."
Kate blinked and then couldn't help but chuckle as a disbelieving grin started to stretch across her face. "This is perfect," she said.
"Helluva way to show you're all healed up - welcome back, by the way," Jameson agreed heartily. "Tell me, Mr. Howlett, can you tell us - in your own words - what happened?"
James let his shoulders relax. "What exactly would you like to know, Mr. Jameson? Do you want to start from SHIELD knowing when each of us were kidnapped and where - far ahead of our teams, or do you want to go right into what happened once we were captive? Or maybe what I saw while I was there?" He turned toward Kate, his eyes sparkling with pure trouble for the first time in far too long. "I told you Viper made me watch everything, right?"
"Yeah, I'm still mad about that," Kate said, somehow managing not to smile even though Nate could hear her projecting how pleased she was that James was about to declassify her experience live for her.
"The hell - wait, go back - you said SHIELD knew you were going to be kidnapped?" Jameson said, looking bright purple.
"As I understand it, yes. Not only did they know that, they didn't warn the Avengers, they didn't warn us, and they knew where we were the whole time. They waited, using our captivity and torture as a distraction to keep Viper busy while they ran an operation that should have been put into action years earlier."
"Yeah, don't appreciate being used like live bait," Kate put in.
"That doesn't even cover the fact that when Viper's headquarters in Madripoor was destroyed after the fact," James said. "SHIELD took credit where they never showed up. Not one agent came in until after Viper's base in Madripoor fell."
"Yeah, that was my boyfriend and James teaming up with my dad," Kate said. "Credit where it's due. Cable heard what I was screaming in my dreams and decided, you know, that's so far beyond not okay. Like a reasonable person."
Jameson leaned back in his seat, obviously not expecting this much. But he wasn't about to let the opportunity pass him by, either, so once he had just a second to catch his breath, he dove in, pressing first James for details and then going back to Kate once James had revealed secrets she wasn't allowed to let slip on her own.
James was more than happy to give him every detail he wanted - his own experiences, as best suited for the audience, and enough that allowed Kate to expand on it once he'd opened the door for her. And he didn't hold back anything, which made Kate's chance to tell her story that much more open.
Even better, James had brought something that prevented SHIELD from cutting the feed. So Jameson ran with the opportunity, completely blowing through what he had planned for the second half of his show in favor of rapid-fire questioning the two of them, gleeful at the chance to show that SHIELD had used three teenagers as pawns and then compounded their trauma by inserting themselves into the aftermath.
By the time the show had to wrap, Jameson still obviously had more questions but promised he would follow up with the two of them for details to publish as soon as possible. And he promised his viewers corroboration before he finished with a rant about SHIELD needing oversight at the highest levels.
He was nice and red-faced by the time the cameras stopped rolling, but Kate and James were riding the high of giving SHIELD a middle finger - even though they were still, understandably, a bit shaken by the content.
"Pleasure working with you, as always," James said with a grim smirk. "Keep the device. They can't crack that code to cover their own ass."
"You have to be my favorite Wolverine," Jameson said, shaking his head. "Could have used a warning, though."
"I dunno, I thought I saw you quoting my father somewhere once upon a time. Can't be your favorite," James replied. "And if I had warned you- would it have made a difference? I was trying to keep charges off of you when SHIELD shows up with their panties in a wad."
"Let them," Jameson said. "You said yourself - you never signed anything."
"Yeah, I checked with my lawyer," James said with a wave.
"Besides, we're loving your anti-SHIELD rants," Kate said. "It's high time they actually faced consequences."
"I know you have a lot of homework right now with all this," James said. "But you might want to look into the kind of leverage they have against the Avengers, which … I'm not one anymore. Unrelated, of course."
"That's its own news story," Jameson said looking surprised.
"That's why I'm telling you - a small exclusive when you get around to it."
Jameson smiled a bit wider. "Always a pleasure, Mr. Howlett," he said as he took James' hand to shake. "And you're right - I have a good deal of homework to do," he said, already starting to gather the notes he had been scribbling madly during the interview.
"Let me know if you need anything," James said. "I'd be happy to get someone to courier over what I have collected."
"I will absolutely take you up on that," Jameson said. "Good to have you back up to speed. And by the way, good luck in Genosha."
"Thank you," James said as he got to his feet and offered Kate a hand up, too.
"You are my favorite brother-in-law," Kate said, smiling before she threw her arms around his neck.
"Like you have any other option," James said as he wrapped her up in a tight hug. "Hi. You can speak freely now - if you want to."
"I just want to hug you, thanks," Kate said. The truth was that she was suddenly emotional and halfway trying to hide it in the hug. She'd been focused during the interview, but it was like everything hit her once the cameras were off. Add hormones in there, and she was wiped. "For the record, being pregnant makes me weepy, apparently. Sorry," she whispered as she realized she was crying on him.
"I'd be weepy if I knew my kid had Nate's big fat head, too," James teased softly.
"You're hilarious," Nate said as he and Billy came over to join them. "That was impressive, by the way - it really is good to have you back," he added and made sure to pull James into a hug with one arm as he pulled Kate to his side with the other.
"I … may have been playing it down a little bit, waiting for something deserving," James said haltingly. "But, I still don't remember about a week or so before I got shot - or a week or so after. And I'm probably going to have nightmares for a month after talking about all this, so … yay."
"Still. Missed you," Nate said and hugged him one more time for good measure.
"Love you too, little brother," James said before he let him go and stepped back to take Billy's hand.
Just so you know, Jessica blocked off the studio when SHIELD showed up, Nate projected to Kate and James - Billy already knew.
Yeah, I knew they'd be coming once they couldn't shut it down, James replied. Tell her to let them in and to turn the mics back on. Record it. let's see how high we rate.
Shame they probably won't send Phil or Clay. I like them, Kate said.
Fury knows they'd never arrest us, James replied.
If you two get arrested, I'll step in, Billy said, his hands starting to glow.
We're not getting arrested, handsome, James said.
Just saying.
If they did that, I wouldn't be able to give you your bracelet back, James teased.
And we can't have that, Kate agreed, smiling as she tucked into Nate, who projected to Jessica to go ahead and let whoever it was inside.
The group of X-Men wandered away from the set, but not out of camera range …just in case. They didn't get far anyhow before they were surrounded by really anxious SHIELD Agents with weapons drawn shouting at them to freeze.
And while they were waiting for the in-command officer to show, James completely ignored the directive and took his phone out to start texting.
"So… are we in trouble?" Billy asked, gesturing between himself and Nate. "Because… we're the peanut gallery."
"You're fine, sweetheart," James said, though he pulled him a little closer. "You and Nate had no idea and Kate didn't say a word on anything until it was already public knowledge."
"Besides," Kate said, "it's not like they have any reason to be mad. We only told the truth."
"And not one bit of it was related to National Security. I checked. Twice," James added. "And believe it or not, it doesn't look like the spy community really wants to know that much about my naked ass during torture."
"I, on the other hand, am gorgeous," Kate said. "It's a real problem."
"Another statement of fact that is easy to see," Nate said.
"Aww. Love you too," Kate said and turned to kiss Nate as the doors opened to admit a handful of higher level agents and the director himself - who looked positively livid.
"What part of keep your mouth shut don't you two understand?" Fury hissed as he bore down on the group of them.
"Just the part where it's any of your business when your agency had absolutely nothing to do with any of it … unless you did, but … that would be either an internal affairs matter or a you need therapy for being a sick, power hungry sack of crap," James replied. "Take your pick. It's the same outcome to me."
Fury wheeled on him, one finger pointed in his direction. "I warned you on how this was going to go down the next time you pulled something like this-"
"What caught your attention this time? You gonna tell me getting shot was a national security issue that I can't talk about too?" James challenged.
"No, no, he's pissed that the world knows your dad killed a rapist," Kate said, her eyes narrowed. "Hard to push Cyclops away from the growing fan club when we're so sympathetic now."
"Why did you leak that anyhow?" James asked Fury.
"Choose your words carefully; we'll know if you lie," Kate put in, not at all bothering to hide her rage.
"Sounds like you know who did it to a finer degree than I do," Fury said, throwing it right back at them.
"That's just lazy," James drawled out. "For a super spy that's supposed to know everything you sure don't seem to know shit these days."
"I know both of you will be taking a ride up for a much more in depth interrogation, smart guy," Fury said. "Separately. Miss Barton will be chatting with AD Hill. You and I have some serious catching up to do privately."
"About what, exactly?" Kate shot back. "You already know everything we just said."
"You were warned to keep this story to yourself. Both of you were. But since you seem so keen to share, I want to go back over every detail because what just aired? That was far more detailed than what you gave me at the time."
"Watch the replay," James said, stepping forward to half block Kate and Billy from Fury. "That's all you're getting."
"No, no," Kate said, drawing herself up and glaring at Fury - as much as she could be nose-to-nose with him when he had her by several inches. "Go ahead, Fury. In front of all these cameras, why don't you tell me exactly what you want to be voyeuristic about. And while we're at it, tell me why you didn't warn us. Or step in. Or why you keep treating talking about what happened to us like a punishment."
"You know better than that, Barton," Fury said, still sounding angry. "And you know how important keeping those debriefs private are!"
"Go to hell!" she shouted back at him. "And while you're there, say hi to Viper for me." She gestured with an open hand toward James. "Everything we just did was legal. James was free to say what happened, and once it was out there, so was I."
"That's not how it works," Fury said, losing the thin veil of patience he was trying to hide behind. "He was warned to stay quiet, too. On the threat of going up for a more thorough debrief."
"Well, damn, way to admit that you're using the threat of reliving trauma through debriefing as a punishment. In a newsroom. Appreciate it." Kate flashed him a smile she didn't mean at all. "Anything else you want to reveal about the way SHIELD deals with traumatized teenagers?"
"It wasn't a threat of debrief," James said, pissed off to the point that the growl was peeking up and lacing his tone. "He wanted to know what worked best to manipulate. Which of Viper's many methods was most effective. And I'm gonna say her tapes weren't as useful as he'd like. That or he knew she'd be too distracted with my stubborn streak to pay attention elsewhere. Not as fun when that stubborn streak is pointed your way, is it?"
"Great. SHIELD's researching the best ways to torture heroes into compliance. What could possibly go wrong," Kate half-shouted, as Nate projected to her that JJ's crew was absolutely getting all of this.
"Keep your voice down," Fury hissed as he took a step toward Kate.
"Or what?" Kate asked, her chin tipped up.
"I've had enough of this temper tantrum," Fury said - and gestured for his agents to move in. Right before James blocked the agents and hit Fury square in the jaw.
"You want to talk to any of us, go through our lawyers," James said, daring the agents nearest them to do something. "You wanna hit me with assault? Be my guest, but you're going to need to take a damn number. I have a murder trial that trumps your bruised ego." He casually turned back toward the rest of the group. "Anything you want to add, Hawkeye?"
Kate fluttered her eyelashes at him. "Just that I'm a darling with the media and if SHIELD wants to arrest us on false charges, I am not above being a pregnant, crying mess on camera about it."
Fury's whole body language shifted as he looked up at them from the ground. "Stand down," he said toward his men, his tone much more reasonable - and then turned his attention toward Billy. "Let your mother know that once that trial is over, I'll be by to have my talk with the accused."
"My mother and I don't take orders from SHIELD," Billy said coldly. "Send her a message yourself." His eyes flashed with power. "But I'd think twice about threatening my future husband in front of me again," he added - and in a flash, he'd wished all of them back to his and James's new apartment, just to prove to Fury that he really didn't have any power over them.
The lights hadn't faded from Billy's eyes before James flat out tackled him for a kiss - well before the others had a chance to get their bearings, too.
Billy laughed delightedly as he caught James enough that they didn't fall over, though they barely managed to end up in a tangle on the couch instead. "Okay, what did I do so I can do it again?"
"All of it."
"Okay," Billy said, grinning, and kissed him back.
"We'll just let ourselves out, then," Kate said, also laughing as she took Nate's hand and headed for the door. "Billy, if you want to wish us back to our place…"
"Yeah, have fun - get out," Billy said and wished them away - then went right back to kissing James.
Across town, Scott wasn't having anywhere near as good of a time as his sons were. No one had warned him that Kate and James were going in for an interview, and judging by the texts he'd been rapid fire sending to Nate and Billy … they didn't know either. At least, they didn't know it was going to be like that. Jessica Jones had been incredibly unhelpful with her response of 'shhhhhh. I'm watching', and Scott was very sure that James at least was already under arrest on the helicarrier, headed for the raft. It's not like Nick Fury ever really gave a damn about due process.
He was just gearing up to go after them when he got a text from Nate: Had a dust-up with Fury, but Billy threw his weight around. Not sure what defused him, because he's got some kind of telepathic blocks, but by the time we left, he seemed to have backed down a little. We're all fine now.
Scott pinched the bridge of his nose. You really don't want to be on Fury's radar right now. This was a bad idea.
It's their story. Their call. Or so I've been told repeatedly.
Scott leaned back and shook his head. This was getting out of hand. We need to talk.
Yeah, figured you'd say something like that. Give James and Billy a minute.
Billy okay?
Um. Yeah.
Scott wasn't sure what to make of that, though, so he just said: My suite. One hour.
Of course, by the time an hour was up, Scott had been pacing for some time, and Annie was starting to get worried. But she was occupied talking to Craig, who was just as baffled by this turn of events as everyone else was - which was honestly kind of reassuring to Scott, because if even the professional couldn't make sense of what those kids were up to, he felt better about not seeing it coming.
Kate and Nate were the first to show up, though Kate had a look exactly like her father, her chin jutted out and everything - so Scott knew this was going to be a long talk.
"I wasn't going to let SHIELD have the final say on what happened with Viper, especially not with everything going on in Genosha," she said when Scott turned her way - before he could even get a word in. "You look me in the eye and tell me you haven't put your own story out into the public to defend people you care about."
Scott had his finger raised, but at that, it was hard to argue, and so he fell into a glare and huffed. "That's not - that was an incredibly dangerous-"
"Yeah, yeah, I know," Kate said, waving him off grumpily. "You're welcome, by the way. I already struck a deal with JJ, and if you turn on the news, you'll notice he's rerunning bits of the interview as well as footage from SHIELD getting mad about it and putting the stuff they said about you in context." She tipped her chin that little bit higher. "No need to thank me or anything."
"Thank you," Billy called out, obviously just having come in to catch the last of Kate's tirade.
"And anything," James added, just to get Kate to smile. "Hi Dad. Doc. Miss Hale."
"Good lord, the two of you should never be allowed to conspire again," Annie said, almost laughing under her breath when she saw how seamlessly Kate and James were backing each other up.
"He picked it, he ain't gonna stop it," James called back as he and Billy made their way over. "Where's the fire?"
"Where's the… James, you and Kate picked a fight with SHIELD in primetime," Scott said, gesturing between the two of them. "What were you thinking?"
"That Kate needed backup and Fury needs to lose his other eye."
Kate gestured toward James as if that was all that needed saying. "That and I already explained myself to you, so, like, I don't know what more you want from us here, you know?"
"Kate, I didn't need your help," Scott said, dragging his hand down his face. "And you certainly shouldn't be putting yourself in that much public scrutiny for my sake."
"You're not the one trying to screw over teenagers, Dad," James said. "It wasn't just for your sake."
"It was a counteroffensive," Kate said. "I thought you knew that's part of my skillset too. Or did you think I was just a pretty face with a bow?" she had to tease.
"You know after a story like that, you're inviting questions-" Craig started to say, but Kate cut him off.
"Yeah, and?" Kate asked. "Now people are talking about what a relief it is to have Viper and her ilk gone. I mean, they were before, but - you know what I mean. You have to personalize it when it's a public offensive. And we did."
"And she's not alone, either. I read what they made Kate and Billy sign," James said. "They weren't allowed to speak up on anything that wasn't public knowledge. You can bet they were planning that out to lever against every one of us."
"Besides," Billy put in, "Fury knows he's second in line anyway. Mom's pulling the royalty card."
Scott turned toward Billy, and even without telepathy, the kids could see his gears turning. "You used the trial to push him off."
"I told him whatever charges he wanted to press would have to wait," James said. "His ego comes second to literally anything else. And yes."
"And Mom's already talked to my Uncle Matt about legality, so by the time the trial's over, Fury won't be able to touch a thing anyway," Kate put in.
"I cleared all that before I mic-ed up," James said. "He doesn't have a leg to stand on."
"Yeah, but Matt knows how to make it stick in the right ways," Kate said, smiling James's way. "We know we're in the clear. He's just good at making sure the people in power also know that."
"If Fury wants to push it, I'll push back," James said.
Scott looked between the kids, his frown deepening the more he heard, before he finally cleared his throat to get their attention. "Okay, if this is the play you want to make, then we need to move on it," he said.
"Okay, let's do it," James said without bothering to hear the rest of the plan.
"Yeah, temper that enthusiasm," Scott said, though he was smirking James's way. "Because the thing is - if you two are trying to combat the perception of what happened - publicly - then the best thing we can do with the public good will you've bought is to go to trial now."
"Great. I'm game," James agreed, still not blinking or hesitating.
"Waitaminnut," Kate said, holding her hands up quickly. "Wait, wait, wait, what?"
Scott pointed at her. "You're the one who said you wanted to generate good will in response to what SHIELD was saying. Do you or do you not think that a Genoshan jury, who will all have heard about what happened to you three-" He pointedly gestured toward Billy. "-in Viper's custody will be, in the moment, more likely to give leniency to the survivors and, like you pointed out, the person who killed her?"
Kate hedged. "I mean, yes, that's the goal-"
"Then we build on that good will by not making the court fight to extradite us. A judge will appreciate that, too," Scott said. He might not have approved of their plan, but now that it was in motion, he was going to make sure it went ahead with the best possible chance of success, too.
"When do we leave?" James asked, though it looked like Billy was leaning more toward Kate's outlook when it was laid out like that.
"I'll call Wanda. If we can, I'd like to get there tonight, so that we have as much time as possible to get settled in."
"I'll pack," James said, then started to walk backward as he addressed Craig. "Sounds like if you want to yell at me, now's your chance."
Craig almost smirked. "I just hope you don't think that just because your crazy plan worked this time that it's always a good idea to put yourself on the line like that. We both know that was a self-sacrificing play."
"I thought honesty was the best policy, doc. You want me to lie?" James shot back.
"That's not at all what I'm saying, and I'll thank you not to twist my words."
"You also told me I needed to talk about it - so …" James shrugged. "Check and check."
Craig looked toward Scott, who shrugged openly. "Yeah, I didn't know what to do when his dad got like this either; don't look at me."
Annie cleared her throat. "Well, if that's all settled. Nate, can you help me with packing? I just moved in, and I don't very much like to do it again, so many hands make light work and all that."
"Right." Nate took his gaze off of the tennis match between his dad and James and nodded. "We should - yeah, okay. Sure. Let's just… go to Genosha then."
"I need to call Jan," Kate told Nate and kissed his cheek. "Meet you at my apartment. I'll pack some things so I can stay close too, okay?"
"I need to make a few calls myself," Scott agreed, already getting out his phone - and the group started to disperse, everyone set to put the still-forming plan into motion.
The first call Scott needed to make, obviously, was to Wanda, though he wasn't expecting to hear her in such a good mood when he picked up and asked if she had a minute to talk.
"For you? Always," Wanda said with a smile still in her voice. "I can rewatch that a little later when I need a pick me up. You can really see Steve in the follow through."
"You can see - what?" Scott blinked a few times, sure he was missing something. "What are you talking about?"
"I'm talking about your boy flattening out Fury," Wanda said. "I'll have Vision send you the link."
"You may have to," Scott said, shaking his head. Of course James had done that. That was - he wasn't even sure which of his parents that was most like. Both of them, really. "Listen, if you've seen the broadcast, then you know those two planned this as a counteroffensive in the public sphere."
"That doesn't surprise me one bit," Wanda agreed. "And it was good, too."
"Yeah, we're not telling them that or they'll keep doing things like that," Scott grumbled.
"Scott, I have a feeling they'll keep doing things like this anyhow," Wanda pointed out.
"Yeah. Well, anyway, we're going to run with their plan, since there's not much we can do now that it's out there," Scott said. "And since their goal is to make us look more sympathetic, what I'd like to do is come to you in Genosha. Willingly. Publicly."
"That would be a big step," she agreed, losing some of her cheer as she settled into a more somber tone. "When are you moving on it?"
"Tonight, if possible. Tomorrow if we can't get everything gathered in time. I need to call our team of lawyers and let them know we're pulling the trigger, so to speak."
"I've had a few places picked out for a while where you should be safe. No one knows which one I'm choosing, and they won't, hopefully even after you get here," she said. "There have been credible threats."
"That doesn't surprise me after what happened with James," Scott pointed out. He let his shoulders drop. "Thanks for looking out for us, Wanda. I know this trial can't be easy for you, either, all things considered."
"All things considered, you're family, Scott."
"And I hope you know we feel the same way," Scott said. He glanced toward Annie, who was already directing Nate on what to pack.
"Let me know when your travel plans are solid," Wanda said. "I'm sure you can probably get Billy to get you all here seamlessly and under the radar."
"That's the plan," Scott agreed. "Thanks again, Wanda." With that, he hung up and immediately dialed Matt Murdock - who also seemed to be expecting his call. Because apparently everyone in their social circle had seen James and Kate on the news.
"I tried to talk him out of it before he went down to the station," Matt said. "I'll have you know my partner is beside himself right now looping the punch and ready to start fielding phone calls."
Scott sighed audibly. "You and I both know once James' mind is made up… I appreciate you trying, though. Really."
"Yeah, I'm not sure which one he's more like at this point, but it's impossible to reason with him when he's like that. Condolences for having that in your face."
"Hey, I chose it," Scott said. He smirked but let it fall quickly. "Listen, we're going to capitalize on this while it's fresh. Heading to Genosha willingly."
"Smart move," Matt said. "When are you leaving and what do I need to do to get there?"
"Tonight or tomorrow morning, depending on how quickly we can get it together. Billy should be able to wish us all there, so make sure you've got everything you need."
"It's all ready when you are," Matt replied. "I've been waiting for the call, if I'm being honest."
"Yeah, I knew the window was dwindling once James was back to himself," Scott agreed. "Alright, I'll see you soon. If you could tell the others…"
"I'll take care of it," Matt promised.
"I appreciate it," Scott said and finally hung up and pocketed his phone, watching as Nate telekinetically helped Annie pack up. He let his shoulders drop and then headed over. "I've got it from here," he told them both. "You should pack too, Nate."
"Okay," Nate said, looking a little at a loss for a moment before he turned to head off.
In fact, it seemed everyone was a little quieter than usual, even once they were all prepped and packed. Yes, Kate and James had planned to help with the public image ahead of the trial, but no one had expected it to come up so fast, and everyone was dealing with varying levels of nerves about the whole thing.
Billy in particular was doing a quiet, nervous bounce as everyone started to gather, and he was twisting his hands in front of himself.
"You gonna be okay?" Kate asked, frowning when she saw Billy.
"Yeah, I just…" Billy took a deep breath and let it out. "I don't like this."
"It'll be fine," James promised before he kissed his cheek and stepped back with a teasing smile.
"Yeah, I know. Just…" Billy trailed off and shook his head. "Anyway… I'll just…" His hands and eyes started to glow as he worked up the wish, but when he tried to cast the spell… nothing happened.
"Um, Billy, we're still here," Kate said.
"Iwishwewereallatthepalace," Billy tried again, but, again, nothing happened.
"Performance issues?" America teased from where she was standing with her arm around Rachel's waist.
"Shut up," Billy said, blushing brightly. "No. I'm trying."
"It's okay," James said, still smirking to himself. He'd guessed this might be an issue just because Billy needed to want for something to happen, and he was being pretty darn protective of all of them. "That's what jets are for, little prince."
"Yeah, but…" Billy let his shoulders drop. "This is… I was…"
"Love you too," James said before he could get too far in his head.
"I'll call Jamie and let him know we need to schlepp," Annie said, smirking to herself. "It's alright, Billy. We're all nervous about this. No shame in it."
"Tony has a jet on standby," James said. "Just in case."
"And this'll be good for PR anyway," Kate tried to reassure Billy. "I mean, showing up in a jet means pictures of the voluntary surrender, so… it's a good thing."
"If you say so," Billy said, though his cheeks were still burning.
Annie laughed and skipped over to kiss his cheek. "Ain't a thing wrong with not wantin' your boyfriend to rush too quickly into trouble. I know the feelin'," she said brightly.
"Nah, he likes the trouble," America teased.
"Oh, so do I," Annie said with a shameless grin. "Doesn't mean I don't still get worried." She dialed Jamie's number and started to walk away with the phone. "Anyway. Let's get this show on the road, shall we?"
Chapter 126: Remanded Into Custody
Chapter Text
When the jet landed in Genosha, Wanda came to the tarmac to meet the Summers family. Usually, she would have come with only her family, but this time, because of the nature of the visit, she had several of her guards along and all looked grim.
"Annie," Scott said under his breath just before he hit the lever to open the door, "follow Billy. I'm sure Wanda will let you know once things are settled where we'll be."
Annie bit her lip but nodded and then stole a quick kiss. "Brave of you puttin' me in charge of watchin' Kate and America in these circumstances," she teased lightly, though her heart obviously wasn't in it.
"If you ask them, they'll say they're looking out for you," he teased her right back. He tipped his head toward where Wanda was waiting. "Wait to get out until after we're gone. There are reporters, and you don't want to get caught up in a media frenzy if you can help it."
Annie nodded and gave his hand one last squeeze. "Be careful."
"Always am," he promised and got to his feet, nodding to his kids, who didn't need to speak to know it was time to head out.
"Give Annie your phone," Rachel said as she did exactly that with America, then stole a quick kiss and darted around Scott. "And don't be in a rush to get arrested, Dad."
"Mostly in a rush to get this over with," Scott said.
"Might take a while," James said.
"You know what I mean."
"Sure do," he agreed, and made a move to try and step around Scott, too, though Scott grabbed his shoulder to prevent him from doing that.
"You're the one charged with murder. You're not going in front," Scott said simply as he followed Rachel out.
James frowned, but didn't argue it -to Scott. Instead, he turned to Nate. "They already shot me once…"
"So how bout don't invite it and give Dad a heart attack," Nate said with a smirk.
"Not what I was going for," James argued, then grumbled when Nate made a point of cutting in front of him too. "Rude."
"Beauty before age," Nate said without missing a beat.
"Delusional, then," James said over his shoulder.
"No, I'm definitely sure you're older," Nate said.
"You know, if it was between brains and brawn, you'd just be screwed," James had to tease. "Skinny."
"Not my fault your mutation makes you look like that."
James shook his head, then smirked as he looked back toward Billy for a moment. "Don't worry. It's not even the first time I've been arrested. This will be fine."
By the time James stepped out, Rachel and Scott had already been handcuffed and were in the process of being frisked. Nate had a guard on either side of him, just starting up the process, and as James climbed down the stairs, he made sure to hold both hands up at waist level so they could see there was no attempt to try for a weapon … not that it was necessary.
Truth be told, he'd been expecting a lot heavier-handed treatment from the guards. But the guards simply searched the arriving Summers family, handcuffed them, and put them in a transport - though Wanda took a second to pop her head in and tell them there'd been credible threats against them, so they weren't going to the prison her father had set up.
With that little warning, they headed off, taking a circuitous route and switching vehicles - which showed how serious the threats had been - before they ended up at a small house not far from the palace itself. Which made sense. That meant the guards from the palace would be close at hand if necessary.
"Well this looks great," Nate said dryly.
"It could be a great deal worse," the guard holding Scott said. "And you're lucky that this is as good as it is."
"He's not wrong. Ask Remy," Scott said quietly, one eyebrow raised significantly at Nate to tell him to behave - for the moment.
I'm not really complaining, Nate projected to Scott. It's just … a lot.
I know, Scott replied. And you can complain all you want when it's just us. But house arrest is a privilege, and let's not do anything to rock that boat.
Before the group of prisoners was uncuffed, the guards took a moment to put an anklet on each of them while they were telling them what the rules were - including the little bit about how they were able to step outside if they needed to, but considering the threats that had been leveled at them - it was not recommended. At all.
But the guards were slow to uncuff them, too. Even after they did everything that was required, they seemed reluctant to finish up. Nate and Rachel shared a look between themselves and Scott, hoping he'd know what was going on, but before Scott could project to them to be patient, James flinched hard and pressed one ear to his shoulder in a heavy cringe. And Nate and Rachel weren't more than a few seconds behind him in trying to protect themselves from the reverb that was echoing the house.
The guards looked just as confused as Scott while his three kids slid to the ground one by one - obviously in pain.
Scott was faster to react, though he couldn't do much. "You said there were credible threats."
"There are," one of the guards replied, trying to see where the attack was coming from.
Scott was already scanning too. "Your four o'clock," he said when he spotted someone trying to hide behind the corner of a nearby building. "Where are the keys? Those kids can't fight back right now." When the guard didn't make a move to help, Scott let out a frustrated sound. "Do your damn job or let someone else do it!"
"What makes you think this isn't my job?"
Scott narrowed his eyes and then lashed out - which was unfortunate for the man, considering Scott could only use his legs and the easiest way to down him was to kick him right between the legs hard as he could. And when he went down, Scott crouched to look for the keys.
He had to turn around to reach the keys once he found them, which unfortunately put his back to the door. And in the second it took for him to grab the keys, another player arrived on the scene - announcing themselves by wrapping something around Scott's neck until he stumbled backward, unable to get himself righted or to do anything to relieve the pressure. He did see out of the corner of his eye that whatever had wrapped around him was connected to something beyond his vision, and he was able to twist just enough to see that the mutant attacking him had stretched his arm out like a noose before he fell to his knees, unable to get a breath.
While Scott was distracted with his assailant, another person slipped through the door and headed right for the three Summers kids - with Rachel being her first target. The boys were trying to look around enough to see what was happening, though it was hard to take a breath for how badly they were hurting … until they saw that Rachel was in trouble. She was being hit with the same feedback they were, but this new player looked almost like he was going to kiss her. The boys shared a wordless glance and both of them took a swipe - not unlike Scott had done - to start kicking Rachel's attacker.
None of them were making any significant leeway, though, so it was good timing that Alex and Lorna, knowing the kinds of threats being levied against their family members, had already made their own plans to visit Scott and the kids as soon as they were settled.
In just a glance, the two of them saw the situation - Scott losing consciousness, Rachel's eyes rolling in her head, the boys panicked but too slow - and went into motion without even talking about it. There was enough metal around them that Lorna didn't even have to try to shape weapons - she just used a metal wall to grab the man with his hands around Rachel's arm and waist as he drank her power for himself. She completely encased him in metal, the way her father would have done, and then waved a hand to break the handcuffs on everyone.
Alex, meanwhile, blasted the stretchy mutant - and since he didn't have to worry about Scott, he just let the guy have it, knocking him out instantly so that he could focus instead on unwinding the stretchy arms from around his big brother's neck.
But even at that, whatever was hurting James, Rachel, and Nate hadn't let up. James put his hands to his ears, and both Rachel and Nate were holding their fists to their temples. "Lorna…" Alex said, a bit distracted checking to make sure his brother was breathing.
Lorna frowned, trying to find the source of the problem. By the time she saw it, James was bleeding from his ears, and both of the telepaths were unconscious. But once she spotted the mutant around the corner, she dropped half a wall on them, and the attack stopped.
Which left Alex and Lorna standing in a group of unconscious prisoners, attackers, and guards who obviously hadn't done a thing to stop it. In a second, Lorna had her phone out. "Wanda, get here now."
Wanda didn't wait to hear anything more - and she didn't ask before she magicked herself to Lorna - along with Vision to help her. When she saw the state of things around her, she swore outright. "This is ridiculous," she said - her accent getting thicker with how angry she was.
"No kidding," Alex said dryly. "What was that other attacker doing to the kids?" he asked Lorna.
Lorna frowned as she crouched down by Rachel. "One of my father's acolytes has a semi-sonic power. It's incredibly high-pitched and can also reverberate on the psychic field."
"That doesn't sound good," Alex said, frowning.
"If he'd kept going, he could have given all three of them aneurisms," Lorna said.
"Damn."
"We need to move them somewhere safer - with more trustworthy guards," Lorna said -more to Wanda than to Alex.
"I'll do it myself," Wanda said, her eyes flashing with both anger and power - and the next thing any of them knew, the whole group of them - minus the attackers- were in a different house, this one immediately familiar. It was the same house Erik had given Scott during his initial stay on Genosha after what happened with Greydon Creed.
"What happened to the-"
"They're in cells," Wanda said sharply.
"Right. Obviously." Alex sat back and dragged a hand down his face. "So. Don't the Avengers have an instant healer or something…? This is… not great…"
"They do," Wanda said. "And I'll call to warn them that we want him here."
"Good." Alex sat back on the floor as he came down from the adrenaline. "Well, this is fun. I think this island is trying to kill my brother."
"This is not the start I'd like to see for this trial," Wanda said as she pulled out her phone to call Tony, then turned into the phone dismissing any of her normal conventions. "You have a healer, don't you? Is he there now?"
"Um, hi, yes we do. He's with Hank - why?"
"There's been an attack. I'm working up the spell to bring him here now - warn him before I finish."
"Okay, got it. Hanging up now," Tony said, sounding instantly stressed.
Wanda took a moment to center herself, almost picturing in her mind's eye as Tony ran to the lab. She knew how long that would take him, anyhow. Then, she blew out a breath and worked her spell, drawing Tyler Creed there in a moment.
As soon as he arrived, Tyler glanced around, sucked in air through his teeth, and got to work, shaking his head as he did so. "What happened?" he asked, even as he was already working on healing Scott - who was the only one with visible injuries given the bruising around his neck.
"They were attacked," Wanda said simply. "All of them."
Tyler shook his head but kept right on working, wincing when he scanned Rachel and Nate. "Give me a minute here. This…" He shifted the way he was sitting. "It's on its way to a brain bleed, so it's not technically an injury, but I think I can…" He trailed off and concentrated, finally leaning back to get his breath once he'd sat with both of them.
"Well?" Wanda prompted. "Please tell me they'll be fine. I do not want to have to deal with a telepath of Nate's caliber out of control of his mind - and we definitely do not need the Phoenix cracking open."
"No, nothing like that," Tyler promised. "They'll be fine. Just stay away from head injuries for a few weeks if at all possible."
"I know it's likely a waste of time, but … can you check James too?" Wanda asked.
Tyler nodded. "I can't heal him, but I can tell you what needs healing," he said and put a hand on James's shoulder. He pulled a face. "Okay, so, the shattered ear drums will heal on their own… looks like it's slower than usual, but that's not a surprise, since there's still some missing grey matter there."
"Sorry, what now?" Alex stared at Tyler.
Tyler glanced up and winced. "Right. Well. It's almost all grown back, really. Shouldn't take much longer, but when there's a brain injury, that's going to divert some healing energy anyway. Probably why he's still unconscious."
"That …" Alex trailed off as he looked between his family members. "I should have known, but Scott didn't say, and oh, man. Please don't tell him he doesn't have it all regrown. The competitive thing will just go off the rails with … I can just hear it. 'Smarter than you with half my brain missing'," Alex said.
Tyler chuckled under his breath. "You're not wrong."
"I mean - Scott should know, obviously," Alex amended.
"Yeah, I'll leave that to you," Tyler said, leaning back. "So do you … need me still or…"
"I think it might be wise for you to stay for the duration - if you're not too busy," Wanda said, then managed to give him a warm smile. "Welcome to Genosha, by the way. Thank you for your help. I'm sure one of my boys could show you around."
"Okay then." Tyler looked bemused, but all things considered, he wasn't about to argue it. "I'll just…" He gestured vaguely at the door, and when no one stopped him, he got to his feet.
"Don't go too far," Wanda said. "I'm sure Billy can find you anyhow, but it seems that the streets aren't entirely safe right now."
Tyler paused. "I'll just wait for a guide, then," he said. "Looks like this is complicated, and I don't want to make it any worse."
Wanda frowned at that and turned toward Alex and Lorna, looking for an explanation. She hadn't met Tyler until just then … and what little she'd heard from Billy and Tommy had sounded more like the punchline to a joke than anything else.
"He doesn't go in public much as it is," Alex explained. "Family resemblance - and weapons groups want to use him."
"Oh," Wanda turned back to Tyler and took a moment to pull him aside - away from the task at hand. "I didn't mean … the danger is to these four. There isn't anything to concern yourself with here …" she paused when she realized she didn't know him outside of passing stories. "You must be Tyler."
"And you must be the queen of Genosha."
"Wanda," she said with a smile.
"Wanda," he repeated. "I'll try to remember that. Sorry, this is…"
"I also answer to Billy and Tommy's mom," she teased.
He couldn't help but smirk at that. "Okay, that one I can remember."
"We'll set you up with a place to stay - close by, but not too close," Wanda said. "I heard about how you came to join the good guys."
"Oh, man, Tommy won't let that story die," Tyler said, wincing but laughing all the same.
"No, he really won't," she agreed. "If I were you, I'd be ready for a fresh retelling while you're here." Wanda turned toward Alex and Lorna. "If you could stay here for a little while … I'm going to get Billy here and we'll cast some protection on this place."
Understandably, Billy was upset when he met up with his mother to find the entire Summers family in varying stages of injury. He had no trouble whipping up a spell with his mother to protect the family - and even went so far as to add a little umph that would make it clear who held ill intent toward them. Not all of the Acolyte followers were known, and though Billy understood how some of them were swayed to think that way, he didn't appreciate the actions that they were choosing. So he wanted to make sure those that would harm the family on trial would get a little taste of their own medicine.
But once that was established, Wanda allowed him the time to make sure James was settled in and resting before she told him that she wanted him to help Tyler out with a little tour of the area and to make sure he was settled in, too.
And seeing as Alex and Lorna were planning to stay close to keep an eye on the Summers family while they slept and recovered, Billy saw nothing wrong with casting an alarm spell so he could go see his boyfriend as soon as he regained consciousness. He needed to make sure that the new location was safe, after all, so he couldn't just … go strolling into or out of that safe house.
And yet, Tyler still wasn't entirely sure of himself as they started off from the palace - where Billy had wished him to so they had a neutral starting point. His confidence slowly returned to him as they walked through the streets of Genosha, both awed and entertained by the massive respectful following that Billy had. Sure, there were people that came up to him, but they weren't mobbing him like he'd seen the press do with James or Tony - or any of the X-Men or Avengers, really.
For as interested in Billy that all these people were, and factoring in how respectful they were being, it was still shocking. Aside from apologies for pestering him, very quickly, the most common question in the air was some iteration of "How long have you been dating?" or shouted concerns about Billy fooling around with Sabretooth's son - though there were a few that were congratulating him on his newest beau as well, even if not all of them looked overly enthusiastic about his apparent rebound.
"That's not … no," Billy answered, blushing high on his cheeks and more flustered than he'd expected to be. This was such a misunderstanding. But the lawyers had made a point to warn him against publicly defending James before the trial started and his testimony was out there. He just hadn't expected to be stuck with this as the most bizarre thing to happen to him so far … that year.
The murmur from the press began to escalate slightly, though still nowhere near as pushy as the American press was, though it was difficult to navigate through the crowd while making sure Tyler knew to stick close and stay quiet.
But nothing he could do short of a wish - and that was out of the question when he actually wanted to get away from Tyler, too - could get them to the palace before Tommy could catch the news. And Tommy had run all the way from New York to razz him about it even though he was due to fly in with Mia's family the following day.
Billy shut his eyes tightly and pulled his hand down his face when he heard the tell-tale woosh that told him his twin was there for him … just when he didn't want him there.
"You have a type," Tommy started out sounding gleeful. "Up until now, I wasn't sure. Like, I had a few thoughts, but those turned out to be wrong, you know? Like I was totally considering the wrong details."
"Tommy-"
"Wait, wait, hear me out!" Tommy said, holding up both hands as he did laps around his brother, bouncing on the balls of his feet as he got more animated. "I mean … I thought for the longest time you had a thing for blondes, but then, you totally blew your streak, right? The redhead was close enough to blonde-"
"Tommy, stop."
"-but that was totally nuked with that guy from Greece-"
Billy dropped into the nearest chair, but Tommy was on a roll, so that wasn't about to stop soon.
"-and the return of the blonde thing only to get destroyed by the truth."
"The truth." Billy's tone was flat.
"Yep! Man. Grandfather would be rolling over in his grave if he knew you had a thing for ferals. Oh, man. I mean … James I can almost get? He meets all the other criteria you had before-"
"Oh my god."
"-but now, now I know that your type isn't just big and strong and stacked … it's big, dangerous, murderous, animalistic guys. I should have known. Opposites."
"I'm more dangerous than he is," Billy defended weakly, though he wasn't sure where to start arguing with the other points that were so totally not built into what he was looking for in a guy.
"Sure you are," Tommy said before he reached out to pat Billy's head. "Horrifically dangerous brainy twink-brother of mine."
"You know you more or less just said you look like a twink too- and I'm not a twink!"
"Is it like …. A vampire fetish? You like the teeth? Want to be bitten and-"
"And that's enough," Billy said before he wished himself away from his brother with his face burning red. Not that it was going to help. Not when Tommy knew exactly where Billy had wished himself to … and had to continue his teasing by almost apparating over Billy's shoulder once he was in his favorite hiding place.
"It's okay, I won't tell the press. Or James. Or … I suppose Tyler …"
"Seriously?"
Tommy grinned widely. "But it's so funny!" he insisted. "And I gotta get my jokes in now, because when you testify, all the stories will evaporate and the press will be back to being in love with you both like always…"
"Like they're not in love with you and Mia too."
"Yeah, well." Tommy cleared his throat, which had Billy frowning and turning his way. He had been expecting Tommy to preen about how amazing he and his girlfriend were, not look… sheepish.
"Tommy, are things with you and Mia okay?"
Immediately, Tommy waved off his concern. "We're fine. I'm fine. Everything is fine. Just tired of people asking when I'm marrying her. I just started college and she's still in high school. Seems like I should be having fun, not settling down, right? Why even push that?"
Billy tried to catch Tommy's gaze, but his brother wouldn't look at him. "Well, you two have been together as long as James and I have…"
"And you two work jumping into commitment. I don't." Tommy shrugged and blew out his breath. "Anyway, you totally abandoned Tyler to the masses. The poor lost kitten. Maybe I should chat him up and steal him away from you."
"Yeah, you do that," Billy said, though his heart wasn't in the tease, and he was frowning staring after where his brother had run off for a long time.
The night before the trial was set to begin, the Summers family as a whole sat down one more time to go over how they were going to approach their defense. With Genosha's court using telepaths to get at the truth, they knew the whole story was going to be out there, so the trick was using the story itself and making sure that all of the context was included to show why they'd felt it was necessary to act.
And they weren't far into their strategizing review when the trio of lawyers showed up to go over the case with them, too.
They'd gotten into dinner while they were talking, which was when Scott pulled Jamie Maddrox aside for just a moment. "Just wanted to say thanks - again. It's been a wild few months, and I know you were doing fine before we pulled you into this."
"You know the only part about this that makes me worry is that it's you," Jamie said. "I've got your back - you know I do, but man. I was hoping it wasn't going to come to a trial."
Scott smiled grimly. "Honestly, I think Wanda threw her weight around to try to keep this from touching us, but…" He gestured vaguely.
"It's too big to sweep under the rug, and the players are too famous," Jamie said.
"Pretty much," Scott agreed.
"How are the kids handling it?"
"Nate's taking it the hardest because Kate's pregnant," Scott admitted. "But overall, they're more mad than anything."
"Yeah, well … didn't fall far from the tree, huh?" Jamie teased.
Scott smirked. "Yeah, no kidding. At least my fiance is taking care of his."
"I honestly think that Nate and Rachel will be perfectly fine. The courts brought them into it to make it more … big, but they really didn't take part in anything, as I understand it."
"Yeah, Jen told me the same thing yesterday," Scott admitted as he glanced over to where Jen was currently chatting with Nate and Rachel. "And honestly, I think James will be okay too. Billy's testimony from the investigation was pretty clear; they'd have a hard time acting like James wasn't in mortal danger with the dampener on and a knife in his heart."
"Another one that didn't fall far from the tree."
"Don't I know it." Scott let out a breath. "The thing that worries me the most is that I just got back in the public eye, and now this trial is happening. The last thing I want is for the X-Men to get dragged through the mud because of me."
"Let's see how your team decides to frame it before you carry it all on your shoulders, huh? You gotta stop doing that."
"Sure, I'll work on that," Scott said with a dry smirk.
The level of nerves for the defendants was definitely high, as well it should have been, but one member of the gallery was watching closer at how tense Scott was as he watched his three children hold still for the bailiffs to put collars on them. It was easily the most barbaric part of the entire proceeding so far. But then, it was just getting started and Mr. Sinister had yet to see how court trials worked in Genosha.
The press around the trial itself had been nothing but background noise when it was first announced that Magneto had finally pushed the wrong person too far, but once it was made public that there would be a trial … and for one of Sinister's most treasured subjects, too -
Well, he simply couldn't stay away. Of course, he couldn't exactly show up in the open either. Aside from panicking Scott, Sinister knew that he, too, was wanted in Genosha for crimes against mutant kind. As if he'd listen to their kangaroo court on charges against himself. Or anyone of note for that matter. He needed to be in that courtroom to see how far Scott had fallen this time. If it was bad enough, he might even welcome some help. But first, he wanted to see how the years had treated him outside of the loss of his powers and his codename. Sinister himself had never had much patience to watch children grow naturally, but … he wasn't surprised to hear that Scott would have liked it.
Because Genosha was made for mutants, they didn't conduct their trials the way humans would, either. They were keenly aware of the way powers - especially of the telepathic variety - could influence the way a trial went. And so, not only did the defendants have collars but both the defense and the prosecution had a telepath on their payroll to make sure that the witnesses were telling the truth. Furthermore, both telepaths would review the minds of the judge and jury after the case was over to make sure no one had been manipulated to decide one way or the other.
And considering the high-profile mess that was the legal knot from Emma Frost's botched case in the US, that was almost certainly the best way to move forward.
The witness stand itself was also wired as a dampener - Sinister could see that much even before the trial began. And while the courtroom was open to the press, for security reasons for this trial, the public was limited in observation. Several X-Men were allowed in as well as many of Magneto's acolytes, and a crowd of the public sat in the rest of the available seats, screened, of course.
Because of the nature of the trial, to prevent a protracted media circus, the court had decided to try all four defendants but to have the sentencing separately at the end of the trial. The facts would all be the same for each case, except for Scott's, as he'd been with Magneto long before the kids showed up.
The judge began the trial by acknowledging the scrutiny they were all under and emphasizing the importance of getting it right. But Sinister noted that he did thank the defendants for appearing without compulsion.
From the start, it was clear the prosecution was out for blood - not that it was a surprise with a number of acolytes on the prosecutorial team. Their opening statement was vicious, accusing Scott of not only murderous intent but a long-standing grudge, pointing at his past with the X-Men fighting against Magneto's vision for mutant kind. They accused the kids of being part of the plot, of knowing what he was going to do and not doing a thing to stop it. They accused James of being nothing but an animalistic killer on a leash held by Scott. They didn't hold back.
The defense had Jamie Maddrox give their opening statement - which was helpful in a mutant haven like Genosha. And where the prosecution had been practically (and very near literally) spitting venom in their accusations, Jamie appealed to the jury to understand how hard Scott had worked to find any other avenue to get Erik to turn from his path. He pointed to the illegal surveillance Erik was doing and to the threats against the lives of the X-Men, including James multiple times as well as threats toward Kate for the simple crime of being human.
Of the two opening statements, Jamie's was easily the most impressive - because he didn't come across as having his own axe to grind and didn't resort to yelling. It was the downside of the prosecution choosing a team so heavily pro-Magneto and pro-Acolyte: while they would be the best choice to push for the heaviest consequences, they risked alienating a jury made up of Genoshans who had also lived under Erik's rule and might not have seen him in such a saintly light.
To start things off, Lorna was sworn in as she explained that she had been the first to realize what had happened and that she had checked the tapes to get the whole story. And she played the entire interaction - not just the fight itself but the conversation Erik and Scott had had leading up to it. The jury got to see the two of them arguing and could see the surveillance setup Erik had - which was a shock to many there, though not a surprise, as Erik had been tightening his grip on the populace for some time before his fall. And, with a warning that the content was gruesome, Lorna showed how the fight had gone down and how the kids had rushed to save their father.
For as riveting of a video as it was, Sinister was anxious to get a feel for where the public opinion was resting in regards to his subjects. He was not terribly surprised to see that they were, by in large, not surprised by the chain of events. When he turned his focus to those standing trial and the jury whose opinion held the most weight, he had to control his irritation.
It was plainly obvious to anyone with half a brain that intent or not, Magneto had not met his end due to careful plotting or planning. In fact, he'd nearly managed to kill Scott when Scott had hesitated by Sinister's measure.
What was more interesting was the tenor that the defendants had though - far more complex in their opinions of things (for the most part). Rachel and Nate were almost like bookends in their motivation and processing of all that had happened. Scott was a veritable ball of nerves - as expected. He wasn't sure how he'd walk out of the trial, and he was more terrified on behalf of his children than he was for his own sake. James … was just as difficult to read as the first time he'd met the boy in Oxford. Frustrating, confident, and as beautiful a savage as he'd seen years and years ago. But this little savage was in far more trouble at his age than Logan had been.
After the video Lorna had brought played, the judge called for a short recess; it was abundantly clear that everyone needed a break after the gruesome, bloody scene had unfolded before them. And while some people got up to stretch their legs, others stuck around to chat.
Sinister could see Scott reach over to squeeze Jamie's shoulder. "Damn good speech," he said quiet enough that most people wouldn't catch it.
"We're just getting started," Jamie promised.
"Yeah, can't wait to get yelled at for four days," Nate said dryly.
"Figured you'd be used to it," James said under his breath.
"You're hilarious."
"Not much we can guess at this early," Matt said. "Just laid out the facts. Hard to read anyone on the jury just yet. That video shook everyone."
"I don't know the fine details on the laws here, so I don't know how right you are," James said, though Nate definitely didn't look like that was helping his nerves.
The group of them fell silent, watching as people started to file back in after the short break. And then, the defense called Billy to the stand.
As expected, the prosecution was much gentler with Billy than they would have been with other witnesses. He was well-liked throughout Genosha - and even the acolytes wanted to stay on good footing with him, as he had been Magneto's hand-picked successor. And so, they started with basic questions, asking him to recount the events of the day.
Most of the details weren't known to the public, and even Sinister had to admit to being impressed by the ingenuity of the spell Billy described: one that would bring them straight to Scott if he found himself in mortal danger. The prosecution didn't like that part: it made it sound like the crown prince himself was in on a conspiracy. But Billy himself admitted that he didn't know the specifics of Scott's plan, just that James was worried.
But the prosecution, for as carefully as they were handling Billy, couldn't quite contain him once Billy reached the point in his tale when he had seen Magneto and Scott.
Without meaning to, Billy got more animated, leaning forward, his eyes wide as he gripped the stand in front of him. "All James wanted to do was separate them," he said. "He got between them, and he put his hands up. You saw it. And you know there was a dampener. And…" He swallowed. "You saw him try to put my grandfather's arms down. He was just there to stop it, not…" He gestured toward where the video had been playing. "How am I supposed to forget watching my own grandfather stab my boyfriend in the heart, huh?"
Sinister smirked as the crowd around him murmured despite the judge's calls for quiet. Billy had to know the standing he had on Genosha. He had to know how compelling a case he was making for the defense simply by siding with James so fervently.
The prosecution tried to pull it back, of course. They could tell Billy wouldn't say anything bad about James, so instead, they focused their questions on Scott, on what Billy knew ahead of time.
Billy, of course, couldn't give Scott much cover… and yet he still managed to paint him sympathetically when the defense cross-examined him. Jamie asked about the spell Billy had cast - the one everyone saw on video - when he had wished them all back home.
"And where did you end up?" Jamie asked.
"At the Summers home," Billy said. "Actually, I hadn't ever been there before. Not in person. They had a public-facing home, but you know how it can be for mutants, right? So they were being careful, and I ended up transporting us right into their living room."
"How did you manage to wish yourself there if you'd never been before?"
"I mean, you heard the spell," Billy pointed out. "I just wanted to go home, and honestly? 'Home' wasn't anywhere my grandfather had touched in that moment. It was wherever James was."
"So even though you'd just seen all you did, the place you felt safest was with the Summers family."
"Yeah." Billy swallowed. "I just wanted us to be okay. All of us."
Sinister tapped his fingers on his arms as he watched, listening to the surface-level thoughts around him, especially as Jamie circled back around in his questioning to why Billy might not have felt safe around his grandfather - at least not with his boyfriend around.
Another video queued up - this time a compilation of several incidents, taken from different investigations into deaths that had occurred around the crown princes… specifically anyone who had dated Billy or Tommy. Any relationship that didn't work out seemed to end in bloodshed. Even a few that had wanted to pursue relationships but never got that far.
"Did you know that this was happening to the young men you'd been dating, or those that were pursuing your brother?" Jamie asked.
Billy tipped his head as he carefully considered his answer. "Not at the time," he said. "I knew that he was scaring people off, but I didn't know he was killing anyone."
"And when did you find out about that part?"
"When he started threatening James, I got… curious," Billy admitted. "And I did some digging."
"What piqued your curiosity?"
"I mean, when he started coming to James's lab to throw around threats, I guess I had to wonder what he'd done to people who weren't brave enough to stand up to him, you know?" Billy pointed out.
"So you were trying to find out why you hadn't gotten a call back?" Jamie tried to tease as lightly as he could. "Or you were more concerned because .." He stopped himself rather than be accused of leading his witness, and he wanted Billy to outline how this situation was different than those before it.
Billy blushed lightly. "No, honestly, I didn't really think much about not hearing from anyone I'd dated. I know that sounds bad, but, like, I'm the crown prince, and I know that's intimidating when it comes to dating. I really figured they just didn't want the hassle of royal drama or the press following them around or something if they didn't have to put up with it now that we weren't dating, you know?" He winced his shoulder up to his ear. "It wasn't until Grandfather started openly threatening James that I wondered if he'd followed through on those threats with anyone else, and… well… I found out that he had."
"To your knowledge, had any of the others stood up to your grandfather?"
Billy shook his head. "No, I don't think anyone did." He paused. "Before James, everyone I dated lived on Genosha. I think that probably made standing up to him a lot scarier and harder, you know?"
"That I do," Jamie replied. "Thank you. That's all the questions I have for this witness."
As soon as things started to wind down, Sinister sat back with a sigh, once again listening in to the private thoughts around him that mattered. Most of the courtroom was buzzing with idle gossip that left little to actually consider in regards to the princes, and many of the genoshan citizens in attendance were trying to recall if any of them had personally known any of Magneto's victims - or their family's responses on finding out what had happened to their teens that had simply disappeared.
It was clearly a rather bold move from Magneto and a tad too predictable and rough. Which made the fact that his grandsons being so clever was almost amusing. The man was smart, but … far too heavy handed. He wasn't sure where their flair had come from entirely. Especially when Wanda herself was every drop as dramatic as her father.
William had walked away from the stand looking for a place to hide away from the trial of public opinion - particularly when all they seemed to be discussing was his love life. Sinister was far more intrigued by how in the world Billy's spell had directed them to where the Summers had called home. There was something more in play with that spell than met the eye, or that met basic logic - but the pathway there wasn't nearly as clear as Sinister would usually see. He scoffed at the back of his throat. Magic. That had to be the problem. At it's essence it fought basic, dependable laws. Meddlesome, frustrating factor that it was … he was starting to think of how useful forcing your outcomes might be. And … finding hiding Summers family members … as amusing as the thought was, repeating that spell if the group did a runner could be quite useful. Once, anyhow.
William's path was looking more and more clear. Regardless of his involvement, Sinister couldn't see the courts dirtying the boy's hands. Even if he himself had felled the old man. He would be useful. As long as Sinister used the right pressure when he found a path in, of course.
And with that, the judge dismissed the court for the day, with the defendants filing out first so that they could get out and avoid anyone who might try to take things into their own hands.
Sinister sat back, nodding to himself as he considered the events of the day. He had to admit that, though he hadn't been shocked by much in the video - he had known Scott's children were protective and knew instantly what a feral break was when it was shown on screen - he could hear telepathically that the jury and the gathered crowd were still in shock.
That was to be expected. As unstable as he had been, Magneto had provided a sanctuary. The soup of mixed emotions choking the air wasn't surprising.
The only true surprise of the day was how fervently William Maximoff was on James Howlett's side. Of all the pairings in the world…
He chuckled and got up to leave with the rest of the crowd once the defendants were gone. He had been gone for so long; he couldn't wait to see what other interpersonal relationships he could find, what other strings he could pull.
He had much work to do.
Chapter 127: Ladies And Gentlemen Of The Court
Chapter Text
For the second day of the trial, Kate had woken up plenty early to meet up with Jan, smiling quietly to herself because there was little more she loved to do than to conspire with her Aunt Jan.
It was early enough that it was still dark out, but with the jet lag, that wasn't too hard to handle, anyway. And she was excited to see what Jan had come up with.
They'd talked about it even back when the charges had been announced, before they were extradited, before half of the crap had gone down. Jan was very good at design, and she knew how to use outfits to send a message. And then when Kate had found out she was pregnant, their plans turned devious.
Technically, Kate was in her second trimester, but she really wasn't showing yet. She had a small bump by that point, but it just looked like she'd gained weight. But if they wanted the jury to feel bad for Nate, if they wanted to manipulate some emotions, then playing up the pregnant fiance angle would be a good one.
And that was another thing. She had the ring Nate had given her, and she planned to wear it to the courthouse. She was already twisting it around on her finger, smiling to herself as she met up with Jan - who immediately noticed the new accessory and beamed.
Kate grinned and held up her left hand. "What do you think?"
"I love it," Jan gushed before she pulled out a designer bag and pulled out a gorgeous purple shirt. It had strappy sleeves and a low neck that was just low enough to show off Kate's bigger chest without being inappropriate for the court. And just underneath the neck was a knot where the fabric started to loosen up, flaring out to look wider than her stomach actually was - accentuating her figure in exactly the right way while still looking like a Van Dyne classic.
"Jan, you're a genius," Kate gushed, grabbing the shirt to hold it up against herself. "It's gorgeous and I love it."
"Knock 'em dead," Jan said, grinning.
"That's the plan," Kate said, skipping off with the bag clutched in her hands.
The Summerses were already getting ready and doing their pre-game planning when Kate changed and then found Billy and asked him to wish her inside so that she didn't give away their position. But they probably weren't expecting Kate to come flouncing in so gleefully.
"You're just a ray of sunshine," Nate said, unable to stop himself from smiling, though his smile faltered when he saw the flash of metal on her left hand.
"Jan got me the perfect outfit for today."
"Yeah, I see that," Nate said, sounding a little distracted even as he took her free hand and kissed her cheek. "Did she … pick out all of it?"
"She just designed the shirt, but look!" She stepped back slightly, gesturing at her stomach and the way the outfit made her look even more pregnant than she was. "I will be the cutest pregnant girl in court."
Nate half nodded, a little dazed at the subtle adjustment. "That was always a given," he said, then looked like he wanted to say something more and stopped.
Kate kissed his cheek. "You okay?" she asked. "Not expecting the pregnant look this soon?"
"Sure, sure," Nate said, then pulled her gently aside. "That part's great - and a nice little peek down the road, right? You are gorgeous. No two ways about it … I just …" he cleared his throat. "I'm … are your accessories as tactical as the rest of it?"
"Oh." Kate looked down at her hand and blushed.
"It's okay if that's the case, I guess, I just … figured that wasn't something you'd do."
"Yeah, well." Kate cleared her throat. She'd known this was probably coming, because she was actually being strategic. As bad as it sounded, she knew being a fiance and not just a girlfriend would give her a lot more credibility and sympathy when she took the stand - and it would weigh on the jury's minds.
"You don't have to do that, you know," Nate said. "I don't want you to lie in court. Even over this, you know?"
"Oh, it's not a lie," she promised quickly. "No, no… I mean, I told you when - see, the thing is, I've always figured we'd get married and have a family and stuff down the road, so this was always gonna happen? It's just - yeah, okay, so the timing is a little strategic, but I was gonna say yes anyway, I guess is what I'm trying to say? If that makes sense?" She winced. "Wanna get married?" she asked in almost a whisper, sure she'd messed things up.
"Not if you're not actually ready for that," Nate answered just as quietly. "I meant it before, Kate - I don't want to pressure you at all."
"Yeah, but I want to get married," Kate promised. "Preferably before our son is born, if that's okay… if the trial goes well, I mean…"
"I mean, I've been waiting for you to catch up," Nate teased before he carefully stole a chaste kiss.
When the kiss broke, Kate was watching him - and then stole a much less polite kiss, throwing her arms around his neck as she projected, Sorry to go all Black Widow on our engagement.
It's okay, Nate promised. Halfway figured you were making sure you didn't find someone better.
Yeah, wasn't shopping around.
Never know.
Kate rolled her eyes, though they were still wrapped up in a kiss for a good, long while before Scott cleared his throat - cluing them in to the fact that they needed to wrap things up so they could go to the courthouse. She grinned at Nate and then turned toward Scott. "Sorry, just had to celebrate being officially engaged," she told Scott - which simply prompted Annie to gasp and rush over to her, delighted and demanding details even as they were packing up to go.
Scott smirked as he watched Annie and Kate and then put his arm around Nate, one eyebrow raised as he had to ask, "Is this for putting on a public show, or…?"
"She said it's not," Nate said softly. "And I don't think she'd lie about that to me. I hope."
"No, she wouldn't," Scott said. Even if he had some doubts, he kept those tightly in his mental defenses, because the last thing he needed was for Nate to inherit his own hangups for the start of his marriage. "And for as excited as she was when she came in… that's hard for her to fake."
"Yeah, I'm not digging too deep on it, Dad," Nate said. "Not right now, anyway."
"Good call." Scott pulled him into a hug. "Congratulations, by the way. The way things are going, I think Annie's already made designs for a cake for you two. Just so you know."
Nate tucked into the hug neatly. "Yeah, okay," he said - still low and quiet.
Scott pulled him tighter. "I wouldn't be doing my job right if I didn't point out that you're welcome to back out if you need it," he whispered.
"I just don't want her to make any bigger mistakes, you know? This whole mess has me a little off."
"Let's get one thing straight," Scott said, then switched to projection. You're not a mistake. And neither is your new family. You're going to do great, Nate.
And Nate, for his part, didn't argue with him at all, silently nodding his agreement as he tried to get himself redirected for the task at hand. All of this had him more worried for Kate and their baby, after all. And far too much was riding on the decisions that the jury was about to make for them.
The second day of the trial was set to be one of the busiest, with six different witnesses scheduled to be on the stand. They began with Nate and Rachel recalling what they had seen, but so much of it was covered by Lorna's surveillance that the questioning veered elsewhere.
Matt pressed both of them about their reactions and about what happened after Billy wished them all home. The prosecution objected, of course, but Matt argued that the lack of a coverup certainly went against any charges of conspiracy.
"They didn't need a cover up once they got out of the country," one of the lawyers argued. "In fact, it seems as if they fled immediately to avoid facing the consequences of their actions."
"Or maybe I didn't want my dad to die," Nate shot back. "Maybe I wanted to get him some damn medical attention, you ever think of that? You see how much blood there was?"
"Did you check Magneto too? Or try to call for help for him?"
Nate looked at the lawyer like he was insane. "In what universe do you think I was thinking about anything in that second but 'Please, God, don't die?' Do you hear yourself? 'Why didn't you check on the guy who was trying to murder your father in front of you' what the hell. I thought I was losing my dad and my brother - I was panicking."
At that, Sinister had to cover his mouth to hide the smile at all that Nate was projecting, the jist of all of it being 'this is the dumbest person on the planet' in varying degrees based on how the questions were phrased. The boy had a glorious temper - much less restrained than his father, yet not quite as sharp as his mother. It was a good balance, and to be perfectly honest, Sinister was almost proud at how angry Nate was in that moment. Especially when it was, against most logic, swaying the jury.
Rachel, on the other hand, was a much more controlled witness, even if Sinister could hear that, like her father, she was crackling with anger under the surface - though, like her mother, that anger was seeped in fire.
Her testimony was straightforward as well. She was seen on video trying to keep her father from bleeding out, and she could actually be heard talking about both Erik and Scott as having done damage to each other. But what the prosecution focused on was the visible flames licking at her eyes and hair as she'd been panicking.
All of a sudden, the prosecution laid into her about the Phoenix, about the power she had and about how dangerous she was - until Matt got to his feet to shout his objection.
"This is completely irrelevant," Matt said. "The prosecution is attacking the witness for having power. That's surprising on Genosha of all places."
Even as the judge was calling for order, Sinister found himself again smirking as he watched how that little outburst played out. The tone of pure outrage was a nice touch, he thought. Especially for how disarmed Rachel Summers seemed to be by hearing that in defense of the Phoenix.
Eventually, the court settled out, and the prosecution had no more questions, so the court broke for a quick recess. Rachel finally let her anger show once she was seated with her family again, though they rallied around her and closed ranks - while Scott pulled Nate aside to tell him to rein it in.
Which was completely undermined when Kate leaned over the front bench to wave Nate over and kiss him. "I loved it," she said. "You're cute when you get all righteously indignant."
"Yeah, yeah," Nate teased but kissed her back.
Whatever was being said among the defendants fell to the wayside as Sinister watched the two of them for a long moment trying to parse what Nate saw in the girl. Genetically, she didn't seem to be incredibly interesting, and yet … it was almost like watching Scott and Jean years ago - utterly infatuated with each other. He glanced at Kate's swollen midsection. Obviously the same. But that also meant there was a very small Summers who was going to be making his or her debut. And that was more than a little distracting - a solid reminder of how much he'd been missing while Scott had been in hiding with the children if those children were already working on offspring of their own.
And then, he caught the tenor of Nate's thoughts about her - specifically about the engagement ring she was wearing and the strategy she was employing to get sympathy. Sinister didn't even have to try hard to hear that Nate was still not entirely convinced that the ring was nothing more than a tool for her to use in her arsenal, the way her mother had taught her to use anything available at her disposal.
And that in itself was interesting … and encouraging. To stay out of trouble for as long as they had, to the point that even Sinister hadn't been sure if they were alive until recently, the Summers family would have, by necessity, needed cunning. And, it seemed, that was still a consideration even in the public eye.
With Sinister's mind still on Nate and Kate's relationship, it was almost fortuitous that she was next on the stand. And while she had been playful and irreverent away from the witness stand, her mother's training kicked in once the questions started. Jen had her waddle up to the stand (already gaining sympathetic looks), and the fact that she was young, pretty, and pregnant already had people muttering as she unflinchingly described the threats Erik had made against her, James, and anyone else in his way.
When the prosecution cross-examined her, she turned it right back around on them. They'd objected to every single one of her answers, so by the time they sent a lawyer up to talk to her, she immediately disarmed him by smiling sweetly, almost wincing, and asking, "Are you going to let me talk or are you going to yell at me some more, because I have to be honest, this whole thing is stressing me out and I'm just trying to tell the truth here."
Clever girl, Sinister thought to himself as he sat back with his fingers entwined to watch the show.
Of course the lawyer did his best to accuse her of lying, but she would just respond to each allegation by asking "why." "Okay, well why do you think I'm lying?" she asked at one point. "I thought the whole point of each side having telepaths was to keep that from happening, so how come you're so convinced I'm a liar?"
Because he doesn't like your answers, Sinister thought with a pleased smirk. Well done, Nate.
"You're misrepresenting yourself," the prosecution finally said, exasperated. "In every other public appearance, you've never acted this passive."
Kate blinked at him. "Look," she said, leaning closer to the microphone. "My fiancé is on trial. His family is on trial with him. And I'm about to have a baby who might not get to see his dad or his aunt or uncle or grandfather if this goes poorly. I'm trying to be as polite as possible. I'm worried. I didn't realize being polite was a mark against me."
When the prosecution finally half-heartedly said they were done with their questions, Kate even asked, "Are you sure?" and Nate had to hide his snicker behind his hand as Jen helped Kate get back to her seat.
And then, perfectly timed to prove that Kate had been telling the truth, Tony Stark took the stand - to more than a few murmurs. He had video surveillance from his labs of multiple visits from Erik to threaten James, backing up Kate's testimony as the jury heard from Erik's own mouth that he'd been threatening not just death but enslavement or worse for James regardless of if he and Billy stayed together. And the video he had clearly showed James' response to Erik's threats weren't counter-threats, but a wish that Erik would get to live out his life with his family. It certainly seemed to blow 'premeditation' out of the water.
Vision, then Lorna both spoke to what they knew about the threats Erik had been making - and the steps he had taken to make good on those threats. Vision in particular brought up that he and Wanda had felt the need to send their boys to school away from Genosha because of Erik's increasingly unhinged paranoia. Lorna was frank when she talked about multiple conversations the Summerses weren't even aware of in which she had pleaded with Erik to stop picking fights and to stop seeing enemies where there were none.
With that, the second day of the trial was complete, and the gallery started to file out. The Summerses left first, of course, but the other witnesses were talking together. Kate and Tony were joking around, and Sinister saw her swat his hand away from her stomach.
"God, Tony, you're such a mother hen," she said with exasperated affection.
"Well done, my dear," Sinister said as he passed her by, though he didn't stop.
Kate turned toward the sound of his voice, blinked, and then smiled much more politely and waved at him as he walked by. "Thanks!" she called out, then went back to berating Tony for worrying too much when she wasn't due for months.
The third day, it was much harder for Sinister to get a seat, because the courtroom was packed to the brim with press and with royals. Billy Maximoff was right on the front row, looking pale while his brother tried to buck him up. Even though Billy had done well with his testimony arguing that James had acted in self-defense, he was worried - and projecting his worry strongly, particularly his concerns that he didn't think James would fight in his own defense.
As soon as James took the stand for his questioning, they hit a hiccup as the prosecution's telepath stopped before they could get started to complain that she couldn't do her job properly.
James turned her way and drew in a deep breath before he closed his eyes and visibly tried to relax while the woman continued to spew out complaints and accusations, though Sinister quickly realized what James was doing and focused on the boy entirely - all the way up until James interrupted the angry prosecutor with a very quiet "Try now, counsel."
The woman paused, half glaring still, but then went very quiet as she nodded toward the judge and took a seat as the questioning began. And Sinister took the opportunity to piggyback with the prosecution's telepath. Matt tried to start out with a well-thought out, but simple defense, but was irritated when James simply wasn't making it easy on him. When he asked how James had felt when he went to his dad's defense against Magneto, he blinked a few times and shook his head with an understated "I wasn't really thinking about it. I just moved."
Sinister could hear Scott internally swearing for the rest of James's testimony and incredibly in depth questioning, because James simply admitted to everything on tape and offered nothing in his own defense, despite Matt's best efforts to ask him about the context of the fight. Which made it that much more ironic when Sinister knew the prosecution was gearing up to accuse Scott of "controlling his animal."
"All I remember is seeing the tail end of the fight and rushing in. I don't remember how it happened - I lost everything until just after it was over," James said as he tried to sum it up for his answer to what exactly happened. Which - it was the truth. For him. And even the prosecutions' telepath couldn't argue it. His memory of the fight was blank for him after Erik stabbed him - and that's all there was to it.
That didn't help him when the prosecution argued that this was all just in his nature, since it did look instinctual. And James didn't deny that he had acted on instinct, either.
When the prosecution shifted gears to something a little more close, though, the buzz in the courtroom lifted considerably and James' calm exterior was tested.
"How long were you planning this attack on Erik Lensherr?" The prosecutor started out, sounding as if he knew all of testimony up until now was fake.
"I never planned to harm him," James replied.
"Are you sure you didn't carefully orchestrate an efficient way into Genosha?"
James frowned. "Ask your telepath." The tone was so very much like Logan calling someone an idiot without calling them an idiot it would have been laughable if not for the severity of the charges.
"Counsel," the judge said. "Going by what we've determined in our previous questioning with the defendant, baiting him seems like a less than wise move. If you have a question that is relevant to the trial, I suggest you stop grandstanding and get down to it."
"Apologies, your honor," the prosecutor said. "I'm trying to get there. I just need another moment."
The judged waved for him to continue, half caught up in her notes as the prosecutor took another angle.
"Mr. Howlett, I have a few questions that may not seem relevant, but I ask that you simply answer them truthfully."
James raised an eyebrow and looked at him like he was nuts before the man launched into a rapid fire series of overly personal questions. But the first one had James off kilter right away.
"It sounds to me like the crown prince is actually in love with you." The prosecutor paused and James waited as long as he could when the murmur in the courtroom was well above anything official going on.
"Is there a question in that?" James asked tersely.
"Just gathering my thoughts. Do you realize how incredibly lucky you are that in spite of all that happened - all he had to witness - that somehow, still, William Maximoff is so hung up on you that he's putting his own reputation on the line to save your skin?" Before James could respond, he continued. "It seems incredibly lucky that someone so high profile that had been following in his mentor's footsteps romantically managed to hit gold with his first foray into men."
"Objection," Matt said tiredly. "Irrelevant."
"Your honor, I'm simply pointing out that the defendant has been strategically using Prince William to cover his crimes." He gestured toward both James and Billy each. "Clearly, Magneto knew that the prince could be easily manipulated. There is no other plausible explanation for his wrath directed toward those that broke the boy's heart - and considering the influences around young Mr. Howlett, it wouldn't be a stretch to imagine him using anything he could to gain an advantage. If not for the purpose of assassinating the king, then to get a free inroad for Stark Industries down the line."
"Objection- irrelevant and speculation. That accusation is ludicrous," Matt said angrily, and James and Billy shared a bewildered look, though Billy looked to be building his rage. "There are no grounds for accusations like that, and truthfully, your honor, though I don't believe that's the case here, even if it was, That has no impact on the case we're hearing today."
"Manipulation of one of the prime figures in this trial is incredibly relevant," the prosecutor shouted back.
"Do you have proof of a manipulation or are you just trying to color the testimony?" the judge asked to Matt's disbelief.
"I believe, your honor, that all the proof I need is between Mr. Howlett and young Mr. Summers."
James' focus went to Nate, who was blinking slowly and glaring hard at the lawyer as everyone on the defense's team seethed.
"Clearly," the prosecutor continued, "Mr. Howlett isn't as committed to Prince William as Mr. Summers is to his fiance. By comparison, of course."
"Objection- Speculation," Jamie called out even before Matt could.
"If that's the case, then it's speculation to assume that the two of them are still an item," the prosecutor's second said. "By all accounts, there is no reason that there hasn't been anything concrete that would show a real relationship and we want to know the reasoning behind it. Was the testimony we got yesterday given on a transactional basis with the debt to be paid after a not-guilty verdict? Is there another reason why the prince has been spotted with yet another feral, or is there more going on than we're being told?"
The first prosecutor clearly agreed, but was quickly trying to soften the blow. "I know this sounds like we're playing too much into what the press has been saying, but it is a point of agitation, your honor."
The judge looked supremely unamused as she took her glasses off and turned toward James. "You do not need to respond to any of those accusations unless you want to, as I will move to have those comments stricken from the record."
But James could see the damage was done even at that. Sure, she could tell the jury to disregard, but they'd already heard it. James drew in a deep breath and had to bite his tongue from telling the prosecutors that he wasn't a whore, then he leaned forward to put it to rest just as neatly. "There is no engagement because there can't be one until I've met the letters of the law that Magneto put into place around outsiders marrying royalty. One of those limitations is an age limit, which, neither of us has reached."
That was the last thing the prosecution, jury, judge, and literally everyone but the royal family and the Summers family had expected to hear though.
"Perhaps I'm not understanding you properly," the prosecutor said. "You're following a law that the queen could wave off in favor of sticking to Magneto's rules on marrying into his family even well after his death?"
"That's right," James agreed, holding the man's gaze with a dangerous glare. "Maybe I wasn't clear before: I never wanted to hurt Magneto. I respected him and what he tried to do for mutants everywhere - I just didn't agree with the methods. For this, though? I was always going to honor the rules he put in place for his family. I didn't want to hurt any of them in any capacity."
Obviously, the prosecution couldn't quite recover from something like that. It was too good of a move, especially when their telepath confirmed he wasn't lying. They made a few weak attempts to argue that he was hiding behind Erik's rules as an excuse, but they'd obviously lost the thread and fell back on focusing on his lack of memory around the event so they could argue he was dangerous when his instincts kicked in. That much, at the very least, was easy enough to argue.
Sinister, however, watched the Summers family as James sat back down with them after his testimony was over. It was plainly apparent that Scott was beyond proud of James's smart move, and Kate shot him something in sign language that Sinister couldn't quite see, though he could hear her projecting how proud she was and how she wanted to be in his and Billy's wedding please.
But while James's testimony left him looking a lot more like the prosecution wanted to paint him out to be than the Summerses were entirely comfortable with, Lorna returned to the stand again, this time with video surveillance that, judging by the collective surprise from the Summers clan, none of them had seen before.
It was surveillance from Erik himself. And it showed what Billy and James had been up to when Billy's alarm went off. It showed Billy talking about his dead boyfriends, and it showed James pouring his heart out over his anxieties. Sure, the bit about his mother having killed Pietro fed into the prosecution's narrative, but it was known in Genosha enough not to cause too much of a stir, and it worked effectively to humanize James again - which was why Jamie had suggested Lorna take the stand again after James.
Lorna then testified of her own experience beyond just the tapes. She talked about finding her father's body and seeing the damage done to the whole area and knowing there had been a devastating fight. And, when Jamie asked her what her reaction had been when she saw the whole thing on tape, she let out a long, quiet breath. "More than anything," she said, "I was upset with him. With my father," she clarified before Jamie could ask her to. "He could have been a great leader - greater than he already was- if he would have listened to any of us instead of spiraling into his own paranoia. I just wish he would have stopped himself."
During all of it, Sinister was frowning mildly as he listened not only to the testimony, but to the various thoughts of key players around him. Scott sounded two steps away from finally breaking that tooth and having a full blown anxiety attack, if not more than that. The Summers siblings both sounded mentally as if they were holding their breath for various reasons. One in particular was the tenor in which James had poured his heart out to Billy that had them concerned and both Rachel and Nate were sharing worried looks as they stole glances at an incredibly subdued James. On top of that, Billy Maximoff had managed a delightfully controlled exterior - far better than he'd started the day with, anyhow. The boy was holding his own as he listened to every word said, channeling his grandfather if his expression was anything to go by. He'd moved slightly beyond the understandable panic and concern to tentative planning should the prosecution push too far on such delicate turf.
He was far more dangerous than he realized, and obviously easy to manipulate if you knew the right buttons to push - and it was obvious to anyone paying attention that most of those delicate buttons were seated in front of him in a dark gray bespoke suit flanked by Summers siblings.
Each one of them were playing the best possible hands, given their cards. Every one, even the significant others, were playing their parts perfectly. And yet every single one was an inch away from losing their control.
Even if they won, the level of stress they were all exuding was perfection. Exactly what he needed if he wanted to make a move.
The last day of the trial was by far the most well-attended. It was packed, to the point that Sinister got in simply by making a member of the press hand him his credentials that morning. He wouldn't have been able to get in otherwise with his current disguise.
Not only was the press and public interested in Scott's testimony, which was set to close out the trial, but they knew Wanda would be speaking as well.
She was first, and she looked every bit as intimidatingly regal as she needed to look as she described multiple conversations with Scott about how worried she was about her father. She then went on to describe what no one in Genosha had yet heard - that Genosha itself had been in danger from Erik's behavior. She couldn't declassify everything, but what she could, she shared with the public, explaining that she had spoken with Scott about how badly Erik's paranoia and his public crusade was bringing down Genosha's defenses and putting them in the crosshairs of those who would retaliate against him.
She described multiple conversations with Erik himself trying to reason with him. And her conclusion, as she told Matt, was simply this: "He wasn't going to stop. He was convinced that he had to make the X-Men heel and that the world would be forced to pay for what mutants endured. He crossed lines with my own children, and he still wouldn't stop. I'm not surprised he didn't listen to Scott either."
The judge had to call for order several times after Wanda's testimony, because most of the public didn't know just how far Erik had gone. Finally, the judge called for a recess, recognizing that Wanda as the head of state giving testimony to the effect of her father not being fit to rule was so damning that the jury wouldn't be able to give the last two witnesses their full attention.
Even so, it was pretty clear that Hank McCoy as a medical expert wasn't keeping their full attention as he described the injuries he had treated when Scott returned home. Though he did point out that once Erik had removed Scott's eyes, Scott would have been in medical shock and fighting blind, making the rest of the fight almost entirely defensive.
The prosecution, of course, pointed out that Scott had started the fight, but Hank didn't argue that. He simply pointed out that Scott would have been dead, too, if not for Billy's quick thinking. And he made sure to praise Billy for saving a life that day.
And then, Scott took the stand, and Sinister leaned forward.
Jamie had Scott walk through his thought process leading up to that meeting with Erik. They'd already talked about the strategic necessity of remorse, too, so he gave Scott ample opportunity to show that much.
"Honestly," Scott said as he retold the conversation he'd had with Erik, "I wanted him to back down. I knew he wouldn't but…" He nodded to himself. "Professor Xavier could have done it. He always knew what to say, and I wouldn't have been true to what he taught me if I hadn't at least tried. I'm just sorry I didn't know how to get through to him like the professor would have."
Jamie nodded encouragingly and kept right on going. And before he turned the witness over to the prosecution, he made sure Scott had multiple chances to emphasize that this hadn't been his first plan or his nineteenth and that Scott had felt there weren't many options left to him if he wanted to stop Magneto from destroying people's lives - including his own family's.
And then, the prosecution started in. They grilled him about all the prep work he had put into the fight, including the ceramic knives. ("If you ask anyone who knows me, they'll tell you that I always prepare for the worst eventuality. That doesn't mean I hope for it, just that I'm prepared for it.") They pointed out that he wasn't in immediate danger when he struck first, and they argued that he had spoken with other royals and could have worked with them to find another path forward.
But the thing that rattled Scott was when the prosecution stopped, smirked, and said, "But I'll give you this. You did actually manage to train that beast of yours better than his father."
Scott, to his credit, didn't lose his temper on the stand, though his jaw was locked and Sinister could hear him fantasizing about how far through a wall the man would have been had he had his powers. But Nate and Rachel were both swearing eloquently - Nate under his breath and Rachel in her mind. The Maximoff boy was equally angry, and Sinister found himself doing a small double take when he saw not just honest rage from the young man, but a glow to his eyes and hands that took him a moment to get under control. James, however, seemed to be the only one that outwardly didn't look bothered by the commentary.
But after that, the prosecution simply asked a few more questions about Scott's intentions and then rested, and Scott, with his hands in fists, sat back down.
From there, both sides simply had to give their closing statements. The defense went first again, with Matt speaking eloquently in defense of all four of them, outlining Erik's behavior of escalation and then pivoting to talk about the history of the X-Men and how the team - old and new - had promised that they would do everything in their power to keep mutants safe. And when the leader of Genosha himself was threatening enslavement of mutants and threatening the peace of Genosha itself, it was always going to fall to the X-Men, who had always held him to account before. He pointed out that Nate, Rachel, and James had each done nothing but show up when they knew their dad was in trouble and try to save his life - and he pointed out that just before Erik had stabbed James in the heart in an inhibitor field that James had asked him to stop while his dad was bleeding to death feet away - and that Scott had tried everything before he even fought Magneto, as had others.
The prosecution, on the other hand, pointed to the fact that Billy needed to have an alarm spell in the first place as evidence of knowledge of intent. They accused all four Summerses of choosing violence over any other methods and of destabilizing the peace rather than trying to salvage it.
From there, the judge dismissed everyone and sent the jury to their deliberations - though the two telepaths went with the jury, both to make sure no one interfered with them and to give the jury their impressions of the trial behind closed doors, so that private thoughts were still publicly private but lies could be revealed if necessary.
All of it was very impressive as far as the restraint that had been shown from the group that went to stop Magneto, as far as Sinister was concerned. He knew that Scott would never cross that line given any other option, and he assumed the same of the children he'd raised - it was only reasonable. The accusations of instinct and animalistic tendencies directed to James were simply … well, he thought they were doing better handing the boy a defense than calling him out. Particularly when he remained so collected in the face of some nasty accusations.
The other two were clearly only there for dramatic effect - and badly orchestrated at that.
And yet, there was no denying that Scott had actually had a hand in killing the man. The only question was whether the jury would be forgiving.
…..
The jury deliberated for two days before they came back with a verdict. To no one's surprise, Nate and Rachel were completely in the clear; the jury saw two young people trying desperately to save their father and didn't fault them for it.
For James, the prosecution couldn't get murder to stick, but the jury did convict him on a lesser charge by citing justifiable homicide and voluntary manslaughter. He'd been acting in self-defense and had not only visibly tried to break Erik and Scott apart but had been caught on tape immediately expressing remorse once he came back to himself. And Sinister could hear in the minds of a few jurors that there was some question among the jury how much control James had over his own actions when he couldn't remember what happened.
For Scott, the facts were a little harder to ignore. Yes, the defense had done a marvelous job of explaining why Scott had felt to act the way he had, but he had still come to Erik's palace with ceramic knives and the intent to end Erik's reign one way or another. But the jury still knocked the charge down to second degree attempted murder because of the mitigating factors the defense had discussed.
Without even trying too hard, Sinister could hear Wanda, who was in attendance, come to a decision about what, exactly, she would be sharing with the judge to make clear the life-threatening damage Erik had done to the standing of Genosha itself on the world stage, the various madmen who had targeted the island itself because of Magneto's rampages.
This was about the outcome the Summers family had expected, though - and it seemed that none of them were willing to breathe. Yes, Nate and Rachel had escaped judgment, but that was to be expected. But the other two…
Well, both of Scott's telepathic children were actively keeping him from having a public panic attack at the thought that his son was in genuine danger of being jailed in Genosha itself. He wasn't thinking of himself in that moment - he had long ago accepted whatever consequences might come from his decision to return to the world he had tried to leave behind when it took his family from him. All he could think of was his adopted son - and all he could do was worry that he had destroyed his future, especially since James was so in love with the very prince of Genosha.
And so, barely restraining his panic, Scott put his hand on James's arm and said, softly, "I'm so sorry."
James' focus slid from Scott's hand up to his expression before he even considered speaking, and then it was soft enough that Scott had to strain to hear him. "I'm not. I'd do it again to help you."
Scott's hand tightened on the sleeve of James's shirt, but he was all-too aware of the fact that everyone's eyes were on them. They were in a too-public setting. He couldn't pull James into the desperate hug he wanted to give his son, not when he barely had a handle on his emotions. So, instead, he held onto James's arm and kept his gaze locked onto James's. "I'll talk to Wanda … until we know the sentence, we can't plan properly, but I'm sure we can work something out for you. You just got accepted to Harvard. I'm so sorry. This was my mistake and you got dragged into it."
"I've got all the time in the world. Don't worry about it. Harvard can wait."
"I'm your father. I'm going to worry about you," Scott pointed out, though he had none of the usual smirk that he'd have when he often said something like that.
"You don't have to. Worry about Nate or Rachel. They're the ones that look like they're about to freak out."
"Always," Scott said. "Just how God made the lot of us."
"He also made sure that medication was invented, too," James said dryly. "Blood pressure and whatnots."
"I've heard about that," Scott said with mock interest.
James turned toward him and leaned over slightly. "I'm serious, Dad. I'm actually textbook fine. You are not. Please don't stress on my behalf."
"We'll see what happens when the sentences come out," Scott said, not about to promise anything one way or the other.
"As long as you don't end up totally screwed over, I will be fine," James said - just to make sure Scott knew where he stood.
"And as long as you're alright, I will be too," Scott shot back.
"Then it's your lucky day," James countered - which left Rachel shaking her head at both of them.
Scott couldn't help but smirk. "Love you too, bud."
"I mean … worst case we'll be locked up together. Ugh," James tried to tease.
"Oh yeah I'd be terrible company," Scott teased right back.
"You'd be sick of me inside of an hour."
"You'd be scrawling formulas on the cell walls."
"Just the ones with puns in them."
"And I'd miss half the puns."
"Bobby could explain them to you," James said with a much more believable straight expression than he'd pulled off before.
Scott smirked again. "Oooh, that smarts."
From there, the two of them fell into their usual teasing - and Sinister, from nearby, couldn't stop smiling to himself. The relationship between the two of them was so novel. It had none of the true antagonism that had afflicted Scott and Logan, though they did clash, which was itself interesting to note. But their intense need - on both sides - for the other to be okay… that was usable. Interesting.
Not to mention the way they both knew so well how to manipulate each other. Not that either of them would word it that way, but yes, they knew what strings to pull.
The sentencing hearing, which occurred a few days later, was far less attended than the last day of the trial had been, though it was still fairly busy. With the convictions now hanging over Scott and James's heads, the mood of the Summers family had shifted entirely from neves to damage control. Sinister could even hear, to his amusement, that Rachel's girlfriend had already offered to jailbreak both of them and send them to a different dimension to live in peace instead if the judge was going to lock them up for too long.
There was so much here that Sinister could use. Scott was terrified of losing his children, the one thing that had kept him going all these years. He was desperately close to the edge - and Sinister could see without even trying that Scott had already gone off that edge before. He had willingly embraced the other side… and only just clawed his way back into the land of the living because of his children.
Even now, even with an engagement on the horizon, even with all he had promised, Scott was terrified, because his family was everything.
Separated from them, he would be adrift… and Sinister could use that.
James, of course, was just as interesting. And the jury's decision to knock his charges down as much as they did… there was a real possibility that James would walk free while Scott would not. And in addition to driving Scott mad, the guilt that Sinister could see rolling off the boy in waves… he would be ripe for the picking as well.
So many strings that he could pull, with so little effort.
The judge cleared his throat to get everyone's attention and apologized for the long wait - he had needed to get some clarification from Wanda about what she hadn't been able to share publicly and had gotten clearance for that clarification, which helped him to see more clearly the mitigating circumstances of the case.
James's sentence came first and was, as hoped, light. He was under probation for two years, during which time any further acts against Genoshan law would be considered a violation and would earn him a more serious sentence of exile.
At the mention of exile, Sinister's gaze went instantly to Billy, and he was entertained to see that the boy's hands were glowing, though he was trying to hide his reaction. His expression gave away his rage, however. He had laid his claim to James Howlett, and the idea that anyone could separate them was enough to get him to lose control.
That was interesting. Useful.
As for Scott… "Given the circumstances and the clarification from the Queen concerning the real risk to the public as well as the defendant's history of service for mutantkind as the first X-Man, and given the balance of lives at stake in consideration, the court sentences the defendant to one year total house arrest and five years of probation, during which time any further violations of Genoshan law will result in you serving the length of your probationary period in prison."
That's bullshit, Nate projected, but Scott gave him a look. I'm not letting anyone else eavesdrop, Dad. And it is. It's crap.
It could have been worse. A lot worse.
Could be better!
Scott let his shoulders drop and massaged his eyes with his thumb and forefinger. Nate… it could have been worse. House arrest… we can deal with that.
Yeah, sure, Nate said, though he was looking toward Kate and visibly having a conversation with her telepathically. Kate says she's taking her maternity leave in Genosha once the baby's here.
You don't have to-
Yeah, it was literally the first thing she said when I reached out to talk to her, so I don't actually think I get a say in this.
At that, finally, Scott did crack a smirk, only for a second. No, I don't think you do.
By that time, the whole family, including Kate and Billy, were starting to huddle - though they were also mobile, heading out for privacy so the onlookers weren't privy to their life plans. Once they were in the back hallway beyond the courtroom itself, they could talk a bit more freely, too.
Annie was the first one to speak, with a quiet, "Well, damn, I've got to move again, don't I?"
"We'll help," Kate promised, but Annie waved her off.
"You're pregnant; don't you dare."
"I'm not invalid!"
"You're not lifting boxes either. For land's sakes, we've got telekinetics in this family; you can help me decorate the house we'll be living in or God knows what dreary depression Scott will further slip into."
"I'm fine," Scott said firmly. "Really. I'm telling you - this could have been much worse."
"I mean, Mom could've just, y'know, pardoned you," Billy muttered under his breath. "That would have been way easier than this." He had his arms crossed and was floating a couple inches off the floor.
James glanced up at Billy, but had kept incredibly quiet as he thought it all over, irritated that Scott had been hit as hard as he was when he'd almost died from the mess. The judge had gotten it wrong.
Scott caught the expression when he'd looked toward Billy, though, and he paused to turn James's way. "You'll be fine," he said firmly.
"Not worried about it."
"I'll be fine. It's taken me this long to get back into the old life; a year isn't going to hurt me, and you get your education. That's exactly what I was hoping for."
"Backwards and wrong," James said.
"No, it's what I was hoping for," Scott said. "I was the one who started this, not you."
"Then you're wrong too," James argued. "You almost died from this mess."
"Yes, which makes you and the others the heroes here, bailing me out of my mistakes - this is the right call, James. You were acting to stop the violence, not to start it, like I did."
"Sure," he said, arms crossed as he turned away from him in an attempt to just stop that talk.
Scott sighed, but seeing that he was getting nowhere, he let it drop - for the moment - as Annie and Kate were openly plotting and planning how to turn the house that Scott would be spending house arrest in into a home. They seemed to be focused on the kitchen, though when Kate openly admitted that she was badly craving the pumpkin rolls Annie had made a couple weeks ago, that explained that, at least.
"Oooh, we should do some kind of something at your place when Nate and I get married. I'll talk to Jan and figure it out, but you should get the eat the wedding cake you're making, right?" Kate said as they reached the end of the hall. Outside, they could hear the press shouting for answers, but they weren't going in the open; they were following a metal tunnel Lorna had made just for them to lead them to where they were supposed to be.
Which was how they ended up at the old house Erik had given Scott in the immediate aftermath of the demise of the original X-Men - and how Kate and Annie's talk about their respective plans for their upcoming weddings died away to awkwardness when they realized just about all the heroes they knew were there in solidarity to check on them after the trial.
"Oh, god, you really didn't-" Scott faltered, especially when he realized that Bobby and Remy both were standing there looking stressed.
"Um … yes we did," Bobby argued. "What did they decide? It hasn't been made public yet. Not … loudly anyhow."
"Probation for James," Scott said first and foremost. "Jury loved him, and the judge loved him too."
"And?" Bobby prompted.
"House arrest, then probation," Scott said. He gave Remy a tired smirk. "You can call off the jailbreak."
"Fo' now," Remy corrected.
"Yeah, judge did say if Dad breaks the law again, he goes to jail for the rest of the probation," Nate said darkly. As hard as Kate had been trying to cheer him up talking about the wedding, he still wasn't convinced this was a good thing - and was, genuinely, a little frustrated that thus far she'd only brought up marrying him to distract other people or get the jury's favor.
"Which won't be a problem," Scott said. "Magneto's not in charge here, and I'm not in the mood to turn into a criminal," he added dryly.
"Yeah, that would be weird. Don't do that," Bobby said, though without his usual smirk.
"So, all dat in mind, how you gon' celebrate?" Remy asked.
"Celebrate?" Rachel repeated with a frown.
"Princess, you're turning into your father," America said, rolling her eyes.
"Turning into?" James asked dryly - purely to rile Rachel a little in hopes of shifting the subject.
"Oh, hush, both of you," Rachel said - but America knocked her hip into her hard enough to knock her slightly off her balance.
"Well, if everyone's here," Annie said, clapping her hands together, "the least we can do is accommodate our guests. Billy, sweetheart, can you help me get a few things here?"
"Just tell me what you want," Billy said as he tried to put on a more pleasant expression. He was still irked, too - for different reasons than each of the Summers' family, but he knew he couldn't get away with much.
"Oh, it's just if everyone is going to be here in what's apparently our new home, I just… hate to have everyone stand here with not even a bit of food, and I have a few favorite catering spots…."
"Yes, absolutely," Billy said as he made his way over to Annie. "Let's get away from the crowd so I can maybe concentrate a little better?"
Annie grabbed his hands in hers and squeezed them both. "You know that place I asked you to take me so I could surprise Kate? The one with the chocolate pie you ate by yourself?" she teased. "Let's start there."
Billy gave her a little grin and disappeared with her - but that still left the rest of the Summers family surrounded by people who looked like they weren't sure if they wanted to celebrate the lighter sentences or console them for the fact that they'd been sentenced at all.
Scott looked around the group and cleared his throat awkwardly. "Well," he said and nodded to himself. "I guess you guys know where to find me if you need me."
"No kidding," Steve said, shaking his head. "You alright?"
"I'll be fine," Scott said. "Really. At the rate Kate and Annie are going, I'll be twenty pounds heavier by the time the year's out anyway."
"That'll be impressive when clearly you have no plans to eat anything that doesn't come out of a bowl," Bobby said dryly.
"Really, Bobby?"
"Where is the lie?" Bobby challenged with a smirk - clearly trying to tease him out of a funk.
Scott rolled his eyes at him. "Guess that means you're volunteering to help Annie stock the kitchen - since you're so concerned."
"Oh yeah, sure," Bobby agreed with a frosty wave. "I remember your favorite cereals. I got this."
Kitty snorted and grinned when Scott gave her a dry look. "I mean, I can help too. I remember your favorite soups."
"I can't believe-"
"You have a very distinctive depression diet."
"It's true," Bobby said, grinning wider when Scott gave both of them the driest look he could manage.
"I'll be fine," Scott said. "You're all overreacting."
"Right. I forget. You're always fine," Bobby said.
"Really, Bobby, this was one of the better outcomes. It's just a year."
"Wow. You suck at letting people care about you - you know that?" Bobby slogged Scott in the shoulder. "Thought you kept saying the team was family. Get used to it; you're back."
Seeing the look on Bobby's face, Scott did finally let his shoulders drop and put his hand on Bobby's shoulder. "Thanks," he said quietly, and Bobby shook his head but knew Scott wouldn't say much more than that, so he just put his arm around Scott's shoulders and steered him deeper into the group.
Across the room, Tony was trying to get something out of James - not anything overly intrusive, but he'd noticed that the kid hadn't said much at all, and he looked pretty irked, all things considered.
But when he put a hand on James' shoulder, he got a very prompt shrug off as James slipped as far away from him as a tightly-populated room of superheroes would allow.
"If you want to give me like … five minutes, I'll go talk to them with you," James said half under his breath. "You don't need to play spokesperson for everyone all the time and I doubt they'll back off for you here anyhow."
"They are starting to swarm a little," Tony said, but it was clear that wasn't the root of his irritation. "But I'm not after a public statement, kiddo."
"They're not going to back off until they get something," James said, sounding like he was on the edge of a growl.
"True, but-"
Right about then, Billy appeared again - with a ton of food for everyone. Almost immediately, Annie went into hostess mode, fitting the Southern hospitality stereotype nearly to a tee as she maneuvered through the group.
Billy grinned and slid over to where James was, shaking his head as he watched Annie go. "That woman is on a mission."
"She's just like that," James said as he pulled on his tie to loosen it up. He looked past Billy with a mild frown. "Where is everyone else? You're missing a few people."
"Oh, who-" Billy turned to look and frowned. "I… thought… who's missing?"
"Just a few," James said, looking over the crowd. "Chris and Susie aren't here yet. Maybe they're with your new boyfriend."
Billy turned toward James with his whole body. "Seriously?"
"I mean. He's a shit kisser, but if that's your thing …"
"James." Billy turned brilliantly red - and Tommy completely gave up on talking to Mia to fall apart laughing right then and there.
"Just want to make it easy on you," James replied, still keeping a straight face somehow.
"He's not even my type!"
James shrugged slowly. "I dunno…"
Billy rolled his eyes. "You dork. I like guys with confidence, for one thing-"
"He's not?"
"You've met the same Creed I have, right? The guy who's constantly trying to make himself smaller?"
"That wasn't the impression I got," James argued with a disbelieving frown.
"Are we really - you know what? No. We're not debating this. He's not my type; I don't even think he's gay."
James smirked finally at that. "Does that matter?"
"Why are you like this?" Billy despaired, shoving James in the shoulder - over the sound of Tommy's snorting laughter.
"He just is," Mia said, giggling behind her hand - not nearly laughing as hard as Tommy, though. "I mean, you've met him, right?"
"I'd hope I've met him, since I'm dating him," Billy said.
"And not Tyler?" Tommy gasped out.
"Are you sure?" James asked. "That's not what I've been hearing at all."
"For crying out-" Billy let out a noise from the back of his throat and then kissed James. "Shut up, okay? Just… no."
"Lil sensitive?" James teased quieter than before.
"I am stressed beyond belief and the press thinks I have a feral fetish and I just-"
"You don't?"
Billy rolled his eyes and kissed James again. "That's it. We're going somewhere you can't give my brother even more ammunition," he said and wished them out of there.
Chapter 128: Don't Tell Anyone
Chapter Text
After the attack Magneto's acolytes had tried to pull before the trial had started, Wanda wasn't taking any chances with Scott's safety, which he appreciated. After everyone had left the sort-of-party following the sentencing, she'd put some kind of spell on the house he'd be staying in for the next year that wouldn't allow anyone inside without Scott's express permission. Add in some minor shielding technology from Stark that would protect against arson and assassination attempts, and he was, for the most part, going to be perfectly safe. Especially since no one knew which house he'd be spending his house arrest in.
At first, Annie had tried to cheer him up with some offhanded joke about him living by vampire rules - what with the permission spell and all - but when he hadn't risen to the bait, she'd just sighed and sat down with him.
They talked for a bit - mostly about what the next year would entail. She wanted to stay with him, but she couldn't be out and about in Genosha without the risk of giving away his position, so she needed Billy and Wanda and Tommy to help her when she wanted to get in and out. And that worked out anyway, because someone needed to grocery shop, and she liked cooking.
Kate had already texted Scott promising to visit often and to spend half her maternity leave with them, too. She'd spend the first half with them and the second half at her apartment with her parents; she didn't want him to miss out on meeting his first grandchild.
His kids were already planning and plotting out how to visit him safely, and they had a rotation going on.
And that was all good. It was.
And the truth was that he was relieved, because the sentence could have been much worse. He appreciated that the judge hadn't given him anything longer, and he was beyond relieved that the judge had recognized that, on Genosha, the man convicted of trying to kill Magneto couldn't be held in a prison where he'd be a sitting duck.
He still felt like a prisoner in a way he hadn't felt since Greydon Creed, so that was weighing on him. But he was well-aware that this was one of the better scenarios that could have come out of the whole ordeal.
And so, he was caught between relief that he wasn't in prison and relief that the sentence was only a year… and bitter disappointment that he was trapped while his family went on. He'd be missing so much and hearing only secondhand about it. Kate's pregnancy. James going to Harvard. The team.
And Annie… God, he didn't know how she was still with him. They'd barely gotten engaged - and even that was by the skin of their teeth after Emma had tried everything to interfere - before he'd been locked up and convicted of attempted murder. The wedding she wanted was next to impossible now. And if they waited until after his sentence was up, her father probably wouldn't be able to attend, at the rate he was declining.
He was a mess of conflicting emotions, so he was grateful that Annie didn't try to get him to talk to her just yet. She instead got to work, texting a huge grocery list to Billy now that she knew they would be there semi-permanently. And once he wished himself over with two shopping carts full of recently-purchased food, Scott helped her put it all away, ignoring, for the moment, Billy's whispered apologies. He knew Billy had tried his best - his whole family had - to keep this from happening.
He didn't blame them.
Annie shooed him out of the kitchen once she was ready and set to work, though he couldn't help but laugh when he realized that, among the things Annie had asked Billy to bring, there was a copy of Dracula on the table.
He made sure she saw him pick it up, salute her with it, and take it to the living room to read. He knew it would make her smile, even if he didn't think he had the heart to get lost in any story just then.
About ten minutes into the attempt at reading, Annie paused and put aside her apron. "Oh, Craig's here," she said in a sigh.
Scott pinched the bridge of his nose. "Of course he is," he said. But he also knew that sending Craig away now would only get his family breathing down his neck. "Alright, let him in. I'll just…" He put the book away and looked around, settling on the small office space by the living room.
Annie was already talking to Craig by the time Scott cleared off the desk where he'd been keeping the tons and tons of notes that Jamie, Matt, and Jen had left him with.
"...and that sweet boy couldn't stop apologizing, so please make sure he knows we don't blame him at all."
"He'll probably just be like that until it's all over," Craig said, still standing in the door.
Scott saw him pausing and sighed, waving him in. "Come on; I've got a spot in the office we can talk," he said. "Sorry you've had to come all this way."
"I don't mind; it's a nice break from that New England chill," he replied, which matched with the slightly cooler air that was settling in already. At least compared to Genosha on the equator.
"That's what I've been saying," Annie laughed. "A whole year of warm weather. I told him at least that's one silver lining."
"A solid year of air conditioning, you mean," Craig teased.
"Oh, you act like Wanda hasn't already invited me to spend time with her family when I get a little cabin fever," Annie said. "She's already offered to do the ceremony once all this is over, you know. She really feels so bad."
"You'll need the time to get to know 'em better before the boys get married."
"Exactly," Annie said, giving Craig a warm squeeze at his arm before she excused herself to get back to what was shaping up to be a complicated braided bread to go with the chicken dinner she was making.
Craig followed Scott then waited to see how they were going to move forward, letting Scott set the pace to begin.
Scott gestured for Craig to take a seat in the office, settling in more or less where he'd been sitting the whole time they'd been working out plans for the trial. "Look, I appreciate why you're here," he said once the door closed, "but this was honestly better than we hoped for."
And then, all at once, Scott felt a wave of a psychic attack. He couldn't physically move, and he couldn't speak, but he knew instantly who was sitting across from him, because the attack was far too familiar. He could feel cold fingers raking through his mind, but it wasn't until Sinister had solidified commands not to call for help or do anything to reveal Sinister's presence that Scott could speak - even if he couldn't yet move.
"How have you managed all these years, my dear boy?"
"Oh, go to hell," Scott said through his teeth.
"Now, Scott, that's no way to say hello." He gestured around them. "I'm surprised that you got off this easily, if I'm perfectly honest."
"I think the fact that Erik was causing issues with Victor von Doom weighed heavily in the consideration," Scott said dryly. "Disappointed, then?"
"No, not at all," Sinister replied. "In fact, I'm rather impressed."
"That's all - you just came to say you're glad I'm not locked away in some dungeon somewhere? Thanks; I'm glad too. Please don't come back."
"No, Scott, I'm impressed with all the good work you've done."
Scott sighed, narrowing his eyes, though he couldn't move more than that. "I thought you were dead after Logan and K went after you last time you touched my family."
"Yes, well … that was a bit tricky, I'll admit." He smiled. "But I never truly lost interest. Contact, certainly, but … here we are. You … right where I can find you for at least a year. A lovely waypoint to use as I continue what I started so long ago."
A muscle was tight in Scott's jaw as he glared at Sinister. "So you just came here to gloat."
"No, of course not. I don't need to gloat. I do, however, require some answers … and a bit of insight on the family tree as it stands. Fathers and sons … fascinating at the best of times."
"The second my kids realize who you are-"
"When exactly should I start to watch my back?" Sinister asked. "How would they know?"
"They're brilliant - all three of them. And they know how to look out for each other."
"Harder to do when they're all so far apart from each other," Sinister pointed out. "And so far … at least one has no clue."
"What did you do," Scott asked through his teeth.
Sinister looked almost hurt. "I haven't done a thing."
"Yet," Scott said, almost relieved - not that it lasted.
"I have no intentions of harming any of them," Sinister said. "Quite the opposite, in fact. I'd like to see them thrive."
"Yeah, I remember what you said when you went after Rachel," Scott said. Mentally, he was beating against the psychic commands, but Sinister had always known exactly what strings to pull; he'd been in his mind too long.
"As I said before, I'm more invested in fathers and sons. It's a shame I didn't get a closer start on Nate. He's far older than you were when I first found you."
"Don't you touch him."
"The other one, though … that is like looking into the past."
"Damnit, Sinister - leave them alone," Scott said in a tone that had, in the past, always accompanied glowing red eyes.
"You know James is nearly the same age that I met Logan?" He smiled warmly. "Stunning differences, just as amazing as the similarities."
That was new information, and enough to startle Scott out of his growing panic. "...the hell?"
Sinister almost laughed. "He never told you?" The look of amusement deepened. "He let you think you were the only reason… that's … well. It's possible he didn't remember. That was always a risk with that one."
Scott stared at Sinister openly. "That must have been… a century before…"
Sinister leaned forward. "There is nothing you can possibly say to get me to step back, let me make that clear. Yes, I've followed your family line for generations, but … he was the first mutant I ever found. That is … not up for discussion. Neither is anything else, honestly."
"They're doing well - better than we did when we were that age," Scott argued.
"Yes, and that is in large part thanks to you."
Scott shook his head. "No, that's not-"
"It is, though. Think about it, Scott."
"I didn't want them to get into this life at all after what it did to my team," Scott argued.
"My dear boy, my involvement has nothing at all to do with any parading around with delusions of … heroism."
"They are heroes, though. Don't - don't let your need to insert yourself into my family get in between all the good that they're doing for mutants - for everyone-"
"I'm not touching that," Sinister said. "I want them to continue with all they're doing. I truly hoped to check in with you." He waved a hand. "I have all the time I'd like with the others."
"I'm fine," Scott said defensively, almost without meaning to - because like it or not, everyone had been asking after him all day, and it was tiring.
"But you're not. You're reliant on others for even simple defense. You're hanging your life on hold waiting for your children to live theirs first." He reached across the desk to rest a hand on Scott's arm. "I can help. You know I can."
"I've never wanted your help," Scott said, glaring at Sinister's hand.
"Yes, well, times change," Sinister said as he got to his feet. "I truly look forward to a moment with Nate … and of course, I am counting the hours until I can see how much James truly has healed from his last test." He held up his hand. "Academic test. Don't strain yourself. I haven't touched him."
"Good." Scott didn't take his eyes off of Sinister. "I can guarantee you this won't last, Sinister. And when you overstep - and I know you will - this time, you'll stay dead."
He glared right back at Scott. "Yes, well, I'll be seeing James far more frequently than you will. I'l make sure he keeps his head on straight."
"Go to hell," Scott bit out.
"Oh, Scott, you truly need to get out more."
Scott narrowed his eyes nearly to slits but couldn't get up to hit him like he wanted to. "I see you're just as much of a jackass as I remember."
"And you're just as much of a bore when you want to be stubborn. I will return. No one but you will know. Mind your manners or I may decide to keep one or both of those boys. Lord knows Nate would bend over backward to help his big brother, wouldn't he?"
Scott was almost shaking with panic and anger by that point. "Sinister…"
"What are you so worried about, Scott? It's not like I have any experience in shaping young minds…"
Scott could barely breathe. "Stop it," he said, though he'd lost a lot of the anger in his tone; it had faded to panic and hurt instead. "Let them live their lives. You've seen them; they could change the world, and you know it."
"Yes. They can," he agreed. "More than they realize."
"So leave them alone," Scott said in a breath.
"Absolutely not."
Scott glared at Sinister for some time, though before he could come up with anything to say, Annie knocked on the door.
"I hate to interrupt, but dinner's ready if you're done. I can keep it warm…"
"I think we're done for today," Sinister called back in Craig's voice. "But I have to run. Leave you love birds alone."
"Oh, alright," Annie said, sounding disappointed. "I'll put your plate away."
"Sorry to disappoint, Annie," Sinister called back. "Raincheck?"
"Oh, anytime," Annie agreed, with all the warmth she always gave her brother. "If you let me know you're coming, I'll even make Billy get me the right flour for real cornbread."
"Will do," Sinister said with a laugh that sounded spot on for Craig before he lowered his voice toward Scott. "I have a class in the morning. How about you?"
Scott scoffed. "I'll be here and you know it."
"Yes, I do."
Scott was furious as he watched Sinister leave, but despite his best efforts, he couldn't break through the blazing red mental barrier that prevented him from telling Annie who this man was that she was hugging and wishing well.
Annie waved "Craig" off and then turned back to Scott, her expression falling when she saw him. "Rough talk?" she asked, starting to plate up their food.
Scott did his best to try not to look as furious as he felt, because he couldn't tell Annie the truth, and the last thing he wanted was for her to think he was mad at her. "I just don't like feeling trapped," he said - which was the truth, especially with his kids facing his childhood tormentor.
"I know," Annie said. She waved him over, and once he came to help set the table, she stole a kiss. "We'll get through this together, alright?"
Scott forced his shoulders to drop and cupped her face. "Thanks, Annie," he said. "I don't know what I'd do without you."
Annie smiled delightedly. "Probably be about thirty pounds lighter," she teased. "You're trapped in here with me and a kitchen."
"Good point," he said, though his smile didn't touch his eyes. He could tell she was worried about him, and he wished he could explain it, but… for the moment, he could sit down with her and compliment her cooking. And work every second to try to break Sinister's telepathic wall.
By the time the trial in Genosha had wrapped up, and the Summers family found themselves going their separate ways (forcibly so) James was incredibly unsure of the decision he'd made to go to Harvard. This … was not the time to be away from everyone.
Sure, it was helpful that Billy was going to the same school, and yeah, that absolutely made it much easier to follow a whim and get wished back to Genosha for a little while now and again … especially if James thought Scott didn't sound alright on the phone. Or if he refused a phone call and insisted on sticking to text.
The problem was that James … just couldn't shake the feeling that Scott was paying for James' crimes.
That wasn't the kind of problem he was going to be able to solve today. Not when he had to get to the genetics lab and try to prove that he should even be there. But to his absolute shock, when he got to the lab, the professor in charge looked pleased to see him there. That … couldn't be right. Especially since he'd missed the first two weeks of the semester. Most of the other teachers were looking at him with an air of suspicion … this was just … odd.
James opened his mouth to explain himself - not as a means to get out of whatever he'd missed, but to inform the man of what had taken him so long - when he introduced himself instead and dove right into the thick of it.
"I'm well aware of your recent troubles, Mr. Howlett," the professor said, and James stopped his rush to listen as the man continued. "This program isn't like those that you dealt with at MIT. The only one you could possibly have hurt by missing time is yourself - and the doctorate program isn't quite as strict or pressed for a schedule as those you've gone through before."
"Okay-"
"Still," he said, cutting across him in a way that had James deciding to simply be quiet. "I would very much like to know what it is you think you're doing in my classroom. As I understand it, your previous work has been dedicated to engineering, chemistry, robotics … there is precious little that crosses over from those disciplines to genetics."
James let out a sigh and set his bookbag down. This was going to take a more serious tone than he'd expected … even factoring in being so late. "There are questions I'd like to know the answers to that revolve around the x-gene, if I'm being frank," James started out, though Dr. Windsor didn't let him get much further.
"Another attempt to stop it or turn it off?"
"No, actually," James said with a frown. He knew he hadn't told anyone about his first real foray into genetic research … but it took him a moment to remember that most researchers devoted to all things x-gene related were trying to stop it. "I want to know more about how it activates, how it expresses itself so differently from one person to the next - if there is a way to determine which abilities are dominant or recessive -"
"You have a lot of questions, then," Windsor said, barely restraining the smile.
James hedged. "Yeah. No one looks into that part of it - as far as I've been able to find, research wise- everyone in the field is trying to put an end to it."
"And you don't want to put an end to it?"
"No," James said, then forced his shoulders to relax. "But there are a lot more possibilities than just on and off.
"Yes, there are," Windsor agreed, watching him carefully, leaving James wondering what he was looking at so intently. "Well. take a seat. As I understand it, we may need to do a few tests to see how much work you have ahead of you in this field."
James nodded and followed Windsor's direction as he took a seat and pulled a pencil out to start taking tests. He knew this was coming … and he'd anticipated as much from this department in particular. The others? They were looking at him as if he'd either sink or swim … but that wouldn't show until later anyhow.
James was through the first page of his test when he did a small double take, realizing that Dr. Windsor was watching him intently as he took his test. He almost looked as if he wanted to glare a hole through James' head. But before James could go back to his test, Windsor spoke up.
"Is there a problem, Mr. Howlett?"
"No," James replied as he shook his head. "Just taking a moment to breathe." It was a lie, but it was all he could think of in the moment. And it was believable enough that Windsor didn't seem to notice - or care. So James quickly shifted his focus back to his test and tried to get back on track. He had to read the first question on the second page four times before the words sunk in, and then he felt like an idiot because it was such a simple question.
He didn't usually get this distracted during tests. And he couldn't see or otherwise sense a reason to panic. Great. This will be fun to try and force myself to ignore. Like I needed a new complex during school hours, James thought to himself as he resolutely decided to ignore that stupid fight or flight response - blaming his injury and recovery for his anxiety. He'd over reacted far too much to small things during recovery … this was probably just more of that.
What James didn't - and couldn't know - was that Dr. Windsor was incredibly pleased. Not only with how well he was doing with his test post-heavily traumatic brain injury, but how he was redirecting himself to ignore the instinct to be suspicious of how he was being watched. He was just as smart as he'd been when he'd taken the entry exams in Oxford - but James didn't realize that Dr. Windsor, the proctor in Oxford, and Mr. Sinister were one in the same. He'd taken care, after all, in making use of a fabulous mutant power he'd procured many years ago - while James was likely in Kindergarten - that allowed him to shift his scent enough that someone with James' abilities couldn't tell who was in front of them while he was shapeshifted into a new form.
Sinister had tested this out on several lesser-powered feral-types over the years, but this was the first test with someone with senses as acute as James'. The possibility remained that he simply didn't remember the proctor's scent in Oxford, but Sinister wasn't about to take that chance by being lazy about this boy's abilities. He'd made those mistakes with Logan. He wouldn't repeat them now. Especially not when the boy was so much more useful than his father could have been.
When James was done with his tests, his lab time, his library time, and his classes for the day, he was pleasantly surprised to run into Billy, who met him just outside of the Science and Engineering campus wearing a grin. It was enough to break James out of his mood - and he honestly didn't care if there were photographers following either of them as he took Billy's hand and stole a quick hello kiss. "How were classes?"
"Pretty good," Billy said, grinning as they started toward where they'd parked. "It's so weird to be going to school together."
"You were the one that decided that," James said, though he was smiling brilliantly. "Not that I'm about to complain. It's been way too long since I attended with anyone I wanted to be around." They fell into step easily, though they didn't really have much to say at all until they were back in their apartment, both of them a little caught up in their new whirlwind, but glad to be in it together.
When Nate and Kate stopped by to see Scott, the very first thing that Scott noticed was the fact that Kate hadn't taken the ring off now that the trial was over.
She'd seemed sincere enough when she told Nate that she wasn't only wearing the ring for tactical purposes, but the question had been weighing so heavily on Nate - and the possibility was still out there that she really had been thinking with her head and not her heart - that Scott could see the distinct difference in the way Nate carried himself now that Kate wasn't backing away from her decision.
He waited until Kate was talking to Annie, though, before he said anything, putting a hand on Nate's shoulder with his back to the girls as he said, "You look like the weight of the world has been lifted. I'd even say you were getting excited about being married if you hadn't walked in here looking so concerned."
Nate smirked, though he couldn't help but raise his eyebrows at the way his dad had approached him. Usually, he would have just projected something like that, something he'd want to keep between the two of them. And when Nate reached out to his mind, it was even more closed off than usual.
"Well, now I'm worried about you," Nate said, but Scott instantly waved him off.
"You don't need to hear that. Annie can tell you it's a mess and she's not even a telepath. We can just talk, right?"
"Suuuure." Nate narrowed his eyes at his dad, but Annie had Kate well and truly distracted, so they did have some sort of privacy. "Seriously, you're never this closed off."
"Just lately. Don't worry about it. I'm more concerned about you. You okay? You're not as happy as I figured you'd be with a fiance on your arm."
"Still getting used to the idea," Nate admitted. He glanced toward Kate, who was starting to show a little bit more without the aid of Jan's fashion magic.
"In a good way?"
"Yeah." Nate hedged. "Still waiting to see - I mean, you know…"
"I know that feeling," Scott said. He put his hand on Nate's shoulder. "I did the same thing - both times. I kept waiting for the other shoe to drop right up until the day Jean and I got married."
"In your defense, I've heard the stories."
"Yeah. I was kind of hoping you wouldn't inherit this from me - whatever this is." He gestured between the two of them. "This whole… this thing where we fall in love and stay guarded? Stop doing that. It's too late for me, but-"
"Oh, come on, Dad. You've got Annie."
"Despite everything with Emma and despite being literally under house arrest-"
"Dad." Nate shook his head. "Dad, if she was going to leave, she'd have dipped out by now, right?"
Scott smirked and looked Nate in the eyes. "Think that applies to Kate too?"
"That was sneaky," Nate said - and couldn't quite hide his pride.
"I've been around a while," Scott teased. He dropped his head to look at Nate closer. "Seriously, Nate, you're engaged. You're having a baby together. It's okay to relax and be excited."
"Says the guy who's so stressed he won't let me into his head."
"This is definitely one of those 'do as I say and not as I do' moments."
"Sure, Dad."
Before either of them could say anything else, though, Annie let out a delighted squeal and grabbed Kate by the hand, all but dragging her over to the boys. "Did he tell you yet?" she demanded of Scott.
"Tell me…?"
Kate grinned. "We're going to do the ceremony nice and small. Just immediate family and their girlfriends and boyfriends. Here."
Scott's eyes went wide, and he turned toward Nate. "You don't have to-"
"You really think I'm getting married without my dad there?" Nate asked, and when Scott was still standing there in shock, he pulled his dad into a hug.
"Our schedule is completely open," Annie gushed. "Just give me enough time to make the cake, okay?"
"Yeah, we've got to work with Tony's schedule. He's throwing the huge reception for us - and Jan's going to make sure he doesn't go too far," Kate said, grinning steadily wider. "He's throwing it together kinda quick, because I don't think weddings and newborns mix, you know?"
"Yeah, you'll be sleep deprived for months," Scott said, grinning as he finally stopped hugging Nate. "Hope you're ready."
"Definitely not, but my mom keeps saying no one is, so I think I'm okay," Kate said. She smiled toward Nate. "He's been reading baby books."
"Of course he is," Annie said in a voice full of warmth. "I love this family."
"You better; you're marrying in too," Kate said, and the two women shared grins.
"They're definitely conspiring," Nate whispered to Scott.
"Are you surprised?"
"Not even a little bit. Pretty sure they're about to involve us in the planning."
"Whatever makes them happy, right?"
"That's how I'm handling it."
"Atta boy."
Since the house arrest was still relatively new, Scott realized quickly that he wasn't going to want for visitors - at least not when the concern was still fresh. Alex had already dropped by multiple times a week, Craig (the real Craig) had come often as well, and the kids were constantly checking in online and over the phone when they weren't there in person.
Still, the last person he expected to see show up one drizzly Wednesday afternoon was Bobby. Scott knew he hated even being on the island on a good day because of the literal climate. Add in how Magneto had treated him, and Bobby had every right not to ever want to set foot on Genosha again. Scott had honestly been shocked he'd been at the trial.
But Scott also wasn't going to turn away his oldest friend in the world. "There's air conditioning inside," he said, already waving Bobby in.
"Thank God," Bobby said as he stepped in and pulled Scott into a one-armed hug. "Brought you your favorite beer."
Scott laughed outright when he saw the six-pack … of root beer. "It's like you know me so well," he teased.
"Weird, right?" Bobby said with a laugh. "If I wasn't so cool, I'd be psychic."
"I can't believe you're still using lines like that," Scott said as they headed into the living room.
"They still apply, Slim."
"That and your boyfriend hasn't changed his one catchphrase since the dawn of time," Scott pointed out, smirking as he cracked open one ofo the glass root beer bottles.
Bobby rested one hand over his heart. "It's not my fault that I have so many amazing one liners and he's stuck with like … three."
"He must be jealous of you constantly."
"Oh, all the time," Bobby agreed.
Scott smirked. "How's that going, anyway?"
Bobby shrugged. "It's … going, I guess. I'm the one on the fence, if you can believe it."
"Really?" Scott turned so he and Bobby were facing each other on the couch. "You and not the serial dater?"
"Yeah, well … he's the one still feeling like trash for not trying to help sooner and I'm the one with abandonment issues. Apparently."
"We'll form a support group," Scott said dryly.
"I'd be too afraid no one would show up," Bobby said just as dryly.
"Me too, probably." Scott chuckled and shook his head and let the sentiment drop for a moment. "Waited for a rainy day to visit?"
"Wasn't exactly planned that way, but I'll take it," Bobby said.
"I was honestly shocked you came at all," Scott admitted.
"Why?" Bobby asked with a deep frown.
Scott gestured with one hand to indicate all around them. "It's Genosha. You know I wouldn't ever ask you to come here now that you've gotten away from it."
"Oh. That." Bobby shook his head. "Not the same Genosha."
"Maybe, but still. It looks the same." Scott paused, turning the bottle cap between his fingers. "I never asked … I saw you sometimes when I'd see Alex and I keep looking back wondering how often you got early parole so the royals looked good."
"Ah … how often did you come by?" Bobby asked.
"Not that often. Once a year once the kids were born, maybe. Alex mostly came to us."
"I didn't get in trouble here until after the mess," Bobby said thoughtfully. "But not often. Storm didn't come to visit with Mia, and the rest of the team acted pretty allergic to this place, so … not often."
Scott let his gaze drop. "Sorry about that."
"Hey. Bygones. If you'd known I was locked up, you'd have broken a few dozen laws to get me out. Just like the first time around."
Scott chuckled to himself. "Yeah, we make a habit of it, don't we? At this rate, we'll have to keep a running tally of how many days one of us isn't in jail or house arrest."
"We had a good streak there for a while," Bobby said. "But at least, as I understand it, Wanda and your probable future son in law have done a lot to pare down the angry mobs."
"Probable?" Scott repeated with a smirk. "Ye of little faith."
"Just … watching your kid display some serious K qualities at opportune times, that's all."
"Fair point," Scott said. "He thinks like she did but looks like Logan."
"Yeah, the whole world is in danger."
Scott chuckled. "Even worse, Rachel's got Jean's looks and my stubbornness…"
"We're all gonna die," Bobby teased in a mocking far away scream.
"It was a good run."
"Yep. Great company, too," Bobby said before he lifted his bottle to toast him. "Can't think of any other fellow jailbird I'd want to do this ride with."
Scott smiled back and toasted Bobby in return. "We should do this more often when I'm back in Westchester."
"Yeah, and before then, too," Bobby said.
"Careful; I don't want to be a sitting duck if your flaming boyfriend thinks I'm a threat," Scott teased.
"Please. Warren was the pretty one."
"And knew it."
"Yeah. Now look at him."
"In his defense, he did just recently become a dad. He's experiencing a whole new world with Angela," Scott laughed.
"Yeah, but he's skinnier than you."
"Yeah, that Logan who visited gave him grief. Let up a bit when Warren said he hadn't been able to fly in years, though. You'd have thought Warren sucker-punched the guy."
"That's something. There's a Logan out there that can let up. What's that like, long term?"
"I mean, the pictures K showed me had at least five kids in them; I think he must have mellowed with each baby," Scott chuckled. "He did get easier to deal with in our universe after James was born."
"Yeah," Bobby said, sounding a little distant. He let it hang there between them, and just before Scott could say anything, Bobby turned his way. "So what's your excuse?"
Scott snorted a surprised laugh. "We've met, right?"
"Once or twice, yeah, I think so."
"And you think me being worried about screwing up a tiny human was going to make me less anxious because…"
"Well I mean, if it helped Logan mellow …"
"Then obviously it had the opposite effect on me," Scott finished. "That's how that worked, right?"
"Not true. I've seen you drunk. Same effect."
"I don't think that's a good measuring stick," Scott said, leaning back. "If that were true, you and Boom Boom would be the same person."
"Sam would be so jealous."
Scott laughed. "Didn't he end up on Muir Island?"
"I don't know, actually. Sounds like something he'd do."
"Last I talked to Moira, he was there - but that was years ago."
"You got a leg up on me," Bobby replied. "I haven't even tried. Figured she'd attack me with her knitting."
"To be fair, you weren't getting phone calls out of prison, so you've got a good excuse." Scott sighed. "Seriously, Bobby, we'd have-"
"Oh, I know. You don't have to feel guilty. You would have come yourself. I know it."
"Probably would have dealt with Magneto sooner, too," Scott said, shaking his head. "Storm told me about finding Remy. God."
"Yeah, he was pretty tightly locked down," Bobby agreed.
"Kitty had mentioned you two were getting in trouble a few times. I guess most of us just didn't realize the extent of it."
"How could you?" Bobby asked.
"Yeah. Still gonna apologize. You probably could have been running circles around the Avengers instead of sitting in Genosha."
"Still can."
"Oh, without a doubt. James told Stark that his team was the Intro to Superheroes prerequisite class for joining the X-Men."
"And that he grew out of it," Bobby said. "Stark still has his panties in a wad over it."
"Yeah, I…" Scott leaned back. "I wanted him to stay on the team, to be honest. You remember how bad it was when we insulated the X-Men too much."
Bobby considered it for a long time before he spoke up. "Logan was an Avenger and it didn't do him a damn bit of good."
Scott let all of his breath out and nodded, sitting in pregnant silence with Bobby for a long while. "Yeah," he said and then cleared his throat. "Kate threatened to quit too - says it's the perfect middle finger to SHIELD. Her parents nearly had strokes."
"About that … Kitty's been digging into all that since the whole … Press celebration of gossip? Still doesn't have much to go on but she's determined to beat Fury's systems."
"If anyone can, it's Kitty," Scott said, smiling fondly.
"She's super mad after all that came out publicly, you know. Rampaging Shadowcat."
"Everyone off the roads," Scott laughed.
"She said she's got a spot picked out for Fury, his lackeys, and Emma. She was lookin' super nasty over that one, too."
Scott worked a muscle in the corner of his jaw. "Yeah… you know Kitty was the one who clued me in when Emma and I were dating. She kept asking if it was me or Emma talking."
"You wouldn't listen to anyone else, so … glad we at least had Kitty to break through."
"I mean, no offense, but you guys just kept trying to pick apart my plans and Kitty just went right for Emma."
"I dunno. I think K's insistence that Emma was low class was pretty on point."
"Fair." Scott leaned back. "I thought she was just being protective. We met when I was still in shock after Jean died." He paused. "The first time."
"So you missed the whole super snooty look over coffee just about every morning? The whole … snotty girl stand off that ended with Emma pissed off about being called trash? How."
"I'm gonna be honest with you, Bobby? I genuinely can't tell which memories of that period of time in my life were manipulated, so it's hard to give you an answer here."
Bobby scoffed, then slapped his knees with both hands. "Well, my friend, I am totally going to sequester your kids to blast my favorite memories of that time to you because you need it. You really need it."
"I'm sure Rachel will take you up on it. She keeps asking what she can do to help - and is avoiding her brother like the plague because he's an anxious mess over Kate having panic attacks at her doctor visits and projecting that to her. She could use a good laugh - and K stories? Always a good laugh," Scott said, smiling the more he thought of it.
"I'll text her and find out when she wants to link up then," Bobby promised.
"Great." Scott finished the root beer in his hand and set it aside, enjoying the companionable quiet for a moment. "I meant to ask if you've seen Remy since the trial," he said.
"Ah … not really," Bobby admitted. "He didn't go back with the group, though, so who knows what he's up to."
"Yeah." Scott couldn't say what had made him think of Remy, since he'd just been thinking about seeing Bobby and Remy after the trial and realized he hadn't heard from his old friend since then… not even a text. And considering Remy's old ties to Sinister…
"He was swearing in that butchered up French he uses though. A lot."
"Yeah, thought he looked more annoyed than called for," Scott said. "Let me know if you see him, okay? I meant to make sure he's alright."
"Will do," Bobby agreed. "But I can tell you he's not."
"Yeah, Storm's worried, and since all I can do from here is gather intel, I promised I'd put out feelers," he said - which was partially true. "She knows he's not the same since he spent all that time in Erik's prison, but …" He let the thought hang in the air. Anyone with eyes had seen that Remy was almost a shadow of himself, even if he kept joking and flirting. If Sinister found him again, that… would be bad.
"Has your techy kid brought you something high powered and dangerous in the computer department?"
"He's setting up my office with something new this weekend," Scott said.
"So he's making something from scratch that could crack the NSA with a pretty please tacked on."
"Almost definitely," Scott said. He got up to get another root beer and tossed one to Bobby.
"Great. You can delete my back taxes for me then. James seemed to think I was joking."
"You're an accountant, aren't you?"
"Hello- an accountant who's been in prison out of the country for years."
"Probably get a better result if you talk to Jamie. That seems like a legal thing," Scott said, smirking.
"Yeah, but I know James could just …" he mimed typing. "Woosh."
"Let's try not to push my son to the side of evil," Scott teased. "Come on; I've got a new deck of cards and we haven't played in a while
Chapter 129: The Evil Twin
Chapter Text
During the entire length of the trial in Genosha, Remy had been deeply uncomfortable.
Not entirely because of the setting, either, though he wasn't happy to be back on that damned island. But there was something tickling the back of his mind every single day he was there.
He tried to ignore it at first. He was honestly sure he was just struggling with returning to Genosha. The metal walls and the taste of wind off of copper-lined floors was enough to have him on edge as it was.
But by the third day of the trial, he knew what he was feeling. And he knew he couldn't warn anyone of the impending danger, either. He'd never been able to; that had been the case as far back as he could remember. This particular presence meant trouble - and the one thing he could do if he couldn't warn anyone was to remove himself from the equation.
He stayed long enough to see what the sentences would be, long enough to know he wouldn't have to remove any old friends from Genosha's prisons. And then he left, because if he stayed too long and wandered into Mr. Sinister, well, he was a major liability.
He left several false trails for Sinister's Marauders to follow as he flitted about through Europe and doubled back multiple times, but after a while - after visiting old haunts around the globe only to spend a few days here and there, he found himself desperately missing home. And so, without thinking about it too hard, he drifted back, half forgetting about the extreme caution he'd been using until then. He wasn't even entirely sure how he ended up where he was … sitting in a bar in New Orleans, cloaked in shadow, turning a card between his fingers as with the other hand he held his phone and read a message from Bobby, who confirmed that nothing had gone sideways and the house arrest really was taking place in a house and not a dungeon.
There were a couple other texts, too, forwarded from other numbers he had given out to a cute blonde at the coffee shop that morning and a handsome young man who looked like a tourist who needed to experience NoLa.
The young man was very interested - and Remy was sure he had chosen the path to solidify his plans for the night when, yet again, that same unsettling something prickled at the back of his mind, and he narrowed his eyes, his grip on the card tightening but not yet glowing.
The warning didn't come quickly enough before Sinister slid into the seat across from Remy at his lonely booth, smirking but so far silent.
"Well, this booth got too crowded," Remy said dryly, stashing his phone as he moved to get to his feet.
"You're not going anywhere," Sinister replied. "And you know it. Stay where you are."
Something flashed behind Remy's already-red eyes as he paused but didn't fully settle back into his seat, still halfway out of it. "Damn."
"Regardless of what you may feel, I am pleased to see you doing so well after so much … neglect."
"The hell you know 'bout any of dat?" Remy shot back angrily.
"Only what I've gleaned after the fact, I'm afraid. Drake was useful for that much at least."
Remy slammed his hand on the table and with the other hand pointed at Sinister right between the eyes with his card now glowing in his fingers. "Dat boy been tru enuff wit'out you diggin' in his head, so you jus' come out 'n say what you want so's I kin turn you down and den you leave him alone."
Sinister's mouth twitched. "Who would you have take your place?"
Remy scoffed. "Ain't nobody like Remy in de whole wide world, so don' go lookin' for replacements, old man."
"Not what I was inferring. Who would you choose to take over for you?"
Again, Remy scoffed, and he sat heavily back down, one hand over his eyes as he waved at Sinister with the other hand. "No." When Sinister raised an eyebrow, he went on. "No, we ain't playin' dis game. There ain't nothin' you kin do to convince me to go back in a cage. No matter how you dress it up, still gon' be trapped. Ain't doin' dat again."
"I agree fully," Sinister said. "And again, you seem to find new ways to misunderstand a simple question. If I were to leave you alone, I will require someone to fill that space. Choose someone capable for me and I will leave you to live out what little life you have left."
"No, no, heard you loud 'n clear. And I said I ain't playin'. You don' get a replacement. You don' get Remy. You jus' leave and don' come back."
"There is no way to do that at this point in time. Control your pride. Even I am forced to consider someone to take my place."
"Hot damn, when you retirin'?"
"Quite possibly sooner than you would think."
"Great. We t'row a party." Remy got to his feet again and rolled his eyes when he saw the card's glow flicker and die. "Cute."
"We're not done here," Sinister said in a more forceful tone.
"We are," Remy said, leaving the card on the table. "Take 'em if you want. Didn' have my powers for a good, long time and I don' need 'em to have a good time now."
"And we both know you're still far too weak to put up a fight worth my time."
Remy held his hands out at his sides, though it did sort of prove Sinister's point for him when it had taken him months just to regain enough weight to look healthy, and that was only just now starting to show. "Gon' make you fight for everyt'in', ol' man. Already said Remy's done wit bein' trapped."
"You're the only one right now to even attempt it," Sinister said as he got to his feet and looked down his nose. "This is the last time I'm offering you a way out, refuse again and I will make sure you're reminded of that cage in Genosha every day of your life - which I will extend."
"Dat's all I gotta do to keep free? Sounds fine by me," Remy shot back angrily, though he knew Sinister could tell he was shaken by the threat. "Survived it once, won't be nuttin' doin' it again."
"Have it your way," Sinister replied in a hiss an instant before he bashed his way into Remy's mind. He'd seen the imprisonment from Bobbys point of view, but Remy's was entirely different - and obviously more targeted.
To Sinister's surprise - and genuine pleasure - it was far more difficult to break into Remy's mind than it had ever been before. The one thing that Remy could say he still had after so long on Genosha was a mental fortitude and pure stubbornness that translated to much higher barriers for any telepath, including Sinister, to clear.
But he got through all the same, and simply because Sinister had mentioned him earlier, one of the first memories close to Remy's conscious mind was the first time the three remaining X-Men on the island - Kitty, Bobby, and Remy - had gotten arrested. While things were up in the air in Genosha, while the team was still in contact with each other as they settled their accounts and fell into new lives, they'd been able to come and go. But once that contact faded, once the first citizen had asked for similar accommodations to come and go, that courtesy had stopped altogether.
They were caught halfway across the ocean, but Erik's acolytes weren't able to get their hands on Kitty until she saw Bobby with his hands behind his back looking pale as a sheet in cuffs.
The memory shifted after her surrender, and Sinister saw the three of them in cells. This was nothing like what Remy had been in when Magneto fell but was part of the regular prison. They could see each other and move around in their cells - and so Remy, who hadn't been home when the school was attacked and hadn't known how bad things truly had been, saw for himself how Bobby reacted to being locked up, how he had gone completely silent and tucked his knees to his chest, rocking back and forth, clearly having some kind of breakdown but unable to get any relief or help while he was imprisoned.
Again, the memory shifted. Sinister could see Remy and Kitty swear to each other not to let Bobby fall into that spiral again, not after Bobby had spent three days after their release still shaking from head to toe with no warning and not sleeping well at all. Kitty had explained that she spent the entire time Graydon Creed had them looking after the kids; Bobby had actually been hurt, strung up, overheated, beaten down. And he had taken Logan's death personally, was convinced that he was the one who should have died. And so they had set up a suicide watch between the two of them, just to be sure, unti lBobby stopped screaming his nightmares.
But it wasn't like the three of them could stop being X-Men. To Sinister's amusement, he could see them poking at Magneto's boundaries at every turn. Encouraging the citizenry to stand up for themselves. And when Magneto would respond, they always had excuses and alibis.
Until he started to get more paranoid, started lashing out at every protest.
Again and again, Sinister saw memories of jail cells. He saw Remy admit under "questioning" that the plans were his - were always his. Magneto thought so poorly of Bobby and so highly of Kitty that Remy was the perfect target for his rage. Kitty was too smart to openly plot against him, and Bobby was too dumb to plot. Or so Remy argued.
The cells got worse and the imprisonments longer, until Magneto finally called down a life sentence after Remy and Bobby had gotten fed up and planned a jailbreak that went south when someone on the inside ratted them out.
From there, Sinister saw only memories of that same cell. Magneto himself never visited, not after decreeing Remy's fate, but a few acolytes did. And over time, Remy stopped kicking back at them - though he didn't stop running his mouth.
Sinister watched one memory in particular, just two years before Magneto's death. Somehow, Bobby had gotten in to visit - likely appealing to one of the princesses - and sat outside the door. He wasn't allowed in, but Sinister could hear in his tone that he was desperate to do something to keep Remy from giving up entirely.
He even jokingly flirted, which was enough to shock Remy into laughter and a playful letdown and rain check.
That had been the last visit, though. And a year had passed, and Sinister saw the moment Remy accepted that he would die in that cell. It was nothing big. No sudden realization. Just a gradual dawning acceptance until it became a fact in his mind. And he stopped trying so hard. Stopped trying to live or eat. He was only - barely - alive because Magneto knew a martyr was dangerous.
But he had given up, and that… that was a powerful weapon.
Sinister smiled to himself when he saw it. It was impressive - how long it had taken Remy to reach that point - but it only proved to Sinister that it could be done. And once he'd gotten there on his own, the routes to put him right back there were simple enough to see.
But that was when Remy managed to push back: when he'd felt the moment that Sinister had become so pleased. And when Remy pushed back, it wasn't anywhere near the half hearted weak attempt Sinister was expecting. He pushed hard. Too hard, in fact. Instead of just pushing Sinister out of his mind, the correction was heavy enough that they both went backward, into Sinister's most recent memories - where most of Sinister's planning was brewing.
While Sinister had been fully prepared to see what it was that made Remy tick, Remy was not prepared to see glimpses into Sinister's planning, or who he'd been lining up for a fall already. Or the many motivations behind it.
He still didn't get a full picture, but what he had gotten … it was enough to shock him out of Sinister's mind and leave him staring.
In a surprisingly raspy voice, Remy said, "Look, I ain't fond 'a dat family, but you really gon' pit twins 'gainst each other just to cover your ass?"
"They will do that all on their own," SInister answered. "I just found it amusing."
Remy shook his head. He was shaking, but he felt his mind was his own, and he couldn't help smiling at that, either. "I tink you been jugglin' too many balls. They gon' come crashin' down, and I ain't gon' help you clean it up."
"You don't have much of a choice in it now," Sinister said. "You know who's off limits, and who I have plans for. And even if you didn't see it, you have to know why."
Remy waved him off. "Yeah, yeah, still got that vow 'o silence in my head and whatnot." He paused. "I know why you come lookin' after all dis time, and not for nuttin', but seems like this time 'round, we got solid ground to stand on." He pointed at Sinister. "Still won' be your servant, mind. Jus' sayin'. Me and mine got it handled." He turned away, his trenchcoat billowing behind him. "Don' come botherin' me again."
"We're not done," Sinister said. "And you're well aware of what I am capable of if you try to ignore me. I'll even give you a choice. Which one of those children would you choose to cover your job?"
"Old man, you gettin' senile. We already had dis conversation."
"Then I'll take Bobby. I have plans for most of the new ones anyhow." At that, Sinister got to his feet and started toward the door.
Remy grit his teeth and swore under his breath. "Damnit all, Rober'," he muttered before he spun around to face Sinister.
"You have convinced me that you are broken and beyond usefulness," Sinister said in a snooty tone. "I don't have the luxury of time to play these childish games, LeBeau."
The very corner of Remy's jaw twitched with disgust. "If - no -" He sighed out a breath. "You bes' promise me you leave him alone."
"When you have promised to do nothing but be a thorn in my side - why should I?"
"Cause I asked."
"What would I have to gain?" Sinister asked, one eyebrow arched up as he took his hard line.
"You don' need to train up a replacement for ol' Remy," he said in a sigh. "I know what you want. Been doin' it long enough."
"Can I trust you to deliver?" Sinister asked in a near hiss.
"Sure can't, but you can trust me more'n anyone else you'd ask, so it's your call."
"You'd be surprised," Sinister said with a smirk.
"Sure." Remy held his hand out to shake. "We gotta deal?"
Sinister paused, but seeing as he was getting what he wanted anyhow, he took Remy's hand in an iron grip. "Fail me and I will move down the list."
"You jus' focus on killin' the bastard and I'll do the rest."
"You know where the drop off is. Your assignments will be there."
"Fine. I got a hot date in de meantime, so I'll jus' keep a lookout," Remy said - and this time, he did skedaddle, fuming but sure he could work at least some of his anger off in a more productive way anyway.
Because most of the team was busy - understandably so - between college and trips to Genosha and wedding planning and baby things, Mia found herself with more responsibility than she normally had.
And she loved it.
Sure, she was usually the person running the welcome wagon, purely by virtue of having lived in Westchester almost her entire life, but now, she was often the most experienced hero when it came to practices with the new kids. The only people who had more experience were those who had been on the original team, and the new kids seemed intimidated by them.
And though Mia would never say it out loud, because she knew there was absolutely no malice in the way her teammates treated her, it was… well, it was nice not to be treated like the baby of the group. It was nice to be looked up to.
So, she was feeling pretty good about herself as she showered off after a good run in the Danger Room with the new kids. Kitty had been the one in the booth, but Mia had called most of the shots in that sim, and she felt like she'd done a pretty good job.
In fact, she felt like she was the only one of the older kids who had been putting in their best. She had expected Nate to be distracted, because Kate had been up all night throwing up again and had ended up needing an IV, and the IV itself was traumatic enough that he was a wreck too and really should have called out of practice instead of trying to stubborn it out like the Summers he was. America and Rachel had been on an Avengers call. James and Billy weren't scheduled for that practice because of school.
But Tommy? He didn't have an excuse. He hadn't even tried to show off, and Mia felt like she'd teed him up for hilarity plenty of times.
So, Mia resolved to make sure he was okay - once she had scrubbed the sweat out of her fur.
She wasn't surprised that she had to teleport around a few times to look for him, though she had quietly decided that if she couldn't find him in any of the usual spots in Westchester, she'd let him be. Whatever was bothering him, she figured he'd tell her if it was important, but if he just needed to get out of his head, that was fine. She'd give him space.
She knew he'd practically lose his mind if she accused him of being in his head, too, because he'd all but built his entire personality around being the easy twin, the one without drama. But that just meant no one ever knew what he was thinking until it exploded out of him, and that was one of the few things that bothered her about him. She hated not being on the same page as him.
But it could have been worse, she supposed. She could have been dating someone in the Summers family.
When she didn't find Tommy, she teleported back to her room, intending to curl up with a good book instead of worrying about Tommy too much. He'd been quiet for a couple weeks now; she wasn't going to tie herself in knots unraveling whatever it was he wasn't telling her. That was undignified, and her mother had taught her not to make herself an emotional dumping ground for anyone.
But when she got back to her room, there he was, grinning and reclining against her pillows. "You looked like you were having fun being in charge," he teased.
She rolled her eyes at him but slipped out of her shoes anyway so she could come join him, shoving him in the shoulder once she got close. "Just picking up your slack."
"Oh, it's like that?" He grinned and shoved her lightly back, subtly moving so that she fell back against pillows and not him so that they were at the same level. "I try and compliment you and you take a shot on me?"
"And if that's true, what're you gonna do about it?" Mia challenged, her pointed teeth glinting with her grin. This was more like the Tommy she was used to seeing, and she loved it.
Tommy matched her grin and then shifted so he was pinning her before he kissed her, and it was no time at all before they started fooling around.
They were trying to be somewhat discreet because it was still the middle of the day, so they didn't get so far carried away that they weren't halfway listening for anyone that might knock on the door or any teachers that would get them in trouble. But only halfway.
And Mia loved this. She loved being sneaky and she loved being impulsive.
They were still breathing heavily when Tommy shifted so that he was propped up on his side, looking down at her while she was still lying on the pillow. "Okay, so I've been thinking," he said.
Mia grinned and settled deeper into the pillow. She'd known he'd come around and tell her what was wrong. "Oh yeah? Solving the key to world peace or something?"
"Nah, we'll leave that to my brother and his genius boyfriend. They'll have it figured out in a week, right?" As he spoke, he was lazily trailing his fingers down her arm, and she smiled, closing her eyes. "Actually, I was going the opposite way. I was thinking, you know, it feels like everyone around us is in way too much of a rush to be adults, don't you think?"
"In their defense, I think the Summers kids were all born with serious faces on," Mia laughed.
"Right, yeah, I've heard the jokes." Tommy shrugged easily. "No, I mean, I don't think that's what I want. All that serious stuff. Billy's got people breathing down his neck asking about when he and James are gonna get married - and asking if they're even gonna make it. And Nate and Kate are wedding planning and setting up a nursery. What even happened there?"
"I mean, if you're lost on that part of things, I could show you," Mia teased, and Tommy couldn't help but laugh and kiss her into the pillows.
He still had her pinned and was still laughing as he said, "See? That's what I mean. We're supposed to be having fun, right? There is way too much pressure happening lately, and I'm not a fan."
"I'm not pressuring you," Mia promised, letting her hands slide down his shoulders to his back.
"Great. So we're just having fun, right?" Tommy asked.
Normally, Mia would have agreed that this was, in fact, very fun and then would have pinned him for a kiss and gotten lost in him all over again. But there was something about the way he was asking it. A careless nervousness that she'd seen way too often lately. "You are fun," she said, one eyebrow raised. "But I'm starting to think we're not on the same wavelength anymore."
"We can get back on the same page," Tommy said, smirking as he leaned down to kiss her neck. And when she relaxed into it, he said, "So let's just keep doing this, huh? No pressure, no commitment, nothing like that. Just have some fun and play the field-"
Mia narrowed her eyes and pushed Tommy back at the shoulder. "Now I know we're not on the same page," she said. "I'm saying I'm not pressuring you into anything more serious than what we've got. You sound like you're trying to make us less serious than we are."
"Well, yeah," Tommy said as if it was obvious. "I mean, we're kids still. I don't want a lifetime commitment, and we've both got lots of admirers. Don't act like you don't know that."
Mia stared at Tommy in complete disbelief. "What…?"
"I mean, I like you, Mia, but I don't want to marry you."
For just a second, Mia was frozen, slack-jawed as she stared at Tommy. "Get out," she said softly, at nearly a whisper.
Tommy lost his smirk entirely. "Look, it's-"
"No." She pushed on his arm until she remembered she could teleport and then teleported out from underneath him, relieved that he backed off of her and didn't try to grab her in the teleport, since they had been touching when she 'ported. She was blushing a brilliant purple, all too aware of the fact that she wasn't wearing anything as she stood there, trembling, staring at the boy in her bed. "You knew when I came in that you were going to tell me you wanted us to see other people," she said, something flashing in her eyes as she gained strength with every word.
"Well, yeah, but I was trying to show you I'm still interested-"
"Stop." Mia could hear thunder outside the window and wondered if her mom knew what was going on or if the weather just had very good timing. She'd never managed more than lightning in her eyes, so she didn't think she was doing it.
"We can still-" Tommy started to say, but Mia cut him off again.
"I may not be looking to get married, but I'm not - I don't want to date around, Tommy. I want to - I wanted to date you." Mia could feel herself turning more and more purple. "And you don't get to use me because you wanted one last romp before we broke up!"
"I wasn't trying to break-"
"I am." Mia threw his clothes at him. "Get out. We're done."
"Mia-"
"No. I can't believe you just unilaterally deci- no. This is so far beyond okay. No. Get out."
"Mi-"
"Get out." This time, there was no mistaking it: the lightning and thunder were responding to her mood. And the whole mansion was blanketed in deeply black clouds that shook the grounds with their thunder. The windows to her room flew open with wind, and in that moment, for the first time in her life, she truly looked demonic.
Tommy opened his mouth and then, wisely, closed it again, quickly getting dressed. He did, however, pause at the window. "I really wasn't trying to - this is way more dramatic than I - I just thought we'd keep it at the level of having fun, not anything else."
"Go find someone who'll give you what you want with no strings attached, Tommy," she said through her teeth. "It's not me. I want a boyfriend, not a glorified sex toy."
Tommy deflated and then, all at once, pointed at her angrily. "I should have known better than to get involved with an X-Man. Drama all around. Never sleep with your teammates or something."
Mia waved him off, and the wind knocked Tommy bodily out of the window - leaving Mia still standing naked in her bedroom, shaking and crying and absolutely furious.
But obviously, with the storm rolling in, no one could possibly misunderstand that a Munroe was upset. And since Storm knew she wasn't the one causing the tempest outside, she had already started her rush to find her daughter and see what was the matter.
Which meant that before Mia had time to fully process her emotions, she heard her mother - and then Forge - knocking on her locked door, calling out to ask if she was okay.
"Oh no," she whispered and hurriedly ran to her closet, throwing a dress on as she called out that she was coming so they wouldn't think she was in danger and break down the door, which would just make everything that much worse.
She wasn't thinking about the fact that she was wearing something different than she'd been wearing before or the state of her room or anything like that - she was just reacting, which had always been her problem, hadn't it? Not thinking ahead.
She looked like a mess when she opened the door and saw her parents, but she tried - she really did - to look less like she was falling apart as she held her tail in both hands and gestured with her chin tipped toward the window. "That was… crazy, huh?"
"Yes, it was," Ororo agreed mildly, arms crossed over her chest. "What happened?"
Mia held onto her tail tighter as she felt her throat constrict. "I, ah… well, you see…" She could feel her ears drooping, and she shook her head, knowing she didn't have the words to explain it all just yet. "We broke up," she said, her gaze on the floor.
Ororo's shoulders slumped and she took a few steps closer. "I'm sorry to hear that, sweetheart. What can I do?"
"I don't know," Mia said; her ears were still ringing. And after a second, when both of her parents were still staring at her, she sniffed and then threw her arms around her mom's neck, starting to cry all over again. She wasn't even falling apart or sobbing, she just… couldn't hold it back anymore.
Ororo looked past Mia's shoulder to Forge, who looked torn between wanting to curl up with Mia and wanting to set up the stasis triggers he'd created long ago to deal with Tommy should be become a problem. They didn't know the full story, yet. But from the look of how crushed their daughter was, they wouldn't know for a while - and neither of them wanted to push when the hurt was still so raw and fresh.
They let Mia lead the way, which meant that Mia silently directed her mom to sit with her on the loveseat in her room. Which had her parents exchanging looks again, because they usually sat on the bed if all three of them wanted to talk. That and the outfit change and the old clothes that Mia hadn't quite managed to hide under all the covers … that was starting to paint a picture.
After a minute, though, Mia managed to get her breath back and glanced up at Ororo and then Forge. "Sorry. I just… it just happened," she muttered, wiping her fur under her eyes. "I didn't even know I could - and I guess, um, surprise I'm a weather witch?"
"Weather goddess," Forge corrected.
Mia gave him a faint smile as she tried to straighten her dress in vain and cleared her throat. "Yeah, that." She swallowed again. "I, um, I don't-" She paused to rearrange her thoughts. "Can you help me throw his stuff out?" she asked in a voice that sounded to small for her.
"Of course," Ororo replied.
"Thanks." She started to cry again, just quietly, and let out a frustrated sound. "Boys are stupid. This is ridiculous."
"Yes, some more than others," Ororo agreed.
Mia sniffed again as she got to her feet and then teleported to her bathroom. While Ororo and Forge had an entire conversation in looks alone, they could hear Mia rummaging around before she teleported back into the room and dumped a few things - a toothbrush and a few clothes and a razor - onto the opposite end of the bed from where Forge was sitting, a determined little scowl creasing her forehead.
She glared at the things for a minute as her tail started to move, signaling to her parents long before she realized it herself that she was moving from shock and hurt to anger - and quickly. "He didn't even have a good reason!" she burst out.
"Would that have made it any easier?" Ororo asked in as calm a tone as she could.
"I don't know. Maybe." Mia's tail was moving in a frenetic pattern behind her as she started to pace, looking the very picture of her father. "I mean, I could understand if he wanted a break to help his mom since Billy's at school. Or if he had stopped liking me, you know? That would hurt, but at least it would make more sense than breaking up because everyone else is getting 'too serious' or whatever!" She didn't realize it, but the wind was picking up outside again, too, especially when she started crying frustrated tears. "I swear, I never pressured him. I'm seventeen; I'm not looking for- I really thought we could just be in love and now I just feel so stupid."
"Don't feel that way," Ororo said gently. "You shouldn't regret feeling any way. It's not your fault he's being … like he is."
"That's the thing - I really should have seen it," Mia said. "He always freaks out when anyone mentions that he actually has responsibilities or that he's second in line or - or anything serious. And I just figured he's nervy because of how differently he and Billy get treated back home but I really should have seen it."
"It's hard to see flaws like that when you're in love, my dear girl," Ororo said.
Mia let out a noise from the back of her throat and plopped down to sit next to Forge, who was doing his level best to look less murderous when she was close by. "I have terrible taste," she grumbled and leaned over to rest her head on his shoulder - and then curled up a little tighter when he pulled her into a deep snuggle.
Tommy, meanwhile, had gone to go sit on the concrete ledge that separated the walkway to the campus library at Harvard from the greenery trying to add some whimsy to the campus. He knew Billy would be walking by that way pretty soon, but he wasn't going straight to his brother when his ears were still ringing. In the time it took him to run there, he'd gone over the conversation a few times in his head, and he was pretty sure he'd worded things wrong, but, like, there wasn't anything wrong with asking to be less serious, right?
He wasn't trying to break up; he just didn't want the hassle of adulthood that everyone else was running toward with open arms like they were all dying to plot out the rest of their lives with their high school sweethearts.
The stats on that sucked, he was pretty sure. Yeah, he was way too young for that nonsense.
And sure, Mia was effortless in Genosha, and he was pretty sure if they did decide to get married forever down the road, she'd be a better princess than he was a prince. And he'd told her that, so it wasn't like she didn't know he thought she'd be great if that's where they ended up.
But they were teenagers and she was taking this way too seriously.
Tommy was kicking his feet against the concrete barrier when he saw James and Billy come out of the library, holding hands and talking. But when Billy saw Tommy, he waved, and Tommy waved back, waiting for them to come to him before he hopped down to join them while they were walking.
"You decide to copy your brother and try out college too?" James teased.
Tommy rolled his eyes at that. "No thanks. That would take way too long."
"I was going to say … you're slow if that's the case. You'll never catch up."
"Ugh, really?" Tommy lightly shoved James in the shoulder.
James was smirking to himself, but wasn't nearly as tactful or willing to wait for Tommy to say what was up first. "Yep. So, if not to stumble through English 101, what's the deal?"
"Just had to get out of Westchester for a little bit and figured I'd say hi to Billy if I'm going to be going somewhere, you know?" Tommy said, shrugging with his hands in his back pockets.
James and Billy shared a look, but James backed off with a slight frown as he watched Billy handle it.
"You okay?" Billy asked. "Did something happen?"
Tommy took a deep breath and let it all out at once. "Yeah, Mia broke up with me," he admitted.
"What did you do?" James asked before he could even begin to stop himself.
Tommy turned toward James with his best look of offense. "I didn't - she's the one that broke up with me!"
James' eyes narrowed as he tried to ignore the scents still clinging to Tommy. But he couldn't keep it out of his tone. "What did you do."
"I thought things were-" Billy stopped himself and remembered how Tommy had been talking just before the trial. "What's going on with you two? You've been great together!"
"I'm pretty sure I just wasn't explaining myself right," Tommy said, though he was visibly annoyed. "I was trying to tell her I don't want to be as serious as you two are, you know? Kate and Nate are getting married and having a freakin' kid and you two are in the newspapers all the time with James saying he's just trying to get through Grandfather's requirements so you can get married. And, like, we're teenagers, guys. Chill, huh?"
"I said that one time," James defended. "And it has nothing to do with you!"
"Says you."
Billy frowned at Tommy. "Okay…" He waited, but when Tommy didn't offer anything else, he said, "I mean, I get not wanting to get married, but…"
"Exactly!" Tommy gestured openly at Billy. "I just want to have fun right now, you know? That's what we're supposed to be doing at our age. I mean, no offense, Billy, but not even in our twenties and we're already talking about lifetime commitments? No thanks, no commitments right now, just fun - like we're supposed to do when we're young."
James dropped his bookbag as he twisted away from the twins only to return his focus and a hard hit square in Tommy's mouth. "You drop that on her after you slept with her? What the hell-" He caught Tommy's shirt with his free hand just so he couldn't drop out of reach before he hammered him a couple more times. "For what? A shot at some cheap groupies? You crossed a goddess in favor of trash?"
After the first hit, Tommy was just a bit too punch drunk to stop the next couple, but when James didn't stop, Tommy put his hands on James' arm - and very well might have shattered bone if Billy hadn't magically yanked them apart in a second, one hand out in each direction, palms facing his brother and his boyfriend as a small crowd started to gather.
"Okay, this needs to not happen right here and right now," Billy said - and wished the three of them to a private spot in the woods where he'd camped with James when James needed space. He didn't let up on his spell until he had looked at both of them and then focused on James. "I really don't want you exiled, so think very carefully about how hard you hit a prince of Genosha, no matter what an idiot he is."
"You're right. I didn't hit him hard enough," James growled out.
"I had it handled," Tommy said at the same time.
"Tommy, stop talking," Billy said, his eyes glowing brighter. "You are very, very lucky you're my brother and I love you because anyone else and I'd let James go right now."
"Seriously?" Tommy tipped his head back and groaned. "This is all - look, everyone's taking this way too seriously. I wasn't trying to break up, just make things more casual!"
"No, as stupid as that part is, the bigger problem is that you just screwed her before you told her you wanted to sleep around, right?" James snarled. "I don't give a damn who you are, that's a dirtbag move."
Tommy blew out his breath. "That - that makes it sound-"
"It's bad, Tommy," Billy said, his eyes still aglow, because it was genuinely hard to keep them magically separated when James was actively snarling and trying to get to Tommy to pound him.
Tommy groaned again. "Just my luck my brother's dating someone who can smell too well," he grumbled.
"What, you'd rather I found out from Mia?" Billy shot back. "Or that he found out from Mia?"
"This is a good point and I've mentioned I love you, brother dear, right?" Tommy said, finally starting to backpedal as he realized how much danger he was in.
"I'm going to wish you to Mom with a note magically stamped on your forehead at this rate," Billy said, though he turned away from Tommy to look at James.
"I'm going to Westchester," James said.
"Yeah, okay. Just…" He bit his lip. "If I let you go, can you promise not to kill him?"
"No."
"Okay. I get that. I'm just trying not to let you get exiled. You know that, right?"
"I'm not in Genosha. I'm not worried about it."
"Well, I am. So…" He sighed, power swirling around his fingertips. He turned back to Tommy. "Just so we're clear?" He tipped his head down to look Tommy straight on. "You're an asshole. And I will actively help Mom tear you to bits. Just because I'm saving your life does not mean I don't think you deserved the beat-down you were about to get." He made sure he was looking Tommy straight in the face so the message sank in. "Sucks to see you got the evil gene out of the two of us," he said - and then wished Tommy right to Genosha.
Billy let James drop to the ground and looked perfectly apologetic. "I know, I'm sorry. I'll get you to Westchester in a second. I need to go make sure he doesn't try to smokescreen my parents-"
"I'll call for a pick up. Take care of your family," James said.
"Yeah. I just…" Billy hesitated and then rushed over to very carefully kiss James on the cheek. "I'm sorry I used my powers against you. I don't feel great about it, because he deserved it."
"I'm not mad about that," James promised. "You can stop me any way you need to."
"Okay, just making sure we're clear. I'm not siding with the evil twin here."
"We're fine," James said as he pushed his sleeves up to access his remote for a suit. "I just want to make sure she's okay. He was her first and this … is bullshit."
"Oh, absolutely," Billy agreed, finally letting his own anger show. "I mean, he can get tunnel vision sometimes when he wants something, but this is… this is so wrong on so many levels."
"No kidding. Find out what possessed him. Can't promise I won't crack him in the head every time I see him until things line up right again."
"Yeah, honestly, I don't even want to talk to him right now, so as long as you don't kill him, that's fine by me."
"Hard to kill him when he's not right here," James pointed out, then tried for a crooked smile.
"I know, I'm just saying… moving forward, you know? No killing my evil twin. That's a house rule I have," Billy said, barely returning the smile.
"I'll work on it," James said. "Only because I love you, though. I warned him when he started up with her what would happen if he screwed her over."
"You did," Billy agreed. "If it makes you feel any better, I'm pretty sure my mom is going to pull out some dark magic for punishments here, so… he's not getting off easy, I promise."
"That really doesn't help," James said, though he reached out to take Billy's hand - especially when he could see how stressed out he was. "I have no context."
"Fair." Billy took a deep breath and tried to settle himself a bit. "Okay. I'll go make sure my parents have the whole story. Um… don't be surprised if you don't see Tommy for a bit. I don't think it's smart for him to be around Storm. Or Kate. Or… anyone. You know what, he just needs to hide in a hole somewhere for his own safety."
"He needs to pull his head out of his ass. I'll text you if I hear more from Mia," James promised.
"Please do. And let her know I still love her and totally disavow my brother's idiocy, huh? Whatever she needs, I'll wish her something."
James leaned over to steal a quick kiss. "As much as I hate to say it - hear him out before you decide on what you think. I don't have to, but you should. Sibling whatever."
Billy sighed. "Fine." He readjusted the way he was standing in preparation to cast another spell. "It's … honestly, it's such a Tommy move. He's always been half-terrified of all the responsibility our family's had from day one, and he kind of self destructs when he gets scared."
"Yeah, he and Mayday could share notes," James deadpanned. "We could take bets on who'd screw over who."
"Ouch. That would be disastrous."
"They deserve each other."
"Yeah… still better than a crown-chaser, which is what I'm worried he'll end up falling into, you know? Ugh. Why are brothers such problems."
"They just are. Ask Kate about the blonde when you want to raise her blood pressure."
"Um. Yeah. Gonna have to," Billy agreed. Just then, the armor James had summoned appeared on the horizon, and he nodded. "Okay, talk to you soon," he said - and wished himself to Genosha.
James blew out a breath as the armor assembled around him, then headed for Westchester - though he did have to field a call with Tony, who was anxious that he'd taken the armor, and more anxious that it hadn't gone to the college to get him.
But once the details were ironed out, James didn't think twice about a little tiny bit of showboating to get Mia some of her favorite things, then flew over to Westchester to try and help her soothe her broken heart. First, he tried the roof, because that's where she usually had gone to clear her head, but when she wasn't there, he flew over to her window and knocked on the glass before he let the faceplate fold back.
"I have a delivery for an angry Goddess," James said when she turned toward the sound.
She looked slightly purple still and quickly started trying to wipe her fur under her eyes, but it was starting to tangle and get matted from how wet it was, so that was a losing battle. "Mom's a few hallways down," she said with an attempted smile.
"I also half beat your stupid piece of crap prince for you," James said. "The idiot." He held up the bags in one hand. "Dinner. Entertainment. Snacks. You name it."
The corner of her mouth twitched before she teleported over to open the window and let him in, still trying to get her fur less damp and scrubbing her whole arm over her eyes in the attempt. "Come on in; sorry about the mess. I'm just…" She gestured with her other arm, and he could see that she was moving things around, redecorating the room so she didn't have to sleep in the same setting where Tommy had broken up with her. There was even a new bedding set that she'd gotten from teleporting to the store and sending her mom in.
"I know," James said as the rest of the armor peeled back. "Anything you want to burn? Blow up? I brought you dinner and a movie about revenge."
"Yeah, um…" Mia sniffed and showed James the pile of old bedding in the corner of the room.
"I'll take it out and light it on fire if you want me to," James said. "Wrap him up in it first, too."
"Okay." Mia sat down on the mattress - she hadn't put the sheets on yet, because she'd only just moved the bed from the side of the room to be just underneath the window. "So, um, how much… what do you know?"
James raised one eyebrow. "I know."
"How?"
"Come on, Mia," James said before he tapped the side of his nose. "I know the order of his stupidity. He didn't realize I knew that until I rebounded his head a few times. He came looking for comfort from Billy. I started a fight."
Mia nodded and then teleported over to James to wrap him in what would have been a hug if she wasn't leaning on him so heavily and practically using him to stay upright. "I didn't even tell my parents about - I mean, it's stupid but I didn't want to - it's so embarassing and I just - and they probably knew anyway because-"
James wrapped her up tightly. "You didn't do anything to be ashamed of."
"It kinda feels like it," she said quietly.
"Only because you trusted him," he said. "I thought you were okay, too. This is just him being criminally stupid."
She nodded into his shoulder, hanging on a little tighter. "I didn't even know he was - I've never pressured him to-" She took a deep breath that shuddered.
"I don't know why he did that, Mia," James said, then picked her up to carry her well away from the pile of bedsheets. "Billy didn't get it either. He is mortified that his brother is that much of a scumbag."
Mia tucked into James so tightly her tail was wrapped around his waist too, and she stayed there even when they sat down together on the loveseat in her room. "You wanna know the worst part?" she whispered after she'd gotten a better handle on her emotions. "I was gonna surprise him … I'm applying to study robotics in Genosha with Vision."
James was silent for a long moment, then pulled her in a little tighter. "Don't let him ruin that for you, little Goddess. You outrank him in every way."
"It'll be weird," she started to argue, but James was obviously not having it.
"You mean, it'll be weird when everyone there knows he's low class and you're below no one? Yeah. they'll adjust."
Mia coughed out a little laugh. "Love you too," she said. She dragged her arm over her eyes again and then sat up a bit - though she was still halfway curled up with him. "So. Um. Mom and Dad found out because I maybe caused a minor hurricane when I threw him out."
James smiled crookedly. "This is my super proud but not really that surprised face."
She finally broke into an honest smile at that. "Mom was surprised."
"Don't know why," James said. "She knew you had the touch."
"Well, yeah, but last time we saw my furry godfather, his theory was it wouldn't manifest entirely until I hit a secondary mutation, since it's only ever been little flashes in my eyes, you know?"
"I will fully fund your college education if you zap that little creep with a lightning bolt in the gym shorts." James' smile slipped a little though. "I have a few running theories on that secondary thing - for you anyhow."
"Okay, I'm all ears," she said - and pulled out an old tease from when they were kids to wiggle her pointed ears his way.
James reached over to hand her the food he'd brought, knowing she had to be out of it still. "Don't come after me with a hurricane or anything, but … which of your dad's powerset was actually mutant abilities?"
"Umm, all of it, I thought. He was a mutant, right?"
"Yeah, I don't know. He was a mutant, sure, but - his father wasn't, and the powerset was the same. It might be entirely possible that your teleporting is all demonic and you're a late bloomer with the lightning and weather manipulation. Could even be that the demonic stuff held back your actual powerset for a few years." He held up both hands. "Just a thought, though."
Mia frowned at him for a while as she worked it out. "Okay, but then what was my father's mutant ability?"
"As I understand it, incredible gymnastic ability, sass, troublemaking, and drama."
"That does sound like the stories Mom tells," Mia teased. She leaned back, breaking open a fortune cookie to munch on while she thought it over.
"I honestly don't know, but - there might be a little link, you know? Something in one that dampened the other."
"Or I'm just a late bloomer," Mia said. "Or maybe it's two mutant abilities."
"I don't think it's a secondary, though," James said. "That doesn't line up. Everything I've found shows that secondary mutations are related to the primary."
"Yeah, that's what Hank said too, but that was the best he could come up with to explain it when I first showed up. I'm sure he's got lots of newer theories." She bit her lip, her tail starting to unwind because it was moving in sheer curiosity.
"Maybe," James agreed.
"Maybe not all my father's powers are demonic, though. He was a mutant, not a full demon…"
"Yep. So, maybe your demon idiot grandfather was lying about not being a mutant too. What are the chances?"
"Not like I'm gonna go ask him," Mia said dryly.
"Hell no," he agreed. "And the first theory I threw out there is based off of a demon - an actual demon - telling the truth. Shaky ground."
Mia nodded, her tail swaying lazily - well and truly distracted with something new to think about. "It makes sense, though. Maybe he had physical mutations from his mom. I mean, she was blue, right?"
"Your shapeshifting grandmother? Yes. That's what I could find."
"So, what if the physical stuff was her, but directed by the demon influence, you know?"
"No telling," James said, pleased that she was relaxing a little at the subject change.
"Or … or the wallcrawling." She flexed her three-fingered hands in front of James. "I think that's just ours. Maybe. I don't have a way to check… I'm gonna be thinking about this for weeks now, I'll have you know."
"Sorry," James said, smirking because he was not sorry at all.
"Yeah, you're not," Mia said. She grinned and grabbed the movie with her tail. "Revenge movie?"
"Yeah, I think the cheating idiot guy gets murdered by the women he screwed over. Seemed like a cheerful popcorn flick to me."
"Perfection," Mia agreed - totally snuggling in again.
And a few hours later, when Ororo peeked in to check on Mia, she found that Mia was totally asleep, finally hitting the crash after all the emotions surged through her. And she was curled into James so neatly that it was almost like looking at an image from the past for Ororo - Kurt used to curl up the exact same way with his best friend when he was drunk after a night out with Logan.
And when James caught Ororo's gaze over the top of Mia's head, Ororo mouthed, "Thank you."
James nodded lightly, then pulled the blanket up a little better over Mia's shoulders and slightly adjusted how he was holding her, making it clear he had no plans to go anywhere.
Ororo paused and watched them for a few moments, a distant expression of loss coloring her features as she thought of all the things she tried so hard to forget - all of it much harder to ignore when those two were curled up.
She quietly cleared her throat, then pulled out her phone to snap a picture of the two of them before she closed the door behind herself, knowing that Mia was safe exactly where she was.
She wanted to talk to Wanda, to find out what had happened, and if she could do anything. Especially when she knew Mia wasn't giving her the whole story. Not that she needed to. The girl had never been raised to be too shy - and Ororo had always wanted her children to feel comfortable with themselves no matter the situation. So she had guessed that Mia and Tommy had taken things too far long ago.
She just wanted to make sure her little girl was loved, and though Tommy had dropped the ball, seeing Mia sleeping so soundly just now left Ororo with a small smile as she thought of her own friends and how they'd held her up through heartbreak. She was still leaning on Mia's closed door when she sent the photo off to Scott.
A few minutes later, she got a response: Almost thought it was an old picture for a second there.
Ororo smiled to herself. The long hair gives it away otherwise.
Yeah, second glance gave it context. What happened? I think I'm out of the loop here.
I'm not sure when exactly he showed up, but Mia and Tommy broke up.
Ah.
If you find out more, please let me know. I believe there is nowhere on Earth that boy might be other than home.
I haven't talked to Wanda today but I'll ask Alex when he stops by tonight.
And I'll likewise fill you in should one of them decide to speak up. But I'm not pushing her when she's so upset.
If you want to borrow one of my kids…
I think one already volunteered.
Fair. He probably knows more than either of us.
Very likely considering he skipped over everyone here to go straight to her. And brought her food and movies.
Sounds like she's in good hands, then. There was a pause. Now's probably a bad time, but could you keep an eye out for Remy? No one's seen him since the trial, and I can't find anything in Natasha's intel or what you've sent me.
Natasha couldn't find him if he wanted privacy, Ororo replied, ten thought about it for a moment. He can't hide from me, though. I know just where to look.
Thanks. I can only do so much from here, you know?
You seem to be handing out assignments just fine.
Old habits.
No one is complaining, Scott. I'll reach out to him next.
It was a solid shift for Ororo. There wasn't anything she could do for Mia that moment anyhow, and she was well taken care of, so looking out for her old accomplice was a good distraction, if only for a few moments. First, she tried to call, but found herself listening to an overly flirty voicemail message informing her of what, exactly, Remy was on the look for. And, not wanting to touch that with a ten foot pole, she hung up and sent him a text. If he was out tomcatting around, she was going to be the last person to interrupt that. She'd just give him some time. He had been locked up tightly in prison for too long, and once he'd hit solid ground in the States, he'd all but disappeared into the woodworks.
Not that she could blame him.
So, in lieu of worrying about her daughter, her extended family, or the school at large, Ororo chose to divert herself toward Forge's workshop, where, she was very sure he'd be working on something to bite Tommy in the backside when he inevitably showed up again at top speed.
But she'd hardly been in the workshop for more than ten minutes before a red light flashed, and Wanda appeared, looking absolutely furious. She had come straight there after laying into Tommy - because Billy had told her the truth of what happened - but she had magicked herself to Ororo.
All she could think was that if one of her boys had been as hurt as Tommy had left Mia, she would have wanted appropriate revenge. And her reasons for showing up were twofold: first to give Ororo the satisfaction of knowing Tommy was facing consequences and also to beg her two old friends to let her do the punishing.
She knew that Tommy had done truly wrong, but she loved him. He was her son. And she was still protective of him, despite what he may have done.
Before Ororo or Forge could say anything, Wanda spoke first: "I took his powers," she said, her eyes still glowing as the last vestiges of her spell settled around her.
"So I shouldn't worry about him tripping off my stasis field," Forge said.
"Not right now, anyway," Wanda said. She let her shoulders drop. "He's only allowed them back if I sign off on it - so he'll be running plenty of errands for me." A smirk played with her mouth.
"Provided he doesn't guilt trip his brother into helping him," Ororo said.
"Billy is the one who brought him to me and told me the full truth of what happened," Wanda said.
"Which is-" Forge said, letting his question drop off.
"I think that's for her to tell you," Wanda said. "But yes, it is what you think, and I know, I'm mortified and ashamed and I'm so sorry," she added, her voice tight.
"She's asleep now," Ororo said, both to illustrate how upset Mia had been, and to let Forge know the rest of it. "On James."
Wanda couldn't help but smile broadly. "Oh, I love that."
Ororo smiled mildly. "You should get that photo too." And Forge forwarded it before Ororo could get her phone out.
Wanda glanced down and then let out a soft sound. "Oh. That's history repeating."
"Let's not let any more history repeat itself with them, either," Forge said.
"Agreed," Wanda said. She cleared her throat. "Anyway. If you need Tommy's skill for the team, I can lease him to you. I'm doing the same with Lorna as she tracks down the acolytes and with Scott when he can't leave. I told him he needs to know what it's like to be used."
"I'll pass the message on to the team," Ororo said. "They had Scott coordinating them - it's a bit up in the air for the time being."
"Understandable." Wanda sighed and sat down.
"It's terribly early in the morning where you were," Ororo said. "But would you be opposed to a drink with me before you go back to all that chaos?"
"I'm sure Billy already knows James is staying here," Forge added.
"He does. He wanted to take some time to himself anyway. He's upset." Wanda sighed again. "In their argument, Billy told Tommy that he'd inherited his grandfather's evil tendencies, and he's been referring to him as his evil twin."
At that, Ororo and Forge both looked downhearted. "Not evil," Ororo said. "But certainly shortsighted."
"Believe me, I'm intimately familiar with the feeling of watching a twin brother make shortsighted, hurtful choices," Wanda said.
"Then Billy needs you right now," Forge said.
"I'm going to talk to him once he's feeling like talking." Wanda sighed. "He's as much like me as Tommy is like Pietro. I keep hoping they'll be better than we were, though. Billy's on his way there, obviously. Tommy… is immature."
"They both need progress in different areas," Ororo said diplomatically. "And both could use more patience." She shook her head. "All of them could use more patience."
"Oh, obviously. But you remember how we all were at that age."
"Ororo was always perfect," Forge said. "Remy would back me up if he were here."
Wanda smirked. "He absolutely would."
Ororo rolled her eyes and reached for Wanda's hand. "Come and join me for some tea before you go. We can try to ignore our children's foolhardy mistakes for a few moments."
"Please," Wanda said warmly.
It didn't take long for the boys to get into the swing of things, though James was careful to make sure he wasn't patterning himself - and tried to get Billy to do the same. And hadn't taken James long to get caught up with all he'd missed the first few weeks of class - and to climb his way up to the top of the class to Dr. Windsor's obvious delight.
He didn't entirely understand why the Dr. Windsor was so pleased, but it was a little more familiar a reaction to get from one of his teachers, so he tried hard not to question it.
He hardly noticed when Dr. Windsor started to spend a little more time peeking over his shoulder as he worked, or took time to ask him questions about the first of several hypotheses James had said he wanted answered about the x-gene.
Sinister as Windsor could see that James was slow walking any real research in favor of trying to find a level of comfort that, frankly, a college setting would never give him. Not when all of his classmates had walked into that classroom with the same vapid ideas regarding the x-gene generally speaking. Most of them weren't trying to do anything specific, let alone answer the questions James was making notations on in his notebook. With hand written notes, not the predominant preference of the tablets and laptops. It was refreshing. And appreciated. And all he really wanted to do was to get the boy out of the college lab and into a proper research facility. One that would make available to him every mutation that had been seen on the planet.
But he clearly couldn't be trusted. Not in his current state. Logan's boy was guarded about who he spoke with, what was discussed and how those discussions went. The instinctive nod to his parent's heightened level of paranoia was … not entirely unexpected. Especially after all that had transpired in the past several years. And yet, he persisted. Tenacity, Sinister thought as he watched James focus intently on extracting dna from donated samples. He was progressing rapidly, and the faster James got, the more Sinister found himself ignoring the bulk of the class. They were all progressing on schedule … James was already threatening to set his own schedule by virtue of his work ethic. And Sinister couldn't be more delighted over it. Now, he just needed to sit back, let the boy stretch, and see if he could form any decent methods on how to answer his own questions. That would be the true litmus on how useful he really was. And by then, Sinister hoped that he'd be able to scan the boy's mind without being noticed.
As it was, when he pushed too hard to slip into James' mind to see how he was coming to his conclusions, the boy would pause and close his eyes or stare at his hands. He'd been too sharply honed in psychic defense - no doubt at the behest of his currently captive adoptive father.
But the boy was every bit as smart as the press, Stark, and his previous teachers had said. Even after losing what Sinister knew had to be a rather sizeable chunk of gray matter. For an instant, he wondered how far that injury would have to go to leave more lasting damage, but … that would be a waste. Thinking about that aspect had him wondering if he'd acted too rashly with Logan oh, so many years ago. But that was no longer relevant. Especially when the boy in front of him was on the right path … for now. Academics was a safe place to keep him … and a good avenue to gently direct him down the right path. It seemed as if all he really had to do was to be supportive and understanding … and he didn't even need to fake the enthusiasm over the level of responses James was giving him.
He'd never in all his years considered using this avenue as a means to direct his subjects. But he had no time for the what-ifs or the could-have-beens. Not when what he needed to do was to polish up the rough cuts.
Sinister waited until he knew most of the genetics lab was cleared out - and James was still extremely focused on what he was doing. Yes, he had volumes of work to make up for the vapid classes that the others in that group had already drudged through over several years, but … he was fast, and his answers - and handwriting - precise. Neat. Allowing him to work past class on his free time before the Maximoff boy came looking for him was a no-brainer. A simple, no effort way to build a bit of trust. It was almost too easy when he had so much to work with.
So he waited for the right moment to go through James' paper - while he was there and the rest of the class was gone already - to ask him for clarification beyond the scope of the questions concerning the x-gene … and why he thought it wasn't a problematic development in human evolution.
He was not expecting an answer anything like James gave - off the cuff and entirely supportive of how evolution couldn't be stopped and to do so went against the laws of nature. It turned the commentary around entirely from what every other person in his class believed … that mutation was dangerous. It was easily the most scientific response that Sinister had seen in these misguided children.
"I truly appreciate your outlook," Sinister said making sure to allow his body language to echo the sentiment he wanted James to see: relief. Vindication.
"Why is that?" James asked distractedly, and Sinister had to control the urge to smile, knowing that he was seeing an odd combination of learned behavior from Scott and natural behavior from his biological parents.
"I thought you'd figure that out by now," Sinister said, then gestured openly at himself.
James looked up at him for a long moment, then nodded once. "You're a mutant too." It wasn't a question -and that kind of a loophole was exactly what Sinister was hoping for. Something he didn't have to confirm, and then therefore lie about. That would have busted him out quickly … but James came to the conclusion on his own and didn't question him. Which made the whole process easier on Sinister.
Before long, the two of them were chatting intensely about the class, James' theories, and with a little coaxing, James' recovery in very limited detail. Which was when Sinister hit James with something that he was not prepared for.
"Whatever you do," he said as he rested a hand on James' forearm. "Don't let anyone take samples from you for any reason."
James frowned. "I … wasn't planning on it."
"Good. It's just incredibly simple for those in this field to use their classmates as source material for tests-"
"I'm not using samples of my own even for my testing," James said, making sure to draw the line clearly. "That's not … I'm not going to do that."
"Good. Very good," Sinister said, smiling warmly as Doctor Windsor. "I simply wanted to caution you. I don't know how common your mutation is, but caution is most prudent."
"Yeah," James said, letting his shoulders relax slightly. A sort of understanding seemed to solidify in the quiet lab, and a few moments later, the two of them went into action again - working on their own projects, and occasionally conversing, though the discussion was slowly building steam.
They seemed to be finding a groove that worked for them to cooperate together in their projects, and Sinister used what he was literally playing with as a teaching opportunity to see how James would handle it .. which left the two of them getting more engaged with the project at hand. Enough so that Sinister had to control his irritation when the door to the lab opened and Billy walked in with his bookbag over his shoulder.
Just like that, the spell was partially broken as James looked toward Billy with a smile and promised to wrap it up. But Sinister wanted to make sure that he had a clean run at Billy, too. The boy was powerful, and dreadfully useful. And this method … going easy … seemed to yield decent results. At least … the boy hadn't stabbed him yet as his father had by the time they'd spent that much time around each other.
"If you're waiting for Mr. Howlett to finish up, you're more than welcome to study," Sinister said, testing the waters with Magneto's grandson and hoping he wasn't nearly so unhinged as his grandfather.
"I'm good for right now," Billy said, though he did take a seat out of the way while James finished up. "Thanks, though."
Sinister gave him a tight smile, but stepped away to let the boys do what they needed to.
James was quick enough to close up what he was working on and snatch his bookbag before Billy could get too comfortable. "Sorry. I got caught up," he explained with a shrug.
"It's okay. I was just going to finish reading The Iliad while you worked if you needed more time," Billy said. "I'm almost done."
"Oh, well. You'll be glad to be done with that one," James teased with a little smirk.
"It's a good story," Billy defended. "It's just hard to get through because of the language barrier. Not the translation; I mean it's just ancient."
"Yeah, okay," James said, just to pick on him. "Are you reading it in Greek?"
"Ha ha. You know what I mean. Ancient phrasings and references and stuff."
"You should ask Steve about those. He probably gets all those jokes," James said as they headed out with little more than a wave toward 'Windsor'.
"Actually, I'm doing an entire class dedicated to world mythology next semester, and I have absolutely let Thor know I'm going to fact-check the stories with him. He thinks it's hilarious."
"Are you going to bring him to show and tell? Instant A."
"He offered to send his brother. Which is even funnier."
"Instant fail."
"Right?" Billy grinned lazily. "I still haven't decided which of the humanities I want to major in, actually. I'm enjoying the literature classes, but history is fascinating too, and the social sciences might be good for ruling."
"Which one has the most drinking and debauchery?" James teased again before stealing a kiss.
Billy grinned. "You're in a good mood. Genetics treating you well, then?"
"Oddly enough? Yeah. The other stuff is going well too, but … I don't know. There's not the same expectations there when I show up."
"I bet that's a relief," Billy said.
"It's just I dunno. Different."
"Yeah, I get it. I think my professors are half scared of me."
"You'll get used to that," James promised.
Billy grinned. "So, do you need to stick around for anything or did you want to stop by and say hi to your dad?" he asked.
"I thought that was the plan?"
"Just checking. You looked knee-deep in your research," Billy pointed out.
"I can jump in again later. It's not as convoluted as Reed's papers."
Billy chuckled. "Alright then. Let's go see what Annie's made. Rachel said she's been practicing frosting flowers ever since Kate told her she was in charge of the wedding cake."
"Oh, delightful. More sugar."
"I know, what a horror," Billy said as the two of them headed home to drop off their schoolwork and prepare to spend time with their parents in Genosha.
Chapter 130: Backstory Unlocked
Chapter Text
There was little warning on Scott's end of things when Billy wished James and himself right into the kitchen of Scott's place, grinning widely when he saw that Annie was in the process of decorating several dozen small cupcakes. "I bet we can take these off your hands, Annie," he called out as soon as they'd arrived.
Annie grinned and dropped what she was doing to throw her arms around them both, dusting them with flour in the process. "I'll bet you can."
"Don't let him get to you, Miss Hale," James said as he pulled on Billy's hand. "He's got sugar on the brain."
Annie grinned, wiping her hands futilely on her apron before she hugged James again. "It's good to see you both. How's college - no, wait, I'll get Scott first," she said before either of them could say anything. She rushed down the hall, and as she passed James, he could scent how anxious she was.
"You brought her the stuff on the extra list, right?" James asked Billy quietly.
"That and I asked Craig what her favorite books are and made sure to get them here," Billy said.
"That's easy. Wedding albums."
Billy snorted. "Fair," he agreed, even as Annie and Scott came back down the hall.
And James could easily see why his siblings were concerned and why Annie was so anxious. It didn't look like Scott was sleeping well at all, and he looked far too relieved to see James.
"Hi, Dad," James said before he could get all the way to them - and once he was close enough, he gave him a bear hug, hoping that would help a little bit.
As soon as he did, Scott wrapped him up tightly, almost like he didn't want to let go, though he did step back and look him over. "How's college?" he asked.
"Stuffy. Generally."
"Already showing everyone why you belong there, I'm sure," Scott said with a faint smile.
"Or something," James said, though he hadn't really blinked as he watched Scott closely. "What about you? Do you need better razors? Or are you going for the Smoky and the Bandit look?"
"If you help me pin him, I'll shave him. I swear I get beard rash just kissin' him hello," Annie teased.
"You're giving Miss Hale beard rash? I think I need a therapist." He turned toward Annie. "You know any?"
Billy cracked up next to James, one hand covering his mouth. "She'll have to ask around," he giggled through his fingers.
"If Craig's too busy with Tony, I'm sure Vision would be top-notch," James said. "He'll read the whole of human psychology on his way over to help."
"He would too," Billy laughed.
Scott smirked and hit James lightly in the shoulder. "Good to see Harvard hasn't changed you a bit."
"Child abuse."
"Add it to my many crimes," Scott said, gesturing around the house. "I'm a criminal now. I'm a terrible person."
"Oh please," James said with a wave. "You and me both. I blame Steve. All that 'stand up for what's right no matter what' garbage."
Scott chuckled. "Sure, that's what happened." He gestured for James and Billy to come join them in the living room. "I'm sure if you stick around for any length of time, you'll end up with cookies and cupcakes to take back home," he added, and Billy grinned delightedly.
The boys followed, and when James sat down, he did what he usually did when he wasn't entirely sure of the situation and pulled his legs up to sit cross-legged. "Okay, but that covers what Annie's been up to … what about you?"
"Well, both Natasha and Ororo have made it their mission to keep me busy, so somehow, I've become an expert in the latest criminal shorthand on about six different underground channels," Scott said with a wry smile.
"Anything good on the bathroom walls?"
Scott chuckled. "No, but I did see where a few of Magneto's acolytes ran afoul of Hydra."
"That's amazing. Is there video?" James asked.
"No, but I'd bet both groups are going to need some time to recover," Scott said, genuinely smiling at that point. "My understanding is a whole Hydra research division went up in flames."
"That does happen from time to time," Billy put in.
"The best part was it seems to have been an accident on the acolytes' part. They didn't know what they were going into and just… lost their tempers, really."
"Good. They can use the frustration," James agreed.
"I've been learning a bit of the shorthand too," Annie put in, smirking crookedly.
"They're going to be worse than Kate's parents," Billy mock-whispered over James' shoulder, earning himself a serious nod.
"Oh, I hope so," Annie teased right back. "Oh! But before I forget, I need to finish those cupcakes. Billy, can you-"
"-be a taste tester? Yes. Yes, I can," Billy said, which had Annie laughing as they headed off to the kitchen together.
James barely waited for them to get out of the living room, let alone out of earshot before he turned his focus back to Scott. "Okay, but really. What's wrong? You're not okay."
Scott let his shoulders drop along with his smirk at seeing Annie drag off Billy. But he didn't answer right away, obviously thinking it over.
"Dad."
"I know," Scott said. He closed his eyes and took a deep breath. "James, I need you to be incredibly careful right now," he said.
"That … is the plan," James said slowly.
"I know. I just…" Scott seemed to search for the right words. "What did Hank tell you about Mr. Sinister?" he asked. He was walking right up to the line of the telepathic block in his mind, but discussing his own past was safe enough - so far, it seemed.
James frowned at that, not at all expecting to hear anything about that villain from his dad. Ever. "Listen, I know you weren't expecting the genetics thing, but-"
"No, no, that's not why I'm asking," Scott interrupted him. "I'm not worried about your research. I'm worried about the people around you."
James sat back. "Hank was worried about my research. And considering that all the people around me are focused on things away from anything to do with the x-gene, I think you're okay."
Scott nodded, though he hadn't lost any of his tension. He drummed his fingers for a moment and then said, "I don't know what Hank told you about him…"
James nodded and shifted into 'report' mode, like he often did when he was little and didn't want to get into trouble. "He told me that the guy was brilliant and unbelievably dangerous," he summarized. "And that he didn't want me to touch anything close to genetics because of what that guy used it for and for what he thought I could potentially open up."
Scott nodded along quietly. "That's… accurate," he had to admit. He bit his lip. "After Alex and I lost our parents, he ran the orphanage I lived in until I met the professor," he explained slowly, softly. "The entire time I was there, he was in my mind and - to be frank - conducting experiments on my powers and genes. He was obsessed, James. I can't even count the number of times he kidnapped me or me and Jean, because I don't remember them all. And he followed your father practically his whole life - since he was about your age. When I tell you I'm worried about you running into him, that's what I'm talking about. Not your research."
"I thought he was dead," James said. "That's what everyone has said since … forever. What aren't you telling me?"
Scott took a deep breath, once again choosing his words based on what he could get past Sinister's block in his mind. "He stole powers from mutants and kept them for himself. He could heal, but he was also such a powerful telepath he could jump bodies. 'Dead', for Sinister, is almost a relative term."
"I'm sorry, what?"
"Yeah, that was about my reaction when I first learned about it," Scott said, gesturing to James with one hand. He let it drop and smiled grimly. "I know you're looking out for yourself, and I know you won't trust anyone who isn't worthy of that trust, but I just…" He gestured around the house. "I felt so trapped when I was a kid. I don't think I'll ever get back what he took from me. And I don't want him to find you and take an interest now that you're studying his favorite subject."
James considered him for a long moment before finally speaking very carefully. "Are you telling me this because you think he might be alive, or to explain why you're so miserable being trapped here?"
"Yes."
"Proof?" James asked, hoping for at least a yes or no as a means to have something to start with.
Scott tried to just say "yes" and leave it at that, but that was too far for the psychic command. He opened his mouth, closed it, and let out a frustrated sound from the back of his throat. "I can't give you anything," he admitted.
James, of course, took it as a solid no. "I don't know what to do with that," he said honestly.
"I know," Scott said, though, of course, James could obviously scent how strongly his anxiety over the whole thing had returned.
"Okay, I hate to even say it, but I need you to relax," James said, holding up one hand. "Like actually relax. I will … start by digging in the archives at the tower and see if I can find any proof anywhere."
Scott nodded, then reached over to pull James into a solid hug. "I'm sorry," he said. "I know I'm a mess."
"I just don't know … the conflicting scents are distracting," James admitted. "And I hate it when you sound like you're second guessing yourself. You haven't been stuck here long enough to actually be crazy yet."
"I'm sorry about that too," Scott said. "I wish I could … I don't know."
"Get Billy to wish on a star?" James teased.
"Something like that," Scott said with a faint smile.
"He'd have to know what he was wishing for," James said. "Just sayin'..."
"And that's the problem, isn't it? I couldn't tell you what the problem is."
"Can't or won't?"
"Can't," Scott said - and James could tell it wasn't a lie.
"You're getting more depressed not talking about what you want to talk about," James said.
"Careful, you're starting to sound like you listen to Craig," Scott teased.
"Please. You stink."
"Gee, love you too."
"Love me enough to make sure I don't have to listen to Miss Hale complain about beard burn ever again?"
"Yeah, I can manage that much, I think," Scott said.
"She probably wants to hold you down, if I'm being honest. Just wait until I'm out of here?"
Scott smirked. "Yeah, no reason to traumatize you," he said.
"I've met my yearly quota, thank you."
"Agreed. Let's both stay away from anything worse than a papercut for the rest of the year, huh?"
"Just got a few months left … think you can manage it?"
"Got fewer chances to get myself in trouble than you do," Scott pointed out.
"Rude. I'm just studying. Not like that ever- oh. Wait. Nevermind." He bumped Scott's shoulder.
Scott chuckled as he got to his feet and offered James a hand up. "We should make sure Annie isn't sending Billy back with an entire bakery," he said.
"He'd just wish it there," James pointed out.
"True." Scott paused and then pulled James into a hug. "I know things aren't ideal right now, and I know I'm not …" He made a motion with one hand. "But please trust me."
"I always do, Dad."
"Then trust me when I tell you I have every reason to think trouble is coming. That's why I'm asking you to be cautious."
"I mean … I seem to have a target on my back, so yeah. Don't need to be a fortune teller for that one."
"Fair enough," Scott said. He smiled tightly and then straightened up. "Right, well, your weekend doesn't need to be full of me telling you about childhood medical trauma-"
"No. I can have those kind of stories elsewhere," James said, just to let Scott know he wasn't letting it drop. "We'll record the sneak just to see how far he jumps when I scare him."
"Make sure you get on camera the five more gray hairs he gets for every solid scare. He's going silver faster than I am," Scott said with a wicked smirk.
James grinned. "Okay. Want to place your bets on how high he'll go? Or just a fall over sideways?"
"Depends. If he's with his kids? High pitch. If he's with Lorna? Fall over so she'll pick him up. He's dramatic that way."
"I'm shooting for alone."
"Then both." Scott put his arm around James's shoulder as they headed into the kitchen - where, of course, Annie was delighted by how well the cupcakes had turned out and how much Billy liked them.
"Oh, wow," James said when he saw what she was cooking on the stove in addition to the half-ton of cupcakes. "We were planning on going out tonight? Southern food … isn't really … my thing. At all."
Annie turned James's way with both hands on her hips. "You tellin' me you're just up an' abandonin' your father just because you were born without a lick o' sense?"
"I'm half Canadian. Got the dual citizenship and everything. He's been expecting it for years."
"Sit down, James. I know dang well you've had this before and been fine, and you aren't scrimpin' on time with your father just to be a pain."
"Well sure, when I was missing part of my brain and ready to chew an arm off…"
Annie narrowed her eyes at him. "Well if you're going to be mean about it, that's fine."
James slipped over and gave her a quick kiss on the cheek. "This is what we call advanced teasing, Miss Annie."
Annie batted him away - mostly playfully. "Where I'm from, we don't insult people's cooking. Even in jest."
"I did no such thing. Never did I say it was bad. I was just saying it wasn't my thing and it was mostly to see that look."
"Well, I hope you're happy," Annie said, rolling her eyes - and giving him a heaping helping as she dished out the food.
"He did call you Annie," Billy pointed out quietly.
"He only does that when he wants something," Annie huffed, though James could see her trying to stay mad despite the fact that she was, genuinely, touched.
Scott smirked as he reached around Annie to help with the dinner and stole a kiss. "I'll remind him that food is an off-limits teasing subject," he said, smirking at her.
"You do that," Annie huffed, and Scott kissed her again just to get her to relax a bit. The little group settled in for dinner, and the conversation quickly turned to what the boys were up to, what they thought of their classes, teachers, and classmates, as expected.
Annie seemed as if she was longing just as hard as Scott was to have been closer, especially since she was missing out on her first year of teaching at Xavier's - insisting on staying with Scott.
And as soon as dinner was over, the boys zipped into the kitchen to start clean up before Annie could say a peep.
Which, she couldn't help but admit, certainly made up for the earlier crack about Southern food.
Once Annie and Scott were properly distracted and it was time for Billy and James to leave anyhow, James pulled Billy aside to share a quiet word, barely whispering loud enough for Billy to hear him. "We can't stay here tonight," James said, to which Billy agreed. They didn't need to be accidentally seen coming or going from Scott's secret house, after all. Both of them were too recognizable.
"The plan was to stay with Mom and Dad anyhow," Billy pointed out almost as quietly.
"Yes, but … can you maybe wish me to Alex? Super quietly. I want to scare the crap out of him, but I also need to talk with him."
"That sounds like fun, too," Billy agreed before he stole a lingering kiss that set Annie off with a soft 'aww' before Billy broke into a delighted laugh and wished them to the palace to scare Alex and spend some time with Billy's parents.
They wound up in Alex's living room, where Alex was laughing and talking to Chris and Suzie. Chris was excited about something, bouncing up and down as he said, "And when Uncle Nate saw, he grinned so big!"
Alex laughed harder. "He's not your uncle, you little weirdo," he said, ruffling Chris's hair.
"We know," Suzie sang out, then shared a look with Chris and giggled.
Alex laughed again. "Oh man," he said. "I can't even really be mad that you got senses of humor from me. Right on. Keep bothering him; he needs it."
"Are you confusing them on purpose or …" James trailed off.
"Gah!" Alex nearly fell off of the couch, clutching his heart, which had the kids giggling delightedly. "Don't do that."
"So jump out at you next time. Got it," James said with a nod as he took a picture of Alex and sent it to Scott while he was still trying to recover.
Alex shook his head at James as he got himself back under control, though before he could say anything, Chris rushed over to hug James and grin up at him. "Guess what?" Chris said.
"Chicken butt," James shot back without a thought, then picked him up for a mid-air bear hug that was always followed by dangling upside down.
Chris laughed and tried to get down. "I'm not - I'm almost as tall as you now!" he said, though he was plenty short enough that he couldn't quite make that argument.
"What makes you think that will stop me from dangling you?" James asked. "I'll get your dad next if he needs it."
Chris laughed harder and shook his head. "No, Dad was geeking out with me, right, Dad?"
Alex nodded, laughing as he watched the show. "That's right."
"He's a geek - he can't help it," James said.
"Yeah, but look!" Chris held his hands out… but nothing happened. "Darn it. They were glowing five minutes ago!"
"Glowing hands?" James asked then looked up at Lorna instead of Alex. "Does that mean you're awesome like Mom?"
"No, they're blue," Chris said delightedly.
James let out a disappointed sound as he started swinging him upside down like he was about to throw him. "So close to not being a geek!"
"Hey!" Chris tried to stop but was laughing too hard to make any progress - and when Billy stopped Suzie from helping by casting a spell to turn her upside-down too, absolutely nothing could get done from then on. There was just a whole lot of giggling.
Finally, though, Lorna jumped in to grab Chris's hands - and she and James swung him back and forth before tossing him onto the couch. He went just high enough to have a bit of a scare, but ended up laughing once he hit the cushions all the same.
"So, you guys decide to stop by while you're here for the weekend?" Alex asked once everyone more or less had gotten their breaths back.
"Yeah," James said, then let out a sigh. "I actually want to borrow you for a minute."
"Yeah, sure," Alex said, recognizing the look on his face as one serious enough to need addressing. "We just had dinner, so I'm open for the night."
"Great, let's just find somewhere quiet that the kids won't get into the middle, huh?"
"Gotcha," Alex said, already gesturing for James to join him. They lived in one of the central towers at the palace, which were connected by plenty of bridges and catwalks, so it was easy enough to take a walk outside.
"Have you been by Dad lately?" James asked once they were well away from anyone.
Alex sighed but nodded. "Yeah. I try to stop in when I can. He's taking it harder than I thought he would, honestly."
James nodded almost distractedly. "Yeah, well. I know it took me some time to get back, but he was kind of freaking out earlier about my classes … kinda. Has he talked to you about any of that?"
Alex shook his head. "No, I was trying to cheer him up, mostly. Told him Suzie's already decided she's going to be an X-Man and has a plan for her life. Thought he'd appreciate that."
"He totally would," James agreed, but he was also trying to find the right way to approach the subject on his mind and not have Alex think he was totally nuts. "Might be good for him to hear it … maybe not. I … he's holding back from telling me what exactly is on his mind and I don't think that's really something in his playbook, you know?"
Alex frowned and stopped walking, turning to give James his full attention. "I mean, it used to be, but not with you kids," he said.
"Alright, but he went from warning me not to trust anyone - which … I don't anyhow - to cautioning me about being careful over a guy that I thought was dead. At least, that's what he always said."
"I mean, you met your birth parents not that long ago. Death is kinda…" Alex waved his hand near his temple.
"He was warning me about Mister Sinister."
Alex went still and pale. "What?"
"I told him what I knew from Blue, and he was worried about people in my classes - but that doesn't track when no one there really wants anything to do with mutants, so I don't get it." James was pacing a small path. "But he was insistent without just saying what he was trying to say."
Alex ran a hand through his hair. "Oh man," he whispered under his breath.
"I just don't know if it's the pressure of what's going on and freaking out over being stuck here or-"
"Okay, you're not wrong that that's probably part of it, but…" Alex put both of his hands in his hair and kept them there. "Okay, so - so that guy? Mr. Sinister? He's the entire reason Scott and I didn't grow up together."
"Yeah, he kinda said as much," James said with a nod.
"I asked about him," Alex said. "But Sinister… he's obsessed. Came after me a few times, but mostly Scott."
"Yeah, Dad said he was obsessed with your bloodlines, more or less," James said, then paused before he continued. "And he also said … he did something to my dad at my age?"
Alex nodded, still scrunching his hair. "I… didn't know that, actually. But Scott spent way more time with Sinister than I did, so if he says it, I'd believe it. Honestly, I kinda just trust him on anything to do with the guy except if I ask what Sinister did to him. Never get straight answers there."
"He said he doesn't remember all of it," James offered.
"Yeah, actually, there was a while there when you were kids that he called for advice a lot," Alex admitted. "He doesn't remember a lot about age… ten to fifteen? Ish? Had no idea what to do with you guys when you were preteens."
"Okay … that … alright. I guess I just … don't understand why he went right to that unless I'm doing something to set him off."
Alex nodded and turned a small circle. "Okay, so. First of all, I don't think it's you. If he thinks Sinister's not dead, it's gonna throw everything off for him."
"But why would he think that?" James asked.
"I don't know. I'll ask him." Alex bit his lip. "Gut feeling? Scott spent almost his whole life before the team fell apart with Sinister in his head. Wouldn't be surprised if he felt something, you know? If he had real proof, he'd tell you, but… I don't know. I'll talk to him."
"When I asked for proof, he froze," James said. "What do I even look for?"
"That's the hard part. Probably why he froze if all he's got is a feeling," Alex admitted. "The guy can shapeshift, he can read minds, he can jump bodies, at one point he could teleport… it's not like he's easy to pin down at the best of times."
"I promised I'd look into the guy, but I can already tell you that all of that is way beyond what the Avengers and Ororo had in their files. I read about him before."
Alex nodded to himself and then sat down on a long metal bench along the bridge. "Okay. Let me tell you everything I can. If he's alive - and I believe Scott if he says he is - you're gonna need it. And you'll need to tell the others, okay? Especially Nate and Rachel."
"Yeah, of course," James said without the slightest hesitation.
Alex sighed, trying for a minute to decide where to begin, but once he started, he just kept going. He told James as much as he could - everything from powers to the ways the team had managed to save each other from him as well as his feeling that the guy was the creepiest vampire the world had seen. It was plainly apparent to James that Alex was freaked out, too, but he wanted James to have everything he could.
"So … there's no way to really ID the guy until you wake up on an exam table. Is that what you're saying?" James asked. "Because that sucks, Alex."
"It does. If you'd met him before, you could probably catch his scent. That was about the only thing that worked - when Logan or K would catch his scent and alert us."
James thought about it for a long moment, trying to think on if there were any repeats in odd places, but nothing was coming to mind. "And I don't have them to give me a tip off as to what to look for, either."
"I know. And now you know why Scott's freaking out," Alex said.
"I know why he's freaking out if it's not just because he's locked up and I'm screwing him up by going for genetics, you mean."
"Yeah… let me talk to him, huh? I can promise you're not screwing him up, because he doesn't bring this guy up lightly. Ever."
"You can't promise that."
"Still. I'll talk to him. Maybe you're right and he's having a freakout at the level he had when you guys restarted the team. That's the best-case and he'll get over it if that's the case," Alex said.
"I was kind of afraid to ask what the consensus has been about my dropping the Avengers, but … thoughts?"
Alex shrugged. "So, I'm not in the circles where the Avengers run, you know? But the scuttlebutt is that Kate has her parents - and Steve - convinced it's an anti-SHIELD thing, all things considered."
"Oh, it absolutely is," James agreed. "They can get fu-"
"Okay, then you've got a good spokeswoman," Alex laughed. "She came by a bit ago and she's hilarious with her stories."
"I just figured Dad would be irked since he really wanted us to go through Steve to do the team …"
"He just wants you to have an official connection that will mean the Avengers will come fish you out of trouble if need be."
"I mean … I'm on deck to take over for Tony, that's about as deep as you can get."
"Yeah, I just…" Alex blew out his breath. "Look, the Avengers are great now, but they let a lot of people die before they pulled their heads out. He likes 'em, sure, but he's not going to trust them with his family's safety without an official tie. That's where his head will always be, because he knows how easy it was for them to ignore the people he lost."
"Yeah, that's a whole different discussion," James said.
"Which is why I don't think he's saying anything about the Avengers thing," Alex admitted. "I mean, you ask me, I love it. Give the finger to the man, all that noise."
"If what you're saying is kosher, the Avengers would be screwed against this guy anyhow," James said.
"Oh, definitely. The whole team couldn't stand up to him; I doubt the guys who kiss babies for a living could do anything."
"And now it's a challenge."
"Right on." Alex put his hand on James's shoulder to look him in the eye. "Fair warning, though: if you do run into Sinister, and he knows you can heal-"
"Is he going to do the kind of crap Viper and her daughter pulled?"
"He will cut you open while you're aware of every minute of it."
"That would be preferable."
"Fair enough." Alex nodded sharply. "I'm just warning you. He used to play with your parents. Go from Logan to K and compare healing response times. Just to amuse himself while he waited for his samples to go through whatever instruments they were going through."
"Got it," James said in a breath. "Dad didn't spell that part out."
"Well. Trauma."
James was quiet for a long moment. "Did he do the same thing to the professor?"
"Sinister or your dad?" Alex said. "Totally different questions here," he halfheartedly teased.
"Sinister," James said shaking his head. "Did he do long drawn out physical … whatever."
"No, he wasn't terribly interested in Charles that I can remember."
"Why not?"
Alex paused, chewing over his response. "I… have a theory, but it's just speculation, mind you."
"Then it's probably wrong, but I wanna hear it anyhow," James teased right back.
"Thanks, James. Really feeling the love," he said dryly, then shook his head.
"It's the blonde hair. I can't ignore it."
"Yeah, yeah." Alex waved him off. "Point is, I think…" He paused. "As terrible as Sinister was, he has always wanted mutant kind to move forward. And Charles was saving lives and encouraging mutants to learn about their powers. I don't think he wanted to mess with that."
"So he left him alone … because he respected him?" The disbelief was clear on his face.
"Eh." Alex shrugged. "I don't think I'd say it's respect. More that he was smart enough to know he couldn't direct every mutant in the world, so if someone was going to give mutants a way to get stronger, he wasn't going to step in. Didn't really step in to stop Erik either."
James tapped his fingers on the railing for a long moment. "Who else didn't he screw with?"
"Anyone he didn't think was interesting enough to study," Alex said. "You know, 'common' mutations or 'small' mutations or whatever Erik used to say, but in geneticist-speak." He paused. "He left Hank alone too - that might actually be respect."
"How so?" James asked as he ran through a dozen different avenues in his mind on the why.
Alex smirked. "Hank's capable of going farther than he does. And I think Sinister knows that."
"I know. He told me he progressed his mutation when he was a teenager," James said.
"No one else has ever been able to do that," Alex said. "Sinister can give himself mutations, but Hank? Hank improved and strengthened the reach of his X-gene, you know?"
James' shoulders relaxed and he slowly started to nod. "Okay."
Alex leaned against the back of the bench. "Anything else bothering you? I mean, the whole story is sordid, and we're creeping up into late night ghost story territory…"
"No, you gave me enough to have a few running theories I don't really want to test out," James said.
"Okay then." Alex let out his breath. "I'll run by Scott's place. If he's holding back, maybe he just needs me to hit him."
"Yeah, he could use it," James said. "Miss Hale is a little strung out, too."
"Yeah, Lorna invited her to our place tomorrow night."
"Did Sinister bother Wanda?" James blurted out.
Alex laughed. "Hell no. Wanda wasn't stable enough back then - if he'd traumatized her even more? The whole freaking world of mutants could have fallen apart."
"Yeah, sure," James said, waving a hand. "Just trying to find the edges."
"Your dad ever tell you stories of Apocalypse?"
"Only as a 'it wasn't as bad as' kind of tone. Like walking uphill in the snow both ways in a blizzard but with deeper consequences."
Alex smirked. "Yeah, fair enough," he agreed. "But Sinister? He works for the guy - when he's alive. When he's not around? Sinister is trying to find someone, some gene, some method to take Apocalypse down permanently. So, yeah, he wants power and stability and certainty or Apocalypse will kill him if he gets it wrong."
"Well damn."
"Yeah, fun, right?" Alex said, pulling a face.
"Almost a silver lining."
"Right? It burns admitting the bad guys sometimes do something worthwhile."
"Not me. I don't know the guy but from your vampire horror hour, so it's not as impactful."
"Also fair," Alex said. He crossed his arms. "Anyway. Let's hope you never meet either one, huh?"
"I'll carry a mirror. And garlic."
"Drop some beans and run away while he counts them…"
"I'll text Billy while I'm waiting. He'll be poofed out of existence with the right sos."
"Maybe talk to Wanda first. When Billy poofed Tommy out of existence, it was not pretty trying to clean up the magical consequences."
"Yeah, that's my next stop anyhow," James said. "We weren't really able to spend time here before we ran off to school. She's been abandoned."
"She totally has been," Alex chuckled.
"She said she just wanted coffee and hugs, so … I guess that's a thing now?"
"She's totally ready for you and Billy to be married, not even gonna lie to you."
"Yeah, sure. Just gotta meet up to the requirements your bottle blonde ass put into play."
"Not sorry."
"It'll be fine as long as I don't kill anyone else, probably." James shrugged his shoulders up to his ears.
"Yeah, try not to do that. I know it'll be harder to do now that the acolytes are trying to bait you - that's what Lorna told me, anyway…"
"I just bait them right back," James said. "Blew a kiss at one the other day."
"I love that." Alex put his arm around James's shoulders as they headed back in together. "Hey, do me a favor and make a big deal of Chris getting his powers when we get back in. He's beyond excited."
"I know. I just had to give him a hard time," James said.
"Oh, totally. Never stop."
As soon as they got back in, sure enough, Chris was there with a broad grin, showing off his glowing hands - and James performed for Alex beautifully by grabbing a hold of him and yanking him in front of himself. "Blast your dad, not me," James said. "He'll like it."
Chris laughed and ran over to grab James's arm. "Come on, we're playing pirates. I can't blast anything yet, James. You're silly."
"Well I don't want the first thing you blast to be me. I'm just going to use your dad as a shield!"
"Okay, but that means you can't be my first mate if you're hiding," Chris laughed.
James nodded, then just to get Chris to laugh, he picked Alex up and held him in front of himself like a shield. "I'll take my chances on the other team. But go ahead. Get him."
Chris laughed delightedly - and just like that, they were off, deeply involved in their pirate game and, for the moment, not thinking about Sinister or anything like it when they were all laughing too hard at James refusing to set Alex down or even let him touch the floor.
"Your son used me as a blunt object," Alex said when he met up with Scott, a smile still caught on his features. "Does he always wait to show off the strength until the kids are watching?"
Scott laughed, genuinely surprised not only by Alex's visit but by that as an opener. "He knows it makes them laugh. What, did you just come here to complain about being the cricket bat?"
"Ah, no, that's not all I came over for," Alex said. "We had a little talk - and now I need some clarification. Like … what?"
"You're going to have to help me out here," Scott said as he motioned for Alex to join him in the living room - where Annie was passed out asleep, worn out from stress. He paused and then redirected Alex upstairs instead.
"He told me about the quasi-intervention you started with him tonight," Alex said. "Why would you bring that creep up - unless there's a reason?"
Scott held his breath and then pulled Alex into his room. "You'll just have to trust me here," he said, his tone severe but a look on his face that Alex had seen too many times. "I can't prove it, just… you know how he is."
"I do. And I told him everything I could think of, too."
"Okay, well. Hopefully that will help him keep an eye out." Scott ran a hand through his hair.
"Yeah. I'm sure it will, but Scotty -you've never brought that guy up unless there was a solid reason. Is there a solid reason?"
For just a second, Scott met Alex's gaze - and then dropped it. "I'm just worried about him," he said, though he said it through his teeth.
Alex stared at him for a moment and let his shoulders drop. "Well yeah. But … you are a horrible liar." He gestured toward the stairs. "Where is he?"
Scott swallowed but got to his feet and walked past Alex, who was concerned enough by that point that he stuck close on his brother's heels down to the office off the living room - and there Sinister was, sitting on the office chair.
Alex's first instinct was to attack, but when he tried to do that, he found he was completely frozen in place.
"I really shouldn't be surprised that the two of you are trying to interfere with my interests," Sinister said. "So perhaps you'll understand how important it is for you both to stop attempting to destroy my progress. What is it you're so worried might happen? That you might lose something or someone dear to you?" He scoffed. "You both should know by now that I have no interest in killing anyone in your family."
"How about you leave my brother and his kids the hell alone," Alex spit out. "Crawl back to wherever you've been hidden this whole time."
"Keep that attitude up and I won't crawl back to it alone."
"Well, would you look at that. Acting like there's no reason to be worried and the first thing you do when I call you out is say you're taking someone."
"I never said that I'd force them," Sinister said with a smile. "I've grown rather fond of a few of them, in fact."
Alex rolled his eyes openly. "You're so desperate to be relevant to our family again the second Scott's back in the news, huh?"
"It wasn't Scott that caught my attention, initially," Sinister said. "If you must know, it was a few royal announcements."
Alex sneered, though Scott spoke up: "He's teaching at Harvard," he said - since now that Alex had seen Sinister, he could tell him the truth.
"That is an entirely different ballgame, my boy," Sinister said.
"Everybody wants my nephew," Alex said, shaking his head with a bare smirk.
"And as I've said before, I have no intentions to harm any of them. Particularly when they're all being so … delightful."
"Okay, that word doesn't mean the same thing it does when you say it," Alex said, pulling a face.
"But it does. I'm particularly pleased with little Christopher."
Alex froze - this time of his own accord. Especially now that he understood who "Uncle Nate" really was. "He's - he's nine," he said, all his bluster gone. "He's nine and he's too young to - he's - stay away from him," he said, paler with every word.
"Alex, calm down. I haven't touched a hair on his head." Sinister looked more bored with every declaration of innocence. Especially since it was, technically, true.
"Neither one of us believes that you're going to stay hands-off," Scott said.
"I will as long as those involved can remain calm and collected," Sinister said. "As with everything else, my methods have a tendency to shift as needed."
"You're still the same. Treating everyone like an experiment," Alex said.
"Not everyone," Sinister defended, sounding insulted.
"Oh, right. My bad. You don't experiment on everyone in the world how silly of me to be dramatic," Alex said dryly.
"If only you knew," Sinister said under his breath, one hand to his temple as if he was warding off a migraine.
"So, what's the story?" Alex demanded.
"The story is that I was toying with the notion of not erasing your memory of this encounter and all that led up to it, but you're swaying my opinion the opposite direction."
"So you're just torturing my brother again," Alex said heavily. "Let him know you're going for the kids he's spent his life protecting and then just… leave him stuck here?"
"I'm not going for anyone, Alex. Don't be so dramatic."
"Well, damn, sorry I'm worried about my kids and Scott's going through what you put us through, you necrophiliac."
Sinister sneered. "I don't believe you know what that word actually means, boy."
"So you're not stealing powers and leaving bodies."
"Not currently, no," Sinister said, half cutting him off. "I had, in fact, come to complement your brother on the excellent work he's done. And to keep him updated on what I find."
Alex looked toward Scott, who nodded, though he still looked as stressed as ever.
"I would also like permission to repair the damage done to him," Sinister said. "But you interrupted that particular discussion spectacularly."
"The hell - what damage?" Alex asked.
"Have you enjoyed being the only powered brother for so long that you forget that your older brother used to outstrip you effortlessly?" Sinister challenged.
Alex scoffed and turned toward Scott as much as he could. "Tell me you're not entertaining this."
"The part where I was better than you or…"
"Shut up, Scotty," Alex said. "The other part."
"Alex, do you really think I'd agree to that?" Scott shot back sharply, though Sinister waited until they were done before he leaned forward.
"With all the threats being leveled at these children and those on the way," Sinister said patiently, "They need to have every layer of protection at their disposal. Or do you think I'm wrong somehow?"
"Actually," Scott said, narrowing his eyes, "these eyes have saved my kids' lives. Multiple times. I'm fine, thanks."
Sinister smiled. "Tell me about those times, Scott. I'd love to hear it."
"How do you think I got to Viper before she could recapture James?" Scott pointed out.
"I believe that win goes to Stark, ultimately," Sinister said. "And again, you nearly died by mutate."
"Alex, he's giving out grades," Scott said dryly, and Alex snerked.
"He's always like this," Alex agreed. "Always gotta criticize."
"And you've been hiding behind Magneto's family for decades," Sinister said.
"Oh, you mean keeping the safest place in the world for mutants safe from Erik as much as possible?" Alex shot back. "You mean raising kids? Pointing the twins at the right stories about the X-Men and not Magneto's rantings?"
"Yes, I didn't factor in your stunning success as a librarian."
"He's just mad you got to use your powers for fun," Scott told his brother.
Sinister sighed heavily. "Believe what you will as you tell each other stories," he said. "You already know you cannot push the lines I've put in place. Lovely as always to see the two of you support each other's denial."
"I'd tell you where I want you to go and what to do with yourself when you're there, but…" Alex shrugged.
"I'l be seeing you both soon," Sinister said as he got to his feet and made to step around Alex, stopping close to him to smile and dust off his shoulder. "Try not to strain yourself."
Alex glared as he watched Sinister leave, but even after they heard the door close, it was a while before they could turn toward each other and move freely again. "What the hell, Scott."
Scott dropped heavily into a chair and put his head in his hands for a while before, once Alex was seated too, he looked back up. "The only thing we have going for us is he's interested to see what James can do. He's thrilled with his studies, says James is asking the right questions to change the whole field. Which is all true."
"But it's dangerous in his hands," Alex finished for him.
Scott nodded. "Honestly, it feels like he wants to take James under his wing. Permanently, if this works out."
"And that's where there's gonna be a problem, considering the kid has a future husband, a family, Stark's interest…"
"Like he's ever cared about anyone else's claim," Scott said, sounding tired. "And the second James wants to do something else…"
"Yeah. Or the second he hears Sinister's interested in the kids."
"Yeah," Scott echoed him. "That… I hate that that's probably what will do it, but…" He trailed off. "And he's not doing anything right now, which is the most maddening thing. How the hell can I warn anyone about a plan I know nothing about when I can't even tell them he's here?"
Alex watched Scott for a long time before he simply reached over and pulled his brother into a hug. "You gotta figure out how to breathe, Scotty, because he's going to make you fall apart if you don't get a hold of yourself. You're not sleeping, you're freaking out - how long is it gonna be before you're so twisted up you're too tired and stressed to turn him down anymore?"
Scott nodded and wrapped his arms around Alex in return. "I know. I know."
"Yeah, forgot who I was talking to." Alex took a deep breath and let it out. "So, I can't tell anyone either. The thought of getting my phone out was a big fat nope. We're just lucky I gave James so much to work with before I talked to you." He let Scott out of the hug to look him in the face. "But, hey, now I know. So at least you can call me and scream, right? You're not alone anymore, Scotty."
Chapter 131: Prepwork
Chapter Text
There were preparations to be made ahead of the tiny, private wedding for Nate and Kate (since Tony and Jan had everything well in hand for the reception), but considering everything that was going on around them, Rachel had been a little busier than she cared to admit to her dad and his fiancee. After all … there had been the small issue of someone being required to fill the space Annie had been slated to teach at Westchester.
So far, Ororo and the rest of the staff had been careful not to say what the solution had been, and Rachel sure as hell wasn't about to step up and admit to volunteering to cover Annie's classes in addition to her own classes in Psychic Defense and Statistics … and the Tactics class her Dad had been teaching.
And the staff had been incredibly gracious in not pointing out to her that she was her father's daughter right down to the bone. Not out loud, anyhow.
But … she really wanted to make sure her dad wasn't under the impression that she had been ducking him. Mia's .. situation … had also complicated things, though she'd never say a word to Mia about it. Having her kind of running the team exercises from a leadership standpoint had given Rachel a chance to breathe - especially since she was still running with the Avengers and the senior team of X-Men. But she couldn't expect Mia to take that on. Not when she was just now starting to get back in the saddle, so to speak.
It took a while for Mia to even consider dating again, and then, for about a week, she had tried dating Miles - but that had really only lasted a few dates. As sweet as the spider-kid was, he just wasn't bold enough for Mia's tastes. But the experience seemed to be a good palate cleanser for Mia all the same.
And Rachel really was glad she was bouncing back - even if it was a little slower than she would have liked. Still … Rachel had left the big sister role to America for the time being - just because she was worried Mia might go off the deep end. She was still heartbroken from Tommy, even if she wouldn't admit it.
There was so much drama with the younger team members.
Rachel needed a break from all their teenybopper drama … to dive into the drama that was ever-present on Genosha around her father. Totally different brand of drama, after all. But her arms were still full of paper grocery bags when she showed up with things for both Annie and Scott to occupy themselves with.
"Hey, I brought some books, a few games, and all the groceries you requested, Dad," Rachel called out as she stepped into the house and closed the door behind her.
Annie beat Scott to rush over to Rachel for a hug, beaming when she peeked into the bags she helped Rachel set down. "Oh, Hercules Poirot. You brought my anthology!"
"You … were kind of projecting how much you wished you'd brought them…"
"I wanted Leslie Ann to finish it first," Annie said as she started unpacking groceries.
"She did," Rachel promised. "She helped pack them up."
"How's she doing?" Annie asked. "I get texts all the time, but you're the one fielding her requests to join the team - or so she tells me."
"I am," Rachel said with a smile. "And she's progressing, but I am absolutely slow walking her as per Cap's requests. It's just too volatile right now, and I don't want anyone else getting hurt. James is still perfecting his designs on our protective measures."
"Oh good, that's what I told her when she called me," Scott said, slipping into the conversation to pull Rachel over and kiss the top of her head.
"He told her she could help him with his plans, then she got mad when she saw it was all schematics," Rachel laughed.
"She's much better at literature and art than math and science," Annie said in a tone full of warmth and affection.
"And color theory," Rachel agreed. "She does get color theory very well." She snapped her fingers. "And she's top of her class in psychic defense, you'd be happy to know."
"Good," Scott said, a bit too quickly - though Rachel almost wasn't surprised, since Nate had told her about how closed off their dad had been.
"Got some things for you, too, Dad," Rachel said, knowing better than to draw attention to her dad's strange behavior if she wanted him not to shut down. "Some of your old favorites …"
Scott peered into one of the bags and chuckled. "Wow. Rubick's Cube, huh?" he teased, though he was glad to see Sun Tzu's Art of War as well as the photo albums he'd made while the kids were growing up.
"I have a few new albums for you, if you're bored," Rachel said. "And a whole stack of pictures… the commentary really makes them."
"Oh?" Annie asked, genuinely interested.
"I think he used his debriefing skills in the kiddie storytelling," Rachel said with a crooked smile as she pushed a curl of red hair out of her face.
When Annie glanced toward Scott, he blushed and shrugged. "I… was very good at writing things down when they were young, but not as good at the creative art of photo albums and scrapbooking. Jan showed me how to do that when they were in elementary school, so… there's loose pictures when they're young and structured albums when they're older."
"Well, we should sort through these and finish those albums," Annie said delightedly. "I want to hear stories. You always light up when you talk about the kids, and I miss that."
Sneaky way to get dirt on the boys, too, Rachel projected to Annie. And I brought lots of dirt.
I've mentioned that I'm glad you're going to be part of my family, yes?
Not lately, Rachel answered. But I'm working on it anyhow. Anton has been by to help out a little with Bobby's new class. We're calling it Current Events, but it's half about how to properly protest and not get killed.
Oh, my sister was telling me about that! Anton's so excited. He has a few tips for interacting with law enforcement, especially with some of the calls he's been on himself lately.
Yeah, he's already used a few of our interactions as examples, Rachel replied with a smile evident in her mental voice.
He has a few examples from growing up, too. I'm sure you'll hear those.
Oh, yeah. He's trying to get the kids' attention with the most dramatic tales.
He was a big, Black mutant in the South. He has a lot.
He does. And they're all great.
And from what I understand, Bobby knows a lot about dealing with Genosha and the mutants who are newly allowed to travel from there.
Yeah, he spent most of his time on Genosha in prison, Rachel admitted. So he teaches from an angle of explaining what isn't something you can talk your way out of here.
Also a good point to be made, Annie agreed. Aloud, she said, "Leslie Ann says she loves the self-defense class Ororo teaches specifically for young women."
"It's a fun class," Rachel agreed.
"Anton loves it. My dad would've loved it too. He made sure me and my sister knew how to take down anyone who did us dirty," Annie said fondly. "Oh, he had a lucid moment when Craig visited him. Wanted to see pictures of his grandbabies, and Craig was telling him about you three." She leaned forward, smiling. "He wanted to know when the hell his old war buddy had a kid and how I'd managed to find him."
"What?" Rachel said in her best scandalized tone, her smile stretched wide across her face.
"According to Craig, he knew it wasn't actually Logan, because, in Dad's words, 'that kid obviously got his height from his mom'."
"Oh my god, he's so wrong," Rachel giggled delightedly.
"Right?" Annie giggled.
"Please, please, please don't tell James. Let's just … get them in the same room together and see what happens. He's too polite to pop anyone's bubble. It'll be great."
"Only if we catch him in a lucid moment," Annie clarified. "Most of the time, he's a mean old man I hardly recognize, and I hate to subject your family to that."
Rachel waved her hand. "He can take it."
"Yes, well, it's embarrassing, honestly," Annie said.
"We'll cross our fingers for that magic moment," Rachel said, waggling her eyebrows.
"I… have already considered asking Wanda for a bit of help so he can come to our wedding," Annie admitted.
"Um … I can help with that too," Rachel promised. "Maximoffs aren't the only reality benders in town."
"That's a good point," Annie said thoughtfully.
"Jan's already offered a few options too," Scott said. "Our wedding planner extraordinaire."
"She is planning everyone's weddings," Rachel said.
"That's right - she and Tony have almost zeroed in on a date," Scott said. "Kate was texting me this morning to let me know it's probably going to be mid-October."
Annie nodded. "She doesn't want to be showing too badly in her dress."
"She's already pushing Wanda for information on what needs to be done for the boys," Rachel said. "Even though James is reminding her that it's not on."
"He should hurry up and propose," Annie said. "Nothin' wrong with a long engagement; lord knows we know that."
"Part of the whole … set of rules Genosha has in place," Rachel said. "As if he's not going to pass everything with flying colors."
"Every test he's ever taken," Scott chuckled under his breath.
"He's half convinced that it'll be stacked," Rachel pointed out.
"Oh, it will be. But he'll do it, because that's who he is," Scott said - it wasn't even a question. He nodded to himself. "But I want to know about you, Rach," he said, putting his arm around her to pull her toward the couch.
"I'm the one giving the tests, Dad, not taking them," Rachel said in a very teenager-like tone.
"And the kids love you, I'm sure."
"It's hard to get them to stop asking questions about joining the team in class, if I'm honest."
"I remember that feeling," Scott said, smiling as he and Rachel sat down on the couch together, and even with his defenses as high as they were, he so genuinely loved his memories of his life in Westchester with the original team that she saw a glimpse in his mind of a projected memory of how much he'd loved teaching.
"Your classes will be so full when you get back," Rachel said, shaking her head.
"He'll love it," Annie promised as she sat down, clutching her anthology to her chest.
"So, tell me what else you're missing out on," Rachel said. "I don't know where to start."
"Really, Rach, the only thing we're missing is a change of scenery," Scott promised.
"I can telepathically make one of the walls look like Alaska?" she offered.
"That's alright."
"You can just pretend you overfed the fire. Again."
Annie smirked at Scott. "Keep that habit. I do not like New York winters. Alaska is going to be way too cold for me when we visit."
"Alaska is like a sauna when Dad's manning the fire," Rachel said.
"Perfect. Then I'm glad I agreed to honeymoon there."
"When we were little?" Rachel said, turning toward Annie with a grin. "We stayed there for a while in the middle of the winter. Dad had the fire roaring to the point that the boys stripped down to next to nothing - and were still complaining about the heat in the middle of a snowfall with big, fluffy flakes. You should have seen the look on Dad's face when James ran out into the snow and dove into a drift with Nate right behind him."
"I used to do that in college," Annie laughed. "Dead of winter, my girlfriends and I would go outside to the hot tub and then run out in our bikinis into the cold winter air."
"Yeah, well … Nate started screaming about the cold and James was just stretched out like it was normal." She rolled her eyes. "They were both sick for about two weeks after that."
"That also sounds right," Annie said. "Based on the stories I've heard so far."
Rachel broke into a troublemaking grin as she turned toward Scott. "Nate and James are going to get the kids to join the polar bear club with them this winter."
"Perfect," Scott said without missing a beat.
"They're planning it for the first of the year … like … Nate even put together a sign up sheet that's three-quarters full already," Rachel giggled.
"Oh, of course he did," Annie said delightedly. "He said he and Tim were up to trouble again."
"I don't think Tim knows what he's getting into," Rachel said. "James has a way of making everything … more. Trouble."
"Always," Scott said. He leaned back a bit and smirked. "What about you and America? I'm sure you're up to trouble too."
"Oh, she's endlessly teasing me about being a fiery school-marm, but … what can I do?"
Annie snorted behind her hand. "I love that girl."
"I've talked her into helping with self-defense," Rachel said. "Don't tell Leslie Ann yet. Or Anton. I want to see the look on his face."
"Done."
Tommy had been required to register at the college on Genosha as part of his punishment, and he had been complaining about it ever since. He didn't know what he wanted to study, since he hadn't intended to go to college at all, so he was just taking a bunch of general classes.
The first couple of weeks had been nothing but complaining, though Tommy was starting to see a possible off-ramp to the non-stop responsibilities since Billy had told Wanda everything that happened. The college was small, but it was also full of mutants his age.
And, sure, he didn't have his powers. But he could at least scope out a whole new slate of very attractive mutants.
"Have you run out of complaints, then?" Vision asked when Tommy had suddenly become somewhat quiet. "Or are you going to attempt graceful acceptance?"
Tommy let out a sound from the back of his throat. "You told me yesterday that you were tired of hearing the same complaints."
"I don't believe that's ever slowed you down before."
"I've been very slowed down," Tommy grumbled.
Vision smirked at that but didn't offer any more commentary, and the smirk didn't last more than a few moments.
"But, like, seriously, I don't even want to go to college. What's the point of making me-"
"And here I was hoping that you'd fallen in love with your English Literature class."
"Ah, no."
"That's a shame. This semester will pass by much quicker if you throw yourself into your studies."
Tommy groaned again. "I'd rather-" He blew his breath out through his lips. "Whatever, Dad."
Vision stole a glance to watch him for a moment, then tried to adjust his attempts at conversation. "Is there nothing that holds your interest?"
"I dunno." Tommy dug his hands deep in his pockets. "Kinda liked the look on the professor's face in physics when I talked about what the sound barrier feels like."
Vision smiled at that. "I have a feeling you'll be upending his outlook regularly."
"Yeah, every day. I mean, the math on some of his equations? Doesn't take me into account."
"No, the calculations in play only apply to the rest of the universe as we know it."
"Yeah, our family doesn't listen to rules."
"Not well, no."
Tommy smirked at that as they walked across the campus. He was tired of walking so slowly, especially because his mind was still working at the speed he was used to, so he'd already long moved on from the conversation by the time he saw what looked like a brother and sister pair.
And they were cute.
They definitely weren't a couple. They looked too much alike for that. They had the same sharp noses, the same expressions, the same sharply-pointed ears. The girl had sparkles that drifted behind her with every step, and the boy left shadows that were just a little bit too long.
Vision frowned slightly - the expression only lasting a nanosecond or so as he considered how little Tommy seemed to have learned from his indiscretion in Westchester. And he seemed to be building up confidence in his flirtatious behavior, even openly checking out kids around them as if Vision wasn't even there to see how bold he was being. "I believe you're acting like your grandfather," Vision said, then when Tommy looked like he was going to drop his bookbag, he amended his statement. "No, not that one."
Tommy caught himself for a second and then broke into a grin. "Oh, man, Grandpa Tony would love to hear that."
"It wasn't a compliment."
"Are you kidding? He was literally the most eligible guy in the world before Jan snagged him, right? I'd say that's a massive compliment!"
"You're vastly underestimating how desperately sad he was before then."
"I'm not sad.'
"You will be if you keep down that path."
"Seriously, you're all so - I'm literally not even twenty yet. There's nothing wrong with looking!"
Vision tutted. "And you've missed the point entirely. You'll understand eventually."
"Sure, Dad," Tommy said, going back to watching the brother-sister duo, which had Vision sighing and shaking his head to himself, knowing he was not going to get his powers back anytime soon at this rate.
Remy had been busy chasing down a few rumors that had been going through Hydra's ranks that had Sinister's attention, but he'd hit a dead end when he got close to the inner circle and was taking some time to regroup and try a different angle.
Which meant he had time to drop in on Westchester - specifically to make sure Mia was okay. Even though he hadn't been back home in forever, he'd heard what had happened, so he made sure to bring some of the best sweets from New Orleans when he showed up.
He went to Ororo's garden first - and was pleased to see that she was there tending to her flowers.
"Hey, Stormy," he called out, grinning. "Jus' lookin' for dat little goddess of yours. Heard she had a heartbreak, and you know how soul food helps dat."
"I've been hoping you'd find your way home sooner than later," Ororo said with a smile before she rose up to meet him and kissed his cheek. "I've missed you."
Remy smiled and pulled her into a spinning hug. "You lookin' radiant as always," he said.
"And you look better every day that passes."
Remy chuckled and held his hands out, stepping back so she could see him. "Amazin' what modern medicine kin do, non? Jes' a shame I been away."
"I thought you were going to credit all of your progress to soul food."
"Dat too," Remy laughed. He set down the big bags he'd brought and gestured for her to join him on the bench nearby. "Really, how she doin'? I know she don' hardly know ol' Remy from Adam, but I wanna help."
"She's got good support," Ororo said. "Her best friend has been sneaking over to keep her company when there aren't team practices, for one thing."
"Good," Remy said, smiling. "And as far as I kin hear, dat prince still runnin' 'round in Genosha. If you need dat remedied…"
"We have a line forming," Ororo replied with a sedate smile.
Remy chuckled to himself. He leaned back, losing a bit of his smile as he looked around the garden. "Feelin' like I missed everythin', Stormy. Blink and you got a little goddess on the cusp of adulthood."
"That wasn't your fault, big brother."
"Course not. Jes' add it to the ol' man's crimes," Remy said. He paused, and Storm waited for him to say what was on his mind. "Y'all doin' alright, though? Been outta the loop." He knew that Sinister hadn't acted on his plans - yet - but he wondered if he could prepare them all the same.
"Well enough, I suppose," Ororo answered. "What has you so worried?"
"Been runnin' down a rumor comin' from corners of Madripoor," Remy admitted. "Knowin' how dat place messed up a few of the kids, wanted to make sure nothin's botherin' y'all here."
"And what did you find?"
He sighed. "Cain't prove nuttin," he admitted. "Cain't get close enough right now, but ol' Remy has a few favors to cash in dat could help."
"Now that is telling," Ororo said thickly. "You can't get close enough to know?"
Remy chuckled. "Hydra got a shiny new toy dat won't let mutants past," he admitted. "Stole the schematics, though." With a flourish, he pulled a folder from his trenchcoat. "Won't take too long for dat Maker o' yours to make dis here little problem go away, non?"
"No, it shouldn't take him much time at all," Ororo agreed. "You know where he is, you know he'd help you with anything you needed."
"Wanted to say hi to Little Miss Stormy first," Remy teased and bumped her shoulder with his.
"Last I heard, she was taking some time with James' Jeep."
Remy laughed. "Perfect." He got to his feet and offered her his hand to pull her to hers. "Really, Stormy, there's rumblin's in all the underground. Keep your ears open, wouldja? Somethin's on the horizon, and it ain't good."
"Always, Swamp Rat."
Remy smiled and pulled her into a hug. "Love you, Stormy," he said and kissed her cheek before he spun to go find Mia.
"Hey, I know Cap told you the rules," Tony said after Kamala had tried - again - to show up to team practice with the Avengers without crossing all her t's and dotting her i's. And considering the most recent dangers that had accompanied the kids on the team, he was drawing a hard line with Steve on little things like age limits and parental permission.
They'd been pretty strict all along, so it wasn't exactly new territory - but Tony could see that he had to handle this one a little differently than the other kids. She was both shy and incredibly bold at the same time. And he understood not wanting to tell parents that were certain to rain on the parade or worse.
"But I can't just … tell them I want to be an Avenger!" Kamala defended as she shifted from one foot to the other, watching the rest of the young Avengers and X-Men gather up.
"Yeah, you can," Tony said, resting one hand on her shoulder. "And you should. You don't know that they'll freak out over you being a hero."
"But they will," Kamala almost moaned. "They've been getting stricter on me since all of this started up!"
"Probably because you're acting shady," James offered from where he was lying on the floor with his feet on the wall, tossing a ball straight up and catching it over and over.
Tony gestured to James. "He'd know. Come on. If you're that worried, we'll send someone with you to talk to them."
Kamala's eyes got wider, somehow. "Really?"
"Sure," Tony said, smirking.
"You can't come on Friday," Kamala said suddenly. "Or Thursday night."
Tony frowned. "I wasn't suggesting-"
"He'll go tomorrow," James said from the floor.
"You going with me?" Tony challenged, turning toward James.
"Can't. I've got class."
"So does she," Tony said with a laugh. "We're not doing anything on a school night."
"Saturday, then?" Miles suggested with a hopeful smile. "And … maybe you can talk to my dad, too?"
"Hey," Tony said, holding up both hands. "I never said it was going to be me-"
"He'd love to," James said, getting Tony to spin toward him with a frown.
"You're definitely going with, then," Tony said. "To help whoever goes to talk to their parents."
"I thought that was you?" James said with a smile.
"We'll see."
"I have to do some stuff this weekend, though," James said, and Kamala and Miles got the full view of Tony rolling his eyes harder than any teenage girl they knew.
"You're going. End of story."
"Not if they don't want me to," James argued, but both Kamala and Miles were quick to jump on board.
"We do," Miles said at the same time that Kamala bounced on her toes toward James with her hands clasped under her chin with an overly hopeful 'ple-e-e-ease?'
James let out a heavy sigh, doing his best to sound entirely put upon. "Okay. Sure. Billy's going to be spending the day with his family anyhow. And apparently, Tommy's still half afraid to get anywhere near me."
"You totally kicked his butt," Miles said.
"I really didn't," James argued.
Tony smirked as he watched the kids latch on to James … it was a good distraction for the kid, and it gave him a chance to figure out his approach without knowing anything about Kamala's family. Miles' family … that, he knew about just because he'd heard the kid talk about them. Kamala just kept referring to her parents as 'strict' and 'old-fashioned' … and he wasn't sure what that meant in context. So … while the kids were being kids, he redirected himself to get into a little recon.
Annie absolutely knew that Scott wasn't truly telling her what was bothering him.
It wasn't just that he was stuck in the house for a year. To hear him tell stories of what he'd been willing to do in order to keep his kids safe, keeping his head down was simple enough for him. And he had plenty to do remotely talking with Ororo and Natasha. If anything, this was the most involved she'd seen him in a while, because it was the only outlet for his boredom and need to be useful.
And it wasn't just the separation from his kids, though she knew that was weighing on him heavily. James had been through so much recently, and Nate was about to be a father. Rachel was stepping into a leadership role at the school. And she knew how much he hated to miss their lives.
That was what she'd thought this was, at first: the fear of missing out on the adult lives he had promised to be there to see. His kids had finally all grown up and left the nest, and here he was, stuck in a single house.
But there was more to it than that. He seemed stressed about the kids, and not in the usual way. She expected him to be craving stories from their lives, but instead, he almost looked like he was bracing himself when they talked about what they were doing back home. He was scared, and she hadn't seen him like this without damn good reason.
The more she thought on it, the more she was convinced she was right. She knew what anxiety looked like on Scott. He practically lived in shades of anxiety rather than sometimes experiencing it like normal people did. There was a difference between anxiety and fear, and what she saw in Scott was the latter.
And after Alex had come to visit, she was sure she could see it in Alex, too. She didn't know him as well as she would have liked, but he was enough like his brother that their expressions matched. And when she would catch them talking in whispers, they looked like they were steeling themselves.
Scott didn't know it, but Annie had reached out to Ororo for advice, asking for information on anyone Ororo could think of that would have genuinely scared Scott. Any history he might have been reliving. She'd even, to Ororo's surprise, asked about whoever this Sinister character was, because she was absolutely not above eavesdropping - or interrogating Billy when he dropped by with food. And Scott, she learned through the grapevine, had told James about Mr. Sinister and his connection to genetics.
She didn't like what she found, and that was only what Ororo would give her. Ororo had also said that Scott had personal experience with the man that went far beyond anything the X-Men had dealt with.
And the fact that this person had gone after Rachel when she was an infant… well, Annie could see why Scott would be scared of him.
And slowly but surely, Annie was ticking off other explanations for Scott's behavior, other fears he could have had. Most of the powerful people that could scare him were also big enough organizations that they would be in his intelligence findings. And he never looked scared when he was going over those, just focused.
No, this was a personal fear.
Annie just didn't know how this person who was supposed to be dead had come back.
Then again, Scott had been presumed dead for a long time as well. So she supposed the more important question was why he had returned.
And the more Annie thought about that, the more convinced she was that confining Scott in one place was practically like setting bait in a trap.
She wanted to run her theory by Craig the next time he stopped by, because while she respected that Craig wouldn't tell her everything he and Scott talked about, she didn't think she was out of bounds telling him she was worried about her fiance or asking him if he had a better explanation before she went rushing to people more powerful than she was to send them on some wild goose chase against a boogeyman.
She was relieved when Craig came over that evening - but Scott wasn't. That in itself wasn't unusual, but as Annie pulled Craig in and told him she'd already started on some cornbread so he had to stay for dinner… she saw that Scott had gone tense. And he was watching her.
He was scared for her.
Annie stopped. She swallowed and turned toward Craig. "Whatever it is that you've done to him to keep him from telling me the truth, drop it," she said. If she was wrong, she'd apologize to Craig, but she was sure Scott had never worried about her safety with her own dang brother.
"What in the world are you talking about?" Craig asked, looking at her like she'd grown a second head.
"Scott may be allergic to talking about his own mental state, God help him, but I know for a fact he's never been scared of you, Craig," Annie said, holding his gaze. "This isn't anxiety. This isn't cabin fever. My fiance is bone-deep terrified, and I'm not having it."
For a moment, Annie could feel it when someone took the liberty of raking through her mind to see what exactly she suspected, and what she thought she knew.
"Well, you are a far cleverer little thing than I'd thought," not-Craig said before she couldn't move and he shifted into a slicked-back dark-haired, incredibly pale … someone.
Annie's eyes went wide, and she looked toward Scott, who no longer looked scared but furious. But he hadn't moved, either - and she wondered if he was as stuck as she was. But in her best attempt to not look ruffled, she said, "Dr. Sinister, I presume?"
"Oh, I think I like her," Sinister said to Scott with an honest smile.
"I thought I told you to leave her alone," Scott said, his eyes narrowed.
"I haven't done a thing, Scott. When will you learn?" Sinister replied - and it was mostly true, since the only thing he had done was freeze Annie. Not harm her. "You certainly can't blame me for holding an interest."
Annie glanced toward Scott, who was fully focused on Sinister. "Scott?" she asked; she had no frame of reference for whether she should be worried that this stranger in their home seemed… happy?
"It's fine, Annie," Scott said, looking away from Sinister when he heard her voice. "He's just finally catching up to what I see in you. Got blinded by seeing your lack of powers and forgot everything else that makes you amazing."
"That's alright, sweetheart. Lord knows I saw racism growin' up; you've met my father," she started to say, smiling at his tease and relieved for something to latch onto.
"Ah, but my dear, that's not exactly correct," Sinister said, matching their tone with his best level of civility. "Particularly since I myself am a human."
Annie raised her eyebrows but couldn't move more than that. "And I'm the queen of England. Humans don't shapeshift, sir."
"They do with the proper alterations," Sinister replied. "It's simply a matter of understanding how to safely manipulate a gene sequence."
"At that point, wouldn't you stop bein' human?" Annie pointed out. "Mind you, I teach history, but I didn't just let science drop out of my head in the meantime."
"Technically, no," Sinister replied. "But it doesn't make one a mutant either."
"He studies mutants," Scott explained.
"I know," Annie said, once again trying to sound braver than she felt. "I asked Ororo to fill me in on your history."
Sinister entwined his fingers, smiling absently. "And what did Ms. Munroe have to say?"
"That you treat the people she cares for like experiments and that you fixate on a few you think are powerful and pick them apart - often literally," Annie said. "And that Scott has much more history with you than she knows about."
"I can certainly see how that would be her opinion, though much of that is technically correct."
"She's got no reason to lie to me," Annie said.
"My dear girl, I didn't say she lied; I said that was her opinion. Certainly mine is from a different angle." He kept a patient, open tone with her before gesturing for her to take a seat - only allowing her enough range of motion to do so.
Annie sat down on the couch, though she glanced toward Scott, who hadn't moved an inch. And to her concern, he had switched from fury to fear again.
"Now, my dear girl, please - tell me all about yourself." Sinister smiled, but had angled himself so that Annie was his full focus.
Annie bit her lip, but to her frustration, she felt exactly the way she had when Emma had tried to keep her from Scott - she couldn't do a thing to stop herself. And being caught in a telepathic command again had her in frustrated tears as she heard herself telling Sinister everything - about growing up in a small town and knowing an education was the best way out, about how much she had fallen in love with school and with the love of learning, especially seeing that love reflected in the eyes of her students once she was a student teacher. She told him about her family, about her sister and her nieces, her brother and his constant support, her father and his failing mind and the fact that she and her siblings were doing everything they could to help him even when he sometimes forgot who they were. And for some reason, he looked terribly concerned for her, which felt like an insult when he was forcing this information out of her.
She told him, too, about how she and Scott had met and how quickly she'd figured out that he was a mutant and an X-Man. She told him about their engagement and her angry proposal and about how genuinely excited she was to live her life with Scott, who was so good with her nieces and such a good father and good man.
"...and as soon as this house arrest is over, we're already planning a ceremony," Annie summed up, still crying frustrated tears.
"I am truly sorry to have done that, Miss Hale," Sinister said almost consolingly if not for the fact that they both knew better. "But judging by the fire in your wit, I'm sure getting honest responses would have been next to impossible otherwise. However, I have no plans to do anything of the sort to you again."
Annie swallowed hard, though she was too mad to say anything. Scott, however, said through his teeth, "He's not that sorry."
"Have you decided to become an empath, then, Scott?" Sinister said, catching back up to his usual tone - at least when he dealt with Scott's backtalk. "It can be arranged."
"I just know you," Scott shot back.
"If that were true, then you'd know how truly glad I am to have listened tonight."
"I know how you're always keen to learn," Scott said, his eyes narrowed.
"An accurate statement at last," Sinister said before he got to his feet and straightened out his jacket. "The usual orders remain in play, of course. I'll be sure to check in again … soon enough. It's so difficult to juggle when your interests are so far apart…"
"Don't let the door hit you," Annie muttered under her breath.
Sinister smiled with his back to them but paused at the door. "I look forward to your recounting of the upcoming wedding, of course. William is rather invested."
Both Annie and Scott glanced at each other, and for the first time, Annie truly understood the fear she'd been seeing in him. This man was coming for his kids. Again. And that was absolutely his worst nightmare.
Sinister paused to look over his shoulder at them. "You don't think you're my only source of information, do you?"
"Don't mess up those sweet kids' wedding," Annie said in a breath.
"I wouldn't dream of it," Sinister said sincerely.
"Good, because they've got enough on their plates as it is," Annie said, slightly disarmed.
"Yes, all of them are quite busy," he agreed, then smiled again before he quietly stepped out, leaving them to stew between the two of them.
Scott barely waited for the door to close behind him before he pulled Annie over to hold onto her tightly. There wasn't much he could say or do, but … there had to be a way to fix this. And he was damned if he'd let it stand.
Chapter 132: Destination Wedding
Chapter Text
Kate and Nate both had been completely prepared for something simple for the ceremony itself, since it had to take place entirely within the small home where Scott was allowed to be. They had their wedding party, which consisted of their parents, their siblings, and their closest friends - and Toby, who they'd asked to officiate. Everyone else would be at the big reception later, but really, they were planning to get dressed up, say some vows, and then catch Scott in the biggest hug possible before they had to leave.
But neither of them knew that Billy had been working on a huge spell just for the two of them, as a wedding present. He had been working with his mom on some reality-altering magic, cramming tons of space into the living room so that, when Kate and Nate arrived, the living room had a small meadow right in the center of it, with a gorgeous arch made of roses.
The soon-to-be newlyweds both stared in abject shock at all Billy had managed to do before Kate let out a noise of pure joy and flung her arms around Billy, hugging him tightly.
"This is amazing," Kate gushed happily, still squeezing the life out of him.
Billy grinned and hugged her back, "So are you. Congratulations," he said. "Oops. Got a little too enthusiastic with your veil." He helped her get her veil back on her hair just right. Her hair was pulled up underneath the veil in an updo with strands of hair falling down on either side of her face, and he didn't want to mess up what looked like a complicated hairdo.
No one could hide their proud grins at the expressions Kate and Nate were wearing. They had already come to their wedding excited for the unified start, but the fact that Billy had set this up to even look like they originally wanted it to look before all the complications… it was perfect.
Now with something a little more substantial than a living room to work with, everyone in the wedding party arranged themselves on the proper sides. Lexi, as Kate's maid of honor, led the way alongside James, who was Nate's best man. And they went down in a proper parade, with one of Kate's bridesmaids (and her little brother Jimmy, her bridesman) paired with each of Nate's groomsmen (and his sister, Rachel, his groomswoman). America went with Rachel. Jimmy went with Tim. And although Tommy had originally been in the party, Mia grabbed Billy to walk with, since Tommy, for obvious reasons, had been dropped from the wedding party for his own safety. So Cassie took up the rear by herself - but she'd prepared for that and had brought a basket of flowers to throw indiscriminately around as if she'd been meant to be the flower girl the whole time. She even completed the bit by shrinking herself to be about two feet tall. She hadn't known there would be an aisle to walk down, but she had come ready to pelt people with flowers.
Scott and Annie stood on Nate's side, and Clint and Natasha were beaming on Kate's as Kate came after Cassie, laughing at the flower petals that had marked a path for her to walk.
As for Kate, the fact that she was laughing just made her more beautiful to Nate as he watched her walk down toward him. Jan had designed her dress to somewhat hide the fact that she was pregnant, drawing attention to her archer's shoulders rather than to the rest of her body. Her shoulders were bare, but the dress had long sleeves that started about halfway down her upper arms. The sleeves themselves were billowy and sheer, so that everyone could see how toned she was from all her years of training. The top of the bodice started at about the same level as her sleeves, with the top of her dress wrapped tightly around her chest in patterns that almost looked like x's.
And then, just above her stomach, Jan had designed the dress to billow out in multiple layers, so that the fact that she was pregnant meant almost nothing next to the many different designs overlapping to create an almost windswept effect for the bottom half of Kate's dress. With each step, she looked like she was stepping out of a movie - and the best part was the Jan had managed to design the very bottom of the dress to look like feathers, so that it looked like she was being carried by birds in the wind.
Toby grinned as Kate and Nate stood in front of him, tickled that they had asked him to be part of this momentous occasion - and that they trusted him to be part of the small circle of those allowed into Scott's small circle of house arrest trustees.
"I can honestly say that I have been looking forward to this day, personally, for some time," Toby said, smiling crookedly. "Everyone who knows you has seen the way the two of you look at each other, so we are all more than excited for you to be here."
Kate and Nate couldn't stop grinning as Toby took them through the ceremony. They'd just asked for something simple, since they hadn't been expecting much, just a civil ceremony without too many bells and whistles. So all he had planned was to give a little speech and let them sign their marriage certificate in front of him. But that just meant that everyone was kind of making things up as they went along.
"Hey, Katie," Nate said, running with the impulse to give more personal vows than they'd planned, "you're absolutely amazing - you know that, right? You make my life fun and remind me of everything good in the world, everything that makes it worth fighting for. Love you. I promise I'll always keep you and our family safe - even if you don't need me to," he added, and she chuckled to herself.
"Hey, Natie," Kate sang back to him - purely to get him to laugh at her. "I love you. You're my rock. You're always there with a plan, with support, with something to make my dreams come to life, even if it's silly dreams like getting you to dance in public." She gave him a teasing smile. "I will always feel safe with you, and I swear to you, I'll do everything in my power to make your dreams come true too, as cheesy as that sounds. Because i love you, you big dork."
Toby couldn't stop smiling as he pronounced them married and then stepped back, gesturing between them. "There's a kiss involved, I'm sure you know," he teased.
Nate grinned and grabbed Kate around the waist, pulling her to him to kiss her deeply - while the others erupted into applause and wolf whistles. And when they broke apart, everyone in the meadow-living room mobbed them to give their congratulations and hugs.
"Love the dress, baby girl," Clint said as he pulled Kate into a hug. "Jan overdid herself."
"We haven't even seen what she and Tony put together for the reception."
"I know; that's the best part."
Kate grinned up at her dad and then saw out of the corner of her eye that Natasha was waiting for the hug to end - but Kate actually didn't want to get out of the hug. So she reached out and grabbed her mom's arm and yanked her over so that the hug became a group affair. "C'mon, Mom. We all know you're not actually allergic to affection."
Natasha chuckled and clutched both Clint and Kate close to her. "I'm just proud of you, my little bird," she said, and Kate, all of a sudden, couldn't help but tear up. Her emotions were a lot closer to the surface since becoming pregnant, and having just gotten married, yeah, she was full of emotions.
And while Kate had her face buried in Natasha's shoulder while Clint kept them close, Nate had just tucked himself into a hug with Scott. They didn't say anything, even telepathically, because they didn't need to. And even when Rachel came running over and practically collided with Nate, there were still no words. Nor were there words when Rachel telekinetically yanked James over to join the hug (and Annie didn't need the prompting to join them).
At some point, Kate skipped over to the Summers hug and tapped on Scott's shoulder, grinning when he turned her way. "Hey, so, I heard your fiance made an amazing cake, and I'm starving, so…"
"Oh, honey, I've got you," Annie promised, wriggling out of the hug that was quickly breaking up on its own anyway. She left the area of effect of the spell and stepped from grass onto wood flooring into the kitchen and came back with a small picnic basket. "When my sister got married, she spent the day starving. The first thing she told me when I asked her what I should plan for my own wedding was to make sure someone is on hand to make sure the bride and groom eat, because everyone wants to talk to them and they never get time to themselves." She pushed the basket into Kate's arms. "Baked your favorites. The cake is already at the reception."
"I love you. You are the best. You know that, right?" Kate said, and Annie beamed with pleasure.
"You're a beautiful bride, Kate," she said.
"And you're going to be gorgeous when it's your turn. I've seen Jan's designs."
"I know, right?" Annie leaned forward to whisper, "That look Nate had when he saw you? That's what I'm going for with Scott."
"They have, like, the same face. It's gonna happen," Kate promised.
Annie beamed and then gave Kate one more hug, then flounced off, leaving Kate to dig through the basket and giggle at the fact that Annie had frosted all of the sugar cookies purple with blue details and had wrapped the little sandwiches and fruit in baby blue bags tied in purple.
"Stealing," Nate said, snatching one of the bags from Kate's hand with a mischievous grin, and she shoved him in the shoulder.
"Stealing from a pregnant woman?"
"You have a whole basket."
"Stealing from a pregnant woman."
"On her wedding day, no less," America called out helpfully.
"On her wedding day," Kate echoed.
"I'm having flashbacks," Nate teased and then pulled Kate over to kiss her. "Stop teaming up on me. On my wedding day."
"Oof, turned that around on me," Kate said.
Nate grinned and then handed her the unwrapped mini sandwich he'd stolen from her. "I'll grab my own," he said, and she laughed, settling down to snack before what she was sure was going to be a crazy reception.
Billy wished everyone back to the gala that Tony and Jan had prepared for the wedding reception, and immediately, the vibe shifted. Where the celebration at Scott and Annie's house had been personal and quiet and emotional, the reception was absolutely filled with people, food, and music.
Jan had clearly gotten full rein to go wild. The place was decorated to the nines in blues and purples that seamlessly blended together, so that it was never clear where the blue ended and the purple began. Everything about the ribbons, the chairs, the tablecloths - everything was symbolic of Kate and Nate coming together.
Tony probably had a hand on the ice sculptures that looked like a hawk, but they made Kate laugh, and that was what he was going for.
In fact, as soon as they arrived, Tony started up a cheer and encouraged everyone else to take it up, which had the wedding party as a whole laughing and ushering Kate and Nate out onto the dance floor so that they could start the dancing.
It seemed like every single hero was there, even the newbies. Plus a few of Kate's cheerleading friends and Nate's football friends, who looked a bit out of place but were at least not causing trouble. Nate could hear them, because they didn't realize they were projecting, thinking about how they'd always known Kate and Nate would get themselves in trouble, and they weren't surprised at the shotgun wedding, though they were also projecting how cool it was that they had such big support from their teams.
But he was too thrilled with getting Kate all to his own to care what they thought. They'd have gotten married baby or no. And most of them seemed to know that, too.
Because Scott couldn't be there, Kate and Nate had decided to forgo the dances with their parents. But everyone wanted to dance with them and give them well-wishes… and suddenly, Kate understood why Annie had made sure they ate before they got to the reception. Even though Jan had chocolate treats everywhere - chocolate-covered strawberries, cupcakes, and candies - Kate hadn't left the dance floor. And she was having too much fun to break away and stuff her face.
The song she'd been dancing to with America ended, and Tony slid right in, looking like the cat that ate the canary.
"What do you think, kiddo?" he asked, pulling her into a spin.
Kate beamed up at him. "You're totally spoiling me."
"Are you surprised?"
"I mean, remember how when I told you I was pregnant, you gave me a whole speech about birth control and-"
Tony waved her off, still grinning. "That's not the point. The point is that you wanted to get married, so I had to make that happen."
Kate smiled and stopped the dance to stand on her toes and wrap her arms around Tony in a big hug. "I love you too, Tony."
Tony melted into the hug, pulling her tightly. "You're my goddaughter, baby girl. Anything for you."
"I love it," she whispered. "Really. Thanks. It's been absolutely crazy, and this has been really hard, and I'm gonna cry."
"Don't cry-"
"No, like, the good kind," she promised quickly, pulling back to look up at him. "I'm crying about everything lately. Just super emotional."
Tony reached up to her cheek and brushed away a tear, smiled softly - and then the moment passed and he spun her around as the song ended, sending her twirling into Thor, who immediately pulled her into the sky with him and laughed along with her.
Eventually, though, Jan grabbed Nate and Kate away from the dance floor to Annie's beautiful masterpiece: a four-layered cake with gorgeous, painstakingly decorated flowers. And when Nate put his hand on Kate's and they cut into it together, they saw that each layer was a different flavor - so Kate took the chocolate one and Nate took the red velvet one, and they finally sat down to eat. (And Billy, helpfully, wished a full plate to each of them, with one of each treat between them.)
You look like you're going to break your face smiling, Nate projected to Kate, and she leaned into him, smiling contentedly.
I've been imagining us getting married since we were kids. So I'm pretty happy. She glanced up at him without picking herself up from the lean. What about you? Still half convinced that I didn't mean it when I said I wanted to marry you?
Hard to believe that when you've been practically singing this whole time.
It's because I looooooove you.
Yeah, yeah. Love you too, Mrs. Summers.
Love you more, Mr. Barton.
Yeah, that's not-
I know. But your face was worth it. She leaned into him and kissed him - and everyone around them started up with wolf whistles.
…
After the reception was over, Clint and Natasha had plans of their own - though Natasha had wanted to talk to Coulson for a little while first. So Clint fully intended to get home ahead of her and set out a few candles or something to set a mood.
Instead, he opened the door to find someone in a red and black suit giving Lucky treats and scratches behind the ears.
"Hey, what are you-" He caught himself as he realized who he was looking at. "Wade?"
"Hawk-guy! I was wondering when you'd finally find your way home," Wade said, clearly smiling under his mask. "Mazel tov on your beautiful baby's wedding day. I'll bet she was radiant with a lovely Summery glow to boot. Not going to be too salty about the whole lack of an invite or anything. I know the planning was more in-laws territory. You know. Plans 632- infinity."
He tapped a stack of files next to him. "Brought your lil lady something to give to the prime Summers. He is disturbingly hard to keep from being detected by lately, you know? Where'd he learn to be so sneaky?"
"Probably learned it from hanging out with Nat all the time," Clint said, smiling in spite of himself. He tossed Wade his unlocked phone with the photo app pulled up. "Spidey did the official photography, but I got some pics too," he said, knowing that would get Wade dancing and gushing, especially since he had pictures of the other kids and other events. And that gave him time to read over what Wade had brought - or at least to skim. There was a lot of it.
And most of it, surprisingly, had to do with Emma Frost and all the pies she had her fingers in.
"You know, I have to admit," Wade said with emotion touching the timbre of his voice, "Those kids are something else. I am a little salty that I haven't had my share of visitation, though." Wade looked thoughtful for a moment. "Who do I talk to about getting my fair share of time with my nephew? And … and my Summersy niece and nephew? They're totally fair game. They grew up together, they're mine."
"Honestly, Wade? You dropped so far off the radar, we kinda all assumed you were dead," Clint admitted, catching the phone as Wade tossed it back to him. "Or underground. There were a few years there where I didn't even know where those kids were, and I was married to one of the three adults on the planet who did know." He pocketed his phone. "But you're right. Those kids are something else. And I got a pretty solid son-in-law in the deal. Remind me to tell you about how he wrecked Hydra for what they did to my Katie."
Wade rearranged himself so he was on his stomach, heels kicked up behind him and his head in his hands - with Lucky flipped over trying to give him kisses at his chin. "Hey. Hawt guy? Tell me aboot how your big strapping young stud-muffin of a son in law wrecked Hydra for Katie's honour. There's a 'u' in there, you know. Because I'm Canadian and all. I love me a good romance novel. Then you can tell me everything I missed out on. I was totally reading between the lines of all those newspaper articles, and angry rantings from mustachioed commentators but I definitely need the non-readers digest version of oh … everything. Then I'll tell you where I've been tucked away all cozy and warm."
Clint smirked and leaned against the wall as he filled Wade in on everything that he wouldn't have heard on the news. Things like how Clint was genuinely grateful that Nate had handled Kate's trauma well from the very start. Or how Natasha had blown up her friendship with Fury because of what happened. Or how Wanda had claimed the entire team under the protection of Genosha. And so on.
"And, hey, Kate's due in March. Which is wild, right? It feels wild."
"Ooooh, yeah. You're going to be a grand-hawk. Does that come with extra frills?"
"No idea," Clint said, shrugging broadly.
"You're already getting the gray to go with the title," Wade teased.
"Yeah, I know." Clint gestured to Wade. "You look the same, though."
"As expected," Wade replied easily. "Gift that keeps on giving."
"Something like that." Clint sighed and then gestured to the files. "Okay, I gotta ask. What're you up to?"
"Trying to keep my nephew and his friends safe. Security has been generally lacking, so I've picked up where Mrs. Hawkeye left off, going after not very nice men who want to do unspeakable things to my lil buddies. You know …" he started ticking things off on his fingers as he rolled over and hopped to his feet. "and making sure that they don't know I'm involved, cleaning up rescue scenes, chasing down DNA snatchers, destroying evidence … basically keeping the ol' X-Force alive all on my own."
Clint raised both eyebrows. "Wade…" He shook his head. "Okay, fill me in. Let me help. You deserve a break too sometimes."
"You know … I'd let you help, but there's this thing that I remember K telling me about years ago called plausible deniability? It took me forever to look up, but it finally hit me. That girl was on to something. So … you keep playing house-husband and I'll keep keeping my lil babies safe, m'kay?" He patted Clint on the top of his head. "It's worked out okay all this time. No reason to mess with a good thing. And hey - less cumulative concussions for you this way, huh? Ooh, hey - how is my lil nephew? I know he got his melon cracked open, and you know. Other stuff, but I really do need to have a little chit-chat with that kid. He is pulling down some bad attention. So, you know. Before he gets himself all married off would be a good time for a heart to heart with uncle Deadpool."
"He and his almost-fiancée live together at Harvard," Clint said, smirking to himself. "Really, though, Wade - it's good to see you alive. I'll make sure Scott hears you kept his vendetta burning against the White Witch. Looks like you've found, I mean, literally all of her financial stakes." He paused and held up a finger, then ducked into his living room to resurface with a burner phone to toss to Wade. "And hey, if you're determined to go it alone, at least take this. I'm the only contact in there, and only if you dial my first name."
"Why, Mr. Romanoff, how forward of you," Wade said as he held the burner over his heart. "Our secret love rekindled! I would love to once again take up your side hustle role. You and your shoulders …."
Clint rolled his eyes. "It's for emergencies," he said, but he knew Wade was going to run with it anyway. So, he shrugged and went to the cabinet to look for where Nat kept the candles. "So, it's good to see you breathing and all, but Nat and I had plans…"
"Yeah. I guess some people have to schedule that kind of thing out in their old age. I have a standing appointment with Charity every third week."
"Absolutely not the same thing," Clint said with one hand over his face.
"You know," Wade said, one hand on the doorknob to leave. "I gotta say - I was wondering at the beginning if that lil Wolverine was really a little Wolverine or not. I mean … let's be honest. It could have been a little hold over from your buddy Iron Man - who, is really a pain in my butt as far as decoding his material. But no. No … lil Jimmy looks more and more like his bio dad every day. That is going to be a problem if he keeps it up, you know. Delusional iron-sugar-daddy or not."
"Yeah, I know. Nat checks every day to make sure no one is planning to snatch him up. It's not a hundred percent effective but… we've got his back. I promise." And then, because things were a bit heavy, he had to tease. "Jimmy's my kid though. I know the James name gets passed around like a flu…"
"First of all - that Jimmy is looking an awful lot like his dad, too, and secondly … if she's missing the half cooked plans, then she's losing her touch. And I'm staying on duty. No offense to the elderly and showing it squad."
"She's not missing anything. Just hasn't seen anything but plans. Still the same paranoid Nat I love." Clint tossed Wade a can of beer as he hit the hall. "See you around, Wade. Don't die, okay?" With that, he waved Wade off and went back to setting the mood.
It took a little longer than planned, just because of the wedding considerations for Nate and Kate, and all of the team practices that were going on in the background without them, but finally, after months of delays and vacillating between 'please talk to my parents' and 'you can't talk to my parents' from both Kamala and Miles … things were in motion.
As promised, James was going to be the younger generation intermediary to Tony and Steve's experienced, mentor angle. James had no idea why either Kamala or Miles would want him along, but he'd agreed, and he wasn't about to go against his word to either of them.
The first of the two to finally cave and push to have the big intervention, though, was Miles. He'd had a few too many close calls in his spider-suit, and even though he'd had a little time here and there with the Parker family, the truth was that Peter was firmly against Miles doing as he'd done … handling things in secret. He was also too protective of his own family to be one of those to step up and have the chat with Miles' parents though.
Which was how James and Steve found themselves getting more than a few odd looks from the locals when they stepped out of the black SUV closer to Bedford-Stuyvasant than Brooklyn Heights or Williamsburg where both Steve and the Summers family called 'home'.
They were both kind of known in the area, but … only really around Clint's building. Not the apartment complex that the Morales family lived. That building, like several others in the neighborhood, wasn't exactly open to strangers strolling up.
Steve and James made their way up to the buzzer, and Steve hit the button to try and at least introduce himself.
"Hello, this is-"
"Hey, hey!" Miles sounded nervous still, even when he wasn't actually there. "I'll be right there. Omigosh." They could hear scuffling as Miles tripped over himself to rush to meet them and then flung open the door, wide-eyed.
"Is this a bad time?" Steve asked, sounding a little confused. "Because we can do this another day if-"
"No, no, no, no," Miles said quickly as he ushered them past the lobby of the building to head up to his family's apartment. "No, this is … I didn't know it'd be you - I mean … no. Your timing is great. It's just … I'm having a hard time explaining things, you know?"
"You haven't told them yet?" James said, staring at him openly for a moment before he pinched the bridge of his nose. "I thought that was the whole point of this … why are you like this?"
"I told them," Miles insisted.
"When?" James shot back.
Miles hedged, but gestured for them to follow. "Just …. Before I came down." James and Steve stopped and turned to look at each other. "I meant to do it sooner!"
"Miles," a man's voice called out. "Why are Wolverine and Captain America here to see you?"
"What did you tell them exactly?" James asked, though Steve was trying not to smile.
"That you two were here to talk to us," Miles said slowly, then finished with an awkward, half crooked smile and nervous laugh.
James stared at him for a moment longer, even as Steve pushed him to move.
"Not everyone is comfortable telling their parents everything," Steve said.
"That's … so totally not the point," James grumbled. "This is one of those things they need to know sooner than later."
"Like you didn't forget to tell your dad that you restarted the X-Men?" Steve said.
"Like I didn't know he'd know who it was the instant a camera landed on us? Come on. That isn't the same," James said. "This has gone on for mon-"
"Dad," Miles said loudly, cutting over James. "I want to introduce you to … ah … Captain America and Wolverine."
"Officer Morales," Steve said as he offered him a hand - smiling politely as he took in the NYPD uniform he was wearing. "I'm glad to finally meet you. Miles has said great things."
"Uh-huh," Miles' dad looked skeptical as he took Steve's hand to shake. "Why haven't I heard much about you two, then?"
Steve held his gaze. "I can't answer that for you." he turned toward Miles. "Miles?"
"Can we … take this inside?" Miles asked, bouncing on his toes and looking nervously at his neighbors that were watching skeptically.
James followed Miles' gaze to see a few of the neighbors holding up cell phones and recording them. "If you don't want to share the news of your scholarship with your neighbors-"
"What scholarship?" Miles' father asked.
James smirked and offered him his hand. "New outreach program that Miles applied to be a part of - I'd be happy to explain it."
"Yeah, you're gonna want to do that," Steve said, purely amused at how quickly James was covering for Miles in public. As soon as Miles' dad stepped back to hold the door open, Steve rested a hand on James' shoulder to whisper "Good cover."
"Not a cover," James said. "I just haven't told Miles about it yet. Tony and I discussed it. Vaguely."
Steve didn't bother to tease - not when it was clear they had pressing matters at hand. Pressing matters like Miles going into a full panic with two Avengers in the room with his family.
Before either James or Steve could speak up, Miles' father took control of the awkward situation. "Miles, you want to tell me what's going on?"
"You won a scholarship?" Miles' mother asked, obviously trying to help him out. She was watching him expectantly with an encouraging look on her face.
"I… ah…" Miles closed the door with his foot with one hand in his hair, gesturing wildly with the other hand. "Heh. Right. Mami, this is - ah - well, I told you they were coming but, and I mean, well, you know who this - let's go sit in the living room?" He pointed at the couch like it was his mission. "Yes, uh-huh, away from the door, that sounds right."
The group followed Miles' lead, and all took seats before again, his father spoke up. "Want to explain - any of this? I haven't heard about any scholarships from the Avengers available to high school students."
Miles looked toward James, but when he had absolutely no help coming from that corner, Miles shifted around a few times. "Okay. So. Um. That'ssssssssss maybe because…" He shifted again. "So, um." He switched which leg was crossed over the other. "I mean, you know… had to - you know how it is - had to say something with all the people in the hallways wanting to know where the superheroes came from and everything, right?"
"So there's not a scholarship?" Miles' father asked slowly.
"Yes, there is," James said calmly. "The applicant pool is exceedingly selective, and Miles made the cut."
"Oh, there is?" Miles turned toward James with his whole body. "I thought you were here to talk about the-" He glanced at his dad. "The other thing."
"I am," James said. "But we're not going to let your education slip. Pick your school. You're covered as long as you get in."
"If you're not ready," Steve said, looking ready to get up and head out already. "We can circle back when you are."
"Augh no that's going to make everything worse," Miles blurted out, jumping to his feet to hold his hands out like he was trying to referee a fight. He glanced over at his parents, who were both watching him carefully, and shrugged his shoulders nearly up to his ears. "Hi? I'm applying to be an Avenger?"
His parents shared a look, but didn't exactly appear to be overly shocked by the news, though James was looking at him half holding his breath for Miles to keep going.
"And this isn't going to cut into your studying, right?" Miles' mom said. "It hasn't so far, but with team responsibilities-"
"So far?" Miles repeated, staring at his mom openly.
She shrugged, but she was smiling crookedly. "Miles, do you really think we didn't notice? Baby, I'm your mom."
"Oh. Right. Yeah." Miles looked embarrassed. "I thought this was gonna be a whole thing…"
"It was if you were going to keep lying to us much longer," Miles's dad said under his breath, though he was trying to hide his smirk too.
"Right. So! Um. Subject change! Avengers, scholarships, help?" Miles gestured at the two heroes in the living room.
"He wouldn't be a full member until he's eighteen," Steve said with a much more easy smile. "This is just to get him trained properly, outfitted with safer gear, and integrated with the group. There are no underage members allowed anymore."
"And that's contingent on his chosen schedule," James added, sure that Miles' parents were concerned about him not having a back up plan - or even a method to live that didn't rely on a skin-tight bodysuit. "College is taken care of and comes first, regardless of where he wants to go."
"Exactly. That has been the case with all our younger members. James was just the most vocal about getting his education because of Tony announcing it to the world. And considering the circumstances," Steve said, "we are encouraging any new recruits to maintain secrecy on their identities to protect their families." He gestured to James. "I figured that was where the scholarship came in, honestly."
"You're not new. You should know this is how it works," James said almost dismissively to Steve. "That's part of it, but honestly, there's no reason not to get your degrees if you want them."
"And he does," Miles's mom said firmly.
"I do, actually, yeah - were you serious about any college?" Miles asked, wide-eyed. "Because I have thoughts. I have - I have ideas."
"Of course I'm serious," James said, half scrunching his nose. "I already know you're a genius. Why wouldn't I want to see you step it up?"
"Oh, I like him," Miles's mother whispered to her husband, who snorted, though his expression wasn't as soft. He was still thinking about what Steve had said about identities and "considering the circumstances." It was exactly why he'd been worried about Miles in the first place; heroes lived, especially lately, in the space where no one else protected them - or held them accountable.
"Glad to hear you don't take underage kids anymore," Miles's father said toward Steve.
"I wasn't exactly thrilled to have them in the first place," Steve admitted, this time giving James a more serious look. "The fact is, the kids we had in that first wave were ones that we raised. The only reason we did what we did with them was because they were putting on X-Men badges. It was a protective measure, believe it or not."
"Yeah, I believe it," Miles's father said, though now, he was looking at James. "Heard from Officer Wright what this kid was up to before he even had a badge."
"Of course you know Anton," James said under his breath. "Shutting up."
"What, you think the ones on the force that give a damn don't talk to each other?" Miles's dad said, his smirk finally stretching into an honest smile.
"To be fair, I don't know who's appreciative and who isn't," James admitted. "And seeing as his daughter has decided I'm the one to pester for the time being, I'm not taking anything for granted."
"The thirteen-year-old or the ten-year-old?" Miles's dad laughed.
"Thirteen. So far. Not looking forward to them teaming up if that's the case."
"Will they get scholarships too?" Miles' mother asked with a troublemaking look.
"Absolutely. If the Worthington foundation won't cover it, someone on my end will. Or I will. They're family."
"Wow. That's - that's really cool," Miles said quietly.
"So, having covered that much," Steve said, turning back to Miles' parents. "We'd like you to come down to the tower. Get the tour, some badges so you can come and go, and to see what we're trying to do for these younger heroes - before you agree or don't."
"Scholarships yours either way," James said - just to make sure his parents didn't feel pressured to let the kid go into the hero business.
"I'd like the see the place, yeah," Miles's father said.
"It's really cool," Miles put in helpfully.
"Oh, you've been already?"
"I - I plead the fifth."
"That's not how this works."
"I plead the… whatever one lets me get out of this conversation?"
"Bill of rights doesn't apply to parental conversations," James said, which had Steve laughing anyhow. "In my experience, it generally works against them, actually."
Miles's mother chuckled as she got to her feet and offered her hand to both of the heroes to shake. "I think we have a lot to talk about as a family," she said. "But thank you - really - for everything."
"Pleasure to meet you," Steve said, in a much better mood now. He handed them a business card that let them know who to contact when they were ready to head up to the tower, and after a few quick goodbyes, the two of them headed out, though not without being stopped by several well wishers that wanted to meet real, live, superheroes.
Everything ran differently when Tony and James made the trek to Jersey City to meet Kamala's family for the same kind of talk that had gone down with Miles' family. For one thing, her family knew they were coming and the whole thing had to be scheduled out ahead of time. Kamala had insisted, swearing up and down that if she didn't clear the way for them, she would be in the deepest imaginable trouble and blocked from ever getting a shot at joining up officially.
Which was fine by Tony. That simply meant that Kamala had been at least a little bit more up front with her family than Miles had been, and Tony was pretty sure that the outcome with Miles had given Kamala a little faith that maybe her family might consider her. Even if she wasn't confident about it at all.
Tony, of course, rolled up in full exhibition mode, every inch of him reflecting his public persona perfectly, though James had taken a different route and was dressed down considerably by comparison. Instead of a suit, he chose to show up looking more his age … though he'd made sure not to go so casual as to bring the hoodie or as fitted as he'd been using for public statements either. The family was conservative, after all - respect was a major concern.
Kamala's father met them at the door and seemed to cast a critical eye over both of them before inviting them in to where not only Kamala's parents but her big brother was there - along with her best friend, Bruno, who was clearly there for her emotional support but looked like his eyes were going to come out of his head.
"Come in, come in," Kamala's father said, ushering them toward seats. "You'll have to forgive us; we have a million questions."
"That's what we're here for," Tony said with his usual smirk. Not quite troublemaking, but not entirely businesslike either. It usually played well, so he fell back on that more often than anything else. "So. I don't know what you know already, but between the two of us, we can answer just about any questions you might have."
"Kamala told us about the offer to join the team," Kamala's father explained. "She said that it's a work in progress leading up to full membership, as I understand it. But what does that entail, exactly?"
Tony nodded once, then launched into a more detailed explanation than what Miles' parents had gotten- mostly because he was more used to selling ideas to people. He outlined the stepped approach to becoming an Avenger and outlined the protective measures in place as well as those that were still under development. And all of it with a focus that was kind of hard to ignore as he spoke.
It looked like Kamala's parents were simply taking in the information as it came, though her brother, Aamir, spoke up when Tony was done to clarify: "And the team would all be housed at the tower?"
"Aamir, no," Kamala said, blushing and putting her face in her hands. "Why are you like this?"
"It's not a requirement," James said. "Most of the team doesn't stay there, actually."
Aamir nodded, seemingly satisfied, though Kamala's father then had to ask, "And what about college?" He was looking more toward Kamala than Tony as he asked. "This is all well and good, but if she decides this life is not for her, I do not want my daughter left with nothing."
"College is entirely covered," Tony said. "Whatever school she chooses, for whatever degrees she'd like."
"That's actually going to be the case if she joins or not," James said.
"Because she's brilliant," Bruno said, obviously hyping Kamala up.
"And she already helped save my life," James said.
Kamala's mother looked her way in an unspoken question, and Kamala blushed and nodded. "Yeah, I… that's what I was telling you before. I'm actually getting really good at these powers, and I try to help people, not hit them. You know. As much as possible."
"The idea," Tony said, "is to back these younger heroes up. Make sure they're trained well, that their uniforms are protective, and that they have back up at all times, day or night." He gestured toward the street. "We've already seen that if we don't try to help, they get into situations on their own that sometimes get to be too big."
Aamir looked toward Kamala, and she shrank even smaller - accidentally using her powers to shrink too. "I - we - I was just trying to help."
"And you have," James said.
"We just want to make sure you're fully covered," Tony finished.
Kamala nodded, though she was clearly holding her breath as she watched her parents, who were having an entire conversation without words between them. And then, finally, her dad nodded and looked toward Tony. "If at any point, this becomes too dangerous-"
"She's free to step back," Tony said. "And the college offer isn't attached to that. At all." He paused to drop a hand on James' shoulder. "One way or another. She's covered for that."
Aamir watched Kamala start to relax, met her gaze, and gave her a quiet smile. "And are you offering scholarships to everyone in their little team?" he asked.
"Yep," James said, before Tony could answer.
"Then you really should be talking to Bruno as well; he was outfitting the team the whole time." When Kamala and Bruno both stared at him, he smirked. "You think I didn't know?" he challenged.
Both James and Tony turned toward Bruno to watch him with near identical expressions before they shared a look, nodded in unison, and Tony got to his feet first. "Make sure you all come to the tower at the same time for badges to get in. My security guy will lose his mind otherwise. Mr. Carrelli, come ready to play."
"Oh, god, why do you know my full name?" Bruno whispered, in pure awe.
James smirked as he got to his feet. "We do our homework, too."
"No kidding." Bruno grinned. "But, yeah, I can - sure! Totally! I can be there."
"Great," James said. "We'll use my lab, then. And we can talk about what schools you're interested in." Before they left, James took the time to step aside with Bruno and exchange information, promising that Tony's way was slower.
"This is really - wow. Thank you. Seriously," Bruno said, still looking completely awed.
"Haven't done anything yet," James said.
"Yeah, um, college. That's - that's really amazing. Thank you."
"You've been covering Kamala and the rest for a while now. You have any idea how many people you helped save?" James asked. "Oughta keep tally."
"I… just… outfitted everyone…"
"You helped her to be able to do what she does," James said. "She couldn't do it without you." He turned toward Kamala. "Right?"
"He's totally right," Kamala confirmed. "And you know it."
Bruno grinned at Kamala. "I owe you."
"Thank you for having us," James said when it was clear Tony was just soaking it up.
"No, thank you," Kamala's father said. "You've given us a lot to talk about. But you're right. She has saved people." He smiled toward Kamala. "And I'm very proud of her. I expect you to keep her safe."
"On my life," James agreed easily.
"I'll hold you to that."
"I owe it to her anyhow," James replied with a smirk.
"Yes, I'll have to ask her to tell me that story sometime," he replied. He glanced toward Kamala again, smiled, and nodded to himself. "I'm sure we'll speak again. Please, consider my home open to you - especially if you have news we need to hear."
"We'll be discreet," Tony promised just before he stepped outside to more loudly give his congratulations on the scholarships for the nosy neighborhood to hear, with James in tow as Tony made a point to stop for photos and autographs. As usual.
"That… is discreet for him," Kamala laughed.
"Apparently," Bruno laughed, still in disbelief.
Kate knew she'd gotten super lucky in that she hadn't had any nausea or anything like that during the wedding or the first part of the honeymoon. But overnight, at about three in the morning, she'd gotten sick, and she hated that feeling. So, she had slept in once she finally got back to sleep around dawn and had waved Nate off when he asked her if she wanted to go walk on the beach.
"Not before at least three cups of coffee," she grumbled.
"Hard night?"
"Yeah." Kate snuggled deeper into her pillow. "I'll get over it. Just worn out. This whole thing where I'm tired all the time? No. Just so much no."
Nate chuckled and kissed the top of her head before he slipped out to make sure she had some breakfast - and coffee.
Kate smiled to herself but started to slowly get out of bed anyway, heading for the bathroom so she could run a brush through her hair. If she didn't get moving, she was way too tempted to just become one with the blankets, and that was no way to spend a honeymoon, right?
Once she looked a little more like herself - and could smell breakfast - she heard Nate in the next room, smirked to herself, and fully intended to bound over to say a much more proper "good morning."
Except Nate wasn't the one in the room.
"Holy futz," Kate said and grabbed the door, fully intending to slam it - and then, she didn't, and she could feel all of the defenses Nate had helped her build up screaming as her defenses fought against the mental intrusion.
And for Sinister, who had come to check on the newlyweds for himself, the simple fact that the defenses Nate had erected were so strong, even against him, was downright fascinating. He had come up against the boy's mother telepathically before, but this was disciplined in addition to being powerful, in a way Jean had never been. And that made it stronger than any previous telepathic resistance he had encountered.
And he was perfectly pleased to realize just how powerful Nate was. He'd always known that Jean and Scott's union was exactly what he needed, what he wanted in his pursuit of power. But to see his theories confirmed… there was no feeling quite like that.
And the boy was smart, too. Not only had he helped Kate enact telepathic defenses that would stump most other telepaths in the world, but he had left himself a way to know if her mind was attacked by anyone powerful enough to do actual damage. The moment Sinister was able to force Kate not to slam the door, he touched the edge of Nate's alarm system and stopped, considering his options.
Much farther, and both of them would know. He valued his secrecy, but he was also interested to see what Nate was capable of if they went head to head.
But seeing what the young man was capable of, he also knew that it would be smart to have leverage. Even if he was confident that he could stop the boy if necessary, he had, in the past weeks, been taking a lighter, quieter touch in his studies. A big fight would not help him there.
And so, he pressed hard against the defenses in Kate's head, working with what Nate had already given him to co-opt some of the shimmering shields to turn them instead into ropes that wrapped around Kate's psyche to force her to sit down - and in the process alert Nate to the intruder in their midst. And while the seconds ticked by, Sinister was quick to tie in an alert system of his own. He knew full well that had Scott the powerset that Jean had possessed, the initial attack would be brutal - and simply a warning so he could take stock. So, the counterattack in case of such barbarism was to make sure a key component of his own psyche was attached to Kate's empathy. He smirked to himself, already congratulating his own deviousness since reverb too harsh to that aspect of her personality would carry the potential to fracture the way she related to those around her … and that was one of those facets that Nate adored about her.
He had hardly reinforced that failsafe when Nate came rushing into the room, his eyes already glowing, his feet not at all touching the ground. And as soon as Nate saw Sinister - with his glowing eyes and the diamond in his forehead - he knew who was sitting in their room and went instantly on the offensive telepathically.
And as soon as Nate sank what looked like a red-hot blade through Sinister's defenses, Sinister made sure that he could see the reverb traveling down a string that went from Sinister's mind into Kate's. And it was enough to stop Nate in his tracks, especially when he saw cracks in Kate's mind that threatened the part of her mind that housed her empathy, represented on the psychic plane by a big party at Avengers Tower with everyone that she loved.
Nate stopped, and Sinister could see a familiar muscle working in the corner of his jaw. "That was dirty," he said, though he was backing away.
"So was that attack you opened with," Sinister replied.
"You announced yourself by hurting my wife. Not gonna play nice," Nate pointed out.
"To be perfectly honest, she simply panicked before I could announce myself."
"We're on our honeymoon," Nate said. He glanced toward Kate, who was watching the whole thing from her seat on the couch, rubbing her temples as she dealt with the headache of psychic reverb. "Who the hell invites themselves along on a honeymoon?"
"A concerned party," Sinister said dryly. "But seeing as I appear to have misplaced my invitation to the wedding, I wanted to see how well your little bride has been handling all of the circus surrounding you and your family." He tipped his head. "Among other things."
Nate glanced toward Kate, who stopped rubbing her head to glare at Sinister. "I've been handling that circus since I was three; I'm fine," she said. And then, because she couldn't help herself, she said, "I was raised by a carnie. I pretty much roll with anything."
"Yes, I've heard the declarations in the evening news," Sinister said. "And that means precious little to me."
Kate gestured broadly with both hands. "Look, I literally grew up in Avengers Tower. My mom was basically Logan's adopted niece. I heard every story I could ask for. I didn't come into this marriage blind or naive, and neither did he. I'm fine." She gestured toward Nate. "You should worry more about him. He's the anxiety-riddled Summers."
"That is indeed who I am more concerned with in this moment," Sinister said. "You seem to be progressing well enough - though I could be wrong …"
Kate caught his insinuation and, without thinking about it, put her hand on her stomach. And because of the tie to her mind, he instantly saw her memories of how little she knew, medically, about how she was doing, other than Tyler Creed's medical scans to assure her that everything was healthy.
"I've got her," Nate said. He might not have been attacking anymore, but that didn't mean he wasn't monitoring what was going on telepathically. And he didn't like that Sinister was zeroing in on Kate's pregnancy.
"Yes, you certainly do," Sinister said. "Though I thought that you were smart enough not to move forward without any proper medical supervision."
"Look, unorthodox as it is, Ty genuinely can tell us if anything's wrong," Nate pointed out.
"Yes, I'm sure he can do what those in backwoods third world countries would consider miracles." He leaned toward them both. "His considerations don't go as deeply as I am concerned for. Particularly when I know far more about your family genetics than even your father." He put on an entirely fake smile as he turned toward Kate. "How is that lovely anti-mutant doctor working out for you?"
Kate blinked toward Nate. "I… thought…"
"Tweaked him," Nate said. "As far as he goes, he's doing just as well as he'd do for anyone else."
"Yeah, that's what you told me," Kate agreed. She blushed. "I didn't realize he was that bad, though."
"You were distracted. I took care of it. You're fine."
"No offense, Nathan," Sinister said. "But I doubt that will be a feasible solution should you come across a particularly closed-minded nurse or orderly - unless you're planning to tweak the entire hospital around her. In which case - how … heroic. Not at all an abuse of powers."
Nate pointed Sinister's way. "There's nothing wrong with keeping people safe. It'll be fine; we'll figure it out. Not to mention we've got plenty of backup."
"I'm sure the targets of your manipulations will see it that way. Though, that's never been the case for anyone else in that kind of situation." He gestured openly. "Of course, there are other solutions."
Nate crossed his arms, though Kate said, "Look, as crummy as his attitude is, he's one of the best, and he's close to home."
"That pitiful excuse is hardly one of the 'best'," Sinister sneered.
"What, you think you'd be better?" Kate challenged him.
"Absolutely." Sinister nodded once, already thinking of how easy it would be to establish himself at the practice so he could, in fact, be Kate's doctor. "Now that little hurdle is settled …"
All at once, Kate went from looking defiantly toward Sinister to staring at nothing, and Nate could see her memories of everything after she had brushed her hair completely wiped out.
"Now, behave and this will be quick and painless," Sinister said.
"The hell?" Nate gestured toward Kate. "What… leave her alone."
"You sound disappointingly like your Uncle."
"You've got my wife's mind hostage. Sorry I'm not more eloquent," Nate said through his teeth.
"Pray I leave it at that for the time being," Sinister replied. "Now, there are a set of rules you should know about now."
Nate glanced toward Kate and then crossed his arms. "I'm listening."
"No one will know that I came to see you," Sinister said. "And you will make this easier on all of us by cooperating, lest I find myself looking somewhere to lash out that have little to do with your young bride." He tapped the side of his head. "Don't be so difficult."
Nate could feel his hands in fists. "Fine," he said - if only because Kate still hadn't blinked out of her staring.
And then, Sinister rushed in, not only erasing Nate's memories of his visit but leaving himself a small, barely noticeable path to slip back into Nate's mind again if he needed to, especially with regards to the medical care for the little one.
Sinister sent Nate back to the kitchen and Kate to the bathroom - and as far as either of them knew, they had a nice breakfast and a lovely walk on the beach that morning, nothing else.
Chapter 133: Playing The Field
Chapter Text
The hardest part of having dated a prince, Mia was very sure, was how impossible it was to get away from the headlines that informed her of all the idiocy Tommy was up to. Or the fact that so many of the kids at Xavier's were watching and gossiping about those headlines. She didn't think they were trying to be jerks … at first. But now, she was starting to wonder why she had to listen to this kind of thing all the time.
And when she wasn't listening to idle gossip about her ex, Mia was dealing with what felt like overly-flirty interested parties. It was even harder now, when her best friend had his nose buried in a class. Again. Not like she wasn't used to that, but … she had a hard time sometimes being around Billy when he and Tommy shared so many facial expressions.
She felt isolated. That's what the real trouble was. She felt isolated because she was the last one on the team still in school at Westchester and all of her friends were in college or … getting married and having babies. Not that she wanted a baby or anything like that, it was just … really hard to feel so left behind. Everything had been going at breakneck speed for so long. And everyone around her was so slow.
Ugh, Mia thought to herself before she wrapped her arms around herself and teleported to the roof where the biting late-October wind would push away all spoiled-on-a-too-warm-beach thoughts. I'm starting to sound like him. I hate that. She turned her face to the prevailing north wind and closed her eyes, feeling the change in weather that was blowing in. They'd have snow soon. That would help her not think quite so much about the spoiled prince from the equator.
And … if she kept an open mind, she'd find plenty of admirers of her own. Just … ones with better taste than Tommy was finding, she was very sure.
Her phone went off, and it took a few notifications before Mia looked down to see who it was, then had to smile when it was a panicked text from Kate's little sister, Lexi. She was crushing on one of the new guys hard. And, she was asking for help. So, Mia did the best thing she could and perched on the edge of the roof texting back to try and talk Lexi through asking Sam out.
It had taken far too long for Tommy to be treated like a prince again, as far as he was concerned. But now … things were back how they were supposed to be, complete with the scores of fawning fans throwing themselves at his feet.
It sure made dating easier, if he was being perfectly honest. No need to chase when they were all trying to keep up.
And everyone on Genosha seemed to get that commitment wasn't really something to strive for. At least, that's the impression Tommy got. No one was pushing. Not really. Which meant there was plenty of Prince Thomas to go around.
He was having a blast, and it wasn't any time at all before the two cuties he'd been watching were getting the hint and hitting on him.
It was just… such a good way to spend his time … mornings with the cute guy, evenings with the hot girl. Lunchtime open to flirting with new prospects. And he couldn't seem to find the end of people his age (or close enough to it) that weren't willing to play.
And Tommy wasn't limiting himself. He was an equal opportunity flirt-er. The girls were cute and in good numbers, but there were a few curious guys that passed the vibe check that Tommy was going for too …
And Tommy liked Zach. At least, for as much as he would allow himself, he liked Zach. He was fun, energetic, excitable, and the fact was, he worshiped the ground Tommy walked on. Literally. There was definitely something to be said for that level of involvement.
Or … he enjoyed it all the way up until Billy happened to catch Tommy with Zach. It was a rare date rather than just a hook up, but one look at his phone reminded Tommy that Billy had warned him earlier that he planned to catch up to him when he came to visit. Which … was a thing he did when James kept away from Genosha. And that was fine. He appreciated the check ins with his brother. He did.
Until … he watched Zach trip over himself grinning when he met Billy. Is this what it looks like to everyone else? Tommy thought to himself with his nose scrunched up as Zach nervously flirted with his twin. And at first, Billy either ignored it, or didn't catch it.
When he did catch it though … or decided to acknowledge it finally … it was clear what he thought of the guy.
"Didn't you say you were dating my brother?" Billy asked with a frown set firmly in place - the expression of disapproval was so much like their grandfather that Tommy had to hide his amusement.
But it completely ruined the vibe with Zach, and Zach seemed to notice. Which was when Zach went from fawning to almost desperate.
After the little weekend visit from Billy, Zach was starting to get possessive and jealous of the time Tommy spent with Zoe … or Erica. Or Addison and Madison. And compared to a set of identical twins, he had good reason to be jealous. It was just such a turn off to an otherwise perfect situation.
Which was when Tommy found himself getting bored of Zach. The fact that he was blatantly a crown chaser sure didn't help, either. At first, Tommy couldn't care less if the people he was fooling around with were doing it simply because he was a prince … but this whole attempt to drift into serious relationships … Nope.
The hookups were still great, though, so he was kind of hoping it would all blow over, that Zach would get past whatever freakout he was having. But that never happened. And when Zach sent a cloud of smoke over to Tommy when he was hanging out with Addison and Madison and sent them both running and coughing, Tommy had enough.
He stalked over to Zach - which should have been the first signal to Zach that something was up, because he wasn't trying to move faster, an urge he still hadn't overcome even though he was still stuck without powers. He jabbed Zach in the center of his chest as he laid it out:
"We're done," he said sharply. "I told you from the start I didn't want drama, and that? That was drama. And you're not hot enough for me to put up with it."
Zach stood there gaping at him for a while before he seemed to snap back to reality and swatted Tommy's hand away. "It was a joke."
"Yeah? Explain it to me then, because you don't seem that funny right now," Tommy shot back. "You don't want to keep it casual, bring it up with me. Not anyone else."
Zach rolled his eyes. "Tommy-"
"Are you still talking to me?" Tommy looked him over and then spun on his heel. "I said we're done. Bye." He could hear Zach swearing at him, but not even Zach was dumb enough to use his powers against a royal in a public setting, so it wasn't like Zach could do anything.
But the whole thing had Tommy frustrated, because even though he did want to have fun, the whole point of keeping everything casual was so no one got hurt. Because even though he wouldn't admit it, he felt genuinely bad about how things had blown up with Mia, and as far as he was concerned, he wasn't going to let that happen again.
Kate had scheduled her doctor appointment a couple days before Halloween for two reasons: the first being that she wanted to have a cushion of time before any parties in case she had a panic attack, because that wore her out and she was already tired from being pregnant. The second being that there was some bad weather headed toward Genosha, so she wanted to visit during the first week of November - after the monsoon had passed.
Nate came with her again, holding her hand in the waiting room. She knew he'd been smoothing the way for her, but she was trying to get through an appointment without his help. She'd have to go to the hospital and have all sorts of pokes and prods when the baby came, so she was trying to ease herself into it.
So, she'd asked him not to use his powers unless she absolutely needed it.
She'd had the idea to switch doctors, too - thinking maybe that would make a difference. Sure, the other doctor had come highly recommended, but the idea of switching had been bouncing around her head since they got back from their honeymoon last week.
The doctor himself looked… old-fashioned. Which was a bit worrisome, considering they'd gotten pregnant before they were married, and Nate was a mutant. But since he was smiling so widely when he called into the lobby for Mrs. Summers, Kate was willing to give it a try.
There wasn't an ultrasound or, really, anything in her file because she'd kept panicking, and since this was a small practice, that meant the doctor had a list of things he wanted to do - but he assured her that those would come later.
Kate glanced toward Nate, bit her lip, and wrung her hands. "I know it's a little… sparse…" She gestured toward her file. "In my defense, I didn't even know I was pregnant until I was in my second trimester."
"You're young and in good health," the doctor replied as he absently looked through her file, then smiled up at her. "We have plenty of time to get through the tests. Most of what you need in the beginning is well enough with blood alone."
"Yeah." Kate gave him a half-winced smile. "That's… my problem. Little bit of, um, medical trauma."
The doctor closed the file and set it aside, then clasped his hands as he turned his full attention her way. "Tell me what I might be able to do to help you through this."
Kate blinked but was surprised into a smile all the same - this was a lot more care than any doctor besides Hank had shown her. "I'm still working on that," she admitted. "I've got a therapist, and I'm working through it. I'm trying not to panic." She bit her lip. "I mean, I don't know if you, ah, keep up with the news…"
"You don't have to tell me details if you're not comfortable, Kate," he replied in an exceedingly gentle tone. "And though I understand you are dealing with trauma, I would like to impress upon you that it is eventually imperative that you work through this sooner than later. The truth, my dear, is that from what I have available to me regarding ultrasounds, the baby seems to be healthy. Your symptoms aren't out of line for what passes for normal. And though it might ease your mind to have all of the proper testing done to be sure both you and your child are healthy, there is little modern medicine could do to divert that course should there be an issue."
"Oh, really?" Kate blinked. "The other doctor was so adamant…"
"He was an idiot," the doctor replied dryly.
"No kidding," Nate muttered under his breath, and Kate couldn't help but smirk his way.
"I do want to try to do more tests, though," Kate said, holding Nate's hand but looking right at the doctor. "You're right; I need to work through it. The last thing I want to have happen is to go into labor and freak out and make everything even worse."
"Pressure from me for you to progress through your therapy faster will only have the opposite effect. I will ask when you come in what you feel up to doing, test wise. With a bit of luck, we can move up to blood work before you go into labor. You will likely want anesthetics."
Kate chuckled at that. "Yeah. I don't want to hate everything about it, you know? Don't like being drugged, but for this, I really want to get past that."
"There are opiate free options that won't tamper with your mental state."
"Perfect; that's what I want," Kate said quickly.
"Then that's one thing we can tick off of your checklist," the doctor said with a smirk. "Progress."
Kate smiled brightly. "Thanks," she said in a breath. "Most doctors aren't this… understanding."
"I've been doing this long enough that I know there is little we doctors can do to control our outcomes, though most would never believe it."
"As long as you can stop the emergencies, right?"
"Most of them, yes," he agreed. "But I've found that if you pay close enough attention to the mothers, the bulk of so called emergencies can be avoided entirely."
Kate smiled at that. "Okay, I think we'll work well together," she said.
As it happened, Kamala and Miles's families' schedules worked out that they had time for a tour of Avengers tower on the 31st - which meant that the other young heroes had invited all of the newcomers to spend the day doing the tour and to then stay for the big Avengers Halloween bash.
Still, that meant that everyone during the day was on their best behavior, since both Kamala and Miles had, on about twenty separate occasions, begged all of the heroes that would be there to please, please, please not scare off their parents who were still processing everything related to their kids' hero work.
Which meant that Steve and Jan were the ones to greet the families, because Steve had a reputation as Captain America and Jan was very good at smoothing things over and at knowing how to make people comfortable.
They were hitting all the high points that they thought the families would need to know - the security measures in place not only for the team but for the building at large, too; the options for study help that came along with being a part of the Avengers - endless scientific resources that most people didn't consider. Particularly all of the eager to help each other doctoral members and acquaintances with Dr. Richards, Dr. Banner, and Dr. Bobbi Morse all having thrown their hats in to help with their specialties in addition to the usual well-respected Avengers. They carefully didn't mention what other than self defense that Black Widow might add to their education, though. Just as not to draw attention to her most famous contributions.
And while Steve and Jan were sure to point out that every effort would be made to keep the kids comfortable whenever they were at the tower, and safe in and out of it, they barely got through the main talking points of the tour before Bruno and Miles looked physically in pain at wanting to spend time in the lab with Tony and James.
Tony had made it sound like some sort of test, so Bruno was full of nerves. And while Miles had been to the tower, he hadn't been around Tony and James together doing anything in James' labs but listen to music and talk in half code over take out. Both of them wanted to see some action … or as close to it as they should witness with parental intervention. Amazingly, it wasn't either of the boys that spoke up though.
"They're dancing," Kamala's mother said, sounding disbelieving. "What's going on in there?"
Steve turned to follow her line of sight to James' lab where James and Tony were in the middle of a mild Holiday-themed prank war. It had been going on since coffee and showed no sign of stopping, even at this time of day. The only thing that made it hard to tell what was happening was how soundproofed the lab was. The massive columns of foam and silly string blasting back and forth was hard to hide though.
"That," Steve said ina breath, "is what happens when we leave them alone together for too long. I'm sorry - they should know better." Steve gestured with one hand, trying to wave off the disaster in progress - especially when Tony seemed to suddenly catch sight of himself and the lip reading was plain to see, even if they couldn't hear it. 'What did you DO' was hard to miss when it was that clearly open.
"Oh no," Miles said, though he couldn't stop grinning.
James was very clearly laughing to a degree that he wasn't coming back from it - and Tony was turning green where the foam had hit him.
"Frankenstein," Bruno laughed. "Perfect."
"That doesn't sound like one of James' punchlines," Jan said, shaking her head in disbelief as she led the way. "Come on - he's harmless when he's doing this kind of thing. And it's only pointed at Tony. promise."
"Hey, it's Halloween," Miles said, grinning. "And it's Tony Stark."
"You do have a point," said Kamala's mother, unable to hide her smile.
When the doors opened, the soundproofing vanished and the visitors were hit by a wall of loud classic rock and Tony half-shouting at James in disbelief. "What - why am I green?" which only seemed to crack James up harder.
"It's your costume," James managed to get out between bouts of raucous laughter. "Jan needed a break from styling you, so I decided to help."
"Green?" Tony shouted, looking torn between shock and anger and honest amusement just before James chucked a half-torn up white lab coat at him.
"Glasses are in the pocket," James laughed. "Dr. Banner."
Jan was trying to keep it together. She really was. She wanted to do right by the kids. But she still hit the floor laughing, completely unable to keep it together.
"It's authentic," James called out before he started laughing harder. "And … he doesn't know it's missing yet."
"Oh, that makes it even better," Jan said, practically sobbing with laughter, doubled over with her hand over her stomach.
And to the newcomer's surprise, refusing to be outdone, Tony stuck his nose in the air, dramatically put on the black-rimmed glasses and pulled the lab coat on. "You're gonna get it, kid."
"Waiting on you, old man," James laughed out as Tony pulled him upright, though he quickly readjusted to keep him from pulling him into a hug. "Eew, no. I'm not supposed to be green, too."
"We have company, you lunatic," Tony countered with a laugh, finally. "And you dyed me green. I didn't come up with a costume for you - but I see I should have!"
James was still snickering as Steve tried to take control of the situation by turning the music down - to perfectly in unison complaints from Tony and James since it was the Clash getting lowered. And before they were done complaining, and before Steve or Jan could remind them of what the plan was, both of them were into clean up mode, clearing the silly string and foam up before anyone could get into it - with robotic assistance, as usual with the bigger messes they made.
"It's safe to come in," James said over the music. "Promise. And the cooler stuff is further in anyhow." He looked up with a little wave. "Come on, Bruno. I know you wanna check it out and try a few things."
"Um. Yes. Yes, I do."
Tony clapped a hand on Miles' shoulder as Bruno zipped by. "You too, kiddo. If you want."
"I want. I mean. Yes. I mean. Can I?" Miles bounced slightly.
"Go for it," Tony said, then looked to Kamala as well. "Door's open. If you wanna play, now's the time."
"Oh, um, I really just want to watch Bruno's head explode, please."
Tony grinned. "Plenty of room for that, too - couch by the window is great for watching explosions of all kinds."
"Perfection. This is what I want to do with my day."
James started out by giving the boys the preliminary tour of what he had to fiddle with in terms of machines and equipment, then showed them a few of the things he had on deck, conveniently all of it regarding team safety and uniform upgrades as evidenced by the half dozen or so finished team uniforms for the X-Men team and almost as many Avenger's uniforms.
But what got Bruno's attention the most was the system James was working on at the bench that was head and shoulders above the upgrade in progress.
"As much as tony hates it, I'm basing this one off of the power suits that Alpha Flight used," James told him as he handed him a module. "Can't quite get it down right to work with the rest of the tech in place, but the idea is a force field that floats about an inch over the entire head and body. It'll be invisible, and a lot stronger than what Guardian had."
"Oh, that's perfect," Bruno said, grinning broadly. "I've been toying with something like - I really wanted to find something defensive - that's perfect!"
"I've got weapons coming out of my ears here," James said. "And I only trust bulletproof panels so far, ya know?"
"It's great, though," Miles said. "I mean, arms race only goes so far, right? Mutually assured destruction still has 'destruction' in the title."
"I've already got it set to use as panels," James said, only then glancing toward the listening parents. "To use to protect bystanders. We always end up with some moron that thinks they can leverage with civilians, so that would screw it up for them. Just gotta make it so it works with everyone's powersets and tech considerations. Right now … not so great. The original design was for humans with no power ups. Total blockage both ways." He smiled crookedly. "You should have seen the mess when I tried it with a web shooter on. I was webbed up to my shoulder for half a day."
"Oh. I believe it," Miles said sincerely.
"The repulsor blast was even worse," James said with a laugh.
"Oh, you didn't," Bruno laughed outright.
"I did," James said with a nod. "Knocked myself stupid and blew the pack."
"That's amazing," Bruno said, still laughing.
"Voice of experience?" Miles teased.
"Nothing I'd admit to in front of responsible parental figures," Bruno said solemnly.
"I only test them personally when it's something I can't do remotely," James said. "And I don't let anyone else do that. I'll bounce back."
"There's a bit of logic in that," Miles's dad said, one eyebrow raised.
"Yeah, and we're cutting back on that," Tony cut in. "remember?"
"No," James shot back easily, though it was only partially a tease that had Tony muttering under his breath about concussions.
"This is an ongoing argument," Jan confided in them. "I mean, we work with teenagers. Kinda important to remind them they're not indestructible."
Tony was quick to interrupt. "Ah, ah, ah- don't you dare say it," he said pointing at James, who, held his gaze as Tony got more serious, then tipped his chin up.
"Anyways," James drawled out as he did a full body roll away from Tony back to his guests. "What did you want to try out?"
"Yes," Bruno said immediately.
"Dive in, man," James said, gesturing openly as he took a step back. "Miles can probably show you how the holotable works if you want to look at existing plans."
"Ooh, yeah, come on," Miles said, seizing Bruno's arm and dragging him along.
James stepped back to let them get to it, and even crossed over to another part of the lab to pull down a few boxes while the boys tried to get the holotable to work for them. The parents settled in to chat with Tony and Jan, comparing notes over their teenagers and having a decent enough time, even when Tony was sneaking the music up a little bit - and somehow winning points with Kamala's parents for doing so.
James smirked as he watched them all and he tweaked a few things .. Kate may or may not be by - he hadn't heard from her in a while, but he'd promised her some good toys that would stop an elephant if need be, and he was worried that she'd need it considering the elephants that were flanking Sinister. He just wanted to be sure that the inconspicuous jewelry and purse were going to be up to her standards. Jan had approved, but Jan's style was different than Kate's and Kate was going through a whole thing while she dealt with all the stress of being pregnant and a newly minted Summers. So obviously, he had two choices for her ready to go.
But she wasn't the only one that was bound to make their way to his lab looking for 'treats'. He had new stuff for most of the team - just because it was very much on brand for all of them to joke about tricky treats for Halloween. He just wasn't expecting May Parker to be the first one through.
"Tricks and treats," May sang out as she skipped in with a grin. James let his shoulders relax though when he saw she wasn't going for shock factor with her costume this year- and had kept it respectable with a witch outfit. Thankfully. That would have been disastrous with the crowd at hand.
"Kinda having a field day slash parent teacher conference slash science fair; can we smell your feet in a little bit? Rain check?" Miles said without looking up from the table as he and Bruno kept grinning wider and wider and wider the more they got into James and Tony's toys.
"That's not how it works," May laughed and skipped over to stand across from James with a grin. "Gimmie."
"So pushy," James countered. "Hi, Mayday, great to see you. Yeah, college is different at Harvard, thanks for asking." He'd turned his back to reach up to the top shelf for her upgrade while she giggled through what she considered him picking at her. When he turned back around, he called for the boys. "Hey guys, you might want to vet this before we send it into the field with Mayday. Miles - you're more qualified for this one. Pretty sure you haven't met our semi-resident spider-gal."
"Nope, not yet, sorry," Miles sang out before he vaulted over the table to come see what James had. "I wanna see, though. What spider-gear do you have and can I play with it too?"
"He's got all the spider gear," May said. "He keeps tweaking Dad's stuff." She clenched and unclenched her hands. "Gimmie, gimmie."
"Wait your turn," James said, holding the box out of her reach just to hand to Miles. "Mini web shooters."
Miles cackled delightedly as he peered inside. "Oh wow that's amazing," he said and pulled one out to look at - though he did toss one to May with his other hand. "That is intricate. How did you get the firing mech- no, wait, I see it." He peered a little closer. "Wow. That's so cool." He glanced up to see May grinning at him and blinked a few times. "Right. I skipped past introductions. Hi! I'm Miles."
"May Parker," she said as she offered her hand.
"Hey, your dad has been amazing teaching me spider stuff," Miles said, grinning as he took her hand. "It's cool that I'm using his name too, right?"
"Totally. He mentioned he was working with a new spider-kid," May said, still grinning. "Thanks for keeping the city webbed up while I'm in college."
"That's my job or something I think?" Miles rubbed the back of his neck. "I'm - I'm getting better at the one-liners but I don't feel like that one stuck." He immediately winced. "Ooof, and ended on a pun."
"Yeah? Let's see how good you're getting," May said as she reached over to grab his arm and pull him along. "I want to try these out in the gym before I take them out in the street. They're probably much better than he's saying - it always is, but … it'll be fun!"
"O-kay. A spider race? Cool, cool, cool, not like you have years of experience but yes, yes, I'm gonna - please don't crush my tiny spider dreams, okay? I'm still very new and you look like you know- okay and we're going now okay bye!" Miles called over his shoulder.
James turned toward Miles' parents who had not missed the spider's exit. "She'll play nice. She's just a little excited. It's been a while since I've given her an upgrade."
"Miles gets the same way with a new toy," Miles's mom said, smirking.
James nodded at that, then called Bruno over to look over Kate's stuff. "They ran off with the web gear - how do you like miniature tech?" He was already cracking open one of the watch faces to show him the inner workings - and teeny power supply. "Someone needed extremely discreet Widow's bites."
Bruno seemed to blink for a second, grin, and then peer closer at what James had handed him. "Oh, yeah, definitely - that - that takes some real…" He got lost as he examined the Bites. "Hey, did you call her Mayday as a joke or, like… sorry. I got distracted and meant to ask…"
"That's just what I've called her since we were dating. Trouble means calling for help, right?"
"Now, that's a whole thing I don't want to touch with a ten foot pole."
"Old news," James said with a little wave. "We're back to friends." He tapped near the watch. "Back to things that are interesting - any thoughts on this?"
"Oh. Um." Bruno visibly tried to switch gears. "I…" He nodded. "I like the way you reinforced the internal workings so that it can't get set off accidentally. Smart."
James scooted over to show him some of the finer points and to brainstorm with him on how to improve it - which seemed a little premature to Bruno when its owner had yet to know it existed, but that was just how James kept fiddling with his tech. And in the middle of them getting wrapped up in schematics, the doors to the lab opened again, this time to admit a very confused and half-agitated Bruce Banner.
Before he could even say hello, James lost it laughing, though that seemed to only get an eyeroll before Bruce spotted Tony wearing his battered lab coat and glasses.
"Oh. That's great. Very classy, Tony. I appreciate that," Bruce said as he made his way over with a tight expression on his face before he took his glasses back. "Why are you like this?"
Jan hit the floor. Again. "Yeah, Tony? Why are you like this?"
"I didn't-" Tony let out a breath, knowing he wasn't going to get out of it easily, and only half wanting to when Jan was enjoying herself so much. And in the meantime, Bruce waved and said hello to the parents in attendance then turned to head over to James. He leaned on the bench to look over at where James was half on the floor laughing.
"Thanks for the heads up text. You were right," Bruce said. "The look on his face was worth the joke, but next time? Warn me before you steal stuff out of my lab?"
"If I did that, you'd hide it better," James pointed out.
Bruce smirked and pulled James to his feet. "Who's your new friend?"
Bruno stared for a few seconds too long. "H-Hi. I'm … new."
"Oh, you must be his favorite," James said with a troublemaking grin. "This is Bruno. He just won one of our scholarships. Figured we'd let him play in the lab a little so he could see what we do. Looks like you broke him though. Guess you have to adopt him now."
"Bruno. I'm Bruno," he put it - helpfully.
"You're killing it, Bruno," Kamala said, looking like she was about to join Jan on the floor.
"Smashing it," James corrected just for the joke.
Bruce winced. "You are every bit as bad as your father sometimes, you know that? Not your dad."
"Thank you," James said with a put-on grin before he handed him a new lab coat. "Figured you don't want the old one now that Tony stunk it up."
"By the way, Bruno's a total genius," Kamala put in to help, since Bruno had turned a brilliant red and had lost the ability to speak.
"Yeah?" Bruce said, looking more approachable. "You feel like telling me what your focus is? Or - having your friend speak up for you? I'm not that bad, I promise."
"He's great," James said to Bruno and Kamala. "He's just in my sphere to be picked on."
"Everyone is in that sphere," Kamala said.
"That's what happens when you kinda grow up here," James pointed out. "I did stop calling him Uncle Green Bean, though, so … improvement."
Kamala laughed, finally going to stand by Bruno with a little smirk, which did seem to help him get a little more confidence.
"Oh, I've been building - I'm pretty good-" Bruno tried, but it was clear to Kamala he was floundering in front of his hero. So she stepped in to help.
"He's an amazing inventor."
"Not that amazing-"
"He's brilliant and he's not good at words, but he's my best friend."
"Parker level talent with scavenging things into something awesome," James offered, and when Bruno looked his way in surprise, James shrugged. "You think I didn't look at the tech myself?"
"No, I did, I just … I didn't -"
"You're doing great, Bruno," Bruce said, then rested a hand on his shoulder. "You just gotta relax and don't let this guy get under your skin." He took a moment to walk around the bench to stand next to James, leaning on the bench as he watched Bruno and Kamala. "Tell me what you're looking for and maybe I can help."
Most of Genosha was preparing to deal with the late-season monsoon heading their way, though Scott and Annie were hunkered down for the night with several boxes that Clint had dropped off just that morning along with a note from Wade:
Big Bad Daddy Summerseseses - Told you I've got your back. I've got your back so good, I'm covering little nooks and crannies you forgot you had. And throwing out all the bloodsuckers like that puckered up old ex of yours. Man. Tell me this was a lapse in judgement. ANYHOO - I'm on watch, and I'm not letting any botox-laden parcels slip past. Just, keep taking those heart pills, huh? Aspirin a day and all that nonsense, too. Kisses! - DP
And Annie had been so absolutely delighted to know that Emma was still going to experience some karmic payback that she couldn't resist reading through it all.
They did, of course, still get ready for the monsoon. Annie had grown up with family all over the South, and she knew what to do to prepare for a hurricane, so she was right there with Scott in terms of preparations.
But there was only so much they could do. They had food, they had water, and they had Wanda's protection. In fact, the island as a whole would probably fare better against the monsoon than just about anywhere else the storm was set to hit, because Lorna was shoring up the physical defenses, and Wanda was shoring up everything else. At the most, they were expected to have some power fluctuations, but that was to be expected.
Already, the power had flickered once or twice but hadn't fully gone out, and every time it happened, Annie would dramatically pout up at the light and inform it, "Now is not the time. I'm reading about karmic justice."
It was honestly endearing for Scott to watch, even with as touchy and emotional as the subject matter was for him. When he had started going after Emma and all of the pies she had her fingers in, he'd been furious, and he'd still been close to everything she had done. Her manipulations with James, everything that happened with the destruction of the school - all of that had been in recent memory when he'd been on his warpath.
Not that he thought Emma deserved anything less than whatever Wade was meting out to her. He was glad someone had picked up where he left off. But it was still odd, feeling removed from what was happening. And he had never fully shaken the nagging feeling in the back of his mind that he was responsible for her mistakes, because he'd let it go on too long.
"Oh, you're going to strain yourself looking like that," Annie teased, waving him over to join her on the couch. "If you're not going to read about the downfall of an evil empress, at least come keep me company. There's a storm ragin' out there, you know. I hear that's good for settin' a mood."
Scott laughed in disbelief, but, really, when Annie was in such a genuinely good mood, who was he to bring her down? So, he scooted over so that she could curl up with him, reading over her shoulder about how Wade had found a half dozen different Cayman Islands accounts and emptied them all out. He'd even left detailed notes about what he had used the money for - mostly charity causes but also, for some reason, a jewel-encrusted katana.
He shook his head. Nothing Wade did could shock him at this point, even if it was always - always - a surprise.
But Annie was right, as usual: the wind was blowing, the blankets were warm, and Annie was cackling with glee. This was turning out to be a good night for her, and he was too happy for her to let himself get caught up in the weird emotions that always came with anything involving Emma. So, he kissed her cheek, rested his head on her shoulder, and decided when the power did go out that night that there were better things to do with the evening.
Sinister knew he wouldn't have a great deal of time to get his work done, but … this wasn't exactly difficult for him anymore. He'd found ways to streamline the process, and since he'd gotten samples to start with weeks ago, even well before Annie had cleverly figured out as much as she had, he was prepared to get his work done and over with leaving minimal evidence that his hand had been involved with anything.
And to start with, he'd gotten the jump on them by gassing the bedroom half an hour before either was planning to get up. Falling asleep wasn't nearly as subtle when the subjects were wide awake, after all. But to wake up late? Generally acceptable and unquestionable.
So, with that in mind, he set to work. It was a simple process of double checking the bloodwork on devices he'd been using for years, and then initiating a series of injections to various vital organs and systems. To be doubly sure, he did take a moment to procure a few samples of blood - nothing terribly invasive, and naturally, Sinister could handle a simple blood draw neatly enough that one would never feel the after effects - if he chose.
The injections he'd used for Annie showed promise after just a few hours out … so he stepped back to let the two of them wake up in their own time - after making sure the house looked as if it had lost power again in the storm, with digital clocks flashing 12:00 throughout the house as he left.
Scott woke up before Annie did, which wasn't too different from how things usually went. And when he saw the flashing clock, he frowned and checked his phone for the time instead, swearing under his breath because he'd meant to call Rachel that morning and ask her how things had gone with her class. She'd been looking forward to the surprise dimensional trip she and America were planning for the human-mutant relations class as a bit of show-and-tell on the possibilities of peace.
But it was almost ten in the morning, which meant it was nighttime for Rachel. And Scott always tried to call her early enough that he wasn't intruding on personal time for her.
He sighed and scrubbed a hand down his face, then slid out of bed without waking Annie and slipped out of the room to catch up with Rachel - and to laugh when she started telling him about how her students were already asking for another road trip.
Annie stayed asleep through the whole phone call, but when Scott had made a far-too-late breakfast and she still wasn't awake, he peeked in to check on her and run a hand through her hair.
Finally, she peeked up at him and yawned. "Mornin'," she said sleepily.
"It's almost afternoon," he teased her gently. "You alright?"
She nodded, though she was still tired and didn't feel much like getting up just yet. "Just tired, I guess."
"I thought if you were going to crash this hard, it would have been the day after the wedding, considering how much work you put into everything."
Annie smiled contentedly and shifted to sit up. "Oh, you act like I need a reason to feel like sleeping in and taking some time to myself," she teased. "One of us knows how to relax in this house."
Scott smirked at her. "I'm sure I don't know what you're talking about," he said. "Breakfast is ready, by the way."
Annie nodded. "I'll be down in a minute. Let me get dressed and untangle my hair. Sleepin' in did my curls no favors."
"You look great," he promised her.
And for just a second - a very fleeting second - Annie could have sworn she could hear him thinking about enjoying the tousled hair look on her.
It was such a passing moment, though, that she wasn't sure what to make of it. And she was freshly awake and he was openly flirting, so she shrugged it off for the time being. She had no reason to think anything was wrong, and if she had, she had no frame of reference for what that would even be.
The same phenomenon happened a few more times throughout that day and the next - she could swear she could hear his anxiety over James at the school sometimes, and at one point, she could have sworn she heard him excitedly planning ahead for hosting Kate and Nate and their son when they sent a text with the latest from the doctor.
But the thing was, Scott already had such tremendous mental blocks in place that she really only picked up on things when he was projecting. And he did that so rarely that it was a full three days from when they had initially thought they'd overslept before she realized that the impressions and thoughts she was picking up on weren't verbalized.
She wasn't sure what to make of it, though. And she didn't know how to ask Scott about it, because she didn't fully understand what was happening.
So it wasn't until Alex came over to check on them - as he was trying to do more often since Scott had told him that Sinister let Annie into the circle of knowledge and seemed to even approve of her - that Annie finally realized what was going on.
She'd heard Alex after Tommy had run him to the front door, before he even rang the doorbell. She heard, in his distinct voice: That kid is floundering without Mia.
And while Annie tended to agree with that assessment, considering all she'd heard from Billy, she couldn't ignore that she'd heard his thoughts.
Before Alex could even ring the doorbell, Annie pulled him inside, yanking him by the arm and letting the door fall shut behind him.
"Alex, I don't know what's going on, but I need you to think of a number between one and ten right now," she said in a rush.
Alex stared at her. She's lost it, he thought, though aloud, he said, "Okay…. Hello to you too."
"I haven't lost it, Alex. Think of a number."
Alex raised both eyebrows and looked deeper into the house, but Scott was upstairs. "Um… what's going on?"
"Number."
"Okay, okay. Fine. I have a number."
"Seven."
Alex's eyebrows were somehow even higher as he stared back at her. "Okay, new num-"
"Two." She kept her gaze on him. "Three hundred and twenty-two."
"Okay, that's… what's… does Scott know…?" Alex stared at her, obviously at a loss for words.
Annie shook her head. "I didn't realize myself until I heard you thinking about Tommy while you were on the doorstep," she said in an urgent whisper.
Alex was still stunned, but Annie could hear his thoughts turning, going over several different possibilities. She could see that his biggest concern was, obviously, Sinister, who was capable of stealing and changing powers. But he didn't say anything other than to take her arm and give her the most encouraging look he could under the circumstances. "You need to tell Scott," he told her firmly.
"Yeah." She swallowed, her cheeks suddenly red as she considered the implications. "I don't… I don't know how this happened."
"When did you first notice it?" Alex asked urgently.
"Um… maybe three days ago," Annie admitted. "But it felt more like flashes of understanding Scott than anything else. I wasn't sure what to think, honestly."
"Yeah, he's got his head locked up tight after too many dealings with the Phoenix," Alex said dryly. "Come on." He knocked on the office door and didn't wait for an answer before he let himself in, slamming his hand down on the papers Scott was reading. "Hey, your wife is a telepath."
"Was. Hi Alex," Scott said without looking up.
"Is," Alex said, waiting until Scott realized he was serious and looked up at him. "Scotty, your wife's a telepath," he repeated, stepping slightly out of the way so that Scott could see Annie standing in the doorway with her arms wrapped around herself, looking smaller than she had ever looked.
Scott froze, trying to catch his mind up to what Alex was saying. "She…" He looked at Annie. "You… what?"
Annie held onto her elbows tighter. "I heard Alex's thoughts while he was still on the porch," she admitted in a soft whisper. She was starting to panic, especially because she could hear both Alex and Scott projecting panic, and it was hard not to get caught up in the spiral of their thoughts as both of them went through increasingly bad scenarios of how and why Sinister might have changed her genetics.
But when Annie started to close her eyes and fold in on herself, Scott crossed the room as fast as he could to catch her and take her to the couch in the office to sit down. He didn't need to tell Alex to give them some space, though Annie could hear that he hadn't left and was hanging close by in case they needed him.
Scott concentrated to stop projecting, and that helped Annie to look up at him and meet his concerned gaze. "I'm so sorry, Annie," he said.
"It's not your fault," she promised, because she knew - she knew - that he thought it was.
"It is, though," Scott said, holding both of her hands in his. "Are you alright? Are you hurt?"
She shook her head. "I've been a little tired lately. A mild headache. Honestly, I thought it was just the humidity. It happens when there's a big storm."
Scott nodded, thinking of the power outage they'd had and not at all trusting that it was because of the recent tropical storm. "I don't know how we can ask for help when we're not allowed to tell anyone Sinister is coming here," he admitted. "But…"
"But you've seen a lot of telepaths in your time," Annie finished for him, trying and failing to turn it into a tease. She tried to smile, but it turned into a quivering lip instead, and she ended up burying her face in his chest.
It was too much to think about at once. She could hear both of them projecting worry, and on top of that, she felt violated. She felt unsafe in her own home, trapped in someone else's game. And she didn't even know how to feel about having powers, let alone having powers no one could know about.
And sure, she knew that Scott had spent his life teaching his kids and others how to learn to control their powers, how to be heroes… but this was different. She was thirty-three years old, and she wasn't in school. She was a grown woman and this… this was…
This was terrifying. And permanent. And it felt like her whole life had been forcibly redirected without her consent. Without her even knowing about it.
It wasn't fair. And that was all she could think - it's not fair - not at all realizing that she was projecting that thought to both Alex and Scott, who couldn't think of a single thing to comfort her when they were just as stunned and horrified as she was.
Chapter 134: Some Light Espionage
Chapter Text
After the first time that Doctor Windsor had let James look through his database for one particular category of mutations to compare to, James had decided that he wanted to know what, exactly, the Doc had saved up … especially to the point that he did. But James, having grown up with an extremely paranoid father and an incredibly clever and effective Aunt Widow, wasn't about to take the chance at stealing a copy of just one little folder. Not when he had helped design devices that could copy entire hard drives in a matter of a minute or so.
So he was prepared when the doc directed him toward the laptop again - to compare new findings. He had his device in his front jeans pocket, and as he opened up his notebook to write down his findings as the Doc had encouraged him to do, he started the device to clone the doc's harddrive. He wasn't worried about coding - he could break whatever might be there. But he was more than a little curious on how he had so many samples of even a handful of related, but specific mutations. He took his time writing his notations, knowing that the device would finish up long before he did, then casually made his way over to the doc to sit down and work through it together as they had been doing.
James' theories on how the x-gene was getting passed on were showing promise, but so far, figuring out what was dominant and recessive was … unreliable. Nothing the doc could lay out would work, and though James was pretty sure he'd cracked it, he wasn't about to share. Not with the creeping concerns he was having over the guy. Not … not until after he'd gone through that database. If the guy wasn't dirty, James would consider sharing, but …
That was phase one, anyhow. Phase two … phase two came into play not ten minutes later when a nanite on a glass slide splintered it and cut the doc deep into his palm.
He hissed in displeasure, and backed away, holding his hand - which gave James exactly the opening he needed to swipe a little blood, then stash it while the doc wasn't looking. He'd said he was a mutant, and he'd said he'd had trouble dealing with his powerset, but he wasn't overly specific on what that was. James had hoped to make this a simple exercise in relieving his own paranoia, but … even at that, the numbers weren't adding up for James. It was rare to find others with your mutation, whatever it was. This guy had too much stacked up. It made James more than a little uneasy.
It was almost like permission when Doctor Windsor called over to James from across the lab. "James my boy, I believe I may need to be attended to. Perhaps we can continue this next time?"
"You need some help, doc?" James asked, only to be entirely unsurprised by the answer.
"No, no. I'll have it cleaned up before I can get it looked at." He looked over to James, then the little mess of blood and broken glass on the tabletop next to the lab equipment. "I'll take care of that, too. Don't bother yourself with it."
"Are you sure, doc? Won't take me but a second or two-"
"No. Next time, Mr. Howlett. We'll continue then."
"Okay, heal fast," James said, then slung his bag over his shoulder - more than happy to get going. He was out of that study session early, but Billy still had another class to get through - so to keep Billy from heading to the lab, he sent off a quick text. Got out of genetics lab early. Gotta run an errand. Meet you home. XOXO.
Simple, to the point, and probably just off enough to get him home quickly, too. But James didn't rush home. Instead, he sped off to the nearest tech outlet to grab a new laptop - the fastest one they had in stock - and then he headed home.
He dropped his bookbag next to the front door, unwrapping the computer on his way to the bedroom - and got it plugged in and running before he'd emptied his pockets entirely. As soon as the computer was working right, he double checked that all internet connections were off, bluetooth was disabled, and any kind of sharing was entirely locked down before he hooked up the device in his pocket and started the transfer of the copied drive to the new computer.
He'd abandoned his cell phone in his jacket, so he missed Billy's text back - and the handful from his Dad, Kate, and Mia. He had too much to get done in the mini lab that was in the spare bedroom, and by the time that Billy finally got home, all he saw was a streak as James rushed between bedrooms to get the analysis from the doc into the system too.
When Billy caught up to him, James was sitting cross-legged on the middle of their bed, entirely focused on the laptop with a flash drive between his fingers like a cigarette as he decoded what was already on the computer. He looked up quickly for a little double take, then grinned at Billy. "Hey. Missed your face."
"Same. What's with the new … everything?" Billy asked as he came over then stole a quick kiss.
"I … am .. testing a theory. Cross your fingers that I'm just being overly … everything." Before Billy could respond properly, the computer dinged and James was locked on target, staring at the files in front of him broken down into hundreds of categories written in Doctor Windsor's code.
This … couldn't be right. This should have been just one folder with a dozen or so files. Not … hundreds of folders with thousands of gene sequences.
James frowned deeply and pulled up the file they'd been working on in the lab - a sample from a mutant who had been voluntarily wearing a power dampening collar from the onset of his mutation because he simply couldn't control his ability and was a danger to himself and others.
He had a hyped up manifestation of kinesthesis, but with this particular mutant, it wasn't about learning how to turn it up, but how to turn it down. The trouble, of course, was that he was hurtling sharp objects toward himself faster than he could dodge and he'd nearly killed himself with the most mundane and blunt of objects.
And while Doctor Windsor had been trying to figure out how best to help him tone it down, James had been trying to find a tie between the varying kinds of kinetics … they all made things move … and he was finding ties between family members and various kinds of kinesthesias, but that wasn't … that wasn't what had his attention now.
What had James' attention now was the unbelievably vast array of samples and subjects that Doctor Windsor had information for. It was breathtaking in so many ways.
"Are you okay?" BIlly asked, watching James from the door. He'd watched the entire facial journey James had gone through upon cracking the files and he wasn't entirely sure that he wanted to know the finite details.
"Yeah, I'm fine," James answered in a slightly breathless tone. "Just … there's a lot. Like … a whole lot."
"That sounds bad," Billy said with a frown. "You never balk at a mountain of work."
"No, it's not that," James said, quickly gathering himself up. "I didn't realize it would be this … you know what? Um … this is going to take a little while. And I need to run a new sample into the data, so maybe …"
"I'll figure out what we're doing for dinner then," Billy said with a cautiously optimistic smile.
"You're amazing and I love that you don't let me starve," James said, which was kind of laughable when James was the one that usually worked that kind of thing out while Billy studied.
Billy smiled wider at that, then came over for a quick kiss before he left James to his work, shaking his head when he heard how fast James was typing even before he could get out of the room. Something was clearly up and had his sweetie's attention. That rarely happened unless it was big.
James sat back with a sigh. He hadn't given Windsor his cheat-sheet program, and now that he saw such a vast collection of samples, he was glad. This guy … had so much more than he should have. That creeping feeling of foreboding was tickling up the back of his neck like something awful was about to happen. The sinking of his stomach let him know he'd been ignoring his gut too much, too hard. James looked through the bedroom door to see Billy's back to him, and he took one of the flash drives he had in his bedside stand to install the comparative program that would cross check every file on the database to find familial interactions. While he waited for it to upload, he pulled up a fresh file to start the input of Windsor's data, fully intending to add it to the database to compare against … literally everything else.
Five minutes left to go on the program.
Tapping his fingers on his knee, he started to go through the categories, half holding his breath until he found those that pertained to people he knew.. Telepaths, telekinetics … concussive blasts, and … the very sparsely populated feral mutation.
He opened each of the folders without looking at the contents, then could hardly breathe when he saw not only the original x-men's information and full genetic codes, but his siblings, his niece and nephew, and himself.
James knew he and his siblings hadn't given any samples - and though it would have been easy enough for someone to stalk one of the many scenes of fights or rescues to procure something from him or his siblings … Suzie and Chris … there was no way that he could have gotten samples like that through any legal or acceptable methods.
Chewing on his lip, James opened his comparative program and started simple, quickly finding his own very short family tree and stared at that for a good, long time, never having expected to have this level of information about his own bloodline, or to be able to comparatively see which traits came from who. But there it was, all the same.
Then, since he'd just finished inputting Windsor's information into the new file field, he tried to add it - only to have a warning pop up that the information was already in the system. James frowned, but saved it under 'Windsor', held his breath and started the comparative analysis … and watched the ticker for familial matches start rolling over quickly.
When he opened the comparison though … all he could do was stare at the list. Not because he was surprised to see that Windsor had family … but because Windsor had his family. Or … the Summers family, to be more clear. And … apparently Remy.
The entry for Windsor was flashing, so James finally looked up to see the name that matched 100% only to go entirely pale when the name listed was one Nathaniel Essex.
For a long moment, all James could do was just stare, caught between the absolute horror at uncovering that kind of connection and the realization that he'd been working alongside the guy and helping him for months.
He didn't know what to do, and though this opened up a million questions, he was half terrified to get answers to any of them. All he could manage was to continue to stare at the screen with both hands over his nose and mouth hoping something would just … change on it's own.
Billy didn't miss the sudden shutdown, though. It wasn't what he usually did when he was frustrated with one test or another. This… this was on a whole different level. This was shock.
Billy didn't think he was equipped to deal with that, not when James had already been a little bit standoffish about what he was doing. When he waved at James and James didn't even look his way, that decided it for him.
He pulled out his phone and texted Rachel: Hey, James is acting weird. Can you just double check that this isn't, I dunno, something WRONG?
Yeah, that sounded the proper amount of worried, right? After everything that had been going wrong lately, it was alright for him to be a little paranoid, right? That was totally acceptable, all things considered, wasn't it?
Sure, he was still feeling a bit protective lately. And if he was wrong, he was also sure James would shrug it off if he'd overreacted.
Not two minutes passed before a star-shaped portal opened in Billy and James' living room for America and Rachel to step out of, and when they did, Rachel didn't even take the time to look around before she focused on Billy and stepped toward him on a mission.
What happened? Rachel projected. And keep it telepathic if you're worried about him. He'll just cover otherwise.
No idea, Billy said. One minute, he's sitting at a brand new computer, and the next, he's staring at it like it's just pronounced him dead or something. He's been like this… He gestured toward James, letting Rachel see for herself.
When Rachel got a good look at James - on his bed, cross-legged and still staring at the new laptop, she took a moment to try and gently reach out. He wasn't projecting … if anything, he was locked down tighter than usual, so she knocked on the doorframe to catch his attention -something she had never had to do.
James looked up at her, but it was almost as if he couldn't quite tear his focus from the screen. And then, the look he gave her was something akin to panic, if she didn't know better.
"Hey little brother," Rachel said, forcing a little smirk. "What did you find that's so horrifying?"
There was just a beat of silence before James' hand darted out and he snapped the computer shut. "Nothing. Nothing at all. It's … not …" he trailed off into an indescribable noise from the back of his throat, then covered his face fully and curled in around his knees as small as he could manage to make himself. "Hi, Rachel. Billy give you the tour?"
"Wow." Rachel shook her head and then came to sit down beside him. "I haven't seen you handle a question that badly since we were kids."
"Well I'm trying not to lie to you," James said as he threw his hands up, then ran them through his hair. "And I don't know what I can tell you and what I can't. Just … gimmie a minute to think this through."
Rachel frowned, watching him closely. "Hey, let me help," she said quietly.
"Actually terrified of your reaction."
"I will kick her into a very, very wet dimension if she firebirds," America said, smirking broadly.
"I'm more afraid she'll shut down," James said, though that at least got a smile in response.
"Oh, I'll deal with that too," America said, her smirk turning crooked.
"Spare bedroom's yours if you're in a rush," James said with a wave before he turned toward Rachel. "If I show you, you have to keep it entirely to yourself. This is like … major higher level mess."
Rachel bit her lip. "I… will keep your secrets as long as it's prudent," she said diplomatically.
"You gotta keep it from Nate, too," James said.
"Why."
"Terrified of the reaction doesn't begin to cut it."
"He is the more hotheaded one," Rachel said. "But still."
"And the more scary telepath."
"Okay, I'm going to go ahead and be insulted."
"You're the one in cahoots with a cosmic entity, though so … even both ways."
"Sure, sure. You going to let me in the circle or what?"
"Promise me it stays with us, and I'll let you in," James said. "Where you can get the baby steps on what I'm thinking about doing."
Rachel crossed her arms, but ultimately, she was too curious to resist. She blew her hair out of her face. "Fine. But if it gets too dangerous-"
"Rach, it's already too dangerous," James said.
"Okay, let me in."
James didn't smile at that though, and instead, he had to calm himself down enough to let down his shields for her to show her what he'd discovered - all their dad had warned him of, who he was dealing with … and how it all tied together. But then he also made a point to show her the lengths this guy had gone to just to see where James was with his theories … and help him along. Which was enough for her to get an idea of where he was headed with it, too.
Okay. Rachel projected to him, her mental voice obviously shocked. Okay, Dad can't know about this right now, or he's going to have a stroke.
I know.
But if he was warning you about him….
I know. I have to ease his mind about that much. And if I tell Dad I know who he is, then I think it'll get back to him.
Rachel was floating slightly, though she wasn't on fire, either. Just at her eyes. So, what are you thinking?
Knowing the history, James said. If we move on this guy, he'll attack hard. And I know we're not ready for that. We will lose.
Yeah, the Phoenix is already licking it's lips, so that's a big 'no' on a full-frontal attack.
But … if I play it cool … I might be able to keep him away from Dad and Nate for a start. Keep him close so we know what he's doing.
You want to be an inside man.
I think it's the best option. Definitely the best way to find out what he knows about us. And what he plans to do about us.
He's an incredibly powerful telepath. The Phoenix is gloating about how he could defeat Mom without its help.
He hasn't been able to crack me, Rach. I've caught him trying, but he hasn't pushed and I don't know why. He had to have pulled some strings to be where he is now - and as far as I can tell, that's to find out more about me.
Rachel played with a small bit of flame at the edges of her fingers as she thought it over, completely oblivious to America and Billy fully preparing to douse her if things went too far. He hasn't just kidnapped Dad when he's a sitting duck either. He's not being as… obvious as the horror stories Uncle Alex talked about.
That's what I'm thinking. It doesn't match up to anything they told me as far as how blatant he was before. There has to be a reason he's holding back. And I doubt it's just the baby.
If Nate… if we aren't telling…
Rach, he had full genetic work ups on Suzie and Chris. There's no way he could have gotten that without going there and not being detected - and they haven't had any problems. No injuries or mysterious bumps and bruises. Nothing. If he wants something from the baby, he'll get it.
God.
Emotional reactions haven't worked out too well for our parents with this guy. We gotta hit it smart.
Rachel nodded softly. Okay, but if you do this, I need regular updates. Because if this goes wrong, it will go very badly wrong.
James shrugged lightly at that though. Yeah, I know. But I can take it.
There's so much more at stake than that, Rachel pointed out.
I know. Just hoping it doesn't go any further if this doesn't work.
I mean… he literally trapped our dad after that stupid plane crash when he was ten. I don't feel like he has lines he's not willing to cross.
I know. And he's been crossing lines for a while since he showed up, too, James agreed.
Rachel let a few flames slide down her fingertips. This is bad.
Wanna go with me to talk to Dad? I feel like he should at least know I figured part of it out. That I know who to watch.
I thought you said that would alert Sinister.
Yeah. he's probably going to figure it out anyhow. Maybe by scanning Billy, even. I'll ask him to not come by the lab - study in the library… but this might give Dad a little something since he did warn me. At least he'll know I'm not clueless. Might make him feel better for a minute.
Might improve his blood pressure too.
That's what I'm hoping, James agreed. And he'd love to see you unexpectedly.
I've been meaning to drop in on him anyway.
So do you want to ask your sweetheart or mine? Winner gets a kiss on the cheek either way.
Mine. She likes to show off.
What? That doesn't sound like her at all. James finally gave Rachel a little smile, then leaned on her shoulder.
Rachel ruffled his hair and then turned to America. "Hey, babe, can you send us to my dad's?"
America shook her head at her. "Obviously. You gonna tell me what's going on?"
"Later. I'll tell you what I can."
"Wow."
"Or you can just listen in when we talk to Dad," James said. "That's going to be a fun conversation."
"See, with an invitation like that, how can I refuse?" America asked, already kicking open a new star portal.
"You are coming, right?" James asked Billy as he held out his hand.
"Obviously," Billy agreed. "Whatever this is…"
"Just … keep your drama level low, sweetheart."
"Probably can only keep it at a seven out of ten?" Billy offered. "That's low. For me."
"That's much lower than I had anticipated," James teased.
"Oh good."
Annie had been sleeping heavily lately as her body adjusted to the huge changes it had undergone, so Scott had been making breakfast in the morning. So when she smelled something coming from the kitchen, she didn't initially think anything of it… until she realized that Scott was still sleeping next to her - having spent a long night talking with Nate, who had badly needed some advice as Kate got more panicked about having a baby.
So someone else was in her kitchen.
Annie sat up and shook Scott awake as well, her eyes narrowed as she pulled on a nightgown and a robe and tiptoed down to see if this was a wanted visitor or not. She couldn't hear anyone's thoughts, though she didn't know how to reach for them, either. All she knew was that whoever it was, they weren't projecting; that was the only way she could have heard them.
Scott had also pulled on some clothes, but he had cheated and done a quick scan of the house, so he already knew who it was at the same time Annie realized the smell was tea.
And there was Sinister, peacefully pouring himself a cup of Earl Grey as Scott swore and hurried down after Annie, standing in front of her at the bottom of the stairs.
But Annie couldn't let it go - "Good lord, if you're going to have tea in my house, at least have the decency to have something sweet."
"I'm afraid I'll never understand that particular trend," Sinister said calmly as he finished mixing up his cup. "I didn't touch your cold tea, Miss Hale."
Annie narrowed her eyes at him and then, to Scott's surprised, harrumphed and headed right for the kitchen, almost shooing Sinister aside. "Well, if you're going to get yourself some breakfast, at least move aside so I can have the same at this ungodly hour."
Sinister smiled to himself. "Breakfast for you, nightcap for me, I'm afraid. I simply had to check in and see how you're faring in captivity."
"You came to see how her telepathy is coming along, you mean," Scott said. He obviously wasn't comfortable with Annie that close to Sinister, but he didn't exactly know what to do when she was … just … making breakfast with him right there. She wasn't in any danger, and he wasn't bothering her.
"In part, yes," Sinister admitted. "The adjustment period can be rocky at first, though I counted on you being as closed off as you like to believe you are."
"Something I'll have to thank Jean for," Scott said, still watching the two of them in the kitchen. "Can I just ask - why?" he said at last.
Sinister took his time answering, obviously weighing out his response. "What reasons had you come up with on your own, Scott?" He tapped his temple. "I won't even cheat this time around."
Scott gestured toward Annie, who scooted around Sinister with a plate in one hand and a cup of tea in the other, absolutely laying claim to her kitchen. "You didn't like that she's human."
"That's a bit harsh," Sinister said heavily. "I prefer to look at it as if I was giving her a new coping mechanism for the life she is choosing to take part in."
"Bullshit."
"Scott, if I took that much of an issue with her simply being human, I would have killed her." He shook his head lightly. "I don't go to any trouble over someone who simply isn't worthwhile."
Scott narrowed his eyes as Annie handed him a plate, and he almost automatically sat down with it, halfway smirking her way without meaning to. "You barely tolerated Emma; you've always been obsessed with-"
"Yes, well, you truly were slumming it with that bottle blonde monstrosity."
"Amen," Annie said under her breath.
Sinister smiled openly and gestured to Annie without comment, and Scott sighed and waved his hand. "Okay, but you've always made it a point to talk about my family - specifically. I remember how invested you were in Rachel. In Jean. So I don't…" He trailed off, not sure what of the many questions to ask.
"You have two grown children, one of whom is already moving the line forward. Aren't you getting a bit old to worry about more?"
"In that case, why change her?" Scott insisted.
"She's dealing with your children. She can use a little … help."
"I don't need any help," Annie said as she sat down primly.
"You may find it useful in a pinch when neither of his telepaths are around," Sinister said in a much warmer tone than Scott was used to hearing. "Should you find yourself in trouble, it would be much easier for one of them to hear you if you're already attuned to the psychic plane without intervention from one of them." He tapped the table. "And should you find yourself simply living your life in the city, you'll know for sure if someone is following you with ill intent."
Annie pressed her lips together, obviously choosing her words carefully. "I think you'll find that I was already surrounded by people who could do exactly that. And I didn't ask for help."
"Yes," he agreed. "But you also found yourself wishing to keep up from time to time."
Annie blushed and glanced toward Scott. "That - that doesn't mean-" She fumbled for an answer and found none.
"That doesn't give you carte blanche to sneak in here and change my fiancee," Scott said when Annie couldn't find anything to say.
Sinister took a deep, thoughtful breath as he sat back. "Yes, well. No good deed, it seems. And yet, I will continue to attempt to help as it's needed." He turned away from Scott and back to Annie. "I'm very sure that you'll find Scott to be a lovely coach in this field, even if it's not related to his powerset. However, seeing as you're both unable to discuss it outside of your admittedly small circle, I will step in myself should he slip in how much help he's willing to give. You'll want to find your control and also to test your boundaries."
"I want you to change me back," Annie said instead - plain and simple as she buttered her toast.
"I'm afraid that is a much more perilous process." Sinister hadn't blinked since he'd attempted to offer his help. "And one that is rarely successful without leaving extreme deficits behind."
"Damn." Annie sighed, and Scott noticed that her hands were shaking. She was doing well, but she had never come up against anyone like this before.
"I do hope that you'll learn to appreciate what you now have," Sinister said, then sighed before he finished his tea. "Scott - my offer stands, for now."
"And my answer hasn't changed - I don't want you to change a thing," Scott said. "And neither did Annie, for that matter."
"Very well." He rose to his feet, quietly excusing himself as he did so. "I wish you both luck. I must return to prepare for my classes."
Annie and Scott didn't say anything until after Sinister had gone, and then, as soon as they were sure he was gone, Scott crossed the distance to Annie and pulled her into a kiss. "You okay?" he asked.
She shook her head, suddenly shaky. "That was unnerving," she whispered.
"He's got that effect on people," Scott said, though he was smiling lightly at her. "You did great," he said. "Really. I think breakfast was the right call."
"Really?"
He smirked and nodded. "I liked how you laid claim to your territory," he teased.
She blushed and hit him in the shoulder. "I just - it seemed like -"
"It was a power move, and you know it," he said, finally smiling her way again.
Annie blushed with pleasure and brushed her hair behind her ear. "Yes. Well." She cleared her throat. "Anyway, as much as I hate to agree with him on anything, shouldn't we - well - figure out what to do about…?" She gestured with one hand to her own head. "All I can do so far is overhear people projecting."
"Right." Scott cleared his throat, though before he could decide how best to approach that, a star-shaped portal appeared in the living room, breaking the tension that was still in the house from Sinister's visit.
"Oh good," Annie said, smiling widely. "People I actually want to see."
Rachel bounced over and gave Scott a kiss on the cheek first, then headed over to give Annie a hug while America led the boys out before the portal closed up. "Hey, you two seem stressed. How is that possible when it's so early here?" Rachel asked as she gave Annie a squeeze.
"Just planning out our day," Annie said, hugging Rachel back tightly.
"Planning stress … that's not good planning," James teased as he gave Scott a quick hug, trying to figure out what he could say - and how.
Scott shook his head at that and hugged James right back. "Annie's probably going to be more involved once we're done with this house arrest - there's a few things she'll need to learn."
"That was the plan all along, right, Miss Hale?" James tried to tease,
"Annie." She hadn't meant to snap at him, but this soon after a visit from Sinister, she could hear the way Sinister had delighted in formality with her, and it stung - and she hadn't expected it to.
James paused, frowning slightly because she really didn't ever get that tense when she playfully corrected him. He narrowed his eyes and looked past them to the kitchen taking in the scents in the air. "You switch to hot tea for some reason on the equator?"
"Never," Annie said, though she glanced Scott's way with both eyebrows raised.
"No London Fog then?" James asked, trying to relax, but not getting there at all when he could tell something had been going on.
Annie gestured toward her glass of sweet tea. "Same as every mornin'," she said, her voice tight.
James and Rachel shared a look and nodded at the same time.
"Gag order?" Rachel guessed and gestured to James. "He figured it out, you know."
Scott let his shoulders drop as he turned fully toward James. "When? And how?" he asked.
"Tonight and No." James held up one hand. "The scent is different though. He's doing something."
Scott worked around an answer, since the gag order didn't seem to be lifting - likely because they were still talking in subtleties. "That's always the case," he agreed at last.
James sighed. "Okay … so … does it have to be officially stated?" James asked, looking to Rachel, who shrugged.
"That would be the smartest way to handle it," she said.
"Fine." James closed his eyes and turned back to Scott. "So far, I know that Dr. Windsor is Mr. Sinister - and probably half a dozen other names that I haven't dug up yet. Essex, Milbury, and Dracula if you listen to Alex …"
Scott closed his eyes for a moment at the relief of being able to talk to them openly about it before he said, "Alright, good. Then you can warn your brother that he and his new family are on the man's radar in a big way," he said. "I can't."
James turned to Rachel. "That's on you. I'm not officially taking part for now."
Scott frowned at that. "What are you talking about?"
James knew this was going to be the harder part to handle, and that he had to be extremely careful in what he said to either of them. "I need you to trust me, Dad."
Scott had his gaze locked onto James, his breath held in his chest. "Are you not telling me because of him or is this actually you asking?" he said, his voice tight.
"Yes," James said carefully.
"You have a plan," Annie guessed.
"Not … exactly," James admitted, then turned back to hold Scott's gaze. "But we know what doesn't work with this guy. And we know the team ate it when they tried to just …"
"If he's not stopped, there's no boundary he won't cross," Scott said, stressing the importance. "I need you to be careful."
"Dad. I've read every file on every encounter. I know he's checking in with you, too - and that he can work past your telepathic blocks. Yours. I don't know how it works, but I wouldn't be surprised if he already knew that we're talking about him."
"He does seem to have an uncanny knack for showing up just when we think we've made any progress," Annie grumbled.
"I need you to keep your head down, don't get in his face, and trust me. Please."
James could clearly see the battle happening across Scott's expression. On the one hand, he wanted to trust James, but this was also the one person in the universe Scott was most afraid of. That didn't make the decision easy, though Scott did at least try, nodding once with a quiet, "You know I trust you. I just don't want you to get hurt."
"Not what I'm aiming for, either," James said.
"Yeah, he sort of needs to get married in the near future," Billy put in, waving with the tips of his fingers. "Hi, sorry, this was all getting really heavy."
"It's a necessarily heavy subject," Scott said.
"Yeah, I figured that out, thanks," Billy said. "I just meant, you know, James is the one taking classes from him, so… he gets to take point, right?" He glanced toward James. "I'm eventually getting in on the plan too, right?"
"No plan," James said.
Scott dragged both hands down his face. "Of all the times to become your mother…"
"I thought you said his mother was the one who drove Sinister to disappear last time you saw him," Annie pointed out.
James crossed his arms and turned toward Scott to watch him try and work out of his own storytelling.
Scott sighed. "K also had about a hundred years' worth of experience over James," he pointed out. "And had crossed paths with him on missions."
"Yeah, and for what it's worth, I read all her notes on the whole thing. The actual detailed ones - not the ones she slapped into your mission files," James said.
Scott couldn't help but raise both eyebrows. "Where did you find…?"
"I got nosy. Started digging."
Annie reached out and put her hand on Scott's arm as Scott stared at James. And when he turned her way, she gave him a tight smile. "It's a better status quo than where we just were," she pointed out. "At least we're all on the same page - or close enough to it, anyway."
"What did he want?" James asked.
"He's been askin' Scott to let him give him his powers back," Annie said, her eyes narrowed, because she knew Scott would bring up her powers first and she didn't want him to overlook his own problems.
That would be cool, Billy thought, and Annie turned his way to make sure he hadn't said it out loud. It was alright to think it, but to say it… she knew Scott missed his powers but he didn't need anyone else agreeing with Sinister.
"Okay," James said, thinking to himself about what he'd seen on the laptop already. "But … why would he do that when your beams actually hurt him?"
Scott let out a low whistle. "When you do a deep dive…" He trailed off and shook his head.
"Headfirst, not asking where the bottom is," James agreed.
Scott leaned back. "I'm not sure what his long-term goals are," he admitted. "But when I tell you he's had an obsession…" He paused. "That doesn't even accurately cover it. He's been trying to control every aspect of my life since I was ten."
"Yeah, I know," James said.
"And he gets annoyed when he thinks I'm not living up to my own potential," Scott said, genuine bitterness in his tone.
"Figured that out too," he agreed.
"So as near as I can tell, he'd rather take the risk of restoring my powers and set me back on the path he wants than let me have a quieter life," Scott finished.
James tipped his head, but didn't quite meet up to a full agreement on that note, instead keeping his thoughts to himself before he had to explain things he did not want to dive into.
"Besides," Annie said with a sigh, "those bionic eyes have been dead useful. No sense in throwing away a good early warning system…" She trailed off, though Rachel could hear the rest in her head: …without replacing it with another. Damn him.
Rachel narrowed her eyes Annie's way and then reached out to brush her mind, and when she realized what had happened, she sat back, stunned and not immediately sure what to say.
"Okay, so, at the risk of ticking you off, I really just needed to let you know what I knew," James said. "The stuff that applies, anyhow."
Scott let out a slow, even breath. "I know I don't need to tell you to be careful. Or that you're playing with fire."
"I'm just trying to keep it from blowing up," James said. "I promise - I won't push."
"We should warn Nate and Kate," Rachel said; she was watching Annie instead of Scott - which was enough to get James's attention too, given her tone.
He looked between the two of them for a long moment. "What am I missing?"
Rachel gestured to Annie. "She's telepathic."
"What am I thinking?" Billy said, trying to distract Annie from her stress.
Annie blinked toward Billy and then smiled lightly. "No, I don't think I'll be wearing any uniform anytime soon, but you're sweet to have that much faith in me."
"I'm not convinced," James said. "About what he's thinking or you not wearing a uniform. What am I thinking?"
Annie frowned his way, narrowing her eyes, and then shook her head. "I'm sorry," she said, blushing and brushing her hair behind her ear. "I… I don't know how to look if you're not projecting. I'm not very good at this…"
"It was a trick question," Rachel said. "I can't even look into his thoughts unless he lets me, so … he's screwing with you a little." And he's a good one to sit next to when you're overwhelmed with other people's thoughts, Rachel told her.
That's good to know, Annie replied, since she did know how to have a telepathic conversation when someone else was in control.
"Looks like you have a teacher," James said toward Annie. "Unless you want to learn from someone who's actually subtle…."
"No, I'd… I'd like to keep this between us for the time being," Annie admitted. "I don't know what the reaction would be if this gets too much bigger."
"Okay, but you'll be having entire conversations with facial expressions if you work with her," James said.
"That's fine," Annie said in a breath. "I would just like to figure out how to use this… this…" She waved her hand in the air, at a loss for words to describe the situation.
"I've got time," Rachel promised. "And America likes to lay on the beach here, so I'm sure we can take more time."
"There are gorgeous girls here," America teased easily.
"Only when I'm here," Rachel shot back with a flip of her hair.
"Nice." America smirked and blew a kiss to her. "Besides, you're teaching in Westchester now. I'm dating a schoolteacher. This is just how it is."
"Is that a complaint or a play by play?" Rachel teased.
"Yes," America teased right back.
"Alright, well … you guys enjoy figuring out your schedule," James said as he gave Scott a quick hug. "I have labs in the morning."
Scott held him tightly, for longer than usual. "Please be careful," he said again. "Love you, James."
"Love you too," James answered, then stepped over to give Annie a quick hug, too. "Let me know if you need anything, huh?"
"I'll be okay," she promised. "I'm sorry I snapped at you."
"That's not what I said, and it's okay," James replied. "Sorry, Annie."
Annie buried her face in his shoulder and hugged him tighter. "You mean a lot to me, James," she said.
"Love you too. I'm going to make sure to get rid of the telepathic dampeners before you get back to the city, okay? Don't want you getting hit with that."
"Thanks. I hadn't even thought about that," Annie admitted.
"You've got a little while," James said with a smirk. "And … I hope you've got some attacks figured out by the time you get back."
Annie laughed. "Billy's already plotting his speech to convince me to join the team, I hope you know."
James gestured over his shoulder to Billy. "He already texted Jan. It's over."
"Oh, I have no chance, then," Annie laughed again.
"I'm looking forward to Doc's face when he finds out you're going to be an Avenger," James teased. "You know … you gotta start small. Cap says. Dad says."
Scott snorted into his hand. "It's true."
Annie rolled her eyes at both of them. "The worst part is that now that Jan knows, I may just end up there too."
"She only knows you need a uniform - I didn't give any details as to why," Billy said with a smile. "Small circle, right?"
"I appreciate that," Annie said warmly. "I'll tell her when I'm ready."
"She'll be thrilled," Billy said, sliding over to James to rest his chin on James's shoulder. "C'mon, handsome. We'll let the girls handle the training." With that, they disappeared.
"We'll be back," Rachel told Annie. "I'll text you; we'll figure out the best time to do some lessons."
"Thank you," Annie said fiercely.
"Hey, I've been there," Rachel said and put her hand on Annie's shoulder. "Don't worry. I know you wanted to do a big Thanksgiving dinner; I'll make sure you've got enough of a handle on it that you won't get overwhelmed." She shot her a teasing smile. "Alex's family alone…"
Rachel laughed. "I figured it out when I could hear Alex," she admitted.
"That doesn't surprise me." Rachel gave Annie a quick hug and then darted over to Scott to give him a much tighter, longer hug. "Hang in there, okay?"
Scott wrapped her up just as tightly. "Right back at you."
With that, America wrapped Rachel up from behind, then swept her off her feet and kicked open a dimensional hole-
-and reappeared at Nate and Kate's apartment. In the living room, just to be safe.
Thankfully, they hadn't interrupted anything: Kate and Nate were sitting on the couch watching a show, though Kate had a big bowl beside her and looked a bit nauseous.
"Romantic," America teased.
"Yeah, we're just lucky the puking started after we got home from the honeymoon," Kate said dryly.
"That sucks," America said.
"So, what's with the unannounced drive-by?" Nate asked, shifting his arm around her shoulders.
"News from the island," Rachel said. "More or less." She smiled at the two of them. "Can I borrow you while America gets some of her teasing out of her system?"
"It's an absolutely necessary thing," America agreed and fell into a seat on Kate's other side.
Nate shook his head, chuckling in spite of himself, though he recognized the look on Rachel's face and waited until they were in the guest room before he asked, What's going on?
So. Much. Where should I even start? You want Dad, Annie, or James?
Oh. Wow. Um. All of them?
When is it ever easy or one at a time? Rachel let out a sigh and let her shoulders droop. Okay. Listen. I'm just going to give it to you - all at once. But I need you to keep your cool. We're working on it. She reached up to brush his hair out of his eyes before she gave him the fast method of information sharing then sat back to let him sort through all of it. She kept the parts to herself that she and James knew would freak him out the worst, but he still needed to know most of it. And if he decided to discuss things with Scott, he had nothing about the family tree that would send him spiraling either. That … was still too much to share.
"Holy…" Nate took a step back, his eyes wide. "Holy…" He ran a hand down his face.
"Yeah."
"Rach… this is… and Kate's …" He sat down, totally pale.
"I'm telling you so you can keep an eye out," Rachel said. "As much as I hate to admit it, you've got me beat on telepathy - so … he shouldn't be able to slip by you. So stay close to Kate, you know? I'm doing what I can to help Dad and Annie. James … is .. trying."
"Yeah." Nate took a deep breath and put his head in his hands. "It's just… you know… I mean, this is the guy who kidnapped you as a baby, right?"
"Believe me, I know," Rachel said. "You should have seen the shutdown that Billy called me over for."
"I'll bet." Nate ran his hands through his hair again. "Yeah. I'll… I'll figure out what to tell Kate. She should know. I just… she's already freaking out, Rach. The doc said she might need an IV if she can't keep any food down, and she hates that idea…"
"We'll just have to do what we can to help her though it," Rachel said. "You know we're all here for both of you."
"Thanks." Nate looked up at last and gave Rachel a tight smile. "Sorry. It's been… a lot lately, you know?"
"You can text us any time," Rachel reminded him.
"Yeah, I know." He smirked. "Actually, Tony's been over here a ton lately. Heard his goddaughter was feeling sick, so…"
"Hovering."
"Absolutely."
Rachel snapped her fingers. "Maybe don't tell Tony about any of this stuff though?"
"Yeah, we're probably already pushing our luck as it is. Don't want to tempt the vampire into hiding anyone away," Nate said, pulling a face.
"I'm already planning to check on James tomorrow," Rachel said. "He insisted on going back to class."
"He's insane."
"He thinks there might be a better approach than what the team always did, which, for as much as he knew, we should probably also look into that more."
"I'll put Kate on research. She needs something to do," Nate admitted.
"Perfect. So. What can I do to help you, baby brother?"
Nate swallowed and gave her a tight smile. "I, uh, I've kind of been just redirecting the doctors around Kate so she doesn't have a panic attack?" He shrugged nearly up to his ears. "Should probably get Tyler to check and make sure she's okay, though… we haven't actually gotten a good look in a while - since he told us what we were having."
"We can do that," Rachel promised, resting a hand on his wrist. "He'd probably love to help."
"Thanks." Nate sat back. "And if you could just periodically remind me that I'm not screwing things up already for this kid…"
Rachel shook her head and sat next to him, then pulled him into a hug. "You care so much, Nate," she said gently. "You'll be a great dad."
Chapter 135: The Jig Is Up
Chapter Text
The boys did their best to make the most of what was left of their weekend, but James was set on going to the lab at the usual time on Monday … which meant they needed to try and sleep at the usual time, not that either of them managed that too well when James kept insisting that he didn't have a plan to share with Billy - or one in play at all. It was hard to reconcile 'no plan' with any kid that Scott had raised, after all. It wasn't right. And yet …
James approached the morning exactly as he usually did - outwardly anyhow. He had a latte in his hand on the way to the lab, though he noticed several ridiculously large men as he got close to the lab. He didn't pay them much mind, though. He guessed that these were Sinister's Marauders … the ashen complexions and inflated size matched the descriptions in the files he'd read more or less to a 't'.
He refused to be set off by a bunch of thugs, though. So he did his best to ignore the obvious additions to campus and headed up to the lab with his backpack over his shoulder. When he got to the genetics lab, Windsor was agitated and looking as if he was ready to lose his temper - entirely distrustful of James as he came up so casually and simply settled in to get to work as if nothing at all had changed, even taking a moment to silence his phone before he dropped it in his pocket.
There weren't any other students in the room - and there weren't going to be as this was more of an open lab time - and most of the other students didn't bother with going to it in favor of studying. Which was why James insisted on going. Under normal circumstances, it would be the perfect time to get something done. Under these circumstances though … well, if there was going to be a conflict, there wouldn't be any collateral.
Windsor narrowed his eyes and then crossed the room to slam his hands down on the table in front of James. "Let's not play this game, young man," he said sharply. "We both know what you've discovered. I'll not have you pretending any differently."
James held his gaze for a moment. "Okay. I have questions, but, I guess what I need to know is why are you here? Is it just your usual MO, or is there a reason you stuck your nose into my degree?"
Windsor narrowed his eyes, and James could feel his telepathic touch in his mind as he searched for any glaring deception.
"If you want to look, you can just ask," James said. "I'm not trying to hide anything from you."
"Then let me see what you think you know," Windsor said, still obviously leery.
James nodded and closed his eyes against every instinct not to - then focused enough to actually let the guy in. "Okay. Go ahead."
Windsor kept his eyes narrowed as he scoured through James's head, then leaned back when he was done. "You don't have a plan," he said. It wasn't a question, though he seemed almost… amused. "All that you know, and you have no plan but to continue on as things are."
"I don't know what you're up to, but I actually came here to learn something," James replied. "And I am not letting anyone get in the way of that."
Windsor smirked despite himself, then leaned forward. "Then," he said slowly, "in the interest of honesty, I will answer your question." He met James's gaze. "My curiosity was piqued. Everything publicly available indicated that you were exactly what Stark claims you are: a genius in every right. Knowing that, and knowing that Scott raised you, seeing your application to the genetic department at Oxford? How could I not be interested in what potential you might have?"
"And now?" James said, still keeping his calm in place even now knowing that he'd triggered this himself by looking into genetics.
Windsor broke into an almost-genuine smile. "You're asking all the right questions. Pursuing all the right threads. You have talent, my dear boy. And this is my life's work. I am not so set in my ways that I am not interested in the avenues a young, brilliant mind could open."
"You could have sated your curiosity without coming into the classroom," James pointed out.
"Perhaps," Windsor allowed. "And yet if you have the potential that I have come to truly believe you have, you could be a great help to my own research." He leaned back and gestured with one hand. "As your teacher, I can direct you well beyond what this … modern science knows."
"If that's what you're actually here for, then do it. Teach me."
Both of Windsor's eyebrows raised, and he broke into a smile. "I will," he agreed.
"I'm sure you have new rules you'll want me to follow," James said, surprising Sinister at his initiative to move into negotiations. "But I have a few myself."
Windsor chuckled. "Go ahead," he said. "I'm curious to see where your priorities lie."
"You know I don't have a plan - and I don't really want to have to make one," James started out. "But … if we're going to go forward with this arrangement … I can't keep focused if you're playing with my family. And I'm no good to you unfocused."
Windsor waved his hand instantly. "Well-argued, but I'm afraid this study has been my focus for far longer than you or your father have been alive."
"I know," James said. "But you don't need to conduct it while mocking him. I know you're capable of finding out whatever you need to without being cruel."
"My dear boy," Windsor said with a quiet smile, "I have never been so unobtrusive."
"I'm just asking that you preserve his sanity by not tormenting him."
Windsor nodded slowly. "Alright," he said. "That's a fair proposal. Continue. I'd like to hear more."
"My family is of course, my biggest concern," James said. "And I'm not going to get nit picky before we can even start. As things come up, I expect to be able to talk with you the same way I'd talk to any of my other teachers - openly to resolve our conflicts."
Windsor tented his fingers together. "And my rules are the same that your father is following. You will tell no one the true nature of our agreement."
"I had no plans to tell anyone," James said. "I don't want my team to get their asses handed to them again if they decide to dive in head first."
Windsor smirked at that. "Then, my dear boy," he said slowly, "I believe we have an understanding."
James nodded and took a deep breath. "So with all that in mind - I'm actually not comfortable calling you by a fake name, either."
"When we are alone, I see no reason to continue the charade," Windsor agreed.
James held his breath for a moment, more nervous now than he had been to start. Especially since he really didn't know the depth of the trouble he was about to dive into. But he knew he was in deep. "Then where would you like to start, Dr. Essex?"
At first, after James had filled his siblings in on what was going on and who, exactly, was behind all the weirdness going on in their family lately, Nate had thought that the feeling in the back of his mind was nothing but anxiety.
Which he had a lot of, admittedly, because Kate was pregnant, and they were only eighteen, and there was a lot going on. And he wanted to keep the creep away from Kate as much as he could so he didn't end up like his dad, hidden away and trying desperately to keep his kids safe. He didn't want history to repeat itself.
So that's what he thought that nagging something in his head was: that lingering doubt that he was going to end up following his father's footsteps in all the worst ways.
But the more time passed, the more he realized that he wasn't just anxious. Something about this whole situation was ringing bells for Nate that he hadn't even realized existed to be rung. And all things considered, even though he had full confidence in his own telepathic abilities, the fact that Sinister had been able to harass his mom hung around his neck until his concern pulled him into knocking on Rachel and America's door that morning. It was early enough that classes hadn't started yet, but not so early that Rachel wouldn't be getting ready for the day, he knew. Though he did reach out telepathically to make sure she and America weren't occupied before he knocked on the door.
Rachel answered it herself, not telepathically either. She was ready for the day, though her hair wasn't entirely up to snuff. She frowned as she took in Nate's appearance, then simply grabbed his arm to yank him inside. "What went wrong?"
"I'm okay," Nate said, first and foremost, because he knew she was a bundle of nerves since James had told them about Sinister, too. He paused, then corrected himself. "Well, I'm not okay. But I'm not hurt; just… I think I need you to check something for me. As soon as Dad and James let us into the secret, it's like it's familiar, and I'm not sure what my mind knows that I don't, you know?"
"Familiar how?" Rachel asked, pulling him a little further into her suite so they could sit down together away from the door. "And what do you want me to do?"
"Familiar like… when Dad was talking about him dropping in. That rang some bells," Nate said, both eyebrows raised significantly. "I just want you to check to see if I've forgotten something I shouldn't have, and I mean, I could do it myself, but outside eyes are always better, you know?"
Rachel narrowed her eyes at that. "Okay. You know the drill." Before he could get more comfortable she was already ghosting fire at the tips of her fingers and the flames were reflecting in her eyes.
The part that bothered her right away, though, was that she could feel that someone had been nosing around in her brother's mind scape. The impact wasn't apparent right away, either, so the interference had been both subtle and minimal. Which was troubling, all things considered. In her own memory, as well as along with the old stories Rachel knew of Sinister, the man did not seem to understand anything close to subtlety. And yet …
She looked around closer, digging deeper into the little details, looking for any impacts that weren't Nate. She was just about to shake her head and declare him free of any unusual normal defects when she had to do a small double take at the tiniest of loose bricks.
Nate had followed behind her, letting her do her thing, but when she stopped, he did too. "Rach…?"
"Do you see that?" Rachel asked, barely gesturing at the loosened brick. The brick didn't even look that far off … just … barely shifted with a tiny bit of debris under it. "Or do you have a suggestion not to look too closely?"
"It's … a brick wall, Rach. Part of my defenses. You've seen it before, and I checked it myself. Whatever you're seeing, I'm not." He frowned. "Which is why I asked you…"
When Nate didn't seem to notice how off it was, Rachel turned his way, then took a closer look to make sure there wasn't a trap attached to it. "It's loose, Nate. One brick is loose and it shouldn't be."
Nate narrowed his eyes, and Rachel could actually see him force himself to look closer at each brick until his gaze finally found the brick she'd pointed out. "Wow. I didn't even…" He stepped closer to her so he could check as well. "There's got to be more involved than this. I don't remember an encounter that would leave something like this behind."
"I'm sure. So … let's take a look at his trail," Rachel said before she held up both hands and concentrated to find exactly where Sinister had been. It was a neat little trick she'd come up with on her own - and one she had yet to teach Nate how to do. "Follow the neon trail, little brother."
Nate laughed when he saw the brilliant trail that seemed to light up in exactly the way America's star portals did. "You've got it bad, sis."
"I'm very sure you have absolutely zero room to talk," Rachel pointed out.
"What, me? Get a girl pregnant, have a shotgun wedding, me? Noooo."
"Shut up and let's figure out how big of a mess the vampire made, huh?"
"Yes ma'am, Phoenix ma'am," Nate said - because he absolutely couldn't resist.
"I'm not even tapping into that part," Rachel laughed. "I was trying not to burn anything."
"But it's more fun to tease you," Nate said, though he was well on his way down the trail Rachel had lit up.
"You're probably right, Mr. Barton."
"Okay, okay, shutting up." Nate held up both hands, laughing, and followed Rachel through his mind, though the path split in two directions. One was more toward his conscious thoughts, which suggested to Nate that it was either a command or surveillance, and the other was toward his memories. And as much as Nate wanted to know the story of what had happened, the possibility of a command was more pressing, so he nodded to Rachel without saying a word, and they headed down that way first.
Nate's mind was structure not in hallways or pathways or buildings but in highways, open roads that led from one part to the next. When he wanted to go exploring in his own mindscape, he usually conjured up a nice car and drove around with the top down, too, watching as the road split in places depending on where they were headed.
When they turned down the road that led to his more conscious thoughts and most recent experiences, the road turned to cobblestone as pop-up tents and a marketplace a lot like the farmer's markets in the hidden places they'd grown up when he was little dotted the scene.
Rachel and Nate got out of the car to look around the booths and tents. One had a ton of baby gear and was clearly representative of the constant anxiety he had around making sure he was a good dad once the baby got there; another was an archery showcase; another was a fortune teller's boutique with a crystal ball that showed all of the futures Nate was anxious about possibly coming to pass; and so on.
Eventually, Rachel was the one to spot it: Sinister had literally bugged Nate's mind. Near a stall that sold old books that, when opened, revealed Nate's life literally being recorded as it happened - a representation of his conscious understanding - was a large beetle. It was shiny and black with just the slightest pattern of red to it, and it was the red that caught Rachel's attention enough to look closer.
"Find anything?" Nate asked, nearly startling Rachel when she was looking closely at the beetle.
"Maybe, maybe not," Rachel replied, trying not to trigger anything into happening - and looking for something near at hand that might be useful.
"Okay. I'm going to remain willfully ignorant, because you have that tone of voice-"
"That is your natural state of being, what are you talking about?" Rachel teased, then snagged a glass mason jar from the next stall over when Nate turned his head. After that, it only took a second for her to dump the contents and scoop up the little black and red beetle. "Hope this works …"
The beetle walked a little circle in the jar but didn't otherwise seem to try to escape, even after Rachel was sure it was trapped. It passively fluttered its wings, but… it didn't seem to be active, either. Like it was waiting for something.
"O…kay. You caught an actual bug," Nate said, shaking his head.
"An actual bug with a red diamond on it."
"Yeah, I'm just wondering if it's a listening bug or something else, you know?" Nate said. "And you're the one who could actually look at the brick, so… any thoughts?"
"Well … if I had to put money on it, I'd say it's his relay? Dad sounded like he couldn't really make any kind of a meaningful move without Sinister knowing about it. This would kind of explain that, I think."
Nate nodded slowly. "Think we could find Dad's or do you think Sinister's got, like, a bazillion of those in Dad's head at this point?"
"I don't know," Rachel said thoughtfully. "I think if we meddled with those he'd know right away. Aside from Dad being his favorite …"
"Yeah, good point." Nate tipped his head as he stared at the glass. "Okay, so… he can't monitor if we've covered the mic on his bug, more or less… let's find whatever memory he hid so we can see what his goals were."
"I feel a little better about looking now that this is taken care of. Think you can put it somewhere safe and non-triggering?"
"Is it totally immature of me to want to put it over there?" Nate asked, gesturing to where Rachel had been avoiding the place in his head that constantly wanted privacy with Kate. "I feel like it's immature, but that just makes me want to do it."
"I mean … if that's what you think would be fitting," Rachel said with a shrug. "I doubt that will be much of a deterrent, but hey. Not like that's not on a constant loop for you."
"It is." Nate nodded to himself. "And I figure, honestly, tactically, it wouldn't raise suspicions if he's got a bug in a teenage boy's head that's constantly on the sex train. Being genuine about that."
"Yeah, sure, your mind," Rachel said easily, though she was incredibly entertained by his train of thought.
Nate scooped up the mason jar and disappeared with it, and when he came back, he opened Rachel's car door for her and Rachel pretended for his sake that he didn't look a shade redder at all.
They drove deeper into Nate's mind from there, away from his conscious thoughts. They got deeper into the countryside, where the roads were a bit quieter because his memories weren't changing, though they weren't even so far from civilization that he couldn't call up a memory for any reason.
In this part of Nate's mind, the memories were more like farm houses than pop-up tents and booths. They were sturdier; they'd settled into the area. And after a while, Nate came to a stop near a house whose windows were reflecting scenes from the trial.
"Dad said it started after this, so anything east of here is more recent than the trial," Nate explained. "Just start looking for boarded up windows or something… I'm sure you'll see it before I do, seeing as you're not playing with one hand tied behind your back like I am."
"I am not even going to take the easy shot here," Rachel said half under her breath as she started her search more earnestly. It took a little while, but back behind one of the nearer houses that looked more at home beachside, she found what amounted to a busted up tent. It almost looked like someone's attempt at a shed gone wrong - the upright poles were twisted and the structure was crumpled with a slight trail of sand spattered around it. "Oh. Eew."
"Eew like you've stumbled into something embarrassing or eww like…"
"Eew like I don't think that hiding that bug in your sex-library is going to be effective eew."
"Eew." Nate came to join her and then swore out loud when he realized that the tent was erected in the back yard of Nate's memories of his honeymoon.
"I told you. Eew."
"The problem here is that we need to know what he's up to, but I also very much do not want to know what he was up to. You see this dilemma, right?"
"On so many levels," Rachel agreed. "So many levels."
Nate glanced at Rachel, took a deep breath, and nodded to himself. "I'll go first," he said, careful of the debris as he approached the tent with narrowed eyes.
"Oh, good." Rachel held up both hands. "I'm not nearly mature enough to look in there first."
Nate wasn't looking long before he got the tent partially up again, and when he did, he poked his head out, looking red-faced - and at first, Rachel thought she knew why.
"I'm even going to refrain from pointing out you didn't need any help pitching that tent," Rachel had to tease in an attempt to lighten the mood a little.
"Yeah, shut up, come and look at this," Nate said, his good humor gone - which was when Rachel realized he was furious, not embarrassed.
Her smile slipped quickly, and she cursed her amazingly good one liner for not hitting when she rarely got those shots anyhow. But when she saw what nate was glaring over, the fire kicked in fast. "Okay. fix it here, then we can fix it for her."
"Good," Nate said, still staring at the memory of Kate half bent over as Sinister smirked at him, knowing he had the upper hand. "And once we figure out how to do it, I'm gonna kill him."
When they got to Kate, Rachel was sure to dive in fast before Kate could even register that they were there. She didn't want to set off any triggers or alarms - and she was pretty sure Kate would forgive her in the long run. But, she knew what she was looking for - a bug or something like it acting as a relay, a tampered memory, and likely something to keep her keen perception from realizing something was off.
She worked quickly, though she kept the fire barely at bay while she righted what she could and tried once again to ease over some of the long-fought with triggers against anything like this setting her off. And yet - when Rachel backed out of Kate's mind, she was half holding her breath and had one arm held up in front of her, ready to freeze her if Kate reacted badly. And to test the water, she opened with an offer.
"I am absolutely willing to cancel all my classes today and take you to coffee, little sis," Rachel said. "Hi. Sorry about the intrusion."
Kate had doubled over, and she hadn't opened her eyes yet. "Oh, hello, Kate. It's nice to see you, Kate. Let's warn you about the latest Summers drama now that you're one of us, Kate."
"I would chant 'one of us' but let's be real, I needed to do the pushy sister thing so that the creep couldn't do anything to you."
"Yeah, yeah, I know, I know, memory's starting to come to the surface. Feel a little ill about it; I'll get back to you in a second," Kate said, her eyes still squeezed shut.
"Sorry. So, so sorry," Rachel said. "Probably the wrong time to tell you Nate and I need to put up some way better defenses … and something a little offensive for you, too," Rachel said.
"Honestly? I get that. I do. Just…" Kate took a few deep breaths in through her nose and out through her mouth. "Okay. Sorry. The timing was really bad. I just threw up not thirty seconds before you came in the door."
"Yeah, sorry," Rachel said with a wince. "It's not even the only tragedy today, either. I made jokes - good ones, you would have appreciated them, and the timing was just as bad. So."
"It's okay." Kate let out a long breath and straightened up. "Okay. Sorry. Go back to the start - is that offer for sister bonding still on the table?"
"Yes, absolutely," Rachel swore. "I'll make Nate cover my classes." She grinned brilliantly.
"Then let's do that. I'm desperately craving spicy food, and we haven't hung out just the two of us in, I think, ever."
"Breakfast burritos then?" Rachel offered.
"Please and thank you," Kate said, seizing Rachel's arm. "And while we're out, you need to catch me up, clearly. It's barely past coffee time and you're already rampaging."
While Rachel was heading out with Kate, Nate took the opportunity to try and talk to James about the same mess. He hadn't had a chance to do that yet - and the idea that his big brother was going into Sinister's face after finding out all that the guy had done to him and Kate already … Nate was pissed. And concerned. Which one was winning out though was still a toss up.
But it was still early enough that reaching out like he was meant he'd catch James during coffee - or at least before he got to classes. And as usual, James wasn't keeping his mind open for Nate to reach out, so the best he could do and get attention quickly was to make a call. And it was a measure of how little he knew about his brother's schedule when James answered his phone sounding like he was still asleep.
"You running late for class?" Nate asked, sounding a little unsure.
"No. Class got canceled first thing," James said thickly, though Nate could hear him working on getting more upright. "What's wrong?"
"Dude, there is so much that you didn't tell me, and now you want to know what's wrong?"
"Nate-"
"Can I come over? Or - can you come here? One of the two."
James ran a hand though his hair. "Yeah. Of course. Give me like … two minutes. I'll ask Billy if he can get you here - unless you don't want to leave Kate."
"She's with Rachel."
"Ah. Okay then. See you in a few." James hung up, then let out a weary sigh before he reached over to shake Billy awake. "Hey, handsome, I hate to wake you, but-"
"Your brother needs a minute?" Billy said, though he hadn't picked up his head or moved more than strictly necessary.
"I'll make you breakfast if you can get him here. Sounded like he was ready to have a melt down."
"Do I have to get up otherwise?"
"Not if you don't want to."
Billy let out a put upon grumble. "I'll give you long enough to get more dressed and start coffee."
James leaned over to steal a long kiss. "You're amazing. Thank you." While Billy was still smiling, James bounced out of bed and started to get dressed, though he didn't bother brushing out his hair or trying harder than simply upright and clothed. He was still barefoot as the coffee percolated when Nate appeared in the living room.
"Hey, so, I need to tell you what happened when Sinister invited himself to my honeymoon," Nate said with absolutely no other preamble.
"Eew."
"Yeah, no kidding. That's not the point." Nate waved one hand in irritation. "Can I just - this would be easier if I - just let me project what happened?"
James nodded before he answered properly. "Yeah, go ahead."
James had barely finished his sentence before Nate had projected the whole recovered memory to James, and even then, Nate didn't wait long for James to process it before he said, "I didn't even remember that had happened until Rachel clued me in to look for that."
"How did she- what now?" James asked.
"Everything she was telling me about Sinister - it was ringing weird mental bells, so I asked her to check for me in case I just wasn't seeing it. Which I wasn't. Which is not normal for me."
James was quiet for a long moment, barely tapping the side of his mug as he thought it over. "Okay. I'll see what I can do."
"Okay, but I was kind of coming here to tell you that you should probably let me and Rachel do the same check on your mind. If he could hide stuff in my head and make me forget I agreed to it… I mean, I let him in. There was no scarring to draw attention. He obviously knows where to apply pressure, and you can't tell me you don't have people you care about you'd let him in for, you know?" Nate said, sounding more stressed the more he talked.
James considered him for a long moment before cautiously nodding once, exaggerated and slow. "O-kay … s-u-ure."
"Okay. Good." Nate nodded once and then sat down, running both of his hands all the way from the front of his hair to the back.
It took James a moment to join him - and when he did, he set a cup of coffee down in front of his little brother first. "Rachel's busy, right? And you're more in tune with what it's like in my head anyhow. Go for it when you're ready."
"Oh. Um. Okay."
"Not up to it?" James teased with a smirk.
Nate rolled his eyes and shoved James at the shoulder. "No, just wasn't expecting this to go this smoothly."
"Well you'll need to go spelunking before I go read him the riot act, right? So … clock's ticking."
"Oh, are you - can I come?" Nate said, redirecting when he heard that.
"No," James said, shaking his head. "But he knows that I know who he is. We've got a cease fire for the time being."
Nate narrowed his eyes. "Can I look at that too? I don't trust anything you agreed to unless we know he's not in there."
"Wow. Okay, that's some faith, but sure. Feel free."
"It's called healthy paranoia, and you have it too. Respect it," Nate teased.
"I'm not knocking that part," James promised. "I just know that everyone who's tried to go head first at this guy ends up losing. I'm trying something else." He gestured to his head. "You'll see. That was my working idea before I let him in. Trust building exercise with a monster. Horrifying."
"O…kay." Nate narrowed his eyes and then sat up straighter, letting his eyes glow blue as he looked through James's mind. He was thorough, too, since his own defenses had only shown a small brick out of place. But he was able to see everything James and Sinister had agreed to - as well as the stories Alex had told him and the conversation he'd had with everyone in Genosha.
Nate didn't trust any of it. But as far as he could see, Sinister hadn't influenced James, either. The only thing he did find was a slight kink in the armor in James's head - practically the same thing that had been in his own head. Just a way for Sinister to get in easier for subsequent telepathic ventures.
But nothing else had Sinister's touch, so Nate backed out - and paused right before he would have left when he saw something tucked away, hidden under lock and key. It didn't have Sinister's telepathic touch to it, but it did have something to do with Sinister, judging by its position in James's memories.
"Hey, what's with the lockbox?" Nate asked as he came back out of the telepathic dive, only to find that breakfast had been going on around him.
"I can't focus on that or I'll lose it," James said. "So I'm not sharing that."
"If I can help-"
"Ah - no. Not with that. Not right now. I'm okay, really." He passed Nate a bagel. "I will have a talk with him about boundaries, though."
Nate took the bagel and stared at James for a much longer time before he did finally take a bite. "I don't get creeped out often, but everything about this has my hair standing up on the back of my neck."
"Same, but - I can't see any alternate move right now that won't backfire spectacularly," James agreed.
"Yeah, Rachel's with Kate right now. I have to agree - we can't move until what you saw with Kate can't happen again - but we have to shore up the others too, you know? Billy, Dad, Annie… God."
"Yeah, that last one's a doozie. I wouldn't wait on that," James agreed. "I know he likes to peek in on Dad from time to time, but I don't know the mode of transport - and I don't know how in depth that goes."
Nate nodded to himself. "Yeah, I'll talk to Rachel. We'll peek on Dad's head… and Annie's going to take a while, because a new telepath is just… so hard to defend…" He still had the bagel in one hand, but the other was scrunching his hair.
"Ask Dad how bad it is," James suggested after a long moment. "He'd have the best metric to measure. I already negotiated on his behalf - I'll do it again, too."
"Don't put yourself out," Nate said quickly. "I'm going with Kate to all her appointments. I'll keep an eye out for her."
"Alright, but, our original agreement was that he backed off my family. I will find a way to make him hold to that."
"Here's the thing," Nate said, still sounding stressed. "What you guys talked about was being nicer about it. Not torturing Dad. Which, you know, good call. But I don't see anywhere he said he was going to stop 'studying' us. Sounded pretty firm on that point, you know? You're kind of surprisingly … almost optimistic?"
"I had to have a baseline to start with, but I have more leverage now." James's tone was almost flat. "And I know how he works."
Nate gestured with the hand that still had a bagel. "I don't trust any of these deals. And I'm worried about you, okay? Working with him all the time…"
James took a drink from his mug. "How do you feel about blackmail?"
Nate smirked lightly despite himself. "Take me through it, then."
James shook his head. "I can't think it through too clearly or he'll realize something's up when I go in. You can eavesdrop though. I'll keep my phone on if you'll be around for a little bit."
"Now I'm curious."
"Same," Billy said - around a huge bite of French toast.
"Then I'll hurry up and get to it," James said before he got to his feet. "It'll take me about twenty minutes to get to the lab. I'll call before I go in." He leaned over to kiss the side of Billy's head. "No solid plans, remember?"
"I mean, I could always just do a supervillain float."
"Nope. Let me be subtle," James said. "It'll work. I'm sure of it." He stopped to grab a jacket at the door. "Or, he'll flip out. One or the other."
He slipped out before either Billy or Nate could react, and rushed down to drive in - he'd be a little early to when he should show up, but that was fairly common behavior when he had something on his mind, so he didn't think that Essex would care too much. But, he also wanted to make sure that the guy knew he was up for something serious, so to screw with him - just a little- he made sure to grab a cup of darjeeling alongside his latte before he came into the lab. Of course, the last thing he did before he left his car with everything was to call his brother - and make sure Nate put himself on mute so whatever Nate and Billy had to say would remain between Nate and Billy while James got to work.
At the lab itself, James made his usual entrance - sunglasses on, bag over his shoulder, and a cup in each hand just like it was any other day, and like every other day, Essex watched him come in with a half-smirk tugging at the corner of his expression, until he saw the second coffee cup.
"What's this?" Essex asked as James set both down and let his bag slide to the ground. He made his way over before James could answer and gingerly picked up the cup of tea when James gestured that it was his. "What are you after?"
"I figured I'd reopen negotiations with some civility," James said, then, for the first time that Essex could remember in their work together, James returned the smirk - though it looked more trouble making than dangerous on him.
"I don't recall leaving negotiations open," Essex said loftily.
"Yeah, we did. I said I'd come back to it as things came up - that I expected to be able to speak to you civilly. You agreed to that, so -" James sat down and pulled his coffee toward himself. "I wasn't supposed to come in today anyhow, Dr. Essex. You know that."
Essex loomed over him, instantly on the defensive. "Have you and your little team decided to come up with a plan?"
"Absolutely not," James insisted. "Those that have figured it out know to keep back."
Essex took the seat opposite James, though he was clearly on guard. "And what is it that's inspired you to attempt a negotiation?"
James was mid-drink when the question came, but he made a point to continue on - keeping it civil and calm. "We agreed that you'd leave my family out of things - and that you wouldn't torture them. You're not holding to that."
"We agreed that I would not be, as you put it, cruel. I did not agree to halt my lifelong study of your family."
"You went after my brother and his new wife and child while they were on their honeymoon. That qualifies as cruel."
Sinister waved his hand impatiently. "Neither remembers, and it was before our arrangement at any rate."
James tipped his head, since that was actually true enough. "Then I guess we need to have a talk about consent. You need it to continue studying them. At all."
"That's beyond the purview of our arrangement, and I've already told you I'll not have you interfering in my work."
James entwined his fingers and sat back, shifting into business mode - something he'd had a little practice at from working with Tony. "If you don't want me interfering with your research, you'll have to get permission from my family. You've had me neck deep in your database. And it is … impressive. But I'll be perfectly honest with you - I've erased more with less thought."
Sinister had looked bored with the conversation until that point, and then, everything about his posture changed. He shifted so that he was facing James more directly, and his eyes were narrowed to slits. "How dare you," he said in a whisper through his teeth.
James held his gaze steadily. "How are you so shocked when you knew damn well that I'd do anything to protect them? I know you saw that as a weakness. What makes you think that I'm not proactive in protecting them?"
"Do you have any idea the wealth of information contained in-"
"Still contains," James said. "I haven't done anything to it yet. Which is why I came to you civilly."
"You cannot threaten that data. It represents decades of-"
"You cannot tamper with my family."
"I'll do as I damn well please with my family!" Sinister shot back, slamming his hand down on the table - knowing from pawing through James's mind before that he knew the truth anyway.
"Then I hope you've suddenly become a helluva lot better than me on your coding skills, doctor."
"You short-sighted little cretin," Sinister spit out as he got to his feet, once again falling into overbearing intimidation. "Do you have any idea - I have used the lightest touch I have ever taken with your precious guardians, and you're still upset because I dare to check on my work?"
"I'm not upset," James said, sounding more calm than he actually was, one hand resting over his heart. "I'm thinking about this with a lot more science than emotion. Out of all of your studies over the generations, how many of them did you directly interfere to the point that they knew all that you put my family through?"
"You know damn well-"
"And you know just as well that altering someone's mind, screwing with their sense of security, altering anything like that can be enough to corrupt the genetics."
"This family-"
"Are you so unsure of your own work that you need to check it and recheck it over and over, or is this your subconscious response to knowing you screwed something up by meddling too much?"
Sinister scoffed at the notion. "Did it occur to you that the last time I neglected to check in, the entire original X-Men disbanded?"
"They didn't disband," James said. "Half or better were murdered. The other half went into survival mode."
"And the time before that, when I had my attention elsewhere, your adoptive father was coopted by Apocalypse."
"Yeah, is that guy actually gone?" James asked. "You'd know."
"Of course not," Sinister said, irritated. "So did it occur to you, in any of your uncle's stories, that I could be checking in specifically to gauge their readiness - to gauge his influence?"
"Dr. Essex, if I hadn't considered all of that, your archives would be entirely blank."
"Then you understand."
"I do. Do you?"
"I understand that you have somehow managed to become your mother despite your lack of real memories of her," Sinister said in pure irritation. "Willing to destroy good work out of sentimental attachment."
"Do you really want to argue sentimental attachment on this particular subject with me?"
"You're the one willing to toss aside generations of necessary work put into stopping a genocidal madman, all for comfort."
"The way I see it, you're the one willing to do that rather than leave subjects that you have all the pertinent information on to live in peace."
"That child is a new subject."
"And is off limits unless you get permission from his parents."
Sinister let out a breath of frustration and pace a small circle. "Just like your parents."
"Do you really think that they're so blind as not to listen to logic if it's presented properly? Or … maybe you believe they can't because of generational trauma."
Sinister waved a hand in irritation. "It doesn't matter. The girl already prefers me to any other doctor she's seen, because the ones on hand were buffoons."
"Then that part of the discussion is between them and you. I'm not telling you to avoid them entirely, as much as they would prefer it," James said. "But any involvement you have needs to be done with consent. There needs to be a discussion with all those involved. This is family, after all. Treat them like it."
Sinister narrowed his eyes at James for a good, long time before he muttered a curse under his breath. "Fine. The agreement changes for now."
"Thank you," James said, going back to a mild smirk. "For hearing me out and keeping this civil. I'll avoid deleting anything without your approval. For now."
Sinister waved him off. "You've wasted enough time. Your next assignment is at your desk. I expect you to keep up with the work I give you, or I will prevent you from doing anything outside of my permission." He paused and looked up at James. "Get to work."
"Looking forward to it," James said before he got to his feet and went over to do exactly that. He knew hed started that chat strong, and that he'd gotten done what he'd intended - this time - but he was also aware that now, the clock was ticking before Essex figured a way out of that addendum. So, he discreetly ended the call with Nate, and then texted once he sat down. Talk to you when I get back. I need to zip through this before I go.
Yeah. I have questions.
James quietly ignored that text, though, and worked through his assignment as quickly as usual, paying extra attention to details that he knew Essex would nitpick. When he got done, he got up - as usual - and calmly made his way over to Essex to hand the finished paper to him. "Usual time tomorrow?"
"Yes, of course. That hasn't changed."
"See you then," James said, then headed over to pick up his bag and head out. He kept his meter the same, at least until he was well away from the building - then he broke into a run for the car. Nate wasn't going to be nearly as patient or cool if he made him wait for too long.
He was barely in his car when he asked his AI to call Nate. This was one of those bandage situations that needed to be dealt with before he got there. The feeling of creepy crawlies was climbing up the back of his neck.
"Hey. Um. So … this is nuts," Nate said in lieu of hello when he was still spinning from all he'd heard. "This explains so much. I can't believe this guy has deluded himself into creepy adopting my family?"
"Nate," James said, but the train was already rolling too fast.
"- it makes sense in a twisted way, i guess-"
"Nate."
"But in another sense, what kind of creep experiments on people they consider family?"
"It's not a delusional situation, Nate," James said as soon as he caught a moment to speak. "It's genetic. He's your distant relative."
There was a very, very long pause on the other end. "What."
"I know. I'll explain it better when I see you."
"No. You can't just … what? You mean distant like … like how people are connected to Kevin Bacon, right? Or … or … how far away they are from being the king of England - right?"
James sighed. "I didn't do the math on your position in line for the throne, little bro, but unfortunately-"
"No."
"- it's a lot more direct than that." He paused and tried for some levity. "But … you might be higher up on your spot to reign over England."
"Oh my God, I hate you."
"It's not that bad, I promise. I'll be there as fast as I can."
With that, James hung up, shifted into gear and headed out. Yeah … he was going to try and ease his brother into it, but … it wasn't every day that you found out the familial bogey man in the closet was a relative.
He was fully expecting to find Nate still trying to reason his way out of being related to Sinister when he got to his apartment.
But Nate wasn't the first one to James when he showed up. Instead, Kate jumped at him, hugging him at first and then sticking a finger in his face to half-shout, "How long did you know I was carrying a Sinister-related baby and didn't futzing tell me, you lunatic?"
"Oh my god, Kate," James laughed, then held up both hands. "I was not expecting him to drop that bomb so openly. I wasn't telling anyone because I didn't want anyone to stroke out."
"Anyone being Scott. Get it. Totally get it. But also. Oh my GOD."
"Not just him," James said. "Nate? I almost lost my control when I realized you heard that. Was there a wave of suddenly lobotomized bystanders?"
"He did that thing your dad does where he goes still and silent and his jaw turns into stone," Billy confirmed.
"Yeah, well … Rachel knows, too."
"Of course she does," Nate grumbled from where he was sitting with his arms crossed.
"By chance," James said. "She was here when I freaked out about it."
Nate still had his arms crossed and didn't seem to be in the mood to get up, either. "Uh-huh."
"I'm sorry your great-great Grandfather is a vampire," James said. "I dunno."
"I dunno either," Nate said thickly.
"I mean, I saw the relationship - I had to go back to it and figure out how that looked on paper. Sorry - if it makes you feel any better, you're only 6.25% Essex, but I still had a panic attack when I saw it."
"Fair enough," Nate said, and Kate rolled her eyes.
"He's still tense because I told him I'm going to keep going to the same doctor," Kate said in a sigh. "And he's processing all the rest of it."
"As much as you hate to hear it, he … is actually very talented," James admitted.
"He's the only doctor who hasn't treated my PTSD like it either doesn't exist or is an imposition," Kate said. "Well, besides Blue, but he can't guarantee he'll be there for all the appointments because he's got a full-time job keeping my dad from dying in a dumpster. And the other teams, too."
"Weird, right?" James said, then focused more on some items of discussion. "We have to keep this away from the Avengers and the old team, though. Their reaction - without fail - is to go full frontal attack, and they will lose if that happens." He thumbed over his shoulder. "And … I think this is … kinda working?"
"That or he wants to make use of your brain more than he wants to send you through a wall," Billy pointed out.
"First bad guy not to want my body. Score."
"I mean, at the very least, I can get on board with not going full frontal attack until after I have my baby," Kate said. "But I don't like keeping this secret too long, James. Something's going to break. Something bad is going to happen. We all know it."
"Yeah, I know. But I want to figure out what - there will have to be some kind of tip off somewhere. And we need a better way to handle him than what anyone has tried before. Guy has too many powers at his fingertips to come up with anything reasonable."
"And isn't shy about using hostages and other underhanded tactics," Kate said. "Got that memo."
"I think the bigger problem is that we can't just close off everyone we love to Sinister's telepathic attacks without, you know, tipping someone off," Nate pointed out. "And it would take forever and come with its own host of problems."
"He'll back off now," James said.
"We'll see," Billy said. "I didn't like the way he ended that talk."
"He knows I wasn't bluffing - and the depth of that data … he'll back off. At least until he has a way to back it up safely and make me behave." James shifted uncomfortably. "Besides … he's too invested in what I can figure out."
"Everything about this is creepy. We can all agree on that part, right?" Billy said, making a face. "Are we sure I can't just… wish him into-"
"What are you risking with that?" James asked.
"I mean…." Billy took a deep breath and let it out. "I…. am maybe also adding a class with Doctor Strange to my classwork so I can find out?"
"Smarty pants."
"I have my moments," Billy said, smirking. "And anyway, I could… I don't know. I know I can't depower him, because it took all my power plus a power deficit to get Emma Frost's two powers gone. But I could do… something?"
James tipped his head. "Might be different for augmented powers? He's not actually a mutant."
"I know, but I want to talk to Strange about that too, because that starts to get into possible blood magic. Pieces borrowed from others, you know?"
"He's fine right now," James swore. "You have time."
"I know. I'm just thinking out loud because I'm creeped out. I mean, tell me you're at least a little creeped. You have to be, right? It's creepy."
"Oh, absolutely. Hard to go from civil talk to open threats to class as usual without a little whiplash … and how calm he was by the end? I know he was trying to poke around, but he didn't get anywhere."
"You're welcome," Nate said, looking perfectly smug.
"Hey. I didn't have anything to hide from him at that point anyhow," James pointed out.
"No, but he left himself a back door that I closed," Nate said.
"And you're very impressive and sexy and I'll take you somewhere to have my way with you in a minute," Kate said, smirking when Nate gave her such a dry look for that. "I will. But not before I give James another hug." Which she did, totally throwing her all into it until he was bear hugging her back.
"I've got your back," she whispered while she was hugging him. "Thanks for having mine."
"Love you too, brat," James whispered back, though he was curled into her pretty well. This whole fiasco was already wearing on him more than he wanted to admit. Especially when everyone kept warning him about how dangerous it was. He knew how dangerous it was. And knowing that when Sinister was as angry as he'd been just a little while ago - fully directing his ire at James while isolated and in total privacy? He didn't show it at the time, but James was a bit shaken. He'd seen Sinister's research. He knew what the man was capable of to a degree that until now, none of the X-Men had been close to.
Kate hung on for as long as he wanted her to, not about to back off until he was ready. She knew he was stressed out beyond belief, and she could see the look in his eyes that she'd seen when they were kids. The one she'd been terrified of when they were little. The one he wore when he stayed with her family or with Tony when Scott had to sometimes drop him off. That feeling of powerlessness coupled with understanding why he was in that position while not feeling like he could say anything because nothing would make it better.
He was trying so hard. And Kate needed him to know he wasn't alone.
When James finally let up a bit, Kate smiled at him and kissed his cheek. "Okay, Billy, please wish me and my husband off to privacy. I promised to have my way with him."
Billy couldn't help but laugh - especially since Nate and Kate had a room at their place right there that they just hadn't used much because they were setting up the apartment with a nursery. But just to remind them of that, he wished them there first, long enough for them to see the room and remember it was there, before he wished them on to their apartment.
"Yeah, they may have the right idea on palate cleansing activities," Billy said, giving James a significant look.
"As usual, I have no control over the situation…" James said with an open shrug.
"Well, that's terrible news. You should take the lead, then. Where are we going and where can I wish us?"
"I mean … we were pretty cozy before Nate called.."
"Brilliant. A day in. I'll order pizza for dinner so we don't even have to worry about it."
Chapter 136: I've Seen This Before
Chapter Text
As much as Annie hated her new powers, she was trying to figure out how to use them a little better. She was able to hear others' thoughts easily enough without even trying, but reaching out? That was harder.
But this… this was what Scott had done for most of his time in Westchester. And he had plenty of experience sitting with Jean, learning new techniques along with her in an attempt to corral the Phoenix.
So, they'd been practicing sending messages back and forth all day as they moved around each other, purposefully not talking aloud as they dusted, vacuumed, and did a few other chores around the house.
And Annie was getting better - usually when she was frustrated. and usually, Scott would hear whatever Annie was trying to say when she was practically shouting it, even if it was something as simple as, I was thinking about breakfast for dinner.
But the fact that she was frustrated by trying to get her message across made the comparison he was trying desperately to avoid… only too easy to make.
He didn't want to think about Jean when she was in his mind, and he was incredibly careful to shield thoughts of her from Annie. But he couldn't deny that every time Annie was in his mind, she felt a lot like Jean.
Not like the Phoenix, though. That… that was all fire and a dry heat. Jean - and now Annie - had always been radiantly warm like a blanket, or like wrapping up on a winter day with a bowl of soup in his hands. A specific, homey warmth that he couldn't ignore or deny.
And he didn't know what to do with that information. What could he do? Annie already felt violated by what Sinister had done; how would she feel knowing that Sinister had stepped in to make her more like his first wife?
God, this was exactly like when he'd dated Emma. Sinister had always loved the possibilities between Jean and Scott; no one else would ever stand up to Jean. And while that had been true of Emma, Scott wanted desperately to convince Annie what he already knew: that she would never need to compare herself to Jean. He loved them both - and always would.
"Okay, can we talk for a bit? I've got a headache now," Annie said, dropping down onto the couch.
"You were doing really well," Scott promised as he came to join her. When she gave him a dry look, he put a hand over his heart. "Hey, I always had headaches when I overreached too. It's fine."
"Thanks." She sighed and put her head on his shoulder. "All I can think about is how loud it's going to be when we go back out into the rest of the world, and I think I'm scaring myself into performance anxiety," she admitted.
"Probably," he said.
Annie tipped her chin up to look at him. "And now you've got anxiety. The crinkles at the edge of your eyes get as tight as your jaw when you're trying to pretend you're fine. Has anyone ever told you that?"
"I… spent a good chunk of my life in sunglasses and no one has ever paid that close attention to my wrinkles?" he offered.
"Crinkles," she corrected him with a playful smile. "There's a difference. Wrinkles - everyone gets those. Crinkles are evidence of smiles, my mom used to say."
"If you say so," Scott said, smirking.
Annie smiled and curled in a bit before, after a long pause, she said, "Really, though. You're tense and it's messin' with my snuggles. What's got your goat?"
Scott held his breath before he let it all out again. "I think I know where Sinister got the genetic material for your powers."
Annie blinked - and then jumped to her feet. "Oh, god almighty, if that snake of a woman - if that - that blonde bimbo - if - absolutely not!"
"No, no, no," Scott said quickly, trying to slow down the building Southern fury. "That wouldn't even … no. He didn't like her, either."
Annie stopped, and Scott could see the barest smirk at the corner of her mouth. "Well, you did say he was a good geneticist."
Scott let out a breath of a disbelieving laugh as his hand lit upon the back of his neck. "Yeah, well… right."
"Promise I won't get mad," Annie said, sitting back down. "Can't possibly be worse than Emma."
"I hope not," he said half under his breath before he pinched the bridge of his nose as he continued to fidget.
Annie sighed and leaned over to kiss his cheek. "Long as it isn't one of your kids, because that would be disturbing."
Scott couldn't believe her level of humor in the moment. "No." He let out a heavy sigh. "But … close."
Annie pressed her lips together as she studied Scott. "Oh," she said in a soft breath. "Oh, I'm so sorry," she said, one hand over her mouth. "That can't be easy for you - considering the last time she was in your mind."
"That wasn't actually what I was thinking," Scott said after a long moment.
"Then what's wrong?" Annie asked. "How can I help?"
"I don't know, it's not you, it's Sinister's sick way of 'helping'. I don't like comparing … it's not …"
"Then don't compare," Annie said simply. "You never have before."
"I'm not."
"Then we're fine," Annie said. She swallowed a little too hard. "Don't get me wrong. I'll be thinkin' about this for a while."
"It would be easier for me to show you." Scott was half grumbling, and hating the fact that this had to come up at all. Almost as much as he hated how Sinister had orchestrated this whole disaster with added powers. "It's not a bad thing, really. It's just something I've never been able to find words for."
"It's hard to describe, isn't it?" Annie agreed, staring at her knees. "Even when Alex asked, I couldn't find words and it's my powers."
"I have complete faith that you'll get all of it in hand quickly," Scott said - and meant every word. "And considering who you are, and all you do, I'm sure you'll be able to find the right description."
Annie smiled and leaned over to kiss him. "If it's alright, I'd like to take a telepathic break - just until I've processed this. I know you're not comparing, but now I am, so… give me a bit to get past this, okay?"
"Take all the time you want," Scott said, sure that he'd thrown a monkey wrench into everything.
"Thanks." She squeezed his hand and stole another kiss. "I'll get past it. It's just…" She paused. "This is the first time I've ever had to compete with her, that's all."
"You're not competing with anyone," Scott promised.
"I know. Now I just need my emotions to catch up to that fact." Annie got to her feet. "We'll pick up the tutoring again tomorrow, okay? I need to sleep on it. But I promise I'm mad at him, not you. Swear it."
As soon as James had started working alongside Essex, his demeanor began to shift. His mood had nosedived quickly, too, and James was spending most of his 'free' time sleeping. Billy was obviously the first to see it, and he didn't like what he was seeing. James was unharmed, but it was clear that what he was learning and who he was learning it from was taking a toll. He got his work done quickly in his other subjects - ahead of the curve that he'd put up for himself, even - and spent his study time focused on all that Essex was pushing him for. And he was pushing. He could see when James wasn't challenged enough, and he pressed the moment he saw it was too easy for him.
James wasn't fully aware of it because of the complexity of the issues at hand, but it was a definite measure from Essex of how much the boy could handle - and a good way to keep him too distracted to attempt to form a plan, should he realize how much he needed one.
And when he was done studying, all he wanted to do was curl up with Billy … so at least that part was pleasant enough. The teases and jokes were dropping off at a quick pace, though.
"Hey," Billy said after James had snuggled in with his head on Billy's shoulder, half wrapped around him. "We need to go talk with your dad. It's a few weeks out, but we really should get our plans together for Thanksgiving … and other things."
"We can't sneak him off the island, so we don't need to make plans. We know we're going there," James said. "What else could you possibly need to plan out?"
"How is it that a Summers-family member is shooting down the notion of planning?" When James shrugged openly and doubled down on his snuggle, Billy shook his head and tried for a more direct approach. "And you're going to pretend that you don't have a birthday, I suppose?"
"Yeah, that's kind of where I was leaning," James admitted. "Don't really feel like there's much-"
"Don't finish that sentence."
"Sorry."
Billy gave him a little squeeze, and let him just hang in the quiet for a moment - but keeping quiet and ignoring the fact that his guy was trying to hide in study and depression just sucked. "Okay. We're going. If you don't want to see your dad, we can at least go do this on the beach in some proper swimwear. Should be a good morning for it."
"Billy-"
"I'm not asking. You need to do stuff to relax, too. All this time hammering away at your work for your doctorates and all the extra time locked up in the vampire's secret lair needs to be balanced out with fun. So. Come on. You're already setting yourself up for an extended break before Thanksgiving. Let's plan to have a little fun. Summerses are supposed to like plans."
"Pretty sure I failed my Summers-final exam," James said. "Sorry to disappoint."
Billy leaned over to kiss the top of his head. "This can be your make up quiz. And we need to go visit when it doesn't feel like a crisis."
"True," James agreed, then let out a heavy sigh, though he didn't move.
"O-kay, as much as I'm enjoying all the snuggles, come on," Billy said before he pushed him back and got to his feet. "Get moving or I'll wish you there exactly as you are. Right now."
"Fine," James grumbled as he got to his feet - and dragged himself to get changed into something more appropriate for the hot weather. It only took a few minutes, and as soon as they were set to go, Billy stole a quick kiss and wished them to Scott's kitchen.
"You know you want to see him," Billy said quietly as he took James's hand and pulled him toward the sound of Annie scuttling to greet them - as usual.
"Your timing couldn't be better!" Annie gushed, grabbing both of them by the arms to drag them into the living room. "I've just finished wiping the floor with your father in Seven Wonders; come join the fun."
"Business as usual then, hmm?" James asked.
"Oh, always," Annie laughed, and Scott good-naturedly rolled his eyes at her as he got up to greet them.
"She's leaving out the game of Risk-"
"Do not play Risk with your father," Annie said seriously.
"Why? That one's decent," James argued.
"Only if you can manage to roll higher than a three when you're defending Australia," Scott said, and Annie threw a throw pillow at him.
"You could just play a nice quiet game of chess. That never goes wrong," James said thickly.
"Yeah, I'm not stupid," Annie said, smirking.
"You could totally win," James promised. "I'll give you the cheat sheet."
"No, he overthinks every move and I don't have the patience," Annie said.
"You just gotta have counter plans for his plans," James said. "Easy peasy."
Annie smiled at him and pulled him down to sit on the couch, kissing his cheek on the way down. "So, just dropping in?" she asked.
"More or less," Billy agreed as he joined them.
Annie smiled Billy's way and gave him the exact same cheek kiss. "You've been thinking about how much he needs to spend time with family."
"Considering everything else? Yes. Definitely."
"Well, we've just been wiling away the morning with board games," Annie said. "Unless you really need something in particular?"
"We can get out of your hair if you're occupied," James said.
"No, I just meant - if you're looking for something other than board games, we can do that too. We don't really have plans."
"Whatever works, Annie," Scott said, though he was watching James. "Probably just looking for a break."
"Billy said," James agreed with a nod.
"Knew I liked you," Annie said, beaming at Billy.
"Sinister working you too hard?" Scott asked, both eyebrows raised - and James could hear, genuinely, that his dad was worried about his workload.
James shrugged. "Yes and no. Goes both ways, believe it or not."
"Good," Annie said, smiling lightly as she leaned her head on Scott's shoulder. "Run him into the ground for me."
"Workin' on it," James promised with a tired sort of look.
"Just don't let him get you tired enough you don't notice him pushing boundaries," Scott said significantly.
"Yeah, he was, and I pushed back, so … that's not really an issue at the moment."
"Just don't…" Scott took a deep breath and let it out. "I just wish there was a way to make sure he hasn't stolen anything from you."
"He hasn't," James said. "I know no one will believe me on that, but he hasn't." He ran his fingers over his knuckles. "He should be leaving you alone now. Got him to come to an agreement."
Both Scott and Annie were watching for a moment, but Annie let out a soft sound when she peeked at Billy. "Oh, you're in his files?"
"You're what?" Scott turned fully toward James.
"I got suspicious of him. That's how I figured out who he was," James said, just then realizing he hadn't ever told his dad how he figured out it was Sinister. "Stole a blood sample from him and ran it on his own program." He gestured with one hand. "It was a whole … thing."
Scott held his breath as a few details fell into place for him. "That's good, though," he said slowly. "You'll know if he does steal samples - from any of us. And you'll be able to monitor what he's up to."
"Yeah … that's kind of been the whole thing." He watched Scott for a moment. "Did Nate talk to you about all his everything?"
"He said you did some wheeling and dealing and Sinister had to learn a lesson in consent," Scott said - completely unable to hide the proud note to his voice.
"It's called blackmail," James said flatly. "It was 'behave or I'll obliterate your life's work'."
"I love it," Annie said fiercely. "Can you look into something for me while you're in there?"
"Yeah, I stole a copy of it," James said.
Annie glanced toward Scott and folded her hands together. "Scott thinks he's identified the donor material he used to change me."
James nodded at that. "It'd be a small pool based off of the powerset and his interest in one or another over others."
"So it's definitely Jean, then?" she asked, quieter than before.
James hedged. "Well … maybe. Maybe not."
"If you could confirm it…" Annie took a deep breath and let it out. "I've never … felt in her shadow before."
James scrunched up his nose at that, though. "You're not. I don't remember a lot, but I know you're not like her."
"No, I know, I just…"
"Besides - fiery cosmic birds don't have shadows," James had to tease in his best snooty tone.
"And no one can hold a candle to you anyway," Billy put in, smiling.
"That's true," Scott said, weaving his fingers between Annie's.
"You got him to spill his codename to you on the first half date," James said. "Come on."
"She would have had it figured out if your eyes didn't glow green," Billy pointed out.
"I can look into it if it'd make you feel better," James said, interrupting their back and forth of building her up when he could see it was still bothering her. "But it really won't make a difference. Besides … fifty bucks says you'll end up using it entirely differently even if she was the source."
Scott nodded gently. "That's what I was trying to tell you. You don't have the Phoenix. It's really entirely different. Jean and I didn't even have much time together when the Phoenix wasn't infecting her powers. You can't possibly try to compare yourself; it's apples to oranges."
"I know," Annie said, though she was blushing.
"I've been keeping my copy updated, but if it's too new, it'll have to wait until I go back to the lab," James said. "I haven't had the time to look too closely at anyone we know, though."
"Either way, it's helpful intel to have," Scott said.
Annie waited until James had gotten to see Scott look proud of him before she cleared her throat. "Right, well, if it's okay with y'all, I'd like to talk about someone other than Sinister - but only if you're done plotting."
"If you wanna know, it'll take a little bit longer," Billy said - then made a point to wish James' computer there. It was too clear that Annie needed an answer to that sooner than later. And then they could start planning for the holidays and beyond.
"Okay, fair, I'm too curious," Annie said - which preceded a small stampede or rearranging so everyone could look over James's shoulder at once.
James shook his head and fired up the laptop, again double-checking that it was offline and not searching for a connection before he zipped through the database to find the right search bar, then, with a few extra keystrokes, he had that entire section decoded so it could be read.
Annie blew out her breath through her cheeks, though she couldn't help but tease, "Well, at least it's not Emma."
"Oh, she is not on the list to keep anything from," James said, shaking his head. "I don't know what she did to piss him off, but it's a serious snooty thing."
"They got along just fine, but he never liked her genetics," Scott said with his eyes narrowed.
"Ah … I think they got along fine as long as he was getting his way and she wasn't trying to get hers," James said. "He can be civil if it benefits him. Yes. I know. Don't have to say it."
Billy let out a dramatic noise. "Augh."
"You would've appreciated watching Annie boss him out of her kitchen," Scott said, just to get Billy to perk up - and to build Annie up some more.
"It's my kitchen," Annie said, sniffing. "He had no business in it."
Scott chuckled and kissed her cheek, then reached past her to tap the laptop. "Can I take a look at this? I know these dates."
"Ah … Don't know if that's a great idea …" James was obviously uncomfortable, but he also wasn't going to fight his dad over it. Especially since there was nothing he could say or do that wouldn't be a giant neon sign to keep looking at any point in this conversation.
"Thanks," Scott said, already pulling up the files - specifically the ones that covered the time he'd spent in the Home for Foundlings. The very first notes were from his time in the hospital when he'd had a coma… except that wasn't what happened. That year he had been in a coma, the year that he'd lost Alex and everything else - he had been in a telepathic sleep while Sinister completely mapped his mind so that he could pull strings once he was ready to deal with a conscious subject.
Scott stared at the notes for some time, holding his breath, but when Annie quietly started to suggest that he take a break, he shook his head and kept reading. He was skimming by that point, because the extensive notes covered years and would have taken days to read through thoroughly. But already, he could see much more than he remembered from that time. It was news to him, for example, that he'd been having spurts of power practically from the moment he woke up, not when he was sixteen and met the professor. And while he'd suspected it, having it confirmed that Sinister had either killed or telepathically chased off any good family that would have adopted Scott was jarring all the same.
"Is everyone's file like this?" Billy asked quietly.
"I haven't explored it," James said, already covering his mouth with one hand. "Just enough to know how it's organized and how to edit, really."
"This is just six years," Annie said, just as quietly as Billy.
"He had an obsession," Scott said darkly.
"Yeah," James said softly, though he tried to stop Scott from clicking on the hyperlink that was his own name.
But Scott clicked it all the same, and then - "What the hell." He stared at the family tree that had come up with the link, connecting Scott to Alex, Christopher and Katherine Summers… the tree had his paternal grandmother whose father was Nathaniel Essex.
"It's … that's … at least half the reason for the obsession," James said quietly. "Remy is your great uncle. I think that's how it works."
Scott swore under his breath again as he followed the other branch on the tree. Sinister only had two lines of descendants: one that went back to the 1920s and the other more recently with a woman in New Orleans.
Scott was pale and hadn't said a word that wasn't a swear word. So, Annie was the one to break the silence again:
"You know, it's almost comforting," she said, though when Scott turned her way, she quickly explained, "He tries so hard to act like he's above it all, but he's still human enough to care - in his weird way. Human enough to have some twisted relationships. He's not above having emotions, is what I'm trying to say." She blushed. "Inelegantly."
James cleared his throat slightly, then just to try and give Scott something else to focus on, said: "If it makes you feel any better at all, in both of those branches, it wasn't his line that carried any power. It was your mom's side. Same with Remy."
"I'm not a geneticist," Billy said quietly, "but, like, the red eyes… Sorry, Scott, but, like…"
James quietly reached over to pull up a different window. "He unintentionally corrupted his own gene sequence - screwed up the eye color trait as a side effect. Most mutations stem from the maternal side."
"Oh, of course the corrupted gene…" Scott didn't finish the sentence. He just looked tired.
"I'm sorry," James said. "This isn't helping anything at all."
"No, it…" Scott swallowed. "I've wondered what happened when I was a kid my whole life."
"I haven't read much of the individual files," James said. "But the only one in there with as extensive a file size is Logan's."
"That makes sense," Scott said. And then, with the barest smirk, "Please, God, don't tell me we were related too."
"Absolutely not," James said, shaking his head. "Your bloodline is unblemished and completely separate from mine."
"Shame," Annie said. "I'd've told Kitty, and the jokes would have never stopped."
"He did accuse me of being my mother, so there's that," James said. "If it helps?"
"You are," Scott said, smiling fondly. "This move? This blackmail? This is right out of her book."
"He brought tea to the negotiation, too," Billy added just to see Scott's reaction. "Just before he informed Sinister there was going to be a negotiation."
"If only it had been sweet tea," Annie said wistfully, and Scott spared her a smirk before he went back to looking at his own files.
"I see why he kept coming back now," James said, though he didn't look up at Scott. "Gave him a real hard time about it … and informed him that anything else he wants from anyone in the family has to be done with your consent." He paused for long enough to nod to himself. "He agreed. For now."
Scott looked away from the files to search James's face. And then, gently, he put his arm around him. "Thank you. And I'm sorry so much is on your shoulders. It shouldn't have to be."
"No one told me he was taller than Nate," James said. "It's unnerving."
"Family of giants," Billy said before he could stop himself.
Annie snorted and then covered her nose and mouth with her hand. "Oh, I'm sorry. But I'm a foot shorter than you, Scott. It's funny."
"If you say so, Annie," Scott said, though he was still reading, this time about Sinister's forays into exploring Scott's personality and emotional growth through the eyes of the kid Scott had thought was his best friend: Nate.
So much about Scott's formative years had been corrupted, and it was both a relief to have his suspicions confirmed and depressing to see just how much of who he was had been influenced by a monster.
After a while, James took control of the laptop again - only to shut it down and close it. "I know you want to read more, but this is my one copy. I have to keep it safe. It's my backup leverage in case I end up having to delete the files he has. Of course … that's only useful if he doesn't have it backed up himself … or if he does have one, then it'd depend on if it happened before I encoded the worms into the database or not …" He handed the laptop to Billy. "Can you please put that in your pocket dimension? I know he can't get it there."
"Yes. As long as we make our plans for Thanksgiving and the plans for someone who's having a birthday that desperately needs a break."
"Oh, you are all absolutely coming for Thanksgiving," Annie insisted. "I'm planning to make a spread."
"I told you it was planned," James said to Billy.
"Sorry I doubted the power of Summers Plans," Billy teased before he hid the laptop away and then kissed James. And somehow, the laptop leaving seemed to break the spell, and the heavy feeling in the air dissipated. So, naturally, Annie suggested lunch and started picking James's brain on what he and Billy were doing for his birthday- not so subtly dropping hints for them to swing by.
Tony was in his workshop - as usual - though that had become more and more rare in recent months … particularly since his kid had been in recovery from a freaking head wound, then had gone back to college like his little rock star. Tony hadn't wanted to push … at all, but as a side effect, he'd found himself devouring any and all news that was outside of his own orbit. But somehow he'd missed out on one teensy little scandal that had popped up likely while he was giving the Cobra a tuneup.
Vision had sent a link in the message, and the thumbnail already had Tony raising his eyebrows because of the title: Prince on the Prowl. The accompanying article was a scathing celebrity gossip piece about how Tommy was practically sleeping with anyone who would have him, was blatant about what he wanted, and was basically trying to be as much of a rascal as he could manage to be when his reality-altering mother was trying to make him stop. But she couldn't dictate to him without making everything worse, knowing he'd only rebel harder once she let up. And so, he was really running rampant through Genosha's campus and anyone who visited, too.
This is outside my area of expertise, Vision had written. And he does look up to you. Can you speak to him?
Tony blinked at the message for a long moment, then responded, likely a little quicker than he should have. Why the hell would he do that? No one ever accused me of being a role model. And though he'd sent the message as is, he was already plotting out how to even approach the subject with one of Genosha's princes.
Well, he seemed to think being compared to his grandfather - not Magneto - was a compliment of the highest caliber.
Tony stared at the message with a dry look, only to drag one hand down his face. I don't think that's how this works.
The boys call you Grandpa Tony.
No, they really don't. Tony shook his head. But I will see what I can do.
Thank you.
Tony dropped his chin to his chest as he rubbed his eyes with one hand. That joke was getting out of hand. And he knew he had no way to stop it. He blew out a breath as he looked up at the news suspiciously. If that was the headline in Genosha, it'd just be a matter of time before it was hitting the airwaves stateside. And judging by the article Vision had sent, the kid needed … something. And … Vision rarely asked for help with anything. Not with Tony anyhow.
"Jan," he called out, knowing that she was in her studio close to his lab. "I'm … I gotta go check in with Genosha. I'll be back by I dunno. Lunchtime tomorrow. Something." He lowered his volume to grumble to himself. "Probably gonna take that long anyhow. No idea how to stop that little problem."
"Need any help?" Jan called back. "I'm tweaking Annie's wedding designs, but if you need help-"
"Doubtful," he said in a more normal volume. "Just … talking to teenagers."
"Ha! Good luck."
"Not the one you think," Tony called back.
Jan poked her head out. "Now I'm curious."
"Three guesses. And I already ruled out your prime suspect."
Jan paused, then smirked. "Is Tyler back trying to win over his prince to heal his broken heart?" she teased, knowing full well Tyler still hadn't lived it down.
Tony smirked. "I wouldn't rule it out, but … no."
"The other twin, then?" Jan pulled a face. "He's making headlines, Tony. And not in a good way."
Tony turned toward her in a spin. "Okay, I guess I owe you something for getting it in two."
"The first guess was a tease, but whatever, I'll take breakfast in bed," Jan teased. "Try not to burn yourself on your own toaster this time - you gotta bring it, not Jarvis."
Tony hissed. "We'll workshop it," he said before he stole a quick kiss.
"Brilliant. Good luck with the mini-philanderer," she said and stole a longer kiss.
He was almost out the door when Bruce shouted to him. "Hey. I thought we had plans."
"Ah, we did, but now I have to postpone. Raincheck?"
"This was the raincheck from the last time."
Tony cringed. "Right. Ah … maybe spend the time showing your new protege the mini accelerator?"
Bruce shook his head at that. "The one you didn't want to share?"
"I'm sharing now. You know my favorite preset - I'll have the AI code you in before I'm airborne."
"You can't blow me off again, Tony," Bruce called out.
"I won't. Thanks, pumpkin!"
Bruce shook his head and started toward the common area where some of the new kids were gathering up seeing as it was a day off. Those on the junior training team had .. well, training. But Tony wasn't even off when he called Bruno Bruce's protege. They weren't in the same fields, but … the kid was quick witted and more than willing to dive in with whatever Bruce allowed him to work on. So Bruce tried to remember what it was like to be the brainiac kid trying to fit in with kids that were more … physical.
Bruno was still almost laughably nervous around Bruce, and Bruce knew it. He just hated to draw attention to it - or to take advantage of Bruno's clear bias. But the way the kid lit up around Kamala was so reminiscent of how Bruce knew he'd lit up around Betty Ross.
Whether he knew it or not, though, Bruno was ahead of Bruce at his age. He could talk to Kamala. And he was confident and proud of her in everything she did. It was endearing.
But Kamala didn't seem to realize how smitten her best friend was. Even though he kept making sure he had a drink for her every time she stepped out of team practice. And even though he kept fiddling with new protective measures, and bouncing in place dying to help James finish that new protective force field for all of the team.
And Bruno seemed to miss that Kamala couldn't let herself move forward on much of anthing without his input.
It was adorable watching them circle each other while also anxiously trying not to draw attention to the fact that they just … worked.
The fact that Kamala's family had all but adopted him already should have been a clue. The fact that he'd learned Urdu for them should have been a bigger one.
But for now, Bruce decided to see if either of them were going to figure it out. He wasn't exactly the kind to get in the middle and play matchmaker anyhow. However - if they kept missing the mark, he'd get one of the other kids on the job.
Chapter 137: Grandpa Tony
Chapter Text
Tony took the quickest route to Genosha that was available to him, utilizing a new booster that was scary fast - but progress was progress. The suit would just need a few adjustments to take it that fast again … for so long. When he got to Genosha, it was just a little after Tommy's classes were out for the day, which worked well for meeting up with Vision at least.
But Vision had managed to talk Tommy into coming to meet Tony, if only because it was Tony and he was curious why he was coming all that way.
"New boosters?" Tommy asked, grinning. "You got some serious speed over the horizon."
"Always tweaking it," Tony agreed, still getting his feet under himself.
"Not as fast as me, but you're getting closer."
Vision sighed and shook his head. "He's far faster than you at the moment."
"Yeah, and I'm going out of my mind." Tommy rolled his eyes and his whole body toward Tony. "Did you know my brain still works just as fast as usual even when I can't run? This is genuine torture."
"That doesn't surprise me, to be totally honest," Tony answered. "What's your brain going that fast for anyhow? Anything interesting or just basics?"
"Gotta do some quick calculations on the fly, you know? Don't want to break surfaces I'm running on or hit something too hard - speed transfers into force, that kind of thing."
Tony nodded. "Didn't realize you were running those calculations. Looked more like an intuitive thing."
"It is a little bit?" Tommy admitted. "But after I got my powers, Dad showed me the physics of it, so I spent sixth grade figuring that out. It helped a lot once I understood what my body was doing."
"Huh," Tony said, then took a few steps to throw his arm around Tommy's shoulders. "That's quite the lead in. What are you doing, anyhow?"
"Ugh. School. At normal speed. It's driving me nuts, because I could read the whole dang textbook in a night if Mom would let me."
"Point of order - why won't she let you clep out of some of the classes?"
Tommy shrugged. "She thinks it'll be good for me to hang out with other mutants and try to be normal - sort of like sending us to Westchester, right?"
"You can do that and still get a degree faster than the average bear."
"Yeah, well… Mom's got a spell on me. I can't use my powers without her say-so."
"Who said anything about powers? You just pointed out some higher level applied physics. Why can't you do that?"
"I dunno. I just signed up for a bunch of general classes; I didn't know what to major in."
"I'd say physics would be a good place to start."
"Yeah, maybe." Tommy perked up a bit. "Did Dad ask you to advise me or something? Because I have actually been thinking about math or physics. Or both."
Tony shrugged one shoulder. "Kind of. Not … listen. You and your brother have been calling yourselves my grandkids - if you're gonna do that, you're going to need to step it up."
"I mean, I have a limited number of hours in the day, Grandpa Tony."
"Yeah? How are you spending those hours?" Tony had one eyebrow raised - and Tommy could see he knew exactly what had been going on.
Tommy grinned crookedly. "Just playing around, you know? Billy's already engaged in every way except officially, there's a baby on the way - I'm actually acting my age, and everyone thinks that's insane!"
"Newsflash - Nate and Kate were acting their age, too," Tony said. "You're on the fast track for the wrong things."
"Ugh, grandpa, I'm using protection, I promise."
"Yeah, pretty sure Nate and Kate can tell you the same story. Can we not have this conversation that I know your Dad already went through? Thoroughly?"
"That would be great; I'm getting the same lecture on repeat."
"Not from me," Tony said. "I'm just here to point out that if you can't do whatever you are trying to do on your downtime and nail down at least two higher level degrees at the same time, you are slacking."
"Okay, laying down a challenge. That's kinda fun." Tommy grinned. "You're totally right."
"Good talk," Tony said before he gave Tommy a little shake since he still had one arm around his shoulders. "If you need a tutor, I'm sure your future brother in law can spare five minutes." He smirked. "In … whatever you're trying to do in your spare time, too."
"Augh. That's a hard no," Tommy said, doing a full-body shiver.
"Hey. He managed to avoid the press while he was acting like you are."
"Yeah, no way. I've heard all about Saint James from Billy, first of all, and second of all, he tried to murder me."
"Your sources don't know everything," Tony said. "And I'm pretty sure - I can't believe I'm going to say this, but - if he was trying to murder you, you'd be dead."
"There were witnesses and my brother stepped in."
"Yeah, but I've seen the aftermath when he's tried to beat someone to death. You're doing okay."
"Still gonna avoid him like the plague, thanks," Tommy said. "Besides, I don't need his tutoring. I do not have a problem finding company, and math? I get math. Always have. Inherited that from Dad."
"Sure, sure," Tony said, smirking now that he had a spot to poke at. "Still. You're behind."
"Ugh, fine. But that means I have to actually take the generals, and I hate that."
"I'll send you some statistics for motivation," Tony said, smiling earnestly now.
"Actually, can you send some trig? I fell asleep and reading the textbook the slow way is-"
"Oh, you were talking about math. Pretty sure your Dad's your best resource for that."
"Gimmie the other statistics."
"If you're feeling competitive, you're already way behind."
"I'm always competitive," Tommy said. He grinned, bouncing on the balls of his feet. "See? I knew you'd be on my side."
"Careful what you wish for, kiddo," Tony said in a laugh.
Tommy grinned wider. "Okay, so. I actually have a hot date tonight, and if I'm going to do freaking homework, I have to- ugh - whatever, I'll do it. Bye, Grandpa Tony!" he called out and rushed off - and Tony could hear him swearing because he was going so slowly (even though he was a genuinely fast sprinter without the powers).
Still, Tony waited until he was out of earshot before he turned to Vision. "No, I'm not going to send him a list of girls I dated at his age."
"I think you've made things worse in that regard," Vision said, shaking his head as he came level with Tony.
Tony smirked crookedly. "Just wait."
"I suppose I'll have to trust you, seeing as you actually convinced him to get his degrees."
"If he sticks to it, you mean."
"Surprisingly enough, he might," Vision said. "Once he realized it could help him, he dove into mathematics when he was younger. And as I told you, he does look up to you."
"Yeah, I mentioned how that doesn't add up, right?"
"I think when your father is an android, familial connections will be, by their nature, unnatural."
"It's the titles that throw me," Tony admitted. "I do want to see him excel, though. I think he's got a shot if he can keep his head on right."
"It's that second part that worries me. He's so convinced that chasing pleasure is the same as being happy, but he's been … different since he and Mia broke things off."
"If it makes you feel any better at all, that was never my goal at his age," Tony admitted.
"I know. I tried to tell him your history - but he ignores evidence he disagrees with. As teenagers do."
"He'll come around. He's probably half terrified and just running."
"Wanda said the same thing," Vision admitted.
"Then you know it's right," Tony said with a laugh.
"I just don't want him hurt while he runs," Vision said. "Some of these children are too tied in with the acolytes who followed his other grandfather for comfort, but he won't hear it - says that it's not dangerous when there is no commitment."
"Oh, yeah, that's gonna bite him in the ass."
"You'd know, wouldn't you?"
"Too well."
Vision stopped and put a hand on Tony's shoulder. "Well, thank you for coming to my aid."
"Anytime," Tony said with a little smirk. "Now … I need to find the rest of them and deal with a few other things. Teenagers. Like wrangling cats."
"So I've heard," Vision said. "Before you leave - I know Natasha stopped by the Summers house. If you wanted to talk to her as well, I think they were on the trail of something that will require your team sooner or later."
"I don't know if I want to talk to her or not, but it sounds like I should."
Vision chuckled. "Good luck."
"Thanks, Viz. Give Wanda a kiss for me, would you?" He already had his phone out, texting Natasha to find out if the matter at hand was pressing enough to meet up now.
"I will. And tell Jan I look forward to her next movie recommendation."
"She'll have a whole crate flown out next time," Tony replied.
"I'm sure she will. I look forward to it," Vision laughed as he floated away.
Tony took his time, pacing a slow path as he waited for Natasha to spit out whatever it was that was bothering her. He wasn't sure what the protocol was this month in keeping the Summers family safe on Genosha and he wasn't about to be the one to screw that up.
I'll find you. Scott flagged something in SHIELD's intel, and I don't like it. Won't talk over text. See you in five.
Tony shoved his hands in his pockets and found a likely corner to lean against while he waited, knowing that Natasha probably had a tracker in his phone or something.
Sure enough, five minutes later, Natasha walked up to him, her eyes narrowed and her mouth pressed into a line in a way that told Tony immediately that this was going to require his attention. "Nick has taken a very close interest in a prisoner in the Cube," she told him.
Tony frowned deeply at that as he gave her his full attention. "The Cube. Why?"
"A Kree craft apparently crashed and was salvaged by a civilian billionaire who screwed the whole thing up, and caused a lot of damage - both structural and civilian. The sole Kree survivor declared war on the planet, trashed a reasonably large path through a few cities on the east coast, and was eventually captured by SHIELD." She paused and turned toward him with a mild look of concentration. "You remember that burnt-in graffiti and overturned cars out on Long Island a while back?"
"Yeah. Who is it?" Tony asked as he fell into step with her, his eyes narrowed suspiciously.
"That's the interesting part," Natasha said, one eyebrow raised pointedly. "The Kree isn't from this dimension, as far as I can tell. I don't know what he's capable of - Nick changed his code two days ago and I only broke it this morning - but the one thing I've been able to find is a reference to healing."
Tony stopped in his tracks and turned toward her fully. "Why is that something on his wish list?"
"I think you know, Tony," Natasha said darkly.
"Yeah, that's not happening," Tony said. "I've got it." He was glaring at nothing in particular as he checked his watch. "Who's the creep paying the bills on this one?"
"Right now, it looks like the Cube's warden is overly interested - but that's possibly because of the higher-up interest. They took apart his ship for study; that's gone to SWORD. Brand lost her temper in official communication because it looks like they wrecked it beyond repair in taking it apart for intel."
Tony shifted how he was pacing with his hands on his hips as he thought it over for all of two seconds after Natasha finished speaking. "You got anything planned tonight?" He tipped his chin up. "I can have a suit here for you that won't show up on any radar in about five minutes."
Natasha smiled crookedly. "For something like this? I'm always free."
"Great. Why don't you call Clint and tell him to bring take out to Jan with the kids. I guess my other business will have to wait until this is evened out."
"Great." Natasha texted Clint quickly and then glanced up at Tony. "James and Billy are due in the tower. I'm sure they'll find something else to do while they wait."
"And they can stay there. We'll catch up. I'll tell my kid to stay put," Tony said, already texting James for exactly that - and coming up with a couple of great one liners in response that went with James' all caps 'why'. "You taught him to be suspicious," Tony accused as his armor encased him and Natasha's appeared on the horizon.
"And I'm so very proud," Natasha said, staying still so the armor could wrap around her.
"This doesn't seem fair," Tony said. "Think we should invite Viz? He never gets out to play anymore."
Natasha couldn't help but smile, because she knew that Vision had intended to reach out to Tony. "Of course, Grandpa Tony."
Tony smirked in response. "So I suppose you haven't heard little Parker call you Granny Widow yet, huh?"
She swore in Russian.
"Like a Black Widow, but … you know … with more knitting. And cookies."
"In that case, aren't you about nineteen years behind on pulling quarters from ears?"
"I pull jet packs, old lady," Tony countered as he texted Vision to join them in a rescue and destroy mission.
"Right, right, back in your day and all that."
"Which was still about sixty years after your day."
"Tony," she said in a tone of voice that still, to this day, made him wince, "do you enjoy having what little remaining hair you have?"
"I've still got it all," Tony laughed. "It's just going gray from you talking to me like that."
"Shame."
"Don't care what you say. Jan likes it." He was smiling under his faceplate, then took off, just to make sure Natasha had to catch up.
Natasha rolled her eyes but took off after him - and Vision met them in the sky, looking bewildered but pleased all the same.
"Patch in, junior, Granny Nat's about to get us both up to speed on the way," Tony said - purely to rile her.
"Granny Nat's about to contaminate your shampoo and see what you look like bald," Natasha said. "And I'm in a good mood."
"Save it for the idiots trying to go after my kid. Again."
"What's going on?" Vision asked, instantly concerned as well.
"He's fine, probably doesn't know what's going on - unless he's broken into my system again," Tony said, then looked to Natasha to let her take the lead in filling Vision in.
In the short time it took to get to the Cube, Natasha filled Vision in on what was happening - along with a few details that Tony didn't yet know. Like the preliminary findings on the Kree ship that seemed to operate at the same wavelength that telepaths did - but as its thrust. Or the fact that the man who had shot down the ship in the first place was a known lunatic and collector of aliens. Or the fact that the sole survivor was likely one of the younger officers, considering the swear words they were using for their graffiti.
"Alright, I'm knocking, who's going in the back?" Tony asked as he started an arc that would let him dive in at full speed to blow a hole in the place. "You said the guy can heal, so I'm not going to try and minimize too much damage."
"I'll go the back way," Vision said, and Natasha immediately agreed.
"I'd like a look at their servers if you two can keep their attention off of me."
"Taking the easy job, are we?" Vision teased.
"Always."
With a word of warning, Tony took his approach at speed only to fly straight up when he began to pass by his own munitions. The extra boost did make them hit just a bit harder, but they barely had to kick in the boosters to meet their targets - and blew apart an entire corner of the cube.
It was the perfect way to draw fire and give Natasha and Vision a chance to get their hands dirty, too. But that also meant the timer was ticking, and knowing that the Cube was a priority, Tony reached out to James in a call to ask him for a favor. "I need you to get online and shut down SHIELD's response," Tony said even before he said hello.
There was a short pause as James processed what he was saying, then Tony could hear movement. "How complete of a shut down do you want?" James asked.
"Don't drop the helicarriers, but otherwise …"
"Consider it done," James said with a laugh. "Okay, fly safe, no idea what's up but … love you too!"
Which left Tony laughing to himself, knowing that James was going to get SHIELD off their backs before they could properly react. And that left Tony far less worried about covering his back while he did what he liked to do best - blow things up.
Once the guards were down, the warden proved himself a coward and ran through a back entrance in his office. Natasha pointed at him wordlessly, and Vision snagged him before he could leave.
"Get the files; I'll deal with this one," Natasha told Vision, grabbing the warden by the collar to drag him away from witnesses - though she didn't get far into the back hall before she realized this entrance wasn't an escape. It was the hall opening up to three hidden cells, one of which was occupied.
"Found the Kree, but I'm in the middle of an interrogation," Natasha said into her comm.
"You have a tag in your left wrist," Tony told her. "Point and shoot. Armor will wrap him up and yank him."
"Perfect," Natasha said - though she had to frown when she saw that the prisoner didn't seem to react at all to the armor. Which, of course, only made her more determined to demand answers from the Warden.
Ten minutes later, she came to join the other two as they finished up what they were doing. Her eyebrows were knit together, and she came to stand by Tony. "They're halfway through the process, so it's not as bad as it could be. But they were working on complete control." She gave him a sharp look. "I don't think it can be fully replicated, but it would be a good starting point to control others."
"Yeah, that's …" Tony sighed heavily. "Did you destroy the research?"
"Of course I did, Tony; I'm not senile."
"Then if I get a vote, we call Rachel next." Tony gave her a look. "What's that her dad says? Can't kill an idea? But you can sure as hell delete it."
"That's absolutely our next call," she agreed instantly. "And I'll need to talk to Nate as well. One can work on deleting the idea, but the other needs to help with our little rescue. The warden destroyed the part of his mind that houses his purpose; he has no direction, and if that can be replicated, SHIELD would have receptacles for orders."
Tony held up one hand and called both kids. "How are my favorite vengeful telepaths today?" Tony asked, then launched right into what was happening. "I have two jobs and there are two of you, obviously you can say no, but seeing as this is likely a family centric issue, I'm going to both of you first. Who wants to delete a horrible mind control idea from a few … dozen dirty SHIELD scientists, and who wants to help with what could be a potentially highly dangerous already mind controlled Kree kid?"
"I'll take the Kree," Nate said before Rachel could speak up. "Not tempting the fire bird with a mindless Kree."
"Great. Go get some armor, Rach. Jan or James can help you. Nat will catch you when you get here."
"That sounds way slow," Rachel said. "Just tell me where to go and I'll see you in a few."
"Dimension hopping girlfriend," Natasha said to Tony. "I thought you could keep up?"
"Sure. Nate - we're headed to the tower. Meet you there," Tony said, then turned toward Vision. "Are you staying? Going home? Going back to Genosha?"
For just the slightest moment, Vision couldn't hide his smile. "I think I'll go back to Genosha; Tommy is forever in need of a chaperone."
"Wait until he gets my files," Tony laughed.
"I'm still not sure that was at all helpful, but I trust you."
Natasha smirked as she watched Vision leave - and then broke into a genuine laugh when she saw James's good work - a bunch of SHIELD drones and transports all frozen in the air. "Your brother is amazing," she called to Rachel when she and America stepped through a star portal.
"What did he do now?" Rachel asked, then looked to where Natasha had been facing. "Oh. yeah, he's been wanting to use that for a while now. Their weapons systems are all locked too."
"I thought he might have something up his sleeves," Natasha said.
"It's SHIELD. He's got more than that. This is an opener," America chuckled.
"I'm sure that's right," Natasha said. "I have a whole section of scientists who have come up with a semi-complete mind control device. In use on a healer. Enjoy."
Rachel's hair lifted from her shoulders with a bit of fire flickering at the edges - she was getting better at harnessing the Phoenix when she called on it. "Oh, I will enjoy it," she promised in a tone that was mostly her own.
Natasha turned on her heel to America. "Want to see the nastiest creep this side of the pacific? He still was being stupid about a few answers if you want to play around, too."
"Aww, you shouldn't have," America said and blew a kiss to Natasha before she headed down the hall - and the warden screamed a few times before America emerged again, smirking to herself. "He's been reporting to Maria Hill before Nick Fury."
"She's on the list already," Natasha said.
"Yeah, but it's fun to know there's some power plays, huh?"
"It is," Natasha agreed. "But that isn't my list of people to hit."
"Fair." America wiped her hands off on part of a uniform shirt she had ripped off of someone else so she wouldn't get her jeans jacket dirty. "Oh, and the kid's sixteen. The Terran-to-Kree year conversion is fun, but that's what it shakes out to be in Terran years."
"He looked young," Natasha said with a frown.
America nodded. "I don't think SHIELD knows he was that young; Brand wasn't helping with some of their questions."
"SHIELD doesn't care about age," Natasha said dryly.
"Not in the normal sense. But age can also tell them how vulnerable someone is."
"I should introduce you to the man in charge of training kids for SHIELD's distraction operations," Natasha said. "He just requires they be old enough to act."
"Mia's feeling better lately; I've got more time and my girlfriend is a workaholic. Sounds like fun."
"It'll be in your inbox before breakfast," Natasha replied.
"Perfect."
Chapter 138: Noh-Varr
Chapter Text
Nate was the first one to land back at the tower in New York, and when he came in, James, Billy, and Jan were all there waiting to see what the story was. He hadn't even gotten the armor to back off before James came over to help him, looking more like himself than he had since before he'd started working with Sinister.
"I don't know what you guys were up to? But I got to break a lot of stuff," he said with a grin.
"Kate and I were decorating a nursery, actually - she's going all out. Full designer mode with Jan's blessing. What'd you break?" Nate asked, unable to keep from matching his grin.
James smiled a little wider than Nate was used to seeing. "I put SHIELD on pause."
Nate grinned wider. "You know I'm gonna need that story."
"Tony said to," James said. "Which makes it that much better."
"Tony asked you to break SHIELD?" Jan repeated.
"He said to stop them from responding, so … they are all currently locked in hover. They can't access their computers, and I even have their music settings repeating the same song over and over."
"Nuh-uh." Jan clapped her hands together delightedly. "Which one?"
"You Can't Always Get What You Want." The look James was wearing was pure trouble. "Seemed fitting."
"Oh, Tony is going to be giggling about this for months," she laughed.
"That's my defense too. 'Tony said.'"
"Which is impressive, seeing as he's been trying to smooth things over with them after you and Kate publicly outed them for being cruel and callous over the whole Hydra thing," Jan pointed out.
"Yeah, I don't know what he's up to but he sounded pissed," James said. "I try to help when he's like that if I can."
"Wonder what's got his goatee," Nate muttered, smirking to himself.
James checked his phone. "We'll know pretty soon. He's inbound fast plus one."
"Right, he told me about that. Something about un-brainwashing a new find of his," Nate said.
"More than I got," James said, losing some of the smile, but not totally. Not when he knew SHIELD was still stuck on pause.
"Yeah, he didn't give me more than what I needed to do my job; sounds like it was the same with you. So you know he's stressed."
"Good thing we're both here to help," James said as he made sure Nate was safely out of the suit. "You gonna take up flying now, little brother?"
"Yeah, the surprise transport was fun. Kate was cackling when I left."
"First time out is the worst," James agreed. "Especially if you're not expecting it."
"But it's so fun for the rest of us," Jan teased.
The three of them waited on the landing pad for a few more minutes, until Tony came in, sticking tight to his new find. Nate and James shared a quick glance then took exactly two steps toward the new guy before Tony intervened.
"Nuh-uh, nope, you," he said pointing at James, "get back. You're not getting involved until we know whatever happened to this kid is neutralized."
"That's stupid," James started to say, but Tony cut him off.
"Not when you know what I know. Get out of here. Go to your lab and find new ways to torture Fury. I need your brother on this one."
"Huh. I'm never the favorite kid," Nate said, one eyebrow raised but already peeking at Tony's concerns. He wouldn't say it to James, but he had to agree with Tony's assessment: someone who could heal stuck in a prison with SHIELD trying to mold him… yeah. That was so many red flags all at once.
Not to mention that Natasha was concerned the kid was probably supposed to kidnap any of the younger heroes he came across; she'd told Tony as much.
"On one hand I really want to argue, but on the other …" James faded off, then waved one hand as he turned to leave. "Yeah, have fun. I've been holding back on screwing with Fury for too long."
Jan waited until James was gone before she turned toward Tony and whoever was in the other suit. "Okay, so… details, handsome. You're lacking in them today."
"Just want to make sure he's behind soundproofing first," Tony said softly.
"You're worried." Jan bit her lip. "I can put the screws in Phil if you need it," she offered half-heartedly, mostly to make him smile.
"I don't think we need to drag him into it if we can avoid it," Tony said. "Might be better to have someone that can keep an eye on things inside." He sighed, then looked toward the still-armor clad Kree, who hadn't made a move of his own yet, even though the armor systems told Tony he was fully conscious. "It looks bad."
"Okay, well, let's all get somewhere a little more secure, maybe?" Jan offered.
"That's the plan," Tony said, then looked over to Nate as the armor followed Tony with or without the Kree's assistance. "Wanna take a peek and see how bad it is?"
"Yeah, already doing a quick scan," Nate said, his eyes glowing. "Just making sure there's no traps to fall into. They absolutely knew going into his head that they were doing some telepathic manipulation, and I don't trust it until I do a sweep."
"Do what you need to, speak up if you want help," Tony said. "That armor's reinforced well enough to stop the Hulk from moving it. He's not going anywhere until we know he's safe. For everyone involved."
"Gotcha." Nate fell silent and didn't say anything until about five minutes past when they were in a locked-down area and Tony's security systems had done a few scans of their own. And then, he sighed and the glow faded. "Okay, so." He sat down, shaking his head. "Where he's from, the Supreme Intelligence is installed individually in their heads - very hands-on control. And SHIELD ripped that part open like uprooting a tree and tried to plant themselves there instead."
"That sounds … much worse than I'd imagined."
"It's pretty bad. And he's still got that gaping hole. They didn't finish the install." He gestured toward the stock-still Kree. "Which is why he isn't, you know, doing anything."
"Did you get SHIELD out?" Jan asked with a concerned frown.
"Oh, yeah, that part was easy. They hadn't quite figured out how to repurpose the Kree wiring, so to speak," Nate said.
"And your sister is dealing with making them forget that existed," Tony said.
"Great. I'd actually like her help with fixing this part when she's done." Nate held up both hands. "Look, I could probably fix this given enough time, don't get me wrong. But it would take a while to fix naturally, and he'd be vulnerable in the meantime."
"And it would be smoother if Rachel helped rather than Billy," Tony said with a nod. "You got it."
"Yeah, Billy doesn't need to use magic to restore minds; there's all sorts of magical rules about that." Nate shrugged when Jan looked his way. "What, you think me and my future brother-in-law don't get into drunken philosophical chats?"
"I am going to forget that you just admitted to drinking when you're barely old enough to vote," Jan replied.
Nate grinned outright. "Totally legal in Genosha."
"Oh, so you're doing loopholes. I see how it is."
"Yep. Not even a little bit sorry."
"Does your Dad know?" Jan asked with one eyebrow raised.
"So, um, Dad's had a lot on his plate since I turned eighteen and could drink in Geno-"
"Sounds like a no," Tony said. "Fifth Amendment."
"Probably smart here," Nate agreed. He cleared his throat. "Anyway, Rachel can bend a little reality to help here, but in the meantime, he's conscious. We can talk to him; he just doesn't have any, like, goals of his own so…"
"So it should be safe to take off the armor?" Tony asked. "Or is that asking too much?"
Nate nodded. "Yeah, it's safe. He doesn't have any orders; they didn't get that far."
WIth a nod, Tony ordered the armor to retract, and they got their first real look at the battered young man. He wasn't showing bruises or cuts, but the dried blood showed he'd been through it.
"Aww, he's a baby," Jan whispered to Tony. "You didn't tell me you were rescuing a teenager."
"That wasn't the plan when I left," Tony defended, then snapped his fingers. "Right. I need to give Tommy a reality check. Almost forgot." He took out his phone on the spot, and within a few minutes, he'd sent a file to Tommy, all while smirking to himself. "I told you it was a teenagers kind of day. This was a new one, that's all."
"Now I'm curious about the Tommy thing," Nate chuckled.
Tony smirked more crookedly, then projected exactly what he was doing and why.
Nate smirked. Seriously? Gonna throw my brother's teenage escapades under the bus like that?
He'd go along with it in a heartbeat to screw with Tommy right now.
Oh, anything to screw with Tommy. Absolutely.
Kid thinks he's being a lothario. I'm just pointing out that he's slow to start.
You know that could backfire, right?
It could. But … considering the cockiness level, I'm just firing a warning shot. I think he'll come around.
You're one of the few that do.
He just scared himself, Tony replied. Don't need to be a mind reader to see that.
And I am a mind reader, and I know he's still panicking. Billy's talking about getting married, and he's scared that means they're going to finally have to settle in Genosha and be the rulers they're supposed to be. He's scared of that responsibility - and as much as I'm mad at him, considering how many times Magneto told him he wasn't good enough for that, I don't blame him for being scared of that part, at least.
No ones asking him to step in right now, or even in the near future. He's freaking out six hundred steps ahead of himself.
He thinks that many steps ahead. You'd know; you're proud of that part of him, especially since you think he's a genius in the making.
He is. So is Billy. And they've been hampered down by Magneto until now.
Magneto always thought Billy was brilliant, but he wanted to direct it. Tommy's been told he's the useless twin for so long…
I just want to see the kid pick a direction. Any direction.
Yeah. Uncle Alex, believe it or not, has been talking to him. Something about having experience with a big brother with a big name.
Good. I'm glad to hear it. He needs the back up.
"If you're speaking telepathically, I can communicate in that manner as well," the Kree kid said quietly, watching the two of them.
Tony looked between Nate and the Kree. "You're running the mind games," he said.
Nate tipped his head and opened up the telepathic channel, though he almost immediately closed it again when the Kree stumbled back a step as soon as it happened.
The Kree rubbed his forehead, "For Plex's sake, that's too much discord."
Nate smirked. He's used to uniform minds, and you're multitasking and overthinking in there, and I'm still half thinking about Kate and her cute nesting instincts.
I can't turn off my brain, Tony said. It is what it is.
It wasn't a criticism, Nate said. Then, a second later, Rachel's incoming. She and America and Natasha just got in on the top floor. He turned toward the Kree, who was still rubbing his forehead. By Nate's measure, the kid probably could have handled it if he didn't have a brand-new hole in his head that was sucking up so much psychic energy.
"Don't be concerned," the Kree said. "Such disunity will fall to the wayside when the Kree rule this planet."
"Wasn't concerned for myself, thanks," Tony said.
"That's a step in the right direction," the Kree said, misunderstanding him entirely. "A communal mind is so much easier."
"Not for me," Tony said, shaking his head before he pointed toward the kid. "You tapped out of that, kiddo. What's your name, by the way? I'd like to have something to call you."
"Noh-Varr," he said, frowning as he studied Tony. "I don't know you."
"Tony Stark," he said as he offered his hand automatically. "Can you tell us how you got here?"
"My ship was shot down," Noh-Varr explained. "We were only in this reality for a second, but in that time, a man named Midas shot us down, and none of my crew survived." Tony could actually see as the kid got upset, angry and grieving but still standing and telling his story, seizing on Tony's request as an order.
"I'm sorry to hear that," Tony said, even if he himself wasn't sure how much he meant it.
"I doubt it," Noh-Varr said simply. "This planet will be the capital of the Kree Empire soon enough; your people have declared war and shown me that they hold the Kree in contempt. Therefore, we are enemies." He paused. "That is what I told the warden, anyway."
"The warden - whoever that is - probably isn't much more than a drooling lump right now," Tony said. "He doesn't represent us."
"No, he answered to others." Noh-Varr drummed his fingers, trying to engage with Tony. Nate was skimming his mind and showed Tony the problem: As far as Noh-Varr was concerned, the planet had killed everyone he loved, treated him like a prisoner and a fugitive, and then tore his mind apart. And the kid didn't understand why he couldn't act on what he knew should have been the next step, which was to begin conquering.
Tony considered everything Nate had shared for a long moment, then did what he always did in situations like this. He tried to help. "Hey, Noh-Varr, are you hungry? Thirsty? Tired of whatever the day's given you? What can we do to help you?"
Noh frowned at him, blinking slowly. "I… could use some rest, yes," he said.
"Perfect. We've got a young lady that would like to talk to you for a moment then we'll find you somewhere comfortable to rest."
"I understand."
"What do you understand?" Tony asked without thinking. He just didn't like the tone, or the way he held himself just then. Something … they weren't on the same page yet.
"The orders - I understand the orders," Noh-Varr said, scrunching his nose up in return.
Tony shook his head quickly. "That - I'm not giving you orders, Noh. I'm trying to give you options."
"Ah."
Can't make decisions, Tony; that part of his mind's still broken.
Give him a minute - if I understand your sister's timeline.
Yeah, we'll just let him blue screen in the meantime, Nate chuckled in his mind's voice.
A few minutes later, Rachel showed up looking serious since she'd just dealt with a whole facility of scientists with entirely the wrong idea about how to treat living, breathing, independent people. Or aliens. Whatever. Even the Phoenix wasn't appreciative of the methods and had been more than happy to boost her as she tore through their minds. But that also meant she had a lot more information than Nate did. She spared a glance at Nate, but only momentarily as her focus was purely on Noh-Varr.
"So, how far did you get?" Rachel asked before she stood next to Nate with her hands on her hips.
Nate gestured toward Noh-Varr. "Made sure there weren't any traps, but honestly, doing this the normal way - if we don't want to hurt him - is going to take too long to close that hole."
Rachel nodded to herself. "Okay. Yeah, it looked like they weren't kind at all to Noh-Varr here," she said as she stepped forward to refocus Noh's attention. "Do you know who I am?"
Even though Noh-Varr wasn't able to make decisions, he had instinctively stepped back and taken up a defensive position. "Yes," he said, and a hiss hung on the s's of his words; he didn't sound in that moment like any Kree Tony had ever seen.
Nate, be ready to keep him still, Rachel warned. Psychic barrier around him would be perfect. "I understand you want to declare war on my planet. Are you sure?"
"That's what is required," Noh-Varr explained. "My ship was destroyed. It was an act of war."
"But is that what you want to do?" Rachel asked in a reasonable tone, though she had yet to blink.
Noh-Varr didn't look away from her. "I am… I was bred to serve the Empire. Tell me what to do."
Rachel hated how lost his mind felt, so she tried to approach him in a way she was sure he hadn't experienced yet in this world. "Noh, on this planet, in this galaxy, we tend to use individual free will over all else. It is cherished and needs to be protected. And for this planet, I am sort of watching for that." She offered him her hand just like Tony had, then smiled. "My name is Rachel. Welcome to Earth."
"I am Noh-Varr. I do not feel welcome," he said, the barest smirk at the corner of his mouth.
"We'll try to make up for the idiots that were mistreating you," Rachel said. "That's not really how most people do things here. You were just incredibly unlucky."
Noh-Varr tipped his head as he considered what she had to say. "Because you are individual," he reasoned slowly, "there are factions."
"That's right," she agreed. "And once we found out that one of those factions were doing horrible things to an unknown being, we went into action to stop them."
"Two factions," Noh-Varr corrected her. "The first shot me down; the second claimed authority to arrest a Kree emissary."
"Yes, well, I counted them as one as they had allied," Rachel said. "You saw the ships caught in mid air on your way here, yes? That was our group stopping them from even acting. Had we known about you sooner, we would have been there sooner."
"And your faction follows the Phoenix," Noh-Varr said, nodding. "I've seen other realities that worship you; I suppose you must still be early in your conquest to have only one faction of one planet at your command."
"No one worships the Phoenix here," Rachel said. "And I'm not out to conquer anything."
"That's a lie."
"It absolutely isn't," Rachel replied. "I am host, but I control how it manifests."
"I'm sure they all believed that at one point," Noh-Varr said. "But the Phoenix wants destruction; it wants to conquer."
Rachel smirked. "Actually, they didn't all believe that." She tapped her head and let a little fire show in her eyes. "I know what they thought."
Noh-Varr crossed his arms. "Yes, well. You didn't tell me what I can do to serve the Empire. Or… you, I suppose…"
"Can we just sit down and talk for a few minutes before you worry about your servitude?" Rachel asked in a mildly sassy tone. She'd tried to be reasonable and let him ease into it but that just wasn't going to happen without a little boost, much to the Phoenix's pleasure and Rachel's irritation.
"Yes, of course," Noh said, looking genuinely glad to be seated. He looked tired, and it showed in his posture.
Once both of them were seated, Rachel folded her hands over her knees, turned his way with a pleasant expression and slipped seamlessly into his mind as gently as she could. She knew he was raw, overly abused, and just … worn down. So there was no reason to make it any worse than it already was. And, she knew the Phoenix fire that was soon to follow was going to knock a few things around as they reshaped the missing parts of his mind.
But, with the Phoenix - it was easy to rebuild. She had to argue with the Phoenix on a few key points … she didn't want to change who he was, she just wanted to make sure that his mind was his own, that he wasn't going to be shoehorned into a hive mind again. It was very much like installing new hardware but keeping the basic program, just … upgrading a little bit. It was still going to be Noh's mind once she was done … but with a little more of an earthly touch. With the shiny new option of free will.
When she was done, it was obvious to Nate that Noh was coming around faster than Rachel was putting the fire away, though she was handling it incredibly well. Better than any time Nate had seen her struggle with it, anyhow. But even at that, the fire in her eyes and ghosting her hair were the last to fade.
You okay in there? Nate couldn't help but ask, because she was his sister and he couldn't help but be concerned no matter how good she was at dealing with the Phoenix.
Yeah, I'm fine, Rachel answered. It's a little harder when I bend reality.
Phoenix really wanted to play, huh?
That is the most I've let it do in a long time. It was enjoying the chance to stretch it's wings.
Probably excited by the worlds this guy's seen where it's a worshiped god, too.
Little bit of that, little bit of just getting to show off. Rachel smiled as she pulled her hair back. I keep telling it that if it feels like I'm neglecting it, it can always go bother someone else.
And it knows there's no one in the world like my big sister, Nate said, grinning crookedly.
You know it. Rachel smiled wider at him. Okay. I think our friend here is rebooting nicely. Give him a once over?
Sure thing. Nate's eyes glowed a bit brighter for a few minutes before he nodded at Rachel. I like the way you changed it. Give him a human brain without any of the Kree wiring, but leave all the experiences and personality in there. Pretty slick.
Lets hope he likes it too, Rachel replied, then turned toward Noh. "You must be exhausted," she said.
Noh-Varr nodded tightly, leaning on his arms with his eyes closed. "I thought you would kill me," he said quietly. "I thought you might end it."
"No," Rachel said with a frown. "You seem like a bright light."
He nodded once and straightened up. "There was… an offer of food?"
"Yep," Tony said, catching on quickly that things were moving forward. "If everyone is feeling peaceful, we can head over and see what's been ordered in, then you can pick out a bedroom if you're tired."
"There's no need to worry about peace," Noh-Varr promised. "I've yet to decide if your faction is an enemy to the Kree. You have the Phoenix, but not the hostility the other factions have, somehow."
"Let's start with food first," Nate said, gesturing for Tony to lead the way.
"Yes, thank you - I haven't given much at all to feed my healing," Noh-Varr said. "Anything organic will do; I don't have any restrictions."
"We'll do better than just organic," Tony said. "You do have tastebuds, don't you?"
"Yes, and I lived in this city for a few days before I was captured; the food is good," Noh-Varr agreed. "And the citizens pleasant to look at."
"It's New York. You get a mixed bag," Tony said dryly.
"In your group, I've yet to see any who are not aesthetically pleasing," Noh-Varr said, smirking as they headed down the hallway, though he did fall into line with Rachel to touch her arm lightly. "What did you do?" he asked in a hushed tone. "I can't find the Plex connection anywhere."
"I'm afraid that Plex was destroyed - the last people that were fiddling around in your mind finished off what little was left after the crash. I'm sorry. I just tried to make it heal a little faster so it didn't ache so keenly."
Noh-Varr nodded slowly. "I know my mind. It has been one with my people my whole life. Something… something changed with the Phoenix's touch."
Rachel nodded. "It's hard to explain with words, but, I can show you later if you'd like."
"I think you will have to, yes," Noh-Varr agreed.
Chapter 139: James Is Beautiful
Chapter Text
While Tony, Rachel, Nate, and Noh-Varr were making their way out of the secured isolation area of the building, James was having a blast screwing with SHIELD, and Fury, and Maria Hill specifically. He was pretty sure since Tony told him to specifically go after Fury that certainly that meant Hill wasn't off the table either. And that woman was a gigantic pain in his ass. So she was going to get a little irritation.
When he'd pulled up the display in the lab that he already had tapped into all the right places, he put it on the holo display just so he could surround himself in all the options, and by the time he really got rolling with it, he was nearly bouncing on the balls of his feet with a cup of coffee in one hand and the music turned up to his favorite playlist … that always seemed to fuel more troublemaking than was strictly necessary.
And man, did he have a lot to work with. He knew SHIELD was corrupt, but he didn't know that Fury was still letting a few known to him Hydra agents operate freely within the organization… two of which were in intelligence with higher level access to intel.
So he quietly issued a directive through Fury's official systems to have them brought to the raft under the heaviest, most thug-like security that SHIELD kept in pocket.
He was pretty sure that wasn't going to stick … unless of course, someone within the organization tipped off the press of a few high profile arrests … so he pulled up the email of one of Fury's tightest brown nosers and sent an email from their account to Jameson's competitors.
No reason to be too blatant about it. And JJ was still rolling in exclusives with everything he and Kate had given him, so he wasn't too concerned about that side of things.
He was nearly dancing his way over to get more coffee between all the public and internal damage he was doing for and around SHIELD. And that was just the stuff that pertained to the organization.
A few simple keystrokes had Fury's basic personal information leaked organization-wide. He left out anything that would affect Fury's family members - because he wasn't totally heartless. And then he made sure that all of his security clearances were altered so that Fury himself wasn't able to access anything, regardless of the method used to access it.
Hill got the same treatment, though since she and Fury in particular had been so personally nasty to James last time they were in the same room, James stood back as a special program he'd created ran through SHIELD's archives of recorded conversation. Any server in the world would have had trouble navigating that archive of stolen conversations, but since he was working off of equipment that he and Tony had designed, streamlined, and boosted, the entire library was flying through, cherry picking little conversations and snippets as it filtered out a few things that James had programmed in.
His alert that Tony was on the way up went off, and James turned the music down a little, set his coffee aside and concentrated more steadily on what he wanted done.
One program was sifting through results while another was trimming clips to include just what James needed - providing him with transcripts so he could hand pick which bits of conversation to keep and which to discard before he finally stopped the Rolling Stones Assault. Mics across the helicarriers and smaller crafts picked up a wave of relief that had James' expression turning a little more vicious… and then, he double checked his work and replaced the Rolling Stones with tiny snippets of conversation where Hill or Fury - or both - were outlining to one person or another their true feelings on one project, person, official, official stances … or most vindicating to James, their outlook on America's heroes and how best they should be indentured to SHIELD.
When it started to roll, he kept the mics in Fury and Hill's transports hot so he could hear their reaction as he leaned against the workbench with a fresh cup of coffee. And he couldn't stop grinning.
By the time Fury started to panic, James had already been recording his responses - stealing a feed from inside the transport so he could be better prepared than he already was for a backlash. There was no way that Fury would believe for one second that James wasn't involved in some way. And with that recording, James picked up his mug and came out to the kitchen for more coffee - since the pot in his lab was empty.
Just before he hit the kitchen, he couldn't stop the honest grin at how much in SHIELD had just been shuffled - and how so many of Fury's unnecessary secrets were out. Not to mention the fact that the overwhelming majority within SHIELD at all levels disagreed strongly with Fury's assessment of the world's heroes and mutants. And they were pissed about it.
He was chuckling to himself as he turned the corner to see his siblings with Tony, Jan, and who he could only assume was the new guy. "Oh, nothing," James said when he saw that Rachel was about to ask. She's the only one who hadn't seen his cheerful mood upon screwing with SHIELD, so he knew she was going to want to know what had changed.
"You need to work on your poker face," Tony said, though James' good mood was infectious and he couldn't quite stop his own smile seeing him in that bright a disposition.
James only laughed at that as he topped off his coffee then turned to face them with a crooked grin. "Over rated."
"Alright, what did you do?" Tony asked, unable to stop himself from smiling when he was so relieved to see a peek of the kid he'd considered his own.
James looked between Tony, his siblings, and Noh-Varr. "Tell ya later if you don't hear about it first."
"It's so fun to see you on a roll," Jan said, beaming at him.
"If you think that's fun, you should go down to my lab and watch the fallout … live."
"Oooh, do we have snacks? We need snacks."
"Just the usual stuff in there - probably nothing you want," James said. "Coffee's brewing, too. I just got impatient."
"And we love that for you," Jan said, already bounding toward the lab.
Nate shook his head, chuckling to himself. You're having way too much fun.
I just broadcast Fury and Hill's Mean Girls impression to the rest of the fleet. All their backstabbing within the organization is now open knowledge … within the organization.
I love that. Kate will love that. How much can you send to her?
All of it. I've been recording from the word go.
See, this is why we love you.
Noh cleared his throat lightly as he looked between them. "I'm sorry - you are…?"
"Oh good, you know English," James said, then waved the tips of his fingers. "I'm James. Hi."
"I downloaded your language before I was captured. Hello, James; I'm Noh-Varr."
"That's a neat trick. Makes me wonder where you keep your USB port," James said, still caught up in his good mood. "What happened to earn you a flight here?"
Noh gestured toward Tony. "He removed me from the Cube, and these two removed the insecurity in my mind's defenses."
"Yeah, they do that. All of them." He gestured toward the coffee maker. "Have they moved on to being friendly or are they still trying to make an impression?"
"I don't know enough about your culture to answer that properly."
"You're shifting the mood, kiddo," Tony said.
"Good. You look like you need to calm down," James shot back. "Go make faces at your wife before she laughs herself into a coma."
Tony shook his head and turned toward Rachel. Are you willing to keep an eye on this whole … situation? He's starting at my kid a little too much in a way I'm not entirely comfortable with.
I've got it, Rachel promised. I was going to stay and monitor anyway, just to make sure I didn't miss any ties back to SHIELD or, honestly, back to the Supremor.
We'll need to figure out what to do with him, too, Tony said. And he'll probably need a guide. I'm gonna go see what kind of damage your brother did to our favorite paramilitary disaster and Fury.
Have fun. Jan's already projecting how much, and I quote, 'Fury earned that ass-whooping.'
Tony paused, then turned back toward James. "How bad is it?"
"You said to not drop any aircraft. I did not drop even one," James said, resting one hand over his heart. "Not even an inch." The troublemaking look returned. "They also can't land, either, so that's - honestly, that's their problem."
"I love when we find loopholes," Nate laughed.
"You should check in on Uncle Phil," James said quietly to Nate as he hopped up to sit on the counter with his coffee. "He's somewhere free to move, I'm pretty sure."
"You make a good point," Nate whispered back, already headed in the direction he could hear Coulson's mind - first by letting him know that Kate wanted him to hang out. If he'd been blacked out - and that was the impression Nate got from Coulson's surface thoughts - then he wouldn't know what was happening yet and Nate wanted to give him a task before he got too mad at Fury and Hill when he couldn't do anything about it at the moment.
Rachel moved into action when she saw that Noh was still incredibly unsure of what to do with himself in the current situation, and James wasn't being helpful at all. As usual. But at least this time it was because of a good mood and not being caught up in his head too much.
"So," she said, clapping her hands together. "You said you could go for something to eat?" She was in motion as she spoke, and started pulling out a few things from the fridge to make some suggestions while simultaneously offering to order food, too.
"Yes, please, anything," Noh agreed.
"Well, welcome to Earth food… I almost want to offer a PB&J just so you get the universal American experience…"
She had just turned toward the cabinet when a grape rebounded from the side of her head. "Why are you such a mom to everyone all the time?" James teased - then launched another one at her for good measure. "Pretty sure he's not a kindergartener."
Rachel rolled her eyes and then telekinetically dumped Tony's stash of Goldfish over James's head. "Don't forget your snack."
"You really want to go to war?" James challenged, grinning wider. "I've got time. Already promised America that I'd open with marshmallows and leave you to her mercy."
"I'm torn between big sister pride and 'don't help my girlfriend make it worse'."
"I know, right?" James laughed as he threw a few of the goldfish at her, too. "I think she needs to make it worse."
Noh shook his head as he caught a bag of chips Rachel tossed telekinetically his way. "The Phoenix with brothers and a lover," he muttered.
A goldfish bounced off the side of Noh's head. "Her name is Rachel when she's not on fire. And she loves when you talk about her like she's not there."
"And she's the Phoenix when she is on fire," Noh said, biting open the chips bag - and chewing what was in his mouth. "This isn't very organic."
"No. You want the contents," James said with a smile.
"Ah." Noh readjusted and pulled the chips out, nodding to himself as he munched and watched Rachel pulling out more snacks. "I had food on my ship, but that was destroyed along with Plex."
James looked between Noh and Rachel. "Okay, one of you has to tell me what the full story is."
Rachel gestured toward Noh. "Kree from another dimension who can heal, so obviously, SHIELD wanted to get their hands on him and see what would stick for controls."
The smile slipped entirely as James simply stared at Rachel. "I'm dropping his ship. Or shooting it into the sun."
"And that's just the Reader's Digest version of events," Rachel said. "You missed the part where I had to restore his sense of purpose to him before we came out here."
"What the actual f-"
"Yep."
"Oh, wait." Noh pointed at James. "Is your surname Howlett?"
"Why?"
"Your first name is James. I heard the name 'James Howlett' in communications before they knew I could hear through the wall of my cell."
James set his coffee down and leaned forward slightly. "What was the context?"
"They wanted to know how my healing compared," Noh said simply. "They seemed disappointed that I get my healing from nanites, not naturally."
"I think you and I are going to have a lot of talking to do," James said. "And yeah, that's me." He caught a little movement out of the corner of his eye and turned toward Rachel. "Don't you dare start up some soup or I'll shave your head."
Rachel drew a halo in the air above her head. "What's wrong with soup?" she asked and fluttered her eyelashes.
"I don't have that same response - if you want soup, go on a date with your girlfriend. I think I'm ordering something better than bowl-fare for this talk. Like steak."
"If you have anything hearty or with protein, that would help," Noh-Varr put in. "My nanites have very little to work with. They had to convert a bit of muscle, which was not pleasant."
"That's most of what I do," James said. "Heavy protein."
"I'll order something, then," Rachel said. "And you two need to talk, sounds like, so I'll let you do that… and I need to let Steve know what those SHIELD agents were thinking while I was there."
"Thanks for the permission," James called out. "Just send Steve to my lab. He'll process it better if he can see and hear it himself. They were talking about him, too, you know."
"I know. I heard some of it."
James hopped off the counter then gestured for Noh to join him in the living room. "Come on. My siblings aren't really able to give me all the telepathic stuff unless I let them, and I was barely letting them talk, so … why don't you give me your story with all the rotten stuff they did to you once you got here?"
Noh brought some of the snack food that Rachel had thrown his way and sat down close to James. "Is this a debriefing? I'm still trying to parse the seniority here."
"No, I hate those. This is just …" James sighed heavily and turned toward him so he was sitting sideways on the couch. "It's not that structured. Whatever this is. Technically, the Avengers rescued you, so you don't have to talk to me at all if you don't want to since I'm not an Avenger anymore, but since some of that happened to you because they were trying to find a way to screw with me, I would appreciate it if you maybe… gave me a heads up. Not anything official."
Noh nodded and mimicked James' position, turning to face him as well. "I'd want to know if it was me, too," he agreed. He took a deep breath and let it out. "I'll tell you what I told the others, then: my ship was shot out of the sky in the second it was in this reality. We didn't even mean to stop here; we were just passing through."
"And now you're stuck," James guessed.
He nodded again. "Even if my ship hadn't been destroyed, I wouldn't have been able to pilot it alone. It needs a hive mind, and I was the only survivor." He spread his hands wide. "So, here I am."
"A hive mind?" James said, frowning.
"That's not entirely the right way to describe it, but it's the closest term in your language," Noh admitted.
"Alright, but that's more or less the polar opposite to my mind," James said.
"As I understand it from your sister, everyone here is entirely individual."
"Yeah, they are, but I'm kind of different in that even very strong telepaths can't get into my head without either my permission or a lot of work," James explained. "Torturing you and screwing with your mind wouldn't work if they tried to apply it to me. I'm sorry they did that - I'm more than happy to make them regret their every life decision, though."
"I've already promised vengeance to their faction," Noh said easily, starting to smile.
"Well earned." James gestured over his shoulder. "I got started without you."
"Yes, I heard the overview." Noh shrugged. "You should know, of course, that that faction is not only interested in you but in your team."
"That doesn't surprise me," James said. "They are very talented people and those people know I would kill them for screwing with any one of them."
For a long moment, Noh occupied himself with snacks as James studied him, trying to figure out what Fury's endgame was just by watching him. Maybe it was his upbringing, but he knew he wasn't getting enough of the story to make a judgment call and he didn't like it. Of course, he also knew it wasn't likely that Noh-Varr knew enough himself.
"I'm afraid I don't have as much information for you beyond that as you might like," Noh said when James didn't keep up his questions. "Once Plex was killed, the only thing I was aware of was pain and then a sense of deep loss and lack of direction."
"And how are you now?" James asked.
Noh considered his words. "Better," he said at last. "I still feel lost. I still grieve my crew. But I don't know how I feel about the changes your sister made. Entirely removing the Supremor's connection to my mind, even if there was no connection anymore, feels sacrilegious."
James took his time weighing it all out, not feeling pressured at all to speak until he had something worth saying - and Noh filled the silence by eating. "Rachel would never do anything that extreme to anyone's mind unless it was to help heal," he said slowly. "I think I can understand how lost you must be, but all I can do is tell you that I hope that feeling lessens."
Noh smiled tightly. "As do I," he agreed. "I suppose I can get used to having a Terran mind. My old connections are dead, after all."
"Expect her to hover around you until you find yourself more settled," James said. "She's very worried on your behalf."
"It's a shame she's so concerned; the Phoenix, if she has control of it, can do much more."
"The Phoenix is a lot more reasonable than you'd think when it knows that everyone around it doesn't want to destroy or enslave it," James said. "They have an understanding."
"She said as much, though I don't trust it."
"With good reason," James said. "But I found that things eased up, tension wise, once I helped her laugh about it - and accept it. At least between us."
"Yes, you do seem to have a good relationship with her. Which is a shame, again - the Phoenix is formidable, and it's a good deterrent to any who would seek to have a relationship with you."
"Not that I've noticed," James laughed.
"Perfect," Noh said, smiling wider. "Then perhaps we should move this discussion to more comfortable quarters."
For just a moment or two, James honestly didn't know how to respond. He hadn't seen that coming - even a little bit. He tried to say something a couple of times, but was at a total loss for words for an excruciating length of time for him. Noh seemed to be enjoying how off-guard he was. "Wow." James bit his lip and shook his head slightly as he tried to react at all. "That .. what?"
"Comfort. Somewhere more private," Noh-Varr said, then leaned forward slightly and brushed a lock of hair away from James's face.
James belatedly leaned back to keep his space without even thinking it through. "I can't. I have a boyfriend. I don't want to screw that up- and you really don't want to piss him off." It was almost a rote response, but it came a little later than James' usual delivery. "He's a little protective."
Noh was still grinning as he sat back. "Ah. I should have known you were already in a relationship. How could you not be, looking as you do?" When James genuinely couldn't respond other than to stare, Noh smirked and went back to his food. "Your boyfriend should tell you this more often so it doesn't shock you so much, but you are beautiful."
When it became clear James still didn't have any response but to stare back at him half holding his breath, Noh got up to give him space - and to help Rachel as she brought in what had been ordered. She looked way too entertained, even as Noh-Varr tried to help James out a little. "If you want more information, I can spare the details of torture, but I do want to find the organization that originally shot down my ship to make absolutely certain no information remains with them. Midas should not be allowed to have interdimensional capabilities."
That at least got James to blink out of it … the mercy of a redirection. "Yeah. Sorry." He closed his eyes and pinched the bridge of his nose as he got his feet back under himself, though his cadence was a little off - to Rachel and Noh's delight. "Um … I actually would like all the details to compare notes. I'll just …grab a computer and you can help me find whoever started this. I think I want to give them some unwanted attention and make it hurt."
"Nothing less than they deserve for hurting our new friend," Rachel said as America started to set out the plates and help her set dinner out … for the four of them. "Congratulations, you've got my little brother ready to avenge your mistreatment."
James glanced up at Rachel with a dry look. Stop that.
Not a chance, Rachel shot back. What's wrong? You can dish it out but you can't take it?
James narrowed his eyes for an instant then let out a centering breath. That's how it's gonna be? Fine. Bring it.
Oh. Don't worry. We will.
James kept a calm exterior but swore colorfully in his head to Rachel's delight … and America helpfully directed Noh to sit next to James. "We double date all the time," Rachel said with a grin.
"Ay," America said as she took a hold of James' and pulled him over to sit closer to Noh, going so far as to push him into the seat with both hands on his shoulders. "You can play on your computer later."
"I can multitask," James said, staring at America as if she'd lost her mind.
"That's what I've heard," America laughed and Rachel intervened to get all of them settled.
Noh really was half starving to death and Rachel had the niggling feeling in the back of her head that if it got back to Annie that she let someone go hungry for that long in favor of teasing, they'd all hear about it.
"So, a little fiery bird told me there was a dinner party," Billy said, walking through the door with a bag of desserts in hand. "I brought the latest from Annie."
"She's just being horrible," James called out.
"Who, Annie? Not a chance; there are pumpkin rolls," Billy teased.
"You're hilarious and a horrible willing accomplice to my evil sister."
Something about that phrasing, though, had Noh stilling as he looked between Rachel and Billy and switched completely out of English. Even the limited knowledge of Kree that James and Rachel had from their grandfather didn't help them, though America seemed to recognize a few choicer swear words. But whatever he was saying, he was already on his feet to back away from Billy.
"You're going to have to teach me that," James said, frowning at Noh's reaction, getting to his feet just out of instinct. "I think I caught like three words."
Noh said a few more words and then made a conscious effort to speak in English. "You … don't see the danger, do you?" He shook his head. "This universe may just collapse at any moment, and you don't see it."
James turned toward Billy and tried to hold back the grin as he offered Billy his hand. "I think you scared him, little prince. What did you do?"
"I have no idea?" Billy winced one eye shut.
Noh looked between the two of them holding hands, swore again, and shook his head. "Of course. Of course the Phoenix's brother would date the Demiurge. What a reality."
James and Billy both frowned, then looked from Noh to Rachel - and America. "What's he talking about?" James asked. "Did Billy become a terrorist with a better cape in Noh's reality? Why didn't the other guy tell us?"
"If he travels realities, it's hard to miss the Demiurge's existence," America pointed out. "And as good as you are here, Billy, if you did team up with the Phoenix when it's not being controlled by the most gorgeous woman in the multiverse…"
Then just to get a reaction since Billy was now the one off balance, James pulled him over to kiss the side of his head. "Your grandfather would be so proud … in that reality."
"Oh, shush," Billy said, though he was shocked into a smile all the same.
"Not the demiurge here," Rachel said, watching Noh carefully. "Promise."
"But an iteration of him, with access to the same powers," Noh said. "I've seen the same in other realities. I've yet to meet the original, but alternate versions are still deeply powerful."
"Only used those once, and it was, well, I had to go through a lot of crap to get to that point, so I don't really want to do it again," Billy said. "Hi, by the way. I actually go by Billy."
"Huh." Noh watched Billy for a long time before he must have ultimately decided he didn't want to touch that with a ten-foot pole and went back to eating.
"The girls think they're funny," James told Billy quietly - just for him, though Noh caught it all the same.
"They are," Billy said. "Or is it only funny when it's me on the end of Tyler jokes?" he teased, raising both eyebrows.
"I've been dealing with the Tyler jokes myself since the guy showed up," James pointed out. "Not as if your brother will ever let that die." He kissed his cheek again. "But fear not. I've managed to put another target on myself. So."
Billy smirked - and then grinned when Rachel gave him some telepathic assistance with more context.
"I'm not even waiting for her to be awful," James said. "He's hot and I wasn't expecting a complement. End of story."
"He called you beautiful. I'm going to need to do that if it makes you flustered," Billy said, grinning even more.
"Language barrier. Obviously," James said in his best snooty tone.
"No, he's just not blind," Billy said. He started to laugh and shook his head. "He's not wrong. I should tell you more how beautiful you are."
"Shut up," James half growled out before he pulled him over to steal a kiss.
Billy was almost laughing for how widely he was grinning when the kiss broke. "Yeah, definitely doing that more if that's the result, handsome."
"You're horrible," James said. "Love you too."
"Love you." Billy stole a gentler kiss and then grinned. "By the way, Nate says you're in charge of giving our hot alien friend a tour, because Mia's not herself and you need to pick up the slack or something. You know. Since you worked ahead so far and can take an early break."
"Ah … I don't know how to be tour guide Barbie."
"Just show him around," Billy said. "Even I've done it."
"Around where?" James asked. "The school I never went to?"
"I dunno, you lived there for a summer, didn't you?" Billy shot back.
"Not the same," James tried to argue. "But … whatever. Probably going to want a better guide anyhow." He turned toward Noh. "After we hunt down the idiot that was torturing you or pillaged your … conscience?"
Noh tipped his head to both sides. "Close enough. It was the center of my mind, so it's an apt comparison." He set down the fork he'd been holding. "And I did promise to enact revenge."
"That's a tag-team sport here," James said, knowing that the others wouldn't argue it considering the circumstances. "And a translator might be handy anyhow, so … let's fuel up, figure out where they are, then ruin their day." He turned toward Rachel and America. "And considering the affiliations, you guys can't go if you're going to keep your noses clean. Or make sure you're no dirtier than you already are."
"Clean noses are boring," America said - though she didn't make a move to untangle from Rachel, knowing Rachel did like to stay on the cleaner side of good.
"Yeah, but I may need your clean nose to bust me out of jail or something, so …" James trailed off.
"Go have fun with the guy who thinks you're beautiful," America teased.
"You mean the one who's afraid of the little prince?" James asked with a frown. "Yeah. no problems there."
"Exactly. Now, get going on the revenge thing. I've got a nose to dirty," America said and kissed Rachel deeply - just to get her to laugh.
James took a hold of Billy's hand again. "Rachel told you the rest of it, right? Or did she just keep it to whatever she thought was funny?"
"I got the picture," Billy promised. "I'll be mad about it once I have the whole picture, though - because if I get too upset before you start unraveling that thread, I'll just start floating and supervillain-ing around in your defense or something," he teased.
James smiled crookedly. "If you think you might start floating, go watch the footage of Fury losing his cool in my lab. Jan's been in there cackling with Tony for a while now. He's only eighty percent sure it was me - but that's only because of the soundtrack I put together for them."
"Done. Gotta see it. Love you, bye!" Billy said - and instantly wished himself to where the watching party was.
James spun toward Noh. "Computer first, yeah?"
"Lead the way," Noh said, gesturing with one hand. "You know more about this reality than I do."
James got up and they headed to a ready room, then they started going through possibilities with what little Noh knew until they had a very short list to search through. Then, the only stop James wanted was to change out of his street clothes in favor of something a little more bulletproof in black and yellow before they took Tony's mini jet to find Midas.
Chapter 140: Consent
Chapter Text
Even though James had left with Noh pretty quickly once it was apparent there was a mission to be had, the newest soon-to-be Avengers had seen all the commotion and come to investigate for themselves.
Lexi Barton had been chatting with Sam outside of the training room, working her way up to asking him out on a date - since he was taking way too long for her tastes, and Mia had told her to take control if she didn't like the pace, but back off if he told her she was too fast, obviously. But when she'd seen the look on her mom's face when everyone had come back from the mission to rescue Noh, she had known instantly that whatever had happened was worth looking into. It looked juicy.
She let out a whistle at the low end of most people's range of hearing, and a spider skittered across the wall toward her. She held her hand out to let it crawl onto her fingers, laughing when Sam dramatically shuddered.
"Do you want to hold him?" Lexi asked, holding the spider up to Sam's eye level.
"No." To make his point, Sam took a huge step back.
Lexi snickered at him and then whispered to the spider before setting it on its way. She reached out to grab his hand. "You literally fight supervillains, and spiders creep you out?"
"Yes, of course!" Sam said. "I don't want to get bitten!"
"I'm not going to hand you a spider that would bite you."
"That's so not the point."
"It kind of is, but okay," Lexi said, shaking her head - though she noticed that Sam was holding her hand tighter and hadn't let go.
"What did you ask him to do, anyway?"
"Oh, he's a scout," Lexi said easily, tucking a stray strand of red hair behind her ear. "Everyone's so excited; might as well find out what the story is."
"Isn't it going to take forever for it to get back to you?"
"He's pretty fast," Lexi said - purely to laugh when he shuddered. "You're kinda cute when you're freaked out."
Sam stopped and turned her way fully, then let out a nervous laugh. "You… can be scary sometimes, you know that?"
Lexi laughed. "People usually say that to my mom and my brother."
"Not Kate?"
"Do you think Kate's scary?"
"Um." Sam turned slightly red.
Lexi couldn't hide her grin. "Sam," she said slowly, "did you get the intentions talk from my big sister?"
"Maybe."
"She's all bark and no-"
"She dislocated my shoulder to say hello."
Lexi's eyebrows shot up, and then, she started to laugh. "You know what, I love that."
"Seriously?"
"She helped you fix it, right?"
"Yeah, by shoving me again!"
"She knows you're not going to fight back against a pregnant woman."
"Obviously!"
Lexi laughed again, though before she could tease Sam anymore, she heard the spider's tiny voice calling out to her. "Oh, apparently Tony saved an alien from the Cube. My new friend here says people are saying he's cute, but as a spider, he doesn't see the appeal."
Sam just started to shake his head. "You can be weird sometimes, you know that?"
"Yep. So can you. Should we go check on everyone else?" she asked, still smiling. "Or should we go grab a bite together while everyone is distracted and there's no scary pregnant sisters to threaten you?"
"You're still way too entertained about that."
"Not sorry."
Actually, Noh quickly found that he thoroughly enjoyed working with James - if nothing else then because he was, for the first time, actually exploring this new planet in a way that he hadn't gotten to do when he was fighting Midas, SHIELD, and a few other miscreants after his arrival.
He had been an ensign on a scientific exploratory vessel, and James's methods of hunting were… well, they were slow, but they seemed directed as well. James had explained his heightened senses as well as his knowledge of where Midas had last been seen, and from there, Noh had filled in the blanks for James to add to his collection of information that would help him track the man down. Any details would help.
Midas had last been seen leaving SHIELD - and that tracked with what Noh remembered. Midas had wanted to take Noh's ship's core, to use it to become a god. (And he could have, though obviously neither Noh nor Midas broadcasted that fact to the SHIELD agents who came rushing to see what all the fuss was about.) As Noh understood it, Midas had traded information about Noh in exchange for his freedom, and from what James could find in his data search, the man had disappeared after that, completely uprooting everything he could take with him.
The man had nothing tying him to his original location, after all, since his daughter had died in the fight with SHIELD. Noh did feel bad about that.
But once they knew generally where Midas was, once Earth's technology traced him to a specific area of the planet… James relied not on technology but on his senses. And that meant the two of them had spent, by that point, several days camping together in the mountains of Utah.
It was interesting not just to watch James track but to talk to him when they would settle down for the night. It was a damn shame he was taken, too, because he had a scientific mind and seemed to appreciate Noh's questions.
And he had plenty.
He wanted to know more about this planet now that he was stranded there - and the landscape of the desert mountains was so very different from New York City that he wanted to know more about not just the flora and fauna but the differences in regions for the local Terrans. In Noh's experience, species that existed prior to integration into the Kree Empire were often defined by their geography, and he wanted to know more about that, too.
And James's powers themselves were fascinating, especially because they were organically obtained instead of created in a lab. He wanted to know more about the evolution of their species.
He had learned some of what he wanted to know from Plex before his ship was destroyed, but he only had definitions, not understanding.
But that just meant that James was bombarded with questions every night, so they set up something of an information exchange, with James asking about Noh's home universe (and others he'd seen) in exchange for more information about that planet. Or asking for Kree words in exchange for a lesson in languages he knew beyond English.
As for James, while he was at first interested in the advances Noh's home universe had made under the integrated Kree leadership, most of his questions as the trip wore on were about him personally. Noh hadn't had a purpose when he emerged from the Phoenix's restructuring, so he supposed it made sense that James wanted to see who he was without anyone else.
The truth was that Noh wasn't sure about that much. He still believed all that he'd been taught growing up - that the Kree way of life was the path to peace, that integration into part of a whole was far superior to individual mayhem. But without a way to enact that goal, he found himself explaining what parts of other universes he enjoyed. He was only an ensign, so he hadn't been out long enough to get what he considered a good sample of other universes, but he did like how expressive some of them could be. And the food - he might have been able to eat anything, but that just meant he could try any cuisine without worrying about if he could digest it. And he did have preferences, usually associated with good memories. Like a jukebox diner on the edge of a splintered universe that had a version of… the best analog James could find was sushi. He'd eaten there with his betrothed on the trip right before the crash.
Which was another bit of news to James: as young as Noh was (he estimated he was about sixteen Terran years old, though it was hard to make a one-to-one comparison when he didn't have a childhood and had a growth tube instead), he'd been engaged to a girl on his ship. It was clear when he wasn't asking rapid-fire questions or talking about Kree philosophy that the guy was still mourning.
That particular night, the moon was full, and there was no need to build a fire. Neither of them were too cold, and they could see just fine when the mountains where they were had more rocks and cliffs than trees to block the moon.
They'd been talking, as usual, when the topic circled back around to Noh's lost crew. James could tell something was still bugging him, but he hadn't pressed yet.
Which turned out to be the right call, because finally, Noh said, looking up at the moon, "Your sister smoothed out the place where my crew used to be."
James turned toward him to watch his reactions, and to try to get a better idea of where he was headed with that. "That feels like somewhere I need to apologize on her behalf."
Noh let out a snort that was almost a laugh. "Maybe," he said. He was quiet for a bit, then explained: "Part of the gaping hole she rearranged my mind to fill … yes, it was my connection to the Supremor, to the Kree objectives. But that was also my connection to the rest of my kind. And I remember them, yes, but they felt closer when I felt their loss that way, if that makes sense. The hole they used to fill was filled without them."
"It does make sense," James said quietly. "And I'm sorry. That's not the kind of thing that can really be filled, I don't think."
"No, I don't think it is," Noh agreed. "I did wonder, for a moment, if other Kree would fill it, but… they aren't united yet. It's not the same."
"In my experience, you can't replace anyone you really care about with anyone else. For what it's worth."
"I know. It was a brief moment." Noh shrugged his shoulders as he rearranged himself to engage in the conversation with James instead of looking up at the moon.
"Do you need a hug?" James asked, half smirking to himself when he didn't know if Noh really knew what that was, even. "Because it kind of sounds like you do."
"I'm perfectly warm, thank you-"
"That might be why Kree hug, but that's just pitiful here."
Noh chuckled. "We know how to show affection, James - but you already turned me down, and I think I would prefer not to incur the Demiurge's wrath."
"Okay, okay," James laughed. "I'm not talking about doing anything nude, big guy."
"Which is truly a shame, because you are absolutely stunning," Noh said with an easy smirk, putting his hands behind his head as he lay down.
"I'm too old for you," James laughed again.
"Even with your estimations, you're only eighteen. I've been an adult longer than you have," Noh shot back.
"I don't think that adds up," James said.
"Sure it does. The years you spent learning to walk, talk, and read, I spent already doing those things. I have an advantage."
"I still don't think that adds up," James replied, smiling to himself. "But if it makes you feel better to be called the old man around here …"
Noh smirked and shook his head. "When we get back to your friends, you must help me find someone who is as talented, smart, and funny as you are. I've truly mistimed my arrival to this place."
"If you'd have come here before I was with Billy, you wouldn't have liked meeting me much," James said.
"Fair enough, I suppose. Each new meeting leaves imprints on us," Noh agreed.
"I was pretty shameless chasing girls," James said.
"But that's fun," Noh said.
"Sure. Until your siblings start pointing out that a good string of them were related to the bad guys."
Noh gestured with both hands out to the side. "In the rush and confusion of mourning and anger and torment, the first Earth girl I kissed was my captor's daughter."
James laughed outright. "That might have had something to do with his attitude problem with you."
"He controlled her every move, convinced her she was unlovable, and then did nothing to protect her when his recklessness drew SHIELD down on us."
A beat or two of silence passed. "So … does that mean he used her to sleep with you?" James teased.
Noh blinked and then laughed. "Actually, we never did get that far-"
"He wants you, Noh."
"For Plex's- that's not at all the same."
"It might be," James sang out. "You are you."
Noh raised an eyebrow and then huffed out a laugh. "While this is true, it's not nearly as fun to agree in this circumstance."
"I'm really just trying to get a mental picture of what that would look like," James said, still smiling.
"I'm trying not to think of it," Noh said.
"We all have horrible people in our pasts. Well … I do anyhow. My siblings aren't nearly that stupid."
"It's more fun to make mistakes, though," Noh said.
"Yeah, I don't know about all that," James said. "When we're back to a room somewhere, I'll have to give you the break down of the team and some of the crap we've gone through. You'll need to know if you plan to stick around anyhow."
"I haven't decided yet," Noh admitted. "After Midas is dealt with, I should help the Kree here…"
"I'd hate to see you go," James admitted. "But if that's what you decide to do, I'm pretty sure I can get you a ride at least."
"As I said, I haven't made a decision. I don't feel the same connection to the Supreme Intelligence I used to have, and to be frank, I don't know what would become of me to approach the Supremor with a mind made human by the Phoenix."
"That's a fair point," James agreed. "But, if you decide to give up on staying here, I'll find you someone you can cruise through space with at least. You just have to promise to mutiny as soon as possible."
"I'm definitely going to need the story there," Noh chuckled.
"As soon as you tell me if your whole crew ran around in the tight green and white. Tell me there was some variety."
Noh grinned and sat up on his elbows. "It depended on the directed mutagenic ability of the crew member," he explained. "Everyone's uniform had to be tailored to what they could do - how their physical form manifested their genetic potential…"
"What do you know? Seems to be the case with us, too," James replied with a laugh still in place.
"You should have seen Merree. She looked stunning in blue."
"Might have to get Nate to help you project it," James said. "I'm curious."
Noh's smile dipped lightly, and he seemed to think something over. "I wonder," he said slowly, "if you have the technology to record thoughts and memories. My ship did, but it was lost…"
"Tony's been working on it," James admitted. "He's had some real trouble trying to remember exactly what his father looked like when he wasn't yelling. And he said he wanted to give me some time with my parents, too."
"Then perhaps I could help him," Noh said thoughtfully. "That sounds like a noble cause… even if I'd be helping for selfish reasons."
"He'd probably love to work with you," James said. "He's very in tune with anything technological. He starts to see the possibilities very quickly."
"Then I definitely want to work with him," Noh agreed. He sighed and shifted to get more comfortable. "Thank you. I started this night thinking I was starting to lose even the pain that reminded me of my crew and family, and now, I'm looking forward to giving their memories form again."
"Well if you want a pain, you're not alone, Noh," James said, just barely teasing as he curled up on his side. "I can be a pain for you."
"Ah, but you're taken," Noh said without missing a beat.
"At least until he wises up," James shot back.
"I don't think that expression applies, as I understand it."
"It definitely does."
"Then I must not understand it."
"I'm nowhere near whatever it is you think I am, Noh," James said.
Noh took a deep breath and let it out. "Consistently," he said slowly, "what I find I love most when I've traveled to other worlds is joy, compassion, and intelligence." He paused and smirked. "And looks don't hurt, but I'm not picky."
"I think I figured that part out," James said.
"If you say so," Noh said, already rearranging himself to go to sleep.
"You'll change your mind if things go badly when we catch up to this guy. The other half of what I do isn't very pretty at all."
"Remind me to tell you sometime about what my crewmates did to Shi'ar two years ago."
"Hey Noh? What did your crewmates do to filthy disgusting Shi'ar?"
Noh laughed and sat up. "I think this qualifies as the Earth tradition of scary stories at night," he teased.
"You can try," James said. "I didn't tell you about the space pirate grandfather. I know how stupid and base the Shi'ar can be."
"Then you'll enjoy hearing about their downfall," Noh said - before launching into what was, frankly, a graphic story about how much his crew delighted in tearing the Shi'ar to shreds the last time they'd come across them.
The two of them talked for a little while longer, though James let Noh regale him with tales of intrigue and adventure until Noh was truly ready for rest … which was, of course about the time that James decided he wasn't tired. They were too close to the most likely spot to find this idiot, so he couldn't sleep.
And he wasn't the only one. Ten minutes into staring up at the stars, James' phone went off with a silent notification … and a moment or two later, he and Billy were texting back and forth. They truly had gotten too used to being side by side again, so the extended camping trip was wearing on Billy … all alone in their 'too big' apartment.
Which was fine … except that James ended up losing track of time, and before the night was too far gone, he and BIlly had more or less passed out after one final text … but that only gave him a few hours of sleep before Noh woke up to find him solidly out.
Noh considered him for a long moment before he decided not to wake him up, sure that James had worn himself out leading the charge with his tracking abilities - since Noh wasn't sure how those worked relative to his energy levels. He let himself wander a bit, enjoying the chance to explore on his own without getting too far from their camp.
He did like what he'd seen so far of the planet. The flora and fauna were fascinating, and the atmosphere was perfect for solar events like sunrises and sunsets.
Eventually, though, Noh wanted to get moving, and as it happened, James wasn't sleeping as deeply when Noh returned. Noh didn't know much about Terran sleep cycles, but he had noticed a pattern to them, so he thought this was a good time to bend down and shake James by the shoulder with a whispered, "When you're ready, we should get moving."
James was quick to shift from half asleep and barely rested to up and ready to head out. The scents were still easy for him to catch that he'd been following before, though without confirming it as Midas himself, all he knew for sure by conversing with Noh was that it was part of the group that Midas ran. And that would have to do for now. He was pretty sure Midas wasn't going to get a second chance once he could connect the specific scent to the person in question, but if he had that much, there was no way in hell the guy could run forever. Not from James, anyhow.
He was pulling his hair back out of his face as he tested the wind, then paused to decide the direction they needed to take. The scent trail was saying to go into the caves, but just then, as the wind shifted, James caught that same scent in the breeze, coming from a totally different angle than the mouth of the caves. This could very well be a chance to cut them off and avoid another day of trying to avoid hastily laid traps along the old scent trail.
"Hold on," James said, unconsciously stretching out onto his tip toes - his chin lifting into the air as he turned toward the prevalent wind. But he didn't want to lose a day going the wrong way. If this was something else… his lips parted and he closed his eyes, tasting the wind as he inhaled slowly. That scent was much fresher than the trail they'd been following into the caves.
When James opened his eyes, he settled down flat-footed again and pulled his phone out of his back pocket to pull up a topographical map of the area they were hunting in, and another map of the cave system. The wind was shifting strangely though the canyons and rocky outcroppings. It was possible he was getting something that had swirled around the valley and was coming at him from the wrong way.
But … he didn't feel as if that was the case, deep in his gut. "I think we can cut him off," James said finally.
"We don't know for certain where he's headed," Noh reasoned, but he was watching how differently James was holding himself as he worked it out in his head.
"Yeah, but," James tipped his chin across the valley. "It looks like the caves connect, sort of. And this scent trail is a few days old. We can follow it and continue to play follow the leader, or we can take the cues from the scent on the wind and cut off a few days of dinking around avoiding tripwires." He pointed almost straight across a semi-open spanse. "Wind is coming from that way, factoring in shifting, I think that's our best bet to get this guy. If I'm wrong, we can always double back and follow the trail again, but I'm telling you…"
"I believe you," Noh said with a nod, surprising James.
"Okay, then." James took a moment to gather up the last of their camping supplies. "Let's do this. We just need to get there quickly."
"That's a simple enough endeavor," Noh said as James put away his phone. "Where precisely are we going?" There was a slight smile tugging at the corner of his mouth as he spoke.
"Precisely? Hard to pin down until we're closer but-" James walked over to Noh and took a moment to point out a certain rocky outcropping well across the desert. "-somewhere close to the end of that arc, I'll bet. If we're closer, I can pinpoint the scents better."
Noh nodded, then took a few steps closer just before he scooped James off of his feet. It was enough to throw James off balance, but he managed to hold on an instant before Noh took off running at speed. They crossed the flat expanse in a matter of moments, then set James down even before the wash of wind caught up to them.
James didn't say anything at first, instead holding on to Noh's shoulder for balance as the wind hit very much like when Tommy ran - though James hadn't really experienced that with Tommy. "That is definitely faster," James said as he waited for the wind to settle so he could get his bearings with the scent. He didn't know that Noh was fast like that and it left him wondering what else the guy was capable of. The files that they'd gotten from the cube were corrupted data - likely from a failsafe that went off before the cube was fully breached. He could have unraveled it with time, but they needed to move on this sooner than later, so he figured that any special abilities would … come up organically. And this certainly qualified. "Give me a minute to find that scent again."
"If you were mistaken, it won't take long to return," Noh said. "Or to try another direction."
"Yeah, I think we're in the right spot, so just …" James took a few steps forward and again did his best to maximize his intake of the scents around them, though it wasn't entirely necessary for how strong they were now. "Oh yeah. Come on."
James didn't look back before he started down the new scent trail, though he was irritated to find that it led into some lava tubes all the same. Midas (or his men) had just been through though, likely in the last fifteen minutes. This was definitely the right move to close this little game of cat and mouse out.
They weren't far into the lava tubes when James put out a hand to keep Noh from passing him by. Both of them could hear Midas and his men sniping back and forth over a trap they were setting up.
Apparently, one of the men had nearly dropped something, and it had Midas all but hissing at them to be careful.
"You understand, don't you - you imbecile - that we could make back everything we've lost? When SHIELD itself is interested in that little cockroach? Do you know how much money we can make just from what we know now? Let alone the insect himself? Be careful."
When James glanced at Noh, he could see his lips pulled back, but the sound Noh let out wasn't audible yet; it was just tickling at James's ears.
They didn't have to talk about it, not when Midas was still crowing about "recovering his property" and all that. Noh had a right to revenge, and James was touchy about people being treated like objects. So they both burst into motion.
James had expected Noh to go right for Midas, but instead, the Kree had veered off toward something else, and a second later, James heard a crate being torn apart, and Noh came back with an energy weapon in each hand, looking triumphant before he dove in to fight.
And while it was obvious Noh wanted to work through the men at top speed, he only got a few feet into running before he set off some kind of trap that hit him with enough energy to send him flying across the room, smoking and singed but still conscious enough to shake off the stars.
The place was booby-trapped, which meant fighting was going to take longer; the boys had to watch their steps.
James was right in the thick of it fighting alongside Noh to stop Midas' men and get to Midas himself, who seemed perfectly content to watch the two of them work as he prepared his own surprises for the boys. It was obvious he had high hopes that his men would do their jobs, but when James was taking out the last one, Noh turned his anger toward Midas and began to hiss with a deep frown marring his features as he kicked aside some kind of technology that must have been a trap at some point.
"And what have you brought me?" Midas asked delightedly. "The young Wolverine- Stark's heir? Really, I'm almost tempted to thank you; I'm sure I'll easily get double what I thought I could recoup with what I'll make off the two of you."
"Better than you have tried," James half growled out.
"That's anyone who's tried," Noh said, though he had to stop to get his breath before he could rush Midas; whatever he had crushed had done something before Noh had killed it, and James could see a criss-cross pattern of skin up Noh's side on the side that had been facing the trap.
And then, when the fight was won and Midas' last guard fell, James turned toward Noh and Midas to see what was going to happen.
With a low hiss, Noh charged forward, and James fully expected to see Midas go down fast - except that about a foot away from Midas, Noh suddenly crumpled. It took James a moment to realize what had happened, too, because he was also holding his ears when some kind of sonic weapon went off. But the effect was obviously worse for Noh, who hadn't gotten back up despite a blue pattern stretching over every inch of his skin.
James's ears were still ringing, but Midas looked like he was yelling at Noh, gesticulating a few times. And then, just as James was able to distinguish more than muffled noise, Midas switched to Kree. And it sounded a lot like the dialect Noh used.
The change in Noh was almost immediate. The hissing slipped and he straightened up even as Midas continued speaking in Kree, and the next thing James knew, Noh turned on him and hit him hard enough to send him flying backward into the rock wall.
Thankfully, he'd sparred enough with Tommy to know he couldn't wait to react, so before he even tried to pick his head up from the rock, he threw one fist up to catch Noh with a lucky hit to the jaw as Noh grabbed a hold of his uniform.
With Midas cackling beyond them, James took a hold of Noh's uniform, too - simply to keep him close by. Those super-speed attacks were too hard to predict. He had to keep him close to have a chance.
As far as strength went, they were fairly matched. But Noh had James in flexibility and speed. James skipped an easy hit in favor of slamming the button on his wrist band that called his armor to him, though he paid for it with four punches in the time it took him to hit the button. In his head, all he had to do was make it long enough for th armor to get to him … that's what it was for, after all. Punch drunk wasn't working well for him, though, and without thinking it through, James defaulted to the kind of training he'd known since he was small - and he put it into action using all the dirty tricks Natasha and Clint had taught him. It leveled out the fight a little bit.
But when the armor got there, that felt like more of a game changer. The first thing that happened was Noh was forced back just until he wasn't making contact with James' body so the taser could deploy and shock him away from James, giving the armor a chance to wrap him up safely.
Noh recovered quickly though, and before James could utilize the thrusters to take off, Noh shot blasts of energy toward the boots, frying the thrusters and effectively grounding James.
But he still had his armor, and Noh wasn't aware of all the bells and whistles Tony had insisted on.
Rockets, electrical shocks, tranquilizers, gas … all of it went into play, and bit by bit, Noh retaliated by wrecking it. James hadn't expected the exploding fingernails that blew off bits of armor, nor was he expecting how well the armor absorbed the impacts - though that was a relief while he healed.
Bit by bit, though, Noh tore off the armor - starting with the faceplate. James fought back, but it was almost like Noh was enjoying the fight. Even when James would land something nasty.
Both of them had broken bones as Midas encouraged the fight, and Noh used the flexibility at his disposal to finally twist himself around James to pin him once James popped his claws and stabbed him.
At least he didn't break them off, James thought to himself as he tried to find a way out of the pin. It wasn't like anything he'd had to do before and the way Noh was contorted was … well, it'd be impressive and a lot of fun under other circumstances. Now it was just annoying. And the guy was hissing and glaring at him like James had personally caused all of his misery.
So he put to use what he could and pushed back with every ounce of strength he had. And to Noh's irritation, he was making headway. Once his shoulder was off the ground, James shifted to throw Noh's weight off center to reverse the pin, though he only managed to start a new scrambling wrestling match - bashing against rocks and fallen soldiers until James cracked his head and felt as if he was experiencing deja vu as Noh slammed his wrist well away from his body.
He fought to readjust his grip on Noh's uniform with his free hand only for Noh to grab his wrist in the tousle and pin it over his head.
Noh's angry expression held some note of confusion though as Midas shouted orders in Kree at him, and though James didn't know what was said, he could see Noh wasn't sure what to do with him now that he had him. Which was when he remembered what had worked the last time he was in a situation like this.
It felt wrong to consider it though. He knew that logically, a stolen kiss mid-fight like he'd done with Tyler wouldn't be expected. And it would likely break him out of whatever internal battle he was facing. But knowing that Noh was attracted to him had James hesitating.
"Okay, you won," James said, trying to talk his way out of it. "Let me go so we can - ow." Noh's grip increased and he looked more angry somehow. Which left James feeling like a stolen kiss might just be his only play. He couldn't move anything else, even to try and knee the guy for how close he was, after all.
He held his breath and leaned forward to steal a kiss - not at all surprised when Noh didn't startle like Tyler had - and instead pushed back to make it more involved with James's head pressed against the rock.
James also wasn't expecting the growing sensation of being high as the kiss continued. His shoulders relaxed and as soon as Noh loosened his grip on James' wrists, James reached out for him - then swore when Noh broke the kiss. His head was spinning not unlike when Katarina had hit him full bore with the drugs and her powers … this was close to that.
As for Noh, he was trying hard to fight against his own body. He was genuinely shocked to find that there was any option for Midas to control him, since the Phoenix had removed the control center of his mind. But then, he hadn't always been conscious, and he'd been in a good amount of pain practically since SHIELD had taken custody of him, so there was no telling what he might have done so that a single sentence could have him wholly convinced that he needed to protect Midas instead of killing him where he stood.
And now… He stared at James, who had completely relaxed. And he heard Midas repeat his order to bring James to him, but he didn't want to.
He didn't want to obey an order, which was itself a new feeling. Part of his mind knew it was wrong, but the other part pointed out that this was the wrong commander and he didn't deserve obedience.
He was at war with himself, and so the best he could do was to only sort of obey the order.
He leaned closer to James, who was still incredibly relaxed, and said in a near whisper that only James could hear, "Attack Midas."
James was already high because of the psychedelic nature of Noh's saliva, but there was more to it than that. Because of the nanites in Noh's bloodstream, he could, if he chose, also transfer some of those nanites to his saliva - and use those to direct the mentally-altered state of whoever he swapped spit with, so to speak. And since most of his people's technology was heavily reliant on passive telepathy, all he had to do was speak the instruction and focus on it, and whoever he controlled would want to do it - and would, in their drug-induced haze, see whatever their mind wanted them to see in order to be more agreeable to the order.
Noh couldn't, for some reason, bring himself to follow James to go on the attack, but the act of rebellion itself, of sending James to go kill Midas, was enough that he didn't feel like answering the call when Midas called him to heel, either. Not until he saw how things played out with James. He could wait to act on that order.
It wasn't even a stretch for a command either. James had wanted to take the guy out anyhow - even before he'd found a picture of him in one of Maria Hill's hidden servers. And as Noh let slip tiny snippets about his captivity, James had been building up a little idea or two on what he wanted to do to the guy to make it hurt. And once Noh pulled the trigger on Midas, it wasn't even something James had to plan out. He just moved.
The first few steps were quick, but not anything alarming. After that, though - James shifted from a fast walk to a low, dead run that was accented by a deep, rumbling growl that only got louder and more rough the closer he got. Midas of course had a gun on him, but James didn't seem to register the body shots as he came up fast and led with a punch that landed with three claws at the last possible second.
His aim wasn't what it usually was under the fog of hallucinogens, though. He hit center mass, avoided bone even - but Midas didn't get away with a harmless wound. Especially when James twisted his wrist after he hit the guy's liver. It wasn't a fast bleeding spot, not that James really knew that yet.
In a blast of energy, though, Midas sent James flying and partially embedded him in the far wall with a crack. But Midas was also losing enough blood that he didn't at all want to risk staying there any longer. So, sneering, he scampered, leaving James bleeding and Noh reeling.
Now that the fight was over, Noh allowed himself to feel his injuries a bit more - which he immediately regretted and went back to not feeling when he realized that most of his outer membrane was splintered, so any touch would be painful until that was healed. Instead, he tucked that hurt aside and then made his way over to James.
He felt terrible - he really did - because he was sure James was fatally wounded. He didn't know how much healing James could do, but the amount of energy Midas had released from some stolen Shi'ar weapon… that would have easily killed one of Noh's crewmates. But at the very least, he could bring James's body back home, he supposed.
But when he got to where James was, he saw that his new ally was breathing, and he let out a genuinely disbelieving laugh. "You're alive?"
"Why wouldn't I be?" James asked, though he was half holding his breath and trying very hard not to move.
"I've seen that Shi'ar weapon used before," Noh said. "You must be very lucky; used at its highest settings, and used properly, it should have left you skinned down to the bone."
"Yeah, it did," James said, then gingerly moved his arm out of the way so Noh could see. "How far along is the healing? I can't twist that way right now."
Noh's eyebrows shot up as he came closer and realized that the weapon had managed to peel much of his flesh from his ribs and charred bone and organs. "Well," he said diplomatically, "the skin is so new that it's transparent. I can see your muscles being knitted."
"Give it a few minutes then," James said, closing his eyes as he leaned his head back. He was quiet for a long moment, but he couldn't let the silence hang forever. "Hey, Noh- ah … what the hell was that?"
Noh hedged and then sighed out his breath. "In my defense," he said, "I would not have kissed you back if I hadn't seen its tactical value."
James picked up his head and raised one eyebrow. "Really?"
"Well, yes, obviously when I kiss someone, I prefer it to be in a romantic or at least carnal setting-" Noh cut himself off. "I… can, if I choose, induce a form of mind control using my saliva. It was the only thing I could think to do when you were trapped and I couldn't break free of the command to attack you."
"How long does it usually last?" James asked after a long moment. He was still feeling the affects heavily enough that he didn't trust himself.
"That depends on the length of contact," Noh admitted. "It can be up to several hours. But it can be less if the command is short or if I'm not interested in controlling you any longer; there's a telepathic element to it, and I only wanted you to attack him so I couldn't be forced to subdue you and make you his prisoner along with me."
James nodded at that and thought it over for a little while before he started to sit up properly, wincing a little at a shard of rock that he hadn't removed yet. "I don't know if it's you dropping it or if I burn through it faster, but the edges are coming back into focus - and I think we need to get off his trail for a little bit. Regroup. And have a little better question and answer session."
"Agreed." Noh tipped his head to watch James. "I could carry you while you heal, but if that's awkward for you…"
"I'm just about healed now," James said before he twisted experimentally, then gestured openly with both hands. "Regenerative. Just makes me hungry and cranky if I have to do too much."
"That's astonishing." Noh grimaced and gestured to himself. "I have to eat before I can heal," he said, which was evidenced by the blue blood James could see dripping from his short sleeves.
"I know of a place not too far from here," James said. "And it's a different setting than you've seen so far, too."
"I'll follow you, then." Noh got to his feet and then paused. "I owe you an apology for using you without your consent."
"And I owe you one for trying to throw you off with that kiss. It's not exactly the first time I've done it."
"I understood it wasn't meant romantically or sexually. Don't apologize for good tactics. It definitely gave me pause and would have worked if I was operating only under my own thoughts," Noh assured him. "If nothing else, I would have asked if you had changed your mind about wanting to start something- I don't like to assume consent."
James grinned brightly at that. "I think we'll get along just fine," he said. "But I will tell you about the last time I tried this. Got my ass kicked then, too."
Noh chuckled and offered his hand to James to help him to his feet. "Please. That sounds like a fun story."
Chapter 141: Emotions Running High
Chapter Text
Kate was dreading going to her doctor's appointment, but she was getting dehydrated again, so she knew she needed to go. But when she saw that she had a text from Billy, she cheered up instantly and pulled it up - only to see that Billy had texted her a picture of the new alien kid along with a quick little message:
Hey, I'm overthinking, I know. But he's already come onto James, and I need you to talk me down, okay?
Kate shook her head, settled her shoulders, and decided the best thing to do for an overly-anxious Billy was to call.
So, she did, and as soon as he picked up, she said, "Okay, so, first of all, you're right and he's cute and if I didn't already have the best man in the world married to me, I'd totally be interested too. Very hot, 10 out of 10 - totally not even a threat to you."
"You mean aside from the whole part where he surprised James into speechlessness?" Billy said.
"You mean the part that Nate showed me where his big brother with the self-esteem of a space rat on Grandpa Space Pirate's ship after three months of no supplies… was surprised by being told he was beautiful by someone who is objectively hot? That part?"
"Yes. That part," Billy said flatly.
"Billy, I love you, but you're overthinking this," Kate said. "You're looking at this like it's someone else and not James. Like, sure, from the outside, someone who's hot and knows how to aggressively flirt is a threat. From the inside, have you seen the way your pretty-much-a-fiance bends himself into little knots for you? He's still beating himself up about Katarina; you really think in a million years he'd entertain anyone in a consensual way? Or that you wouldn't, like, immediately hear the implosion of the universe if that happened?"
"Well when you say it like that-"
"I mean, you know I'm right. He's going through official steps and paperwork just so he could marry you like a proper gentleman and honor the wishes of a dead dictator just because he was your grandfather. He's head over heels for you, Billy; you're overthinking because James also has no idea that he's as handsome as he is and it freaks him out when people tell him nice things. Especially anything about his looks after Katarina and Viper did all they did to him." When Billy hemmed and hawed for a second, Kate sighed. "Besides, Nate peeked in the guy's head, and he's not just focused on James. He pretty much thinks everyone he's met so far - well, the heroes anyway - is gorgeous. You too, even if he's intimidated by your power level. Which, to be fair, is an accurate read. We're all a bunch of supermodels, obviously."
"I did say I was overthinking," Billy said in his defense.
"And I'm here to speak your drama language, right? This is helping? Tell me it's helping."
"It is. And I love you for it. I don't suppose you'd be interested in a movie and some ice cream later?"
"Yes, please. I have a doctor visit today, and Nate is supposed to be helping Rachel grade some papers tonight, so I could use some post-doctor unwinding with one of my best friends in the world."
"You got it. Especially since the camping trip to hunt down evil creeps seems to keep getting extended."
"Oh, eww, that must be one slippery bad guy," Kate said, making a face. "James never takes that long."
"He wasn't sure what they were looking for to start," Billy said. "He checked in; said he's got the guy's scent now, so … I'm hoping it won't be much longer. We do have Thanksgiving with Annie and Scott and James' birthday."
"Honestly, with how stressed Scott has been, I wouldn't be surprised if James drops the alien for a couple days to come do Thanksgiving if this isn't solved by then. Don't know if you've noticed, but all three of our Stressed Summerses are convinced something's wrong at all times, and I think we both know why."
"I can't even disagree with them," Billy said.
"I know." Kate took a deep breath and let it out. "Anyway. Ice cream and a movie."
"Yes. All the chocolate one ice cream can hold and … give me a genre."
"Hmmmm…. I'm kinda feeling like a scifi thriller where the aliens get killed…"
"Thank goodness," Billy laughed.
"Love you, Billy boy," Kate sang out.
"Love you too. Good luck with the baby doctor stuff!"
May hadn't waited for Miles to ask her out, because even though he was cute, he seemed to be better at stumbling over his words than actually getting to what he wanted to say. So, she asked him if he wanted to go out with her that weekend, and when he said yes and offered a place that he knew in town, she was more than happy with the results.
The only thing was that her dad caught her doing her makeup with a smile he knew too well, and he'd had to stop with his arms crossed in the doorway. "I feel like I should be asking if I need to threaten the guy or something," he said.
"Dad…"
"I'm just saying. That feels traditional here."
"Dad, it's Miles."
"Oh good. I see him all the time showing him the ropes. Easy access for threatening-"
"Oh my god, Dad."
Peter grinned and then, just to tweak her, made a show of slipping over to kiss her forehead. "But you're my little girl!"
"Okay, this is worse than when you were gonna threaten him."
"Then I'm totally doing my job." Peter thumbed over his shoulder. "But we're a little bit in trouble with your mom for the stuff in the yard, so if you could help me…"
"Right. I still think it was your fault," May said, smirking as she walked with her dad.
"Um, no, you're the one who scared the life out of me while I was tweaking the web fluid."
"You have a Spidey sense!"
"For danger, not daughters!"
"And now it's my fault and we have to clean up webs?"
"Now it's your fault and we have to clean up webs," Peter agreed, and May rolled her eyes at him and shoved him in the shoulder.
Thankfully, between the two of them, they were able to get everything cleaned up with plenty of time to spare before May's date, though Peter couldn't help but pull some webbing out of her hair and gave her a quiet smile before she blushed and batted her hand away.
"You looked like you were going to get sappy on me for a second there, Dad."
"You don't want to hear my prepared speech about how I can't stop wondering where my little girl went?"
"You have it written down somewhere, don't you?"
"...maybe."
"Maybe save it for something bigger, like a milestone."
"So, that's permission, then?"
"Oh my God."
"I'm taking it as permission," Peter said. He lobbed the last bit of webbing into the trash can like a basketball, and just as it went in, he and May both jumped nearly out of their skin and ducked before an explosion knocked them both to the ground.
And as soon as Peter and May heard the distinctive cackle over their heads, they both immediately knew what the problem was.
"Geez, Norman, it's a quiet neighborhood. Noise ordinances exist, you know!" Peter said, and May groaned at him.
"Of all the jokes…" May startled again before Peter could challenge her to come up with something better, and the next thing she knew, her dad had grabbed her around the waist and threw out a web, pulling them both out of danger at the last second before another explosion went off.
They weren't badly injured or killed, as they could have been, but both of them went flying off course from the sheer force of the explosion - Peter one way and May the other. May's ears were still ringing after she slammed into the side of the building and quickly grabbed on, clinging to the side while her Spider sense went absolutely nuts, but she couldn't tell where the danger was coming from.
She heard laughter right behind her and dodged at the last second, missing being skewered but still badly knocked around by the duller edge of Green Goblin's scooter as he swore over missing his mark.
"Oooh, those smaller spiders are hard to catch, aren't they, Spidey?" Goblin called out gleefully.
"May, I think he just called me old or slow or something; it's hard to tell when everything is quiet except for the ringing, you know?" Peter called out to May, who couldn't help but laugh at her dad.
And since she had inherited his same tendency to run her mouth when she was stressed out, she said, "Oh, your ears are ringing too? I thought maybe it was a Mosquito ringtone, old man."
"Wow, reference flew over my head. Do I act proud or tell you to make your mid-battle chatter more accessible? It's a tossup," Peter laughed, then turned to Norman, narrowing his eyes as he saw him repositioning himself for another run at May. "So, Norman, did you wake up this morning and decide to interrupt a daddy-daughter game of pickup web basketball or is this just to say hello?"
"Just the opposite," came the nearly giggling reply. "Came to say goodbye!" With that, the Green Goblin rushed toward May, and Peter jumped toward to try to get between them.
Miles, meanwhile, was full of nervous-but-excited energy as he walked down the street to go pick up May. He knew what people were saying about her, about how she was going to wreck him, but honestly, she was fun and she was nice. And she didn't always think before she spoke, which was, he figured, why she had the reputation she did. But he liked that, because he was the same way.
And he liked honesty. It seemed like lately the older kids were so caught up in secrets that it was hard to connect with them. Kate was nice, and she tried to keep the younger kids in the loop, but it was blatantly obvious that they had their group of kids that had grown up together and that it was hard to break into.
Throw in some court intrigue from the princes, and May was honestly a breath of fresh air.
So he was looking forward to hanging out with her … right up until he heard an explosion coming from the direction he was already headed.
"What are the chances that didn't involve my date?" Miles asked no one in particular, already starting to jog. But then, when another explosion sounded, he pulled his mask out of his jacket pocket and slipped it on before getting out his web shooters to try and get himself to the source of the problem a little faster.
Even rushing as he was, Miles didn't arrive until well into the fight - at least from what he could see. Most of the Parkers' house was in shambles. MJ was, thankfully, okay, though she was unconscious, and Miles had to stop to check on her, trusting that May and Peter had things in hand with the Green Goblin, who was cackling loudly enough for Miles to identify the problem even if he was coughing on smoke and couldn't see where they'd gone.
Once he knew that MJ wasn't in any immediate danger, Miles rushed into the smoke, coughing a bit harder - and nearly startling a foot in the air when his Spider Sense told him he was in trouble. He threw himself flat, and something exploded over his head.
"If it isn't the new one - the itsy bitsy spider-boy, all ready to be washed out!" the Green Goblin called out as Miles coughed and rolled out of the way, trying to get to his feet quickly.
"I mean, one outta two isn't bad," Miles said, finding the edge of the smoke and still coughing. "I am new, but I'm not the itsy bitsi…est… or… you know what, I started out strong. I really did."
As the Goblin cackled, Miles looked around - and jumped when someone grabbed his arm and yanked him into the air, though he relaxed when he realized it was May pulling him away from an open fire. She looked burned and bruised and stressed, but he was glad to see she was okay, especially since he could see that Peter wasn't doing nearly as well. He looked like he couldn't put weight on one side as he also tried to dodge the Goblin's nastier surprises.
"Can someone tell me what the heck is happening?" Miles asked, the stress evident in his voice.
"He just showed up like this," May said, every word getting higher in pitch. "Dad thinks he's trying to - to - go out in a blaze of spider-murder, I think is what he said?"
"Why?"
"We can ask Doc Hale for his professional opinion when we're not in danger of being squished, huh?"
"Yeah, fair. Is your dad okay?"
"Um, no. He doesn't like fighting this guy on a good day, and this is not a good day."
"Right, I meant - you know what, never mind," Miles said, letting May direct their swing so he could look over her shoulder and shoot a web at the Green Goblin, knocking off his aim so that his next attempt to blow them up went wide. "Do you run out of those or what?" he shouted at Norman.
"Oh, itsy bitsy spider, you don't want to play?" Norman called back, clearly enjoying this turn of events. "Three spiders at once; this is getting fun!"
"Dad got close enough to knock him silly, but then the stupid Goblin broke Dad's leg before I could knock him out," May muttered under her breath to Miles, audibly furious.
"Well, let's try that again," Miles said. "I'll go in close, and you follow up?"
"That didn't work so well the first time," May pointed out.
"Yeah, but he hasn't met me yet," Miles said.
Despite the severity of their situation, May had to pause and smirk Miles's way. "Okay, you're cute when you're confident."
Miles was glad that the mask hid how deeply he was blushing. "Thanks."
May would have said something else, but she heard her dad cry out and saw the Green Goblin fling him into a nearby building. "Right. I'll kiss you later. Let's go save my dad right now, huh?"
"You're the one who's flirting with me right now!" Miles shot back, though he was already moving to get into position, going invisible after he'd said his piece so that he had a better chance of catching the Goblin by surprise.
"Hey, Norm!" May called out, instantly getting the Goblin's attention, though Peter groaned and shook his head, trying to communicate that he thought it was a bad idea to play distraction when Norman was in the state he was in. "You hit like a boy!"
"O-ho, you want to play ball?" Norman replied, bouncing a grenade in one hand gleefully.
Miles winced, but May managed to dodge the grenade - barely. He could tell she was getting tired, but to her credit, she didn't let up in trying to keep Norman's attention. "And you throw like a boy too!" she called out to him.
As Miles watched, Norman turned toward May with his whole body - which made him a perfect target for Miles to launch himself at. And with the added benefit of invisibility, Norman really hadn't stood a chance of seeing Miles in time to react or dodge.
So, that was the part of the plan that did go, well, according to plan. Where it went quickly sideways was the fact that Norman, upon realizing that he was now sharing his glider with a spider, almost immediately revved up to ramming speed and headed for the nearest building.
"O-o-o-o-o-kay this is not good," Miles said, scrambling to hang on as Norman started cackling. And out of pure instinct, because he didn't want to get squished, he did the first thing that came to mind to neutralize the threat… and venom-blasted the Green Goblin.
They still crashed, but it wasn't nearly as bad as it could have been. And when Miles stopped seeing stars long enough to look around, he saw that May was there and that the Goblin was unconscious, lying far away from the glider.
As soon as May realized that Miles was with it enough to look at her, she let out a sound of pure relief and hugged him. "That was amazing. Never do it again," she said in a breath, and then next thing he knew, she had pushed up his mask, and he didn't need any more prompting than that to kiss her.
Billy had kept to his promise to meet up with Kate after her doctor's appointment, but seeing as she was right and had needed some fluids via IV, she wasn't up to going out. So Billy bought the supplies and brought them over to Kate and Nate's apartment in Clint's building.
She'd had a bit of a panic attack, so she was worn out and leaning heavily on Nate, practically curled up before Billy was even settled in. But she stole the cherry off of Nate's sundae and smiled at the boys before getting comfortable again.
And then, before the boys had even finished their ice creams, Kate promptly fell asleep.
Nate chuckled and shifted so that her head was in his lap and he could more easily reach the other snacks Billy had brought. "Honestly, it wasn't as bad as last time," he told Billy. "Stupid as it is, the doc's been good at helping her relax around medical stuff."
"If he decides not to be, I can always wish him somewhere fitting," Billy said dryly. He scrunched up his nose as he looked at the remains of their ice cream social. "This doesn't seem like the right thing to be discussing this over… too sweet and fluffy."
"Hey, if you happen to add alcohol to the evening while I tuck my wife into bed…"
"It's been that kind of day, huh?"
"It's been that kind of month."
"I think I can agree to that," Billy said. "And I have nothing to do once I go home but pace, so … what are we drinking?"
"Um… if Katie wakes up, she'll be mad at me for drinking when she can't, so we should get something with vodka so I can say I'm getting in touch with her mom's roots," Nate teased.
"I'll get the bottle - we'll figure something out," Billy said. He got up to move the dishes and when he came back it was with a bottle of vodka, two glasses, and the makings for a few different cocktails. "We can experiment."
Nate grinned and then picked Kate up to take her to their bedroom, smirking when she turned into him and snuggled in. He set her down and kissed her forehead and made sure her water bottle was full before he headed back to join Billy. "I'm telling you, Billy, no one told me being a dad was going to involve evil scientists and trying to force my wife to drink water without puking. Fun, right?"
"Which of those is the more dangerous endeavor?" Billy asked as he took a drink of his first concoction and cringed.
"The second one, clearly. You know Katie. She's terrifying," he said without missing a beat. "Here, let me try," he said, then cringed when he tasted it too.
"I too, am under duress," Billy said in his defense at the mixture. "Not trying to make Kate drink water, but still. Your brother is going to make me go gray."
"Oh, yeah, Kate told me about the alien road trip drama," Nate said. "She thinks he's cute. Not sure how to take that."
"I thought you guys said it would be a quick trip," Billy said. "That's how Rachel made it come across anyhow."
"I mean, you've met James. If there's a way to make it more complicated…"
"Yeah, well. Were you close when the alarms went off and Tony looked like he was going to have a stroke?"
"No, but Kate was," Nate said, smirking. "She said she got him to snap out of his panic by pointing out that if he died of a heart attack, that made my dad the sole dad for James."
"That's not much of a threat seeing as it's leaned that way anyhow."
"Yeah, but you underestimate how happy your grandpa was to get 'dad'ed from James."
"That whole situation is still weird."
"Yeah, no kidding," Nate said. "But you can't even point fingers. Aren't you dating someone who calls your grandpa 'dad' and who has the same uncle as you?"
"Yeah, and who has disappeared with the new hot guy and is incommunicado."
"I promise you, Billy, he's not interested in Noh," Nate said, one hand over his heart, though he knew he was threading a needle, since James was attracted to the guy, just not interested in pursuing him.
"Still isn't as helpful as I'd like it to be," Billy admitted.
"Yeah, I know." Nate slid Billy his own attempt at a cocktail. "This is missing something, and I can't figure out what."
Billy picked it up, looked at it critically then took a sip and once again cringed. "I don't know, but it tastes like 'forget me' juice."
"Yeah, I may just scrap it and start over," Nate said, wrinkling his nose at it.
"No, I thought that was the whole point," Billy said.
"Okay, you can have it," Nate said, waving his hand. "Sorry, perfectionist…"
"From your family? No."
Nate chuckled and got started on a new cocktail, stealing the one Billy had been working on to sip on while he worked - because when he was starting to get buzzed, it only had to be perfect if he'd made it, in his head.
"You know we won't really be able to taste it after a drink or two anyhow," Billy pointed out.
"Yeah, I know." Nate shrugged more broadly than he needed to.
"The problem is trying to make the chocolate work. And it's a hard flavor to follow."
"Nah," Nate said easily. "I'm married to Kate, so the law in this house is 'it's chocolate, so it works.'"
"How could I forget that? It's in her commandments."
"Exactly." Nate grinned at Billy. "How's that going, by the way? The marriage prep - you know what, that transition in thought processes made more sense before I said it out loud."
"That's okay, we don't need to keep the train on the tracks," Billy said. "I don't know how it's going. Since that attack, I don't know what the story is with the vendetta trip, and we can't really move forward on anything until we're both twenty one anyhow. It's kind of a holding pattern, and my spell to peek and make sure everyone is okay isn't very helpful when nothing is in context, you know?"
"Honestly, yeah, I get that," Nate said more seriously. "I'm worried about him all the time too."
"I mean … what can we actually do there?"
"Absolutely nothing - why do you think my whole family has control issues?"
"He seems to be going the other way," Billy said. "Just … freefalling."
Nate winced at that. "Sorry about that. I wish I could tell you how to help, but… somewhere around when I was six and he was seven, he just kind of decided things were going to happen to us and we couldn't stop them."
"He wasn't right, was he?" Billy asked, looking a little more cautious.
"No, I don't think so," Nate said. "I mean, sometimes, but for the most part, we can stop the bad guys."
"That is a whole lot of negativity to work on. For him."
"Sometimes, I just chuck Kate at him," Nate said. "If you need to borrow my wife, you can. She's weirdly good at making him give up on saying negative things."
"He's just … not really doing anything but school, so I don't know how well that would work. He doesn't talk about anything too negative, he's just … ugh."
"Ahhh. He's just keeping his head down."
"He's barely keeping it above water," Billy argued.
"He's focusing on what he can control - sound familiar?"
"No. Because he's just doing what he's told. His whole attitude has been shifting lately - and it's not just schoolwork. I've seen that."
Nate narrowed his eyes and shook his head. "Well, now I wish we hadn't started drinking for this conversation, because I try not to peek in people's heads while drunk, but I'm really curious what's going on there."
"He's working himself into the ground, comes home to barely eat and sleep, and I think he's only referring to the vampire as his original title."
"I've heard him do that, actually," Nate said. "It… actually makes it easier for me and Kate when we talk about him. Focus on him being a doctor, all things considered."
"Yeah, I thought about that - that it might be a coping mechanism, but … it doesn't feel right."
"I did tell him I wanted to take a good look in his head, and I've checked him out…"
"When was that?"
"After I found out he screwed with us on our honeymoon."
"Before or after the ultimatum?"
"Right before," Nate said. "But Rach and I were thorough and reinforced his defenses."
Billy was frowning by that time though. "I don't trust it."
"Billy, if you think I trust the man who tortured my dad his entire life around my big brother or my wife…"
"I'm sure you don't," Billy agreed. "But I was watching James screw with SHIELD and that was the most him he's been in I don't know how long."
"You're not wrong," Nate agreed.
"And Dr. Essex was incredibly unhappy when James told him he was taking an early break. Even though he was way ahead in everything for all his classes."
"Well, control issues." Nate pulled a face. "God, I hate being related to him."
Billy made sure not to react too heavily to that, and decided instead to cast a quick spell to peek in and see what the story was with James, Noh, and their little vendetta trip. It felt like the right thing to do since the phone had apparently been trashed in the fight that had wrecked James' armor - and they weren't being very thorough in reaching out yet since then.
But when the little portal window opened up for both of them to look into, it looked like your typical road trip … James was driving and looking worn while Noh was a little too into the music playing: dancing in his seat and entirely caught up in it.
"Well, at least one of 'em's having fun. Last I saw the guy, he literally wouldn't go eat when he was hungry," Nate said, trying to find a silver lining when James just looked so tired.
"Uniforms are both shot, too," Billy pointed out.
"Have you ever seen my brother come out of a mission with his uniform intact? I thought you liked that," Nate teased.
"I like that when I'm there to see it," Billy pointed out. "Not when he's alone with the flirty alien and losing the uniform."
"Fair." Nate sat down by Billy with his latest attempt at a cocktail. "So. I'm just going to blatantly change the subject, because there's nothing we can do about the road trip stuff."
"Yes, please," Billy said before he ended the spell entirely.
"Okay, so, at what point do I start to be a protective brother-in-law with Lexi and the new kid?" Nate asked.
"Immediately," Billy said without missing a beat.
"Yeah, but I almost feel like the Barton women live in a world where once you're protective-"
"They think they're invincible, and while that's great, they still need the back up. As much as she is like her mom? She's not her mom."
"Yeah, that's what I'm worried about. She's got powers her dad would love, and she's acting like because she's grown up in the hero world her whole life, Sam's never going to catch up to her, and he's taking risks to try to catch up, you know? That's not a great look."
"Yeah, I noticed," Billy said. "And she will be one upping him out of spite to make sure he knows he stays behind."
"Yeah, you missed the hornets attacking Hydra last weekend - you were in Genosha."
"I've been distracted," Billy said with a smirk before he tasted Nate's drink. "Not bad. That or I can't taste it anymore."
"Yes," Nate agreed. "But yeah, Lexi unleashed hornets. It was amazing; Hydra ran faster than I've ever seen them run. And Sam looked like he'd just fallen behind in the competition by a hundred points."
"I love that for them," Billy said. "And youre right, he'll never catch up."
"So, gotta corner him and remind him to actually prioritize his own survival," Nate said, nodding a few too many times.
Billy shook his head. "I think it would be easier if we didn't put them on the same missions for a while. See how he handles it then, and if he's still being stupid, we can adjust." He was half heartedly trying to mixup something for Nate to try, but then gave up and wished for something already done that looked perfect anyhow.
"Oooh, gimmie," Nate said, grinning. And as soon as he tried it, he laughed. "Your favorite flavor, obviously. But it's stupidly good."
"That's why I default to it," Billy agreed, then took a moment to throw back the one Nate had made. "I may have to steal your couch for the night. I dont know how it would end up if I wish myself back home."
"Yeah, good point." Nate tapped his own glass. "Can I have one of those magic ones? And then let's hear about your classes with Doc Strange. Those sound so cool, secondhand, anyway."
Billy nodded then wished both of them fresh drinks so they could start to discuss magic - which was something that Billy could get properly distracted with.
Noh and James had sidetracked from their tracking mission so that James could go to a branch of Stark Industries on the West Coast and get into a good computer so that he could look into wrecking more of Midas's traps - and see what he could recover that SHIELD and Midas had initially tried to hide. Obviously, Midas had been able to slip some kind of command into Noh's mind, though it hadn't been using the same methods the Cube warden had used, or Rachel's work would have gotten rid of it.
From what James had found so far, it looked like simple, honest brainwashing - and that was easy enough to deal with.
After all, James had experience with that.
Noh leaned back, watching as James worked and mulling over all that James had told him. While Noh had told him everything that he'd been engineered to do in service of the Kree Empire, James had told him the story of how he had met and kissed Tyler Creed.
And that story had led into warnings about Department H, an organization that Noh clearly didn't want to tangle with, based on James's stories. While most of the planet valued free will, those people clearly did not - and thought little of those that had advanced genetics.
Which, Noh had pointed out, was self-defeating on a planet where genetic advances were being made in the course of mere generations. But it seemed that Terrans, in their disunity, were also terribly self-destructive, though James didn't seem to think much of Noh pointing out that a connected identity would help deal with the problem.
What's more, James had told Noh once he discovered what Midas had done that he and two of his closest friends had also had their minds compromised in similar ways with Viper. Noh was no stranger to the idea of mind control, since he was himself capable of it, but the Terrans in this universe and age were rather barbaric about it. Yes, there was a use to violence, but the way James had described what Viper had done…
Well, Noh was grateful he wasn't entirely sure what Midas had done to give him such orders, though he knew he would have to address it eventually.
But for now, Noh was enjoying watching James work. He kept grinning to himself as he hacked into SHIELD, and he was playing plenty of music that he kept dancing to without thinking about it. Which honestly wasn't helping Noh's continued attraction, but ah well. He was nice to look at but taken.
Besides, he found that the more he heard of Terran music, the more he liked it. He'd want to look into more of it once they were done hunting down Midas, but he had liked James's music choices so far.
Finally, James did a sort of double take as he looked up at Noh - as if somehow he'd just realized he was right there. "How open are you to getting rid of that brainwashing command?" James asked with a wolfish grin.
"Very."
"I've got an idea." He didn't expand on it, though he pulled another open laptop toward himself and started his outreach with a local expert in the field. It wasn't as if the Avengers were only in New York, after all. And lord knows they'd all dealt with something troublesome once or twice before and had to reverse it. "It shouldn't take long to fix, and as I understand it, she's fairly gentle when she wants to be."
"My first foray into fixing what was done was with the Phoenix, so…" Noh held his hands out to his sides. "I commend your sister for her touch, but the Phoenix in a Kree mind, as you can imagine…"
"She scares a lot of people," James admitted. "I am told I have a reckless disregard when it comes to what she does best, so …" he shrugged. "But I'm just following my gut. She has control, or cooperation, or … something like it. Keeping that in place can't be easy when everyone is treating her like she's going to explode, so I choose to give her the faith she deserves. And I think it helps."
Noh broke into a broader smile. "That is genuinely beautiful."
"That attitude has pleasantly surprised the Phoenix more than once," James pointed out. "And she always seems happier and more in control when that happens."
"The Phoenix feeds on strong negative emotions. You have a solid approach."
"It also seems to crave acceptance," James said. "But we're not going to interrupt Rachel and America today. I happen to know for a fact that America declared a fake intergalactic holiday just so she can monopolize Rachel's off time before the holidays."
"Then we definitely don't want to interfere," Noh agreed. "So, where are we going, then?"
"Well," James said slowly, drawing the word out. "I figured we could go to Tony's house out here. I'm going to have to more thoroughly explain what happened to that suit - and he's going to want to make sure the next one is lined up and programmed to follow me. While we're refueling, I figured our expert could come to us. Safer that way."
"Makes sense. Who's your expert and have I met her?" Noh asked as he got to his feet. "And is she as good-looking as everyone else you surround yourself with?"
"You haven't, and honestly … she's not bad at all," James said. "Pretty, tall, and blonde. Smart as hell, too."
"I'm really starting to like this dimension," Noh laughed to himself. "Between the music and the scenery…" He smirked and then gestured for James to lead the way. "Really, though, I'm anxious to get rid of this command so I can break Midas in half when next we meet, so let's go meet your friend."
"You got it," James agreed, then shut down all the computers around him and started to lead the way out. He was still obviously in his groove by the way he moved - and by how the people around them reacted, it wasn't something terribly unusual for them to see, either.
As expected, Tony had plenty to choose from in the way of transportation at the company, and just for laughs, James tossed Noh the keys to the silver sports car. "You should know how to drive."
Noh laughed delightedly. "I've lost my transportation; you're absolutely right."
"I'll walk you through it. We'll figure out the rules of the road as we go," James told him, which earned a broad smile from one of the nearby Stark Industries employees.
The "driving lesson" was about as hilarious as anyone at Stark Industries could have expected, especially once it became clear that with two healers in the car, the stakes were a lot lower if something went wrong. Which meant that by the time Noh had the basics and punched it out of there, no one was too worried about the two of them - other than warning them not to get pulled over.
"Don't worry about getting pulled over," James said to Noh as they left the complex and he pointed them the right way as he booted up the GPS for Noh to follow. "The cops don't pull over Tony's cars."
"Good," Noh said, grinning widely as he took the next turn with the top down - so that by the time the boys drove up to Tony's California villa, both of them were laughing, blaring music, and acting like boys their age should.
As soon as the car was off, James hopped out to catch up to Bobbi, who was supposed to meet them there, and who had already been let inside to get set up ahead of them. "Hey," James called out as he stepped through the front door. "Do you feel like learning a little new Kree?"
"Hey yourself," Bobbi called back as she finished setting a few things up in the living room and then beamed when she saw James. "Wow, you're tall. The last time I saw you, you were, what, twelve?" she teased him.
"You saw me two years ago, you dork," James said.
"No, no," she said, laughing as she came to give him a hug, "because if you're that old, then I'm ancient, right?"
"Not as old as Tony. Or Nat. Or Cap," James teased as he pulled her into a bear hug. "So that's something, right?"
"This is true," Bobbi agreed, grinning as he spun her around. "And you brought a friend from outer space."
"You know how it is," James said with a wave. "Honestly, we were hunting down that hidden SHIELD faction I told you about. The creep in charge had his fingers into way too many dangerous things. We had him cornered when we found out that he'd brainwashed Noh-Varr in his own language. Otherwise, I'm sure Rachel would have taken care of that right off the bat. Can you help, oh guru of all things nasty and SHIELD related?"
"Well, since you asked so nicely," Bobbi teased, then glanced over at Noh. "Heard you have a new language for me to learn."
"Yes, it would be easier to download, but unfortunately-"
"I don't come with an HDMI port," Bobbi said dryly.
"But … if we did know a good telepath on this side of the country," James started to say slowly. "It can be done …"
"Like you don't know Betsy and Warren are in town taking their daughter on a beach vacation," Bobbi laughed.
"What?" James said, sounding scandalized even as he texted her. "How would I know something like that?"
"So, have you called them or not?"
"They're on their way," James said. "I honestly figured Bobbi would want more context from you before Betsy showed up, Noh."
Noh gestured openly to Bobbi. "Ask me what you will," he said. "James has earned my trust, and he says you can be trusted to release the hold on my mind, so I won't hold anything back if it's necessary for your work."
Bobbi gestured for him to come sit with her. "Yeah, I've got a few questions," she agreed, immediately jumping in to clarify what she already knew while James hung back texting Tony and giving them room to talk while they waited for Betsy and Warren to arrive.
But that didn't last long once he was in contact with Tony, who, of course knew what had happened to the armor, and by extension, had panicked entirely. "I'm going to be in my room," James called out, pointing the direction he was headed just so that the two of them knew what was going on. He hated making Tony worry just as much as he hated it when Scott worried, and considering how Tony had been half terrified that James was leaving the path he'd been on in favor of a more McCoy/Xavier-like focus on genetics, James wanted to reassure him with total honesty whenever possible. So, after Tony's first overly controlled text, James simply called him.
"Hi, Dad," James said as soon as Tony picked up on the first ring. "I'm fine, he's fine, the armor isn't, but I've got it figured out now."
"That's a relief," Tony said sarcastically with the stress in his voice totally betraying his emotions. "What the hell's going on, James?"
James sighed. "SHIELD corruption, mostly," James said as he closed his door behind himself. "Midas had a hidden command brainwashed into the guy in his native Kree. He lost control of himself for a minute."
"How bad was it?" Tony asked, the sarcasm gone entirely but the concern seeping into every word. "Are you ready to admit you need back up?"
"I've already got it," James promised. "I've got Bobbi here to fix the brainwashing once Betsy shows up to give us a language transfer."
"I've already got the new armor in my workshop coded to a watch you can find in my room. It's the blue faced Patek Phillippe," Tony said in relief. "I still think you need backup."
"And I don't want to risk anyone that can't heal if Bobbi can't get this straightened out," James admitted. "If youre bored-"
"Yeah, totally lost without anything to do now that I destroyed what was left of your old armor, recoded some new armor, and found where that little cretin is hiding. Or at least, the vicinity."
"I've got his scent now," James said. "That's all we need is a starting point."
"I want this wrapped up sooner than later."
"That's the plan."
"You come here as soon as you're done."
"Okay, Tony," James agreed easily. "We will."
Tony sighed. "We gotta work out a better time share, kid."
"Yeah, I know," James agreed. "I was planning to do that before this mess came up."
"Yeah, yeah. You take after your parents. Trouble just falls into your lap and falls in love with you."
"You're hilarious. And similarly afflicted."
"No kidding," Tony said, finally breaking into a smile. "Alright. Make sure you're fully rested and refueled before you go picking another fight."
"Yes, Dad. Love you too."
"Be careful, kiddo."
"I'll reach out if I have any trouble."
"Yeah, you will. It's patched into the suit's panic button. We will come get you if you need even a little help."
"Thank you," James said earnestly. "See you soon."
When the call ended, James sat back with a sigh. It was a relief to know that tony was okay … or as okay as he could be. He knew that Tony had known the moment that the suit hd taken heavy damage, and he likely had watched through the cameras in the suit for as long as they worked, so by James' measure, he'd had a few solid hours of panic before James had reached out to him properly. The initial text in the desert of 'I'm fine and I'll fill you in once I'm in civilization' couldn't possibly have done much to calm him down.
But now he could feel a tickling at the edges of his mind which meant one of the three telepaths he trusted was reaching out to say hello. Betsy's refined touch had it's own signature that left the impression of jasmine and sophistication as opposed to Rachel's warmth and Nate's sheer confidence. So, knowing that she'd beat him to the door, he reached out to tell her the front door was open and that he'd meet them in a moment.
Noh and Bobbi were there to meet Betsy and Warren, who were quick to introduce themselves to Noh and rush to get up to speed on what had happened and what needed to happen still. But through the introduction, Angela, their adoptive daughter, was hiding behind Warren.
After all that Hydra had put her through, she was afraid of strangers - and rightfully so. But as soon as she saw James come down the hall, all bets were off. She let out a delighted laugh as she ran for him with open arms, and to Noh and Bobbi's surprise, James crouched down to catch her in a bear hug with a little laugh.
"Who said you could get so big?" James teased as Angela snuggled in, holding tight around his neck.
"My new dad," she said, then fell apart giggling, more and more content to curl in with him.
"Sounds right to me," James agreed as he made his way over to give Betsy a quick kiss on the cheek in hello. "You're all caught up?"
"Yes, it didn't take long," Betsy said. "I suppose you want the fast version of learning this dialect of Kree?"
"Would it be a big hassle?"
"Probably, but, if you're willing-"
"Might be handy," James agreed, then tickled Angela until she was squealing in laughter and all wound up for Warren. He turned toward Noh, half holding his breath since he was very sure all of this was a little bit of overload for Noh. "You guys make up a plan?"
"Just exactly what you'd think it would be," Warren laughed. "Bets' has her work cut out for her."
Betsy smirked as Warren took Angela to find something to do, then turned her attention to the others. "Why don't we get situated to do the language issue first, then if we need to, we can take a small break before Bobbi and I help you with these unwanted commands?"
The small group took their seats - the boys on opposite ends of the couch and Bobbi and Betsy in chairs across from them both, though the language portion didn't take much time at all. Clearing out the brainwashing though …
It was a good thing that Bobbi was there to guide Betsy through the SHIELD protocols that had been employed. She couldn't say they were less cutthroat than what Viper had done … just applied differently.
They had to take several breaks, during which time Noh would just get up without a word and go for a walk - which was when James saw that, much like Mia, the guy could just walk straight up the side of the building so he could walk around the roof.
And the breaks were good for Bobbi and Betsy as well, because the truth was that both the Cube's warden and Midas had realized quickly that Noh could turn off pain, and so they'd had to crank things up so that even without pain receptors, he would hurt. It wasn't easy to watch.
And then they'd get back to it, until Bobbi was sure Noh wouldn't respond to any commands. They were working quickly, so he'd definitely still have the urge to act on commands, but it wasn't a requirement, and he could ignore it. And they could work on it from there.
Once the women were done with Noh's rehabilitation, they let a sort of quiet settle over the four of them since James hadn't left after the language transfer was complete. For a moment, Betsy wanted to let Noh determine if his head felt different, or if he had noticed anything notable. But when he looked almost dazed at all that had transpired, Betsy couldn't help but try to give him something to latch on to that might help him to integrate a little bit.
"You know what this means, Noh-Varr?" Betsy asked gently, smiling more to herself when he looked up at her with a lost expression on his features. "The three of us can now also speak your language should you feel the need to revert to Kree over English."
For a long moment, Noh simply didn't know how to respond to that. It was thoughtful, tactical possibly, but also hard to process. And if he was honest, he was overwhelmed. Not only had he been through everything again as Bobbi and Betsy tried to help him reclaim his mind but he still hadn't quite processed the loss of his people and any connection he had to them, either. He'd lost his ship, his crew, his connection - everything that reminded him of who he was, except for the clothes on his back and the guns in his hands.
And now? Now, three Terrans spoke his dialect.
He couldn't have said how he felt, because he felt everything at once. And Kree weren't supposed to have outbursts, so he didn't. He just nodded at Betsy, swallowed, and looked down at his hands clasped so tightly together that his knuckles were white.
Meanwhile, James had taken one of Tony's laptops so he could catch up to where the little creep had scampered off to. He'd taken the intel into account and then took it a step further by hijacking a passing Russian satellite to scan a few areas ahead of an actual tracking and then going to traffic cameras to isolate the vehicle that Midas was using. He didn't know how long it would take them to finish completely, but he wanted to be ready to jump . Especially when Midas thought he had a massive head start on the boys.
"You look like you're scheming," Bobbi said as she came to check on James, giving Noh a moment to process when it was clear he didn't know how.
"I don't scheme," James scoffed.
"Sure, sure." Bobbi leaned over his shoulder and smirked. "Oh, he doesn't stand a chance."
"That's the idea," James agreed, then stopped long enough to look over at Bobbi. "What should we order for dinner?"
"Hmm… something light and vegetarian. Seen a bit too much of butchery, you know?" Bobbi decided.
"That's great for you," James said. "But some of us healers need the heavy protein? That's what he mentioned before, but I think I've got a good Asian fusion place in mind if you're game."
"Perfect. Spring rolls, please," Bobbi said and kissed his cheek.
"You got it," James agreed with a nod, then pulled up a fresh window to make an order for the group. He intended to let them rest up a little - recharge, heal, and just … take a minute. Everything was happening fast for this guy. As quick as he was, everyone needed time to process. Even hot aliens that insisted they were invulnerable.
In fact, in the minute it took James to ask the others what they wanted, Noh had disappeared entirely, though he came back in when the food arrived and no one asked why he'd slipped out for some privacy.
"So, what news of Midas?" Noh asked as he sat down with them.
"Well, I want to let him think he lost us," James said.
"So you know where he is."
"That I do," James agreed.
"Then we should go."
"After we get fully recharged and refueled," James said, gesturing to some of the deeper cracks that had yet to heal fully. "You said you need to eat before you heal, right? So … let's take care of that, make sure you're ready to tear him to pieces without any trouble -"
"It would give the work we did today a little time to solidify, too," Betsy added. "Not long, mind you. Just a day or so. Sleep on it."
Noh tapped his fingers on the end of the table. "If you think it's necessary."
"It would be best," she agreed. "And it's customary here to share a meal with your comrades at arms."
Noh smirked at that. "We do have that custom as well, especially before a battle. Fair enough."
"It won't be much of a battle once you get going," James said. "And I'm pretty sure that I'll just be there to drive."
Noh grinned broadly. "That will be fun."
After dinner, James left the group to discuss things as he went down to Tony's workshop to get down to a little business. With all the tech that Midas was reliant on - and with so much of it based in intergalactic advances, James decided that Midas didn't need access to any of it. And while a heavy EMP would cripple the guy's defenses, he wasn't sure how it would affect Noh and his nanites. So while the AI got going on fabricating the EMP, James started working out something new for Noh. There was no way in hell he was going to rob the guy of his revenge - so that meant he needed something to cushion him from the EMP.
And that meant loud music and the holotable until he had it figured out. That part really didn't take too long. Largely in part because he'd been working up something like that for Tony already … he just had to adjust it so Midas didn't know there was anything different when Noh came after him. A suit of armor would be a dead giveaway - not that James was against it. But this felt like it needed a little more finesse.
So he was honestly pleased when Noh came exploring late into the night when he couldn't sleep and found James working with music and tech.
"Why aren't you resting?" James asked, though he was smirking to himself all the same.
"I couldn't sleep," Noh admitted. "Too much on my mind, I'm afraid."
James set his tools down then stepped around the table to take a hold of Noh's arm and lead him over to a small, round platform. "Well … that's okay. I could use you for just a minute. All you need to do is stand there and let the scan happen."
"Yes, of course," Noh said, and then couldn't resist teasing, "as you like, if you want to see…"
James smirked at that. "Not at the moment," he said with a little laugh, though unlike Tony, he had no trouble filling Noh in on what he was doing. "I'm making you a protective field. The AI is building a few really nasty EMP's - but I don't want to risk your nanites taking a dive, so … we'll just give you a buffer. Midas doesn't deserve the stolen tech he has. So I'm going to fry it."
Noh's eyebrows shot up, and he grinned. "That's truly impressive. When this is through, I'd like to learn more about the technology on this planet, see what I can do to help it along."
"If this all works out well and we continue to get along, I'm sure Tony won't take issue with me letting you use my lab."
"Perfect. And I'd like to take what Midas has stolen and see where he stole it from," Noh agreed. "If anything, I might be able to steal myself some comforts from home."
"Most of what I saw last time was Shi'ar," James said.
Noh hissed. "Well, of course. They would be interesting to such a creature."
James was smiling - the scan had finished, but he hadn't told Noh as much. "Okay, well now I want to tell you about my grandfather. I'm not sure if you'd like him or want to evaporate him." He looked up and tipped his head for Noh to come over. "Take a look at what I've got."
Noh rested his chin on James' shoulder as he looked at what he was building and then reached around him to tap in his calculations. "If you like, I can let you look at the nanites; this calculation works with the laws of your universe, not mine."
"If you don't mind, that would make me feel better about how it's tuned in."
"Yes, of course," Noh said, then cut a small line on the palm of his hand and left a bit of blood on a slide for him. "I can give you a few calculations as well; they exist in five dimensions…"
"Yeah, dive in," James said. "I don't want to screw you up while we're humiliating that idiot."
Noh slid into the seat and got to work, which had James leaning forward a bit. It was interesting to watch - purely because it seemed like Noh's people had found a way to calculate telepathic power and harness it as energy.
And while that was fascinating, it was also definitely something James had to make sure the rest of the world didn't find out about. A lot of mutant abilities operated at least a bit on the telepathic plane; the last thing this world needed was a way to quantify - and therefore a way to manipulate - mutant power.
Noh looked up at James. "I was hoping you'd be more impressed than concerned."
"I am," James said. "But this is just my face."
"It's very brooding," Noh teased before he went back to it and then held his hands up to indicate he was done. "Does that make sense?"
James leaned a little closer, one hand on Noh's shoulder as he looked it over, then finally started to nod. "Yeah, that is just different enough. I'm not sure it would have made a major impact on the device, but … better safe than sorry for sure." He smiled crookedly. "So … green accents, right?"
Noh laughed outright. "Yes, that is my color."
"Perfect," James said with a nod, then, he reached by Noh to upload the data onto the device that was already halfway built on the workbench. "I don't want to tip this guy off that anything's different, so I figured a gauntlet or a necklace - your call. Keep it in the similar styling as what you've got already …" He halfway laughed to himself. "Damn. Kate and Jan are rubbing off."
"I haven't really met them yet," Noh said, smiling. "Jan for a moment, and I do remember you telling me about Kate. She's the one who was just married, yes?"
"Yes, she just married my brother, but she's been like a little sister for me most of our lives," James said. "She and Jan have a whole conspiracy over fashion." He gestured to the device. "I'm just trying to make it look like it belongs with what you have. That's how I like my tech to hide."
"In plain sight. Brilliant."
"The symbols on our uniforms are communicators and panic buttons," James said. "Makes it easier in the long run."
"Then I'd like to have some of those later," Noh said, nodding. "I no longer have a crew, and with so many factions on your planet, I'm not naive enough to believe that there will not be future fights, and I may have need of allies."
"Well … you're absolutely welcome with my team," James said. "We're young, mostly. But the old team had all kinds of people participating. I'm sure they'll adopt you fast."
"I've been in service for…" Noh paused. "About twelve of your years. The first four were spent in training and informational processing. I should like to bring that experience to bear."
"That'd help me out for sure," James said.
"Yes, after the stories you told me, I'd like to stop that from happening to anyone else," Noh agreed. "Besides, I feel I owe you a debt."
"You don't owe me anything, Noh," James said as he pulled over a soldering gun and started to work again. "And the Avengers were doing their job when they got you out of there. You're fine. We don't charge."
"Gods, that's hot."
James couldn't stop the smile. "You're so much trouble."
"I thought you knew this," Noh laughed.
"You're reinforcing that for me," James replied, still smiling.
Noh smirked and held his gaze for a bit longer before he did get up to leave. "And I think that's my cue to leave before I start something you don't want me to finish."
"If you can't control yourself," James sang out in a tease just because he knew it would get a smile at least. "Ill have this done in about an hour, then I'm going to crash for a little bit. My tracking is keeping close tabs on the guy. We'll get to him before he knows it."
"Then I hope you sleep well," Noh said, waving before he shut the door.
…
Tony wasn't entirely sure how to feel about the update from James. On the one hand, context was great. On the other… he would feel a whole lot better about the whole thing if the kid were home and not dealing with someone who was clearly powerful enough to actually take him down.
Seriously, seeing from the suit's point of view just why SHIELD had been interested in what Noh-Varr could do… Tony wasn't going to relax about that until their new alien visitor had much better control of his own mind and could prove he wouldn't be pulling anything like that again in the near (or far) future.
But he also knew that trying to rein James in would only make him more determined to see this thing through, and so, he was doing his best to let it play out.
"These kids are trying to kill me," he muttered to no one as he headed downstairs for coffee - and then redirected toward the main entrance when his card buzzed to let him know that someone on the team was there and in need of assistance.
He opened the door and immediately swore when he saw Peter being propped up between Miles and May. All of them looked singed - the Parkers moreso than Miles - and every one of them was going to need medical attention. And despite all of that, May was looking at Miles with the exact look that Tony had seen her mother give Peter a million times, and Tony honestly didn't want to get in the middle if that was the case and the kids clearly had more important things on their minds.
"These kids are trying to kill me," he muttered under his breath before he put his shoulder under Peter's and helped them all redirect to medical.
Chapter 142: Aliens At The Thanksgiving Table
Chapter Text
Annie had taken a break from learning telepathy for a while, though she jumped back into it as soon as she could, because she could see even without her unwanted powers that Scott was blaming himself for her hesitation - and the last thing she wanted to do was add another thing to the pile of many that he blamed himself for.
But she did feel weird about the fact that Sinister had given her Jean's power. Specifically Jean's. If it had been any other telepath, she'd be more okay with it. But Jean… that was his first love. She had been his world.
And maybe she was reading too much into it, but the fact that Scott had said Jean was actively watching from Heaven… that made things a bit weirder, and she almost wanted to reach out to her and get everyone on the same page. Annie had never felt like a replacement … until Sinister tried to make her one.
But the more she thought about it, the more she knew Scott was thinking about it - because the longer she put off practice with him, the more he was convinced Sinister had broken something between them.
And she was so done with villains getting between the two of them with mind games. So, that morning, she sat down beside him at breakfast and reached over to put her hand on his knee. "Hey, walk me through opening and closing my mind again," she said.
Scott startled slightly and looked up from his coffee, both eyebrows raised. "You sure you're ready?"
"I told you I'd get over it," she said. "I had to overthink myself into a spiral, but I've got a therapist for a brother, and I can text him even if I can't give him the right details. I'll be fine, and I want to get a handle on this before Thanksgiving. I like hosting, and I don't want to spend the day hidden away with a headache because I don't know how to handle a crowd with these powers."
"Oh, so it's tactical," Scott said, nodding.
Annie rolled her eyes and leaned over to steal a kiss. "Something like that. You must be rubbing off on me," she teased. "Besides, you're a good teacher."
"High praise from you."
Annie blushed with pleasure. "Well, it's true." She took a deep breath and let it out. "And for the record, I still don't blame anyone but Sinister for the whole…"
"Yeah. I know."
"So we'll try to have fun despite the vampire in our lives." Annie grabbed his hand again. "So. Opening and closing my mind. It's pretty open right now, right? Let's try closing it again so I can't hear Kate and Nate when they're sitting next to each other."
"Oh, it's urgent," Scott laughed, and Annie broke into a grin.
"That's what I'm trying to tell you," she said, glad to get back to at least a little more like normal for this.
The deeper they got into the swamp where Midas was hiding, the more Noh found himself enjoying the jelly donuts he and James had brought. A few bugs were trying to steal them from him, and to Noh, that was even more fun - because the mosquitos and such didn't want to drink his blood, so this was more of an exploratory moment than anything else.
The more time he spent on Earth, the more he found to explore, and the easier it was to accept that this was his home for the foreseeable future.
It was no surprise that the guy had holed up in an elevated shack deep in the swamp. There wasn't anyone or anything around for miles other than alligators, snakes, and insects. So James had no trouble finding the incredibly out of place scent trail. Or spotting the traps Midas had set out - because even their scent stood out like neon to his nose.
They managed to avoid every single one of them - largely in part because neither was afraid to swim through the swamp past the creatures that wanted nothing to do with them.
"Got your device turned on?" James asked softly as he prepped an EMP grenade from where they were hidden along the fringes away from the sparse visible guards.
"Yes, when we first arrived," Noh said. "Are you ready?"
"Only if you are," James said, then, when Noh nodded, he activated the grenade and threw it through a window. "It's all you. I'll take care of whoever he has playing protection out here and drag him back to you if he tries to run."
"Perfect," Noh said, launching himself out of the water through the window to find Midas swearing in multiple languages as he pressed a few buttons, to absolutely no avail. Noh tackled Midas to the ground and didn't even bother with the guns, digging his suddenly-long nails deep into his side before Midas managed to throw him off of him.
The nails he left behind blew up, but Noh didn't get his claws in as deeply as he wanted to, so Midas was still conscious and managed to get his hand on a gun to shoot at Noh. Noh dodged most of them, but when he got closer to Midas, Midas did clip him in the side.
Noh decided that beating him down - while satisfying - wasn't going to guarantee victory, so he switched tactics, opening fire with everything in the energy stashes of his guns until Midas was barely moving anymore.
Noh smiled grimly as he stalked over to Midas and crouched down beside him. "Well then," he said conversationally, "here we are. It's a shame you have no use to me, or I'd make you serve the Empire on your knees for the rest of your miserable life." With that, Noh simply plunged another long fingernail into the man's center - and blew up what was left of him.
James had slipped into the deeper water, using what he could for cover as he snuck up on the stationed guards and incapacitated them before he started climbing the supports up to the building once Noh had made his rush. He didn't think Noh needed help - but he was more than happy to help out anyway. He'd planned to use some of what he'd learned on the wrong side of Viper if Noh needed any back up - but it wasn't the kind of thing he wanted to talk about to anyone - or to describe to a new-to-the-world resident alien.
But predictably, Noh didn't drag it out. Though he did get blown across the room.
James was halfway into the room while Noh took the chance to reorganize his thoughts when a quiet pop went off and James got hit with a smoking trail of white. It wasn't something that had been controlled by electronics, and Noh hadn't been near the trigger area at all. The last thing either of them had been expecting - in the middle of a swamp surrounded by water and high humidity was a freakin' phosphorus trap. It took a second to really hit - but when it did, it hit all at once, and left James burned up badly. And the only way he could process it was to let out a hair-raising snarl as he clenched his fists and tried to find a position that didn't hurt so much as he attempted to control his reaction otherwise.
Noh pushed himself to his feet, frowning toward James. "Are you alright?" he asked as he dusted himself off. When James simply kept growling and snarling, Noh sighed. "Obviously not. An insensitive question. Well, you compose yourself and I'll pick through what's left of Midas's collection and see if he stole anything Kree…"
James closed his eyes tightly as he tried to rein it in. The bloom of pain had been intense and unexpected, so he could feel the edge of a break that he did not want to have. At all. So he took the time to force himself to curl in and went down to his knees as he waited for whatever he hadn't gotten off to finish up so he could heal.
The healing process for the burns took longer than James had anticipated, but once he'd had the time to deal with it - and once he'd more or less healed up enough that he wasn't still actively bleeding, the growl simply refused to go away. James covered his face with both hands, then dug out his phone to give Noh some coordinates.
"I'll get us there," Noh promised, though James saw him tuck away a few things in a pocket dimension before he came to get James, crouching down beside him. "I need to carry you to get us there if you're indisposed." James nodded, still not up to speaking, so Noh scooped him up and took off at a run.
When Noh came to a stop, he was surprised to find that they were surrounded by trees in seemingly the middle of nowhere. "This is where you wanted to go?" he asked.
"Yes," James whispered.
"Ah, away from other people," Noh said, nodding as he set James down. "I can go as well-"
"You're not like most people. You're fine."
"I almost want to be insulted," Noh said, a bare smirk at the corner of his mouth. "Are you falling into the mindset that others have held that I'm naught but an insect?"
"People are stupid, mindless animals," James said. "You're better than that - right?"
"Obviously."
James kept a hand on Noh's arm. "Come on. I'll show you around. Let me catch my breath and we can head back when you're ready."
"I'm ready when you are. I should at some point clean his blood off of me…"
"No running water, so you'll have to suffer through the lake," James said, gesturing at the mirror-like water. "This is where I go when I need a moment. Or a week."
"I'll be back, then," Noh said. "And then, I should return you to your demiurge. I'm sure he's concerned."
"You don't have to leave," James said. "I honestly just need to be able to stop growling or I'm likely to stab someone at the wrong time." he gestured to the cabin. "And considering the state of my uniform - or what's left of it, I need a change of clothes before we head back."
"Yes, well." Noh cleared his throat. "I would like a moment of my own as well, to tell you the truth. Strange as it is, Midas was almost a connection to the world I lost."
James nodded. "Okay. Don't run too far, then, huh? I'll deal with my mess and we can make a plan."
"I'll just be at the lake if you find you are ready to leave before I am."
"Run up the mountain if you want to," James said. "I'm probably going to need a swim, too."
Noh looked him over and grinned. "Oh, then I should definitely run up the mountain. I'd be too tempted otherwise."
"Always such a flirt," James teased, then started toward the shoreline.
It really wasn't much longer after the guys cleaned up and changed into some clothes James had at the cabin that they made their way back to the city. Tony needed an update, the team needed to know the status of the idiot they'd chased down, and more importantly, Billy needed a moment with his guy before they had to take their break. If he'd been nervous about what James and Noh were up to, he got at least a temporary reprieve when the first thing James did when he saw Billy was to pick him up into a kiss before he even said hello.
"I missed you," James said once the kiss broke. "Hi."
"Hi yourself," Billy said, not having expected that enthusiastic of a hello, but certainly enjoying it.
"Sorry it took so long," James said as they started toward the living area of the tower. "We had a little hiccup, but …"
"The hiccup that had Tony pulling his hair out?" Billy asked, regaining his footing enough to resituate himself as the two of them led the way with Noh following behind.
"Yeah … So … the guy we went after is dead - totally deserved."
Billy frowned, and pulled James to a stop just before they reached the living room.
"I didn't do it," James promised. "I wasn't even really in the room when it happened- and it wasn't from one of my guns or anything."
"Okay … how did the tour go?" Billy asked, knowing full well that the two of them hadn't been by the school at all.
"Ah …"
"Was there supposed to be a tour?" Noh asked.
"I don't think you need that tour until you decide where you want to be," James defended. "Besides, the school has enough going on right now prepping for Thanksgiving, which-"
"Your siblings already left ahead of you," Billy said, shaking his head.
"That tracks," James said with a nod, then held his breath. "So … how do you want to get there? We shouldn't leave Noh here. Not when I know the only semi-responsible person that's going to be around is Spidey, and he, May, and Miles are still recovering from the surprise Goblin visit."
"Tony won't be here?" Billy asked with a mild frown, not that he was surprised that James was advocating to take Noh with them.
"Well … he might be. I just don't think he needs to be alone with Noh unsupervised for too long," James said - which was true - and after what he'd learned about Noh and his reality, he wanted to keep the two of them on even footing. And James knew first hand Tony could make that hard to do. "Maybe he'll decide he'd rather stay in Genosha?"
"I really just need some food and a place to sleep," Noh put in, looking between the two of them and knowing that he was missing pieces of the conversation but not knowing what.
"I mean… Annie's doing a Thanksgiving feast," Billy said. "It's not a Genoshan holiday, so-"
"If it's a holiday, I'd be interested to learn more," Noh promised. "I don't know much about this world yet."
"O…kay then," Billy said. It was hard to get a read on Noh, because he seemed genuinely interested in everything around him. But he'd also been blatantly flirting and checking out James before. And had apparently killed a guy. And was wearing something that had obviously been handed to him out of James's stash. So there were a lot of mixed signals.
But James seemed okay with him, so Billy shrugged and put his arm through James's. "More the merrier, I guess. But I'm taking your tour guide back; you can get Mia's Patented School Tour after the holiday."
"Alright," Noh said, still not entirely sure what that entailed but not about to argue either, even going so far as to stand on Billy's other side, giving Billy every cue that he was ready to take his other arm, much more visibly at ease with Billy than he had been when they first met. (Obviously, it had helped that he'd heard so much good about Billy from James.)
James kissed Billy's cheek. "We can let him debrief with Dad and Nate," James said. "And I'll do what I can to make up for your missing after-school kisses."
"It's a start," Billy said, smirking as he wished them to Scott's place - but that worked out anyway, because Annie was delighted to welcome a newcomer whose immediate reaction was to seem grateful for the food and all her hard work in preparing it, so Billy was able to get James pulled aside into the office while Noh praised and questioned Annie. There was a lot Billy wanted to know about that trip, but first on the list was some serious kisses and then questions.
"Okay, so tell me everything," Billy said, still half breathless from the last kiss.
"Midas was a little weasel," James said. "He had body doubles that were screwing with the AI search - and then he rabbited into the desert. There was a lot of tracking and avoiding traps and trip wires. We didn't miss all of those, so then there were times to sit and heal up, too. Spent a lot of time doing information exchanges - and just … all that kind of crap." He let out a breath. "Got hurt a couple times pretty well … and Noh finally killed him. What kind of specifics do you want? I don't know what Nate or Tony knew or shared."
"I mean, I got the overview, really. You called in Bobbi?" Billy bit his lip. "You okay? Brainwashing and all… tricky subject."
"Yeah. that was a really, really crappy day," James agreed as he tipped his head to the side, looking somewhat uncomfortable talking about that angle of things. "He had some triggers in his native Kree - which is different from the Kree that we learned from Grampa Pirate? So there's no way that Rachel could have spotted it - and it was hard to work around, but … honestly, for all this guy can do, I'm just glad that's over."
"Yikes." Billy winced badly.
"Yeah, and on that note, I'm an idiot, so clearly I need supervision and a helmet for crap like that." He took a hold of Billy's hand. "He kicked my ass, babe. Dude's got speed like Tommy, and super strength. Waving bendy inflatable dude flexibility among other very weird quirks.… and mind control spit. "
"I… have a lot of questions about that last one," Billy said, losing all trace of his earlier teasing.
"Yeah, I know. I did say I was an idiot," James said.
"What happened? Exactly."
"Full disclosure: he was ordered to drag me to Midas. Who wanted to sell me? Or … something close to that, as much as I can figure. Tied in with SHIELD, treats people like weapons kind of vibe. It was a very threatening thing. Whatever. We fought. Hard. Noh had shredded the armor, my call button was in about six pieces - which is what Tony was spazzing out over. He had me stuck - and I didn't have an out. I promise … I tried everything else before I took the last ditch shot and … I tried to-" James sighed. This was a lot harder than it should have been. "So I kissed him to shock him out of his trance- which I will never try with anyone ever again." He held up both hands. "It only sorta worked. Instead of giving me to the scavenger, Noh made me go after him, which … I wanted to do it anyhow, so the mind control angle there was more for his … whatever." He cringed. "I'm honestly not sure if his reluctance to hand me over was from the work Rachel did on his mind or if he was being halfway territorial and didn't want to share. And I know that makes it sound really, really bad, but, it wasn't."
Billy stared at James, his mouth slightly open for a long time. "...seriously?" he managed to ask at last. "Seriously, again?"
"It worked so much better the first time," James said, then covered his face with both hands. "I panicked when I knew I couldn't get out of it. And then I panicked a lot harder when I felt my tension slip with the hallucinogenic mind control … nanite… thing. I wouldn't have tried if I'd have known that was a possibility."
"No kidding. You got mind-controlled again. Are you okay?" Billy asked, obviously wavering between concern and anger.
"Yeah, I think so," James said. "Turns out, this guy has a big thing for consent, so he knew it wasn't a pass right away. He absolutely could have taken advantage but didn't."
"Oh. Huh. That's… that makes it harder to be mad, admittedly." Billy paused. "Even though I feel like I should've gotten a warning about the clothes-sharing, knowing that part…"
"Didn't think about that part," James said. "We got hit by white phosphorus. I did not want to come back half naked for any reason."
Billy crossed his arms. "Okay, admittedly, I kind of figured it was something like that, but still. You see how this sucks from my end, right?"
"I do. And I am repentant about it. But kind of glad that my stuff doesn't fit him very well. So that's a weird bonus, right?"
"Yeah, he does look twiggier in it, which helps, but is so not the point," Billy said, catching himself in the middle of the sentence and shaking his head quickly.
"I've earned the rage, so … hit me."
"Yeah, but… Sure, sure, just… lemme mentally get over the mind-control spit monster with a thing for consent like how do you find the weirdest people, James."
"I really, really wish I knew." James hesitated. "If I'd known he could do that, I probably would have made Cap take him."
"Instead, you got to find out firsthand and then get the whole… Seriously, you keep collecting weirdos, and I mean that in the best possible way. Secondary mutation. Must be."
"Oh, come on," James said heavily. "What other weirdos have I collected?"
"With just that method? Tyler. But I mean, judging by your birth parents, you don't age like the rest of us, so maybe you speed run your secondary…" Billy trailed off, grinning impishly.
James stared at him, shaking his head. "Wow."
"Dazzled by my intellect, I know," Billy said, grinning wider still.
"As always," he said, still absently shaking his head. "I should probably just not leave the house again."
"Oh, hey, speaking of intellect - Grandpa Tony somehow managed to talk Tommy into an academic path and now Tommy's legitimately studying physics?"
"Good!" James said, sounding earnest. "He'd be great. I still wanna strangle him, but … good."
"Yeah, I know. But I'm kind of hoping he gets his head on straight and stops thinking with the other head."
"One thing at a time," James laughed. "If his professor can keep up with his mental speed, he'll be fine." He leaned forward to give Billy another, very careful kiss. "And you know … just think about what I need to do to make up for my absence. Texting really wasn't enough."
"I'll be plotting all through dinner, I'm sure."
"That sounds normal to me,"James teased. "Should I get your cape?"
"Please do," Billy laughed. "I need it, clearly."
"I'm pretty sure that hiding under it to make out will still be noticed at the table."
"Not if I cast a spell," Billy sang out.
"Do you want to, though?" James teased. "I am absolutely not opposed."
"Yeah, but Annie would be too sad if we missed her dinner, and I swear, I can't deal with her when she's disappointed. It's like when Mom gets that looks on her face. You know the one?"
"Sure do." He stood up and offered Billy his hand. "So … do you have more questions or should we go and be social for a little while?"
"Probably that second one," Billy said with a pretended put-upon sigh as he allowed James to lead him out properly.
"He's afraid of you, still," James said. "If that helps your disposition, oh, powerful one."
Billy smirked and, for dramatic effect, let his eyes glow for a second before they went back to normal. "And he should be."
"You're handsome, too. Hard to compete with all that."
"Yeah, I'm not the one that gets flustered from hearing that they look good," Billy laughed.
"Wasn't trying to throw you off, just pointing out my preference."
The two of them were joking around on their way to the living room, at least until they heard a familiar voice being too-loud just beyond the living room.
"Oh, shit," James muttered low. He'd never been close with old man Summers, as James thought of him, but this was the first time that Corsair had bothered to show his face … in a very long time as far as James could remember. And James' filter was far less effective than it was the last time he'd come to visit.
It looked like Corsair had only just arrived and had been invited inside by Scott, though he was standing beside Alex at the front door. Alex, for his part, looked like he could hardly believe this was happening, but Chris and Suzie had utterly abandoned him to make a beeline for America and Rachel.
Corsair had brought his girlfriend, too, and Noh seemed far more interested in her, instantly perking up. "Oh, good, you have Mephistisoids here; they're fun in a fight against Shi'ar."
"What the f-" James was muttering half under his breath, though Scott was quick to cover.
"James, can you and Billy help Annie set everything out while Alex and I fill Corsair in on everything that's been going on?"
"Sure, we can get out of your way," James said.
Scott shook his head at that but turned toward Corsair, his arms crossed. "So, did you mean to come for Thanksgiving, or…?"
"I did - checked the calendar and everything," Corsair promised. "I even brought you something." With a grin, he managed to pull out a dish containing sweet potatoes - with marshmallows on top. "Had a hell of a time getting it done right but … we got there!"
Alex lit up, though Scott almost had to laugh. It was Alex's favorite Thanksgiving treat, but Scott had always had to pick the marshmallows off. "Wow, Dad," he said, though he couldn't help but smile when Alex was grinning that widely.
"Right? Had to be done, Scotty," Corsair said with a grin. "So! Alex tells me you're a criminal now too, huh?"
"Dad," Alex said, shaking his head already. "Technically that was the case the last time you saw him. Come on."
"Yes, but house arrest? A whole star-studded trial?" Corsair grinned. "My son, the criminal celebrity."
Scott pinched the bridge of his nose. "Dad, why don't you and Hepzibah bring your potatoes to Annie so she can add them into the spread."
Corsair still looked perfectly pleased with himself as he and Hepzibah went to do just that, though on the way there, Noh flagged them down, grinning as he held his hand out first to Hepzibah, who obviously wasn't expecting an odd Kree to be there.
"It's good to see one of your kind in this universe. How did you come all the way to Terra?" Noh asked - but to everyone else's surprise, he asked it in Hepzibah's native language. Or close enough to it, anyway; it was obviously from a different universe and a bit like someone with a heavy accent to her ears.
Hepzibah's ears perked up, and she smiled sharply at him. "I came with C'ris. Where did you come from and how do you know my people? You can't be old enough to know of them."
"I'm from another universe," Noh explained, though he had lost his smile. "What do you mean? What happened to your people?"
"I am the last," Hepzibah explained, and Noh frowned, then reached out to put his hand on her arm and give her a soft bow.
"I am the last of my people as well; I have no link to my universe at all," he said. "I would like to hear more about your people's fate."
Hepzibah gave him an appraising look and then a smirk. "Perhaps later."
In the kitchen, James and Billy had fallen into step, helping Annie and Craig as the two of them battled for supremacy in the kitchen.
"For cryin' out loud, Annie, you act like I haven't done the turkey every year since Mom died," Craig said - which was both the most Southern they'd ever heard him sound and the most annoyed he'd ever sounded. He'd done a fairly good job of being unflappable despite everything they'd thrown at him, but an old sibling spat was enough to tip the scales.
"I'm allowed to taste-check anythin' I please in my own dang kitchen," Annie shot back. "And I still say you should have used more butter in the basting."
"You didn't complain last year, and it's the same recipe."
"Like I don't know you had Anton helpin' you last year."
"Oh, so you and Evie haven't been pickin' at all of Mom's old recipes since the day she handed down a cookbook to the three of us for Christmas."
"Like you're not."
"The turkey's fine! You should worry about that pumpkin pie," he shot back.
Annie put her hand over her whole heart. "Excuse you?"
"Little bit short on nutmeg last year."
"It was not. You doused yours in whipped topping anyway; what would you know?"
"Why do you think I did it?"
Annie let out an exasperated sound - and then suddenly seemed to realize the boys were there and waved them over. "Oh, good, my favorite minions," she said, and though her tone had shifted to a brighter one, her accent was far deeper than normal.
Billy couldn't stop grinning. "Don't let us get in the way."
"Are we supposed to pick sides?" James asked, half smiling as he looked between Annie and Craig. "I'm torn here."
Annie waved them off. "This happens every year. Last year, he said my rolls were underdone, and they were not."
"Last year, you accused me of over-salting my stuffing," Craig shot back.
"And Evie put too much pepper in the green beans," Annie said.
"Now that part's true, but in her defense, her girls were helpin' last year."
"That's also true, and Leslie Ann did amazingly with Mom's sweet potato recipe," Annie said - which seemed to be enough to redirect the war temporarily as both Craig and Annie praised their nieces' growing cooking skills while directing Billy and James on what dishes needed to put in what serving platters and what serving implements needed to be used where.
The boys were sharing amused smiles and wisely kept their commentary to themselves while they worked.
"Ah, there's my future first mate," Corsair said almost as soon as he stepped into the kitchen, accenting his comment by dropping a hand on James' shoulder. "Even managed to wriggle out of a solid sentence." The tone was joking, but James bristled all the same as Corsair pulled him closer with one arm.
"Still not brain damaged enough to join your crew," James said dryly without looking up from the stack of plates Annie was putting in his arms to bring to the table; Billy had all the silverware.
"If you're here to recruit, you can leave," Annie said, though she took the potatoes from him anyway.
"He just thinks he's funny," James said over his shoulder, automatically defending Corsair. It was a default, even when the guy irritated him, and he knew Annie hadn't really had much interaction with him yet.
"See where Alex gets it from," Annie said dryly and then shoved some plates into Corsair's chest, too. "You're lucky I like to cook for a crowd. Make yourself useful; we're just setting up to dig in."
"That'll be a first," James muttered under his breath just loud enough for Billy and Noh to catch. Billy because he was close and Noh because he was listening.
But Corsair was too caught up in how proud he was of making an entrance to hear James, which was good, because Nate and Rachel were snickering in the corner already. But it also meant that his attention was drawn their way, and he grinned when he saw Nate and Kate.
"Whatever you're about to say," Kate said as soon as she saw Corsair look her way, "I will make you pay for it a hundred times over. So think carefully."
"Say the word, Katie," James said. "I'll go take a flight with him just to get out of Genosha first."
"Just can't believe I'm old enough to be a great-gra-"
"I believe it," Kate said before he could finish.
Annie snorted out loud as she came along behind the boys with the turkey on a gorgeous platter. "Coming through, old man," she sang out as she set the turkey in the center.
Hepzibah chuckled and said something to Noh in her native language, and he laughed and heartily agreed, then sat down across the table from her, while she took a seat next to Kate so that Corsair wasn't seated directly beside her. James and Billy sat by Noh, and America sat on Billy's other side, with Rachel on her other side and then Alex's family across from them facing Corsair, with Scott and Annie and Craig at the end.
"You mentioned a mutiny before…" Noh muttered to James in his native Kree.
James nodded. "Mmhmm," he said, then switched to answer more properly in Nohs Kree. "That's the one."
"I understand entirely. At least his lover has sense. She's wonderful to talk to."
"She's always made his visits more tolerable," James agreed. "I didn't think she cared to be around us too much though."
"She had much to ask about you. I take it that both are concerned with what your family has endured recently, but the stories you told me were not mine to share."
"The concern is news to me," James said. "But you can tell her what you like."
"Yes, it seems she struggles to express herself in your language. She told me she finds it hard to mitigate her partner's damage when she has to translate for herself."
"That's what universal translators are for," James said off-handedly.
"Universal translators are for understanding language, not for comprehending it."
James considered him for a moment. "Fair point."
"Consider how many questions I had about your music," Noh added, smirking.
"I suppose we all assumed that he'd bridged the gaps in all the time they've traveled together. That was a rookie mistake on everyone's part."
"My understanding is that there is much nonverbal communication," Noh said, his smirk widening.
"Disgusting."
"Not at all."
"I don't mean her."
"I know." Noh shrugged. "I'm not burdened by your past. He's not my type, but I'm not going to bash her when she's obviously enjoying herself."
"I'm a little disappointed," James said in a lofty tone. "Maybe even a little hurt. I thought you had good taste."
Noh burst into a laugh, which had Kate chuckling to herself. "Share with the class?" she asked James.
"You heard me," James said with a shrug.
"In your super secret friendship language, yeah."
"Oh, I'm sorry, is it hard to be involved in a chat when you're not all … crawled up in someone's head?" James asked.
"Actually, I was watching Alex try to hold in his gushing for point-two seconds over Chris's powers, but go off, I guess," she teased.
"He'll never make it that long," Nate said.
"Can you blame me?" Alex pointed out, blatantly flinging his arm around Chris and giving him a little shake.
"Not at all," James said. "He's way cooler than you."
"Damn straight," Alex said instantly.
"So, Noh," Scott said, trying to break up the insanity. "You and James will have to teach us that Kree dialect when you have time. Seems dead useful to know a language that doesn't exist anywhere else."
"I should think you would have already asked Hepzibah hers," Noh pointed out. "She says she is the last."
"They're not really around very much," Alex pointed out.
"I'll learn if you want to teach it," James said toward Hepzibah.
Hepzibah smiled at him and nodded. "I do, yes."
Corsair hedged. "Ah, that's … it's kind of a hard one to learn. Gotta be able to growl and purr, and try as I might…" He grinned wolfishly at Hepzibah.
"I learned Japanese in a summer, I'll be fine," James said flatly.
"You might, actually, come to think of it," Corsair said thoughtfully, to Hepzibah's delight.
"Besides, we can start with a few basics or some tactical phrases," Scott said thoughtfully.
"How about you learn how to be polite before you learn how to bomb them?" Rachel teased.
"Sounds boring," Scott said without missing a beat.
"How is that not polite?" James asked on the tail of Scott's commentary. "You just need 'stop that or I'll bomb you.' Done."
"This is definitely not the Thanksgiving conversation we have around my family table," Annie chuckled to herself.
"We're overdue for a chat anyhow," Craig added. "Been too long."
James looked from Annie and Craig to turn dramatically toward Kate. "So. New arrowheads…"
Kate beamed at him. "Oooh, yes please! Whatcha got?"
"Smoke that turns to goo when it touches a hard surface for starters."
"I like it. I like it. The goo is purple, obviously."
"Oh, no other choice," James agreed. "And then a smoke pellet - because I guess I was feeling smokey these past few weeks or so."
"Trying so hard not to make a joke," America said, which had Rachel chuckling and pulling her into a kiss to keep her quiet - which was what America wanted anyway; it was an old joke between them by that point.
"I have an outline for a third, but it's not to testing yet, so … I'll get you on that once it's done." James was blatantly ignoring America - especially after the last time they sat down together for five minutes.
"That's alright. It can be my Christmas present," Kate said, smiling.
"I have other things in mind for that, Katie," James said.
"I can't wait," Kate said.
"Between you and Tony, I'm getting outshined," Nate laughed.
"So step it up," James shot back.
"Working on it," Nate said.
"He's mostly been taking care of me," Kate admitted. "I finally stopped needing IVs as of, like, literally a couple days after you and Noh left."
"That's not long," James said, frowning.
Kate shrugged tiredly. "I look amazing doing it, but pregnancy is not fun. And I've been having panic attacks since we figured out, you know, the uh…" She glanced around the room; there were enough people there who weren't in on the Sinister news that she couldn't say everything she wanted to say.
"Yeah. Sorry 'bout that," James said before he, Nate, and Rachel shared a glance that always meant the three of them would be chatting in the next instant or two. Not that it lasted long - especially when Susie was being left out of their private conversation.
"You said no secret talks at the table," Susie called out loudly.
"You're right, we did, Susie-Q," Rachel said with a smile. "Sorry. We'll try not to do it again."
"Oh, sure," Craig said dryly, and Annie snorted into her hand.
"They can't help it," America said, grinning brilliantly at Susie. "They're dramatic."
"Is the new guy dramatic too?" Susie asked, looking around her at Noh.
Noh looked up from where he had, until then, been fully focused on eating, trying new tastes, and letting his healing catch up. "Yes," he said, smirking.
"How dramatic are you?" Susie asked, smiling crookedly at him. "I wanna hear some stories that are new - not like the ones we always hear." She glanced at Corsair for just an instant, but he wasn't looking her way - even if Hepzibah was, and had to cover her mouth to hide the laugh.
Noh tipped his head and then grinned. "You know… the mission my crew was on right before I crashed into this world was incredibly enjoyable," he said before he launched into an adventurous tale, complete with a Shi'ar fight - because he thought Hepzibah might get a kick out of hearing about her people in another universe.
Tommy was doing his absolute best to be exactly what everyone had always assumed him to be. He was sleeping around, he was partying, the whole nine.
Except, the thing was, he was actually really excited about getting a degree - or maybe more than one - in physics. And once he got permission from his mom to use his powers and speed-read through a few textbooks, the gears in his head started to turn, and he couldn't stop them when that happened. He was, like it or not, turning into a nerd like his brother, but for physics instead of language and literature and politics.
And the worse part was that now that he wasn't using college as an excuse to pick up dates, now that he actually had something he wanted to do, he actually wanted to be there.
But the worst part, out of everything that had been happening lately, was that he couldn't seem to not fall for someone. Despite his best efforts to keep things loose and fun and not-at-all-commital, he liked the twins he was dating. More than just as flings, too.
Madison was definitely more high-strung than Addison, though, like she was trying just a little too hard to be the better twin. And Addison wasn't always looking for reporters like her sister was.
And damnit all he was genuinely thinking about actually dating instead of sleeping around, wasn't he?
This was the worst possible thing to happen, because it meant he had nuked his relationship with Mia for nothing, and Billy would never stop teasing him about being just as romantic at heart as he was.
He'd tried, though. He really had. He'd tried to be the "fun" prince. The troublemaker. The one who was so different from Billy that people would stop comparing them. And instead here he was starting to fall for people and getting a degree and being respectable and it wouldn't be long at all before the headlines were back to making comparisons instead of treating them like separate people.
He could see it now: It took this long before Billy and James went public. What about Tommy and his new love? It took this long for Billy to get his first degree. What about Tommy? It took this long to get married. What about Tommy?
If this was where he was always going to end up, he should have just stuck with Mia, because like it or not, he was still comparing everyone else to her, and she kept winning out because she was a goddess and funny and smart and fast and she was so cheesy when she talked about being a hero…
Yeah, this all sucked, and he didn't see a way off the ride.
He was just walking home from class - no powers for something that mundane - and had arrived at the palace at about the same time that Billy was apparently there with James and… a new someone that was very cute. And since Tommy was still trying to keep his options open (even if he was thinking seriously about asking Addi to actually go out with him), he didn't try to hide it as he gave the new guy a once-over.
"New friend?" Tommy asked Billy, though he didn't get much closer when James looked like he wanted an excuse to be within hitting distance.
"Noh-Varr," said the newcomer. He looked between Billy and Tommy. "You must be the Demiurge's brother - sorry, no, Billy's brother," he corrected himself.
Tommy stood up a little straighter and narrowed his eyes when he saw James mutter something he couldn't hear that Noh-Varr laughed at. "Tommy," he said, sharper than he meant to.
"Yes, I've heard a lot about you," Noh-Varr said.
"I haven't heard anything about you," Tommy said, trying to recover. "Like the outfit, though."
"I do too," Noh said, smiling.
"I told you about him," Billy said. "I just didn't tell you his name."
"Ooooh." Tommy's eyes went wide, and he started to laugh. "Gotcha. Okay, understanding the jealousy all of a sudden. Tall, white-hair, hot alien - yep, totally see it now." He was still grinning as he held out his hand to Noh. "I hope my brother's treating you okay. Got a little green-eyed for a hot minute."
"I hate you sometimes," Billy muttered to Tommy.
"No you don't. If you did, I'd know about it - or not exist or something."
"Really?"
"Really. Besides, how's my future brother-in-law gonna know you got jealous if you do it quietly?" Tommy teased.
"You're cracked," James said, shaking his head with a growl.
"Always." Tommy grinned wider and then readjusted his bookbag over his shoulder. "And I've got homework, so I'll leave you to whatever drama this is gonna bring. Have fun!"
Noh shook his head as Tommy headed off and then leaned over to James. "I'm not entirely sure what to make of that little princeling," he admitted.
James paused, then broke into a grin. "Oh. I like that name for him. What are you confused about with him?"
"Not confused, just… he was visibly interested and then redirected as soon as he knew Billy was … involved, I suppose, in the whole-" Noh waved his hand. "There's nothing to be jealous of, anyway - you've been clear in your boundaries, and I have stopped pursuing once you made it clear that you had no interest in starting anything."
"I don't think Billy being around anyone has ever slowed him down," James pointed out.
"It hasn't," Billy agreed - because it never had been a deterrent.
"Then he must have already been distracted when we met him, because I expected a different conversation at the start," Noh said.
"What did you expect?" Billy asked, genuinely curious.
Noh couldn't help but smirk. "I am quite attractive - and that was his immediate focus."
"Yeah …" Billy let the sentiment drift. "And?"
"And I think that could have been an interesting encounter," Noh said.
"Fastest guy on the planet? Who knows, maybe it was," James deadpanned.
"Yeah, we're not making jokes like that," Billy said, dragging a hand down his face.
"Just one?" James teased with a crooked grin as he bumped his shoulder.
"Dying, James. Dy-ing," Billy said - purposefully dramatic.
"Are you in need of mouth to mouth?"
"Yes."
"After," James promised.
Noh chuckled. "I can find something else to do," he offered. "You two have been apart for some time, and it's obvious you want to be together…"
"No, you should at least meet up with Vision," James said. "Then we can ditch you for a while."
"Actually, yeah, I think Dad would love to talk to you," Billy said, though he was still making eye contact with James. But when James just kept smirking a bit wider, the next thing Noh knew, Billy had grabbed James to kiss him hard. "Couldn't wait for that one. Not sorry."
"Good. Don't be," James agreed, still smiling crookedly as he gestured for Billy to lead the way. "After you, little prince."
Billy grinned and put his arm around James's waist as they walked, though Noh seemed perfectly thrilled for both of them - which was definitely helping Billy relax around the guy, at least.
"I can see why Kate was telling me you two are next to be married after James's father," Noh said, hanging back to give them some space.
"We have some laws we need to meet up to first," James said.
Noh waved his hand. "Yes, yes, I heard about that. It doesn't matter. You work, and you're in love, and I'm quite jealous," he said.
"That's okay; you'll find someone," Billy said - and stole another kiss as they walked.
"Gotta be a little prince or princess for you somewhere," James agreed.
"I'm happy to explore in the meantime," Noh said with an easy shrug.
"Who isn't?" James shot back.
"Fair point." Noh smiled as he looked around the palace. "It's still astounding to me that this place was crafted purely by the powers of genetic advances. This world seems at once as advanced as mine and too primitive and divisive in other ways."
"I like it," James said. "Keeps it interesting."
"I haven't decided yet," Noh said easily. "My introduction to the world made me hate it. The past little while has made a compelling argument for tolerance. I'm not entirely sure I like it yet. The inhabitants, perhaps, but the world? I'm not so sure."
"You're just saying that because you haven't gotten to sleep with anyone yet," James laughed.
"Gods, yes, that would be a tremendous help," Noh teased.
"I'm sure you'll find a willing partner," James laughed. "Apparently just gotta give it a few minutes for another shot elsewhere. Just … don't hit on Billy's dad, please."
"I'll keep my thoughts to myself, then," Noh said, grinning wider, and Billy audibly snorted.
"I can't believe you two are like this already," Billy said, though he was grinning.
"He's easy to tease," Noh pointed out.
"Yeah, but he doesn't like anyone," Billy replied.
"That's true. Everyone sucks," James agreed.
"That's not at all true," Noh pointed out. "Literally everyone I have met who is unattached to Midas or SHIELD has expressed immense affection for you. This-" He gestured between himself and James. "-seems to follow the pattern of all other interactions I've observed for you."
"Oh, shush," James said with his nose scrunched up. "You sound like Kate."
"She did tell me that her job is to be the eyes of the team, so again, I'd have to say that, objectively speaking-"
"She's an irritating little sister in law," James said. "Always has been. But ten out of ten for puns."
"Yes, I understand dictionary definitions of your language, but with Kate?" He laughed. "I swear, I came into this world when all the best people in it are taken."
"Oh, she'll love that," James laughed. "Your type must be dark haired lost little orphans."
Noh paused, laughed, and shrugged. "Perhaps on this world," he admitted. "I'll have to do a bit more-"
"Exploring," James and Billy said at the same time.
Noh burst into a laugh. "Oh, yes, we'll get along perfectly," he said.
The three of them finally made the last turn into the receiving hall where Wanda and Vision were almost waiting for them to arrive, and as soon as they were through the door, Billy and James broke apart so Billy could make his way over to say hello properly as James slowed and waited for them to get their greetings out of the way at least - and to help Noh if need be.
"You guys already talk to Tommy?" Billy asked. "He passed up a shot to sleep with a very willing, hot alien, so he's probably in need of a talk."
"Yes, we talked to him already," Wanda said. "And it seemed like he didn't think it was appropriate. Which I am glad to hear that he has boundaries."
"Character growth. Nice."
"We'll talk about that later," Wanda said before she kissed his cheek again. "Why don't you introduce us and tell us what your plan is with your new … friend?"
Billy stepped back and gestured toward Noh. "Yeah, he got his purpose in life yanked out of him, then got his god removed from his mind, and now he needs to fit in on Earth. Any advice?"
Wanda frowned as she watched Noh through Billy's explanation - perfectly in agreement with billy's assessment. Which was not something she'd expected from Tommy's synopsis. "I'm sure we can give him a few options if he chooses to stay here." She made her way over to offer Noh her hand to shake. "Welcome to Genosha."
Noh smiled and took her hand and bowed slightly as he did. "Thank you for the welcome. I'd love to hear what options you have. Tony Stark has already offered to work with me because I was a science officer before arriving, but this world is so different, I want to see more of it."
"I'm sure Tony wouldn't want to see you cooped up in a lab all the time," Wanda said. "What is it you'd like to see? Our nation offers sanctuary first and foremost. The rest of what we have to share is based in what our citizens are capable of."
Noh lit up. "I'm terribly interested in the genetic advances on your world," he admitted. "My people directed their advances, but yours are random, and I think that makes them more interesting than those chosen only for the interests of the Empire."
While Noh and Wanda were chatting, James had drifted over to say hello to Vision and give him a quick run down of what he knew about Noh's background and interests. All of which was followed up with a very understated 'Hi' when Vision fell silent after the rundown.
Vision nodded to himself and then looked toward Noh. "I think," he said slowly, "that if I can, I would like to direct him to the school in Westchester first and foremost. Losing his purpose and a connection to the Supremor means he needs a moral center."
"Yeah, that's probably the best option," James agreed. "But I didn't want to ditch him there on a weekend where half the school or better is missing. And - he's never had to make decisions for himself like this. I wanted to let him make his own call."
"I think both of those are good points," Vision said. "I think you have been wise in the way you've handled this situation."
"I don't know about that," James said thickly.
Vision smirked and put a hand on James's shoulder. "In the meantime, it's good to see Tommy is yet again completely overstating the situation. You and Billy seem as engrossed in each other as ever."
James turned toward him with one eyebrow raised. "What did Tommy have to say?"
"Just that Billy was beside himself worried about the time you spend with Noh-Varr alone, but you all seem to have figured things out nicely." Vision waved the thought away. "But Billy has always led with his heart, so neither thing surprises me."
"I'll have to remind him that I wouldn't do anything behind his back," James decided.
"He knows."
"And yet - he was worried," James said.
Vision let out a long sound like a sigh longer than a human could let out. "Both of my sons suffer from their own views of themselves."
"I am actually not complaining about reminding him," James said with a smirk.
"No, of course not," Vision said, laughing.
"We were planning on letting you handle the rest of his Genoshan tour of what he could do here? I know he'll appreciate your outlook - and if I don't say hello to Wanda soon, she's going to give me that look."
"She absolutely is," Vision agreed.
James thanked Vision, then slipped over as Billy shifted Noh's attention to say hello to VIsion - giving James a chance to check in with a new name for her. "Hi Queen Billy's Mom."
Wanda laughed. "Hello, Loyal Future Subject Billy's Boyfriend."
"Sorry we didn't come straight here. Dad and Annie were all worked up about something or another," he shrugged as he stepped closer to give her a quick hug. "You know how it is."
"Oh, always. But Annie and I are conspiring, and I think you'll all like what we'll come up with," Wanda said.
"In regards to …"
"Yes."
"I'm not sure which 'yes' that correlates to, but … who's going to stop you?"
"Isn't that the truth," Wanda laughed and pulled him over to kiss his cheek. "Billy and Noh told me all about your adventures."
"It was about the same as usual," James said with a shrug. "Do the tech stuff, get the crap beat out of me. Wash, rinse, repeat."
"I miss it sometimes," Wanda admitted. "As repetitive as it could be to be a hero…"
"You mean when you're not kicking 's little bits into orbit?"
"Oh, obviously."
"I think there just aren't enough bad guys of record that are still stupid enough to go after you," James teased. "Sorry you're bored. You scared them all off."
"It's so difficult sometimes," Wanda agreed, still smiling at him.
James grinned. "Want me to give you an inducer?"
"No, but I appreciate the offer. I was planning to drop by for the holidays anyway. We always have Hanukkah here with the family, but I do miss the team's Christmas bashes."
"I think most of the team was planning on raiding Dad for that," James said. "But if you want something more festive looking, I can give you coordinates for one of my parent's old places …"
"Oh, I'd like that for our next anniversary. It'll be twenty-five years…"
"Then tell me what kind of a scenic view you want and I'll give you what I have that fits."
"Perfect. I knew I loved you."
"Nah, you'll love Logan's eye for scenery, though."
"That too," Wanda agreed. She smiled. "Vision and I can take over on the tour if you and Billy want privacy…"
"I gave him the short version of what the guy's been through," James said. "So yes, please, if you don't mind."
"Have fun, boys," Wanda said - and before Billy could do anything, both of them saw a flash of red, and they were transported up to Billy's balcony overlooking the sea.
Chapter 143: Protective And Possessive
Chapter Text
James followed through on his promise to give Noh the welcome tour to Xaviers, in spite of not having gone to school there. And like any other time he'd been around the student body, it took very little time before they had a small following sneaking around corners and discreetly trying to see what the story was. Which was exactly the kind of thing that would draw a crowd - and get word out quickly that there was new blood in the water.
And to James' relief, he didn't have to deal with the little X-Men fanclub that was gelling around them. Not when the next person to join the group announced themselves with a swirl of purple-pink smoke and a distinctive bamf!
James couldn't stop the smile, even before Mia spoke up. "So, usurper," she said with her hands on her hips and her tail swaying playfully behind her. "Trying to steal my spot, are you?"
He turned toward her voice and picked her up in a spinning hug. "I would never, and you know it," James swore as Mia giggled. "I take it the big turkey day went well for the in crowd here?"
"It was nothing like Annie's spread, but … we made do," she said, finally glancing over to see the new kid in question. She tapped James on the shoulder to let her down. "So. You're slacking in your duties. Who's the new guy?"
"Of course, how dare I, Goddess?" James said with a sweeping bow that never failed to get a delighted grin from her. "Mia, this is my new friend Noh-Varr. He's Kree from another dimension. He's stranded here, but has elected to try out Xavier's on Vision's advice. He wants to learn more about this planet and how to integrate." He looked over to Noh. "Noh, this … is my best friend, Mia Wagner. She is usually in charge of helping new students acclimate here."
Noh inclined his head to Mia in an almost bow. "That's a surprising tactic from you - enticing students with a gorgeous tour guide. I swear, this dimension is teeming with beautiful people."
Mia was taken off guard just as quickly as James had been, but instead of just stopping, she blushed brilliantly and grinned, too.
"He's just like this,"James said over her shoulder.
"All the time?" Mia asked.
"So far," James said with a nod.
"And yet I'm telling the truth," Noh cut in, since he could hear them both.
"I'll let him tell you his powerset," James said. "When it comes around."
"Would you two mind a second guide, or …" Mia drifted off.
"You're the one in charge, little goddess," James said, which was the perfect intro for Mia to join them - happily so, and at first holding tight to James' arm. A motion that Noh copied for effect, and to continue the good mood that had settled over their little tour.
But … as the tour went on, Mia started more actively flirting - which was a new look for James to see, and he wasn't about to stop her. It started out subtle, with a few questions about whether his dimension was full of gorgeous people like hers was, that kind of thing. But that shifted to long glances that she let him catch her in and seemed to be growing from there.
However … the instant that he caught the shift in Noh's scent to one that he now easily recognized by being the target of Noh's interest himself, he realized he needed to lay out the law a little with his new Kree friend. If he could. Flirting was harmless. But Mia had already been hurt once and James was not going to stand by to watch it happen again.
He didn't want Noh to have someone else turn on him, though - not that anyone he'd been around yet had actually been good to him to start. It didn't change the fact that Noh needed to keep the few connections he had so far. So going too heavily after him over anyone seemed … wrong.
Still, he couldn't ignore that the guy was looking at Mia a little too hard - so James decided the two of them needed privacy before Mia found herself wrecked all over again with someone James would kill for the misstep.
James gave Mia's arm a little squeeze as the three of them finished laughing at a joke she'd told that James was very sure Noh didn't get all of. "Hey, goddess, can we meet you at your mom's office? I have a few things I'd like to talk to Noh about just the two of us."
Mia looked between them and giggled. "Sure," she said, grinning broadly. "Let him know how he needs to smooth my mom over. I won't tell."
"Perfect," James said before he kissed her cheek and she returned the favor. She waved at Noh with the tips of her fingers and disappeared, leaving the boys once again alone in the forest. "So," he said, turning toward Noh. "What do you think? I already told Tony I was going to set you up to use my lab in the city when you want to do something other than what the labs here can support."
"Yes, that sounds perfect," Noh agreed instantly. "I don't want to lose the knowledge I came here with because of disuse, but it seems there is so much to learn here that I don't want to remain only in labs."
"I wouldn't want you to," James agreed, then glanced toward the direction of the school. "I have a few questions before I head out, though."
"Of course. Go right ahead; what do you need to know? That I will not go on any more vendettas? I've already heard about the rule against killing in any except the worst situations."
"I'm not worried about that, actually," James said. "I'm thinking about what you'll be up to here. The mind control has to be entirely off limits. And the drugs if you can manage it."
Noh held up his hands quickly. "I can choose not to use it at all-"
"Make sure you choose not to do anything like that," James said with a hint of a growl. "If you want to chase Mia, that's great. She could use some fun - but the last thing she needs is hallucinogens and mind control."
Noh did his best to nod seriously, but he'd started smirking at the growl. "My dear friend, I know you're under the impression that my kiss is only a certain way, but I can choose not to do either of those things."
"That's why I'm asking you about it now," James said. "I'm trying to outline why it's important. She is the one Tommy dropped."
"Ah." Noh dropped the smirk and nodded seriously. "I promise - knowing that, I will be careful."
"The only reason I didn't kill him was because Billy froze me," James explained - as a means of subtle threat as well.
"And still, you know me well by now; I don't want to hurt anyone who doesn't deserve it," Noh pointed out.
"Which is why I'm not telling you to keep away entirely." He had yet to blink, since the beginning of their little chat. It wasn't a conscious decision, but the protectiveness over Mia was crystal clear in every breath he took and every move he made.
Noh met his gaze for a good, long time, just to show that he understood the severity of the situation. And then, with a slow smile, he said, "Gods, it's hot when you growl."
"I'm not done yet," James said. "Let me finish."
"I am absolutely willing to let you finish," Noh said without missing a beat.
But that was enough to snap James out of his attempt to impress on Noh how important Mia was. "Damnit, Noh."
Noh laughed. "Really, you're making a big deal, and I understand it. But if I do continue to flirt with Mia, you should know I can choose not to use those aspects of my powers, and I don't believe in non consensual polyamorous situations; it's unethical."
James' shoulders relaxed slightly and he finally tipped his head to start the hike back. "I don't mean to lay it on that thick," James admitted. "I'm still pissed off at Tommy - and pissed off that I let Billy and Mia talk me out of threatening his punk ass before they got too involved."
"My friend, you're free to threaten me a bit more, though I'm afraid all it will do is endear you more to me," Noh teased lightly.
"I'll keep that in mind, tight pants."
"Oh, do you think she noticed as we were walking away?" Noh asked, his eyes glittering.
"Absolutely," James agreed. "How could she not?"
"Good; I was hoping to show off. I had no idea there were Terrans with such exquisite variety."
"She's one of a kind, Noh." He smirked. "And I think, if you tick her off, she'll handle herself." He stopped and turned toward Noh. "How are you with lightning?"
"Terrible, actually. I'm an organic being overrun with nanobots, James; what do you think?"
James grinned. "Then I won't worry so much about her. I will, with your permission, start finding a way to help you replicate your nanites should anything happen to them via massive electricity discharge."
"Yes, please," Noh said. "I don't have access to any way to replace them if they malfunction, either."
"That can be our project … when you're free and I'm not … shit. Working at the genetics lab for the doc."
Noh nodded. "You are very busy," he said. "And while I'm grateful, I've taken much of your time as it is."
"It's fine," James said. "The problem is all the time my genetics teacher is trying to monopolize. I used to be alright with a heavy classload, working for Tony, and being on both teams. But, the guy is demanding."
"If you need someone to step in for you… I do know a thing or two about genetics if you need help…"
"Maybe I'll have you take a look at some of my theories once you're settled in more."
"I'd love to," Noh agreed, then grinned and spun on his feet. "Now, if it's alright with you, I wanted to speak to your best friend. She's absolutely charming."
"Yeah, we're headed there - and she's not just charming. She's a goddess."
"Yes, of course. I'll remember that." Noh was smiling as they took the slow route back toward the school.
"If you have to remember it, you're not paying attention," James teased.
"How do you manage to find yourself in the company of gods so often?"
"And I guess … just dumb luck. I'm always around people higher up the food chain."
"For a reason." Noh smiled at James but didn't offer further commentary, instead smiling crookedly as they caught up to Mia and Ororo.
"You've finally brought my new student to meet me," Ororo said with a warm smile before she pulled James over for a quick hug. "You need to spend a little time here, even if you are so busy."
"Just let me hammer out this doctorate and I'll probably end up teaching something for you if you ask nicely," James said.
"Oooh, what are you going to teach?" Mia asked with a beaming grin.
"Probably how to hit people," James said dryly.
"Nonsense; you could teach an excellent survival course," Noh said easily.
"Just leave off the kissing parts," Ororo said, just to get the groan out of James.
"No,"James argued, earning a laugh from Ororo as she took Noh's arm. "Kissing is integral to survival."
"Come on, Noh-Varr. Let us discuss how you'll be spending your time with us," Ororo said with a smile.
"I should like that very much, thank you," Noh agreed and let Ororo lead him off, though Mia hung back and looked at James, letting out a sound at the higher range of his hearing.
"Yeah, we gotta talk, little goddess," James said once the doors were closed. "I'm sure you heard some of the jokes, but you need to keep on your toes to start with."
"James, I'm not stupid," Mia said, though she was gentle about it.
James kissed her forehead. "I'll kill him if it goes south and you don't want to fry him. Just say the word."
Mia threw her arms around him to hug him. "Love you too," she said and then stepped back. "But I promise I can take care of myself."
"I hope he'll be alright," James said. "I know you can take care of yourself. But … I trust him."
"Wow, really? Already?"
James nodded. "Yeah. Shock to me too, but yeah."
"That's a serious endorsement."
"It's earned. Believe it or not."
"I'm going to want to hear the details; you know that, right?"
James looked over to the door then offered her his arm. "Rooftop okay with you? I've got a minute."
"Whatever he did to get that kind of back up is going to take longer than a minute to tell," Mia said as she took his arm with a grin. "I want details." She bit her lip and a moment later, they were on the roof in her favorite spot, snuggled in against the cold wind to gossip.
With Thanksgiving over, Kate was already looking ahead to Christmas, because every once in a while, when she wasn't throwing up, she was gripped with a deep desire to get the house ready for the baby - and that just kept getting worse the closer the due date came.
Sinister had called it a "nesting" instinct, and while Kate had looked it up and knew it was a real thing, considering all she knew about Sinister, she really, truly wasn't all that comfortable with something that sounded like he was, you know, studying a nesting mother in a lab or something.
In fact, anything that felt even vaguely like Sinister was a zookeeper or, worse, a breeder had Kate feeling nauseous - and nausea was already a problem.
But also, she really badly wanted to decorate for Christmas, because she was stuck inside, and she could only do so much sleuthing from home before she wanted to move. As much as she wanted to be like her mom, as much as she was genuinely good at gathering intelligence, she just wasn't built to stay in one room doing research for that long without being able to act on any of it.
She really wasn't supposed to be dragging big boxes of decorations around, though, so while Nate was in Westchester helping with the post-Thanksgiving chaos that came with students returning from all over, Kate had texted her mom to ask if she was free to do some heavy lifting.
She had literally spelled out that she didn't need help with anything else, just with the lifting, but the next thing she knew, both of her parents were at her place, wearing Santa hats and ugly sweaters, bearing Christmas music and willing arms to get boxes and get to work.
Nate had already set up the tree before he left, but Kate had absolutely insisted that she wanted to do the rest of it herself, so that she had something to do with her hands. So, the box of ornaments was the first one that Kate asked her dad to get - and Natasha went ahead and started pulling out the rest of it… as well as a box she and Clint had brought themselves.
"Whatcha got?" Kate asked, hugging her mom from the side as she reached for the box.
Natasha laughed and playfully swatted Kate's hand away. "That's for after you've put all the ornaments up."
"We already have a star," Kate said. "It's purple and blue, and it's beautiful when the tree lights up at night."
"Yes, I know," Natasha said and couldn't help but reach out to brush Kate's hair back where it had fallen in her eyes. "Just trust me."
"Always do, Mom," Kate said, smiling as she started unwrapping the more delicate ornaments from their bubble wrap. She and Nate didn't have uniform decorations; they'd kept some ornaments from their childhoods and had bought a few that felt unique to them, including several birds and x-themed ornaments.
Natasha's expression softened, and she reached over to put her hand behind Kate's head and pull her over to plant a kiss on her forehead. But then, as she looked over Kate's shoulder, she let out a noise of resignation and stepped around Kate. "Clint, you're going to get yourself tangled in the lights again. Let me do it," she said, and Kate couldn't help but laugh at the look of shocked indignation on her dad's face.
Still, Clint surrendered the lights to Natasha and then headed over to Kate, kissing the top of her head. "Want me to hang the stockings, baby girl?" he asked, smiling to himself. "Got one to hang for the one on the way if you want it."
"In the box of secrets I'm not supposed to know about?" Kate teased.
"Yep, in the box of secrets you're not supposed to open without your mom. I'll hang the other two first, huh?" Clint said, and Kate laughed at him as he went to work not just hanging the stockings but putting up some garlands and, with a cheeky smile Kate's way, hanging mistletoe everywhere.
"You know that's how she got this way in the first place, don't you?" Natasha said, though neither of them had seen her look up from what she was doing.
"C'mon, Nat, what do you think will happen? She'll get more pregnant?" Clint shot back, and Kate snorted a laugh behind her hand.
"Seriously, Dad?"
"Am I wrong?" Clint asked, holding his hands out to his sides.
Kate rolled her eyes at him but set to work putting up the little Christmas village that she'd bought with her Avengers' stipend. It was expensive, but she'd wanted one, and she hadn't had the heart to tell anyone why when they asked.
But the truth was that Kate only had a few disconnected memories from the family she had before the Bartons, and the one that always stood out to her, every Christmas, was of sitting on her mother's lap and watching a tiny train go around a Christmas village.
And now, she had a piece of her birth family, she had her parents, and she had Nate and the little one growing inside her.
She watched, smiling to herself, as Natasha expertly finished up with the tree lights, and then, she and Clint descended on the tree, hanging the ornaments in ten minutes flat while Natasha heated up some hot cocoa for the three of them.
And then, before Kate could grab her mug, Natasha handed her the box instead, smiling as she waited for Kate to open it. "The finishing touches," she said.
Kate smiled at her mom before she opened up the box - and nearly dropped it. Thankfully, Natasha had anticipated an emotional reaction and put one hand other Kate's to steady her as she stared at the contents: a tiny stocking and a glass stork ornament, bright blue and almost glowing like Nate's eyes, to hang on the tree.
"It goes with your bird theme," Clint started to say, but he didn't get any farther than that before Kate had positively launched herself at both of them and pulled them in for a tearful hug.
James left Westchester knowing that Noh was in good hands, and that Mia had his half of the story on how he and Noh had become good friends - fast. Naturally, she was wholly entertained by the entire thing - and she was more than happy to point out that Billy was lucky for how devoted James really was when he could turn down the hot, sassy alien that clearly wanted to be Captain Kirk'ed.
But James also knew that he was likely going to have problems as soon as he got back to the genetics lab. Essex hadn't been thrilled with James' announcement that he was taking an extended holiday at Thanksgiving, and James was very sure he was going to demand a peek into James' head again out of pure paranoia. All that time alone had to have been used building up a plan, after all.
The expression Essex was wearing when James walked into the gene lab was predictable - and something James felt prepared for. He wasn't quite as aggressive as he'd been when James had first figured out who he was. Instead, he was immeasurably sassy and acting not unlike a spurned teenage girl.
"Hello, Dr. Essex," James said in a breath as he set his bookbag down. "Did break treat you well?"
Sinister tipped his nose up, half glaring down at James from across the room before he rose to his feet and swept over. "I think, Mr. Howlett, this discussion is better suited to my office."
James set his book on top of his notebook and sighed as he looked up at him. "I didn't do anything that -"
"I'll be the judge of that." When James hesitated a heartbeat too long, Sinister reached over to rest a heavy hand on his shoulder, then began to squeeze much tighter than he should have been capable of. "Office, James. Now."
He didn't let go, and after a moment, James knew he wasn't going to be able to get away with brushing him off. Not if he wanted to keep an eye on the guy. Not if he wanted to stay at the college. Not if he wanted to learn things about genetics that the world was solidly behind about, either. So, instead of arguing, he got to his feet and allowed Sinister to steer him to the office. A moment later, James found himself being forced into the chair opposite the desk. He hadn't even gotten a chance to do more than look up before Sinister took a hold of both of his shoulders - and just like that, James was unable to move.
The sensation of being stuck was familiar enough to send him close to a panic attack - particularly since he felt as if he wasn't in friendly territory. His mind and his heart were racing as he tried to get his reaction under control, even as Sinister pulled on James' chair to turn him around.
"Now," Sinister said in a horribly proud tone. "What have you been up to, my boy?" The way Sinister took a hold of his head to make him face him properly was more than enough to leave James holding his breath, and it took Sinister a moment too long to realize how some of his most simple actions were negatively impacting his newest (unwilling) assistant. "Relax and try to breathe. I'm not hurting you."
With the order, James found himself staring at the red diamond in the center of Sinister's forehead while he scrubbed his way through James' mind. And James, in the state of panic he was in, couldn't focus to see what it was Sinister was looking at - or looking for. Which was perfect for Sinister.
Instead of just scrubbing over James's most recent memory, he dove in to adjust a few bothersome traits that he wasn't willing to tolerate. The boy would never know the difference, and this silly notion of equal ground would be put to rest. The little bit of James' mind that was focused on pleasing the people he admired around him … that was dreadfully useful, and would prove itself to be incomparably a favorite trait… just as soon as Sinister twisted who the boy focused on to please. Obedience had its uses, after all - and the willing obedience James had shown before that silly intervention had been near-perfect. And, since Sinister had enjoyed it, he wanted that unquestioning deference back.
He wasn't about to alter anything related to the boy's yet-untapped brilliance, but the attitude definitely needed some adjusting right along with his panic around all that Viper had done to him. By the time Sinister was through, James would be thanking him for his thoughtful interventions - if he ever realized what Dr. Essex had done. It would just take time and far more sessions than this first one.
It was lucky, then, that Sinister had daily access to the boy. The sessions after the first would be far less difficult.
There really hadn't been too much time between the little holiday break and the first team practice held in New York for the X-Men. It was especially odd trying to hold practice when no one really wanted to do so without Scott doing his usual job directing traffic, but it was a needed thing all the same - and the kids who had restarted the team didn't want to slip at all while Scott was stuck in Genosha.
They were gathered up to get started with their newest recruit as Rachel and Nate brainstormed on how they wanted to begin when Billy appeared in a swirl looking frustrated - and most definitely alone. He was blushing high on his cheeks when he appeared, glanced around himself and half stalked over to Kate with his arms crossed.
"Hey, Billy," Kate said and leaned over to kiss his cheek. "Where's your guy? I'm supposed to be running things in the booth, and I have a few good 'save the mutant' runs for him to play bait."
"He's not showing," Billy said. "Says he has to make up for lost time."
"Um, no way. He was way ahead before the Thanksgiving Alien Break," Kate said. "I'd know; I was spending a lot of time with an IV right before that and needed someone to talk to."
"Tell me about it," Billy said flatly. "I don't know what changed, but I'm getting tired of it already. He doesn't want to talk about what's going on in his classes - and he always has. He's exhausted when he comes in from any class. I dunno. I thought maybe he was healing up from the extended camping trip but …"
Kate bit her lip as she thought it over. "Might be a problem with the teacher, you know?" she said.
"Ya think?"
"Yeah, I know. Just… it's sometimes easy to forget ever since James pulled his trump card with that brilliant bit of blackmail. He's been genuinely good with me while I've been dehydrated, and then you turn around and he's running James ragged like he's as jealous as you were about having to share with a hot alien…"
"Which is a really weird thing to say. Especially when he doesn't talk about the teacher without going by his oldest name."
Kate blinked and then laughed. "Oh, I bet the old vampire loves that."
"Oh, is there a vampire bothering you?" Noh asked, sliding up to the two of them. "Sorry; I couldn't help but overhear."
Billy spun to face Noh, but it took a moment for him to decide how to handle him. He'd spent a lot of time trying to figure that out anyhow. "Not in the literal sense, I don't think," Billy finally said. "But yes. One of James's teachers is … kind of the Summers family monster in the closet."
"Ah." Noh nodded. "If you like, I can help. He helped me deal with the monster in my ship's closet, if I understand the phrase."
"He wont talk to anyone about Dr. Essex," Billy said with a sneer.
"Then perhaps you can tell me," Noh said. "I've battled Draculas on other Earths. Well, two other Earths - but still. They were difficult to eradicate before I could declare Earth the capital of the Kree Empire."
Billy shared a look with Kate. "You are the queen of summaries, Kate… I'll just start ranting and raving. And floating."
"Point." Kate tipped her head to Billy and then turned toward Noh. "This guy has been following around the Summers family for literal generations. He's not really a vampire; he's a geneticist who steals powers for himself. And because James is a genius, he's teaching James genetics while also threatening the whole Summers family." She paused and grinned. "Geez, Billy, I just realized it's so freeing to talk about this. Accidental eavesdropping to get around the rules of engagement is kind of perfect, isn't it?"
"His rules of engagement don't really apply to me," Billy said. "He hasn't directly demanded anything from me, and of course, James has more or less banned me from going to the lab with him - and made me promise to keep back."
Kate touched her nose and pointed at Billy. "Yeah, so, nobody else knows because the guy is a scary powerful telepath, but he's also my doctor, so we're kind of waiting until after the baby is born to reevaluate, because he's evil but also the only doctor who's treated me like a person? Which is such an indictment of the system but anyway." She took a deep breath. "He's got a billion powers and beat down the old team eight ways to Sunday, so James is blackmailing him to make him behave, but that doesn't mean he's not being mean. That cover everything, Billy?"
"As far as I know," Billy agreed, then turned back to Noh. "Since he got back to school, the creep has been demanding more time in the lab. It's to the point already that he hasn't had time to spend with Tony - which he was planning on. And now? He doesn't usually miss team practices. Especially for school. This is stupid."
Noh stood with his arms crossed, drumming his fingers on his upper arm, before he nodded to himself. "If it's alright with you, I'd like to do a little digging myself. I owe James; I'd love to help." He smiled at Billy. "Besides, it's a true shame if you two are separated. He's madly in love with you."
"I'm not going to say no," Billy said. "But mostly because he swore the team away from intervening and technically-"
"Technically, I'm still shopping around, as I think Mia put it, for what I want to do here." Noh looked over his shoulder at where Mia was talking to Nate. "Though I think I like it here."
"You already have the uniform," Billy said. "But it takes more than one practice to actually be part of the team."
"Perfect. I'll do a bit of recon before I make my position official," Noh agreed, his eyes alight with the prospect of a new mission.
Billy looked between Noh, Kate, and the Summers siblings, who were both now watching them closer. "We could even say it's not official until you get to do a practice with Scott…"
"Oh, we'll discuss that later, but I'd hate to wait that long," Noh said. "But in the meantime, why don't we practice? We can't do anything about the situation just now, and I've been looking forward to seeing the team in action."
"And we can talk more after," Billy agreed, then fell into step with Noh as the team grouped up. "I'm also curious on how you'll fit in. James said you were great in a fight - and that's not something he admits often. I just hope he doesn't use your joining up as an excuse to stay in the lab with the vampire. Then we'll know something is really wrong."
After practice, Noh took some notes and tips from Billy on what he suspected, what he knew for sure, and where Noh could find both James and Mr. Sinister. And the next morning, Noh was already doing his finest to fit in to the campus around him as he scouted out exactly where Billy had suggested.
What he'd found was exactly what Billy was worried about. To start with, Noh didn't like the way that Sinister was interacting with James when no one was looking - or how quiet and obedient James seemed to be around the guy. This was not the bright, exciting, and fun young man Noh had come to call a friend. But he didn't look like he was there against his will, either. More like his personality had shut off and had yet to come back on and reveal the smile that would show him all was once again well.
Noh watched as class was dismissed and several students filed out of the laboratory, but James stayed behind, and moments later, he watched as his friend abandoned his books and followed his teacher into an office adjacent to the lab. Had he not been halfway up the wall, Noh never would have seen when the pleasant looking Dr. Windsor shape shifted into Dr. Essex. He could hear through the glass as Essex ordered James to take a seat, be quiet, relax, and then to be still as the red diamond at the center of his forehead glowed as he loomed over James. And James didn't argue with him one word. No sassy comment, no snark, no … James.
So Noh moved to try and catch a different angle, and was utterly unsurprised to see that his friend appeared to be caught up in a trance - focused on the red diamond at the center of Essex's forehead. But he also heard what Essex was saying to James.
"Calm down, my boy. You know this is much easier for both of us when you don't fight me," Essex was saying as the diamond glowed brighter. "I promise you won't remember a thing when I'm through."
For an instant, James's eyes widened, but Essex stepped just into Noh's view, so he couldn't watch over his friend. And Essex fell silent for a long while once he took a hold of James's head with both hands.
Noh's eyes narrowed. He might not have been telepathically keyed into his friend in this world, but he could see by the unnatural way James stilled that there was some telepathic chicanery going on.
Considering all Noh had learned from James about not only how hard James's mind specifically would be to break into but also how much the people of this world valued telepathic privacy, Noh was furious on his friend's behalf. This was such a violation.
When Essex finished whatever it was that he'd done to James, he took a moment to sit down himself before he turned back to James and tipped his chin up with a studious expression in place. It took James a few more minutes before he finally stood up, and then, without another word spoken by either of them, he gathered his things from the classroom and made his way out of the building with his head down.
Noh spent a couple days making sure he knew where he could catch his quarry alone. He still harbored some disdain for the Avengers' rules against killing, but he absolutely understood and fully supported their desire to minimize civilian casualties and collateral damage. So, he watched this geneticist leave campus until he was sure he knew the routes, then waited the following day.
While James was attending class with the man, Noh dealt with the security - and that, surprisingly enough, was thoroughly enjoyable. This geneticist at least knew his work well enough to find those with power and use them; all of his bodyguards were strong enough to make the fight interesting, nothing like some of the Avengers' villains or Midas's men.
But that meant Noh was already in a hunting mindset by the time James walked by him without a hint of recognition, and not long after, the old geneticist left class as well. Noh was already partially splattered with blood, and his heart was racing, still not quite out of the fighting stance he'd finished in when he heard the man approaching.
He smiled grimly to himself and waited until he knew he had the right target - again, keeping to the code of protecting innocents - before he rushed forward in the speed of a blink, immediately knocking the man back with a sharp palm strike and then, before the man had enough time to fall the rest of the way to the ground, zipping into position to catch his body and bring his knee to his back, smiling when he heard the crack of a spine.
He stepped back and let the body fall to the ground, though he only wanted to see if this man healed as quickly as James did. Even if he did, there were other ways to deal with him, but those methods would require Noh to get him farther away - so as not to tarnish the other heroes' reputations or traumatize any who might wander into the fight.
Sinister truly didn't know what hit him - at first. But, he'd been wondering when something like this would come around. The Avengers weren't likely to try it - and the X-Men deemed themselves too noble. Thankfully, those that might attempt an attack when the heroes were weeded out were slim. And most of Sinister's powers were based in the mind. Not the body. Most of them. And the first thing he did, even before he realized what shape this body was in, was to put up a protective force shield. He did not need this little Kree anomaly trying to coopt his mind.
Besides … the next part. The healing part … that was going to hurt.
Sinister had been fast enough in his protective instincts that he avoided the hallucinogenic saliva - but only just. He had barely realized his shield was in place before he found himself staring at a sticky substance stopped just inches from his face, and Noh hissed his displeasure when he realized he didn't have the control he wanted to keep the fight quick.
"I take it your dimension is entirely lacking in good manners," Sinister said through gritted teeth while things in his back began to snap back into place. "I feel I should be surprised, and yet-"
Noh rolled his eyes. "If you consider what you have been doing 'good manners', I'll be content never learning such habits," he said as he walked a circle around Sinister. A couple times, he darted forward, moving too quickly for Sinister to stop him physically, but he couldn't get past the shield.
"Had you any idea how I treated his father before him, you'd know how generous I've been."
"Such a low bar for generosity," Noh said, narrowing his eyes at the situation before he decided to get around the shielding entirely by driving his hand into the ground so he could shake loose some earth and carry that - and hopefully squash Sinister or at least toss him high enough into the air to lose the oxygen life on that planet needed. He just need a good explosion and a solid windup…
It took a few moments, but even as Noh tried to find a loophole or a crack in Sinister's protection, he pushed himself to his feet. "You seem awfully determined for one that has been dismissed. Why are you here? And what are you attempting to achieve here?"
"That won't matter to you shortly," Noh said, smirking to himself as he let his fingernails explode underneath the ground. It wasn't enough to break the shield, but the instability was enough to make Sinister lose his balance, even temporarily. But when Noh tried to move in again, Sinister was floating; there was nothing Noh could use to get around the shield when Sinister was no longer touching the ground.
Noh swore under his breath and then proceeded to test the strength of Sinister's shielding in a matter of seconds - first with his own strength and then with the explosion of an overcharged energy weapon. The second one did make a dent - if only because of the way the weapon operated; like most things from his universe, it was mildly telepathic, and that meant its explosion was enough to, for just a moment, disrupt the shield.
Noh was quick enough to see the moment to seize it, and he rushed in, though his plan wasn't more elegant than simply, literally, kicking Sinister while he was in the last stages of healing - hard enough to send him flying. The landing would be bad enough to re-break most of his bones, and in the seconds it would take Noh to catch up, he could come up with another plan for a more permanent solution.
Before Noh could pat himself on the back for his excellent work, there was a mild rush of wind directly behind him followed by a knife poking through the center of his chest. Sinister's hand gripped his shoulder hard as he leaned over Noh's opposite shoulder, having teleported not only to safety - but to a strategic strong point.
"I believe I've entertained your little temper tantrum quite long enough, Noh-Varr," Sinister said in a growl. He was trying to control his reaction - half of which was to simply kill the boy. But scientific curiosity won out. "You should consider yourself lucky. I've been trying to exercise restraint in such matters."
Noh narrowed his eyes, but as soon as he tried to move, he simply couldn't.
"We can continue this somewhere less traveled," Sinister said, and in a blink, they were in an old, but brightly lit lab with tall paneled windows covering one entire wall. "Again, thank your little friend. For the moment, I've decided to wait on the vivisection to see what you can show me you are capable of."
Noh still couldn't move - and what was worse, the next thing he knew, he could feel Sinister dive into his mind. And while he'd had a few remedial classes in telepathic defense in Westchester, he was still learning to keep his mind closed off from friendly telepaths. Sinister had absolutely no trouble getting past the meager defenses he did have.
In no time at all, Sinister was in all of his memories, all twelve years of travel on the Marvel. The universes his crew had conquered, the battles they'd fought, the Shi'ar and Brood and Skrulls and every other enemy laid waste by legions of their ships if the scouts and explorers deemed a dimension ripe for the taking.
But the interesting part was that Noh-Varr wasn't part of the warships' crews; he was part of the exploratory missions. So while the Kree brainwashing that beat the drums of war and conquest made Noh proud of the battles won and proud of how good he was at killing, his actual interests were elsewhere, in cultures and people met. Noh had been looking for things that his Empire could integrate, and it was clear to Sinister that Noh believed mutants would have been coveted by his Empire for their genetic diversity and power.
For the most part, though, what Sinister saw was a young soldier who wasn't experienced or mature enough to know that he was as young as he was, who was taught to be proud of what he could achieve through violence and so used his powers in that manner - but had the potential for more creativity now that he knew that was an option.
"I suppose I won't kill you today," Sinister said after he thought it all over for a long moment. "I can't have you interfering with my work, however."
"Your work is interfering with those I hold dear," Noh said, his voice raspy because there was still a knife sticking out of his chest while he was frozen and couldn't remove it.
"I keep telling that boy to find another lover - I don't believe you're quite what I had in mind, however."
Noh let out a wet chuckle. "You want to separate him from the Demiurge."
"That would certainly be a benefit."
"Knowing what I've seen in other realities… I hope he finds out the full extent of your plans," Noh said, smiling grimly. "You're not so unstoppable."
"Yet, you won't be capable of telling anyone as much."
Noh rolled his eyes, looking very much his age in that moment. "Yes, very impressive and dra-" Before he could finish the sentence, he stopped altogether, and his expression went perfectly blank.
Sinister walked around Noh as he erased large portions of his memory concerning himself, and where it crossed over - James as well. He knew better than to alter much of that part, but he needed to be sure that Noh didn't come back trying to replicate his partial successes in defense of someone he held dear. Or worse still - for him to come back with backup. With a quick motion, he yanked the knife out of Noh's back, then stepped around him to watch as he gasped for breath and started to heal up a little bit. It wasn't as dramatic as James or his family - Nohs powers worked just well enough to stop him from bleeding out entirely when not being supplied nutrients to do more.
Instead of strands of muscle and flesh weaving itself together, Noh's repairs looked far more regimented and basic. Only the most severe, life threatening part was moving to heal and anything beyond the most dire seepage simply remained open and raw. But that level of study could wait until a time when the boy could go missing for a much longer period of time.
"What do you need to finish healing?" Sinister asked, already considering a few handy options in his medicine bag.
"Anything organic," Noh said in a bored tone. "The nanites need raw material to convert."
"How quaint." Sinister smirked to himself then gave Noh a strong telepathic command to follow. It would do no good to send the boy back with visible injuries. But his uniform was bloody and torn, and so, Sinister sent him to first heal his wounds and then, at the first available opportunity, find a fight and jump off a building near that fight. No one would question his lack of memory with obvious injuries like that.
As it happened, the lab wasn't entirely empty by the time Noh headed out on his errand, and Remy frowned as he let himself back into Sinister's labs when he saw the kid leaving with no expression and no reaction to Remy's greeting.
Remy walked into the main lab and thumbed over his shoulder with the arm that wasn't strange colors. "Don' think I've seen dat one yet," he said. "'Course, ol' Remy's been dealin' wit Hydra for a few weeks; you already shoppin' replacements?"
"Always looking for a better upgrade," Sinister said in a somewhat distant tone.
Remy smirked quietly and then slipped into the nearest seat that wasn't an examination table - which was just a small stool near some equipment. "Dat rumor you got me chasin' bout de new Dame Serpent - absolutely true," he said, too tired to hide the exhaustion and hurt in his tone. "She tryin' to live up to de legacy Viper left. Even got herself some a' dat snake's ol' poisons - de ones de kids didn't destroy. But Hydra ain't too keen on fallin' in line for her jus' yet."
SInister looked up in mild interest. "How potent are those compounds?"
"Most 'a what I seen…" Remy let out a long breath. "Bout what you expect from a knockoff tradin' on a name. But she got a few she keeps on her she don' never touch, like she's savin' 'em fo' a bigger fight."
Sinister thought about it for a long moment then turned away from Remy. "Find out who."
Remy let out a hollow, tired laugh. "Sure, boss. Gonna need a minnut firs'."
Sinister had been scribbling down some notes, but on hearing the tone of weariness in Remy's voice, he once again turned his full focus to him and went so far as to cross the span quickly and take a hold of Remy's chin - turning his head to examine him with his usual cold, callous glare. "What do you taste?"
"Jus' taste sweet," Remy said, knowing better than to pull back when Sinister was actually in the rare mood to help him.
"Lie back. You'll need fluids and some charcoal."
Remy let Sinister get him settled, watching him go to work, before he had to ask, "Got any clue what it was?"
"One or two," Sinister said, almost distracted. "The woman liked to make complicated mixes of dissimilar poisons. The finishing note seemed to be the key. Had you said almonds, I would have called you a liar - you'd never have made it this far."
"Right." Remy leaned back again. "Didn' get caught, mind - jes unlucky t'be pokin' roun' a group she decided were workin' for a diff'rent boss. Paranoid is puttin' it mildly. If you gon' keep her in de runnin', might tink 'bout takin out a few Marauders jus' draggin' her in."
"Nothing I don't account for."
"Figured as much," Remy said, watching as Sinister set up an IV for fluids. "But you were right; she's ruthless and scared. Right up the big man's alley."
Sinister almost smirked as he set to work. "One to consider, then. Pity."
Remy was quiet for a while before, quietly, he changed the conversation - just a bit. "Gon' need to check in on de X-Men. Last time ol' Remy was gone dis long, drew down some worry."
"You know the rules," Sinister said, looking entirely unconcerned.
"Yeah, the damn rules're why I'm here and not talkin' to ol' friends while they ask 'bout how ol' Remy got poisoned."
"And here I was thinking that your following the rules was how you were trying to keep them alive."
"Tryin' to keep 'em off your radar," Remy corrected him.
"Most of them have nothing to concern themselves with," Sinister said. "And I told you already, I plan to find other methods."
"Yeah, yeah," Remy said, too tired to argue it again and instead lapsing into silence as Sinister did his work - and openly rifled through Remy's memories to see if this new Lady Hydra would be as useful as Sinister thought she would be.
Remy woke up … who knows how much later. But when he began to stir again, he was entirely alone and the injuries he'd been carrying with him didn't hurt as much. The effects of the poison he'd come into contact with had faded, and aside from the sinking feeling of despair … he felt okay.
He knew that he wouldn't be able to tell the X-Men the full truth of what he'd been up to, but he'd learned much about Hydra that he could warn them about, at least. And he could try to point them in the right directions to try to mitigate what damage he had been ordered to guide into being.
And yet, the intelligence he'd gathered, the danger he saw in their future, and the gathering stormclouds of Hydra weren't even at the top of his mind in that moment. That all could come later.
All he wanted to do just then was to get back to the school - to his real family.
Chapter 144: Free For The Holidays
Chapter Text
For Tommy, asking Addison to be his girlfriend had gone pretty much exactly like he'd expected it to go - which was to say that all the people he'd been sleeping with were furious with him, especially after all that time he'd spent reminding everyone that he wasn't looking for anything serious.
Madison took it the worst, obviously. And Tommy had to admit that that was fair, considering they were twins, and he'd definitely been into both of them. She had screamed in his face - a lot - and had come close to slapping him a few times.
He almost wished that she would have connected, because he knew the only thing holding her back was the fact that he was royal. And he was usually happy to trade on his family name, but he really had been feeling like trash about the whole thing, and he was starting to think maybe he deserved to take the hit.
He wouldn't say any of that out loud, obviously. That would be admitting defeat. And it also might invite someone who could make it stick to hit him.
Whatever the case, he was official with Addison, and that meant that his family members would start sticking their noses into his business any second now, he was sure of it.
He just wasn't expecting the first family member to confront him about his dating choices to be his aunt Lorna, of all people.
She didn't make a scene, and she didn't declare her intentions. She simply pulled him aside after a family dinner and put her arm around his shoulders, steering him down a metal hallway so they could talk without being overheard.
"I've been looking into your new girlfriend," Lorna said, and immediately, Tommy shrugged her arm off of his shoulders and held his hands up defensively.
"I really don't want to hear about it," he said. "I know everything I've done leading up to now has been…" He paused to look for the right word.
"Reckless, selfish, and self-destructive?" Lorna offered for him.
"Thanks, Aunt Lorna. Really feeling the love."
"You seemed to be having trouble to admitting to having any faults, so I thought I would help you along. Any good aunt wants to help her nephews, right?" Lorna teased easily.
"Sure, sure, you keep telling yourself that."
Lorna smiled at him easily and then leaned toward him, her eyebrows raised significantly. "Tommy, I was part of her parents' arrest. They were Acolytes - part of the team that tried to kill Scott when he got here."
Tommy did his best impression of looking like he already knew that - because he should have known that. He used to be amazing at spying for Storm, and he'd genuinely enjoyed getting to zip from shadow to shadow collecting information. How something like this could have escaped him…
Except he knew exactly why he hadn't known. He wasn't paying attention to family ties or anything strategic like that. He'd been after sex. And on top of that, he was actually caught up in his studies, too. He had a lot on his mind!
Lorna watched him try to play it cool for a while longer before she leaned in, both eyebrows raised. "I know our family absolutely can't say anything when it comes to who you're related to, but-"
"But I'll be careful," Tommy promised. "So far, I'm not seeing any signs of evil, though."
"Uh-huh," Lorna said, not at all bothering to hide her smirk.
"Yeah, yeah, get your jokes in now," Tommy said.
"Oh, that doesn't sound like me at all," Lorna laughed, and Tommy snorted and shoved her shoulder.
Mia had taken plenty of kids on tours of the institute, and she had seen all shades of awe on those kids. It was different with everyone, and she always enjoyed it.
But there was something genuinely enchanting about the way Noh approached the world. He seemed to want to drink in every detail, and he always seemed genuinely excited the more she told him about Earth and the customs she had grown up with. He loved to talk with Hank about the emergence of the X-gene and about Charles Xavier's theories about it; he took to every musical suggestion people gave him; and he was visibly delighted every time Mia suggested a new place to go out on a date - it was one more place he could explore.
There was something about the zest and enthusiasm with which Noh approached literally everything he saw that Mia couldn't help but be drawn to. He made everything feel like a new discovery, and she couldn't help but get swept up in his excitement.
And he was especially thrilled that he had come to the institute during the holidays, because it meant there were all sorts of new traditions, new cultural tidbits he could pick up.
It took him absolutely no time at all before he had fully embraced the Christmas sweater idea. After all, he hadn't had much in the way of clothing to start with, and he'd gotten some money to buy new clothes. And since everyone was wearing sweaters and warm clothing, he had a bunch to choose from. And once he learned that Mia liked to swear his sweatshirts when she got cold, he bought a bunch of those two and barely even wore them before he handed them over for her to wear most of the day.
She'd told him that it was usually a sign that they were fooling around if they were stealing each other's clothes, and he had simply looked her up and down, grinned, and said, "Okay," as if that clarified anything. They'd only been on a few dates, so she hadn't gotten that far with him - and she'd had to swear as much to her parents.
He liked the mistletoe tradition, of course, but literally every guy in the school did, too. The more interesting part was that he actually went to the library to look up the symbolism and had spent a good hour the next day talking to her about deadly plants and what it meant to venerate them.
He'd get stuck on things like that, little details that didn't seem to mean much but that he liked to pick apart.
And then, of course, the Christmas songs hit, and he enjoyed just about every single one of them, though he got thoroughly annoyed that such beautiful harmonies and catchy phraseology came from "Baby, It's Cold Outside," because, he said, "I may not understand all the innuendo of your language, but I understand 'no'."
And at that moment, he was sitting with Leslie Ann, completely enraptured as she explained that her grandfather was in a memory care unit and that she and the other Hales were going to sing a few carols to the others who were there. Noh had absolutely no concept of something like that - he admitted frankly that he didn't expect to live longer than a few decades of "usefulness" - and he was taken in by both how sad Leslie Ann was about her pappaw and how much love she kept expressing for him.
When Noh saw Mia watching him, he grinned her way but made sure to thank Leslie Ann for her lesson on elder care on Earth, as he put it, before he made his way over, specifically waiting until Mia had stepped under some mistletoe before he closed the distance so he could kiss her.
"Having fun exploring?" Mia asked.
Noh beamed at her. "Always. Would you like to explore some more with me? Lexi Barton was telling me about peppermint sticks and hot chocolate, and I thought that sounded like the perfect thing to try to begin a date."
"It really does," Mia agreed, still smiling and caught up in his enthusiasm. "Just let me get my inducer, and let's go."
She teleported back to her room, still caught up in her smile. This… this was nice, in a way she hadn't realized she needed. She had fallen for Tommy because he was fun, because he took things in his stride, because he had an energy she always wanted to match. And Noh, for the first time, was filling that hole - on top of being adorable and wide-eyed and reminding her that the world she lived in was full of wonder and not just full of the kinds of people who were the reason she had to wear an inducer.
Yeah, she was definitely glad James had introduced her to Noh.
For the first time in a long time, James was waiting for Billy when he got out of his last class just before the Winter break. Once again, James had pushed too hard to get ahead … in a class and situation that Billy was very sure he was never behind to begin with.
"Have anything else you need to do before we get the hell off of campus?" James asked with a bright smile that was rarely seen recently.
"I'm not the one with pushy 'teachers' that insist on extra time," Billy pointed out - but to his pleasant surprise, James just laughed and pulled him over to steal a kiss.
"Then let's get moving. There's very little I want to pack before we head out."
"Are you still set on bringing Morticia?" Billy asked, not at all surprised when James nodded.
"She needs to get out a little too. Hunt some lizards."
"And chew up tropical flowers."
"Exactly." James took Billy's free hand. "I was considering leaving her with Dad for a while. They say pets help lower stress-"
"Normal pets, sweetheart. She might help your dad, but she'd drive Annie crazy eating the heads off the flowers and bringing her half dead kills."
"Maybe she's a cat person …"
"I've met cat people; I think I'd know if she was one," Billy couldn't resist teasing.
"Who do you know?"
"Cute little girl whose family moved here a little bit ago. She's a huge Hawkeye fan and keeps asking to meet her. Totally gotta bring Kate here to make that happen…"
"Huh."
"Huh?"
"Mmhmm. Didn't think you had one on deck like that."
"I'm full of surprises," Billy teased him. "Thought you loved that about me."
"I do. Now you're gonna have to prove it though."
"Okay. Kate needs the good cheer anyway," Billy said. "We'll sicc her fan club on her when she comes here for Christmas with Nate."
"Perfect. Now. What can we do until then?"
"I'm sure we'll think of something," Billy said philosophically - but with a grin that spoke to all kinds of trouble.
James smirked crookedly. "You could try surprising me with your secret sneakiness."
"Okay," Billy said without missing a beat. "But not right now. You'd see it coming, obviously."
"Yeah it wouldn't count at all."
The drive to the apartment was pleasant - more so than usual since for the past month or so anyhow, when they could travel home together, it had been mostly in silence as James was too wiped out to be, well - like this.
Once they got home, it really didn't take long for them to pack up - and Morticia seemed to know something new was going to happen. She surprised both boys when she simply climbed into her carrier, purring all the way - and a few moments later, Billy had wished both of them directly to the palace in Genosha.
As always, the warm tropical air hit like a breeze, and before they could orient themselves, Wanda was there to greet them. And once they were settled in, James let Morticia out of the cat carrier. She purred happily, curled around first James's legs, then Billy's - and then trotted off to explore. And a moment later, James picked Billy up bodily simply to carry him over to his bed and fall over sideways with him and curl up, with Billy laughing the whole way.
Remy had been considering his options for some time, and he didn't like the conclusion he had come to.
The woman Sinister was looking into, the one who had taken Viper's place in Hydra (though Hydra was fracturing and chafing at the thought of a woman in charge who wasn't Ophelia Sarkissian), was dangerous enough that, if Sinister gave her name to Apocalypse as a recommendation for a Horseman, the fight could only end in tragedy or trauma.
But Sinister had thick telepathic commands in place when it came to Remy's work helping him do what Apocalypse wanted him to do so that Sinister could focus elsewhere. He'd yet to figure out how to warn his team properly other than to say that Hydra was a gathering problem, but that was always the case, wasn't it?
He couldn't tell them who was at the head of Hydra, either. And he was under strict orders to work alone.
Sinister had blocked him from asking for help from any of his allies … but Sinister knew that Hydra had its own enemies, especially this particular Hydra head.
He didn't like this plan. He didn't like the idea of setting free a torturer and a murderer and worse. But more than anything, he didn't like that he had to go back to Genosha in order to set the guy free from its prisons.
He waited until the royal family was distracted; it was the first night of Hanukkah, and everyone would be at the palace. But he had come two days ahead of his planned breakout so he could see how Wanda had changed the prisons themselves.
The first thing he noticed was that the cells were largely empty. Wanda didn't have the same paranoia her father had; the vast swathes of cells were useless to her. But even under new management, there were still ne'er-do-wells. A few Acolytes - the ones that had attacked Scott the second he came to the island for the trial - were deeper into the prison, but Remy noticed with a grim smirk that the older part of the prison, the part where he'd once been, was still in use.
That was where he'd find Vojteck.
Even though Wanda had thrown the man in that part of the prison in anger for what he'd done to Billy and James and Kate, it was still better than Remy remembered it. The smell of unkempt prisoners was gone, and the place was clean, if depressing and dark.
Remy had stolen an image inducer from Westchester, so he looked like one of Wanda's guards at the moment - after a good bit of tweaking on his part. The image wasn't perfect, but no one was looking too closely.
And he had a second inducer, this one copying one of Mia's looks when she was a preteen. Once he had freed his prisoner, they could walk out of Genosha looking nothing like themselves.
He still hated this plan, but he had limited options.
With a quick glance over each shoulder, Remy unlocked the door and found Vojteck sitting on the ground, glaring at him as he came in with a look so much like his father that the family resemblance was hard to miss. He was tightly bound in chains, but he looked healthy - Remy was, strangely, glad to see that, considering how he'd spent years of his life.
Remy didn't say anything as he knelt down beside Vojteck and began to work on the locks on his chains, though as soon as Vojteck opened his mouth to say something, he held up a hand to stop him.
"I ain't listenin' to orders, and I ain't here for your benefit," he said sharply - his voice tight when he was trying his best to ignore how clammy he felt in that prison. He was going to be ill if he thought about it too long. "I'm assumin' you know who the Hand raised up to try for Hydra's throne, oui?"
Vojteck narrowed his eyes, watching as Remy freed first one hand and then the other. "And what, exactly, do you want me to do about that?"
Remy chuckled as he got to his feet and let Vojteck get himself to his feet. "Exactly what you been wantin' to do. And make sure you burn de body, or dis gon' keep happenin'."
Vojteck scoffed but rubbed his wrists. "And what's your angle?"
"Dat's not your business."
"It is when you're setting me free on her," Vojteck said, still regarding him with narrowed eyes.
"You want me to jes' lock you back up, then?"
Vojteck scoffed but didn't press anymore. "What's your plan to get out of here? I can't exactly walk free on Genosha."
"Dis 'bout it." He tossed the second inducer to him. "Don' act like yo'self and you might jest get outta here alive."
"Fine." Vojteck adjusted the inducer and made a face at the preteen girl it turned him into. But he wasn't stupid enough to look a gift horse in the mouth, and with barely a glance back at Remy, he dashed out of there.
The Fantastic Four had a few different holiday parties planned, some with bigger groups of heroes and some with just family and close friends. And Bobby figured it was a good sign that Johnny had asked him to come to both kinds.
Of course, as soon as Bobby got to the Baxter building, he realized that Johnny had plenty of mistletoe hanging nearly everywhere, and he laughed when almost immediately, he got pulled into a very nice hello kiss.
"Happy holidays to you too," Bobby said, still smiling. "You have something to do with the decor?"
Johnny grinned with his arm thrown out over Bobby's shoulders. "What makes you think that?"
"Just a guess," Bobby said, smiling wider. "Hey, Franklin! Your uncle went nuts with the mistletoe, huh?" he called out.
"He always does," Franklin called back. "Kind of sad, really."
"You hear that, Johnny?" Bobby teased, nudging Johnny in the side with his elbow. "Your nephew can see right through you."
"He's just mad that he's not kissing anyone," Johnny shot back.
"What?" Bobby looked back toward Franklin. "I swear, if you take a page out of your dad's book of lack-of-flirting…"
"He did," Johnny said gleefully. "Of course, kid's kind of screwed on both fronts. Not like my sister has ever had any game."
"Ha! That's funny," Bobby laughed. "Remind me how many bad guys fall immediately in love with her again? Much as you like to think you have the magnetism of the two of you…"
"I mean, really, just the one doofus that refers to himself in third person …"
"Yeah, I've told you I think it's weird that you've managed to get a bad guy weirder than some of what we deal with, right?"
"Can't claim it all, popsicle," Johnny teased, though he wasn't really hitting his usual joke level in spite of the crowd and the fun around them.
Bobby dipped his head and stole a kiss. "Not feeling the holiday cheer?"
Johnny shrugged, putting a bit of space between them as he redirected to get a drink. "I don't know. Maybe? I'm making an effort, though."
Bobby frowned at that before he reached down to grab Johnny's hand. "So, either you need to get away from the party with me, or you need to go drinking and partying."
"What? No. It's fine. Just have to get things going, that's all," Johnny said, forcing a bright smile.
Bobby frowned and ran his thumb over Johnny's knuckles. "If you say so," he said, then glanced over his shoulder. "I'm gonna go say hi to the other hosts, but if you're still down in the dumps when I get back, I'm kissing the hell out of you."
With one last glance back at Johnny, then, Bobby made his way over to Sue and pulled her over to kiss her cheek under the mistletoe. "Hey, you're the best Mrs. Clause I've seen this year," he teased her. "Love the Santa hat."
"You made it!" Sue said warmly before she pulled him into a hug. "I wasn't sure if you were going to or not, but I'm glad you're here."
"Yeah, I've been helping get the X-Men readjusted to everything that stupid trial did to throw off our team lineup," Bobby admitted.
"How are the kids holding up, anyhow?" Sue asked. "I know Scott has to be a wreck."
Bobby blew out all his breath. "Yeah, I try to visit him when I can. He's pretty low, especially since Kate's due in a little over two months, and that's his first grandkid, you know?"
Sue grinned. "I am not jealous of him on that front."
"Not ready to be a granny?" Bobby teased. "From what I hear, Franklin's nowhere near the heartbreaker he could be."
"He's just … cautious," Sue defended.
"Hey, I'm not knocking that part," Bobby said. "Just have to tease him when he's always taking shots at me and Johnny." He paused and tipped his head toward Johnny. "Is he doing okay, by the way? He seems… Did you guys have a bad run-in with, like, some evil alien or something?"
Sue frowned as she looked past Bobby to where Johnny was hamming it up. "No? He seems to be just the same idiot he always is."
"Maybe it's just me then," Bobby said, though he was frowning. "I don't know. Guess I'm just … everyone I love back home is traumatized, so I'm always gonna worry when someone's acting unlike themselves, right?"
Sue popped up to kiss his cheek. "You're the sweetest snowman around."
"I'm the only snowman you know," he teased.
"Doesn't make me any less right."
"Sure." Bobby took a deep breath and let it out. "Anyway, I'm gonna go cheer up your brother. But I couldn't not say hi to you, you know? You're my favorite member of the Four, I hope you know."
"Well, you do have taste," Sue said. "And hey. Don't let Johnny get you down. You know how he is. Stupid is just … it's a state of being for him."
"Yeah, I seem to remember you warning me about him self-destructing when we first started dating, like, almost twenty years ago. You'd think he'd have grown, huh?"
"And unlike you, who has grown up more and had to deal with crap, he's still … Johnny. 'M sorry about that."
"Nah, it's okay. When he's not overthinking, he's a blast," Bobby said easily, though now he was the one whose smile was a little tight as he made his way over to Johnny, grabbed his hand, and pulled him into an impolite kiss. "Hey, handsome, your mistletoe is everywhere."
"Well hello to you too," Johnny said, looking perfectly taken back. "Is there … did I miss something big? Or … are you alright?"
"I was gonna ask you the same thing," Bobby shot back. "You're off your game."
Johnny laughed, almost frowning as he did so. "My game? Is always on. Are you sure there wasn't something on your end that has you all … overly … affectionate?"
Bobby rolled his eyes. "Geez, try to cheer a guy up at the holidays."
"I am already cheered," Johnny said. "But if you want to ditch out and go fool around or something, we don't need a production, I don't think."
Bobby shook his head at Johnny and socked him in the shoulder. "Yes, absolutely, let's go ditch out," he said.
Up in Johnny's room, Bobby and Johnny were debating whether or not to put in another appearance at the party or spend the rest of the night fooling around again. It was really more a matter of not wanting Sue to get on their cases, since they were both perfectly happy where they were, but they were flirting with the idea all the same.
They'd just ditched the whole idea and had started back into kissing when Bobby's phone went off, and Bobby pushed Johnny back at the shoulder, grinning but holding up his other hand between them.
"Hold on. This might be important," he said, though he laughed when Johnny gave him such an offended look. "What, you're not a superhero too?"
"I take my time off very seriously," Johnny said, though he backed off just enough that Bobby could see what was going on. For now.
Bobby grinned and stole one more kiss before he picked up the phone. "You okay?" he asked, because Remy didn't usually call.
"Jes lookin' for someplace to be. Middle of de holiday season, and Remy been so busy, he ain't kept track 'a where everybody goin'," Remy said. His tone was as careless as always … except for the fact that Bobby could hear his voice shake slightly in the pauses between words.
"Yeah, I'll meet you in Westchester," Bobby said instantly - because that had been exactly how Remy sounded when he'd visited him in Genosha in prison. Trying to sound careless but barely keeping himself together. "What happened?"
"Nuttin'."
"Sure." Bobby shook his head. "Be there soon. Meet you at Ororo's swing," he added, knowing Remy would probably not want other people knowing he was having a hard time. He hung up and then looked over at Johnny, who was frowning. "Sorry. I know it's a bad move, but he never calls unless it's important."
"You're kidding right?" Johnny said. "Who's freaking out?"
"Good friend," Bobby said, already sliding out of his side of the bed to look for his clothes.
"You're not even going to tell me who it is?" Johnny asked, though Bobby was sure he should have been able to figure it out by the ringtone alone.
Bobby blew out his breath as he grabbed his pants. "Look, it's… he doesn't call unless it's important. He's - I don't want to spread my friends' drama around; it already gets spread all over the news, you know? Just… you know I wouldn't ditch you if it wasn't important, right?"
Johnny was frowning, but couldnt come up with a good argument at the moment. He simply wasn't expecting to be on the receiving end of a ditch out like that. "Sure."
Bobby let his shoulders drop at Johnny's tone and came back over to steal a kiss. "Sorry. I was trying to cheer you up, not…" He sighed again. "Superhero life, huh? Always dramatic." As he was getting dressed, his phone pinged again, and he frowned down at it.
"Sure, no worries," Johnny said.
"Yeah." Bobby narrowed his eyes when he saw the texts coming in. This time, it was Ororo. That Hydra creep who had tormented James, Billy, and Kate had broken out of Genoshan prison. Genosha was on lockdown, and Wanda had put out the call to the others to look for him in case he'd already gotten off the island. "Damn. Damn," he said as he pulled his socks on, watching the messages come in. "Vojteck's loose."
"I feel like I maybe should know what that means."
Bobby stopped pulling his clothes on and turned to look at Johnny. "Viper's son?" he said, absolutely incredulous.
"Oh. Okay, Knew that sounded familiar."
"Yeah." Bobby shook his head. "I need to find out where Kate is. James and Billy are on Genosha, but…"
"Yeah, sure," Johnny said, then attempted a tease. "It's all fine when you go chasing after teenage girls in the middle of the night, but if anyone else does it .."
Bobby let out a scoff of pure disbelief and shoved Johnny back. "Come on, Johnny. The guy tortured her. I'm worried, okay?"
"It's just a joke, take it easy," Johnny said. "I didn't mean anything by it."
"Yeah, just… sore spot," Bobby said. He dragged his hand down his face as he got his shoes on and got to his feet. "Rain check?"
"Sure, sure. You got it," Johnny said, then instead of their usual quick kiss in situations like this, Johnny turned to get dressed as well.
Bobby was heavily overthinking everything that had happened with Johnny by the time he got to the gardens outside the school, so he was almost glad to know that Remy was having a hard time, because at least then he could focus on helping someone else and not on the complicated nature of dating someone who was terminally incapable of getting serious.
Remy was sitting on the swing, and Bobby skated over to sit next to him. "You okay?" he asked, bumping Remy's shoulder. "I'm surprised you're not right there with Ororo trying to find the Hydra twerp, the way she's sounding the rallying call."
"Dey startin' where he started out."
"Ah," Bobby said, instantly understanding - and starting to get an idea of why Remy would be having a hard time. "You know, no one's gonna get mad at you for not wanting to be back there." He glanced down at his phone to see the continued messages. "James can't get a scent. Damn kid knows too much about his powers; there's pepper everywhere." He read through a few more messages and then blew out his breath through his cheeks and put his phone away to focus on Remy. "You okay? What set you off?" he asked. "And don't bullshit me."
"I cain't," Remy said after a long while, even that much coming out as stressed and weary.
Bobby let his shoulders drop and reached out to put his hand on Remy's shoulder. "Okay," he said. "So, how can I help?"
Remy sighed heavily and after a long moment, managed a half hearted shrug. "Prolly not a damn 'ting."
"Okay." Bobby watched Remy for a long time and then nodded to himself. "Okay, well, let's talk about something else until you're feeling more like yourself?" he offered.
Remy nodded, staring at his hands the whole while.
"So… just came back from the Four's holiday party, actually," Bobby said, leaning back into the swing so his head was flat and he was looking up at the stars.
"Don' sound like dat crew know how to t'row a party worth a damn if'n you wanna leave dat quick."
"Was actually having a good time," Bobby said with a crooked smirk.
"Oh?" Remy asked, turning his way with a raised eyebrow. "Ain't gotta waste no time on ol' Remy if you got better tings to do, Rober'."
Bobby could feel his cheeks turn a bit red before he shrugged it off. "Hey, you needed me," he said simply. "And anyone who dates me has to put up with me putting the X-Men high on my list of priorities, especially considering how hard it was to get the team back up and running, you know?"
"Is dat what you doin' now tonight?" Remy gestured to himself. "Cause 'dis ain' really a problem like dat."
"Yeah, well." Bobby cleared his throat.
Remy watched him for a long moment. "What dat fool go screw up now?"
Bobby let out a tired laugh. "That obvious?"
"Jes' t'inkin' bout the players."
"Yeah, well, considering the players, it's kind of a normal problem. He's gotta learn how to put up with me dropping everything for this family, and I've got to learn how to deal with him self-destructing as soon as we get into a groove."
Remy shook his head. "He a damn fool."
"Yeah, I know," Bobby said. "We're two peas in a pod, I know."
"Not from where ol' Remy's sittin'."
Bobby grinned over at him and then sat up straighter. "Yeah, well, Sue's been helpful translating for me," he said.
"She be more helpful is she crack dat boy upside de head."
"She has," Bobby laughed. "And, hey, we're just dating. If he doesn't pull his head out, I'll… I don't know. I'll figure something out."
"Mmmhmm," Remy said, drawing it out longer than any of the others would have.
"It's… he was the first guy I dated," Bobby said, blushing harder.
Remy reached over to pat Bobby's knee. "You don' gotta explain. It just ol' Remy. Don' mean nothin' - jes' pointin' out he ain't no teenager no more. Ought stop actin' like one."
"Yeah." Bobby bumped Remy's shoulder. "Thanks. I've been in my head about this."
"You de one dat come to help me an you sayin' 'thanks'? Dat ain't right, Rober'."
Bobby laughed again. "Well, you told me you couldn't tell me what was bothering you, so I just…"
"Dat much is true," he agreed. "But you let ol' Remy find a better way to repay you 'den to just give a lil 'thanks.'"
"You're the one giving me advice," Bobby said, blushing.
Remy turned toward him dramatically with one hand over his heart. "Advice? Remy Etienne LeBeau ain't never give no advice to no body dat don't ask fo' it."
"Okay," Bobby said, though he was smirking hard. "Sure."
"Jes' talkin' about some damn fool and de obvious shortcomin's is all. Don' remember advisin' any ol' ting."
Bobby laughed. "No, Remy, tell me how you really feel."
Remy shook his head. "Mm-mm. Not today."
"Okay." Bobby smiled and offered Remy a hand up. "So, you're looking better, and the night's still young. Should we help with the search?"
"Depends on if dey need us," Remy reasoned.
"Let's be real. They always do," Bobby teased.
Remy nodded as he thought it over. "Well … Bill-y prolly plenty fine where he at. Dat rat boy have to be carryin' roun' a death wish to go toward him right now. I know lil James wanna have a word given a chance. You wanna go see how Miss Kate holdin' up, den?"
"Actually? Yeah. I was just telling Johnny I needed to check on her," Bobby said. "Sorta got protective when I was on patrol at Cambridge for those kids."
"You know you cain't go callin' on dat girl jes now, knowin' what we do wit'out bringin her some-t'in sweet."
"Or a new ceramic bowl," Bobby chuckled. "But you're the master of soul food. I'll follow you."
Kate and Nate had big Christmas plans, and Kate had even asked Nate to telepathically help her turn off any weird smell aversions or nausea or anything like that if it cropped up throughout the day, so that they could go to the big Christmas dinner that Annie and her family would be throwing at Scott's place and then go to the Avengers' Christmas bash in New York. They were on very different time zones, so Annie and Scott's dinner would be basically a big brunch, and they'd have plenty of room for whatever Tony and Jan planned.
They'd be absolutely wiped out by the end of the night, but, hey, that was just the way things worked when Scott was stuck on Genosha.
Besides, Kate was kind of looking forward to all that madness. She felt like she was hungry all the time, especially as she got closer to her third trimester. If she wasn't feeling sick, she was starving. There was no in-between.
And it was immediately apparent that Annie had hoped Kate was hungry, too, because almost as soon as Kate and Nate arrived, Annie called Kate over to the kitchen to help taste test a few things.
Nate shook his head at the blatant pampering but wasn't going to call it out. Instead, he went over to where James and Billy were already joking around with Alex and Lorna's kids. "Thanks for wishing us over," Nate said, bumping Billy's shoulder. "Heard your Hanukkah got a little bit derailed by a stupid Hydra doofus."
"It was only derailed for a little bit," Billy said, grinning over at James. "Yeah, sure, the first night got interrupted, and I'm still pissed that little creep managed to escape, but…" He shrugged without looking away from James. "The other nights've been fine."
Nate shook his head with a disbelieving laugh. "Right, well, happy holidays to you too, obviously," he said. "Thought you'd be madder, honestly."
"I floated for a little bit, and James was mad about the pepper," Billy said, pulling a face. "And what language was it you were swearing in when I told you he must have had some kind of magic talisman because I was having a hard time magically locating him to yank him back?" he asked James.
"Um … fifth dimension Kree mixed with Japanese and Swedish," James said. "They make weird connections sometimes."
"I didn't hear about the thwarted magic," Nate said.
"Yeah, i didn't even think of trying it until the next morning," Billy admitted. "I've done it before - did it with Annie's kidnapping - but I usually don't want bad guys to come my way, you know?"
"I kept wishing that little jackass would try, but … wouldn't you know. No dice," James said with a shrug.
"Yeah, he's not that stupid," Nate said, shaking his head.
"He's probably dealing with Hydra idiocy," Rachel said as she slid over to join them - having gracefully escaped Leslie Ann trying once again to convince her to let her join the team before she turned sixteen. "Kate was telling me yesterday that Hydra's got a new leader. No ID, just a new Lady Hydra." She shrugged easily. "I say we let them fight each other for a while. Makes life easier for us, right?"
"No sense of adventure, huh?" James teased, perfectly straight-faced.
"Oh yeah. I'm boring," Rachel agreed without missing a beat, also straight-faced.
"Glad you finally admitted it."
Nate laughed and pointed at Rachel. "Got you there."
"Sure, Nate," Rachel said and shoved his shoulder.
"And … eyeroll, hair flip, and pretend like you're more mature than everyone else," James said in an undertone to Nate, who started snickering even more.
Rachel rolled her eyes - and then caught herself and let out a huff. "Anyway," she said, blatantly steering the conversation elsewhere.
"Two out of three," James whispered to Nate, then raised his voice for Rachel. "Come on, Rach. You can't be so busy that you wouldn't want to take down Hydra."
"I'll pencil it in," Rachel said, shaking her head.
"We'll do it before Leslie Ann makes the team," America teased - if only because she'd been talking to Leslie Ann and wanted to see the girl get huffy.
"Then we have a few years," James said, largely because he'd heard most of Leslie Ann's latest argument by distance alone - and he knew that Steve wanted the age limit higer anyhow.
"Just one," Leslie Ann said. "And not even that. I'll be sixteen next year! Lexi just joined the team, too!"
"Yeah … but Cap says that's too young," James said, shaking his head slowly. "And he isn't asking for anything else for Christmas…"
"He hasn't changed the age yet," Leslie Ann insisted.
"Lex did get her new ID card for Christmas," Kate said, her legs swinging over the edge of the counter as she popped a sugar cookie into her mouth. "But James is right; Cap wants the age higher."
"Yeah, but that's Lex - and Cap's afraid of your mom," James said.
"For good reason," Kate sang out happily. "Right, babe?" She grinned over at Nate, who mumbled something completely unintelligible. "We're married and Mom still every once in a while strikes terror into his heart."
"I think that's Russian for she likes you," James said.
"Sometimes, I feel like it is," Nate said under his breath just for James. "And anyway, it's better than when they were both pressuring me about not being married and stepping up to the plate while she had the ring, y'know?"
"It's all fine now," Rachel said. "You're both doing well -"
"All three of us, you mean," Kate said, still in an obviously great mood.
"Oh, obviously. What was I thinking, miscounting like that so badly?" Rachel laughed.
"I know, and I'm getting more obvious by the day, Rachel," Kate said, pointing at her stomach. "Annie's brother-in-law had to put me up here!" She gestured toward Anton, who shrugged easily and went back to what he was doing - which was mostly getting whatever Evie and Annie asked him to grab for them while Craig set the table.
And beyond the party, Scott was talking to Lorna in his office. She had a few things she wanted to warn him about when it came to the Acolytes - especially since Tommy had decided to go ahead and date this girl. Obviously, even with his bad decision-making lately, she didn't expect him to give away Scott's location. But she did want him on alert.
And for Scott's part, he was relaying a few leads that Remy had for them. They weren't necessarily about Vojteck's recent escape, but Remy had been looking into Hydra (as a way to blow off some steam, he'd told them) and knew they had someone taking up the Lady Hydra mantle. Remy only had rumors to report; he hadn't been able to get as close as he wanted. But she sounded like a piece of work just from what Remy did have for them. And intel about Hydra finding a female leader dropping right around when Vojteck disappeared didn't exactly feel like a coincidence. Vojteck would probably find a bigger following in Hydra than a woman would.
They were deep in discussion about the implications of everything going on - so they didn't realize dinner was almost ready until Nate nudged Scott telepathically.
Hey, Kate says you're slacking, because all the other Hale men are helping to put dinner out, and if you want to be a Hale man, you gotta step it up. Her words, not mine.
Scott let out a scoff of disbelief and then held his hand up toward Lorna. "Sorry, that's my son telling me my daughter-in-law thinks I'm not being a good host."
Lorna chuckled at that. "I really didn't mean to keep you."
"No, it's fine," Scott said immediately - though when they rejoined the others and he saw that the Hales were, in fact, getting the food ready to serve, he felt bad enough that he slipped in to help and kissed Annie's cheek.
Sorry, he projected to her, and she smiled and shrugged.
I was eavesdropping a little bit. Sounded important, so I let y'all be.
Eavesdropping, huh?
Hey, you're the one who's left your mind open so your kids can talk to you and so I can reach out. And you usually rush to greet your kids. I was curious.
Scott smirked. He'd forgotten about the path he'd left open for Annie while they'd been practicing. It's just starting to feel natural, I guess. Having you in my head.
Oh, good. That means the practice is paying off. She stood on her toes to kiss him. And it's fun to listen to everyone without having to hear everyone. Thanks for helping me. I'd have hated to get overwhelmed and not be able to have a big Christmas dinner.
Anything you need, Annie, Scott promised - and then took the pitcher of water she had just finished filling so he could place it on the table.
In a rush of laughter and delicious smells and teasing, everyone ended up at the table, digging into the Hale cooking and genuinely getting into the spirit of things, even if it was too warm for Christmas sweaters and snowball fights.
But the second America asked if she was okay with the tropical location for Christmas, even teasingly, Annie got talked over: her other niece, Mary Beth, immediately started to gush about how excited she was for Alex to take her and her sister and her parents to go to the beach. They'd made a whole vacation out of the Christmas visit, and clearly, those girls were going to have a blast.
And as far as the Summers kids could see, this was exactly what their dad had needed. This was the Christmas he'd been worried they wouldn't be able to have while he was on house arrest. They had family there, and everyone was enjoying themselves. And they even did a gift exchange after dinner.
The only drawback was that this was the first of two Christmases planned, so everyone who had plans to go to the Avengers' party did have to duck out. Thankfully, by that time, it was late enough that everyone could call it a night if they were tired enough (though not everyone was).
Still, all three Summers kids made it a point to hug their dad tightly before the night was up. And Kate wrapped him up once they were done and couldn't resist teasing him about how lucky he was with all those Christmas leftovers.
Which was how Annie ended up sending Kate back to the other side of the world with a small grocery bag full of leftovers.
Kate had asked Billy to wish her to her apartment first so she could drop off Annie's leftovers, and besides, they had a little bit so they could refresh and prep for the other party.
But that meant it was just her and Nate in the apartment when Clint and Natasha stopped by bearing gifts.
"Ho, ho, ho!" Clint called out happily, dropping a small stack of presents on Kate's counter. "You two have been all sorts of naughty this year, but we love you anyways and bought you cool stuff."
"Ohmigod, Dad," Kate said, laughing as she came over to wrap her arms around his neck for a hug.
"You holding up okay? Summers tropical vacation didn't wear you out?" Clint teased.
"Nah, with the Hales there, I think they would have carried my plate for me if I'd asked," Kate laughed.
"So would Nate," Natasha laughed as she slipped over to Nate and gave him a soft hug - and pushed a present into his hands.
"Merry Christmas," he said, surprised into a smile - especially when he opened it up and found a blank cookbook where he could write down the recipes his stepmother kept giving him.
And tucked in the front pages of that cookbook was an old Russian recipe - with a handwritten note on the back:
Because family traditions matter. This is for yours.
Nate had barely read the note and glanced up before Natasha caught his gaze and then popped on her toes to kiss his cheek.
"Merry Christmas," she said and then slipped off to join Kate and Clint, where Kate had just opened her present from her parents and was delighted by the gorgeous purple maternity dress.
Nate smiled as he watched them and put the cookbook up in a cabinet. He'd known Kate's family long enough to know exactly what they were doing. This was them making sure he knew he was just as much part of their family as Kate was part of his.
And he'd known that, obviously, but it really was nice to have the reminder after all the drama that had led to their wedding and everything else. And that alone had him relaxing way more than he'd realized he was tensed up.
Nate and Kate weren't the only ones to grace the Avengers with their presence for the annual Christmas celebrations. James had convinced Vision that he needed to go 'home' to spend some quality time with his father … and surprising everyone, Vision agreed with a troublemaking crooked smile.
He was the very last person Tony had expected to see, but … he was glad to see him all the same, and before long, the Christmas traditions of the various Avengers were coming into play - and fast. For the most part, Billy and James tried to keep out of the middle - instead opting to be present and involved with each other. An easy enough task when Billy kept using the excuse of mistletoe even though James never bothered looking up once before he cheerfully dove into another kiss.
And while they were making up for time lost in college classes, Jan was trying to keep breathing for as hard as she was laughing at Vision and Tony, who were playing it up for the new kids and their families that had come in for the socializing superheroes.
"Hey, we're going to Westchester," Mia called out in an attempt to break up Billy and James - even if she and Noh had been doing some of he same already.
"Have fun," James called back.
"Aren't you going to see everyone there, too?"
"Maybe tomorrow," James said - earning a grin from Billy as both Kate and Nate relaxed as well. The holidays were great, but … Kate was tired from all the travel they'd done so far - and the crowds definitely were wearing on her more than usual. Staying put - or nearly staying put was much better than yet another well intentioned group of friends and family.
Chapter 145: Thicker Than Blood
Chapter Text
Chapter 145 - Thicker Than Water
As much as it deeply pained Tommy to admit it, his Aunt Lorna was right. And he hated that.
Tommy had been out of the spy game for a minute while he was going to school and while his mom had temporarily turned off his powers for all but pressing reasons, but he dusted off the skills he had honed working with Ororo to investigate Addison, cursing himself and his bad decision-making when it came to dating.
He really had found the perfect girl to date, and now, not only was he struggling to find someone who could hold a candle to Mia, he couldn't even find someone who didn't want to use him and his influence for their own reasons.
And he knew he couldn't look for sympathy anywhere, because who would give it to him? He knew and they knew that he had blown up his life when he'd pulled what he had with Mia. And he knew no one would believe that he had learned his lesson, that he just wanted her back, that he was actually starting to like being responsible and getting a degree and thinking about his future as more than just the spare heir.
So, since he knew he couldn't ask anyone else to help him clean up his own mess, he went to the beach to meet up with Addison as planned, turning over what he knew in his mind.
He wondered if she suspected that he knew she had been talking with her sister and playing the long game. He wondered if she knew Lorna had told him about her family ties. And he wondered if she knew he had asked his dad for help, only to get back her entire search history about how to neutralize birth control and about what the order of succession was if Billy didn't have any kids, that kind of thing.
Tommy honestly hadn't even thought about anything like that, because he always insisted on double protection anyway, and because Billy was usually the one who had dealt with people coming after him trying to become part of the line of succession. Tommy had never been important enough to think about.
And now, apparently, he had to deal with someone who had wanted to sleep her way into the royal family and get someone loyal to the Acolytes closer to the throne. The long-term planning was downright creepy, if he was honest, but more than that, he didn't like how the Acolytes had started to sour on Billy and thought he was a better option.
He didn't like that they thought he was sympathetic to their causes - as if he was anything but glad that his grandfather was gone, as if he wanted to be anything like Mageto. Just because he had made a few bad choices, just because he had hurt people he cared about, that didn't mean…
Well, it did mean that he was more like his grandfather than he realized, short-sighted in the wrong ways and focused so much on his idea of what he wanted the world to be like that he missed the care and love he already had.
At any rate, Tommy was headed to go see Addison to break up with her, and then, he was going to probably have an existential crisis about the whole thing. That sounded about right for his family, honestly.
Addison was waiting for him at the beach, her bikini flattering in all the ways that had caught Tommy's attention in the first place. He found himself smiling without meaning to - and then quickly batted down that reaction as he caught up to her, trying not to let his eyes (or his hands) wander.
And Addison, of course, instantly noticed.
"You're looking more serious than usual," she said, both eyebrows raised as she reached out to put her hand on his chest and step into him for a kiss.
He turned his head and stepped back. "I know you're an Acolyte, Addison. And I guess the only question I have is why you think I'd be a supporter, knowing everything you do about how me and my grandfather were."
Addison narrowed her eyes at him, but rather than answer him, she snapped her fingers, and the lights went out.
Tommy had expected her to lash out, and since she and her sister had light-related powers, he had been prepared to run out and had checked the exits before he approached her. But where Addison had dark powers, Maddison had light powers, and the next second, everything was so bright it was genuinely painful.
And since Tommy still didn't have his powers back unless he was on official business (though his mom had said she'd lift that once the new year hit), he fell back on the failsafe his family had ever since Billy had gotten kidnapped:
"Mom, help!"
Although Tommy couldn't see the flash of red light, he heard the sound of his mother arriving in a rush of sound and light and power. And when she saw Tommy with one hand over his eyes and two Acolytes that Lorna had already been worried about, she was already floating.
And just about when Tommy was starting to see shapes, Wanda magically sent him out of there so she could get to work. He didn't know where his mom had sent him, but he did hear his brother let out a startled sound.
"Hey, Billy, gimmie a second. I'm sorta blind, but it's coming back," Tommy said, picking up his hand so it was no longer shielding his eyes, but he could still only see shapes.
Tommy found himself being set on his feet - which was when he realized it wasn't just Billy helping him up.
"Oh, hi," Tommy said, visibly straightening. "I swear, I didn't ask Mom to send me to interrupt you two. She just sent me off."
"It's fine," James said. "What happened?"
"Oh, you know, my decision-maker is permanently broken," Tommy said carelessly. "I finally decided I hate not dating and wanted to get serious and she's an Acolyte."
James and Billy shared a look as they directed Tommy over to sit down, and Billy dropped down next to him as James crossed his arms to listen.
"Okay, so … what happened?" Billy asked.
"Honestly? Not much. She and her sister have light powers, so it all went black and then it all went bright, and I'm seeing squiggly lines and colors now, so it's coming back," Tommy said, obviously playing it off. "I called for help - you know, Mom's emergency line - and now I'm here. Could've been worse, right?"
James took a step back on hearing that much. "You two probably want a minute. I'll just … go find someone to hit."
"Have fun," Billy said, knowing exactly what James was up to.
Tommy waited until James was gone before he let out his breath and put his head on Billy's shoulder. "Damnit, Billy, I thought I was going to not screw something up for once," he said, not realizing that James hadn't quite left yet because his idea of how quickly things should move had always been off. "I was gonna try to actually get serious. Get a degree, stop being a screw-up-"
"You're not a screw up," Billy said firmly.
"Ha. You're funny. Don't give up your day job," Tommy said. He was starting to see a little better, but he hadn't picked his head up from Billy's shoulder. They'd used to do that a lot growing up, just sitting with each other like a little reminder that someone was always gonna be there. "You're the responsible, respectable one. I'm the spare. They're only looking my way lately because you spoke at the trial and you're too nice for their tastes."
"That just shows they don't know you at all."
"Yeah, I'm the nice one, for sure."
"You are. You didn't even retaliate when I wished you away." Billy gave him a significant look.
Tommy smirked at that. "Okay, fair, but I was mostly just happy to be alive?"
"Doesn't matter. I'm keeping it."
"Okay." Tommy was quiet for a long minute. "D'you think anyone else thinks that, though?" he asked after a long time. "I mean, I torpedoed my entire relationship with every hero on the planet screwing things up with Mia, because literally no one who knows her doesn't love her. So everyone else thinks I'm the evil twin."
Billy sighed. "They don't think you're the evil twin," he said. "They were just dumbfounded by how scared you were to stick with her." He bumped Tommy's shoulder. "Have you been kicked out of the team? Have practices you've been allowed to go to shut you out? No. They just needed to process. Not everyone handles the world at your pace."
"Yeah." Tommy didn't pick his head up. "She's never gonna hear it, but I got scared because I was in so deep," he admitted - which he hadn't ever said out loud.
"I know."
"I just… you're doing paperwork to get married, and I'm not - I'm not ready for that."
"Well, not quite yet, but … I get what you're saying. But no one said you had to be ready for that just because I am," Billy pointed out.
"Yeah, you don't hear everyone here on Genosha comparing you and me."
"No one whose opinion matters said you had to rush into it."
"Yeah, I know. I let the press get in my head once me and Mia started making headlines."
"That won't happen again though," Billy said. "You know how to ignore it better now."
"Yeah." Tommy let out a breath that shook, and Billy gracefully ignored it.
"You know," Billy said, drawing it out, then he paused. "Maybe I shouldn't tell you."
"Details on what your fiance is probably off to do? I'd love to hear it, actually," Tommy teased him.
"Oh, I know what he's off doing, and if it helps, I could show you," Billy said. "But not where I was headed." He smirked, then wished up a window so that they could watch as James and Wanda positively terrorized the two girls.
"Okay, where were you headed?" Tommy asked, grinning as James got right up in the girls' faces in the part of the prison where Remy and then Vojteck had been. "Ooh, Mom's Good Cop. That's wild."
"Right? Kinda fun to watch when he's mad in your defense." Billy gave Tommy a pointed look. "And where I was headed? No one hates you."
"Let the record show that I'm only not arguing with you because James looks so mad," Tommy said, smirking.
"He wouldn't be that mad in your defense if he didn't care. And the whole team has your back, too. No one hates you. Think about that. No one. In fact, I can't think of anyone that doesn't like you."
"It's because I'm cute," Tommy said, though Billy could tell he was genuinely surprised, because it took a beat for him to react to that.
"Obviously. Second cutest prince."
"Right. Thor."
"Ouch. Hurtful."
"Evil twin, remember?" Tommy said, chuckling.
"Not very evil," Billy insisted. "You can't even float."
"Oh, man, imagine if I could."
"I could float you if you really want to try it," Billy laughed. "Give you a purple cape that would last like … a millisecond before wind shear did terrible things to it."
"I love this plan. Let's keep it in reserve for Halloween," Tommy said. "I'll make my hair do that thing Grandfather's did when he'd been wearing the helmet too long…"
"So, you want to go as Grandfather?" Billy teased.
"Scariest costume I can think of," Tommy said without missing a beat.
"You'd have a whole new flock of Acolytes kissing the ground behind you."
"As long as they're not kissing me." Tommy pulled a face.
"That's what we'll keep James around for then. Scare them back."
"Yeah… do you think he'd get more creative if we let Mom know that Addison was screwing with her birth control or…?"
"Um … yes. He's still ticked off that he didn't get five minutes with Vojteck. Just … I think any reason would be enough to tip him over."
"You know… I was a really good spy for Ororo before I pulled what I did with Mia. I bet I could find Vojteck if I could just … maybe spend Spring Break on it… I'm kind of planning to do some power studying once I get my powers back and speed through a physics degree."
"I think I'd rather you didn't," Billy said. "The second there's even half of a heading, I'm sure James would be off on a revenge mission to take his head off for sport. The hitting him to make him bounce off the couch wasn't enough."
"I'd like some time with the creep too. I know I don't have as much of a claim as you or Kate or James, but he kidnapped my best friend in the world, you know," Tommy said and bumped Billy's shoulder.
"Yeah, Kate is pretty great."
"You, you dork," Tommy said, rolling his eyes. "Geez, try to be sincere for a second."
"Love you too, not so evil twin."
The new X-Men team had gotten nearly two weeks of pure family time, time for sweethearts, and amazingly, very little in the way of missions to run. Most of the pick up runs were being handled by the elder X-Men, who were all trying to make sure that the kids had a chance to finish their degrees, or even just … be kids.
They were trying to keep Nate and Kate in high spirits, too, so when it came time for Kate's birthday - and New Years Eve - and all Kate had said she wanted was to see a few friends and have some music and cake …
Mia took action. Big time.
She'd applied early and been accepted to the tech college in Genosha - she decided there was no way in hell she was going to let Tommy screw up her choice of college - and as a result, she'd been pretty slick about meeting with her advisors and getting Alex to take her around Hammer Bay a little more in depth than she'd been before. Especially since Tommy had only really taken her places where they'd get distracted.
But … Noh had been helpful in exploring anywhere she wanted to see without making it solely a makeout session. And after seeing how down Kate was getting, it was pretty clear that she needed some cheering up. And what better way to cheer up than to throw a party. On Genosha. Where Annie was nearby for cupcake purposes and squishy Summers family sweetness, and Kate herself had a massive following of fans for sticking up for mutants back home. She'd even given Noh a job he could handle - and he spent a whole four days dancing and singing to himself as he dug up all sorts of songs that he insisted were perfect for celebrating the planet's orbital anniversary.
Word got around fast, and in no time at all, it seemed like half the teenagers on Genosha were coming to the New Year's Eve party. Billy even arranged to get the new kids on the Avengers to Genosha so they could socialize with the team. Kamala in particular was excited, because with the time change, she'd have time to party and get home in time to spend the new year with her family like always.
And by the time Kate and Nate got there, Kate was practically bouncing and rushed over to Mia as soon as she saw her, wrapping her up in a hug. "This is amazing," she gushed.
"Is it big enough for you?" Mia asked, grinning with pointed teeth and her tail swaying. "Noh is going to be our DJ - he's been practicing."
"Your boyfriend is adorable when he gets excited. I can see his grin from here," Kate said.
"Wait until he really gets into it. The shirt just … disappears!"
"Magically!" Kate said, throwing her hands up in the air, her eyes wide with pretended surprise.
"Have you been properly spoiled by Summerseses-es?" Mia asked.
"Oh yeah," Kate said, grinning. "My parents are back there now, totally stealing all my cupcakes. Someone let slip to Dad that the best sweets in the world are hidden away in my in-laws' place…"
"Someone like you?" Mia giggled as she took Kate's arm to lead her into the already forming crowd.
"Maybe." Kate smirked. "Dad needed the pick-me-up. Mom slow-rolled him on another kid again because she's enjoying being a grandmother and doesn't want too much juggling. So I let him know Annie promised me chocolate strawberries…"
"Nice. Yeah, that baby has to be the only one for a while," Mia said.
"Yeah." Kate blushed and tucked her hair behind her ear. "Mom sat me down this morning, actually. Made sure I knew in no uncertain terms that she's going to be right there for me the second I call her. Because, you know, I'm nineteen. This is still a lot, and it turns out being a teen mom is not fun?"
"I'll bet. This part for sure," Mia agreed. "My mom said we all have to do babysitting. For like … deterrent or something."
"Yeah, I'm gonna agree with your mom on that one. Not that I'm not excited? But I thought this was coming much farther down the road."
"So I guess…. Pencil me in? But not when he's all … grumpy."
"I kinda want to see your alien boyfriend react to a baby. He keeps looking at me like he's studying me," Kate admitted. "I asked him about it and he said they use growth chambers and that's about all I get before he starts talking about how cool this world is."
"He probably is studying you."
"Yeah. Explorer that he is." Kate bumped Mia's shoulder with hers. "He's adorably earnest, seriously. I so approve. And you look much happier." She waited until Mia was blushing before she shoved her playfully a little step back, just to get her grinning.
"For real, he's great," Mia agreed. "Helps when he comes preapproved by the bestie, too. That was a nice touch."
"Yeah, I have to agree. James basically became my big brother when we were kids, and I swear, he's the best protector you could ever ask for."
"Totally," Mia laughed. "Even when he's all wrapped up with his sweetheart - who has also been super nice to me lately."
"Because you're amazing," Kate pointed out. "And a goddess! I know America says Billy's some kind of god, so you two are in good company or something."
"I have to get James to stop telling people to say that," Mia said, blushing deeper.
"No way. I love it. It suits you so well," Kate insisted.
"Right. Well. Are you up to dancing a little bit?"
"Oh, totally. Nate's been cheating pretty much since we walked in, because my ankles are killing me. So I've been floating and I'm ready to party."
"Then is Nate up to dancing a little bit?" Mia giggled.
"Nate, babe, you up to dancing?" Kate called over to Nate, who had until then been talking to Billy and laughing about something.
"Always!" Nate called back.
Kate laughed and looked toward the dance floor, grinning when she saw Kamala dancing with James. "Oh good. Someone else who won't be drinking tonight," she said. "She's been amazing in team practices at the tower, too. We should totally surround her and adopt her into our girl power or whatever."
"I thought we already did that?" Mia said thoughtfully as they made their way out to dance - and like Mia had predicted, a second later, Noh had lost his shirt and was entirely wrapped up in his assigned task.
"Yeah, I just meant she should hear it outright so she stops trying so hard… Why does he lose his shirt?" Kate laughed when she realized what had happened.
"Tympanic membrane," Mia said. "He can hear with his whole body - and he really likes showing off."
"Oh, he's going to fit in so well," Kate said, smiling as the two of them caught up to James and Kamala. "Hey, guys!" she called out.
Kamala was bouncing on the tips of her toes when she saw her teammates coming closer, grinning hard enough that she truly did look like she was in danger of breaking her face as she waved excitedly. "Hi! This is so great!"
"Right? Mia put it all together." Kate threw her arm over Mia's shoulders. "I didn't know you could dance like that, Kamala! You should let loose more often!"
Kamala blushed brilliantly. "I was just- I like this song?"
"You were having fun, don't let her get in your head," James told her. "She got in my brother's head and look what happened."
Kamala snorted, and Kate shoved James. "I was trying to say you're a great dancer, Kamala," she said. "Also, I'm calling dibs on hanging with you when people inevitably start drinking. It's no fun to be sober alone."
"I think the drinkers are in the minority," James pointed out. "Billy's not big on booze either - and I think they're actually keeping track."
"Yeah, the drinking age is lower here, but the enforcement is stricter, especially if the crown princes are around," Mia said - from experience.
"Speaking of…" Kate tipped her head to indicate Tommy, who was date-less and flitting from one group to the next. "Someone keeps glaring toward your shirtless hottie."
"I can't do anything about that," Mia said with a shrug, though her tail was flicking at the very end like it always did when she was annoyed.
"No, but I'll keep an eye out so no drama breaks out," Kate promised.
"Noh's not going to start anything," James said with full confidence. "And I doubt Tommy will either."
"Yeah, he's actually been really nice in practices lately," Kamala said, still slightly pink from the compliments. "He's stopped avoiding everyone."
"I did notice that," Kate said. "He's an idiot, but he's our idiot. He'll figure himself out sooner or later." When she saw that Mia was frowning toward Tommy still, she raised her voice. "Hey, DJ! Come join us for a song!"
Noh grinned her way as he set up the next song - and an instant later, just as the song started, he joined the group of them, picking Mia up in a spinning kiss to start things off. "How could I resist?" he asked, and Mia beamed at him.
"Well it did take you this long," Mia teased not long before Billy, Bruno, and Nate found their way out to join them, too.
"Oooh, brought the Hulk's favorite lab rat out to play?" Kate teased when she saw Bruno. "Tony hasn't stopped talking about how much fun the lab is with you around; I thought you lived there now!"
"Seems like it sometimes," Bruno said, though he was grinning, too. "This place is kind of amazing, you know"
"It is," Billy said, grinning as he went to James to pull him into a quick kiss. "Even more fun once midnight hits and all the mutants with cool explosive powers put on a show. It gets cooler every year."
"If I'd known we could do explosives …" James teased.
"And that's why I didn't tell you," Billy teased right back.
"I'll have to talk you into it next time around," James countered.
"You can definitely try," Billy said.
"When do you want to start?" James asked, smirking crookedly.
Billy blinked, grinned, and said, "We've got some time before midnight" and disappeared with James.
Kate burst into a laugh. "They are such bad examples."
"Oh yeah, and you're a shining example of teenage pregnancy," Mia shot back, which just had Kate laughing all over again.
"Okay, fair," Kate said.
Bruno shook his head but bumped Kamala's shoulder. "Want to go dance before they get any worse?" he asked her quietly.
"Yes," came the quick, almost instant, response, which had Nate smirking as the two of them headed off.
Across the dance floor, Tommy was trying to have more fun than he was having. He'd started out enjoying himself, but the whole thing with the Acolytes and the fact that Mia had found a new boyfriend who DJ'ed shirtless for some reason… yeah, he wasn't thrilled.
And he couldn't even drink away the frustration, because it would take a lot to get him to that point, and he didn't want his friends to look over and see him downing booze. So… he just tried to do some light flirting and dancing and figure out how to be less obviously jealous.
A few people at the party seemed interested, but Tommy was a little more cautious lately and was keeping things just at the level of flirting. For now. If he caught any chemistry, though… maybe he could ring in the new year the fun way.
He glanced toward the group of other heroes and frowned when he saw Mia and Noh wrapped up in a kiss mid-dance - so he wasn't actually paying attention to where he was going and knocked into someone who was coming from the other direction.
"Woah," the guy said, shifting to keep from spilling his drink. "I know it's a party but maybe watch where you're going, huh?"
"Sorry, my bad," Tommy said, turning to face the guy - who was, actually, pretty cute, even if he looked a bit nerdy.
"It's fine," he replied, then looked past Tommy and let out a sigh. "Guess it's okay. I don't have anyone to catch up to anyhow." He looked back at him and there was a clear moment of recognition on his face. "You're either one of the princes or a dead ringer for one of them. Hi. I'm David." He shifted his drink to offer Tommy his hand to shake.
"Hi, David. I'm Tommy," he replied, amused enough by the handshake and the fact that David seemed to be so matter-of-fact about everything that he held onto his hand for a bit longer. "I don't think I've seen you on Genosha before."
"I'm a little newer transplant," David said with a careless shrug. "I was in the wrong school - decided I'd try college here, but I'm doing all night classes, so… not much for socializing."
"Shame, but kinda not surprising," Tommy said, already shifting to walk alongside the guy so they could keep talking.
"Yeah? Why's that?" David asked.
"I haven't seen you at the school, and I go there, so night classes make sense. And you've got this 'hot nerd' vibe going on, so…"
David coughed, then tried to cover it - entirely off guard at Tommy's description. "Oh… okay. If you … okay."
The more David flailed for words, the more Tommy grinned. "Hey, let me grab a drink and join you, huh? I don't have anyone to catch up to at this party either."
"Yeah, that would be - sure," David said, still a little pink around the edges.
"Great, be right back," Tommy said, smiling to himself before he dashed off, grabbed a drink, and came back.
This party was turning out better than he'd expected.
When Annie's phone rang at three in the morning, she glanced at the phone long enough to see what time it was and then ignored it. Whatever her sister wanted could wait until the morning.
She wasn't even mad at Evie for calling; she knew Evie sometimes forgot what the time difference was. But Annie kept her phone on vibrate during the night all the same, in case of emergency.
And when Evie called Annie's phone just seconds after the first call fell through, Annie knew something was up.
She grabbed the phone and was already sitting up as she picked up. "Evie? What's wrong?" she asked in a whisper that couldn't quite hide how tired she was.
"It's Dad." Even in those two words, Annie could hear that her big sister had been crying. "His nursing home had to send him to the hospital."
Annie tried to be quiet as she slipped out of the bed, but she could see Scott already sitting up as well, visibly concerned for her. She held a hand up to tell him she'd fill him in when she had more information - and then remembered that she was a telepath now and simply opened her mind to him so that he could hear what was happening along with her.
"Dad's been in the hospital a few times," Annie said, holding the phone tighter without meaning to. "You haven't called me in the middle of the night here for any of those other trips."
Evie's raggedy breath was audible even over the phone. "It's his heart," she said. "He apparently had a UTI, and it spread before he told anyone he wasn't feeling good."
Annie covered her mouth with one hand, mentally cursing her father and the world he had grown up in that told him voicing pain was weakness. "How bad?"
"The doctor told us t start gathering people," Evie said.
I'll let Wanda and her boys know. We'll get you there as fast as possible, Scott projected to her, and she reached over without looking at him to hold his hand and squeeze it.
"I'll be right there," Annie promised, though she felt like someone else was speaking. She hung up and turned toward Scott to see that he was already calling Billy - who was the most likely to actually be awake. With a nearly-silent sob, she threw herself under his chin, and he hugged her as tightly as he could one-handed.
It wasn't that she hadn't known this was coming. She'd just thought there would be more warning.
She stayed there, tucked in with Scott while he filled Billy in, but once he was done, she simply closed her eyes and leaned into him when he kissed her head, knowing there was absolutely nothing he could say that would help.
Wish I could be there with you, he projected to her, and she held onto him that much tighter.
You'll be there to catch me after, she said, and he kissed to top of her head.
She stayed there for a long time, drinking in how nice it was to feel safe, and then, she got the slight tingle of a warning before she found herself sitting not with Scott but in the hospital room with her brother, sister, and father. Billy must have called Craig to make sure he was precise when he sent her over.
Immediately, Evie rushed over to throw her arms around Annie in a tight hug, though Annie was surprised to see that Craig was the most emotional of the three of them. He wasn't as loud or obvious as Evie was being, but of the two of them, Evie was the only one able to string words together. Craig was simply holding their dad's hand and silently sobbing.
Annie could feel tears rolling down her knuckles as she held her hand up to her mouth, but she could have melted when she realized that her dad was not only awake but aware and smiling her way.
"Hey, Annie-Girl," he said as she rushed over to hug him as best she could with the monitors he was hooked up to. He hadn't called her by her name in ages. "What's wrong, baby?"
"Just worried about you, Daddy," Annie said and kissed his cheek.
"You don't need to worry," Douglas said gruffly. "I'm just old, baby, ain't nothin' wrong with it."
"I know," Annie said, furiously wiping her cheeks.
"Evie, sweetheart, stop fussin' and come join us," Douglas said, frowning when he saw Evie watching the door.
"Anton's on a call, and the girls are at school," Evie said, almost distantly, and Annie instantly understood. Evie didn't want the rest of the family to be blindsided, and with how quickly the doctors said Douglas was sliding downhill, every delay was hard to bear.
"Text James," Annie said. "He would know who to talk to to get them here."
"Right." Evie said, obviously trying to rally.
"That's my Annie, always in charge," Douglas said, smiling easily before he turned to Craig. "I told you 'bout Annie, right, Joel?" he asked, and Craig nodded wordlessly, not about to contradict him or tell him his brother had died decades ago. "I've got the best damn kids, you know. You'd love my boy; he's probably at some fool hippie protest like your wife."
Craig let out a breathy laugh and a broken, "Sounds right."
As Douglas settled into bragging about his kids - which had all three of the adult Hale kids that much closer to falling apart - someone knocked on the door. Annie got to her feet to open it - and then flung it open wider when she saw Billy and James there with both of her nieces.
"Oh, thank you," Annie said, suddenly more emotional, though she couldn't have said why in the moment.
Billy was quiet as he urged the two girls in to be with the rest of the family, but James could see Annie barely keeping it together. And with Douglas distracted by his granddaughters, all James had to do was shift his stance to a more open one, and Annie practically fell into him, clinging on and crying even though she hadn't meant to fall apart. But the silent invitation to do just that had been all she needed.
There was a lounge nearby, and somehow, when Annie had cried long enough that she wanted to go back to her family, that was where they were, sitting on a bench by the window.
Still sniffling, Annie wiped her eyes and sat up a bit. "Oh, I'm so sorry," she blurted out, but James obviously wasn't hearing it.
"Come on, don't worry about that," James said. "That's what we're here for, right?"
Annie nodded shakily, too tired to do anything else. She used his shoulder to help as she got to her feet - with him right there with her - and then straightened her shirt. "I'd better get back. I don't know how much time…" She drifted off.
James nodded and stayed with her as they walked back down the hall, knowing she needed someone there and that his dad couldn't be there. So he was going to make sure she was okay.
When they got back, Douglas looked more tired than he had before, but he perked up when he saw Annie and James at the door.
"Well, I'll be damned!" he said, grinning. "Logan, when did you get here?" Before James had a chance to respond, Douglas started to laugh. "I thought I recognized you when you dropped off my girls. No wonder you been so quiet; I'd've kept my mouth shut too if I was worried the Army would find out 'bout which way I buttered my bread!"
Craig burst into a laugh that it didn't sound like he could contain, while Evie covered her face with both hands and Annie giggled at James's expression.
"Don' worry none," Douglas assured him with a theatrical wink. "Ain't my business, and I won't tell."
James had taken just a moment to readjust - more to being called Logan than to anything else. "Not a damn thing to worry about anyhow," James said, sure to lean into sounding more like Logan. "Don't really care who knows or who don't like it anyhow."
Douglas beamed and nudged Evie. "Best man to have in your corner in a fight," he told her. "Still don't know what he was doing in the middle of nowhere in the damn jungle, but he was good, so we didn't ask." He was still smiling as he gestured around at him. "You haven't met my kids, have you?"
James had one hand over his mouth - halfway to hide his expression as he let Annie direct him to a chair. "Nah. Girls told me you were tellin' stories. Had to see if you had any worth hearin'."
Douglas laughed. "Better catch you up, then. You know I got the two prettiest granddaughters ever?" He beamed, leaning back as he started to brag about his family - just as happy as they'd ever seen him.
And when he couldn't talk anymore and was obviously fading, before James got up to leave, Annie grabbed his hand, her eyes shining as she softly mouthed out "thanks" and then let him go, taking the girls and Billy with him.
Chapter 146: Protective Little Brother
Chapter Text
Scott knew, keenly, what it was to lose a parent, and so, he didn't expect to see Annie up and about much. When she slept for nearly twelve hours the night after she got back from being with her family, after burying her father, he let her sleep and simply went downstairs to make food for her.
That was the way she expressed her love, so he mirrored it back to her.
And when he got upstairs with a tray of biscuits and raspberry jam (with seeds in it, as she liked), she smiled sleepily.
You used the right flour, she said as he climbed back in the bed with her and let her lean against him.
I think you'd have my head if I did it any other way.
That's true. Annie let her smile drop and simply leaned into him as they had their breakfast in silence.
It was the first time since Annie had her powers that she relied entirely on telepathy with him, and that more than anything else told him where her head was. She didn't have the energy for anything else.
You've carried me through so much. Let me help you through this, he projected to her, and she simply put her arms around his waist where they were snuggled up and nodded.
Love you too.
It had taken Sinister a bit of time, but once again, he found his work with the boy exciting. At first, he'd been happy simply with getting back to work, getting the focus back on the research. But, when he saw how differently the boy could process information - to predict entirely different paths than what Sinister himself could see possible, he had to push some of James's pesky self imposed limitations to get beyond the theory and into some serious experimentation.
He was excited to see if James's theory on how to predict mutation was going to work in practice as well as it was working on paper - and to a greater degree of accuracy than what Sinister himself had been able to predict.
He'd already managed to isolate where in the gene sequence one could find the possibility of a secondary mutation.
But to get the boy to experiment or to be more hands on than simply passive observation and study of the theories he was toying with was frustrating. Of course, that kind of hands-on work wasn't something to dive into head first. Not even for Sinister. First, James needed to test the water … to see if he could help collect data himself rather than be cooped up in a laboratory all the time.
But … Sinister was sure James needed to venture slowly into human experimentations by the same scientific processes that all young scientists were forced to endure … replicating known experiments with known outcomes. But, of course, Sinister's list of known experiments were not known to any other geneticists.
Which is why Sinister had decided on a test. Make the boy assist in a few of Sinister's ongoing projects. The method he'd devised to keep James in line while not having to re-teach him every step as they went was working well. Very well, if he was being honest. James had no idea how helpful he'd been to Sinister's work, as evidenced by his metered protests when he wasn't entirely under Sinister's suggestions. And Sinister was still patting himself on the back for the most excellent idea he'd had to send James off for break carefree and focused on whatever it was he needed to act like himself. Or, himself before all the drama had started to really take a toll.
No one in the Summers family had suspected a thing over the holidays, and from what he saw from James's memories of the break, that was in large part due to everyone being so pleased to hear the teasing, to see the fun - none of them wanted to bring up anything too heavy. So no one did. Not even Scott in his irritatingly astute observations and suspicions wanted to push.
A genius move. And one that likely wouldn't be easily repeatable by a lesser telepath - or even those that were at Sinister's power level. This technique, like so many others he employed, was suited only to those with vast amounts of experience as well as a high power level.
He watched James across the lab as the young man studiously set to work. He had no idea what it was he was working on, but Sinister knew he was making quick progress. He truly loved when his schemes fell into place so cleanly. Especially now, just after a break when he had plenty of time before the next interruption so he and the boy could work. There were many preparations to be made, after all. And very little time to finish the tasks he never wanted to fulfill as well as those that he'd been conspiring to execute for decades. And now, for the first time in over a century, Sinister found himself with an assistant that was an asset rather than a risk.
A wave of psychic pain hit him starting at the very back of his head. The assault was strong enough that he found himself relieved to have already been seated when it started. He muddied through the message that had been jammed into his frontal lobe, then looked up - out of breath - to find James quietly watching him.
"How close to finished are you in that comparison?" Sinister asked, still seeing shifting stripes over his vision as he tried to focus on James.
"I'm just finishing up my notation," James answered - and Sinister nodded.
"Then finish quickly. I'd like to see you in my office immediately."
James paled, but otherwise didn't have an outward reaction. Sinister smiled to himself as he waited for James to finish up. He could hear James's panic beyond his muted response if for no other reason than subconsciously, James knew he was about to have his mind worked over. The boy was so close to not needing the continual interventions. By the end of the school year, Sinister was sure he'd have his assistant adjusted enough that he wouldn't have to force his hand at all or fight for the boy's time.
James had just finished his work and paused as he looked up at Essex, then quickly began putting everything away. He shoved everything in his backpack then steeled himself as he pushed away from the table and turned to walk ahead of Essex into the office. Essex was smiling grimly as he passed him by, and James sat down - moving on autopilot. He wanted to argue with him, but something was off and he couldn't force himself to be the pain he wanted to be. The door closed behind Essex and James closed his eyes as he waited, only to automatically sit on his hands as Essex came to a stop in front of him
He'd looked up to see the red glow and felt his body relaxing. A second later, the door to the office was torn off the hinges and Essex took a hit in center mass that James heard breaking something. He wasn't sure what was going on - but he caught the scent in the air more easily than he saw that Noh was there … and attacking Dr. Essex.
At least until he wasn't. One second, Noh was attacking at speed, and the next, he was hitting a force field as James watched in a daze. And then … everything stopped. Noh was hissing low and Essex looked ruffled and so angry. "James, my boy," Essex said, then switched to telepathic orders with the specific kind and measure of tranquilizer he was supposed to go get.
For an instant, James hesitated, wondering to himself why the hell Essex would ask him to do something like that - but he didn't speak up, and before he could put words to it, he realized he was already taking the medication out of a cabinet that he couldn't recall ever seeing. He seemed to be working on autopilot as he found the proper syringe and needle size, then measured out what Essex had asked for - though he was very sure he couldn't remember being taught that.
What's more, when he returned to Essex's office, he didn't wait for further instruction before he stepped up to Noh - who switched from hissing to an impassioned plea for assistance - and administered the injection to Noh's utter shock and bewilderment. Not that he was more prepared. James stared at Noh in quiet horror as the drugs took effect, and Essex gently took the syringe out of James's hands.
"Pick him up," Essex ordered before Noh was entirely out. "We can continue this at my private laboratory."
James once again moved on autopilot to carefully pick up Noh, quietly shaking his head as he tried to explain … only to become more bewildered when they teleported to an entirely new location and he just … he knew where to go and what Essex wanted him to do. And again, he was moving on autopilot to do exactly that.
It wasn't until he was restraining Noh that he found his voice as Noh tried to gather his senses up. "Noh- I don't…" James managed to whisper before his throat felt constricted and he couldn't keep going.
"James, I was coming to help you," Noh said in a throaty whisper, his eyes wide and the frustration obvious in his voice. He didn't remember the last time James's shift in personality had driven him to ask questions of Billy and then investigate for himself, so he didn't know why Essex had been able to so quickly disarm and subdue him.
And to see James working with the man on top of all that? He was reeling badly.
"Wash up, my boy," Sinister said, barely looking over James's shoulder to make sure all of the straps were being utilized. "We have much work to do."
Annie had come back in a much more somber mood than usual, and for about a week, Scott had simply made sure that she wasn't alone with her thoughts too often, knowing keenly how hard it was to get through loss like that and knowing there was nothing he could do for her.
But the closer they got to Valentines Day, the more Annie started to act like herself - purely because she had decided that she needed a project. She had her mother's old cookbook out, and she was creating little care packages full of sweets for everyone in her family - and his.
The week of Valentine's, the whole place smelled like homemade icing.
And Scott was mostly staying out of her way, knowing she needed to stay busy. He could relate. He was also staying busy, though his focus was more on looking over some of what Natasha had sent him on Hydra's codes. They'd changed them up again, and Scott doubted that had nothing to do with Vojteck's escape.
He wasn't expecting anyone to stop by yet, but he heard Annie talking to someone in the kitchen and slipped out of his office, knowing she still wasn't herself and wanting to provide her an emotional buffer if need be.
But just as he got to the kitchen, he heard Annie snap, "-none of your damn business how I'm doing."
"I suppose this is my own fault for not making a point to drop in more often. Of course, I've had other things on my mind as of late," Sinister was saying to her.
"I don't care," Annie said. "Go somewhere else and let me do this by myself."
"Look, I know you think emotions are useless, but even you can respect a mourning daughter," Scott said as he walked into the kitchen. "What do you want?"
"To check in, of course," Sinister said. "And I've recently rediscovered exactly how useful emotions can be."
"I'm sure there's a story there, and I'm sure I'll find out about it," Scott said in a sigh. "We're fine. Annie, you're fine, right?"
"Peachy," Annie said.
"Delightful," Sinister said. "Then I can turn my attention back to one of my old favorites."
"Cryptic," Annie said like a curse word.
"Don't trouble yourself worrying, Annette," Sinister said. "I simply plan to focus on Scott for a moment. Some comparisons are in order."
"Not interested," Scott said, his arms crossed.
"Not asking," Sinister countered. "There isn't much you can do to stop me, my boy."
"Wait a minute," Annie said, her irritation immediately dropping into concern as she set down her mixing bowl. "Wait - I thought this was all sorted out-"
"Things change." He held out one hand. "Now, Scott, we can do this easily or you can fight if it makes you feel better."
"It does, actually," Scott said.
Sinister tutted, then darted forward to gently get a hand on Scott's shoulder to freeze him into place. "I find myself wondering why I never fixed that."
"Oh, please don't," Annie said, still wide-eyed, and she still wasn't good at hiding her thoughts from other telepaths, so he heard the rest: I like that about him.
"Not today, at any rate," Sinister said before he levitated Scott back the direction he'd come in from.
"Hey, Annie, Kate ate literally all of those chocolate-covered strawberries and made me swear I'd ask if you had any more," Nate called out as he let himself into Scott and Annie's house - and then stopped in the doorway when he saw Annie sitting by Scott, looking angrier than he'd seen her in a long time while Scott sat with a pack of ice held to his eyes. "...Dad?"
"I'm fine," Scott said automatically, but that was completely undermined as Annie started projecting to Nate - not just what she had seen but what Scott had shared with her. Sinister hadn't told Scott all that he was up to, but it looked to Scott like Sinister was getting samples and a new baseline to prepare to do what he'd been trying to get Scott to agree to that whole time and "restore" his powers.
And while Nate could hear in Annie's mind that she knew Scott wasn't sure how he felt about the possibility of having his powers back, he could also hear how worried she was about what else Sinister would do while he had Scott, not the least of which being telepathic changes to his personality like he'd threatened in passing.
And Nate stood there, staring at his dad, his hands in fists. "I have to go," he said, immediately stepping back out. His feet didn't even touch the ground as he went back to the palace, cloaked in a telepathic shield so that no one would see him and put together where Scott was. And he didn't slow down until he found Wanda and levitated over to her.
"I need James here. Right now."
"Hello to you too, sweetheart," Wanda said, though she let the teasing drop when she saw exactly how upset Nate clearly was. "I'll do it, but I want to know what's going on."
Nate narrowed his eyes, thinking of how careful his dad and Alex had been when Sinister had been running rampant. He didn't know the full extent of what Sinister was up to, but… "I think someone's managed to get into James's head. I know Billy's told you he hasn't been acting like himself."
"I thought that was resolved over the holidays," Wanda said, frowning.
"Yeah, just for the holidays. He's back to being distant, and I think I know why. But I don't want to send you on a warpath until I have more than a suspicion."
"Do you want him here or with your father?" Wanda asked as her hands started to glow.
"God, no, if Dad thinks he's in trouble, he'll have a heart attack," Nate said.
Wanda nodded. "Alright then. I'll send him to a secure room - and you'll be there to meet him."
"Thanks," Nate said. And then paused. "I wouldn't ask if it wasn't important."
"I know," Wanda said with a grim smile. "I'll fill Billy in, too."
"Thanks. I'm going to try to fix this myself, if I can." He cracked his knuckles. "Lay some telepathic traps. This will be fun."
A moment later, Nate found himself standing in a metal-lined room - with James looking dazed a few feet in front of him. And Nate didn't even bother to explain what was going on. He simply reached out to take a hold of his brother's head then dove in, mad enough and brimming with enough power that he was able to get in easily. He saw the red-lined manipulations everywhere that were so reminiscent of what he'd seen in his own mind just after his honeymoon. But this was much deeper than the manipulations Sinister had done to Nate.
Of primary concern, he saw that James's blackmail plan had been uprooted, and he attacked that problem with abandon, shoving it back into place and surrounding it with so many traps that Sinister wouldn't be able to touch it, let alone manipulate it, without alerting Nate.
There was more, and Nate was only getting angrier the more he saw. But something was hidden away in James's mind that not even Nate could touch - because it was tied in with traps that would hurt James if Nate messed with it, the way Sinister had threatened Kate's empathy on their honeymoon. Nate circled it several times, but he couldn't find any way inside. What he could do was try to lessen some of the traps and set his own so that Sinister would have to work harder to get to whatever was in that safe.
Finally, Nate left James's mind, winded and on the brink of a nosebleed, but he had cleaned out James's head as thoroughly as he could and set so many traps that he was fully confident his brother would be okay.
He put out one hand to catch himself and then grimaced a smile at James as his brother slipped down to sit on the floor - entirely unbalanced and disoriented from the sudden change in scenery and the more sudden shift of his perception. "Hey. Sorry for the lack of warning, but Sinister tried to take away your blackmail plan and screwed with Dad while he thought he had a free pass, so I was kind of pissed."
"... okay …"
"He's got something else in your mind, but I couldn't crack it without wrecking your entire consciousness, so I made it harder for him to get to whatever he's hiding. Lots of nasty traps. I was feeling a little sadistic."
"That … o… kay. What are we doing here? Like … what exactly started this?"
"So… Dad's on his couch right now icing his eyes," Nate said pointedly. "And Sinister seems to think he gets to run roughshod over our family again. You should fire a warning shot and nuke his backups. That virus does that, right?"
"Yeah, as long as it wasn't backed up before I put the worm into the thing, yeah."
"Still, I think it's worth the reminder. He was behaving when you made that threat, so his newer research, you know, that's probably what he's protecting."
"He's protecting all of it," James said. "I know he shifted how he stores things, but … I can probably do something anyhow." He nodded to himself. "I don't think he would have done any of this if he didn't have his ass covered, though."
"Yeah, but there's got to be something we can do. Because the alternative is to fight him like our parents did."
"Yeah, I already told you that was a bad idea. I'll figure something out if the old one isn't going to work." He paused, but still stayed where he was on the floor. "Is Dad okay? Kate?"
"Dad's not okay," Nate told him frankly. "Sinister just did some preflight; he still wants to make Dad Cyclops again."
"Yeah, I knew that much," James agreed with a nod.
"Looks like he's not waiting for Dad to agree. If you can slow him down… Dad can't do much when he's on house arrest, and even with his mind closed, I could hear him quietly projecting feeling powerless against this guy."
James nodded. "Okay. So we gotta kill him. Got it."
"Honestly? Agreed. We just need to slow him down until we figure out how to do that. I don't know what he's got in your head, but before I went in there, your mind was infested. We need to be careful."
James gestured openly. "If something happens in there, you'll know right? Not much I can do to stop it if he gets vindictive."
"Yeah, I got mad and left myself traps everywhere. If anyone unfriendly gets in there, I'll know. If anyone friendly gets in, I'll know that too."
"Territorial much, little brother?" James had to tease.
"Damn straight," Nate said, smirking at that. He took a deep breath. "So. You should probably go smother Billy in attention. Sinister sort of had you with your nose to the grindstone studying with him, and Billy misses you."
"I don't remember any of that," James admitted.
"You should remember some of it, eventually. Takes a while to reboot," Nate said. "And I wasn't unable to unlock all of it, sorry."
"If I can't remember it, it's not important, right?" James tried to joke with a very fake smile, then looked incredibly weary as he settled in with his feet out in front of himself on the floor. "I've only got snippets and impressions, but … you have a bunch of traps in there, right? Can you rig up one more - or something that looks like a trap, anyhow? Something I can not be lying too badly about that would trap whoever tries to get in there in place … and set off a timer to blow all of sinister's traps?" He held up both hands. "Not really blow it. Just .. make it look like the traps will go off and take whoever's poking around in there with me."
Nate narrowed his eyes. "I don't know if he'd believe it," he said slowly. "But…"
"He would if we make it clear that Kate or the baby are the triggers. And I know he wants them."
Nate sucked in a breath, his eyes glowing again because he knew James wasn't lying. "That… that part's believable," he agreed. "Okay, I can do that. But I want you to talk to Billy about other options, because that's only going to work once."
"I know. But I need a nuclear sounding option to negotiate," James said. "And … I don't think he wants my head wiped clean."
"I actually agree with you on that, from what I've seen." Nate let his shoulders drop before he got close and yanked James into a hug.
"You okay? Or you need the snuggle to set the dirty bomb?"
"Actually, both," Nate said. "I overdid it with the traps, so I need a physical connection to make this part a little easier. It helps me focus, for some reason. Totally mental, not power-related."
"Sounds hokey, but sure. At least you admitted you're mental."
"Yep. That's what you took out of that. Sounds right." Nate's eyes glowed. "Okay. Let's scare the boogie man in Dad's closet."
When James was returned to the apartment, not the lab where he'd been, Billy was there waiting to hear what had happened in Genosha without him, and before he could get started with questions, James held up a hand to let Billy know he needed a moment to reorganize his thoughts. Especially with the migraine he was sporting after everything Nate had done.
"I need help," James told him frankly.
"Well admitting it is the first step," Billy said dryly, frowning as he watched his almost-fiancé.
"Yeah, that too," James said, then took the handful of steps over to Billy to take his hand. "I want you to determine if there's a way you can boost my blackmail threat. Magically tie it in to the programming or … I don't know. Put a spell on me that acts as a switch if I decide to hit the button. I'm sure that his work is backed up solidly and I wouldn't even be surprised if the worm is missing in that original code I installed, but … I have to get control of that again. Somehow."
Billy's eyebrows shot up, but instead of immediately jumping into questions, he sat back, his lips pursed as he genuinely thought it over. "I… think I can work something up like that," he said. "I need you to walk me through what you did. In detail. I need to understand it. And then, yeah, I think I can back it up. Once I understand your intent, I don't have to understand the tech itself. I just have to know what it's meant to do, and then I can copy your wish into magic."
James nodded and the two of them made their way over to the couch to try and find a way to work though it and determine how best to move forward. He was more than happy to tell Billy whatever he needed or wanted to know to come up with a spell that would work. And considering how sketchy some of the stuff the guy was into could be, it had to be precise … and not touch all that James had copied and backed up for their use as well.
Billy listened carefully and silently, though with every bit of information James gave him, James could see him tracing in the air. He wasn't using magic yet, but James knew he was applying some of what he'd been studying under Strange - supplementing his own power with magic. Sigils and runes and things that would make something like this doable without draining him too badly.
At some point in James's explanation, Billy ended up with his head on James's shoulder, still tracing shapes.
"You know I don't mean you need to do this this second, right?" James said. "I don't have to go in tomorrow. I can always call in sick."
Billy snorted. "Oh yeah. He'd definitely believe that." He nuzzled deeper into James's chest. "I can get this. Better when I've got it all fresh in my head. Just…" He kissed James's jaw and then sat up. "Okay. Let me start working this up. Walk me through it all again, and this time, I'll be working it up with each step." His eyes lit up with power. "I don't want to wait when it comes to this guy."
"You got it," James agreed, then took a deep breath before starting all over again - slowly this time.
Billy drew sigils in the air that glowed the same white as his eyes but blurred at the edges like starlight. And James didn't say anything, but Billy wasn't sitting on the couch anymore. Eventually, they'd walked through it all, and Billy threw both hands out, spreading the magic into the reality of the world in one movement.
And then, Billy sank back against James's chest, visibly worn out.
James was quick to wrap his arms around him and hold him a little tighter. "Okay. What do you want me to do?"
"I'm very hungry," Billy admitted, nuzzling into the hug. "And I can't do anymore big wishes for a while, so if everyone could refrain from having emergencies for several hours, I'd appreciate it."
"Got it. You want me to order in, or do you want me to cook?"
"Oh, man. Hard choice." Billy turned his head to look up at him. "Let's order in - only because I'm hungry enough I think smelling your cooking and not being able to immediately eat it would be torment." He burrowed in somehow deeper. "I've missed you, you know."
"Sorry about that. Wasn't my idea."
"I know. I even sent our favorite alien to spy on Sinister, but he couldn't tell me what was going on."
James frowned at that. "How did he not find anything?"
"He just said he saw you studying with him, but he couldn't see anything actionable."
"Well, sure. Telepathic interference isn't very dramatic to watch."
"I did suggest that we're totally fine with him breaking the rules with this guy, but…"
"Huh," James said quietly, then shook his head and took his phone out of his pocket to order in. "That's a not tonight problem. As much as I don't want Noh tangled up in Sinister crap, he can wait."
"Yeah, better things," Billy agreed, pulling James's arms back around him once he was done putting in the order.
"But … if it's not too taxing, maybe you can tell me what you did?" James suggested. "We've got a little time to kill while we wait for the delivery - though I am open to other suggestions."
"I just married my will to yours, and I love you enough that the spell was easy to match our intents. Next question - or next activity," Billy teased and kissed him.
"Your turn to pick," James said.
"Okay. Food first. And then it's actually been ages since we've just, like, gone on a walk. Like a normal couple. Can we do that?"
"Whatever you want, little prince."
Nate had taken a moment after Wanda had sent James back to Billy to gather himself. He knew that Wanda had questions, and he was trying to figure out how to answer those questions while protecting the secrets his brother and his dad and his wife had asked him to keep.
If he was honest, he was more concerned about the fact that Kate genuinely did want the guy as her doctor, because, weirdly, he had been the best of all the options they'd tried. And as much as that sucked, he was willing to put up with this for just a couple more months… and then he'd get the guy.
He must have taken longer than he'd thought he had to regather himself, because when he left the room, Wanda looked concerned. "I'm fine," he said, like a reflex. "I just overdid it fixing everything - well, almost everything. Billy's going to help with the rest."
"And what, exactly, is 'the rest'?" Wanda asked pointedly.
Nate let his breath out for a long, long time. "I know you're going to hate this answer," he said, and that already had Wanda wrinkling her nose. "But I'm being honest when I tell you we just recently learned about an extended family member on my side of the family who's a powerful telepath and is being a pain - but we're trying to deal with it in the family for now." He sighed. "I don't necessarily agree with it, but you know how my family can be when it's about family."
"I'm familiar," she agreed, looking entirely put out before she stopped him from walking off. "You need back up."
"I've got Kate," Nate said with a warm smile.
Wanda raised an eyebrow. "And you have us, too." Her hands started to glow as red light swirled around both of them and settled into his skin. "All you have to do is call for help. A tall order to ask a Summers, but …"
"Still appreciated," Nate promised.
"You can ask Billy and Tommy how well it works," Wanda continued. "You just need to call out 'Help, Wanda'. Saying it alone won't do it. There would need to be an imminent threat., too."
"Yeah, I might." Nate paused as he realized something else. "Can you put this on Kate, too?" he asked.
"Of course. I already have it on your brother."
"That's a relief," Nate said, his shoulders visibly dropping.
Wanda smiled and took a moment to bring Kate to them, then, once Nate had halfway steadied her, Wanda started that spell up, too - before Kate had been fully warned.
"Wha-a-a-a-a-at the futz," Kate said, her eyes wide.
Wanda was smiling by that time. "You are so much like your father sometimes," she said. "It's an emergency spell. If you find yourself in danger, just call for help - to me specifically."
"Oh my god, Nate, if you're going to be overprotective, I swear, you can do that just as effectively with time for me to know about it," Kate said, smacking him in the chest.
"I didn't know she was going to hit you with it the second you got here," Nate defended as Wanda laughed.
"My boys have the same spell on them. Ask them how well it works if you're worried. Tommy just had an experience with it."
"Oooh, he told me about that!" Kate said, beaming. "We were texting the other day. I asked him how he was doing and - boom - wall of text about how his mom went to town on an Acolyte that wanted in his pants because he's hot stuff or whatever," she said, laughing.
"It was a group attack - on the Acolyte," Wanda said with a wave.
"Right, right, wasn't James playing Bad Cop? I wasn't sure what was exaggeration and what wasn't."
"He did a surprisingly good job at bad cop," Wanda admitted. "Scared half of the guards while he was at it."
"That's my big brother," Nate said, smiling crookedly.
Wanda shook her head as she looked between them. "Well. I'm sure you two had other business to attend to while you were here. Just let me know when you want to go back if you want to do it the fast way."
"Actually, I should probably check on my dad. I kind of left his place in a rush on a mission when I realized I needed to help James. So you know he's worried."
"Do whatever you need to do, Nate," Wanda said warmly. "As much as my boys would hate to hear it, I can get you home faster than either of them."
"Too true," Kate said brightly, pulling her arm through Nate's. "And Nate was here originally to steal me more of Annie's Valentine's goodies…"
"Say no more," Wanda said - and the two of them saw her raise her hand to snap her fingers before they were in Scott and Annie's kitchen.
Scott was on the phone furiously discussing something with whoever was on the other end, while Annie was pacing - which they had never seen her do - but when Annie said, "Oh, it's Nate!" Scott immediately switched gears.
"Alex, I'll call you back. Nate's here," he said and hung up without waiting for Alex's reaction.
Kate had stopped and was staring at Scott. "What the futz," she whispered, which was when Nate realized he hadn't filled her in - which was really a testament to how much had happened so quickly, because he usually would have prepped her. And then, before he could fill her in, she whispered, "Oh my god, is he taking - is he - Nate!" She couldn't form a full sentence, but he could hear her freaking out mentally wondering if their doctor was no longer safe.
And before Nate could even begin to deal with that, he got a text from James that simply said: Got it done.
Nate let out all his breath and sat down, rubbing his forehead. "Hi, Dad. Sorry to scare you. Promise I dealt with it."
"Dealt with it?" Scott repeated. He couldn't see Nate at the moment, but he pointed in his direction. "Nate, what the hell happened?"
"I fixed it," Nate shot back, raising his voice to be heard over his dad's panic. "That guy was deep in James's head, but I fixed it. I undid everything I could, and what I couldn't undo, I booby-trapped to hell and back. And that blackmail James was using?" Nate gave Annie a significant look, since Scott couldn't see it. "Sinister had it locked away. I unlocked it, and James just texted me to let me know he and Billy reinforced it." He looked back at Kate and met her gaze. "He thought he was safe to act like he's used to, but we're back to having his life's work in our grip. So, he will behave."
There was silence in the living room for a long time before Kate broke it with a grin and a whispered, "God, it's so hot when you do that."
Nate flushed a brilliant red, but Scott still didn't look convinced, his jaw tight, even if he wasn't at the level of a full panic yet.
"I think a little more detail might be in order," Annie suggested gently.
"If you give me a little bit, I can just do a telepathic information dump. I sort of burned myself out fixing everything with James, but that still might be fastest and avoid misunderstanding." Nate sighed. "Just… I know you know what I can do, Dad. And I didn't hold back, I promise. James is acting more like himself, too." He checked his phone as Billy texted too. "And Billy says he upgraded the blackmail so Sinister won't be able to save any of his copies even if he found a way around the worm."
"Oh, I love him too," Kate said. She checked her own phone and beamed at the picture of James and Billy. "Awww, they're crashing together. They needed this." She turned her phone around so the others could see. "James is definitely doing better. Billy's been missing him pretty badly."
Annie smiled and sat down by Scott, projecting the picture to Scott so he could see it. They really do look like they're relaxing, and you know that only happened at the holidays.
"Billy says James is calling in sick tomorrow," Kate giggled, and Nate audibly snorted.
"Oh yeah, that'll work."
Nate and Kate put their heads together, smiling over the texts they were getting. But Annie held Scott's hand. They seem like they know what they're doing. And you have to admit, that blackmail scheme was working - it was.
Until it wasn't.
And now it is again, Annie said firmly. Don't get me wrong. He terrifies me. But, Scott, your kids are terrifying too.
That still has James putting himself in front of everyone, Scott said. Sinister will be more mad this time around. If it works.
"Oooh, guys, Rachel's involved to check their work!" Kate called out happily. "All the big guns."
Nate wasn't nearly as giddy as Kate, but he did make sure to tell Scott: "Rach says the Phoenix is pissed on James's behalf. Says it wants to tear Sinister apart but agreed to limit itself to just reinforcing the wish Billy cast on Sinister's life work if he steps out of bounds."
Scott let out a sound from the back of his throat. "This isn't going to end well," he muttered to Annie, who squeezed his hand but projected to him the picture Kate showed them of James wrapped around Rachel in a hug.
I know - I know - you're worried. And I know you've got every reason to be. But your kids have all come together to force a monster back into the closet. He's rattling the doorknob, but it's back in there. And that's worth praising and celebrating, isn't it? They're amazing.
They are.
Then tell them that and don't let them think because it's not perfect you won't celebrate it, Annie said pointedly.
Scott turned her way, his body language screaming that he would have been rolling his eyes if he could have. But she was also right, and he sighed heavily before he let her lead him over to Kate and Nate so he could reach over to Nate and squeeze his arm tightly.
"You screwed up his plans, Nate. He'll be pissed, because he hates feeling like he got outmaneuvered," Scott told him in an undertone.
"I know," Nate said. "And I'm watching. I swear I am."
Scott let his shoulders drop as he heard what Annie had identified: Nate was still young enough that he wanted his dad's approval. "I know you are," he said. He paused. "You gave him a hell of a black eye. Nice shot at his ego, too. Good job."
"It'll work," Nate said. "And I think we'll be able to get a leg up on him with enough time to think it all through. Especially now that we're all on the same page."
"Hell yeah," Kate said, grinning. "Just gotta wait until our little guy gets here, and then let's bury him."
Annie met Nate's gaze for a second, and Nate nodded, projecting to her, I'll look into her head once I've got my energy back.
Good. This doesn't sound right to me. Annie was worrying her lip as she considered it, but made sure to keep her focus elsewhere so as not to tip off Kate that they were discussing her.
I mean, she's been a bit … I mean, she's been pretty clear that she wants to keep him as her doctor, and that hasn't changed. But it feels…different.
Get yourself all recharged and distract her with her best friends so you can see better, Annie suggested. She's all wrapped up in that cute little turn of things.
I feel like you're getting more devious the longer you and Dad stay here and play spy with Kate's mom, Nate teased.
Oh good. My other suggestion was to tell her mom what the whole story is then stand back and watch.
Well, Wanda's already clued in that something's going on, so between her and Natasha, we could just sit back and pop popcorn, right?
I'll be surprised if Wanda doesn't fix it with a twitch of her nose.
Yeah, we just have to make sure there's not a failsafe if that happens, because Sinister does still have a locked box in James's head, and I don't trust that he hasn't hid a part of himself there or something, you know? The more I think about it, the more I'm worried about it.
That just sounds wrong.
Welcome to the evil part of telepathy. I'll be your instructor. Role reversal, huh? Nate couldn't help but tease.
Annie laughed out loud. "Scott, your son is offering to be my teacher."
"Probably couldn't get a better telepathy instructor outside of Betsy and Rachel," Scott said without missing a beat.
"Hey." Nate turned his whole body toward Scott.
"Am I wrong?" Scott shot back.
"Yes."
"I'll let you think that," Scott said, smirking.
"No, I'll let you think that," Nate teased.
Annie leaned into Scott, smiling as Scott and Nate started to tease each other in earnest. They were all so stressed, and she still felt like all of her emotions were on a knife edge lately. So diffusing that particular situation… that was a relief she couldn't articulate.
Chapter 147: Gloves Off
Chapter Text
When James went in to renegotiate with Sinister, he didn't bother trying to start off on the right foot. In fact, rather than open with a peace offering, he came into the empty lab with a tall latte and no bookbag or laptop, making it clear he wasn't planning to stay and work once he was done saying what he went there to say.
Sinister was already irritated, too - a day off out of the blue was a ridiculous notion, particularly under the guise of 'sickness'.
"Office," Sinister barked out and James looked up to meet his gaze and pointedly sat down on a stool at a work bench.
"No." James took a drink of his coffee then set it down, knowing full well that Sinister would be coming at him to freeze him in place next. "We're alone here as it is, no reason to have a second locked door when we're just going to be talking."
"Where are your materials?" Sinister challenged.
"Put away where they belong," James answered. "You and I both know I've already done a full two years worth of coursework for my degree. Everything else going on is your discretion and you've been taking advantage."
"A bit less charitable this time, are we?" Sinister said, realizing that James hadn't tried to open the same way he had before. "No extra tea today?"
"No, see, I'm American," James said. "And I prefer coffee, so … no. Especially after my olive branch last time was snatched out of my hands and used to beat me." He turned to face Sinister fully, looking more like himself around him than he had in months. "Let's just get right to it. The blackmail is back on."
Sinister grinned broadly. "My dear boy, I believe you'll find that impossible to do now. You helped me to disable it yourself. And I've long since shifted to more reliable backups. Go ahead, set loose your little worm."
"We've talked about this," James said. "You and your insistence to get new samples constantly … I would have thought that you'd keep up on your data much better." He tapped his head. "I no longer need a laptop to trigger it. Cross a line that I've drawn in the concrete and your life's work is gone."
"You must actually be ill," Sinister said. "You know as well as I do that your coding won't do a thing without the right commands."
"And those commands and methods are no longer composed of code," James said. "The trigger on this gun is now magical, tied to my intentions - which are being guarded in part by some handy work my brother did, some spellwork my fiance did, and a sliver of the Phoenix force."
"I thought you weren't eligible to be engaged until your prince was twenty-one?"
"Just a matter of time. And not the point."
Sinister scowled and threw a hand out to freeze James in place before he stalked over and took a hold of James's head. "We'll see about that."
Tread lightly, James warned with a projection. Things have changed here since last you were putting your feet on the furniture. I know you have traps, but Nate has more. And Rachel's contain fire.
When Sinister projected to James, it was all he could hear - far more all encompassing than anyone else had done, and his words rang with exactly the menacing emotions that he was feeling as he spoke. Do you think those children had any idea how to disarm everything I left behind? Do you truly think that I'd let your arrogant little threat from last time stand without repercussions?
Though he was frozen in place, James looked up to see how quickly Sinister had shifted from cautious and inconvenienced to furious and holding back while he loomed over him. Regardless of what you think, I don't want to fight with you. I don't want this to come to that.
I know you don't, Sinister said, though even telepathically, it sounded as if it came from between gritted teeth. Understand this, boy: I have worked too hard and come too far to simply roll over for anyone. What is mine will remain mine, and not you or anyone in your little pack of friends will dictate to me where that line is.
You know my terms, James replied, shoring himself up slightly. My family and friends are off limits. That includes adoptive family. Stay away from the Summers family.
How am I to do that when I'm the only one trusted enough to care for Katherine?
James paused, knowing that Sinister was looking for a way around the traps and triggers Nate and Rachel had set up to thwart him. He hadn't dove in entirely, so he hadn't figured out a way to circumvent much. How much of that is genuine and how much is manipulated?
How much of your willingness to work with me is genuine? Sinister shot back. Consider your answer carefully. You may just find that Katherine is contending with a similar level of cooperation.
Manipulated or not, that was exactly the right angle to take to make James slow down - because he did actually want to learn from him. He knew that there was no better teacher for this subject on the planet … and Sinister could actually teach.
"I'm not going to trade my family's welfare for anything," James said sternly.
"And I refuse to sacrifice my life's work to appease a ranting child."
"You know that's not what's going on."
"For the moment." Sinister scowled and pushed past the level of simply projecting to and reading projections. He knew there were traps, but he didn't have much confidence in children who had learned from anyone less than Xavier. Their instruction was second hand at best. So he didn't truly expect more than a haphazard simple trap that had been erected out of rage and too much power.
He wasn't expecting to find himself encapsulated in a glowing sphere that kept him from touching or altering anything on the psychic plane. For an instant he wondered if he'd managed an actual trap, but as soon as he started to test the boundaries of the bubble to push through forward, he began to feel as if the air was being ripped from his lungs. The harder he pushed, the harder it was to breathe.
A far cleverer trap than he was anticipating, but not exactly something he couldn't work around. The trick, of course, was to push through the panic of not being able to breathe … when one truly didn't need to breathe on the psychic plane to begin with.
Nate and Kate had decided to stay in Genosha for a while after the initial scare, especially since it was clear that Scott and Annie needed the support. But they were on a completely different time zone, so Scott and Annie were asleep at the moment, and Nate and Kate were curled up with each other in the guest room.
And then, in the middle of a long kiss that was threatening to turn into something more substantial, Nate nearly came out of his skin as an alarm went off in his head that let him know one of the many traps he'd set had been triggered.
Kate pulled back to watch Nate and then, seeing the look on his face, pulled out her phone and texted Tommy. "Need me to get you a ride to Westchester?" she asked.
"Yeah," Nate said, his eyes already glowing as he pulled the covers off and started to pull clothes and socks and shoes on. "Faster is better."
"Yeah, I'll make sure he knows that," Kate said.
In no time at all, Tommy zipped over and didn't ask questions before he got Nate to Westchester. His mom had let him know that something was up with that family - again - and he'd honestly been half-expecting to be needed. And he was starting to get more involved anyway, now that the ban on his powers had been lifted.
Nate went tearing down the hallway to Cerebro and jumped into James's mind as soon as he could, not at all surprised to see that Sinister was already pushing his way through the bubble that was his first trap.
And since Kate was still half on his mind, Nate announced his entrance with a psychic arrow right into Sinister's chest just as he emerged from the bubble. "Stay the hell away from my brother's mind," Nate said, stepping in front of James in the psychic plane.
"What makes you think that I'll listen to your demands any more than I'd listen to his?" Sinister hissed.
"Because I'm not asking," Nate said, his eyes glowing with power. The bubble Sinister had stepped out of shattered, and all of the shards of it turned to sharp glass headed right for Sinister.
Before they could hit Sinister, they disintegrated in a flash of red power that turned into a much more focused laser headed right for Nate. Nate threw up a glowing blue shield, but the laser knocked him back a step into one of Sinister's traps: a pool of red energy that swirled around Nate's ankles and pulled at him with hands reaching from the pool, threatening to drown him if he didn't pull away.
"You aren't fighting some amateur, boy."
Nate's eyes flashed again, and he sent another arrow toward Sinister. Since Sinister had already seen that move, he calmly sidestepped it - but Nate had been aiming for his own trap, which was behind Sinister anyway. The trap went off in a burst of blue light, and Sinister found himself once more in a bubble, this time filled with smoke that made it difficult to see Nate.
That gave Nate enough time to pull himself free of Sinister's trap, but of course, that meant Sinister had the time to escape the trap Nate had set off. And that left them both standing on even ground again, glaring at each other.
"Yeah, I'm not an amateur either, old man," Nate said, settling into a fighting stance.
The fight that followed lasted a good, long time in that way - and felt longer than it was because it was all happening on the psychic plane. Both of them had traps set in James's mindscape that they were each making use of, and it was those traps that gave Nate the advantage, because he'd been through James's mind ahead of time and had fixed much of what Sinister had broken. But Sinister was a more powerful telepath than Nate had ever dealt with, and so while Nate had the environmental advantage, he was constantly making use of those traps and tricks just to keep Sinister off-balance - because each psychic blow Sinister landed was substantial.
But the moment Sinister landed a hit that sent Nate to his knees with a psychic knife that had him gasping in pain, Nate lost his temper. Sinister had nearly escaped the bear trap-like trap that Nate had set off, but before he could, Nate reached out with one hand and yanked the trap toward him, nearly taking Sinister's leg off in the process. And he didn't pause, flipping the trap around to throw it toward Sinister's head.
Sinister was panting as he threw up a shield to stop the trap from hitting him, but he was smirking as well. "How good it feels to be proven right. Even if you are lashing out a bit. The determination, however … it suits you. You will lose this round, though, my boy."
Nate pulled a face, one hand to his stomach as he got to his feet. "Yeah, yeah. You give up yet?"
"Not when I have so much more I can do here," Sinister replied.
"I already told you that isn't happening," Nate said.
"Then I'll just have to retreat," Sinister said, grinning in such a way that it was very clear that whatever followed would be damaging. "And take all of my protections with me."
"Okay."
Sinister was grinning as he turned his attention to the massive box that Nate had been unable to breach - and in a matter of moments, all of Sinisters left over traps went off at once and the box cracked open.
Nate had known that whatever Sinister was about to do was going to be rough, but he had said he would do it in retreat, and so he'd prepared to throw whatever energy came his way right back at Sinister to propel him out of James's mind, forcing him to make good on his promise to retreat.
It was genuinely exhausting, because there was so much energy and instability. He was hit with the sharpness and stickiness and hurt of a dozen traps, because he'd been so focused on sending Sinister out that he hadn't shielded himself. And while he was on the ground, curled in on himself and trying to play cooler because James was right there, the ground shook and the wind picked up.
And then, both Nate and James saw a parade of memories flood out of the box Sinister had broken open. They saw James working with Sinister, learning how to use Sinister's methods on people. On subjects. They saw James learning his techniques.
A lot of the memories passed by too quickly for either of them to stay too long in them - thankfully - but when James realized that he recognized one of the subjects as he saw that memory burst out, the memory itself slowed down and surrounded the two of them, with Nate doing his best to keep his concentration and not get too lost in the memory like James was getting.
But it was hard not to get lost, because he knew how close James had gotten to Noh while they'd gone after Midas, and in the memory, James's eyes were wide as Sinister talked him through what he wanted to study in Noh, even though he wasn't a mutant.
Sinister had his hand on James's shoulder. "You see," he was saying to James in the memory, "while the specific genetic codes we have in our world are not the same, it is always interesting to see another geneticist's work. Your new teammate's people engineered their citizens; let's see what we can learn from them."
"How do we do that without a clean sample to start from that isn't already tampered with?" James had asked, which only had Sinister smiling widely.
"You're absolutely right," Sinister said, obviously pleased. "It is easiest to see changes with a comparison like that. However, I've already looked at his genetic structure, and it seems his people engineered a triple-helix. The third helix is where we will focus our study; that seems to be where the most engineering was done."
James nodded, then simply got to work in the memory with Sinister looking more and more smug as the memory continued.
"James, what the futz," Nate said, his voice breaking into the memory and startling James.
"I … don't …" James was staring at the memory as his breath came in shorter, shallower breaths before he let out a soft curse.
It was genuinely horrifying, and it was everything Nate could do to make sure Sinister was still stuck on the outside. James was watching it all and having a genuine panic attack, and Nate couldn't help him because he was hurt and putting everything he had into making sure Sinister didn't come back in while James was that vulnerable.
"Hey. Big brother," Nate said in a whisper as he dragged himself upright. He'd taken a serious beating from what Sinister had pulled, but he was too stubborn to let the defenses down. "Hey, I need your help," he said, hoping that would break James out of his horror. But when not even that worked, Nate, groaning, dragged himself over, pulled himself upright, and hit James. "Hey!"
James was still half out of it, but now he could at least recognize that Nate was in trouble. "You're going to get hurt worse," James told him as he shifted to trying to support Nate, though he was still visibly reeling. "I'll be alright - you can go. Before it happens again."
Nate shook his head. "I'm okay," he promised. "And I used his attack to kick him out. He can't get in right now." Even as he spoke, they could see red light shattering against a blue dome above their heads as Sinister tested Nate's telepathic defenses.
James did his best to help hold Nate up. "This is so far out of my realm."
"That's okay. Just means I get to be the badass this time," Nate said with a crooked smirk.
"What else is new?" James said, starting to pull himself out of the panic. "It's just a toss up between you and Rachel, and we all know you've got her beat."
Nate grinned at that. "Yeah, well, speaking of Rachel… can you reach out to her real quick? I'm too tired to do anything but keep him out, and we need to reset all those traps."
"Yeah, I think so," James said, keeping a hold on Nate as he concentrated on Rachel.
Nate leaned heavily on his brother, letting James hold him up so he could put his whole focus on keeping Sinister out. He was getting tired, but as soon as Rachel arrived, he relaxed a bit more.
"Okay, we have to reset the traps," Nate said.
"Nate, I'm right next to him outside of the psychic plane," James pointed out. "You need to get out and get your strength back in case he decides to kill me."
"Yeah, just… we need our alarm system to work. I only need like, two minutes," Nate said. Rachel was already getting to work, taking the fight into Sinisters head using the energy Nate had redirected to push him all the way back. "We can't take chances with him. Just… look, I hate to be grim, but even an instant kill, it takes a few seconds, right? For your body to die? I've got time to get out."
"Yeah, in theory," James said. "And I doubt it would stick, but still …"
"I've got it set," Rachel said - faster than Nate had expected… and much fierier than usual. "Let's go."
"I'm texting Billy to wish you out of there as soon as I get back in my head," Nate told James. He wiped his mouth with the back of his hand and was about to leave when all of a sudden, everything dimmed to darkness and fell silent. Nate instinctively snapped back into his own head, opening his eyes in the Cerebro room and gasping in his breath, his hand on his chest in pure panic when he realized what had happened.
That was too close. And it was genuinely terrifying that Sinister was willing to take a chance at losing Nate by killing James- even though Sinister was so thrilled with Nate. With both of them.
Nate's nose was bleeding freely, and he had an extreme headache. With shaking hands, he pulled the helmet off and slid the rest of the way to the floor, then put his head between his knees for a long minute before he did text Billy.
Wish James to you. Now. But be prepared. I think Sinister killed him. Not permanently. Just… lashing out.
He set his phone down and rested his head on his knees, too tired to care what Billy's reaction was as long as he got James to safety. And he stayed there until he heard the door to the room open. He didn't even have to look up to know it was his sister, either; he'd seen how worried she looked. "I'm fine. You need to go to James and Billy and set more traps or this will all have been for nothing."
"Yeah, well … you're getting a few too. That was nasty," Rachel said as she sat down next to him.
"Yeah, James is the priority," Nate said, wiping his hand under his nose and frowning at how much blood was still there.
"Pretty sure Billy has him covered right now."
"Yeah." Nate took a long, deep breath. "I beat him, Rach. That's why he killed James. He couldn't get back in because I threw his damn traps back at him."
"And he was with James physically … yeah, that really sucks."
"But we've got the blackmail back on, and as long as we keep our alarm system and traps in place, we'll be okay until we figure something else out," Nate said firmly. "Right now, I'm more worried about James. Sinister was controlling him before; that's what that safe was. And Dad can't know about how that went down today, because he's already stressed enough as it is. He's still convinced we're doomed when it comes to this guy."
"I get that, but I'm worried about you and James," Rachel said.
"You never stop, huh?" Nate teased lightly and leaned over to rest his head on her shoulder.
"Sure I do. Right after you."
"Touche." Nate sighed and closed his eyes. "Sorry. I'm getting blood on your shirt. I should probably ask Hank for something to make that stop."
"Try using my shirt," Rachel deadpanned.
Nate chuckled at that, and they sat in silence for several long minutes before Nate cleared his throat. "So. I guess this is what we do now."
"Sit around and bleed?"
"Nah, fight a terrifying supervillain with hardly any notice just to keep our brother from being turned into an unwilling lab assistant."
"I didn't see all that," Rachel admitted. "I'd be more worried about how he handles that part."
"He didn't respond to me asking for help until I hit him, so…"
"So about as well as you'd imagine."
"Pretty much." Nate wiped his nose again and was glad to see that the blood had slowed down, at any rate. "So, do we pull in the people who don't know? I know Dad and Uncle Alex and James want to keep this in the family, but, like… this is bad, right?"
"It is bad," she agreed. "But we should regroup with those most central and work our way out. No telling if there are telepathic commands buried in there that would be triggered if we step out too quickly."
"Yeah, I'm just saying: it seems like Wanda wants a shot at whoever's bothering us…"
"I'm sure she does, but," Rachel took a deep breath. "I'm worried about repercussions on the magical realm with her. She has her father's temper."
"Good point. And James doesn't want the whole team involved."
"James doesn't get much of a vote," Rachel said flatly. "He's been under this creep's thumb for the whole school year."
"No, this was before the influence," Nate said. "When he looked into the guy… I don't know. Part of why I haven't told, like, Thor or somebody what's going on is that Sinister treats some people differently than others. Some are disposable. And he killed James because he got mad - and he doesn't want me or James dead." From Nate's tone, it was increasingly clear to Rachel that Nate wasn't filtering his thoughts and was panicking more than he realized he was - and hurt more than he would admit.
"And he almost killed you tonight," Rachel said gently. "If you had been a little slower …"
"He doesn't want me dead, and he almost killed me," Nate said, still spinning. "He wouldn't have left even the possibility of escape if it was someone else that he didn't care about. And I keep going back and forth on totally understanding why James doesn't want to get anyone else involved and risk lives and wanting to ask for help because that was bad, Rach. It was bad. And my head is killing me," he added, letting out a sound from the back of his throat.
"So … you need Kate."
"Yeah. And. Um." He cleared his throat. "I wouldn't say no to you setting a few traps for me."
"Oh, I was going to do that anyhow."
"That's the big sister I know and love," Nate said, closing his eyes to let Rachel into his mind.
Tommy had gone to his brother as soon as he'd dropped off Nate, knowing things were about to go down. He didn't know what was happening, but he knew his brother and the Summers family were up to something.
So Billy had a little bit of warning ahead of time, but neither of them had expected Nate's text.
"Ho-lee crap," Tommy said when Billy wished James to them. James was a bloody mess with a scalpel jammed underneath his jaw at his carotid.
"I'm going to wish him into the sun," Billy said through his teeth - but what he did instead was remove the scalpel, cover the injury with his hand, and give James a healing boost with a spell his mom had taught him now that he was studying more magic with Strange.
After a few minutes, James started to breathe, and Tommy leaned back, shaking his head. "This sucks. Whatever it is, I hate it already. What the heck."
"You can't tell Mom about this," Billy said, even as he shifted so James's head was in his lap, supporting him more than healing him.
"Why the hell not?"
"Because she'll try to fix it, and I've already looked into what it would take to do, and I can't find a solution that doesn't tap into that weird cosmic something I used when I killed Katarina," Billy told him frankly. "We're fighting a guy that can send his soul into other bodies; it's hard to kill something like that."
"You mean without any big consequences."
"Right. And from what I've seen from the books I've borrowed from Strange, soul-hunting is… it's bad. It's really bad."
"Well it doesn't exactly sound good," Tommy pointed out.
"Yeah. So, you're in the circle. We're dealing with a mad scientist who's figured out how to make himself practically unkillable. It sucks, but we're dealing with it." Billy peeked down at James, who was starting to wake up. "We're dealing with it, right? What's going on? Do we pull the blackmail lever now, or…?"
James took a second to focus on where he was before he drew in a quick breath and sat up fast - one hand on his neck where he'd been stabbed. That wasn't anything like he'd been expecting - and though he knew it was a distant possibility, Sinister had been so careful with him up until that point … "What?"
"What?" Billy blinked back at him. "What happened? Nate texted me to wish you here, and you were dead, so… you're the one with answers, handsome."
As James thought about it, his hands started shaking all over again, on the edge of a panic attack as he remembered everything that Sinister had set loose. But his tone was almost distant when he responded with "He lost his temper."
"Yeah, I'm getting that idea." Billy shifted so he could put his hand on James's chest and pull him back down for a moment longer. "You've got good backup, though. We got you out."
"I pushed him too far." James shook his head. "I'm not going back unless I have to."
Billy let his shoulders drop, and he kissed James upside down. "Good. You can be my cabana boy, then," he said, trying to tease out a smile.
James gave him a dry look. "I can finish most of my doctoral stuff without being on campus."
"So, cabana boy," Tommy put in, grinning.
"That's Dr. Cabana boy to you."
"Okay." Tommy shook his head and got to his feet. "So, Billy will explain things to me later, I'm sure, but I know not to tell anyone about your mad scientist problem. But if you need help, I'm in the circle now, just so you know."
"Hey Tommy?" James said, which at least got him to stop before he took off. "Thanks for getting Nate so fast."
Tommy paused and then smiled despite himself. "Hey, you're gonna be in the family soon. Billy says I'm best man, so… I gotta get the groom to the wedding, right?"
"Provided I don't find new, stupider ways to screw myself over, you mean."
"Yeah, that," Tommy said, giving James a two-fingered salute before he rushed off, leaving Billy shaking his head.
"Okay, seriously, you okay?" Billy asked once Tommy was gone.
"No," James said crisply. "I need to go take a shower and freak out for a minute. I am failing at holding back a panic attack and I just … need a minute."
"Okay." Billy helped him to his feet. "I'll order food. I know you need to heal after that."
"Love you too," James said, frowning at himself when all he could see looking down was deep red. "Oh, man. Sorry about the whole …" he gestured to himself and let the sentiment fall.
"James, if blood was a dealbreaker for me, you'd know by now," Billy teased. "I'm fine. Go clean up and you can catch me up on what I'm sure was an epic fight."
"I'll do what I can," James said before he stole a quick kiss and headed off at a fast clip. He practically dove into the shower, then slipped down to sit on the floor, hugging his knees before he let himself go. He wasn't exaggerating to Billy. He needed to just … go ahead and have that panic attack. But at least this time, he didn't try to rush himself or push it back. Instead, he rode it out, even though he ended up entirely curled into himself until the water ran cold.
When he finally got out of the shower, dried off, and headed to the living room to see Billy and grab a bite to eat, he was exhausted. And entirely unprepared to see Rachel, who nearly tackled him in a tight hug when she saw him.
"You gotta do this right now?" James asked, though his shoulders were relaxed as he snuggled into her.
"Yes, of course i do," Rachel said, sounding emotional. "You have to stop using yourself as a buffer. You're going to get yourself killed permanently."
"Did you just come here to read me the riot act?"
"No. I'm reinforcing Nate's work and setting more traps," Rachel answered. "We can't let you go wandering around with Sinister knowing how to get in there and screw with you."
"I'm not going back unless I have to."
"Uh huh. I'm sure that'll work out long term," she said, shaking her head. "You know he won't let this be."
James shrugged. "You never know …"
"Optimistic. I like it. But you know he's going to come for you. He liked you."
"I just took a shower and suddenly feel like I need another one."
Rachel crossed her arms and gave him a wry look. "James. You've been defending him for months. You're just now listening to everything we were telling you before. Don't act like you've been upset the whole time."
"You really wanna pull an I told you so on Dad's behalf right now?"
"No," she said, frowning mildly. "I want to safeguard you. Let me try and protect you, doofus." Her frown shifted to a much warmer expression. "And if you end up not going anywhere near that creep for the rest of your life, then great. I just don't want you to leave yourself open in case he decides to come looking for you."
James nodded and followed her over to the couch, grateful that Billy welcomed him there with hot food while his sister prepared to do battle in his head … just in case.
Annie kept Scott in the loop with as much information as his kids were willing to share with him. For the moment, it seemed like they had won at least some kind of ceasefire with Sinister, though how long that would last, none of them were sure.
And Annie was doing her best, but she was struggling to keep hold of her emotions. Even with as well as things were going, even knowing that the tide was turning to their favor, she just felt like she'd been hit so many times first with her father and now with this… she couldn't help but get emotional.
Scott knew that he was asking a lot of her, too. He had meant to be there for her, to be around to hold her up after she had sacrificed so much to be part of his life. But all he could do, for now, was mentally curse Sinister for choosing now of all times to show up and make it difficult for him to help.
Of course, Annie kept assuring him that the colorful swearing he was doing in his head, all directed at Sinister, was more than cheering her up. And the even more colorful swearing as he had checked to see if the light still hurt his eyes while he was healing - and it did - also had her laughing. So at least there was that.
But when Annie took a moment to herself that night after dinner, Scott grabbed his phone and called Alex. "Hey," he said without waiting for Alex to say anything other than "hello." "New development. Can I borrow you tomorrow if things don't get any better? Someone came and played with my optic nerves, and even cyberoptics don't help with that."
"...what?"
"You heard me." Scott leaned back. "Look, I wouldn't ask, but Annie just lost her dad, and I hate to-"
"Scotty, why the hell do you wait to tell me these things until you're in recovery somewhere?" Alex interrupted him. "I'm coming over. See you soon." With that, Alex ended the call, leaving Scott shaking his head.
So, Alex is coming over, he projected to Annie. I told him what happened.
I was wondering when he'd be here, Annie admitted. Weren't you just talking to him after it happened?
Checking on his kids. Sinister was looking into Chris before, remember?
If it was me, Craig would have broken down the door about an hour after it happened.
I believe it.
Has he already eaten?
You don't have to feed everyone that comes over.
You weren't raised with the etiquette I was. I'll make sure we have something… I'm pretty sure I have some cookies I was going to send to Kate; he can have a few of those.
Scott smirked, but he knew Annie really did do better when she had something to do, so he let her be. He took a moment to himself to see if his eyes were healing up, too, and, small miracles, light didn't hurt anymore. He had no idea what Sinister had been playing with, but it seemed like his cyberoptics were reconnecting and possibly repairing whatever it was.
He knew the layout of the house well enough by that point that, even if he hadn't been able to see at all, he would have been able to find Annie in the kitchen. So, he made it a point to slip over to where she was looking through the cabinets and put his arms around her to pull her into a kiss.
"Hey," he said quietly, "I called him so you could get a break."
"I am far too stressed to sit down right now," Annie shot back. Then, she paused and returned the kiss. "But thanks. Maybe I'll call my own siblings, check and make sure they're okay. It should be morning there."
"Early," Scott said.
"Right. Time zone math." Annie rolled her eyes. "But really, if you want privacy-"
"No, I just wanted to offer you a break."
She smiled at that. "Thanks. I'll be fine. Isn't that what you're always saying?"
"Okay, that's not fair."
"Sure it is."
Scott smiled and leaned over her shoulder as she worked, hanging onto her waist and being absolutely no help, as she kept telling him through laughter - until Alex knocked on the door and he finally stole a kiss and went to go greet his brother, glad to have gotten Annie laughing, anyway.
"Alex, I'm fine," he said as he opened the door. "It's not like I can do anything but wait to heal right now."
"Oh sure, don't even give me a chance to help before you tell me I can't," Alex said before he pressed a pill bottle into Scott's hand. "Take this. It's supposed to help specifically with nerve pain. And if it doesn't do that, it definitely helps with anxiety, too."
"Oh, good, can you get more?" Annie called from the kitchen, dusting her hands off on her apron. "Have you eaten, Alex? Scott seems to think I shouldn't be hospitable and ask that."
Scott pinched the bridge of his nose. "That's not what I said."
"I'm good, Annie," Alex said brightly. "And there should be enough in there to last him a week if he lets you tell him when it's time to take them."
"He will," Annie said, slipping over to give Alex a warm hug. "It's good to see you, honestly. We haven't really gotten to breathe in a while, and as selfish as it sounds, I'm so glad someone else knows what's happening."
"Yeah, well I'm a little behind on that, admittedly," Alex said before he turned back to Scott dramatically - for Annie's entertainment. "What is going on, big brother? And why did you wait to tell me anything at all?"
Scott sighed and gestured for Alex to follow him to sit down at the table. "Seems like Sinister figured he had a way around that blackmail James had against him, and he was in James's head deep enough that Nate and Rachel had to fight him to get him out," he explained. "He's out again, the ceasefire is back on, and we're back where we started - just waiting for him to figure out another avenue of attack."
"Yeah, that sounds like it's time for me to start sleeping on your couch."
"I'm fine," Scott insisted.
"Well I'm not fine knowing that my big brother's closet monster is creeping around like dracula again."
"Not to mention the man was trying to prep to replace those eyes instead of just studying the damage," Annie said, blatantly saying what Scott wasn't. "And wondering aloud if while he was in there he shouldn't change more things."
Alex gestured to Annie with one hand. "This is the kind of thing you always leave out," he complained.
"Force of habit," Scott said at the same time Annie snorted.
"Well, knock it off!" Alex half shouted.
Scott held both hands up defensively. "It wasn't my idea!"
"The exploratory surgery, he means," Annie said, rolling her eyes. "Don't worry; I've become his translator. I swear that's why that vampire gave me these powers. He is maddening when you can hear the ninety-percent of thoughts he has without speaking them into being."
"Wait, I called you so you could give Annie a break, and now you're teaming up," Scott said, running a hand down his face.
"That's because he's a lovely future brother-in-law," Annie said, smiling warmly at Alex. "And he's on my side."
"And you don't talk," Alex added. "I have never been telepathic. I need words, Scott."
Scott kept his hand over his eyes as the two of them built on each other. And then, quietly, he said, "I did call to ask for help."
"Yes, but you need to be more specific and tell me more before you're in a spot where you need all this help."
"Sure, I'll get a crystal ball," he said dryly.
"When was the last time you talked to your therapist?" Alex challenged.
"Oh, I love him," Annie said, grinning triumphantly.
"You were doing so much better before, Scotty," Alex said. "You are slipping."
"I can't actually tell him what's going on," Scott pointed out.
"So, you can't tell him about Sinister, but you can keep working on any of your other very actionable therapeutic issues."
"Most of which I'm struggling with because of Sinister," Scott said. "You see how that's a problem, right?"
"Yeah, but you see how it's a problem to let it just go wild in the meantime, right?"
"He'd totally understand if you just explained that there was something going on with a telepathic bad guy," Annie said. "He'd just ask you to talk about what you could."
"Right?" Alex said, gesturing to Annie with one hand. "Because this one is a real therapist and can actually help."
Scott leaned back and then swore under his breath. "Of all the times to gang up…"
"Can you call him and make arrangements?" Alex said to Annie, ignoring Scott's reaction.
"Oh, absolutely," Annie said. And then, because she knew it would help their argument, she added, "He gave up a lot of his clients because he needed to be on call for all the heroes seeing him. And he needs something to do right now. Losing Dad hit him hard, and he's drifting."
"Do you want ours for a while?" Alex teased.
"Lord, no. Your father is a fool."
"Are you sure?" Alex was grinning broadly. "Might take your mind off of things."
"It absolutely would in all the worst ways."
"Okay. You heard it, Scotty. Either you work out something with your therapist or I'll ask Dad to come keep you company for the duration."
"I can't believe this is how you decided to be helpful."
"Hey. Our Dad is a pirate. I learned things. And I did bring you some meds for the nerves, so I helped … and now I'm helping some more."
Scott swore under his breath. "Fine," he said.
"I'm sorry, what?" Annie said, smiling broadly.
"Fine," he said. "But only because I know Alex will actually follow through on his threat."
"I will cry on the video call," Alex said, grinning.
"Devious," Annie said. "But let's save that for when we get married and you're in charge of getting him to our wedding on time."
"Oh, I'll just tell him it's a week before it actually is, then have his crew maroon him here."
"Yeah, that'd work," Scott said, smirking quietly. "Okay, I'll call Craig. Now can we move on?"
"Oh, yes, please, tell us about Chris!" Annie said. "How are his powers coming along? I know you've been excited to work with him."
Thank you, Scott projected to Annie as Alex beamed and took a deep breath to break into bragging on his son.
I'm going to call Craig myself if you back out.
Yes ma'am, Scott said, and Annie rolled her eyes but leaned over to kiss him anyway.
Chapter 148: A False Start
Chapter Text
When Nate came back from team practice, Kate was sitting on the floor with her back to the bed. She was just sitting with one leg tucked under her and the other straight out, her back against the bedpost, looking like everything hurt.
"The worst futzing leg cramps of my life," Kate explained when he came to sit down beside her.
He winced in sympathy, but he didn't even have to ask what help she needed when she was screaming mentally that she hadn't even been able to get on the bed. He telekinetically got her up there and then got her big water bottle for her - and for the most part, he just sat with her until she felt better.
Finally, she sat back, leaning on his shoulder heavily. "He's not even due until next month," she said, frustrated.
"Ready to evict?" Nate had to tease.
"Honestly, yeah," Kate said, snuggling into him a little deeper. "But don't jinx it, okay? Didn't Dr. Horrible say something about-"
"I don't really care what-"
"-about lung development next week?" Kate said, talking over him. "Be honest, Nate: do you want him around for a normal delivery or…"
"Okay, fair point," Nate said.
"So we're not jinxing it."
"We're not jinxing it."
"Good, because I've been having practice contractions and I don't need-"
"God, Kate, really?" Everything about Nate changed in that moment, and he was suddenly sitting up straighter, looking her over, peeking at her memories to see how much she was downplaying - and she was downplaying it.
"Just on and off!" Kate promised quickly, her eyes wide. "I haven't had one for a while, and then my legs betrayed me…"
Nate shook his head. "You're going to give me a heart attack."
"I'm pretty sure everyone in your family should be on some kind of heart pills as a default, so this is not even newsworthy, Nate," Kate said dryly.
"Still."
"Still," Kate said firmly. "You're going to be a mess for the next few weeks, aren't you?"
"Um, yeah."
"Okay, we'll be messes together." Kate snuggled into Nate - and almost immediately fell asleep, because she was physically exhausted. And Nate wasn't about to move, either, so he ordered some food and telekinetically guided it into their room so he at least had some food.
So everything was perfectly fine until Kate started to wake up again. At first, Nate thought she'd just smelled the food - but then he looked down at her expression and saw deep discomfort. By the time she opened her eyes, he could tell that she was hurting.
"Kate," he said gently, and she sucked in air through her teeth.
"I'm okay," she said.
"Kate."
"It'll pass."
"Kate."
"I know I said I was okay with him being my doctor but I'm suddenly really paranoid about it," she said in a rush of a whisper.
"I'll text James and let him know he's on deck for blackmail reminders," Nate said. "And I'll be right with you, okay?"
"Okay," Kate said, half burying her face in his arm as he just picked her up so they could both head out, since Kate was hurting pretty badly.
They called the office number that would, unfortunately, put them in touch with Sinister, and he of course met them there. By that point, Kate was feeling a little better, but she could still feel a few minor contractions every once in a while. And neither of them knew what they were doing, even with all that they'd read and researched and tried to prepare, so the fact of the matter was that Sinister saw two scared nineteen-year-olds in his office, and there wasn't much they could do to hide that part, anyway.
"I know we've been playing soft ball with all of this so far, but the time has come to focus on what's important to you here," Sinister said as he gestured for Kate to climb up on the exam table. "We need to see why you're having trouble this early, and make sure it stops for at least another two weeks, if possible. And I'm afraid that won't be feasible as we've been doing this."
"I know," Kate said in a breath. "I know. Really, I do."
"I'm not scolding you, Katherine. I'm simply stating what must be done."
"Yeah, I get that. You get why everything about this is terrifying, right?" Kate said, then sucked in air and grabbed onto Sinister's arm simply because he was in the act of helping her get settled and it hurt.
"Yes, I understand," Sinister agreed, keeping a light touch as he helped her through it.
Kate was incredibly pale as she reached out for Nate, and he slipped in so that Kate was holding onto his arm. That freed up Sinister to get what he needed to start up tests to see what was going on, at which point Nate jumped into Kate's head for a full distraction, because she was working up to a panic attack as soon as she saw the needles and other medical supplies. She had been doing okay getting over her fear of doctors, but when she was feeling that vulnerable and in that much pain, she didn't have as much of a handle on it as she wanted to.
While Nate completely cheated by projecting good memories into Kate's head, Sinister worked quickly - and Nate kept an eye on him, too. The worst part was that Sinister looked genuinely concerned, and the speed at which he was working wasn't just about efficiency. Nate was reminded all over again about how weird it was that they were related, but seeing him move like that made it a lot easier to recognize as a familial trait.
Nate himself was panicking as well, but he couldn't let himself fall into that, because Kate wasn't able to watch Sinister, so someone had to.
He got a text from James and glanced down at his phone, finally cracking a smirk when he saw that James was offering to handle Sinister and make him behave. Then a text from Billy came through that simply promised war. So they had good backup.
We're not sure what's happening right now but it's a little bit early. Doing tests, he texted both of them to keep them in the loop. If this ends up progressing too far, we could definitely use the backup. Kate's already well past panic. I'll keep you in the loop.
While he had his phone out, Nate went ahead and filled in the rest of the family on the basics: Kate was having some kind of trouble but they didn't know what it was just yet and he'd let them all know what the prognosis was as soon as he knew.
Sinister had finished what he was doing by then, so Nate let Kate slip back into present-time perception. She looked for a second like she might panic again, but having just spent several minutes reliving their last beach vacation in her head, she was feeling a lot more stable and ready to handle things.
"So… are we having a baby today or…?"
"Not today," Sinister said, then let out a long breath as he decided how best to explain it. The truth was, as anxious as they all were to meet the little one, this was a bit too early for comfort. "I've given you a medication to slow things down, a bag of fluids to hydrate you, and a mild anti-anxiety medication. If you want to avoid having this child prematurely, you'll need to adjust significantly. Bed rest. For at least the next two weeks. More would be better."
Kate's expression fell, but she nodded all the same. "Yeah, okay. I get it," she said.
"I'll be checking in on you regularly," Sinister continued. "I'll give you a prescription for the anti-anxiety medication. I suggest it become a staple for the time being."
"Yeah, definitely a good call," Kate said, one side of her mouth pulled up in a sheepish smirk. She wiped underneath her eyes and let out her breath. "It's not like I'll have a shortage of people to help me out, I just…" She trailed off, but both Sinister and Nate heard her project the rest without meaning to: she felt trapped and exhausted.
We'll find a show to binge together or something, Nate promised. We'll conspire with Billy. We'll bug Steve on your sister's behalf about joining the team. Whatever you want.
You're very sweet, Nate. Not right now, okay? I'm tired.
Okay.
"In addition to the anxiety considerations, I'll be watching several other factors to keep tabs on other concerns. I won't trouble you with the details lest I trigger your anxiety further," Sinister continued after having given them a moment to discuss things. "But .. should you experience any headaches, changes in vision, light sensitivity, shortness of breath, sudden swelling of face, hands, or feet - or pain under your ribs, you will need to contact me immediately."
"Yeah. Okay."
SInister turned toward Nate. "Get her resting sooner than later."
"Yeah, on it," Nate said automatically, though he was a bit stuck on the fact that this meant they'd have to spend more time with the guy. "Any idea what… is he just impatient or…?"
"It could be any of a dozen factors," Sinister said. "Or a compilation of them. I'll have more concise answers once I run my labs. But none of it really changes the course of action that we're embarking upon today."
"Yeah. Just curious."
"As am I."
"Well, tell us later," Kate said. "If it's okay with everyone else, I'd like to go home now."
"Certainly," Sinister said, then stepped back from her. "We've done all we can for the moment."
Nate didn't wait for anything more than that before he picked Kate up, and he quickly pulled her back into his head so they could telepathically plot and plan together and utterly ignore Sinister - though she fell asleep on the ride and he did end up pulling over to the side of the road to just sit there and let the panic he'd been feeling wash over him for a good long while before he got them the rest of the way home.
Nate had wasted no time in trying to get things set up at home so that Kate wouldn't be going out of her mind while she was on bed rest. While Kate texted updates to everyone reassuring them that she was fine and that the baby wasn't coming early but also explaining that she was on bed rest, Nate rearranged the room so that she had everything she needed close at hand - especially the coffee maker.
They had several calls from concerned friends and family, of course, but there wasn't anything anyone could do other than promise to come hang out with Kate so she didn't get bored - or to send her things to do. Which she had already been doing after being benched; she was getting good at codebreaking and intel-gathering with her mom. It didn't make her feel any less stuck, though.
Nate was desperate to help her, even though he knew nothing would make that feeling go away. They would just have to tough out these weeks of bed rest for one of the most active people he knew.
Of course, Kate could see that Nate was stressing in trying to take care of her. She knew he needed to feel like he was making a difference. And so, even though she wasn't hungry, she leaned over, pulled him into a kiss, and said, "I couldn't eat a bite, but if you could just… make the whole house smell like Annie's banana bread, maybe I'd be hungry once it's ready."
Nate knew she was half teasing him, but he was ready to do it anyway, because it might make her happy. So he made sure she was occupied with texting multiple people at once before he slipped off into the kitchen, smirking to himself at how quickly "Annie's banana bread" had become a cure-all for his family.
Annie herself had already offered to come over and spend time with Kate if she needed it, since Scott couldn't come himself. Though Nate was already sure that if that was going to happen, he'd just ask Billy to wish him and Kate to the place in Genosha and let Kate have part of her bed rest in the tropics - even if he knew they'd have to come back so they were close at hand to their preferred hospital when the due date got closer.
Nate nodded to himself as he came to a decision. Yeah, taking Kate to Genosha for a while could be a good thing. And it would be fun to throw her and Scott together while they were both feeling trapped and see how much spywork got done out of that little house over the course of the bed rest. If Nate had been in a better mood, he might even have shared that idea with a group text of friends and started jokingly placing bets on how many villains those two would be able to triangulate out of sheer need to do things.
Nate had most of the ingredients out when he heard a buzzer and sighed, wondering who had come to check on them after the drama had all unfolded. "Who is it?" he said, getting down the hand mixer in the process.
There was a slight pause before the intercom fired up to answer. "I told you I'd be checking in. I have the results - and some medications."
Nate paused at the familiar voice, his heart in his throat. On the one hand, this guy was their doctor. This was, actually, what they had asked him to do. But there was something too weird about having him come to their home.
But he also doubted that Kate would want him talking about her medical situation in public. So, Nate buzzed him in and paced a small circle, reaching out to mentally reinforce Kate's mind as a precaution when he was still feeling jittery.
To start with, Sinister was entirely business. He barely acknowledged how out of place the situation was since to him, this felt far more normal. He dove into his findings when he sat down with the two of them and then glanced over to Nate to request a chance to check over Kate again before the medications were discussed.
"You can ask her," Nate said, reaching out mentally to Kate, who paused a long time before agreeing to it, because, well, he was being all business.
Sinister swept over to Kate and started what was now a very familiar once over, carefully listening to her heart and checking over all of her vital signs with a feather light touch. Then, for a long moment, he simply considered all of the options before he drew in a deep breath and took out several medications for Kate to take. "I'll need to keep a close eye on all of your vitals. I trust that you haven't had any further distress since last I saw you?"
Kate shook her head lightly. "Just been resting, like you said," she said, blushing lightly because she knew she was emotionally a bit of a wreck.
"You're not slipping," Sinister told her. "Continue as you have been - with rest and hydration - and with a bit of luck, all we'll need to do is monitor. However - these," he set down several pill bottles, "will help should you need them. All of the instructions are on the labels."
"Thanks," Kate said.
"Is there anything further I might need to know?" SInister asked - giving Kate a chance to speak up without direction.
Kate glanced toward Nate but decided not to bring up the fact that Billy had offered some magical help. She'd turned him down - but only because Billy didn't have a good answer for what tradeoffs would have to happen for the promise of a normal delivery or even one that wasn't too early. Instead, she simply shook her head. "No, just still processing it all," she said.
"Do not hesitate to reach out should you change your mind or discover a new concern."
"I genuinely appreciate that," Kate said, and she nodded toward Nate, who stepped back to let Sinister out the door and back into the main living area.
He waited until the door was closed before he tipped his head toward Sinister. "You've been testing out those traps my sister and I laid."
"Yes, what's your point?" Sinister nearly hissed.
"Don't."
Sinister almost laughed. "You're overstepping your place."
"My place is defending my brother and keeping my wife and son safe. I'm exactly where I'm supposed to be."
"You can't be everywhere at once, young man. I've put far too much time into James to simply allow him to quit."
"Learn to take a loss. It's good for you."
"You first." Before Nate could even open his mouth, Sinister attacked, opening by grabbing Nate's shoulder and turning off his powers.
Nate reached for his telepathy the moment Sinister had grabbed him, but the second he realized he couldn't use it, he let out a frustrated shout and took a swing to push Sinister away from him - coming up empty and hitting something invisible between them.
"Don't bother reaching for your sister," Sinister said from behind his force field. "It's long past time for you to understand the way the world works."
"Already learning - you're afraid of my sister," Nate shot back, smirking as he shook out his hand.
"Not quite," Sinister said, smiling. "Especially seeing as it took both of you to fight me last time."
"And you know it's a solid fight if you don't turn off my powers," Nate shot back.
"It is," Sinister agreed. "And I am counting on you honing those skills well beyond what you are capable of right now. I'll admit. I was a bit concerned when I killed your brother that you might not have the sense to get out in time."
Nate narrowed his eyes at that. "Risky gamble."
Sinister waved a hand. "Had you failed, I would have your son for back up."
"You put a finger on him and I'll-"
"Do your part and I will leave the boy alone," Sinister said. "One time offer - I will not extend this level of courtesy again."
"I don't even know what you mean by 'doing my part'," Nate pointed out.
Sinister tipped his chin up, then pressed the heel of his palm to Nate's forehead to give him the quick version of what he knew was coming - and what he expected of Nate. "Do your part."
Nate took a few stumbling steps back, his eyes red for a second as Sinister's telepathic influence showed and then dispelled. And it took him a moment longer still to respond, because he hadn't expected to be flooded with Sinister's experience of Apocalypse, the feeling of a mind imposing its will on the world. And to know that Sinister expected him to face Apocalypse, that Sinister thought he was the key to his plan…
"If your father is entirely honest, he'd corroborate that I don't generally show up unless this particular problem is looming."
"Or if you want to check on our family," Nate muttered, still reeling and rubbing his forehead.
"As much as I'd like to build your ego, there are other considerations in that fight when it comes to your family."
"Yeah, yeah, I've got that part." Nate blinked a few times. "Look, I'm absolutely down to kill Apocalypse. That's something I'd be willing to do anyway. If that's all your asking in exchange for my son's safety, that's an easy promise."
"Then you need to prepare," Sinister said. "The little parlor tricks you know now aren't enough to do the job."
"Then I'll work on that," Nate said.
"Yes, you will." Sinister was still half glaring.
Nate crossed his arms and watched Sinister for a long time. "So, do we have a deal? I'll help kill Apocalypse and you leave my son the futz alone."
"I thought we'd already agreed on that," Sinister said.
"Prefer to shake on it," Nate said. "I don't trust you."
"Fine," Sinister said, looking more snooty as he offered his hand.
Nate took Sinister's hand and met his gaze. "Alright. I'll hold you to this," he said. And a second later, he let one of Kate's arrowheads fall out of his sleeve into his hand, pressing an electroshock into Sinister that, even with healing, sent Sinister to his knees.
As expected, the shock that hit Sinister was harsh, and his reaction was a bit more enthusiastic than was necessary. His eyes flashed red and the next moment, Nate was flung across the room hard into the brick wall. Sinister got to his feet with a glare. "Be ready for our next session."
Nate was seeing stars and felt hot blood on his neck, but he still smirked toward Sinister. "Thought that would knock you out. Ah well. Maybe next time."
"Next time we'll be in a classroom that will invite you to focus far better," Sinister said as he turned on his heel.
Nate glared after him for a long time, and only once Sinister teleported away did he let out a quiet "ow" and groan as he shifted. He was sore, and he knew he should probably have Tyler or Hank look at his head.
He wanted to reach out to Kate to let her know he was okay - she'd probably heard some of that fight - but to his utter frustration, he couldn't. His powers were still off.
And that… that actually had him worried enough that his first move was to call his big sister. "Rach, my telepathy's not working. I need your help," he said, still sitting on the floor and too sore to get up just yet. Sinister had thrown him hard, and he was going to be bruised for a while.
"What did you do?" Rachel asked.
"Sinister checked on Kate - she's fine - but after he got her checked over and on bed rest, we sort of had a fight, and he turned off my powers. And they're not back on," Nate said, his words picking up speed to more he told her.
"I'll be right there to see what I can do," Rachel said.
"Thank you." Nate leaned his head back. "Oh, um. I got thrown into a wall and I'm too dizzy to get up, so…"
"Nate," Rachel hissed.
"I'm fine, really. I just need-"
"Oh sure, aside from the concussion and the sudden lack of powers, you're just perfect."
"Let's not forget the panic over almost becoming a dad too early and having Sinister be helping us with a premie…"
"Tell Kate what's going on," Rachel said in an irritated tone. "I'm bringing Tyler with me."
"Thanks, Rach. Love you." Nate hung up and then closed his eyes - and then startled awake when his phone buzzed with a call from Kate.
"So help me God, if you're not okay," Kate said as soon as he picked up.
"Sorry, sorry," Nate said quickly, swallowing hard as he realized he'd drifted off. "Sinister got pissy and threw me into a wall. I'm fine, just a concussion. Rachel's bringing Tyler, and then I'll come sit with you, I promise."
"It doesn't sound fine," Kate shot back.
"It's Sinister. It's never fine with him."
"I'm supposed to be avoiding stress."
"Yeah, I know. Sorry." Nate closed his eyes again. "Okay. Talk to me about something, because I'm falling asleep here."
"Nate!"
"Sorry! I'm not going to lie to you, either!"
"Okay, okay. Hold on." Kate was quiet on the other end for a minute, and then, she started to talk to Nate about their backup plans for if their baby did come early. And only a few minutes later, Clint came running in, using his spare key.
"Well, that's not great," Clint said, almost skidding over to Nate to look him over, wincing at the back of his head. "Oof. That's going to need stitches."
"Rachel and Tyler are on the way," Nate told him.
"That's helpful. Let's just keep you healthy until they get here," Clint said, already looking him over otherwise. "Geez, Nate. Broken ribs too, from the look of it. Damn good thing Tyler's coming, because your side's turning colors." As he was talking, he had already moved on from looking him over to heading for the freezer, throwing some peas to Nate. "Temporary measure. I'll fill up some ice water to dump on you if you fall asleep again. You're scaring your wife, kiddo."
"Not my intention," Nate promised, wincing as he put the peas on his side.
Clint shook his head as he set the ice water down. "Be right back. I'm checking on Katie. I'll dump that on you if you fall asleep again." He ducked into the bedroom, but once it was clear Kate was more worried about Nate than anything else, Clint reemerged and sat down by Nate. "For what it's worth, I'm on your side here. I don't know the whole story. Wanda told me some of it. I know you're having some… family drama." Clint hedged. "We're your family too, kiddo. Say the word and Nat'll take care of it and I'll bury the body."
"If it was that easy, it'd be done already," Nate said. "And I'm not trying to keep secrets. Really. This is more about damage control. If I can pull you in I will, but it's not just my call."
"Alright. I trust you," Clint said. "But you're bleeding bad, kiddo."
"Aww, man, talk about a guilt trip," Nate said.
"Taking lessons from Nat on getting what I want," Clint teased.
"Well, you definitely got an 'A'."
"Awesome." Clint smirked and sat with Nate, still watching him for any sign of a worsening condition - at least until Rachel and Tyler arrived, with Rachel's eyes alight.
"Hey, Rach. I'm fine. Look, my father-in-law even got me peas," Nate said with a dry smirk.
"I swear to god, Nate, if you tell me you're fine one more time while you're bleeding like this, I'm going to through you through a wall," Rachel said, though Tyler got to him first and was muttering under his breath as he picked up Nate's hand to get to work.
Nate sucked in a breath and then held it, at least until Tyler was done. And then, he relaxed all at once. "Thanks," he said. "Can you check on Kate too?"
"You got it," Tyler said as he got to his feet, shaking his head the whole way.
Which was when Rachel got to work, grumbling while she looked Nate over. Finally, she sat back on her heels and met his gaze. "It's temporary. It'll wear off on its own."
"Well, that's something anyway," Nate grumbled.
"And I'm not going to mess with it even if Tyler did do what he could to fix your concussion."
"Yeah, knowing the players, it would probably hurt if it got broken off early or something," Nate said dryly.
"Exactly. So … enjoy being human for the night, anyhow," Rachel said.
"And all the jokes Kate will come up with to go along with it," Nate laughed.
"It'll help her relax," Rachel said. "Just have to give her a target, right?"
"Always." Nate dragged a hand down his face. "Thanks," he added, simply.
"Mmmhmm. I'll be by tomorrow for breakfast. I want to hear more after you've both rested up."
"Yes, Mom."
Nate and Kate woke up the next morning to the sound of soft music coming from their living room - and the smell of fresh coffee and cinnamon rolls. Nate reached out telepathically first, then almost laughed when he realized there was just a small list of people that would be able to even get into their apartment - and an even shorter list of those that would be so bold as to make themselves at home and just … do as they pleased.
"It seems like my brother and your best friend have decided to invade," Nate told Kate as he gave her a kiss behind the ear.
"Then I guess I'll send my brave knight to go repel the forces or whatever," Kate said, smirking at him before she snuggled deeper under the covers. "I'm not awake."
"Right, what was I thinking, trying to talk before coffee," Nate chuckled and gave her one more kiss before he headed out.
When Nate stepped out of his bedroom, he found that not only had his brother made coffee, but the cinnamon rolls were fresh out of the oven and Billy was already enjoying both as he watched James get to work. Nate wasn't sure what James was doing, but … whatever it was, he was invested.
Already, Nate could see that he'd laid down sensors not just along the walls, but the windows and doors too. There was a small tablet near Billy that was connected to a miniaturized arc reactor that was obviously the main interface for the system -and as James set one sensor up, Billy quietly confirmed which one it was and registered it to the on-screen blueprint of the place so James could keep going.
"Good morning," Billy said - over James cursing. "I'm guessing you're all healed up now?"
"Yeah, Tyler took care of that," Nate said, though he stopped from getting himself or Kate coffee just yet. "What's going on?"
"Your brother got mad," Billy said in an undertone. "So he's giving you anti-aircraft munitions or something. For the whole building."
"Uh-huh," Nate said, frowning to himself. "So … is this from Annie?"
"Nope. He got going on it last night when he was mad after hearing how the surprise appointment with Sinister went. Fun shift, you know? When he goes from recovering and in shock and trying to figure out what to do with himself to slamming around the apartment until he found something to do while he came up with something actionable?"
"Pretty sure not bringing your bedridden pregnant wife coffee is some kind of a war crime," James called out over his shoulder. "Torture at least when she can smell it but you won't give it to her."
"She's trying to decide if she wants to go back to sleep or not," Nate said. He paused and reached out telepathically, genuinely glad to have that option back. "She wants cinnamon rolls, too, so I guess that answers that."
"That's what we brought them for," James said. "I know you two are addicted to banana bread, but come on. Mix it up." He swore again as he set the next sensor and Nate saw the arc when it powered up. But it definitely looked too small to be carrying a battery.
"Okay, so … what are you doing, exactly?" Nate asked as he built up a tray for Kate and started mixing her coffee exactly how she liked it.
"This building is an Essex-free zone," James said with a tone that held some stern finality. "Well … him and his genetically modified rhinoceroses. Not allowed."
"And that's that," Billy said, nodding along. "I added in a magical exception for only if Kate's in, like, active labor. But I was super specific about it."
"Did it to our place last night," James said. "And I still say you need to drop that and just wish her to where she needs to be if it's a labor thing."
"And I still say you have a lot of faith in me, but it's impossible for me to be everywhere all the time," Billy shot back and took a big bite of cinnamon roll.
"Funny thing called phones," James grumbled. It was plainly clear that his mind was made up and he was digging his heels in for anyone that was going to argue it.
"Yeah, and remember how I told you I was super specific and she has to be far enough into labor that she can't go anywhere… I put in a lot of work into it."
James grumbled to himself. "Yeah, I know. Still don't like it."
"I know." Billy waved a hand, and another cinnamon roll iced itself. "But, hey, you're hot when you're all protective and determined."
James rolled his eyes at that, shaking his head. "Drunk on cinnamon."
"Yep."
Nate shook his head at the two of them. "Well, if you want to say hi to Kate while you're here, she says come on in." He projected to both of them: She could use the visitors, honestly. Bed rest only started and she's already depressed about it. You know how she hates not being able to do something.
"Yeah, I gotta put up a few things in there anyhow," James said, then gave Billy a pointed look. "Including my back up for if your part of the plan blows up in her face."
Billy shrugged and jumped down from the counter. "I'm not going to argue having backups," he said as they headed to the bedroom to say hi to Kate.
James picked up a few sensors and followed Billy and Nate - who was bringing her the breakfast. While Nate and Billy helped get her set up, James went back to work for the time being - trying to let her get in her coffee first.
So it wasn't until after the first cup that Kate asked, "So… what're you up to and can I help?"
"You know - you're faster than my brother on wanting details," James said. "And yeah - you can help by not getting yourself in a bad spot before you're ready to have that kid. I'm Essex-proofing the building."
"Oh, I love that," Kate said, grinning crookedly.
"He can't step foot in this place - though Billy put a rider in that clause. If he tries to get in here, he's pretty severely disabled," James said. "And … he can't teleport in or out. Sadly, that'll hit Mia too, but … it just prevents it. That's not going to hurt her."
Kate looked toward Billy, who shrugged. "I'm only letting him in if you're far enough into labor you can't get to him," he explained.
"Okay." Kate nodded, looking between the two of them, and then smiled lightly. "Thanks, guys. Really. I appreciate you looking out for Nate so he doesn't get thrown around again."
"Still working on what he can get for that," James said, then made his way over to kiss her cheek and hand her what looked like a tube of chapstick. "Nod to your mom's preferred line of work."
"Awww, presents for me?" she couldn't help but tease him.
James nodded. "It is chapstick, but … if you pull the wrong end off, it'll make a widow's bite look like a love tap. And you can't possibly shoot yourself or Nate with it since it will seek out Essex and his goons."
"James, you're a genius and I love you," Kate said, positively beaming. "I mean, we already knew both of those things, but still. I'm saying them out loud because you are and I do."
"I'm not going to go along with him bothering you," James said. "And he can't do anything to work around it that I can figure. It's all powered by an arc reactor that's shielded from EMP's and is powering all of the sensors and defenses with a Tesla-like relay."
"Did you tell my parents about all this?" Kate asked.
"Yeah. I told them what I was doing, but not why," James answered with a wave. "I already did the building at large. Their apartment and yours are more reinforced and your siblings all have watches for defense with some fun stuff in there."
"Your mom was starting to really press asking why when he gave your siblings their tech," Billy said with a grin. "They're on cloud nine to have gadgets."
"And your mom couldn't really get to interrogate when they were blasting around celebrating," James said. "But they're all secure and will not be touched."
"Oh good." Kate took a big bite of cinnamon roll and lit up. "You made these? They're amazing! While you were plotting and scheming, too?"
"I can multitask. The recipe was in one of my parent's cabins," James defended.
"Must be why it tastes so good," Billy said. "And anyway, you'll be seeing more of us for a while. Even if we weren't worried about Sinister, no one deserves to get stuck on bed rest without company."
"Love you too," Kate said, smiling easily at both of them.
"I'm sorry I didn't do something like this sooner," James told her. "I'd nuke his files if you picked someone else to deal with the delivery."
Kate reached over to grab his hand. "Yeah, I'm just frustrated that there's such a dearth of doctors who aren't anti-mutant or clout-chasers, or I'd switch in a heartbeat."
"I'm not asking you to do that, you know," James promised. "I'll just hit him after the fact if I have to."
"Yeah, I know. Just had to make it clear I'm not happy about it either. Blue said he'd do it, but he's not a specialist, and he knows he'd need to call one in if anything goes wrong."
"And you really don't want your uncle pokin' around down there, either," James finished.
"I really don't," she agreed in a breath.
"We've got your back," James told her. "You knew this. And you're stuck with it."
"That's okay. I like where I'm stuck," Kate said and then pulled him down so he was sitting with her so Nate was on one side and James the other. "C'mere he's kicking," she said and pointed at her stomach, where the three boys could see her stomach moving.
"Yep, sure is," James agreed, though he didn't move to feel it like Nate did.
"Practicing to be an X-Man already," Kate said.
"Or a soccer player," Nate said.
"The right kind of football, according to Betsy," Kate said - just to get the dry look that always got from Nate.
"She's not wrong," Billy said, and Nate rolled his eyes at him.
"Yes she is," Nate and James said at the same time, and Kate just leaned back, grinning crookedly as the three of them fell into a familiar argument about Billy having the "wrong" name for things.
Chapter 149: Happy Birthday
Chapter Text
Billy and James had gone back to Genosha for Billy's birthday, because there was always a big event for the princes. And since their birthday was close to Valentine's, too, Billy did his best to talk James into taking some more time off… since they had kicked the evil scientist out of their lives. He really didn't have to do much arm twisting at that point.
It was nice, after the series of increasingly dramatic events, to have a full two weeks where James did his work remotely and they spent every other bit of time on Genosha, just being with each other.
That also meant that they got to meet Tommy's new boyfriend, and Billy was relieved to see that his brother not only had someone to spend Valentine's with but also that there was at least a détente between Tommy and James. If anything, Billy was pretty sure Tommy was convinced James would never be okay with him, but James was willing to deal with him if he wasn't stupid.
So, of course, Tommy was actively anxious around James and avoiding him, which wasn't helping at all.
But once the big public party was over, Billy didn't have to think about Tommy at all - James wanted to make sure that Billy got his own time. So, now that they'd eaten a lavish meal and watched a bunch of people talk about Billy and Tommy… James and Billy were walking back in the moonlight together, well-aware of the fact that the paparazzi were happy about the pictures of the two of them flirting.
"They're always so much nicer here," James said in a soft undertone.
"Everything's nicer here," Billy teased.
"You're entirely biased," James pointed out. "And you still haven't told me what you want me to do for you. You really wanna make me guess?"
"Yep!" Billy grinned his best troublemaking smile.
"And I still have to keep from getting arrested? Hands tied."
"I know, right? I'm so evil; I should get a helmet or something." Billy grinned and stole a kiss.
"That can be arranged."
"That's not what I was hoping for for my birthday," Billy teased. "But it's novel. I kinda like my headband, though."
"Well … tell me what you want and I'll get it - or do it - or whatever," James teased.
"Let's start with some alone time and a bad sci fi movie and we'll see where we end up," Billy suggested, pulling James into a kiss. He was just about to wish them away to do that, too, but someone cleared their throat nearby, and they were close enough and not carrying a camera so Billy paused to see what the story was.
"Please, excuse the interruption, I don't want to take much time - though I would ask if you could spare just a few moments," the newcomer said, sounding perfectly polite.
Billy looked the young man over. He looked only a few years older than Billy, and he had the bearing of someone who was used to getting what he wanted, though he wasn't being pushy, and that already had Billy more willing to listen than he would be otherwise. "I don't think we've met before," Billy said.
"No, I'm afraid not," he said, and extended his hand. "Anthony."
Billy shook his hand but kept one eyebrow raised. "Billy."
As soon as Billy let go, Anthony smoothly offered the same to James, who followed suit, but already had an amused expression on his face. "As I understand it, I have a lot of apologizing to do," Anthony said. "I hope you'll hear me out at least."
"I think that depends on what the apology is for and if you're actually the one who needs to do it," Billy said. "I don't put much stock in secondhand apologies."
Anthony smiled brilliantly. "I'm representing my father's organization, and I was told that you were approached by an unauthorized representative not too long ago. A power hungry sort." As he spoke, he carefully took an envelope out of his jacket that was immediately familiar to Billy - especially since he'd destroyed several.
"No."
"I understand," Anthony said, holding both hands up. "But at the very least, I want to apologize on behalf of the Hellfire club for the irritation Emma Frost caused. She does not - and has not - represented us for some time, and while I am sure she did her best to destroy any chance at reconciliation, I'd still like to try."
Billy pressed his lips together as he regarded Anthony. He was being polite, and he was distancing the club from Emma. But still… "She's still the White Queen, right?"
Anthony shook his head lightly. "No, Ms. Frost no longer holds that title." He cleared his throat. "Courtney Ross is our new White Queen, if you'd like to look into her."
"I would." Billy crossed his arms, not quite realizing that he was a couple inches off the ground - though he had been working on that with Dr. Strange.
"Excellent," Anthony said, once again making an attempt to hand Billy the envelope. "Inside, you'll find an invitation to our next big function. It's not a solicitation, just an offer to see if we're up to standards." He hesitated. "I know you don't want to hear it, but there is the matter of a membership that's been inherited."
"I've heard," Billy said simply. "I keep ignoring the invitations because I'm not interested."
"Well, it is my hope that you'll reconsider now that the club has been reorganized."
"I think that depends on how it's been reorganized and who's still in the leadership," Billy said. He nodded toward one of the bodyguards that usually gave him and James plenty of space, since James could hold his own. "You can give that to my friend here. I'll consider it." He paused. "And thank you for being cordial."
"Of course," Anthony said, quick to do exactly that. "Thank you for taking the time. I know you have better ways to spend your time tonight. And Happy Birthday, truly."
"Thanks," Billy said. And then, rather than trying to deal with that interaction anymore, he simply wished himself and James to his room - which was when his feet touched the ground and he realized he'd been floating. "Dangit. I was getting better at that too!"
"I think that was just about perfect," James argued. "And, you know, if you don't have that out of your system, I'm not like Tony, I don't like it, but you can yell at me if it makes you feel better."
"No, I -" Billy blushed. "I'm just so tired of them bugging me. And I don't believe Emma's out of their sphere of influence, considering how hard they're going after me."
"Yeah? He was absolutely telling half truths," James agreed. "Got all kinds of nervous when you asked if she was still skulking around."
"Yeah, I had a feeling. That's why I kept pressing." Billy bumped shoulders with James. "Glad to have my lie detector around."
"I thought I was your cabana boy."
"What, you can't multitask?" Billy teased and the pulled him into a kiss.
"Sure, but I thought the whole appeal of the job was just to hang around in less and less until your Mom says something." He leaned in for a less polite kiss. "About the blinding lack of tan, not the lack of clothes, obviously."
"I mean, I love my mountain man, and at some point, I'm going to start making haunting jokes," Billy said, running with the less-polite kiss as well.
"Any time," James agreed, running with it since they were finally getting back to how they both wanted to spend the evening.
The day after Billy's birthday, Billy had every intention of sleeping in and staying wrapped up with James for as long as possible before they headed over to Scott's place to try and safeguard them from Sinister like they'd done for Nate and Kate, but instead, someone knocked on his door. A lot.
Which was already wild, because if it had been family, they would have called out or something. And anyone else should have been stopped by bodyguards.
"Um, hello?" Billy called out without moving away from James.
"Room service!"
"Doubt it!" Billy called back, though he had to laugh at the audacity.
"No, really - room service," the voice called back. "I have all kinds of things here. And news."
Billy glanced toward James, who also hadn't moved, before he sighed and waved his hand to unlock the door - but with a shield spell in place between the bed and the door, just in case.
He did not expect a tall guy in a red and black suit under a french maid costume to come bounding in with both hands full. "Oh. My. Gosh. You two are even cuter in person than through a spotting scope."
Which was enough to finally get James fully awake. "What."
"You've got five seconds to explain that before I wish you into my mother's darkest dungeon," Billy said, his eyes flashing with power.
"Oooh, no -that's … you are taking that entirely the wrong way, mister. Like I said, I come bearing gifts." He took just a second to set down the box from one hand and the poorly wrapped package from the other before he held up both hands and took the time to do a small magic trick that produced a beat to hell rubber chicken and a bouquet of flowers that were half-broken. "Goin' all out for my little nephew and his sweet prince."
Billy turned toward James at that. "...huh?"
"Abso-lutely not," James said, shaking his head. "Not anyone I know."
"Not anyone you know yet," the newcomer said, though he hadn't taken any action to move forward as James shook his head and grabbed some clothes. "I've been watching out for you boys for … well… it's been a long time. Well … since baby's first announcement with Tony Stark. So proud. I know you got that handy dandy little heirloom I sent."
"Okay." Billy said and muttered something under his breath. "Oh. He sent the sword," he said, elbowing James as he also got up to get dressed.
"That still isn't any kind of help," James said before he headed closer to their visitor with a scowl. He was still ten steps away when he caught a solid sniff and then took a step back. "Oh."
Billy cast another couple of spells, one of which unwrapped the package to reveal a badly-crafted, obviously homemade cake. The other box was a laptop. "Okay, the cake isn't showing anything bad from my scan. What's the laptop about?"
"The gift of in-for-ma-tion," the guy said, gesturing like a rainbow along with the last word, bouncing on the balls of his feet. "I have been waiting to see you two for so. Long."
"Uh huh," James said, then made his way over to the laptop to crack it open and figure out what that was all about. He glanced at the cake, eyes narrowed. "No poison, but the combination smells awful."
"Hurtful," their visitor said, then held out his hand to James - who was ignoring him entirely. "Aren't you going to say hello to your Uncle Wade?"
"You're not my uncle."
Billy's eyes were glowing again. "Well," he said, biting his lip.
"No," James said. "I know what you're going to say, and no. Just no."
"It's not as bad as the Sinister family ties, but he does have your dad's DNA grafted in there…"
"Not a consensual thing from Logan," James said. "I know he didn't look at him as family, either."
"I mean … it's practically the same," Wade muttered as he leaned in to look over his shoulder.
"No it's not. Back. Off."
"And there's your mother peeking out. So sweet."
"So, um, Wade, what's the gift of information about?" Billy asked, trying to walk the tightrope since Deadpool hadn't actually tried to make contact with them - and he had to have jumped through a lot of hoops to do so now.
"Oh! Right!" It was clear Wade was grinning, even under the mask. "Well," he started out in his best gossipy tones. "I happen to know that a certain Shaw boy has been stalking you to find out when he can corner you? And as fun as that could be on any given day, the problem is that he is totally just trying to corner you." He let his tone drop to a stage whisper as he held his hand up to the side of his mouth. "But you knew that part already, didn't you, you little genius, you?" Wade clapped his hands delightedly. "So smart."
"Yeah, I'm a little bit paranoid lately, all things considered," Billy said.
"Good! That's good! You should be!" Wade was nodding encouragingly. "Because you're right to be paranoid with that one." he reached over to tap James's shoulder quickly then wrapped his arm around James's back. "Show him. Show him. Go on."
"Touch me again and I'll break your hand," James growled out - though that didn't seem to deter Wade one bit by how he'd shifted to a sideways bear hug.
"You're so tall," Wade whispered, earning himself a growl.
"I'm kinda curious now," Billy admitted. "I mean, it's not a sword…"
"The sword was a totally different thing," Wade said, gesturing with one hand before he shifted to a whisper and squeezed James around the middle again - very much like an overly enthusiastic uncle. And against James's protest. When he saw Billy's concern he shook his head. "He doesn't mean it. He's just … he's a lot like his mother with the allergy to affection."
"Ooookay I don't want to clean up blood today," Billy said, magically lifting Wade away from James before things could escalate. "James, what's the story with the laptop?"
"Aside from an obscene amount of horrifying porn," James said in a drawn out tone, "it's got a lot of information on the inner workings of Hellfire. Like … financials, fundraising, recruitment … and … leadership roles." He stopped and looked up at Billy. "This is sick." He turned the laptop so Billy could see it better, but stopped short of letting him touch it. "Seriously. I think I need a shower just touching this thing."
Billy frowned as made his way over to look over James's shoulder and then narrowed his eyes. "Lord Imperial Emma Frost," he muttered like a curse. "So she's not the White Queen anymore, but she's somehow managed to put herself in charge of the purse strings? I thought your dad was bankrupting her with Tony's help."
"That's one way to look at it," Wade said. "But the whole lawsuit thing got eighty-sixed when ol Frosty mind-controlled Iron Pants."
Billy waved his hand. "Yeah, I know, but Scott was digging into her financials before the trial…"
Wade waved the tips of his fingers. "Actually … I've been doing the nuke job on her bank accounts since then."
"Oh. Nice!" Billy said, smiling at him for the first time without restraint.
"Thank you," Wade said, both hands on his hips. "I was running down some of her dirtier bank accounts and funneling the contents to orphanages. You know. The kind that doesn't support botox for ten year olds?"
"Again, nice," Billy said, though he was reading more now. "Dangit. This means all that work getting rid of her personal finances won't cut her down unless the Club loses its financials too."
"Oh, I'm on it," Wade said. "I just … well," he scuffed his shoe on the ground. "I kinda took a break to let you know to watch your back, bring you your Hagrid cake, and check in on you two. Finally. Don't worry about their finances. They're toast." He thumbed over his shoulder. "I've been keeping old man Summers in the loop. But since you seem to have shaken off the old vampire, maybe I should be bringing you this info instead? He seems super stressed."
"Oh. Um. Thanks?" Billy glanced at James. "Actually, honestly, thanks for the info and the cake? I'm not sure how to react here."
"Does Dad know you're here?" James asked Wade, who only started giggling hard at that.
"Oh, I love it. Say it again," Wade said in a low whisper with his hands clasped under his chin.
"Okay, I'd like to fool around with my boyfriend, so you're gonna have to leave," Billy said when James looked like he'd frozen and didn't know what to do.
"Ooh, yes, yes, you two go ahead - just let me know when the magic babies show up," Wade said, still clearly grinning behind the mask.
Billy shook his head but waited until Wade was gone before he turned, blushing, to James. "So, um, obviously, you know - we'll, you know, we can talk about - you know - the kids thing - you know - later."
James was quiet for a few moments longer before he couldn't come up with anything better than: "What the hell was that?"
"I don't know, and I mostly just needed an excuse to get him to go away and - but hey, he brought proof that Emma's still - so I don't need to go to any Hellfire events, so that's - I mean - I don't know?"
James was still glaring at the door. "Just an excuse, huh?"
"Look, I'm always happy to go around with you, but that guy doesn't set a mood?" Billy said, one eye closed.
"Not true, he sets the wrong mood," James agreed.
"This was a weird morning. Can we reset?" Billy asked. "Get back in the bed, snuggle until we feel like eating?"
"Yeah. After I take a shower," James said. "Seriously. That thing …"
"Yeah, I won't ask." Billy started to climb back in the covers. "I'll just be here. Trying not to think about magic babies. Which I hadn't been until he said that and then it occurred to me that, you know…"
"You're already imagining them," James said with a little smirk, finally breaking out of his grumbly mood.
"They have very cute dark hair, James. I'm trying not to think too hard about it."
"That was a very very quick change of focus," James said, not picking at all.
"I was just… it was my birthday, and last night I was daydreaming about two years from now when we're old enough to get married, and…"
"You're cute when you're flustered."
Billy turned redder, somehow. "Thanks," he said quietly.
"Alright, so," James very carefully kissed Billy. "I'm going to go clean up. If you're hungry when I get done …"
"Then I'll order breakfast in bed," Billy said. "We're resetting." He kissed James again and then sent him off. "Love you. Go scrub off the weird porn."
"Love you too," James called back. "Be thankful he took it with him. That thing would get you arrested."
"I really don't wanna know," Billy said, pulling his covers over his head for dramatic effect - and glad to have something dramatic to think about so he could lock down his magic and not bring those girls he'd imagined to life.
Mia was surprised by how genuinely relieved she felt when she had seen Tommy with his new boyfriend at the twins' public birthday celebration. He looked like he was happy, and she knew enough through the grapevine to know that he had finally realized what a colossal mistake he'd made in the first place.
But that in itself was bittersweet, because she found herself wishing sometimes that he had realized it much sooner - or never had to have that realization at all. Because as happy as she now was with Noh, she had spent a long time with Tommy, and she had been planning her future around him, and it was hard to forget all that.
And then Noh slipped into her room with a grin and put his chin on her shoulder as he read some of the intel she was seeing come in about the Acolytes that had been chasing Tommy.
Mia hadn't had time to look at anything else, so the news article was still up as Noh settled in with her. But he just smirked and kissed her cheek. "You have excellent taste; should I be worried about anyone else with white hair?" he teased her. And when she turned a brilliant purple, he laughed and kissed her. "Really, he's very cute. And it's clear you still care about him. If you'd like, I can help on Genosha when I have time. I don't mind - and Genosha doesn't have the same rules the X-Men do."
Mia couldn't help but laugh. "And you hate those rules."
"They are incredibly self-defeating and only serve to give your enemies time to plot more elaborate ways to create your downfall," Noh said without missing a beat.
"I'm sure if you talk to Vision next time we go visit, he'll set you up with whatever you need to go to town on the Acolytes."
"I don't need to take them anywhere."
"It's an expression," Mia said, though she was grinning even wider now. "You're really cute, you know that?"
"I feel like you say that whenever I've done something that makes you question my intelligence. You know I'm quite capable of conversational nuance in Kree."
"Maybe I should ask Betsy to give me the same download James got, then."
Noh instantly perked up and pulled her into a long, not-at-all polite kiss. "Do that and I will take you anywhere you want, for as long as you want, and thank you in whatever way you please," he said.
And really, who was Mia to argue with that?
James and Billy hadn't gotten around to Scott's house until early afternoon, and when they showed up, Annie was tickled to drag Billy off to help her set up the final touches on a little cake she'd insisted on making since they couldn't make it to the official celebration. And while they were playing in the kitchen, James pulled Scott aside to let him know where things stood.
Scott, for his part, had been beyond relieved when James had explained the measures he put in place at Nate and Kate's place, and he was looking forward to having the same measures in place at his and Annie's place, especially after what had happened to Annie while they were exposed.
"Just so you know, I'm not planning on going back to that lab," James told Scott as he opened up his laptop and started pulling out various pieces to the defenses he wanted to use for Scott and Annie. "And don't worry about the genetics classes - it won't be a mark against me. I already took an afternoon and tested out of everything officially with the head of the department."
"Wasn't really my concern, but I'm glad to hear it all the same," Scott said as he sat down with James.
"For as small as this place is, it shouldn't take too long to wire it up - but I am a little bit concerned about the other stuff I put in place functioning properly. I know Wanda has her spells set up, but we know there are ways around magic, so …" He glanced up at Scott while he waited for the arc reactor to fire up fully. "When were you going to tell us you were getting regular updates from Deadpool?"
Scott's eyebrows shot up, and then, he let out a long, tired sigh. "He offered to deal with Emma's finances almost as soon as the sentences were announced. And honestly, at the time, I was just glad that being arrested wasn't going to give her the free pass she wanted. When did he reach out to you?"
"He managed to do that much anyhow," James said. "He decided it was safe to approach here. Guess he's not really too excited to accidentally run into Essex."
"I didn't know that was a consideration for him, actually," Scott said. "Sinister doesn't bother with non-test subjects usually."
James considered it for a long moment. "Unless he was paying attention to how the gene splice worked out for him."
"Maybe." Scott sat back and then shook his head. "Anyway, Annie gets along with him. Something about how he has the proper idea about how hard to hit Emma," he said, smirking at the thought.
"She's broke, by the way," James told him. "Wade told us he funneled all her money to orphanages and the like."
"Yeah, Annie sent him some foster group names too," Scott said. "She's vindictive when she wants to be."
"Guess so," James agreed. "Let me know when he has more for you, huh? I'd rather find out like that then to have him get so … affectionate again."
"Yeah, he's trying to figure out how to divorce her from the Hellfire protection and funding now."
"Sounded like he was going to just yank their funding, too," he agreed.
"That's his plan - he just has to get to it. And he's good, but his last run-in with M…" Scott trailed off, his eyes narrowed. James didn't need to hear the rest of it to know Scott was more hurt than he had expected to be that M was so blatantly on the side of the Hellfire Club.
"Let him know that if he needs tech help with that, I'll help him."
"Could be fun." Scott nodded. "And speaking of tech… you've got that gizmo of yours ready?"
"Well … it's powered, but it's not showing proper function," James admitted. "Give me a few to see what the problem is." He was frowning at the computer as he opened up the coding for the device to start trouble shooting. "I was hoping there wasn't going to be an issue with what's already here but it's already being a little moody."
"Did you talk to Vision? He's got several systems set up to hide us from the Acolytes."
"Yeah, we talked it over before I came by," James said. "He doesn't have anything up that should be a problem - it's the stuff I already put in first time around that's being a pain."
Scott frowned and came over to sit by James and look at what he was seeing. "Simplify it for me. What's not working?"
"Scanners are fighting."
"So you can't scan for Sinister at the same time the defense scanners are up?"
"It wants to run with one system or the other, and seeing that you don't know when that jackass wants to come by, you can't just … switch it."
Scott was quiet for a long while, nodding to himself. "What's the play?"
"I can put more DNA profiles in the new one - but I don't know how many Acolytes are serious about going after you. And I don't want to drop any of the Marauder's samples because we know those would be an issue once Essex realizes he's excluded." James was tapping his fingers on his knee as he thought it through.
"Well," Scott said slowly, "as much as it pains me to say it, one group will kill me and Annie on sight, so if you need to prioritize…"
"Forget it I'm not ready to give up on it yet." James said, glaring at the screen. "He's pissed off right now and I'm not leaving you open for him to kick around."
"It's only seven more months. If you guys stay-"
"I know you're not about to say stay away." James turned toward him just to make sure he gave his father a look for that. "If we stay? I could stay. Billy has classes he needs to get to and our apartment is protected."
"I just meant if this place is the weak link in our defenses because of my Acolyte problem and house arrest-"
"Dad, respectfully, shut up."
Scott turned toward James, but when he saw the look on his son's face, he cleared his throat. "It's one plan of many, James. I'm just trying to keep you kids safe."
"Yeah, well, he'd have to go out of his way to kill me and make it stick, so don't worry about my safety. Everyone else has one shot, okay? Let me at least try to stop the guy."
"I didn't say you should stop trying, James. I was just thinking out loud."
James sat back from the laptop. "And I'm telling you, he's not acting like he has in the past. He's irrational and getting desperate."
"Which makes him dangerous too," Scott said. He dragged a hand down his face. "Just… be careful."
"Nate and Rachel reinforced my blackmail," James said - just so he understood that James wasn't trying to do it alone anymore. "And Billy backed it up."
"Good. Give Kate a carbonadium arrow and you're set, right?"
"She's already got some. She's had them for a long time."
"Not surprised." Scott made a visible effort to relax and then bumped shoulders with James. "You know I'm proud of you, right?"
"For what? Making this mess bigger and more complicated? Go me."
"For tackling every new problem and forcing everyone that's putting obstacles in your way to come up to your level to do it."
James frowned and leaned closer to him. "Did you just have a stroke?"
"Annie keeps yelling at me telepathically if I think about how proud I am and don't express it," Scott admitted, smirking.
"Tell her to quit trying to yell a stroke at you. It's unsportsmanlike."
"Annie, James says you're unsportsmanlike!" Scott called toward the door, and James heard Billy laughing as Annie audibly scoffed.
James sighed heavily, but kept himself turned toward Scott. "Listen - I'm going to try and figure this out, but to be perfectly honest, I wouldn't be surprised if it takes Nate or Rachel to crawl around in my head to get me through it. There was a lot of interference."
"Then it's a damn good thing you have the brother and sister you've got."
"No kidding. I'd probably just be moved into one of his private labs by now otherwise," James said quietly before he leaned forward to rest his head in his hands. "I have to keep reminding myself that I'm not running away from the situation. But it's freakin' hard to remember it when I want to just fight the guy."
Scott reached over and rested his hand on James's back. "Yeah," he said in a breath. "I get that." He left his hand there as he watched James work, though before the two of them could both sink into their own heads, Annie reached out telepathically to let them know she wasn't going to abide by them skipping out on Billy's birthday cake.
To everyone's relief, the rest of the month of February was quiet. James's defenses held up, and there was even a lull in villainous problems elsewhere - at least the kind the team had to deal with. Hydra was creating all sorts of problems… for themselves. There was definitely some in-fighting happening over there.
So, James and Nate had gone to Madripoor to see what was going on - though mostly, they were looking for a fight. They were more than happy to let Hydra weaken itself fighting, but some intel would be nice too. And Nate was stressed out and needed a distraction because Kate was absolutely miserable in her fifth week of bed rest, and he hated seeing her that laid out and frustrated. James just wanted to get back into the swing of the team now that he'd shaken off Sinister.
But just to be safe, Billy had a spell handy to call the two of them back if anything happened with Kate, so he and America were hanging out in Kate's room, doing their best to keep her mood up even though five weeks of people coming to "keep her mood up" wasn't actually doing the trick - and seemed to have the opposite effect most days.
That particular day, Kate was just having a hard time in general. She was restless - which wasn't anything new, but it felt like it was harder to ignore that afternoon.
And she couldn't get comfortable, either. She'd been cramped in one place for so long, that was part of it, but her back was sore, too.
America and Billy did their best - they really did - but after the hot compress didn't work, Kate suddenly knew what the problem was when contractions hit, and she partially curled in on herself as best she could when she was that heavily pregnant, willing them to go away like they always did within a few minutes.
"Um, Kate?" Billy asked, frowning and bouncing from one foot to the other.
"It's okay," she said through her teeth. "This'll just take a few minutes, and then I'll be fine. It happens. It's stupid. I hate being pregnant. It's fine."
"Okay." Billy sat down on the end of the bed, watching her with a frown as she finally came untucked. And then, a few minutes later, she let out a gasp and curled in on herself again.
"Okay, chica, I've got dinner options," America said, letting herself back into the room with a few menus from nearby places - but when she saw the look on Billy's face, she blanched. "Oh."
"I'm fine," Kate insisted again.
"I don't think you are," Billy said, though he was still frozen in shock watching it happen.
America looked like she didn't know what to do, either - especially because the plan Kate and Nate had laid out had always been to just… have Nate help steer this part. "Do you need to try to break someone's hand?" she offered, since that was truly the only story she could think of at the moment of the many that Clint had jokingly told about when Natasha had been in labor.
"Get Nate," Billy said - and then remembered that he could do that. "No, wait, I'll get Nate. Um. Go get her parents?"
"Right, yeah, on it," America said, more than happy to scramble out of there.
"Well, let's hope this goes well," Billy said, wondering if he'd be pulling Nate and James in the middle of a fight before he yanked them back - putting them in the living room just to be safe in case they were in mid-swing or something. "Hi, help, we're in here and I think Kate's in labor?" he called out, his pitch going up with every word.
The two of them really weren't looking too bad for wear considering the kind of trouble they'd found in Madripoor, but Nate was floating upside down and James's uniform was sort of … sad. To their credit though, they recovered quickly and Billy wished them into more appropriate attire. Nate nearly fell out of his upside down lotus, though his brother half caught-half broke his fall to help Nate get moving in the right direction, even if he was on his tip toes as he rushed to Kate.
"What do you want me to do first?" Nate asked, trying to look calm, even if his heart was racing.
"Mom - Mom packed a bag for me," Kate said, taking her breath in quick gasps because she was in the middle of another contraction. "Go talk to her."
"Perfect," Nate said, then pulled out his phone rather than leave Kate without him. Natasha picked up on the first ring - and before Nate could get a word out edgewise, announced that she was on her way down the stairs. "Inbound." he gestured toward the door behind him as he made his way over to her. On his way, he grabbed a pair of shoes for her and crouched down to help her with them.
"We need to call our doctor," Kate told him in an urgent whisper.
"Yeah, alright," Nate said, nodding, though he hated every second of dealing with the guy.
"I know, but … I know."
"I know, too," he agreed, then sighed as he dialed the number for Essex. The conversation was perfectly professional and left Nate with a bad taste in his mouth. "He said to meet him at the office. I want back up."
"I would prefer not to let anyone see me push a baby out through-"
"I don't mean in the room," Nate said with a half smile before he gave her a quick peck. "Just … present."
"Well, Mom and Dad aren't in the know, but they'll be in the waiting room in case anything goes wrong."
"And James and Rachel can monitor."
"Okay." Kate gasped in a quiet breath and closed her eyes, hanging onto Nate as another contraction hit.
"Oo-kay, Billy?"
"Right, right, instant transport?" Billy offered.
"Plus James and Rachel, please, if you can," Nate said. "I'll totally pay you back."
"Nah, family doesn't charge," Billy said, his eyes glowing white - just as Natasha came sliding into the room, with the look she always wore as she prepared for a mission.
"Hi, Mom," Kate said, still clutching onto Nate and looking pale. "Billy's gonna wish us straight there."
"Good," Natasha said simply and handed Nate the bag in her hands. Then, her expression softened, and she rushed over to kiss Kate's head. "You'll be fine," she said. "No one around you will allow this to go any other way."
"Thanks, Mom," Kate said and squeezed her mom's hand quickly before she nodded at Billy - and the next moment, she and Nate were at Essex's practice. Billy didn't know where to send them, but they were in the lobby, at least.
Thankfully, a nurse saw them and immediately got them further inside so she could check Kate's progress for herself - and confirm that, yes, Kate was in active labor. ("Obviously," Kate had said, which made Nate snort.) And from there, the nurse got Kate into a separate room and ran down the checklist of what they'd already been through to plan for the brand new experience they couldn't truly be prepared for.
And to Kate's credit, she was doing her absolute best to be okay. She was scared more of the process of giving birth than anything else, but she didn't truly panic about anything until after the anesthesiologist arrived. And Nate didn't even ask before he dove in and simply severed the connections in Kate's mind to memories of what Viper and her kids had done. He gathered up the ends of those strings and stashed them where he could find them, since it wasn't healthy to remove memories entirely, but for the moment, she simply couldn't access them - and therefore had no reason outside of the norm to panic.
But once Kate had some painkillers running, she was able to breathe a little better, and that had Nate calmer too as Essex came to check on their progress, smirking to himself because he'd had to go past James and Rachel as well as Clint and Natasha on the way in.
"I swear to God your son is trying to get here now," Kate told Nate through her teeth - unluckily, just as Essex had walked in, a big contraction had hit, and even on painkillers, she was starting to feel uncomfortable.
"Right, because you didn't contribute any impatient genes," Nate couldn't help but tease her, his eyes narrowed and glowing as he watched Essex calmly get to work and check Kate over.
But just like he'd been on the phone, Essex was nothing but professional as he coached Kate. And Kate was pretty sure he was cheating telepathically, because after a couple hours, when all she could think about was how badly she wanted to take a break and breathe, she felt like she had an artificial second wind that didn't feel like what Nate was doing to keep her calm. Nate was looking a little green himself, stressed on her behalf and stressed about who their doctor was.
And then, finally, a little boy cried, and both Kate and Nate were so relieved that he was okay that neither of them could focus on Essex - which was exactly why Rachel was there to make sure everything stayed on the up and up.
"Hey, baby," Kate said in a breath as Essex handed her the little boy - though not until he'd checked him over himself, of course. "Hey, David. Hey, baby. You yell at that doctor, that's right, baby," she said, and Nate had to laugh.
"Got your temper," Nate teased, and Kate rolled her eyes at him.
Essex was ignoring the two of them for the time being, but Rachel had let herself in, telling Natasha and Clint that Nate had asked her to be sure the doctor wouldn't pull what the school nurse had pulled when they were kids and send any of David's information away.
Rachel let the door close behind her and leaned against it with one foot kicked up, her eyes fiery as well as the tips of her hair. "So," she said, making sure to look straight at Essex when the other two were so completely wrapped up in the new baby, "you don't get to leave without a psychic search. That kid better not have any fingerprints there."
Essex lifted one eyebrow. "I think you're a bit too paranoid, Miss Summers."
"I think I'm exactly as paranoid as I need to be, thanks," Rachel said, already reaching out to check on David. She knew that Nate had some kind of agreement with Essex to keep David safe, but she also knew that this was the most vulnerable Nate's little family would ever be, and she could already sense the temptation.
As Rachel did her search, James got up from where he'd been leaning on the wall, looked up at Essex square in the eyes and took the blood samples out of his labcoat. "You don't need this."
"Oh, good catch," Rachel said - and the next moment, the samples were nothing but ash in James's hands.
Essex huffed. "Actually, I do need to check a few things to be sure the baby is safe to leave," he said. "And blood testing is part of that."
"Then ask permission first," James replied. "And I'll keep you company when you run the test."
"Aww, look at your aunt and uncle," Kate said, still cooing, but her expression was a lot more troublemaking now. "You're never going to get in any trouble. You're going to hate it."
Rachel shot a dry look Kate's way and then turned back to Essex. "Go on. Ask."
"There are screenings," Essex said from between his teeth. "The blood is needed for two dozen different tests alone."
Kate and Nate glanced at each other, and Nate nodded. "Okay. James, wanna go with him? We'll give permission as long as you're chaperoned."
"Oh sure. Just this once," James agreed, never blinking as he stuck with Essex all the way through the collection - and out the door to the lab in the clinic.
Which was about when Clint burst in. "Okay, I know you had to intimidate the doc for reasons, but now, I get to meet my grandson, right?"
Kate burst into a laugh and waved him over, showing off the little boy, who was completely bald and had little fat rolls all over so that it looked like he didn't have any wrists or ankles. "C'mere. He's adorable."
Clint let out a noise in the higher registers before he picked up the little guy. "Awww, Katie, he's perfect," he gushed - so of course, that was when Natasha walked in, shaking her head at how completely Clint was already wrapped up in the baby.
"Well, he's never going to leave me alone," Natasha laughed, mostly to herself, before she slid in to kiss Kate's forehead and then look over Clint's arm to the baby. "Perfection. I'm not surprised."
Kate smiled, leaning hard into Nate's arms and utterly wiped out. "Love you too, Mom."
Rachel waited until the mood in the room was much more relaxed than it had been to project to Nate, who was semi-distracted worrying about the trouble James might get into while he was being a pain to Essex. So you know, she told him, his plan, if Essex attacks him is to bleed on his samples just so he has to ask again. Then text Hank to come do it right. 'Essex' isn't necessary at this point.
He's scary when he gets creative, you know that? Nate said, though he did visibly relax.
Which one? Rachel teased.
Both, but mostly the one I actually care about, Nate shot back. He shook his head and ran a hand through his hair. This… this is wild. I feel like I'm gonna fall over any second.
Congratulations, baby brother, you're turning into Dad.
You already did that; feel like I'm just following in your footsteps, Nate teased.
What else is new?
Nate grinned and then waved her over. "Hey, Rach, come say hi or we'll never get him back from his grandpa."
"Just wait until his other grandpa gets a chance," she said, though she did make her way over, not nearly as ready to dive in like Clint had, though.
"Yeah, I'm getting my snuggles in now," Clint agreed. "I know the score." He smiled and showed Rachel how he was holding David, with the little guy's head well supported. "C'mere. Come get a crash course in being an aunt," he said, already starting the hand off so Rachel would have to learn.
"Not necessary," Rachel said.
"Happening anyway," Nate said, helping with the whole thing just so he could grin at Rachel once she was holding David.
"Oh, Dad, we named him David Scott, so you don't have to worry about us inflicting your names on him," Kate put in, and Clint laughed out loud.
"He's so little," Rachel said, already looking for who she could hand him off to.
Natasha smiled as she gently scooped him up. "Don't worry; you'll get used to it. I expect you to help often," she said, though she was already switching to a coo as she said something soft to David in Russian that had Clint laughing again.
"Well, yeah, one side of the family is giant, Nat. 'Course he's big."
"You and your brother are tall and ours weren't like this," Natasha pointed out. "Jimmy was only seven pounds."
"Wasn't Lexi the biggest?"
"Only by six ounces," Natasha said, and the two of them fell into reminiscing as they curled around David - and Kate fell asleep on Nate.
It wasn't nearly enough time for the tests to be run before James came back looking ticked, a little wide-eyed, half wet, and fully focused on his phone as he texted someone.
"Do I want to know?" Nate asked, both eyebrows raised.
"You probably already know," James pointed out. "I warned Blue. You have forty eight hours for the testing to be done. Texting Billy for transport now."
Yeah, he tripped a few traps but didn't go too much farther before me and Rachel reminded him we do not need a fight right now. Thankfully, the Phoenix was very, very loud about that part.
Yeah, well, he didn't take it well. We got into it too, James said. Had to clean up the blood before I came back, that's all.
Well, Blue can do everything else, Nate said. Kate and I would be more comfortable with that anyway. He's just not an OBGYN, ya know? But we know he's a really good pediatrician.
When the lab is ready for you, Billy can wish you there, James told him, clearly still ticked off.
Nate waved James over, since he couldn't reach him with Kate asleep on him. Then he went ahead and cheated with telekinesis to get him the rest of the way there so he could pull James into a one-armed hug.
"What are you doing, you lunatic, I'm wet," James pointed out.
"Shut up and take the hug," Nate said. "I know what he did and I just wanted to thank my big brother for being there for me, okay? Today's been crazy."
James returned the hug as best he could. "Well, I love you guys, but all I did was stand around and scowl at people that deserved it."
"And it was very effective," Nate said, smirking.
"Not really…"
"Shush," Kate said tiredly, starting to stir because David was getting fussy.
"I can't. I'm plotting a parade for you," James stage whispered.
"Shush anyway. He's a new dad, so he's right for twenty-four hours or something I don't know how baby math works."
"No, but you are," James said, then leaned past his brother to kiss Kate's cheek. "I'm glad you're okay. Especially when, once again, you did all the work."
"Typical, right?" Kate laughed.
"He never would have made it," James agreed. "And you're practically a supermodel over here."
"Oh, sure. I legitimately thought I was going to pop a blood vessel in my neck from pushing," Kate said tiredly.
"Nate did."
Natasha hummed a laugh as she started to bring David over. "He's starting to get hungry, but you can say hello before I hand him over," she informed James, already putting the baby in his arms. "Don't drip on him. What, did you run through the sprinklers?" she teased him, frowning when she spotted a little blood that James hadn't managed to clean up.
"Wouldn't you like to know?" James said, half rolling his eyes since he wasn't that wet. Anymore. He just wasn't expecting to hold the kid. "Why you wanna give him to me when he's cranky?"
"You're the one who wasn't around until he was hungry," Natasha pointed out. "He'll go back to sleep after he eats; I just wanted you to have a chance to say hi before we clear out and give these two some privacy before Billy wishes them to the tower's lab and they get mobbed."
James half glared at her as he readjusted David, who was squirming and starting to make sounds of discontent. "Take it easy, little guy. She's right here." But before he could hand the baby over, David settled in.
Kate laughed delightedly. "Aww, that's the best thing ever," she declared, holding her hands out for David.
"Uh huh," James said, then carefully handed him back to Kate.
"He just knows his godfather," Kate said, still beaming as she ran her finger over David's cheek. "Don't you, baby?"
"He what now?" James said.
Kate blinked up at him innocently. "I mean, the job is literally there for someone you trust to step in if something bad happens. Am I trusting anyone else?"
"Yeah, I'm vaguely aware of the concept," James said.
"It was a tossup between you and Billy, but we decided you get the firstborn, but you have to share with Lexi. Who will fight you openly if God forbid anything happens."
"Katie, I don't want to make your little sister cry," James said, though he had started to smirk.
"Aww, that's cute. He's already planning ahead, Nate," Kate said, and Nate was just laughing by that point.
"Besides," James said. "She wouldn't have to fight me … she'd have to fight Billy."
"Also true," Nate said. "But Kate and I decided when and if we have another, Billy and America are on deck for godfather and godmother, which would be an even funnier fight."
"That's perfect," James said. "But she'd probably just cave and stick to bringing presents."
"True." Kate readjusted David, who was grasping at her shirt. "Okay, everyone out; I need to disrobe and figure out how to do this bit."
James stepped out, but stuck by the door, arms crossed even when Clint tried to tease him into walking with him and Natasha. Mostly he was just waiting for word that he could give Billy the green light to wish them out of there - but he didn't trust that Sinister would keep his hands to himself.
Eventually, David was asleep again, and an instant later, in a flash of light, everyone was back at the tower - and much safer, for the moment.
While Nate and Kate were snuggled up with David in the tower, the devices James had put into play at the apartment building in Bed-Stuy was being tested. Heavily. Sinister had assumed that the kids had gone directly home - which was a fair guess. But he hadn't attempted to enter the building since James had upgraded the security and now, he simply couldn't get in. Every attempt he made left him hurting from head to toe and his head was ringing as his psychic defenses were battered. Had he not been so angry about James blowing him off so completely, he realized that he would have been proud of the job the boy had done to safeguard his adoptive family. Or part of his adoptive family, anyhow.
There was much to be done - and though he technically had plenty to work with from the birth, he wanted a more pure sample a few days post-birth when there wasn't so much shared blood from the mother tainting his samples.
So he decided to go deal with his wayward assistant - only to find that James had also safeguarded his own home against him. It was laughable. Unsustainable. And very obviously temporary. Which was also when Sinister decided to see if the school in Westchester had been similarly compromised. He could wait for a pure sample from David, if need be. He had no reason to wait for samples to be harvested from some of the new students that were trickling in every day at Xavier's, though.
It had never occurred to him that the young Summers brood might be hidden away with Avengers. And the methods that Rachel Summers and young James were unified in to stop him more permanently actually held some possibility. Things were too fresh to push. He'd just have to wait until Rachel had her guard down. And wait for the right moment to get his boy to heel.
Up in the tower, though, Kate was getting some solid support from her 'other' family. Jarvis was puttering around making all of her favorite foods and snacks, subtly leaving ice cold water within easy reach for her at every turn, and doing his finest to make sure she was well taken care of.
Which was exactly the kind of care she needed - and the kind of opportunity she wanted to introduce her tiny boy to her godfather.
She caught him at exactly the best time - he was awake, mostly. And he knew that the kids had come to the tower, but he'd been so invested in a few projects in his lab that he really didn't think that Kate would be up … and he absolutely didn't want to pester her when he knew she needed to be resting. So, he was just about halfway into his second cup of coffee and poking at his breakfast when Kate caught up to him with David clutched to her chest.
He was pinching the bridge of his nose and looked up as she stepped into the room, his expression shifting in a heartbeat from concern to … a different kind of concern and deep relief. "Hey - hi, kiddo. How you feeling? Didn't think you'd be up and around already. You ready for that?"
Kate smiled and kicked one foot up to show Tony the sticky-bottomed socks that Hank had given her. "I'm allowed to be up and moving and carrying anything less than ten pounds, don't worry," she said. "And everyone's making sure I'm sleeping when he's sleeping, but he's awake, and he likes walking." She tipped David strategically so Tony could see him.
Tony's eyebrows shot up, but when he saw Kate beaming at him, he had to smile and slip over to look at the little guy. "He looks just like you, Katie," he said and kissed the top of her head.
"I think so too, but his expressions are all Nate," Kate said, handing Tony the baby the way she'd seen worked best for the hero crowd: not asking but just putting the baby in his arms. "You should see the way he scrunches up his little face when he's hungry. It's the exact face Nate makes when he's sizing up a bad guy."
Tony had to laugh at that. "Wow. Not sure that's how I'd describe it, but sure. Sounds like you're in trouble."
"What, being a mom at nineteen wasn't trouble enough?" she teased.
"Is there ever going to be an amount of trouble that'll get you to admit it's too much?" he shot right back.
"Probably not," she admitted as she sat down, more tired than she had expected to be - which, of course, had Tony straight back to concern.
"Looks like Mom's all tuckered out, kiddo," Tony said, holding David so they were both facing Kate. "She's probably not ready to admit it's time to kick her feet up and rest." He slid over to her, one arm cradling the baby so he could put his other arm around her shoulders and kiss the side of her head.
"I've done plenty of resting, and I really don't want to do that anymore," Kate said tiredly.
Tony smirked and settled into the seat next to her as he adjusted David then pulled her over into a one armed hug. "Yeah, I'll bet," he said quietly. "But you're officially off bed rest; this is everyone around you pointing out that you just did something exhausting. We're just worried about you after everything you just did, Katie." He kept his hand on her shoulder. "Do you want me to carry you? Because I can give Davey Jones to Jan if you want an express trip…"
Kate had started to lean toward him, but at the nickname, she glared up at him. "Davey Jones? Really?"
"It was the first pirate I could think of. Besides, you picked the name knowing you were marrying into a family of space pirates. The real surprise here is that you didn't see that coming," Tony teased.
"Hey, we were trying to go with 'classic' names because my dad didn't want anyone to have his curse," Kate pointed out, which had Tony snorting out loud.
"Clinton Francis too frilly for you?" Tony asked with a smirk, then shrugged. "Yeah. Probably for the best."
Kate smiled and then used Tony's shoulder to get to her feet, even though Tony was making concerned faces the entire time. "Seriously, Tony, I've got it."
"I know but that doesn't mean I can't help," Tony said - and he looked so concerned and so insistent that she sighed and sat back down, leaning into him until Jan or one of Tony's suits could get there so he could juggle both her and the baby as carefully as he obviously wanted to.
"Tony, I love you, but you're such a mother hen sometimes. You know that, right?" Kate said and kissed his cheek.
"Yeah, yeah. Love you, kiddo," Tony said, giving Kate another kiss on the top of her head before he did the same for the little guy in his arms.
After Hank had given both Kate and the newest little Summers a clean bill of health, the first order of business absolutely had to be a wish from Billy to take Kate, Nate, and David to Scott's house. The only question was whether or not they were going to call ahead before they showed up.
On the one hand, Kate argued that Scott needed the good kind of surprise every once in a while. On the other hand, Nate was pretty sure that they were going to get in trouble with Annie if they didn't call ahead so that she could prepare some food for them or something.
So, they compromised - Kate texted Annie to let her know they were coming but asked her not to tell Scott when they were coming. Obviously, Annie setting up the guest room with baby toys and bustling around the kitchen projecting her happiness wasn't going to escape Scott's notice, but Kate really did want to try to surprise him.
They appeared in the middle of Scott's living room in a burst of light, and Nate had to laugh when Kate couldn't help herself but to try for a dramatic entrance in case Scott and Annie weren't in the living room:
"Who wants to see a baby?" she called out - and Nate snorted laughing.
Annie practically tripped over herself running toward the three of them from the kitchen, absolutely beaming. Nate happened to be closer to her, so he got caught up in her hug first, but that was exactly what Kate wanted anyway, because she saw Scott poking his head out from his office door.
And she saw the moment he realized that his grandson was there in the house.
Kate let Annie gush all over Nate's shoulder - he was enjoying his almost-stepmother's attention - and walked right to Scott, beaming as she put David into his arms. "His name's David Scott, and he's perfect. Say hi," she instructed Scott, who was completely speechless.
You're having too much fun.
Too much? Nonsense. I'm having exactly as much fun as I deserve after everything I went through to get that kid here, Kate shot back, knowing Nate wouldn't have a good response for that.
Fair enough. Have fun.
Kate beamed and slid into a seat next to Scott, who hadn't even made it out of his office before he'd gone totally silent and had gotten completely lost looking at little David, who was staring at his grandson with a smile at the edge of his mouth but with his eyes shining.
This. This was exactly what she'd always imagined when she thought about starting a family with Nate. The Summers family was full of drama, and Kate was sure they always would be. But they loved so deeply, and Kate could sit in that glow forever.
Chapter 150: I Didn't Give You Permission To Leave
Chapter Text
"Just came back from saying hi to Nate and Kate, huh?" Mia asked, her tail swaying and her smile crooked as Noh let himself into her room with the kind of smile that always lit up his face when he found some new part of life in this reality to be wondrous.
"I have never experienced such a delicate, helpless, beautiful young life like that," Noh said, still smiling as he came to sit next to her and then pulled her into a deep, long, lingering kiss that had both of them shifting positions so that they could get more comfortable.
Mia was ready to get lost in him, of course, but she had something of her own to share, and she put her hand in the center of his chest to slow him down. "So, while you were exploring, the mail came."
"Yes, it tends to do that at around the same time every day," Noh agreed, completely missing the point.
Mia smiled and grabbed hold of his ankle with her tail as they got a little bit closer. "The mail came, and I got a letter from another university."
"This, again, is not a surprise," Noh said, leaning in to kiss her neck. "You are brilliant, and the higher education institutions in this world have no choice but to acknowledge that."
"Yes, but I actually want to go to this school," Mia said, beaming at him.
Noh finally got it - and broke into a grin to match her before kissing her passionately until he had her pushed deeply into the pillows and her legs were wrapped around his. "Genosha will be lucky to have you. We should celebrate," he whispered in her ear.
"We were already headed that way," Mia said, letting her tail sneak up his leg all the same, an impish smile spreading over her features.
"Yes, but now we have even more reason," Noh said and then kissed her even harder.
Alex had absolutely poured on the guilt when he called Corsair to let him know that Nate's little boy had been born - and made sure his father knew that the family wasn't going to let him get away with the way he usually shrugged off their big family moments.
"You can either get on board with the rest of the family, or you can just stay out there. But we can't expect you to be here, so we won't. Show up if you want, just call first," he'd said.
And Alex knew it had been effective; he'd seen the way Corsair had practically flinched. And yeah, Corsair was getting old enough now that he actually did seem interested in trying to at the very least salvage some kind of relationship with his grandkids … and now great-grandkids.
But Alex genuinely hadn't expected Corsair to get there so fast.
It was only April, which meant that Corsair must have left wherever he was not long after Alex had called him. It took a few weeks to get from one end of the galaxy to the other, and Alex knew his signal had taken long enough to get to Corsair that they must have been at least that far away when they started.
But there he was, his whole crew in tow as he touched down on Genoshan soil, beaming and carrying on about his great-grandson well before Alex and Lorna had even managed to get there to greet him.
"Well, where is he?" Corsair asked, already moving to crush Alex in a greeting hug.
"Hi, Dad," Alex said, practically feeling his back pop with the strength of the hug. At least he wasn't worried about his dad dropping from old age. "We didn't know you were coming."
"Left as soon as I got your message," Corsair said. "Now, come on, I'll bet they're all piled around Scotty, and I'll bet he's not sharing."
"You… are actually not wrong about that part," Alex said, laughing as he fell into step with Corsair. "He is a baby hog."
"How long did he let you hold him?" Corsair teased.
"Like, maybe a minute before he went through withdrawals."
"Sounds right." Corsair threw his arm around Alex's shoulders. "Well, aren't you going to take me to go see my great-grandson? Gotta introduce the kid to the crew, right?"
Alex shook his head, in pure disbelief. "I don't know if he's on the island right now. But you can come with me to see Scott, if you want."
"Sure, sure, and we'll get to see the kid while we're there, right?"
"I mean, probably-"
"Okay, great."
Alex shook his head but went ahead and texted the group chat that had Billy, Tommy, and Wanda in it. And a moment later, he and his dad were outside Scott's door - and could already hear a baby crying inside.
"Well, looks like you called it and Scotty's hogging the baby again," Alex said as he knocked on the door.
Annie threw open the door with a baby on her shoulder. Kate was sitting on the couch curled up by Scott, who looked like he was hugging her tightly and reassuring her that she was doing just fine and that babies cried all the time. Nate wasn't there - he must have been with the team.
Annie looked Alex and Corsair over and then huffed, waving them in. "Poor little man's got a little gas, but we're taking it in shifts. My nieces were never this colicky," she admitted, looking a bit stressed as well, though obviously Kate was having the much harder time.
"Scotty was the same way," Corsair said, holding his hands out for the baby. "Here, got something that always worked for him."
Annie looked surprised, but she wasn't going to turn down help. She waved them inside and kicked the door shut behind them. "I was going to get something for Kate to eat; you can hold him while I get that for her, right?" she said, and Corsair nodded.
Alex was shaking his head as he watched his dad sit down in the hall with David, laying out the burp cloth for a blanket underneath the little guy before he started simply pumping his legs like he was riding a bicycle.
"O…kay." Alex leaned against the counter, watching his dad go to work. And to his surprise… it seemed to work. One second, Corsair was bicycling the kid, and the next, he let out a huge burp.
Corsair smirked and picked up the little guy, bouncing him lightly in his arms. "Hey, told you it worked with Scotty."
"Yeah, okay, but … no offense, Dad," Alex said, gesturing openly. "Just didn't expect it to work, you know?"
"What, you think I didn't pick up a few things raising you boys?" Corsair said. "Kid looks like his grandfather, right, kiddo?"
Alex ran a hand through his hair, shrugging, but he couldn't exactly say the 'yes' that he was thinking. "So that happened. Okay."
"Hey, I'm not complaining," Kate said, scrubbing her hand over her eyes, which were puffy and red. "He's been crying for two hours."
"Well, what do you usually do?" Corsair asked as he did his best to get David to smile.
"Well, mostly, Nate and I have been bouncing him and walking him around," Kate said. "He likes the bouncing, but it wasn't working today."
"Alex was the bouncer," Corsair said. "So I can see that being what Scott suggested."
"Hey, worked for him and for Nate and Rachel," Scott pointed out.
"Gotta get more tricks, Scotty," Corsair teased.
"Yeah, yeah, I'll do the bicycle trick next time," Scott said. "What brings you here, anyway?"
"What do you mean? Isn't this enough?" He tickled David under the chin as he asked.
"I mean, I think David's worth the trip," Kate said.
"Obviously." Annie let her shoulders drop and slid over to where Kate and Scott were sitting on the couch. "Here ya go, sweetheart," she said, pushing some of her favorite stew into Kate's hands. "Mom's recipe when Evie got stressed with her girls."
"I thought I had told you I wanted to be more involved with the family," Corsair said. "Showing up to meet the newest Summers seems like a worthwhile trip."
"Just didn't think you were serious," Scott said. "You keep saying you want to get involved, but-"
"Now that … okay, that may be true, but I'm making an effort here, Scotty."
"Yeah, I see that," Scott said with a small smile. "By the way, his name's David Scott, just so you know."
"David Scott," Corsair repeated with a crooked little smile. "Fits him."
"Yeah, we think so too," Kate said.
"You did some great work, Katie," Corsair said, smiling her way before he went back to trying to get a smile out of David.
Annie smiled lightly as she watched Corsair. He's trying, she projected. She wasn't good at getting too many people in the conversation, but she got Kate and Scott and Alex, carefully leaving Corsair out of it. I know you can't hear it, but he's desperate to get it right, you know.
Noticed he was more emotional than usual, Kate said, glancing up at Annie.
Annie let out a careful, controlled breath before she tried to clue them all in. Honestly, Craig would be better at explaining all of this. But from what I can see just being around him at Thanksgiving and now this… he knows he didn't do right by you boys, and he knows he chickened out of helping in any meaningful way after Jean died.
Alex and Scott glanced at each other, wincing as they remembered how Corsair had shown up thinking he could just … fix it. He'd tried to swoop in and take control of the situation, which was exactly the opposite of what Scott had needed, considering the kids were literally the only thing keeping him alive at that point. It had been a disaster… and it had blown up badly enough that Corsair had more or less stopped visiting unless there was an excuse like Alex's kids.
But things are different now, and, well, he knows he's getting old. Apparently, he and Craig had a good chat at Thanksgiving. Craig didn't say what about, but… Annie tipped her head toward Corsair.
He's kind of tried in the past, Alex pointed out. Awkwardly. But he has tried. This just seems different.
Annie debated whether to spill Corsair's secrets, but she wasn't yet good enough to filter her thoughts while mind-sharing, so she ended up spilling them anyway. He's had a few close calls with the Shi'ar lately. He knows he's getting old. Leaving a legacy is heavy on his mind.
Must have been some nasty close calls, Alex said to himself.
They were. Annie frowned. I don't know much about these Shi'ar…
Do yourself a favor and don't go digging too deeply into Dad's head on that, Scott advised.
I won't, Annie said. I already saw enough. The most recent one was a near-miss on a beheading.
Sounds like the Shi'ar to me, Alex said.
"Hey, I think I got a smile," Corsair said, breaking into their psychic communication.
Kate laughed. "Oh, he's pooping," she said - and Alex snorted.
"Well, Dad, let's see how your diaper changing skills have held up," Alex teased.
"I don't know. I might be too old for that," Corsair replied with half a laugh.
"One way to find out," Annie said, grinning at him before she went to get some wipes and a new diaper - and then laughed in delight when Corsair did a perfect, quick diaper change.
"Okay, you've got to visit more often," Kate said, smirking. "I've still got another few months of maternity leave, and I could use all the help I can get."
"What, you don't just leave the kid with Scotty all the time?" Corsair teased. "Thought you'd be back out there kicking ass on day two."
Kate laughed delightedly. "Yeah, that's what I thought I was gonna do too," she said. "But I'm extending it until I can sleep for more than three hours at a time. Last thing I want to do is fall asleep on patrol or something."
"Nate wimping out on helping?"
"No," Kate said, though she was smiling wider. "But I'll make sure he knows the bar's been set."
"That's right," Corsair agreed. "You put the boys to work for you."
"My dad's not far from where we live in New York, actually; he's been over almost as much as we come here to see Scott," Kate promised. "We're getting lots of help. It's just a tough job being, you know." She gestured at herself. "The food source."
"If I had anything worth offering, I'd give it to you," Corsair said. "But only things on the ship worth sharing aren't fit for young mothers."
Kate laughed and even went so far as to slip over to kiss his cheek. "Thanks for helping, Space Pirate. I'm going to go take a nap now while I can. You've obviously got things covered here."
Weeks had passed, and patterns were just starting to truly be made. James had just left Nate and Kate's apartment after spending the better part of the day helping Kate out so she could get some rest. David had been fussy all night and Kate was exhausted, so James went to try and help - then spent most of the day with David passed out on his shoulder in one room and Kate passed out in her bed in the other room. And Nate had laughed far too hard every time he got up to see how things were going for his brother, when David was positively enchanted by his uncle.
Kate had promised James that just him coming by now and again was exactly the kind of help they needed - and Nate had helpfully offered up a proposed schedule on when they'd like James to come by. Mostly just days to catch up on the sleepless nights. And though James had been trying hard to avoid making a pattern of things, Kate and Nate really did need regular intervals to sleep. And the rest of the extended family was too amused to advocate their own time when David was so content to sleep on his uncle like that. Every time.
The only problem James had with the situation was that he had honestly been waiting for Sinister to approach him. Especially when he'd made a point to Sinister-proof Nate and Kate's entire building with some incredibly nasty tech that targeted DNA - which of course, James had the data to use. And once David had been born, Billy lifted the rider he'd added that left Sinister a window to get in.
It was a little inconvenient for Mia to not be able to teleport in - since all teleportation was blocked - but that also helped Nate and Kate rest better knowing Sinister would only screw himself over terribly if he tried to set foot in that building.
James had just gotten himself a coffee down the road from Kate and Nate's building when he was finally approached.
"It's time to get back to work, my boy. I am tired of waiting," Sinister said, suddenly appearing close by.
James swore, one hand over his heart since he hadn't expected him to show up like that, in person. All of the previous hints that Sinister was watching him had been his Marauders, not the man himself. "Last I checked, you cut my throat during your tantrum. That … definitely falls outside of the realm of reasonable disagreement. And if you didn't figure it out, my not showing up all this time should have been a clue for you."
"I wasn't asking," Sinister said, his eyes flashing as he loomed over James.
"I'm not helping you," James growled back.
"We'll see about that." Sinister raised both eyebrows and stepped back - and the next thing James knew, something else rushed past Sinister and knocked James hard enough onto his back that his breath left him. And James looked up just in time to see Noh bend down to pick him up before, in a rush of air, he found himself in one of Sinister's labs, shirtless and strapped to a table faster than he could react.
"Noh - what the hell?" James said, testing the straps all the same.
"Really, James, you of all people should know how easy it is to turn his mind," Sinister said, waving a hand as Noh sat down on the next table from James, his eyes glazed over.
"What are you doing?" James asked, though he had an inkling of what was to come. "I thought you didn't want to study me like that? Something about a waste of time."
"Ah, but you can be useful as a control, my boy," Sinister said, his smile sharper as he double checked James's restraints, then strapped Noh down too. "And you know what I'm searching for - or, at least, what he is searching for."
James paled at that. "So if I'm not helping you, you're going to hand me over?"
"Not you," Sinister said. "Not unless you leave me no real choice."
"Wait," James said as Sinister was pulling over his tray of tools. "If we can come to an agreement, will you let Noh go?"
Sinister smirked openly and let out an interested hum. "And what do you think you can offer me when I've just shown you I can still take what I like?"
It was hard to gather his thoughts as he watched Sinister prepare to start cutting. "Isn't it easier to avoid all the games?" James asked after a moment.
"Perhaps." Sinister prepared a few more tools, purposefully taking his time before he reached over to tighten James's restraints one last time. "But, James, my boy -you know I detest being kept waiting," he said, then he moved over to him to cut into him as if they were standing and chatting together.
For a long while, James couldn't respond to anything Sinister said once he started to cut. Even when Sinister took a break to make his notations, James needed the time to focus and catch his breath from trying so hard not to scream. "I thought we were done with the research we were doing," he said finally.
"You know we weren't. Don't lie to me, it's undignified and doesn't suit you at all," Sinister said, moving to the table next to James as he changed his gloves, where it looked like Noh was suddenly aware of where he was, wide-eyed and swearing in Kree under his breath. And before Noh could fully take it in, Sinister cut into Noh the exact same way he'd done with James - so he could compare their healing for himself.
But for Noh, Sinister had cut off his usual avenue to deal with pain. He couldn't reroute it, and that left him panicked and screaming, completely unused to that level of hurt.
James didn't know what to do - he'd never seen Noh like that before, and he knew that Noh had always just turned off his receptors to that kind of injury. And he was still trying to reason with Sinister. That had always worked for him before. "I don't know what you want from me," James admitted.
Sinister shook his head. "Don't you?" he asked as he made a few notations, then paused to mutter under his breath about the overly-symmetrical healing Noh exhibited. "You will resume our work at my side, and you will stop forcing my hand," he said pointedly. "I don't have the patience for these tiresome games when you know what is at stake, who is coming, and the simple fact that I don't need your consent. We can get much more done if you don't fight me."
James watched him, practically reading his notes by watching him write. "That's it? You just want me to help you prepare for Apocalypse?"
"I want you to resume your work with me, as it was, before your little brother had his temper tantrum."
James locked his jaw down for a moment as he thought it over. "With or without the mind control?"
Sinister smirked as he finished his notes and then switched tables to James again - taking his time with new gloves yet again. "That depends entirely on you. I can be flexible. Reasonable even - when I'm not contending with willfulness."
"Since when?"
Sinister ignored the snarky remark as he flipped to a new page in his notebook. "I'll not force you through mind control - so long as you behave, my boy. Of course, the choice is yours on how you will continue our work." Before James could give a response, though, Sinister began his work again, this time going deeper to test regenerative healing for his comparison. Just a portion of liver, something that wouldn't need to regenerate entirely if Noh wasn't comparable when Sinister repeated the procedure on him.
Though James tried to hold it back, he simply couldn't stop from screaming - though it didn't seem to register with Sinister at all, which had Noh doing his best to try to get to James to help. He couldn't understand why he couldn't access his powers or reroute pain like he usually did, especially when he could see James healing and knew there was no dampener in play or anything comparable.
"This is sadism, not science," Noh hissed toward Sinister as the man finished his procedure on James, then once again took off his gloves and sedately began to make his notes over James's sounds of anguish.
Sinister chuffed. "James, explain to your alien friend how he came to find himself in this situation," he said, once his note taking was done and he could see James trying to push through the vivid trauma he was reliving. He paused to pointedly give James a look as he washed up to avoid cross-contamination or infection letting him know that trauma aside, he still wouldn't be kept waiting. Even when he knew James was in the midst of remembering Viper and Katarina.
James was still panting and trying to catch his breath as he stared up at the ceiling. "He can't use any drugs without invalidating the results because we'd both burn through them too fast for them to be helpful," James said in a shaky voice as Sinisters shoulders relaxed slightly.
Sinister hadn't actually expected James to be capable of giving a real explanation - but he was delighted to see it all the same. "What else?" Sinister prompted, watching James trying to find the words.
"To make the drugs useful to us for our thresholds, the results would be worthless since a dampener would need to be used." He looked over to Sinister, only to close his eyes when Sinister smiled tightly and nodded his head in agreement.
"But there is something in play. I can't break free of these restraints," Noh said, his tone tighter and more urgent as he watched Sinister look his way.
"It's not affecting your healing though," James said. "And that's what he's studying. And likely how similar our pain receptors actually are."
Noh nodded, if only for something to do. "I don't understand," he said softly. "I was coming to make sure you were okay … I don't remember coming here."
"I can't explain that now," James nearly whispered.
"Obviously." Noh closed his eyes as Sinister approached but couldn't hide his panic, especially because he didn't have regenerative healing like James did; something like that would have had to come from his ship's healing centers. "Wait," he said, almost breathless as the scalpel touched his skin. "Wait, I cannot - I cannot grow anything back."
Sinister paused as he considered him. "I didn't remove the entire organ from James," he told Noh. "That would be too risky while still studying you." He gestured toward the tray where a good chunk of James's liver sat. "The comparison should still be valid. Even Kree livers should regenerate without the kind of advanced healing you both possess."
"No, it's not," James said through gritted teeth. He was shaking as he tried to focus on something other than how much pain he was in and how angry he was on Noh's behalf. "He can't do any healing without making sure his reserves are topped off first. He'll just bleed to death if he isn't fed first."
"You've made your point," Noh said, tipping his head toward James but speaking to Sinister as Sinister considered James's warning. "He's in shock; you don't need to do anything more and call it science for your own ego."
"He'll come out of it quickly enough," Sinister said finally. He looked entirely unconcerned as he gathered up some fresh supplies and made his way back to Noh while James started to fade in and out from the shock he was experiencing. Sinister didn't warn Noh of what he was doing, though he took the time to fit a mask over his mouth for the time being - and after he'd snaked a feeding tube through his nose, he pulled a mask into place to help him breathe properly with nitrogen rich air. From there, he gave Noh a few moments to adjust, and then started cutting.
By the time Sinister had his comparisons, both boys were shaking, in pure shock, crying, and completely unable to string words together. Which was, of course, when Sinister turned to James and simply projected to him as soon as he saw that James was, in fact, starting to come out of it.
You will resume things as they were. I will forgo the mind control so long as you agree to work with me again and perform as I say. This is the only time I will offer you this opportunity with such leniency.
James closed his eyes as he weighed it out - the threat was clear. Do as he was told or get more of this until Sinister was tired of it. Or until he came up with something worse. Or made him listen to Sinister torture Nate - or Billy or Mia. Or someone else that he cared about. Okay.
Lovely, Sinister said. Then I'll be expecting you tomorrow morning ready to work. In a blink, Sinister simply left, teleporting to somewhere new and leaving the two of them still strapped down and hurting.
For several long minutes, neither of them wanted to speak - or was able to. But eventually, Noh started to test the restraints again, if only because he wanted to be rid of the many lines that Sinister had used to monitor both him and James. To his utter relief, he broke open the restraint on the first attempt, and he reached up to tear off the mask and free himself of the other restraints - though he was dizzy as soon as he sat up and clutched his stomach. His skin was nearly translucent for as much as it was still healing, and James could see he looked more blue than anything else. "He took what he collected," Noh said, nearly hyperventilating still.
"Yes," James agreed softly, not wanting to move at all as he turned his focus back to the ceiling. "Put the mask back on."
"James, we cannot stay here," Noh said, though he couldn't get to his feet just yet, and as much as he hated to admit it, the feeding tube was still doing him good.
"It doesn't matter," James said. "If he wants us back, he'll take us."
"There has to be some way…" Noh looked around the room but saw nothing but blood and instruments.
"All you can do right now is heal, Noh," James said. "There's nothing else to be done," he finished in Noh's Kree.
"I can call for he-" Noh frowned, unable to finish the sentence. "I can-" He paused again. "I cannot tell the others, apparently."
"No, you can't," James agreed. "I'm sorry."
"There's nothing for you to apologize for. I should apologize for so obviously being the bait in a trap meant for you," Noh said, blushing blue with both anger and embarrassment.
"What's wrong Noh? Would it be so bad if that worked?" James had to tease just to try and break Noh out of his anger. But he didn't have the heart to tell Noh how it had actually gone down.
"Yes. Because you still matter to me, James, and I'll not have some sadist use me to bring you to heel," Noh said heatedly.
"It won't happen again," James said quietly.
"That is not reassuring." Noh swore in his native language. "I should declare war on this man."
"Please don't. It can be so much worse. He can stop you pretty easily, Noh. This guy is best avoided when you have the choice - which you do. Take it."
"I'm afraid I'm not engineered to run from a fight," Noh said, stretching experimentally and pulling a face when that was too much for the moment. "Gods, that was one of the worst things I have ever experienced."
"Definitely in my top five," James said.
"Second only to experiencing the deaths of my entire crew at once while telepathically connected."
"That would definitely suck," James said. "Still not as bad as weeks with Viper."
"On that, we can agree, from what I have been told of her," Noh said. He ran his hand down his face and gingerly got to his feet, testing out his balance.
"I'm still pretty bad at this," James said. "Not giving in to the pain, I mean."
"James, I have no room to talk. I have never learned to do anything but redirect it."
"I was better about it after Viper, but … it's been a while, I guess. I'd rather not practice it, though."
"And there should be no reason for you to develop those callouses," Noh said firmly. He took a few experimental steps and nodded to himself, pulling the tube out of his nose and gasping when he did so. "Oh for Plex's sake," he swore and coughed up a bit of blue.
"Leaves an aftertaste, huh?" James said, still not looking Noh's way.
"Certainly." Noh shook his head and then crossed over to where James was, breaking open the restraints one at a time before he offered his hand to James to help him sit up, then shifted to pull him upright when James didn't move. "James, I'm alright," he promised shakily.
James leaned on Noh for a moment, then swung his legs over the side, though he didn't believe Noh's declaration. "You're still shaking. Take a minute."
"I needed to be sure you were okay," Noh said, though he did sit down on James's table, breathing heavily.
"You really didn't," James promised. "When it comes to this stuff, I'm always alright."
"That's a lie, but I'll allow it to pass this time for the sake of our sanity."
"I meant physically …"
"Ah. Well, you are faster than I am at that," Noh agreed. He glanced down at himself.
"We need to clean up before we go back," James said. "And find replacement clothes for what was wrecked."
Noh let out a long sigh and nodded. "And then I will need to sleep for a while," he said quietly. "I have never…" He trailed off. "Well."
"Yeah. It seems I have lab time tomorrow morning."
"I'm deeply sorry, James," Noh said. "You deserve better than servitude."
James tipped his head slightly. "He has a sound reason for the time being."
"Then he should have no problem finding allies. Failing that, he is therefore a failure of a leader and should be executed and replaced."
James smirked. "I don't think he's ever claimed to be a leader. More of a loner."
"Perfect, then he has no use for you and we can resume planning our next trip. Mia has several thoughts about what to do during the upcoming summer months when school is out."
"Billy's going to be headed back to Genosha," James said, frowning. "I was planning to join him for some of it …"
Noh watched James's frown for a long time before he reached out to take James's hand. "Hey," he said gently, "we will figure out how to stop this. I swear it."
James looked over at him and sighed heavily. "Maybe."
Noh let his shoulders drop and then cleared his throat and got to his feet. "Well. We should clean up," he said. "The only good thing about what we have endured is that we are both entirely shirtless, but admittedly, I'd prefer to find something so that Mia doesn't see my internal organs so clearly while I'm healing."
James nodded, then looked around the lab and out of the tall leaded glass windows. "I'm not sure where we are," he admitted. "Or I'd suggest one of the cabins to find clothes. I know the one we went to before is probably still covered with snow."
"Well, let's start with cleaning up and we can hail a cab if need be," Noh decided and pulled James to his feet - and into a hug that was exceedingly light and careful when they were both still sore and healing. And though James returned it, it was almost instantly clear to James that Noh wasn't looking to reassure James but to receive comfort to keep from falling apart himself.
James stayed in the hug for as long as Noh needed it, but it was also clear there wasn't a good way to transition out of it without something being said. "I think …" he started to say, hoping that Noh would at least crack a smile, "... that I'm lucky Billy doesn't have my sense of smell. Shower or not, I'm going to reek of shirtless Kree DJ."
Noh chuckled as he straightened up, wiping his face. "Ah well. It's good not to anger the Demiurge."
"I told you, he's not the Demiurge," James laughed.
"Okay." Noh smiled James's way and then offered his arm. "Let's get out of here. The longer I stay here, the more I can hear myself screaming."
"Yeah, don't focus on that, okay?" James suggested. "Last time, I got through it by focusing on keeping my friends safe. So…" he shifted to put his arm around Noh's back. "You okay?"
"No," Noh admitted in a breath. "But I am trying desperately to be. I'll not have one sadistic Terran destroy a lifetime of valor."
"How about we try desperately over tacos? I've still got my wallet."
Noh surprised himself with a smile. "Yes, please."
Mia was sure something was going on with her boyfriend, but she didn't have a complete picture, and she knew it.
It had started a couple days earlier, when he had slept through their morning classes and she'd teleported to his room to find him absolutely passed out asleep so deeply that it had taken her ages to wake him up. And even then, he'd simply said that he wasn't feeling up to class and had gone back to sleep so quickly she doubted he even remembered waking up to talk to her.
The next day, when she'd asked, he'd told her that he had needed the time and deftly avoided any other questions about it by sweeping her off her feet into a kiss or a spinning hug or by dashing off to do something else - usually grabbing some music he wanted to show her or a snack for the two of them.
And there was just something… off about him the last couple days. His smile wasn't reaching his eyes nearly as easily, and he moved slower, more carefully, like he was sore and trying to hide it.
Which was why Mia ended up teleporting to James when he and Billy came to Westchester for a team practice. She didn't even give him a chance to react to her presence before she grabbed his arm and teleported out into the woods with him, her eyes wide and her tail switching.
"I think something happened to Noh, but he won't tell me what," Mia told him.
James stared at her for a beat, then simply nodded. "What do you want me to do?"
"I don't know. I don't even know what questions to ask or how concerned I should be. Every time I try to ask him about it, he changes the subject. And he slept for literally an entire day on Wednesday. I know that's not normal."
"I can talk to him, we could play lie detector if you want to interrogate him, or … some combination of whatever you think, but it sounds like he's reliving some trauma. Maybe something else - not sure how Kree handle … you know. Not wartime."
"He does do better when he's got a mission," Mia admitted. "And he hasn't lied to me. That's been nice, actually. But if he doesn't want to lie and doesn't want to talk about it, he just zips off!"
"Can't make anyone talk about stuff they don't want to … or can't talk about." James was purposely trying to be careful in how to word things - not just because he knew exactly what was wrong with Noh, but because he knew Noh couldn't talk about it. And he shouldn't either. Not without setting off an alarm that he knew Sinister had set up in his head. He wasn't given the total gag orders like the others were coping with, but James knew too well that he simply had to control himself from sharing. So for the time being … he had to try to find a way to hint at things - or to help Noh cope better.
"Yeah, I know. I just… I don't know what happened. He was fine, and then he wasn't," Mia said. "And I was hoping… you went with him to go after Midas, and you know him better than anyone else. And I just need some advice, because he's never done this before, and I'm worried something happened."
James picked up her hand and kissed her cheek. "I'll talk to him."
"And you'll tell me if something happened?"
"I'll tell you whatever I can, yeah," James said.
"Thanks." Mia let her shoulders drop and ran her hair through her hair. "I really like him, James."
"I know. He's a great guy," James agreed. "You got a good one. But - he does have a past, you know? And some things are just … he's put up with a lot of crap in a short span of time, too."
"He doesn't talk much about it," Mia said. "He said he'd rather live in the present than the past."
"Yeah, that sounds right," James agreed. "Because you can't change the past and dwelling on it only robs from the present and hinders your future. I got the memo."
"Right, but if it's catching up to him and giving him nightmares or making him depressed, not talking about it is robbing from the present," Mia pointed out.
"I've got it, Goddess," James said. "Give me a chance to get him to pull his head out."
"Thanks." Mia leaned over to kiss his cheek. "I knew I could count on you." And with that, she teleported them both to where the others were gathering for the practice.
As soon as the smoke cleared, James took a look around the room and whistled shrilly. "Hey, Noh," he called out, catching his attention the moment they were in the same room. "Rookie Cadet Error."
Noh straightened up for a moment and then tossed a glance over his shoulder and shook his head, smirking. "I'm trying," he replied in Kree.
"Do or do not. There is no try," James shot back, laughing at his own joke as he replied in Kree. "Pretty sure one of your cousins said that."
"You're hilarious," Noh said, rolling his eyes - because he and Mia had only just finished watching Star Wars. "I am working on it. I know I worried Mia, but it was actually necessary to sleep that much, for one thing. And it still hurts."
"I know you are. And it's fresh. And believe me, Billy's making the same face she is because I did the same thing. But … push through it. If you can. If not, I guess you'll just have to see for yourself how well you can keep up."
Noh smirked lightly and nodded. "Right," he said, and the smirk didn't drop, though his volume did until he was speaking at a bare whisper. "It's just a matter of time, anyway - literally. Recent wounds are always worse."
"Can you block it again?" James asked.
Noh nodded. "Yes, but I prefer not to. Pain is itself a good indicator if something has gone wrong, and I hate to turn it off too long."
James considered him for a long moment. "If you want something to dull it, I think Dr. McCoy has something you can use in the lab. If you told him you overtaxed yourself, he'd do what he could to help."
"Then I will be showy in this practice and tell him afterward I've overburdened my healing. Which is true," Noh decided.
"Noh, if you decide you need to talk about it, I think I'm your only option. And you can call any time."
Noh let his expression soften. "Thank you," he said. He paused. "I … will talk to Mia. There are things I can tell her that are close enough…"
"I would tell her whatever you can," James said. "It's better than nothing."
"And she deserves what I can give," Noh agreed, then zipped over to Mia to whisper something to her that only James caught about her sending her best friend after him. She just laughed at the tease and gave him a kiss before practice, but it was good for her to see that James was pushing Noh.
As it turned out, Noh did actually need to go to medical after practice anyway. James had hit him hard a couple times to help him with his reasoning for needing to go to Hank, but Tommy… well, Tommy had decided independently that the last part of training, when the teams would spar with each other, needed to turn into a high-speed match between him and Noh. And both of them ended up in medical after that.
Mia had teleported down after she was reasonably sure that Hank had enough time to help them both and send them to their corners. She knew James had been pushing Noh, but Tommy… she was pretty sure he was acting out of jealousy, and she hated that - especially because Tommy was dating someone.
But when Tommy saw her glare his way, he held up both hands. "Look, Billy's nervous about that super-secret flirting language, okay?"
Mia pinched the bridge of her nose. "Why are you like this?"
"Just am," Tommy said with a brilliant smile as he got up from the medical bed. "But, hey, I'm cleared to go, so…" He pointed at the door and then zipped off, leaving Mia shaking her head as she came to sit by Noh, who had an IV of something going.
"That bad, Dr. Blue?" Mia asked.
"I asked for some help," Noh told her. "I overtaxed my healing, and while I can turn off my pain receptors, I don't like to do it long-term. Pain is the first sign that something has gone wrong, and I don't want to make anything worse while I'm still healing."
Mia frowned at him. "Are you okay?"
Noh nodded. "Physically, yes," he said, then rearranged himself so she could sit with him more comfortably, even though she could see he looked tender. He waited until she was comfortable before he dropped his voice to a whisper. "I'm sorry I've been out of sorts lately. I tried to help one of our other friends with something - I can't tell you what, I'm afraid, as it's not my secret to tell - and in the process, I needed more healing than normal." He looked toward Hank, not at all noticing the way Mia's tail had gone still and her eyes had narrowed as she started to put together a few clues in her head. "Thank you, Doctor," he said, already moving to pull the IV out now that it had run its course.
"If you need my help again, don't wait so long next time," Hank said, raising both eyebrows over his glasses. "You truly stretched your healing as far as it could go, and I don't think it's a good idea to get too close to that edge again."
"Yes, I know," Noh promised, already on his feet again and pulling Mia to hers. And then, just like Tommy, he zipped out of there, taking Mia with him.
They came to a stop in Mia's room, and Noh gingerly set her down, looking properly apologetic when he realized she was still frowning at him. "Ask me your questions, Mia. I will tell you what I can."
"Why don't you start with what you and James are up to that you're not telling anyone?" Mia asked, her arms crossed.
Noh blew out his breath. "That's the one question I can't answer," he admitted.
"Why not? He's my best friend. Maybe I can help."
Noh let his shoulders drop as he sat down on Mia's bed, but she stayed where she was, still with her arms crossed. "We lost the fight," he told her frankly. "I left that encounter with a lacerated liver and other bits of me missing, and I don't regenerate like James does. I'll heal, and the injuries will fix themselves, but…" He trailed off. "This isn't a fight I know how to fight, let alone win," he admitted. "For all its wonder, this reality seems to be trying to be my undoing."
"So let me help," Mia insisted, her tail twitching behind her.
Noh sighed and leaned back, watching Mia glare at him. "I'd tell you if I could. You must believe that much," he said.
"That doesn't make me feel any better," Mia pointed out.
"No, I didn't expect it would." Noh let his breath out through his cheeks and then tried a different tactic. "I told you about Midas, yes?"
Mia frowned but nodded. "The basic overview, yeah. You said it was in the past, though."
"It is." He paused again. "I don't want to turn off the pain right now, but I'm tempted to do so despite the danger," he said. "That's why I asked Doctor McCoy for help. Right now, with my healing stretched this badly, everything hurts, and it's a reminder of what it is like to be tortured while my pain receptors are stuck on." He waited and watched as her lips parted and she lost a lot of her angry expression. "I don't mean to ignore you or be short with you. And I don't like to live in the past. But the past has a grip on me right now that I hope will pass once I'm better healed."
Mia watched him for a long time, but she couldn't see a lie in his expression, and she could see that he was trying to talk to her. So, with an irritated sigh, she came to join him, curling up in his side. "I don't like the precedent this sets for keeping secrets."
"Neither do I," Noh admitted. "I don't usually keep secrets if I can help it. It's too much of a hassle to remember what lies I've told if I go down that path, and it never works out."
Mia smirked. "And you're an open book."
"And I'm an open book," Noh agreed, nuzzling into her neck. And, for the moment, because Mia could see that he was trying and that he was hurt, she relaxed into him and simply curled in for some snuggles.
Chapter 151: Nightcrawler On Campus
Chapter Text
Mia didn't have much to go on, but Noh was deeply asleep that morning - and healing. She figured it was normal for Seniors to skip school now and again, and all points considered ... she had a good reason. So, she started off by teleporting in a few short jumps first to get to James's apartment and then, seeing that James wasn't there, to campus. It wasn't like it was her first time on campus. She'd been to Genosha's colleges and fallen in love with one of the programs there. But … she'd never been to a campus a big as Harvard, so it took her a while to get her bearings, especially in an inducer. But once she figured out which areas of the campus belonged to which majors, she went from there.
Thankfully, she didn't have to do too much looking once she got to the right general area, because she saw James sitting on a concrete wall close by one of the science buildings, drinking some coffee and looking like he was steeling himself for the day ahead. But she didn't go over to say hello, because he and Noh were conspiring, and she wanted to know what was going on.
She stayed a good distance from him - downwind - and watched to see where he headed next. Only once she knew what building he was going in did she teleport again, following him as far away as she dared without getting too close until she saw him swipe a key card for a lab.
She didn't want to miss the opportunity, so she teleported ahead of him once the door was open; the smoke was still clearing as the door shut behind him.
"What the hell is wrong with you?" James hissed, and grabbed her arm as he yanked open the door and dragged her out - not stopping or slowing as he headed for the exit. "You can't be here."
It was so out of character for James that Mia didn't even think to pull away or react other than to stare at him in open alarm. It wasn't until he let go of her once they were out of the building that she even got her feet underneath her to try to talk. "You and Noh are keeping secrets from me!" she blurted out.
"Mia-" He shook his head looking like he was on the edge of a panic attack. "You … I can't tell you about that or I would. As in I cannot talk about it."
"Okay, then let's get Nate or Rachel or Betsy-"
"Absolutely not," James said, then let his shoulders drop as he more gently put his arm around her shoulders and started to direct her away from the building. "This isn't something … we can't do anything about it right now. Just … keep Noh from looking for me and he'll be alright, okay?"
"James, that's surprisingly naive of you," Mia said, raising her eyebrow. "You really think any of us can ignore if you need help?"
"Mia," he said as earnestly as he could. "As soon as I can tell you what's going on, I will but this isn't anything normal. Please."
Mia frowned, her arms crossed. And though her tail was hidden by her inducer, he could hear the light swish of it moving through the air. "James, I just want to help."
"Promise me you won't come back here."
Mia pressed her mouth into a thin line. "No."
"I never ask for anything. You know that. I will do anything you want - that I'm able to do, but please."
Mia let her shoulders drop when she saw how tense James looked, and before she could think about it, she darted forward and hugged him tightly, her arms locked around his chest and back. "Whatever this is, it's not okay," she whispered. "And I'm so sorry you're dealing with it."
"I know," James agreed. "But if you want me to beg you, I"ll get on my knees."
"I won't make you beg, James," she said without releasing him from the hug. "I get it. I won't do that again, I promise. I don't want to scare you, even if I hate feeling like I can't help you."
"Well you can't right now," James said. "If you could, I'd ask - I promise I would."
"I know. You sound like Noh," Mia said, hugging him a bit tighter. "And anything that scares you both freaks me out."
"Then you know how important it is that you stay away from this as long as possible," James said. "I'm sure you'll be involved eventually, but I need months, not days or weeks."
Mia sighed but nodded. "And you know if you ever need me, if you just need a quick teleport… I know Billy will wish you out of there, but I can help, James. I'm not the little girl you had to protect all the time growing up."
"If that was good enough to get out of this, It would have been done already. You're not the only one that can teleport, Goddess."
Mia raised an eyebrow and then nodded to herself. "So you know… I'm going to do a bit of research myself…"
"As long as it's not here, research all you want. Do not act."
"James, I swear, I only came here to get answers, not a fight," Mia said.
"I know. And I'm not trying to fight with you. I know I'll lose - but I can't let you get caught up in this, too."
Mia sighed again and finally let him out of the hug. "I'm pretty sure your whole family is involved in this, aren't they? Mom's been worried."
"Yeah."
"But you're not asking for help, even though literally everyone would help given half a second's chance."
James considered how to respond for a few seconds - there wasn't much he could say, and agreeing fully would just rile her. "I'm not asking for help until I know we can win."
Mia let out an affectionate scoff. "Ye of little faith."
"No. That's not it. I promise you, if anyone tried to move now, we'd lose horribly."
"Then at least tell me what I need to help fix so you and your family are free to move, because whatever this… this person or group or whoever… whatever they have over you, I can help. We can help. Please."
"Not yet you can't," James said. "But you will. I can't give you more than that or I would in a heartbeat."
"Yeah, okay." Mia stepped back again, hugging her arms.
"On my life, I'm not trying to be dramatic or a hero or whatever. And I look forward to an amazing damsel rescue when it gets down to it."
Mia nodded again. "Yeah," she said quietly. "I'm not… I'm not mad at you. But something or someone is screwing with my best friend and my boyfriend and some of the only friends I had as a kid, and I'm mad, okay?"
"Wanna hit me?" James offered.
"No."
"I really wish I could tell you more," James said. "I'm stretching it now as it is."
"I get it, James," Mia said quietly and then reached out to put her hand on his arm. "And yes, I'll come rescue you as soon as I figure out how."
"I appreciate it - in advance," James said.
Mia worried her hands in front of her and shifted her weight from one foot to the other before, with a sigh, she gestured back toward the genetics building. "Okay, well… I'll talk to you later, I guess?"
"I can text when I get out if you want," James offered. "Probably just piss you off, though."
"Not mad at you," she said again. "You know if I'm lying, you doofus."
"I know you're not. But I don't know if time with me and Morticia is enough to derail the rage train."
"I'll consider it."
"I wish you would. She loves you."
"I also have a badly-hurt boyfriend who needs attention too," Mia pointed out.
"He can come by, too," James said. "We can double… with a black cat chaperone."
"Perfect." Mia's tail was twitching unseen as she thought it over. "He's still sleeping a lot while he heals. Can we double tomorrow night? Give him time?"
"Just tell me when," James said. "And give him more protein."
"Got it." Mia darted forward and kissed his cheek. "Love you, by the way. Be safe, please."
"Love you too," James said. "I'm doing my best with what I have to work with."
Mia had promised James to stay out of trouble, and so she didn't go back to campus… during normal hours. What she did instead was teleport back to the science building in the dead of night, at one in the morning, when she was sure no one would be around.
And as far as she could see, she was right. She couldn't see or hear anyone - except for one kid who had fallen asleep drunk in the middle of a plaza. And inside the buildings, the story was the same. No one was around; all the buildings were closed.
But Mia had already been in the lab. She knew she could teleport there again. And so, once she was sure the coast was clear, she teleported inside.
It wasn't immediately clear what the problem was. As far as Mia could see, the lab was just that - a lab. It had all the same equipment that Hank had back in Westchester, though a lot of it was newer because of the budget Harvard had. There were desks and notes and microscopes and cabinets for keeping lab samples.
She didn't fully understand all of it, because she preferred robotics, but she didn't see anything immediately amiss, either.
She bit her lip, frowning as she peered through the lab, looking for anything in the way of clues. She took note of the professor's name on the door - Windsor - and leafed through some notes in chicken scratch that were indecipherable to anyone but whoever had written them, likely from Windsor's other students, she supposed.
A few of the cabinets were locked, and Mia checked again to make sure she was alone before she decided to break into those, careful and quick with the lock picks her mother had taught her to use - but with a brand new set Remy had bought her for her birthday.
She got the first cabinet open and let out a little "ha!" of triumph when she recognized the handwriting on one of the notebooks. That was James's; it had to be.
She pulled out that notebook and set it aside and was just about into the other cabinet when she felt a shift like wind behind her and startled, instantly teleporting to the other side of the room on pure instinct.
And that was good luck for her, because two huge men had just stepped out of the room next to the lab, and as soon as they saw her, they lunged for her.
"Oh, thanks for opening the door for me!" Mia sang out as she teleported away as soon as they rushed for her - reappearing in the doorway and stopping it from closing with her tail. The two men turned and rushed toward her again, and she yanked the door closed behind her, wincing when they hit it hard enough to bring it off its hinges the very first hit.
"That's not great," Mia said, backing away from the door but trying to take everything in about the office she'd teleported into. The place was meticulously clean and organized, and there were stacks of notebooks and dozens of microscope slides and she wanted to dig into all of it. "Can you boys give me a minute? I'm solving a case!" she called out even as the door broke open. "Oh, for heaven's sake."
She teleported away again, reappearing on the ceiling in the office, frowning at the two huge, hulking men. "What are you, anyway? You're not normal hired goons, that's for sure." Her tail was moving in a snaking pattern behind her as one of them picked up a chair and threw it at her - and she teleported away just in time. "I don't suppose either one of you would be willing to tell me who you work for? Just a little name? No?" She teleported out of the way of a big fist. "Okay, suit yourself," she said, grabbing onto the shoulders of one of them and teleporting him out onto the grounds of the school before she returned for the other to do the same thing. And she only took one staggering hit in the process - just before she teleported back into the office.
"Ow." Mia held one hand over her stomach and breathed heavily, wincing her eyes shut before she got a better hold of herself. Those guys were big and dumb, but they weren't nearly to James's level, so they couldn't be who he was scared of. She needed to know more, and she needed to figure it out before their boss showed up.
She thumbed through a couple notebooks before she found one that was dated only a few days ago and wasn't yet full. She didn't understand all of the jargon, but from what she could see, this Windsor guy was looking into healing… and it looked like he was comparing and contrasting two different healers.
The thing that cinched it for Mia, though, was the bit about regenerative healing. Noh had said he'd come away from a fight with a lacerated liver, and here were notes about that.
She stared at the notebook for a long time, her chest heaving. Of course that would scare James. Mia's own mother had told her stories about how James's parents had constantly had to fight off people looking to use them for their powers or else figure out how to steal them for themselves. And Scott had done everything in his power to keep James out of exactly that kind of trouble, hadn't he? That had been practically the story of the Summers kids' childhoods.
Mia frowned and grabbed a different notebook, flipping through it quickly to find more notes - but these weren't about healers. These notes were about energy conversion in a mutant.
So this guy wasn't just after healers. But he wasn't just studying them, either. He was much more hands-on.
"Miss Wagner," a smooth voice said from just over her shoulder. "I had no idea that you were that invested in genetics."
"Holy crap." Mia teleported to the other side of the room, startling nearly out of her skin but still intent on getting a look at whoever was terrorizing James so she could investigate him later. And to her surprise, he looked like a normal professor, if a bit old-fashioned-looking… except for the fact that his eyes were glowing red.
Mia shook her head, still willing her heart to calm down.
"Those that are in the circle of knowledge only get there one way," he said. "And seeing as you don't know who I am, then I can only conclude that your extra terrestrial plaything and your best friend have managed to keep their mouths shut."
Mia's eyes flashed - literally - and she took a step forward, pointing at him. "I don't abide people who torture the ones I love."
"Oh, I haven't started torturing anyone yet," he responded low before he started toward her.
"And that's a hard no," Mia said, grabbing the two notebooks she'd been looking at to teleport away, reappearing in an empty parking lot and clutching the notebooks tightly.
"You'll find I'm not that easy to shake," Windsor snarled from a few spaces over, already striding toward her.
Mia let out a small sound and tried to teleport again, but she couldn't manage that. Instead, she stumbled backward, clutching the notebooks. All she could think about was the fact that James was scared of this guy, and he'd somehow managed to turn off her powers.
And then, just as he reached her, a bolt of lightning shot down from the clouds overhead and fried him where he stood.
Mia let out a high-pitched noise, jumping back from the still-smoking form in front of her. And then, she tried to teleport again.
Still nothing.
"Okay, this isn't ideal," Mia muttered. She couldn't call James for help, because she was sure he would freak out. And she didn't want to call Tommy. Maybe she could call Noh… No, she could just get a cab and figure it out from there. Or maybe she could call Remy… he'd promised he'd come bail her out if she needed it, no questions asked.
Still breathing heavily, Mia got out her phone. "Hey, um, Remy?" she said when he picked up. "I need some help. I'm on campus at Harvard right now, and I kind of electrocuted someone on accident."
"Whatchoo doin' out dat way?" Remy asked, though she could hear him grabbing his coat - apparently he was still up and about.
"Okay, you can't tell anyone, because I promised James I'd be careful," Mia said, audibly stressed.
"Dat don' sound like the start o' no story dat's good."
"I… sort of broke into James's lab and maybe accidentally discovered that his teacher is evil?" Mia winced one eye closed.
There was silence for a long second. "Girl, keep quiet, keep movin', an' make sure trackin' on that phone workin'."
"Thank you," Mia breathed out, already running to follow his instructions. She might not have known Remy for very long, but as soon as he'd come to Westchester, he had been nothing but supportive of her - and had told her hilarious stories about her mother's glory days. She trusted him.
She didn't know where he was - he was gone a lot, enjoying his freedom, as her mom put it - so she did go ahead and hire a cab to get her at least out of the city and closer to where he was. And when she got a text letting her know he was almost to her, she paid her fare and got out at a gas station, waiting and still clutching the notebooks.
"Girl, what you go an' get yourself into?" Remy said, waving her over to the open car door. "Come on, now, dis ain't no place for you."
Mia didn't even bother saying anything until she had run into the car and they were moving again; she was too relieved. And only then did she feel like she was okay enough to explain herself. "I'm - do you know who - it seems like you know what I've gotten into," she said, tripping over herself and still holding onto her stolen goods.
"I know you callin' ol' Remy in de middle of de night, breakin' into places you prolly should not," Remy said. "An' I know you scared when you call. What scares a girl dat bad dat don't mean murder gon' happen?"
"Or grand theft auto?" Mia had to tease, because she was scared, but that didn't mean she hadn't noticed the very nice sports car Remy had picked her up in.
"Dis lil' ol' ting?" Remy said, then ruffled as he faced forward. "Ain't hardly stealin' when it jes' waitin' wit de keys."
"Sure." Mia smiled his way and then let out all her breath. "So, um, James's teacher is evil. And he's studying mutants - but in a mad scientist way. Or maybe he's just studying powers in general; he also kidnapped my alien boyfriend."
"Do have a real name?"
"Windsor," Mia said. She slowly loosened her grip on the notebooks enough to show him that she had them. "I took his notes."
"Dat a start," Remy said.
"He scares James," Mia said breathlessly. "I thought - I was just going to look around in the middle of the night when no one was around, because I promised James I wouldn't get into trouble."
"And you did a fine job of keepin' out of it," Remy said affectionately as he reached over to muss up her hair. "Takin' after ya mama real good."
Mia couldn't help but smile at the compliment. "Thanks," she said. "She's the one that taught me how to break in. I used your kit, by the way."
"Well, maybe we make good use of dat, hmm?"
Mia nodded quickly. "Thanks," she said after a moment's pause. "I didn't know who else to call."
"You tink' your best friend gon' have a problem? Or he won' come runnin'?" Remy asked, testing the waters to see where she thought the kid was at.
"Well, no," Mia said slowly. "But he literally dragged me out of the lab the first time I tried to check on him. He's never done that before. He was that scared."
"An now you t'inkin' he got a reason to be dat way?"
"Obviously." Mia looked down at the notebooks. "I want to give these to Hank. Maybe he can help."
"What in dat, Miss Mia?"
"I don't understand it all," Mia admitted. "But from what I could see… it's notes from his experiments on people with powers. One of these is from him comparing James and Noh; I'm almost certain of it."
Remy smirked to himself. "Den maybe dat ol' blue fleabag just de one to talk at."
Mia nodded, leaning back in her seat, feeling the effects of an adrenaline crash. "This guy… he turned off my teleporting," she said after another long pause. "And he can teleport - and he's quieter about it than I am."
"Not errybody can live up to de style, petit."
Mia smiled at that. "True. Some people have to wear trenchcoats to keep up," she teased.
"Hey now, I go tru all de trouble to come get you outta danger and you gon' disrespect de coat?"
"Did I say it wasn't stylish? No. I said you need it to be stylish because I'm just naturally that way," Mia shot back, smiling and finally relaxing.
"Remy could run 'round in de birthday suit an' ain't nobody gon say dat ain't the finest suit they ever done see."
Mia couldn't help but burst into a laugh. "Why are you like this? Mom's stories do not do you justice."
Remy grinned, his eyes dancing with trouble. "Just born dis way."
"What do you know - me too."
Sinister knew right away that Mia was headed back to Westchester - which, when he considered it was a visit that was long overdue. He thought about it or a moment, then ordered his men to go ahead of him - with two staying behind to clean up and secure the lab … just in case.
When Sinister appeared in Westchester, he took a long moment to breathe in the night air and the inherent peace around him. He always did appreciate Xavier's chosen location. It was thoughtfully laid out, and far more secluded than any normal school would ever need to be. Which made it perfect for him to stroll into and deal with a few overdue matters. He couldn't believe that he'd overlooked Kurt and Ororo's daughter until this point. Of course, his first trip to Westchester the day David had been born was simply a scouting mission to see how difficult it would be to start his work freshly again there.
He still had plenty of other subjects. James was right in that trauma could irreversibly alter ones genetic structure. So, after well over a decade, it had been past time for him to see where the old X-Men stood. And of course, to look into the newest crop of upcoming mutants.
He was relatively sure that the mutations he'd find at the school would be generally unremarkable - but the odds were good that there would be at least one young person that would show him something … more. Particularly if they were from a family that was new to expressing the x-gene.
As always, it was irritating to stay so far back while his men set the cartridges of gas and disarmed the security measures. That part of the defenses at Westchester had been upgraded to impressive levels, but still not to anything that Sinister couldn't circumvent after having sifted through James's mind.
Once the gas cartridges had flooded the halls and sublevels of the building, Sinister donned a gas mask and teleported in, then went to work. He was ridiculously behind in his studies if what he was seeing there was any indication of what the school's current potential held. And James had kept perfectly quiet about all of it. The boy had to have known about most of these most promising prospects. He'd have to take a closer look at the boy's mind later to see if this was reinforcements from his brother or his own natural shields kicking in harder under duress.
But for the moment, he had a limited amount of time to take his shorthanded notes on the staff and students - and to gather up as many useable samples as he could to catalog away before Miss Wagner delivered his notes back to him.
Soon enough, a sports car pulled into the driveway, and Sinister could hear Remy and Mia joking around once Remy cut the engine - though when Remy saw Sinister at the door to the garage before Mia did, he instantly switched from joking to anger.
"What, you come all dis way jes 'cause a lil girl show up in de middle of de night an' fry you dead?"
"Do I look dead to you?" Sinister challenged, then held his hand out toward Mia. "I'll be taking that back."
Mia held the notebooks tighter to her chest. "You weren't breathing…" Her eyes were wide as she looked between Remy and Sinister.
Sinister smirked. "I thought you X-Men were used to such things."
"Don' pay him no mind," Remy told Mia, getting out of the car so he could move to stand in front of her door. "You said it yo'self lookin' at his notes - ain't nuttin' more'n a mad scientist lookin' for more power den he born wit."
Sinister glared at Remy, then snapped his fingers to set off a telepathic command buried in Remy's head that had him drop where he stood - entirely unconscious. "Now. The notebooks," Sinister said, already making a move to enclose her in a telepathic bubble.
He heard her call out telepathically for Betsy, but when she didn't get a response, she let out a startled sound and scrambled backward out of the car, still clutching the notebooks, somehow.
"My dear girl, they are all asleep," Sinister said. "You have no viable back up and I am offering you the only easy way out."
"What did you do to Remy?" Mia asked in a breath.
"He is unharmed, though if that would be a motivator to get this silly little tantrum over, I could easily adjust that as well."
"This isn't a tantrum," Mia said, her eyes narrowed. "I need to show these to Hank; I don't understand genetics, and I don't trust what you're doing with my best friend."
Sinister was walking slowly toward her, wearing an expression that made it clear that he didn't have the patience to explain any of it even if he was so inclined. "That simply isn't going to happen, young lady."
"Stay back or I'll electrocute you again," Mia said, her eyes wide.
"Go ahead," Sinister said, smiling as he held his arms out wide.
Mia's lips parted, and she swallowed, knowing she was caught. She still couldn't do more than call the wind when she wanted to; the rest of her weather powers were still out of her control.
"Let me save you the frustration," Sinister said as he came up to the edge of the bubble he had her caught in. "I've put in a telepathic block to keep you from your powers. All of them this time. You have nowhere to go, and contrary to what you may believe, I have no desire to harm you, young lady." Again, he held his hand out, reaching through the barrier. "I'll be taking my things back."
Mia let her shoulders drop as she looked toward Remy and then nodded, loosening her grip on the notebooks at last to hand them over.
Sinister paused as he took the books back, not quite ready to drop the hold he had on her or the trap she was stuck in. "Normally, I would erase your memory of tonight's events," he admitted as he thumbed through the books, making sure all was still in order. "However, your friend has been forcing me to readjust my outlook recently."
"James is like that," Mia said, her tail swaying wildly and betraying her fear.
"So I've noticed," Sinister said mildly. He looked up at her and held her gaze for a long moment before he dove into her mind for some much more minor adjustments - and to get a better idea of what she knew - or suspected. "No one here will remember anything unusual when they awaken, and since you insist on inserting yourself where you were not invited, I won't erase your recollection of the events. However … that does come at a price."
"What kind of price?" Mia asked, holding onto her elbows now that she couldn't hold onto the notebooks.
"Silence."
Mia swallowed hard and looked toward Remy. "Oh."
"Of course, you may discuss it with those that are already in the know - at your own risk, obviously. I'm sure your friend won't be pleased … and it seems I'm going to have to have a discussion with him as well."
"He's just trying to protect me," Mia said quickly. "Remy too."
"Yes, I know."
Mia frowned as she watched him. "Okay, I won't tell anyone. Please let Remy up now," she said in a small voice, hurt and angry but more scared than anything that this had gone so very, very badly.
"I know you won't tell anyone, my dear - you can't." He looked down his nose at where Remy was in a heap. "He'll be awake as soon as I go - with the command to get rid of the car. He'll be fine for now."
"It seemed like he knew you," Mia said, starting to get a bit of confidence back now that she wasn't being directly menaced.
Sinister turned in a twirl. "What is it you want to know, my dear?"
"Your real name, for one thing," Mia said. "I don't believe it's Windsor."
Sinister smiled. "Ask your best friend."
Mia narrowed her eyes at that and then shook her head. "I will," she said. "Or I'll ask Remy. But I hoped you'd tell me."
Sinister didn't lose the smile. "No, you won't ask Remy. You can't ask others about me, Miss Wagner."
"So it's really just fess up to James about what I did or I don't get any information, huh?" Mia crossed her arms. "I don't get it. Everything I found says you're some kind of mad scientist, but why are you in people's heads, then?"
"I am no mad scientist. It's all about perspective," Sinister replied. "I didn't take you to be so exclusionary when it comes to those with super-human abilities, but I see you've taken up Xavier's stance almost flawlessly."
Mia's eyes flashed, but she didn't have any lightning to call on in the moment. "It's not exclusionary," she said. "I just want to know more about the guy terrorizing the people I love, and I know I'm missing pieces."
"There is a great deal that is well outside of your need to know anything at all. James knew what he was getting into. Remy has always known." His smile slid. "But if you continue to press, I'd be happy to pull you into a similar arrangement."
Mia felt small under his gaze as she minutely shook her head.
Sinister tipped his head slightly as he tucked the notebooks under his arm. "Then I would advise you to get to bed. It is dreadfully late." He watched her for a moment longer, then simply disappeared without a noise or any other indication that he'd been there at all.
Mia let out all the breath she hadn't realized she had been holding and rushed to Remy, who was, like the man had said, starting to wake up. "Are you okay? What's-" She frowned. "Who-" She frowned again. "This sucks."
"Slow down, petit," Remy said. "Whole world still spinnin' last anybody checked."
"But you - but I -" Mia let out a noise of frustration that turned into tears in the corners of her eyes.
"Hold on, hold on," he said, hushing her as best he could as he tried to pull her over to wrap her up. "Miss Mia, dis ain't like you."
Mia held onto him for a long moment, frustrated beyond words that she didn't have a way to make sure he was okay, because she couldn't talk to him about anything related to the man who had just left until she talked to James about it. And even then, she had no idea what he did and didn't remember - and she wanted desperately to ask him how he knew that guy and what he'd meant that Remy had always known what the story was.
But she couldn't say any of that, so what happened instead was that she hugged him tightly. "I'm just glad you're okay. I don't know if you noticed, but you were kind of unconscious on the ground just now."
"Dat soundin' slanderous," Remy said in a rich, low tone. "Ol Remy ain't never had no troubles wit' random narcolepsy."
"Sure." She sniffled and wiped her eyes.
"Purposeful, sho'."
Mia paused and looked toward him, watching everything about the way he held her gaze. "Thanks for, um, for always sticking up for me," she said carefully.
"Always gon' do dat. Like it or no."
"Yeah." Mia cleared her throat. "So, um, I have questions. And I know you can't give me answers."
"Now, you gon' be makin' ol Remy mad sayin' t'ings like 'cain't' so easy."
Mia raised an eyebrow at him. "Oh yeah? Prove me wrong, Uncle Swamp Rat," she said.
He held one hand over his heart with a scoff that echoed from the very back of his throat. "What I do to earn dat kinda doubt? Try me."
Mia blew her hair away from her face. "I can't actually get the questions out," she said.
"How ol' Remy 'suppose to answer a question you cain't ask?"
"That's the problem, isn't it?" Mia sighed and then got to her feet, offering Remy a hand up.
Remy got to his feet, then pulled her into another hug, even going so far as to kiss the top of her head. "Lache pas la patate."
"I don't know what that means, but the sentiment is appreciated," Mia said with a tired smile.
"Hang in 'dere. Dat what it mean."
"Okay." Mia buried herself in a hug again. "You too."
Time at the lab had once again been ratcheted up after Sinister had laid down the law with James - and the only one happy about it was Sinister himself. James hadn't bothered speaking in class unless he was being directly asked a question, and then he was being as concise as possible to just … get it over with. Only … he had no idea when that would be.
Billy knew what was going on - even if he didn't say anything. He'd seen the pattern well enough to know that Sinister had managed to turn things around again. And he knew well enough that if James had a way to reverse it - he would have.
Oddly enough, though, Sinister hadn't insisted on cutting out the time James had carved out to help Nate and Kate, so that time had quickly become a little oasis for Billy to join in with baby time, though sometimes that meant chilling out with Kate, who needed adult-ish conversation with someone she wasn't actually related to … yet.
What had James on edge was the waiting though. He just knew that sooner or later, Sinister would push for something from David - and that would be it. He'd pull the trigger on the data and the real fight would begin. So hoping to avoid that as long as possible, James tried to keep his head down. Just … get the work done. Whatever it was. Get it done and don't draw attention to the infant that he knew Sinister was trying to find a way to get to.
He also used that time to keep a close watch over what new data was coming in. Sooner or later, he'd see the genetic markers in the notes that would be the equivalent of gloating with his family's information. And Sinister was sure to keep putting new information in front of him to be entered into the database.
And a lot of it wasn't even subjects that had an active x-gene. So, so many of the files were for carriers. Which was honestly boring.
James's coffee was just out of reach as he finished up what he thought was the last entries in front of him when Sinister stopped just behind him. James tried not to hold his breath - both because he knew Sinister was watching to see it, and because when he was that close, the astringent smell of disinfectant and black tea was overbearing so doing so would make the scent linger in the back of his nose. But then, instead of the usual commentary, Sinister dropped a pile of notebooks right in front of him.
"Be sure to get those entered quickly. I need the comparison immediately," Sinister said, and James sat back with a sigh as he picked one up … one that smelled faintly of brimstone.
James opened his mouth, then quickly shut it again, trying to place where Sinisters notes had been when Mia had teleported into the lab … he just couldn't remember if they were out or not. But he absolutely didn't want to draw attention to Mia in case Sinister wasn't overly aware of her. So instead, he opened the notebook and bit his lip as he slowly turned the pages that he knew were from the comparison between himself and Noh … then started to get to work.
There were always lots of kinetics … though most of them were low-level, and the notes showed that Sinister had been incredibly busy while James was doing other things. Not that he was sorry he'd missed the collections. The various types of telepaths and those that could communicate with other species or classifications was always interesting … and some of them were particularly rare.
James was halfway through entering the data for some samples taken from a girl with chlorokinesis when he just … stopped and blinked at the information a few times. He didn't have the sample in front of him - that was in the rack of tubes, properly numbered to go with the files before they were sent through analysis, but very suddenly he did not want to touch those tubes.
He took his hands off of the keys on the laptop and sat back, reading the notes on the girl in question more closely. He knew what it said. He'd already glossed over it - but he could hardly hear as he read the commentary Sinister had put down in his estimation of potential. Which was when he realized that the file was referring to Annie's niece - Leslie Ann.
"Is there a problem?" Sinister asked, and James wasn't sure how to respond right away because yes. Yes, there was a very big problem.
He wanted to be non confrontational. Kinda. Part of him did. The other part was pushing down the urge to send a chair at the guy's head and light the lab on fire. But instead, somehow, he managed an almost neutral sounding "Yeah. These samples …"
"What about them?" Sinister asked, clearly daring James to start something. Another test.
"Since when did you start collecting samples from Westchester?" James asked, turning toward him and entirely unsure of how to continue forward.
"I've been collecting samples from Westchester for years, my boy." Sinister had yet to blink as he started toward James. "Were you surprised to find that I manage to keep busy even while you are off lazing about?"
"No," James said in a controlled tone. "This … this is Annie's niece." He looked up at Sinister. "You said family was off the hook."
"She's not family," Sinister countered, then cut James off when it was clear he was going to argue. "Your father has yet to remarry. Miss Hale's nieces remain fair game."
When James stared back clearly not having expected any of that, Sinister pressed his luck - reaching past him to turn the page. "Keep working."
"This is the database for potential candidates to fight Apocalypse," James said in a growl that he clearly couldn't stop. "She's way too young to even be considered."
"For now, yes," Sinister agreed. "And yet, the potential is there. Not at this time … she's too young to be useful right now. But - should he require horsemen in the more distant future …"
James pinched the bridge of his nose with his hands tented over his face. He knew Sinister was avoiding openly discussing fighting Apocalypse, but … James just wasn't alright with looking at kids the way Sinister did.
"Ain't gon' happen no how," Remy said as he let himself into the room, sliding in through the window. "Whole point 'a dis push is to take down de big man hisself. Won't be Horsemen in de future, non?" As he spoke, he straightened up and handed something to Sinister, scrawled in his bad handwriting but still legible.
James was staring at Remy with a frown, hit with a sense of deja vu, but not enough to place it properly. But as Sinister read the note, James couldn't stop himself from speaking up. "How long has he had you?"
Remy spared James a tired smile before he turned to Sinister. "You gotta stop playin' with dat boy's mem'ry. He askin' de same damn question er'ry time."
Sinister looked toward James almost dismissively. "And you make the same complaint. His brother broke open the vault. It'll come back eventually."
Remy sighed and then sat down close by James to look over his shoulder. He didn't know what all the notations were, but from what he'd overheard, he was mentally cataloging who he could at least try to look out for.
"Your information isn't nearly complete," Sinister said to Remy. "And I asked for physical samples."
"Right, you did," Remy said, waving his hand. "Gon' have to wait an' letchu know when dey back from de microverse."
"Are you still using Drake for that information?" Sinister asked.
For just a second, James could see Remy's eyes narrow, but then, Remy shrugged. "Good as havin' eyes in, considerin' he gripe 'bout 'em bein' gone de second dey go."
"A fine point," Sinister said. "You're too far from the situation. There's a small school on the west coast. Scout that instead." He dropped Remy's note on the desk. "If i recall, James had a closer inroad to the Richards family anyhow."
"Now, you jes' wait a minnit," Remy said, frowning. "You already got dat boy doin' all sorta lagniappe for you; leave dat kinda mess to ol' Remy. I kin handle de Four. Just gotta let it be when dey ain't home; you cain't boude over tings like dat none."
"The Four were only useful in carrier information," Sinister said in a slow drawl. "You can't get close enough to the children."
"An' you cain't ask him to-"
"I'm not asking." He turned toward James. "I want you to gather all of the same information you've been compiling for both the Richards children. Do whatever you have to in order to get it. And I require a clean DNA sample from both of them."
Remy's eyes flashed a brighter red than normal, but he didn't do anything more than glare. James could smell his anxiety and could see him trying to move, but it just didn't happen.
James glanced over to Remy, and tried a more reasonable sounding approach. "I can't do that and finish this, too. There's not enough time in the day."
"Then find a reason to spend your time there for now," Sinister said. "I'm sure Franklin would be happy to show off for you." When it was clear James wasn't expecting that in the tone Sinister had said it, Sinister waved him off. "Go. Get my data."
He shook his head, at a loss for words before he gritted his teeth, pushed away from the desk with his computer and grabbed his bookbag, well into a good stomp before Sinister similarly dismissed Remy as well.
Remy was quiet for a long moment once he caught up to James before he said, quietly, "Know you don't remember it, but it's a damn shame you gettin' pulled into dis all de time."
"How much do you know about what he's made me do?" James asked - in no rush to go find Franklin. At all.
"Enough," Remy said. "Been around for a few lessons. Not dat ol' Remy was a student, mind. Jes' stoppin' tru."
James nodded, frustrated enough that he was still growling under his breath. "Can you talk to anyone? Or are you stuck on a gag order like damn near everyone else?"
"Cain't say a word," Remy said in a sigh. "Never could."
After a moment, James tried another angle. "If I give you a note, can you make use of it, or do you have to bring it to him?"
Remy smiled crookedly. "Ol' Remy kin get real creative when he wants to, gettin' 'round de ol' man's orders."
"So … if I ask you to set up some tech …"
"Consider it done," Remy said. "Whatchu tinkin'?"
"That I don't like putting in files on the kids at the school. And the tech at Nate's place works pretty damn good to keep him out."
"Perfect. Been worried 'bout de kids too, jus' didn' have a way to stop 'im."
"I'll … have Franklin help me make some watches or something for everyone in Westchester. Like Nate and Kate have."
"Smart man," Remy said approvingly. "He gon' figure a way 'round 'em eventually, but it's good t' make 'im work for it."
"I can't blow this up yet," James said. "And I know - he'll take it out on me."
"Seems a damn shame you're takin' on dat much on your shoulders," Remy said.
"Billy's already looked into it. Getting off the path too hard at this point will make it all a lot worse."
"Yeah, he been threatenin' de people we care 'bout even though we cain't tell 'im no as it is," Remy said, pulling a face.
James was quiet for a long moment. "Mia crossed his path, didn't she?"
Remy nodded. "Tried to get her out of it," he said.
"Caught her scent on those books."
"Yeah. She stole a couple, wanted to bring 'em to our Dr. Blue. Not a bad idea, if she'd made it."
"He'll kill Hank if he gets involved," James said.
"Never did before," Remy pointed out.
"He almost killed Nate when he killed me for a few minutes."
Remy stopped and turned toward James, watching him with his eyes wide. "Dat… ain't like how he usually plays dis game."
"He's more desperate," James said. "That's why I tried to keep Mia back. He's unstable." Then, he decided to tell Remy as much as he could, seeing as Remy was in a similar boat. "Lots of telepathic headaches out of the blue lately. Lots of making me step in and … ah. Be his hands."
"Yeah, I know de feelin'," Remy said.
"Hasn't been Nate or Rachel. I asked."
"How much dey know?" Remy asked. "Didn' know dey were as involved as dey seem t'be, other'n Nate tryin' ta keep dat baby outta his hands."
James let out a long breath as they got to his car. "If you have time, I could tell you about it. Just … on the road."
Remy shook his head but got in all the same, exhausted from a long run of missions from Sinister as it was. "You a lot more talkative than normal," he said after a moment.
"To be fair, this is the first time I remember talking to you more than just a hello in passing."
"Yeah, usually don't get to talk before your memory's wiped," Remy said, letting some of his exhaustion touch his voice now that they were sitting.
"If it helps, I've only heard good things from everyone that matters. Mia adores you."
Remy smiled softly. "Mia's a goddess, just like Stormy."
"That's what I keep saying," James agreed before he started up the car and got them moving. "But we need to compare notes. If you can. If you can't, I get it. My family can't talk about it to anyone that's not in the know."
"Cain't say much," Remy agreed.
"Well, let's see how much you can tell me," James said. "There are levels on what he does to us - Dad and everyone can't talk to anyone that knows less. But he doesn't have a gag order on me. I just … know I can't for their sakes."
"Jus' been lookin' for Horsemen, but I cain't give you none of dem names neither," Remy said.
"Anyone I know?"
"Wish I could say, so we could warn 'em." He watched James for a moment. "Surprised you ain't warnin' no body. Quoi sa die"
James considered his answer - not that he hadn't considered it a hundred times already. "If I tell anyone on the team - they'll do exactly as they've been trained and raise the alarm - and get their asses kicked. Same thing goes if it's to the Avengers or anyone else. They'll shift into battle stations just as a reflex. They can't leave it alone. Dad would blow his house arrest if the team did anything right now, too. I love them, but I can rely on them to act like they need to against this guy." He took a deep breath. "And … I know Apocalypse is coming and the measures Essex is trying to put in place is the best shot at destroying the guy short of setting Wanda or Billy loose on them. But that has long reaching very bad consequences."
Remy was quiet for a long time. "Been spending months feelin' trapped and wishin' I could tell de rest of de X-Men or even one soul what's goin' on, and here's lil' James, keepin' it to his own self," he said at last.
"Am I wrong?" James asked.
"Yes - mais non," Remy said, tipping one hand this way and that. "You tell it right, mebbe dey listen. But you right, too. Do it wrong and dey gettin' in every bit of trouble you worried about."
"The problem," James said. "Is that I know Essex's side of it, too. And I've watched him change."
Remy let out a sound from the back of his throat and nodded, looking out toward the road. "Keep hopin' de big man jus' finish de job and kill him dead one'a these days."
"If he does, someone else will end up taking his place," James said.
"Ain't nobody in de same class as dat ol' cottonmouth. Take a while to build 'em up to that point, anyway. And den we kill Apocalypse," Remy said. He smiled tightly. "Dat's ideal, anyhow."
James didn't argue it. "I mean … he's still pissed off that I had him halfway behaving for a long while there, too." He glanced over at Remy. "Did you know about the blackmail?"
Remy's eyes were suddenly brighter, and he leaned forward in obvious interest. "We gon' have us e a long chat. Blackmail right up ol' Remy's alley."
"It's already in place - and active," James said. "I slipped a worm into his database, and long story short, it's no longer a normal trigger. Billy shifted it so I can trigger it with the right intention."
Remy was quiet for a while. "Dat explain a few tings," he said, nodding to himself before he cleared his throat. "Cain't tell you what I been doin fo' him, but…tink I got a way to make sure he don' get around dat blackmail. Jus' gotta undo some o' what I done."
James's shoulders relaxed. "That's kind of a relief. That you have a plan, too." He shook his head, then shifted up into a higher gear as they got into the fast lane on the highway - just because the speed and distance had them both relaxing the further they got from Sinister. "I've been trying to come up with something without thinking on it too hard. He's always digging around in my head - or trying to. Nate and Rachel and the Phoenix left him presents in my head … which is probably most of why he's not trying to screw with my memory right now."
"Well, like you say, we gon' compare notes," Remy said. "We got us a long stretch to drive, an' ol' Remy, he all ears."
"Yeah, well, we're only gonna be able to go for as long as I can drive it." He smirked Remy's way. "I DNA coded the car. Sorry."
"Shame."
"Bobby can drive this one …I'll code you into the new one," James said. "Heard you're fun to drive with anyhow. And Dad would probably have kittens to see you driving one of these, Uncle Rem."
"Oh, dis gotta happen," Remy agreed, breaking into a huge grin.
"Really? No reaction to the Uncle thing?" James asked, then paused before he continued. "I'm a little foggy on what it should be … is it second uncle or great uncle?"
"You ken call me whatcha like," Remy said, waving a hand. "Most 'a de team were aunts and uncles 'fore we split."
James shook his head since clearly, Remy hadn't read much in the files. "Yeah, but you are."
Remy frowned for a much longer time. "Out wit it; you know somet'in new or you jes teasin'?"
"I just figured for as sneaky as you were, you'd have read into his files better," James said.
"Ain't nobody wanna go diggin' thru dat mess. Jes' 'nuff to know who he goin' after," Remy said. "Ain't never had de head for all de notes an' squiggles anyhow. Ain't all dat interested in learnin'. Not fo' him."
"Okay, well .. I got you started. I'll show you the files if you want. I know Dad would have reached out to talk to you a lot sooner if he'd been allowed. And I havent' had the chance yet."
"You bes' just spit it out, boy," Remy said, frowning. "Don't sound no good."
"You and the Summers family have a common link," James said. "You both tie in to Essex."
"Knew dat long ago. He been a thorn in our sides since-"
"No," James said slowly. "He's one of Dad's grandfathers - and he's your father, so … great uncle?"
Remy went as pale as James had ever seen him. "Dat ain't funny."
"I swear to you, I'd never joke about that."
Remy narrowed his eyes and then turned away from James, playing a card between his fingers. "I tink," he said at last, "you gon' need to show me de files."
"My laptop is in my bag," James said. "When we stop - wherever, I'll pull it up for you."
"Okay."
James kept quiet for a long moment. "If it's any consolation, you guys aren't related to me at all."
"Sure we are. Jes' by choice," Remy said. "All legal and signed and all dat too."
"Familial history of making horrible choices explained by genetics."
Remy let out a laugh that didn't touch his eyes. "Sure 'nuff."
"I really wish I could say you were related to the space pirate instead. That would make more sense."
"Oh, no, dat actually make me feel better," Remy said, holding both hands out. "Corsair ain't no relation - what a relief."
"Yeah, Dad … that kinda broke his brain for a little while. He's not real tickled about his luck in ancestry."
"He okay?" Remy asked. "Keep meanin' to check on dat comfy cage."
"He's got Annie," James said. "And Alex is there a lot. Nate has Billy with them and David to see him a lot. America and Rachel pop in when Rachel's getting too wound up. I stop in too, but I think I'm just stressing him out when he knows I'm alone with the guy a lot."
"He been workin up to a heart attack since he was your age; ain't nuttin you ken do bout dat, no."
"Sure."
"Believe you me," Remy said, his smile warmer. "You kids're de reason he still 'live at all. Got himself to be a lot easier to deal with once y'all came roun'."
"I've seen him with David. I believe it."
Remy smiled a bit longer and then let it drop. "Well," he said at last, "s'ppose dere ain't nuttin' fo' de truth 'cept a good drink. You gon' join me?"
"Why not," James said in a sigh. "But we should probably grab a bite first or 'Ro will murder both of us."
"She would," Remy agreed, smirking.
Chapter 152: The Bender
Chapter Text
Over the next several days, Remy had fallen into a pattern of drinking until he passed out, then waking up and repeating the process. He was gone often enough that he wasn't all that worried anyone would notice, either - though that itself was just more fuel on the fire.
To anyone who didn't know what James had told Remy, it looked like he had finally hit a wall after spending so long running after he left Genosha. And that was part of it.
But Mia knew James might have answers, so after she psyched herself up enough to admit she had gone snooping after he warned her off, she figured out how to ask if he knew what had happened to Remy - because she was worried to the point of distraction that something else had gone wrong.
Of course, what ended up happening was that she blurted out everything at once - including her concerns about Remy - and then stood there with her tail in her hands, her eyes wide and her chest heaving.
"I know you went right back," James said before he pulled her over into his very best bear hug. "And I know it blew up in your face. Are you okay?"
Mia shook her head and buried herself in the hug. "I thought I killed him," she said.
"If you had managed to kill that body - which would be tough, he'd just jump into one of his stand by clones," James said. "There was a whole laundry list on why I didn't want you poking around, and I'm sorry I wasn't more clear as to why. I just knew that would have brought everyone in - and at their strongest, everyone couldn't beat this guy."
"So he just gets to do whatever he wants?"
James tipped his head slightly. "Not … entirely. But I do think we're better off knowing what exactly he's into than having him off who knows where doing whatever he likes."
"Maybe." Mia wiped her eyes. "He dropped Remy just for helping me, and … have you seen Remy lately? I know you've been busy… I went to ask him if he wanted to play cards or something and it looks like he drank a liquor cabinet. I don't know what that guy is doing to him, but it's tearing him apart."
"Yeah, I spent some time with him a few days ago," James admitted. "He definitely got some bad news, but I can't … it's his secret to share or not. I don't want to say anything that would upset him. He could definitely use some spoiling though. You could just … bring him food and shove it under his nose. I'll pay."
"You know, that just might work," Mia said, nodding.
"It would work really well if you know what he likes best," James pointed out. "If he's just been drinking, it'll hit him hard. That's what I've watched happen to other people, anyhow."
"I'll ask Mom. She's worried too."
"Well I'm all in if you want back up at any point," James said. "I should have you help him with a little project I've been working on with Franklin."
"Sure thing," Mia said and kissed his cheek. "Thanks. I'm sorry I didn't listen."
"I'm sorry I thought you'd actually back off," James teased with a little smirk.
"Yeah, what were you thinking?"
"I was banking on you believing me for how desperate I was to ask you not to."
"In my defense, I thought I was sneaking in when no one was around," Mia said. "I was just investigating; I wasn't looking for a fight."
James kissed the top of her head. "In your defense, you're a damn hero and I don't think I could have said or done anything to slow you down."
Mia smiled and snuggled deeper into the hug. "Love you too."
"So … call your mom, find out what he likes, and I'll give you a whole box full of projects that are a whole lot like what I did at my place and Nate's." He gave her a meaningful look.
Mia's eyes widened as she suddenly understood. "I'm so ready to help," she agreed instantly.
Ororo had been more than happy to point the kids toward a soul food place when she heard what they were up to. But while they were gone to pick up the food, she decided it was high time to talk to her old friend herself, too.
As disappointing as it was to see immediately how much Remy had been drinking, the bigger clue to just how badly he was feeling was the fact that he obviously hadn't taken care of himself, either. He had been immaculately well-groomed since the day she got him out of prison, so this? This was him actively sabotaging his own recovery in more ways than one.
She didn't know what had happened to put him in this position - or if it wasn't a matter of one single thing but smaller moments combined - but she wasn't going to let another old friend fall apart on her watch. Not after everything they had all already been through trying to get each other back on track.
He was passed out when she found him - and though he'd managed to get to his room, he had fallen short of the bed and was on his side still fully dressed from the day before. Or maybe the day before that. He even still had his shoes on and it looked as if he hadn't moved a muscle from when he'd passed out.
But Ororo knew that he'd be waking up soon to start the cycle over again if she didn't stop him from doing so. When she stepped into the room, she quietly closed the door behind herself then snuck closer to him to really see what kind of shape he was in - half wrapped around a bottle of rum that still had a respectable measure in it. She carefully took the bottle from him and went to his bathroom to dump the rest of it out in the sink.
When she returned to him, it was with a cool washcloth in one hand - and that was how she chose to wake him up … by cleaning up his face a little with the cool cloth.
Remy peeked one eye open, startling slightly, but when he saw who was there, he closed his eyes again with a tired, "M'fine, Stormy."
"Yes, well, I had to be sure you were fine enough not to drown if I opened up a microburst on you." She batted his hand away when he tried to stop her. "The jury is still out on which way that would go."
"You'd do dat to ol' Remy jes' for sleepin in a bit?"
"For sleeping in, no. For drinking himself into oblivion? Perhaps."
Remy sighed and looked down at himself, sighed again, and said, "Ain't nuttin you need t'be worryin' over."
"I think I can decide what I should worry about all on my own," Ororo replied. "And I choose to watch over you."
"M'fine, Stormy, ain't worth stealin' your time," Remy said, reaching toward the bed stand and frowning when he didn't see anything there to drink.
"You aren't capable of stealing my time," Ororo said with a smile. "Or much of anything else at the moment, I'm sure."
"Lies," Remy said easily.
"You don't have the energy to prove me wrong, either, so I suppose we can sit here and wonder how it would go."
"You and I both know you got yourself a whole school to run," Remy pointed out.
Ororo leaned in closer. "Not today."
Remy blew out his breath from his cheeks but knew he couldn't argue with her when she was this determined. "So, what now?"
"Why don't you start with telling me what's gotten you so low?"
Remy let out a mirthless laugh. "No, I don't tink I will," he said, pulling himself a little more upright.
"That doesn't seem much like you," Ororo teased.
"No, I ain't never keep secrets, no ma'am," Remy teased right back.
"You've never bothered to keep them from me," she countered.
At that, Remy did let his shoulders drop, though he hid it by pulling his foot up to pull off his shoes. He was too hungover to try to figure out how to explain himself, especially when he couldn't even bring up Sinister.
"Is it Bobby?" she asked quietly, more to see if he was even listening to her while so lost in his head.
"What dat boy got to do wit anytin'?" Remy asked, a bit more defensively than he would sober.
"Oh, nothing at all, I'm sure," she said airly.
Remy frowned at her for a long moment and then ran a hand down his face. "Alright," he said slowly. "So it jes' may be de case ol' Remy jus' now heard from his bon de rein ol' man." He nodded to himself; that was vague enough he could talk about it.
"Jean-Luc?" Ororo asked, frowning deeply.
Remy let out another hollow laugh. "No, dat would be easy," he said. "No, dis de one what had an affair an' tink he got hisself a say in Remy's life jus' on account we share blood. Track me down, I s'ppose. Always knew Remy was his, jes' didn' care 'cept to ask favors." He made a vague gesture with one hand.
"And you just now discovered this person was blood?"
"Shocked de hell outta ol' Remy, I don' mind tellin' you. Woulda been happy never knowin' de truth."
Ororo considered it for a minute. "Then he doesn't matter one bit."
"Stormy, it's a lil' more complicated den all dat sentiment."
"It doesn't have to be," she said before she sat down next to him and rested her hand on his arm.
Remy was too tired to keep his poker face and simply leaned over to put his head on her shoulder. "Dis man, he wicked in de worst ways," he said.
She leaned her head toward his. "It's not like you to be this bothered by someone."
"Yeah. Wish I could explain it better," Remy said, closing his eyes and letting himself relax on her shoulder.
"You could certainly try," she said. "I won't judge you by people that have had so little to do with you."
"I know." Remy was tired enough he thought about drifting off again, but instead, he cleared his throat and sat up better. "One day, mebbe Remy find de words. Meantime, ain't nuttin' we ken do. Is what it is."
"Such a positive outlook for someone so depressed. Are you sure it's just this negligent father that has you so low?"
Remy shrugged lightly enough he only slightly moved her. "What Remy got to be depressed about?" he asked. "Got a real family here at dis fine school you runnin' so well. Gettin' to see your lil' goddess learn to ride de wind. Don' see nuttin' to complain about."
"Then why would you let someone so inconsequential drag you down for four days?"
Remy swallowed and looked away. "Four days, huh?"
"I thought that I'd waited quite long enough."
"Yeah." Remy sighed. "Well, you ever meet the black-hearted ol' devil, you understand in a second."
"Another one of those?" Ororo said loftily.
Remy chuckled. "Might have Kurt beat," he teased - though he was almost serious.
"That is foreboding," she said with a smile. "You should probably clean up before Mia returns."
Remy frowned down at himself. "Wasn' expectin company."
"She's got a surprise for you," Ororo told him.
"You got a good girl," Remy said, the warmth returning to his smile. "Alright, gimmie a hand up; don't want your lil Mia disappointed."
Ororo got to her feet then pulled on him to help him upright. "I can hit you with a downpour if you don't feel you have the will to make it to the shower."
"You hilarious. I'm fine, me. Always am."
"Cold water only?" she teased.
"So funny," he grumbled good-naturedly before he disappeared into the bathroom.
As soon as Remy slipped into the next room, Ororo's sedate smile dropped and she got to her feet to find any alcohol he might have stashed in the room. For as low as he was, she didn't trust that he wouldn't try to take the edge off before they could get food into him. But when she only found one small bottle of warm French beer, she left him alone to wake up - and clean up.
He was looking much more like himself by the time Mia and James arrived with food - he was clean-shaven again and had a new set of clothes - though he still looked worn down and couldn't hide the dark circles under his eyes. Still, when he saw Mia, he gave her a wide, warm smile. "You got to all dis trouble jus' to say hello? You know you jus' gotta say de word and you got me for whatever trouble needs doin'. You need a Kree body hid or is he still in de good books?"
"He's with Tony," James said as Mia giggled at the offer.
"And why aren't you with Tony?" Ororo asked.
It took James half a second too long for the level of response he came up with, though. "... be-cause Noh is with Tony."
Ororo raised an eyebrow and, seeing that Remy was pulling himself together for Mia, put a hand on James's shoulder and gestured down the hall. "I've been meaning to talk to you anyway…"
"It's not a lie," James said, half smiling at her. "I can't do anything with Tony while he's trying to get more tech out of Noh."
"I know," she said simply, keeping her hand on his shoulder. "Still, I don't get the chance to talk to you often enough. Please."
"For you? Always," James replied, trying to keep a light mood.
They ducked into a classroom that wasn't being used at the moment before Ororo turned toward him, frowning. "James, what's going on?" she asked and then held up a hand. "And please, don't tell me nothing is wrong. Rachel and Nate are terrified and on high alert. Your father is slipping to a point I haven't seen since he met Dr. Hale. You are tense as a bowstring and setting up defenses for your brother that Kate isn't calling overkill. Wanda won't ask you, but she is looking for answers. Do you really think the rest of us haven't noticed as you all fall apart?"
James's smile slipped from the moment she started to speak. "No."
"Then tell me what's happening. I won't let the people I love fall to pieces, James. Not again. Not while I have breath in me."
He looked down at his hands as he tried to figure out how to say what he needed to say. If he told her the truth, Sinister would come down on all of them hard. He knew that he had plans in place for just such a slip, and he refused to put his family in the crosshairs like that. "Aunt Ro, I want to tell you everything I know, but I can't. I won't lie to you and say nothing's wrong. And if I could tell you without it causing irreversible harm to everyone involved, I would in a heartbeat. But I know how this will go if I say anything." He looked up at her and half shrunk in on himself. "I'm sorry. You know I'd do anything for the family - or for you guys. This is the only option right now. Wanda's looking for the edges on how to get into this, but she can't help right now either or I would have spoken up a long time ago."
Ororo searched his expression for a long time before she let her shoulders drop and pulled him into a gentle hug. "I am so sorry," she said softly.
"Please don't do that," he said, matching her volume as he snuggled into the hug. He hated holding back so much from them.
She simply responded by hugging him tighter. "Whatever is happening, we will fix it," she swore. "I'm only sorry you are in this position."
"The instant I can tell you anything, I will," James promised. "Because it will take everyone and everything we've got. That's all I can tell you for now."
Ororo nodded and then stepped back to look him in the eyes. "When it's time, whatever you need, you have it," she swore.
"Sorry I can't -" he closed his eyes and sighed.
"It's okay. You aren't the only one." Ororo's eyes flashed slightly as she thought of the friends that had her so worried.
"Yeah, but I kind of started it," James said. He couldn't tell her what was going on -but he could sure as hell drop a few clues. And as he'd seen so far - several times over - if someone else figured it out, Essex didn't drop the hammer on him or anyone else. He just made them keep the secret.
"I'm sure that's not true."
"It is," James said.
"I know you believe that-"
"On my life, it's the god's honest truth," James said. "And I'm not exaggerating." He held her gaze, but he couldn't figure out how to direct her to it without crossing a line … which would definitely end with him just telling her everything. Then, he realized he could give her one more piece. "It started in Oxford. I just didn't realize it at first."
Ororo raised both eyebrows and then nodded slowly. "I see," she said simply and then kissed his cheek. "You never get a break. Go. Have fun with Mia."
James shrugged. "Mia's with Remy - and he needs it more than I do."
"Then get some rest. Seems like we are all short on that lately."
"Sorry, not on the agenda," James said before he kissed her cheek.
"I love you, James. I hope you know that."
"You know I love you guys, right?" he said. "Even if I'm horrible at showing it?"
"Of course," Ororo said richly.
"Then if you have other things to do, I should get back to work." He thumbed over his shoulder. "I .. have to pay back Franklin for the help he gave me on the latest defenses. He's kind of pitiful with making his presentations understandable to anyone that's not him or Reed, so …"
"You're helping him with a presentation?"
"Just dumbing his speech down for him so he can walk away without leaving the room wondering what just happened," James said. "Takes a lot of time to explain to him how far he needs to bring it down. He and Reed both have the same problem of not realizing how far ahead of everyone they are."
Ororo chuckled at that. "Good luck to you," she said, giving his shoulder one last squeeze then headed back to where Remy and Mia were.
And James took the distraction to his advantage and zipped out of the school. Billy was in Genosha for the weekend and James hadn't yet managed to get the samples that Sinister was pushing for. And he was running out of time to get them. To his surprise, The Four and Valeria had been easy. Franklin … Franklin was acting nervous around him and was hyper aware of where James was in the room. And if he hadn't realized that Billy was right and Franklin had some sort of held-over crush, he'd have worried that Franklin suspected he was up to something.
He just needed the guy to relax enough to get the damn sample. And he felt incredibly out of his comfort zone trying to use any advantage on Franklin.
He sped to the Baxter building and made his way up to the top floors. This was the last chance James would have to use the speech as an excuse to hang around - and he didn't know what he could use otherwise, though he was sure Franklin would find something. Sue and Reed were happy to see him there - if not a little surprised since it was Friday night.
"I thought you'd be out with Billy," Sue said after she called for Franklin to come out of his room. And of course, he popped his head out just as James started to answer her.
"He had some things he had to take care of in Genosha," James said.
"Don't you usually go with if it's the weekend?" Franklin asked, and Sue was almost frowning between the two of them waiting for James's half-halting answer.
"Usually, yeah, but … we didn't finish going over that speech - and I wanted to follow through."
"Skipped the tropical weekend to hang out with the skinny pale kid?" Ben said - far too loudly.
James smiled simply because he couldn't bring himself to laugh at it. "I mean … I guess so." Then, he quickly held up both hands. "Unless you didn't want my help-"
"No! I do," Franklin said quickly, and James wished that Sinister hadn't been right on that front because Franklin was nervous suddenly. And this could cause so many problems for James. "Come on- I think it's just about ready for you to translate."
"Translate?" Sue asked as James walked by.
"Into plain English," Johnny said from the couch without looking their way. "You know - take it down from geek speak?"
Sue rolled her eyes and the two of them got into one of their age-old arguments about exactly this kind of bias as Franklin led the way to his room. The anxiety didn't let up as he handed James the notes and the two of them sat down in the window seat - facing each other.
In no time, they had shifted to sit almost shoulder to shoulder, honestly going over the notes - with James handing him surprisingly good suggestions to tone it down for his audience in ways that Franklin … simply took for granted. But Franklin was obviously distracted. Sure, James had worked with him plenty in the last week - and they'd done a lot of fun building on the tech he'd brought over. But .. he never expected for James to skip out on time with Billy for this.
James was still trying to figure out what he had to do to get what he needed before Sinister did something terrible to the Four - and he was sure he had a failsafe to work with for just that kind of scenario. Using the paper as a cover kept him thinking though - and he thought he had a way to get his sample when Franklin spoke up.
"Why are you here?"
James stopped what he was doing and turned fully to face him, entirely without an answer to so basic a question. "What … do you mean?"
"I mean you and Billy were stealing every spare moment together in Cambridge. Like … literally, he was coming over for breakfast in the mornings. Did something happen?"
"No."
"Then … why aren't you with him?"
James's shoulders relaxed slightly. "Because he doesn't need me while he does some outreach with his brother and you said you wanted a new set of eyes on this speech. You've done a lot for me, Franklin. I want to return the favor."
"Yeah, but … why? I mean - you let me stay with you for a semester, and you - you don't owe me."
Franklin's anxiety level was peaking along with a few other scents that James hated catching from his old friend. But not as much as he hated the fact that he knew how to push him into distraction. But everyone's well being was in the balance, so he went for an easy shrug, and shifted his tone to one that was more smooth as he forced a crooked smile. "Why not?"
"Ah…"
He could hear Franklin's heart racing and he could practically see the wheels spinning in his head. So James leaned back, out of his space so as not to set off the worst alarm bells for him. "I'm not going to bite you, Franklin. Relax."
"Wasn't … worried about that, honestly," Franklin said with a touch of false bravado that James hated, then he got to his feet a moment later. "I'm … I'm going to grab a couple drinks. Just … I guess … I'll be right back. The others are headed out…" He turned to rush out the door before James could even nod.
And as soon as James heard him running down the hall, he got to his feet and made a lap around the room to figure out how to handle things. He had to get those samples.
He just hoped Franklin wouldn't get brave and actually make a move.
Bobby had been hoping that the Christmas party thing had been a step backward, but not a permanent one. He knew Johnny hadn't ever really been good at getting serious, and he knew that the guy tended to self-destruct when he got nervous, but Bobby had just finished his prepwork for the finals, and that meant it had been an entire semester of waiting for Johnny to figure himself out.
He'd really wanted to give it a shot, too, because it wasn't like he didn't know Johnny liked him. That much was blatantly obvious from all the work Franklin had been doing trying to get them together, for one thing. Not to mention the way Johnny had been weird about Bobby recovering from spending all that time stuck on Genosha, like he wanted to help but didn't know how.
But for the past few months… the guy Bobby had seen when he first came back from Genosha, the one that was trying so hard to make up for not coming to find Bobby, the one who was trying to win him back, was gone. And it wasn't like Bobby wasn't enjoying the physical side of things - but that was pretty much all they were doing anymore.
Johnny knew, for example, that today was supposed to be the last day before he was busy with end-of-semester stuff. But they didn't have plans. They hadn't gone out on a date that Bobby hadn't planned himself since… well, since Christmas. And that last date had been a couple weeks ago.
And at this point, it didn't matter that Bobby knew Johnny liked him. Or cared about him. Or whatever. Johnny was self-destructing, and Bobby didn't want to spend any longer waiting for him to stop.
Bobby let himself out of his office, his hands in his pockets as he headed up to his room. He knew exactly what in that room was Johnny's - and that was kind of telling, too, because there wasn't much of it. He'd been going to the Baxter Building enough that he'd left plenty of clothes there and had his own toothbrush, towel, the works. But Johnny had a few clothes and honestly not much else.
Bobby threw the clothes in a box and then left through his room's window, skating down to the garage rather than risking passing anyone he knew while he was carrying Johnny's stuff out. He didn't want to have to deal with the questions.
He had plenty of time to try to talk himself out of this course of action on the way to the city, but the truth was, he'd been thinking about doing exactly this for weeks now. He just hadn't gotten around to it.
The only thing that slowed him down, really, was the fact that he saw James coming out of the Baxter Building just as he was about to go in. The kid looked almost sick to his stomach, which was just … he didn't want to think too much of it, except that Billy had been loudly complaining that James was too busy to hang out with him lately.
Bobby frowned toward James and then decided against calling out to him. Whatever was going on with that kid, he could figure it out on his own. And Bobby was honestly trying to keep the drama to a minimum.
He had his own passkey to the place by then, so he let himself into the elevator but still knocked as he opened the door to the Four's place. It looked pretty empty; either the Four were gone or they were sleeping off another mission to space or something. It didn't really matter. At least it meant Bobby wouldn't have to deal with the look he knew Sue would have given him if she saw him.
He set Johnny's stuff down on the table and then, briefly, considered whether it was worth it to grab his stuff too. But none of it was sentimental - and that was telling too, wasn't it?
So, Bobby left his keycard behind and headed back out, quieter than normal as he drove back. He stopped somewhere for a drive-thru dinner and had every intention of just slipping back to his room and trying not to alert anyone that anything had changed.
Except that was right around the time Remy got back, also trying to slip in without being seen. And both of them had had the same idea of going in through the door in the east that was well-hidden by a garden Leslie Ann had been tending with Storm.
"Are you coming or going?" Bobby asked quietly when Remy stopped upon seeing him. It occurred to him that he hadn't seen Remy in a while, but even while Bobby had been in his own head for so long, he could tell Remy wasn't exactly looking cheerful either.
"Jes' comin' in," Remy said. "And you?"
"Same," Bobby said with a sigh.
"Now, dat ain't right; night's perfectly good for somet'in fun t'do," Remy said, though he was watching Bobby more closely.
"Yeah, I'm not really in a big rush, to be honest," Bobby said. "Kinda nice out - for now."
"We gon' talk 'bout de weather, Rober'?" Remy teased lightly.
"Nothing else is changing, is it?" Bobby asked. "Why aren't you out? This is prime party time for you, isn't it?"
Remy shrugged easily with his hands in the pocket of his coat. "Haven't been in de partyin' mood, if you want de truth," he said.
"No? Well … what about that little bender I heard about? If it wasn't a party, then we probably need to light the torches or something, right?"
Remy chuckled. "You mustn't'a heard 'bout 'Ro lettin' ol' Remy know her opinion on dat bender."
"Been a little busy," Bobby said as he rubbed the back of his neck. "And she wouldn't talk."
"True 'nuff." Remy sighed and gestured for Bobby to join him. "You look like you lost in yo' head."
"Yeah, a little," Bobby agreed. "Just dropped off my keycard for the Baxter Building. Etcetera."
"Ah." Remy nodded slowly, taking his time tipping his head up and then down. "You find someone better," he said confidently.
"Just tired of his games," Bobby said. "I'm not exactly the kind of guy anyone's trying to pick up?"
"What?" Remy laughed and gestured to Bobby, sweeping one hand up and down along with his gaze. "What dey got against handsome heroes, hmm? You good-lookin' enough Johnny prolly jes' jealous."
"Wow, Rem - you really need your eyes checked," Bobby said with a chuckle.
"Lies. You jes' don' see it is all."
"Sure, sure. So - what was with the drinking?"
Remy let out a noise from the back of his throat and waved the question away. "Long story," he said after a moment's indecision trying to decide what to tell him.
"I've got time."
Remy laughed at that as they walked back into Leslie Ann's garden. "Well, mebbe it ain't so long. Mebbe ol' Remy jes' don' like talkin' bout how de man what tinks he ken claim to be a father jes' 'cause of his contributin' some DNA strolled into Remy's life tinkin' he got a say in it."
"You've met my racist anti-mutant, homophobic dad," Bobby said. "Seems like you can write him off pretty easy when you didn't even know him. I still get guilt trip letters from my mom to ask if I found a cure yet. For either issue."
Remy pulled a face. "You need 'em to get a worldview adjustment?" he offered.
"If they haven't figured it out by now, they're not going to."
"True." Remy shrugged easily. "Come to find out Remy's biological father nuttin' more'n a murderer and sadist."
Bobby nodded. "I think that support group meets on Thursdays. Sorry."
"Jes' took me by surprise, is all," Remy said. "Wasn't expectin' it, and had a few other tings complicatin' life. Won' happen again."
"Fair," Bobby said.
Remy cleared his throat. "So," he said. "If we ain't talkin' 'bout horrible fathers, we gon' talk about dat prodigy you been teaching wit Stormy?" He smiled easily at Bobby. "Lil Miss Leslie Ann jus' 'bout worshippin' you."
"Oh, yeah, she's a great kid - horrible taste - but a great kid all the same. She's coming along really well. But … you know. Storm. Hard not to."
"Cain't go wrong wit' a goddess," Remy agreed.
"Right? So … you'll pick one up this fall, right?"
Remy let out a tired laugh. "Been a lil' busy, but mebbe."
"Make time before you end up looking like an old man," Bobby teased.
Remy drew himself up with a scoff. "Rober'," he said. "Mebbe you got issue wit' your self-image, but Remy don' abide by lies bout his good looks."
"I didn't say you looked like one now," Bobby defended with a grin.
"Dat's right you didn'," Remy said, grinning right back.
"So … go do what you do," Bobby said, bumping his shoulder. "You've been a hermit since you came home. More or less. It's unsettling."
"Yeah, don' mean to be," Remy said.
"That makes it worse."
Remy smirked and bumped his shoulder back. "Don' worry none. We figure it out, you an' me. You learn how t'take a compliment, and ol' Remy, he get back into life."
"Sounds like a plan," Bobby said. "But I don't want to go in yet." He sat down in the grass outside of the greenhouse, then leaned back until he was stretched out and looking up at the stars.
"Mind company?" Remy asked as he sat down and took a similar position.
"Nah. I welcome it."
Remy smirked at that and sat with his hands behind his head, with every intention of sticking around for Bobby after the breakup - though what actually happened was that he fell asleep watching the stars after a few minutes.
After several weeks of work, Mia and Remy had finally finished installing the last of the devices James had made up for them to fortify Westchester and genetically block Sinister and his men. They'd followed the installation schematics James had drawn up for them to a 't' … but found themselves with one extra device.
"They were all working, right?" Mia asked Remy when they realized that there was a spare.
"They are," Remy said with a growing smile. "Ev'ry one. Ol Remy thinkin' mebbe dat one .. just one to keep. Jes in case. Or set dat down somewhere safe." Remy almost laughed then nodded to himself. "You keep dat safe, now," he said, smiling outright when he kissed the top of her head - and a few moments later, he disappeared leaving Mia to turn it over in her hands and consider what to do with it.
There was no way James had miscounted, after all. And these weren't something he'd picked up somewhere. He had to make every last one - so, she knew this was intentional. So, without being able to talk about what they were without giving it away and breaking the rules, all she could do was leave it in a conspicuous place. Like next to her hairbrush on her dresser. Directly next to the door. Where her father stood to wish her a good night every night since forever.
She looked over at where Remy had disappeared then started to giggle under her breath before she teleported up to her room and carefully set the device down - then twirled across the room to change. And wait.
"You're in an excellent mood," Noh said as he let himself into her room through the window after coming back from a full day with Tony.
"Yes, I am," she agreed with a pointed grin. "How was working with the Stark?"
"Fun as always. His ideas are incredibly advanced, and I enjoy talking theory with him."
"Is he still pining?" Mia laughed.
"For the tech I won't share or for his adopted son to come back from Reed Richards' orbit?" Noh teased.
"Yes. Both are fun to watch."
"Yes, yes they are," Noh agreed, pulling off his shoes and setting them aside before he sat down and stretched. "And you look lovely when you're dancing."
"So do you," she shot back. "But I'm not in the mood for a dance party. Sadly."
"What? And you were beaming so brightly when I arrived."
"Have I dimmed?" she laughed before she stole a kiss.
"You did say you were in no mood for a dance party," Noh said.
"Yes. Because I am waiting for the floor show." Her tail was swaying behind her.
Noh laughed and pulled her into another kiss. "Oh, you are in a good mood," he said - laughing when she pinned him in a much more enthusiastic kiss after that.
They were just starting to get tangled up with each other when someone knocked on the door. Mia nearly shoved Noh halfway across the bed as she called for them to enter, grinning brightly as she did so. "It's open!"
The door opened with Forge behind it - and his smile slipped when he saw that the two of them were clearly getting overly involved if the expression Noh was wearing was anything to judge by. "I - was just going to say good night," Forge said, and almost slipped right out, but Mia was on her feet in a blink.
"So, you can still do that," she said, bouncing on the balls of her feet.
Forge sighed and shook his head before he stepped forward and kissed her cheek good night - only to freeze when he turned back toward the door and saw the device sitting there. "What is that?" he asked before he turned to Noh. "Is this yours?"
Noh shook his head. "No, looks like something James was working on last we talked, though."
By that time, Forge had already picked it up and was wearing an expression that was equal parts intrigued and confused the more he saw of it. He looked between the two of them, then back to the device. "Do you know what this is?" Before either could answer, he started muttering to himself. "this is so hyper specific - why…DNA targeted … who in the world …"
And by that time, Mia was bouncing again. "You should probably take it to Uncle Hank. And Mom. Mom needs to see this." She waved her hand. "Whatever it is."
"Meet me there?" Forge said, though he clearly wasn't about to let go of the device as he continued to examine it.
"Yes, of course," Mia agreed, still bouncing and grinning as Forge turned to leave and she started cackling. "This is the best."
"I think you'll need to explain this to me," Noh said, though he had reached over to pull her into a hug to rest his chin on her shoulder, obviously thrilled to see her so happy.
"It's gonna be way better when Dad explains it," Mia said.
"Then can I come too?"
"That depends on if you're planning to go running off for vampires."
"I've not yet figured out how to evade vampiric methods of capture, so, no, I haven't been hunting and won't be until I can get a better plan of action."
"Perfect!" She said before she took a better hold of him and teleported them directly to Hank - and even timed it perfectly to stick her head out of the sulfur cloud to startle him with a muted "Hi."
As she'd hoped, Hank startled back a step - and she'd beaten her father down.
Hank chuckled and wiped his glasses as a means to recompose himself. "And what can I do for the two of you?" he asked.
"For us? Nothing. We're just here to watch," Mia said before she hopped up on a stretcher - her tail still swaying playfully behind her. "Ooh, but if you have popcorn, I would love some."
Hank's chuckle turned into a laugh. "I'll see what I have," he said. "It seems something wonderful is afoot."
"Henry!" Forge called out as he stepped through the door looking much more intense than he had just a few minutes earlier. "I need you to run a DNA analysis. Right now."
"Hold that thought, Mia," Hank said, pivoting quickly to help Forge when he heard the urgency in his tone.
"I should have planned ahead and brought the popcorn," Mia stage-whispered to Noh.
Hank hadn't even crossed the room before Forge started talking at speed describing to Hank what it was he was holding and what it did. He was picking up speed the more he spoke, and by the time he got the device cracked open to where the sample was, he was just about to the point of saying who he thought their problem was. "I can't 'see' who it's coded against - but the sample …"
"I can confirm your suspicions in a matter of minutes," Hank said, already picking up on Forge's train of thought.
"This would explain …pretty much everything," Forge said. "The baby-" he let his thought drop, but by that time, Hank was holding his breath.
He was loath to say anything when he was halfway hoping Forge was wrong, but the scent from the sample alone was familiar enough that he was putting together several clues from the last few months, not the least of which being the way Kate and Nate had been acting the day David was born. But now that he thought about it, the change that had come over Scott lately, the angry call he had received from James relating to David, the sudden paranoia from those in the Summers family's immediate circle, even the burnt-out healing Noh had been reluctant to explain.
And a few minutes later, he had confirmation, and he took his glasses off as he stepped back from the lab computer so that Forge could see it for himself as well.
Forge looked at the data carefully, triple checked the comparison on screen, and when he finally stepped back all he said to Hank was "Ororo said something about Oxford."
Hank was quiet for a long time before, his voice carrying a growl in it, he said, "I think you and I should speak to Ororo, so that we're all on the same page."
"I'll get her," Mia offered - then disappeared before either of them could counter offer. And only another minute passed before Mia returned with her mother, and Mia went back to sit with Noh.
Hank raised his eyebrows at Mia. "I take it the two of you know more about this than you can say?" he guessed.
Instead of agreeing outright, Mia touched her nose and settled in to watch. "All I know is that I was told by James that this is the same system that he put in for Kate and Nate's building … and his apartment with Billy. Also, something about it didn't want to work properly with the tech already in place that's protecting Scott, and the risks for what Scott has in place for protection now against switching for this isn't threat enough to do it, so … that's all I know."
Hank's frown deepened as he looked toward Ororo. "We are far behind our dear friends," he said.
Ororo nodded, her arms crossed as she thought of not only the concerns she held for Scott and his family but of the recent bender Remy had gone on. He'd had issues with Sinister before, and all things considered with how often he had been disappearing, it seemed unlikely that he was not also dealing with the man.
But when she considered what he had told her, the drinking made sense. She wasn't sure there was a good way to react to a family connection like that.
"We need to know more," Forge said, still fiddling with James's device. "Like who knew about this and what the threats are." He gestured toward Mia, who was watching the adults. "The kids are playing defense, and I want to know how they ended up here."
"I'll talk to Betsy," Ororo said, knowing Nate and Rachel were out of the question. "Once we know the extent of his manipulations…"
"I don't like rushing about cleaning up after madmen," Hank said, his eyes narrowed; the growl still hadn't left his voice.
"Then let's move quickly past that part and into the part where we deal with the problem," Ororo agreed, her eyes flashing with power.
And as the adults discussed how to find out what Sinister was up to without hurting those he had already silenced, Noh leaned over Mia's shoulder, to kiss her on the cheek before he rested his chin there. "And this is why you were in such a good mood," he said, though he switched to Kree after that. "I thought James wanted to leave the others out of this confrontation to keep them safe."
"I guess we're running out of ways to keep this from turning into a fight," Mia replied. "He's working closer with the guy than anyone else is. If I trust anyone to know when it's time to call for help, it's James."
"True enough," Noh agreed, watching with her as the older X-Men fell into a familiar pattern of strategizing. "This part, I understand. We are preparing for war."
"Yeah. You ready?" Mia couldn't help but tease.
Noh smirked and kissed her cheek again. "Always."
Chapter 153: Sinister Training
Chapter Text
Nate had been dead to the world asleep when he got the telepathic alert that one of the traps he had left behind in James's head was being pushed around. It hadn't been sprung, but Nate had been thorough enough that even someone getting too close to it and then not backing off was enough to give him a telepathic nudge.
Even still, it took him several long seconds to blink back to consciousness enough to identify what the problem was, because he had just fallen asleep after walking around with David so that Kate could get some sleep. David hadn't quite figured out how to sleep through the night, and Nate hated the desperation he could hear in Kate's mental voice when she was too sleep-deprived, so when that happened, he usually stepped in and took the liberty of sound-proofing her mind temporarily so that she could sleep even if David was being fussy.
And it was five in the morning, David was finally asleep again, and Nate had wanted to sleep too.
But this was more important, so after he'd dragged himself into awareness, he got himself into a lotus position and reached out to see what the problem was now.
The first thing Nate was aware of when he entered James's mind was that the layer of James's mind that was his conscious mind was hot with pain, enough so that Nate winced upon arrival. But more importantly, it looked like Sinister was, instead of setting off Nate's traps, isolating James's defenses, almost quarantining the traps so he could work on rewriting them to his own designs.
"I wondered how sensitive those were," Sinister said in a tone that betrayed how angry he was, though not toward Nate.
"You know, there are better ways to blow off steam," Nate said, his arms crossed and his eyes glowing.
"I disagree," Sinister said low.
"What's got you pissed off now? Too much sunlight in the coffin?"
"You can do better, Mr. Summers. You sound more like your uncle."
Nate rolled his eyes and kept his arms crossed, though the traps Sinister had been messing with glowed blue and were suddenly harder to quarantine. "I'm trying to take care of a newborn. I could be sleeping right now. And it seems like you're just throwing a tantrum, so yeah, I'm not in the mood."
"We're running out of time," Sinister hissed. "And if the best you can offer is to act like your line in the sand has been crossed, then perhaps you're not as good as I thought you were."
"What do you want?"
"I want you to be prepared for war."
"You already said that. What I don't get is why you're here."
"And you have done nothing to prepare," Sinister hissed lower. "You need motivation. That's why we're here." As he met Nate's gaze, he set off one of his own traps that was well out of Nate's reach simply to do damage.
"Hey!" Nate couldn't help but rush toward the explosion in James's mind, but he pulled up short when he saw Sinister move to confront him. "I've been taking care of a newborn!" he snarled, circling to put himself between Sinister and the barricades James had made in his own mind as he tried to cope with what had happened with Viper. "I'm allowed to have a period of adjustment! You don't have to hurt him!"
"Yes, and I was under the impression that you had plenty of help to adjust."
"Yeah, we have help, but that's not-" Nate let out a frustrated sound. "I already shook on it; I'm going to fight Apocalypse. These dramatics aren't necessary."
"And I am telling you, we're nearly out of time. Either get it together or I'll throw you out of here and finish my work."
Nate narrowed his eyes at that and sent several sharp shards of psychic energy at Sinister - while reaching behind himself to throw up a blue shield to reinforce James's defenses with the Viper trauma.
Sinister did a fair job of deflecting all but one of the shards, and set off another explosion an instant after an attack toward Nate of his own. "Pick a direction, Nate. You can't fight two fronts and win."
"Sure I can," Nate said, floating as he held his arm up, where a knight's shield made of psychic energy was strapped to his arm. He set off some of his own traps, which sought out Sinister's energy, but Sinister was able to anticipate the attacks. And while he was able to keep Sinister's attacks from hitting him or the weak points in James's mind, he could already feel himself wearing out trying to keep this up when he was so far away.
"The trouble, Nathan," Sinister said as he worked around Nate's minefield. "Is that you're working at a distance. And while you are the more powerful telepath, I can still manipulate the playing field where you can't stop me."
Again, Nate was suddenly aware of a layer of pain in James's conscious mind, but this was intense enough that it didn't feel like background radiation. This hurt everything in James's mind, and it had Nate distracted enough that he didn't see Sinister's attack until there was a psychic spear sticking out of his chest.
And out of sheer instinct and anger, he threw back an attack that sent Sinister sprawling, cut to shreds by a blast of sharp glass on the wind of Nate's attack - though everything that Sinister avoided hit James instead.
Nate had fallen to one knee and was gasping as he grabbed the end of the spear and managed to turn it to smoke, furious but still trying to recover.
"Much better," Sinister said, looking pleased even if he was staggered. "But you still lack focus. So next time, we'll meet in person. I'll send you the address and time."
"Fine by me," Nate said in a breath.
"Make sure you're prepared to focus. Had you been in the same room and lashed out that wildly, I'm not sure what lasting effects that attack might have on your brother."
"Yeah, I know, I know," Nate said, one hand on his chest as he got back to his feet.
"Then you understand why we'll be doing exactly this over and over until you get it right."
Nate narrowed his eyes, reconstructing Sinister's spear as his own and using it to stay upright but also preparing to throw it if need be. "You can't just use my brother's mind as a training field!"
"Of course I can."
"Look, I said I'd - this isn't -"
"It's non-negotiable," Sinister said. "I will already have him with me when we meet up again. Just to be sure that you don't try anything that might be misconstrued as heroic."
"I'm not going to break the deal," Nate said. "You swore you'd lay off David; I'm here, okay? You don't have to hurt James."
"I didn't say anything about James in our deal. We have our own considerations."
"Then why bring him into this?"
"You haven't figured that out?" Sinister asked, looking incredibly curious.
"It's… more a rhetorical 'why'. I get the sadistic strategy of it all," Nate said.
"Do you? I already explained the motivation angle, but that's not the only reason."
"Well, you were throwing a tantrum, and I can only assume it's because you figured out that James is a step ahead of you in protecting the school…"
He looked angrier at that, but smiled all the same. "Yes, well … it did give me a wonderful idea since he wants so desperately to protect all of you." He gestured around them both. "The privacy in your brother's mind is rather difficult to duplicate."
Nate let out all his breath as he suddenly understood that much, at least. "You're hiding," he said in a breath. "God. I hate that that's smart."
"And after I tell your brother, he'll gladly offer."
"I hate that too."
"You need to control your emotions better, Nathan. You can't protect anyone if you can't keep your focus," Sinister said - and an instant later, he forced Nate out in a rush of red energy.
Nate gasped as he came back to himself in the apartment with Kate, who had woken up and had apparently just come back from grabbing a ton of tissues to deal with what he now saw was a nosebleed where he'd bled into his pillow pretty severely.
"Oh good; you're back. You sounded hurt," Kate said, shoving tissues into his hands as she brushed a hand through his sweaty hair. "What happened?"
Nate automatically took the tissues to try to stem the tide of blood, furious but too exhausted to do anything about it. "Sinister's taking his frustration out on James because of the protections in the school."
"Is he okay?" Kate asked, already pulling her phone out, her eyes wide.
Nate shook his head, looking more upset still. "Sinister kicked me out. I'm too far away… I didn't have Cerebro…"
"I'm calling Rachel," Kate said, already putting her phone to her ear. She pointed at Nate. "If you don't stop bleeding, I'm calling Hank too."
"I'm okay."
"You're not, but I get why you keep saying you are," Kate said, then pivoted to talk to Rachel and fill her in.
Nate leaned back into the pillows - though he threw the one he'd bled on off of the bed - and did his best to stop bleeding. He was pissed and worried, but he was so worn that he couldn't eavesdrop on Kate like he wanted to. It seemed like every battle with Sinister was going to leave him that badly drained, and that wasn't a good sign.
Finally, Kate sat down beside Nate and covered his hand with hers to squeeze it. "Rachel's taking James to Westchester. America's not happy about it, but they're guessing that he's gonna stay there while his healing is off. She says Sinister's out of his head now, and she'll put back everything he messed up."
"Yeah. Until the next 'training' session," Nate muttered under his breath.
Kate frowned at him for that one. "What?"
"He's using James's mental defenses to hide from Apocalypse so he can 'teach' me how to fight the guy," Nate said, unable to show how angry he was when he was still holding tissues to his face.
Kate stared at Nate for a long time before she sat down on the end of the bed, looking toward the window instead of at Nate for so long that he had stopped bleeding by the time she spoke up again.
"How much time do you think we have?" Kate asked at last, in a tone that was so unlike her that he had to turn her way fully.
"He seems to think it's going to happen soon. I don't know if that's days or weeks or months, but…"
"Okay." Kate pressed her lips together. "I can handle David if you need to focus on this," she said at last. "I've got my parents. And you… you need to be able to survive this. That's important. I'm okay with - I can - it's more important to me that you don't leave me and David than that our night shift split is equal or whatever."
Nate stared at Kate, his lips parted. He knew she was stressed out, but he hadn't realized she was that worried. She usually teased him for overplanning for the worst possible scenarios. "I'm not going anywhere, Kate."
"You better not," Kate said.
Nate sighed and opened his arms in invitation, and Kate climbed into his embrace. They were both exhausted, and they were both worried, and Nate was starting to get why his dad was at such a constant level of stress.
The last thing that Hank had expected at such an early hour of the day was for his lab to be invaded by a dimension kicking heroine carrying an incredibly bloodied and battered teammate. Rachel had rushed to get a stretcher, and by the time Hank got into the lab from the alarm that they'd tripped, he dropped his mug in favor of helping to remedy whatever misfortune that the three of them had managed to find.
"Which one of you is going to tell me what happened?" Hank growled out as he bounded across the lab and hauled several trays of instruments with him.
"Can we do this later?" Rachel said, clearly stressed around the edges. "He's not healing, and I have some work I need to do now."
"Rachel-"
"I know, okay? And I know how it looks, and I know that it's bad, but I'm trying to help my brother, okay?" Rachel snapped - though it wasn't enough to get Hank to drop it.
"I'll patch him up, but Rachel, I expect to know more than what your whole family has deemed worthy of sharing."
"Fine. I'll tell you as much as I can," Rachel said, worrying her hands as she watched Hank isolate which injuries were the worst.
When he tried to check James's pupillary response, James finally began to respond as he started to fight him - and pushed his hands away, looking and sounding terrified until Hank took a hold of both of his hands and talked to him long enough that James blearily realized where he was. But that didn't help Hank's frame of mind.
And it certainly didn't help that he could smell saltwater on Rachel as she held one hand over her mouth and projected to him, He was reliving … well, reliving Viper and then you went for his eyes… oh, God…
Hank froze on hearing it. I'll give him some painkillers and sedate him before doing anything further. Rachel, how did it get this far?
I'm still catching up, Rachel admitted. He… She trailed off. There's a lot going on.
Why don't you start wherever you're moved to and we can fill in the blanks as we go? Hank suggested as he got started on numbing James up. It was pretty clear he wasn't going to get far questioning him anyhow.
Yeah. Rachel sat down and wiped her eyes with her thumb. Sorry. I wasn't expecting… Kate called me to tell me James was in trouble, and I brought him here as soon as America snagged him and we realized he wasn't healing. Give me a minute to get my breath too, okay?
As long as you're willing to answer some questions, I am willing to wait a moment. Once Hank had James drugged properly, he went to work, frowning deeply the whole time. "How did you discover that your brother was in trouble, exactly?" Hank asked after a while. "I understand you said Kate called you, but how did she know? And how long have you all been trying to deal with Mr. Sinister on your own?"
America glanced at Rachel, but when Rachel hesitated, she scoffed. "Too damn long is the answer," she said, shaking her head. "Practically the second the attention from the trial died down, right?"
"Well … yes, but also no," Rachel said. "That was the first confirmed sighting - but I didn't know about it right away. And he's got a gag order on almost everyone involved, so they can't talk about it." She shook her head and held up both hands. "There's a lot up in the air still."
"No kidding." America crossed her arms, her hip cocked to one side. "She and Nate have a whole system between the two of them so they can alert each other when that idiot causes problems again."
"I don't know as much as Nate does, though," Rachel said. "I was going to spend a little time seeing what I could in James's memories, but it's not all that simple when he's this much of a wreck."
Hank looked between the two of them. "And Kate knew to alert you because…"
"Nate said they were in trouble."
Hank paused and turned her way. "I'm assuming, because you are not preparing to rush over there, that the trouble has passed."
"We're in protected spaces," Rachel said. "But Nate wasn't with James."
"I'm telling you; they have each other wired," America said. "It would be brilliant if it weren't creepy."
"Do you know what he wants?" Hank asked, some of his rage starting to return now that no one was panicking or in need of immediate assistance.
"Not entirely," Rachel admitted. "But I should hop on Cerebro - double check that Dad's okay…"
"Yes, of course," Hank said, though he didn't make a move to stop her other than to give America a look that communicated clearly that he wanted her to stay behind.
The door had hardly closed behind Rachel before America held up a hand to stop Hank. "I don't know details," she said. "I don't know how much they can share, either. I just know this has been going on for months."
"So tell me what you can," Hank said. "Its a start, and perhaps I can use that to get more out of them later."
America hopped up on the gurney next to James. "And even if you can't, I think it's time the rest of us started making plans for when this blows up on them. I've already figured out where I need to take Rachel if this becomes a Phoenix issue, honestly."
"Let's hope it doesn't go that far," Hank said.
"One thing I've learned since I started dating Rachel? I'm always going to assume it gets that far - because she does," America said.
"Fair assumption to plan for the worst," Hank said. "What do you know of Sinister's plans for the Summers family this time? I can only guess that young David figures in prominently."
"That's about all I know, actually. I know for some insane reason, he's the doctor who delivered David - and they've been trying to keep him safe this whole time."
Hank stared at her for a long moment. "Miss Chavez, could I trouble you to reach out to Kate and Nate … then perhaps bring them here if everyone is awake? I am assuming they would be after this level of scare."
"You got it." America pulled out her phone and turned away as she called up Kate, so she missed the expression on Hank's face as he mulled over everything.
Minutes later, Kate and Nate were stepping out of a star, and Hank saw for himself that Nate was trying to clean up dried blood from underneath his nose, while David was asleep on Kate's shoulder.
"Nate - we have supplies to clean up messes like that here," Hank called out. "You're going to need to tell me what happened this morning."
"I… can't," Nate said, looking between America and Hank.
"Then who can?" Hank asked.
"Probably nobody," Nate said. "It was a telepathic fight, for the most part."
"Nobody can or nobody will?" Hank asked before he gestured to James. "Not all of it was telepathic."
"Oh, that part was because James is pissing him off," Kate said with a smirk. "I thought Mia said you guys figured out what the defenses were for? James made those, right?"
"She neglected to explain why the concern was there," Hank said. "And this is a rather large leap from simply pissing him off to what looks like a long-term beating."
"It's been building," Kate said. "James has helped us keep him off our backs, then defended the school, there was the whole blackmail episode-"
"What blackmail?" Hank said, cutting across her. "Who's blackmailing who?"
"Well," Kate said, trying to figure out how to word it when there were so many live wires involved, "it's what's keeping David safe right now."
"That and the tech," Nate said. "We're blocked from saying much. You could ask James, but I don't think he'll talk."
Kate shook her head at that. "He's got his own deals with the guy."
"Yeah, but he's not blocked," Nate said. "I've looked."
"No, but he's trying not to break those deals. You know how he is; he's always going to try to put the heat on himself," Kate pointed out.
"Don't have to tell me about it," Nate muttered under his breath.
"But, you know, we'd love the help; we just can't give you much," Kate told Hank, kicking one foot up behind the other. "I'm really sorry. We've just been focused on keeping him away from David - and from running Scott over."
"It would be incredibly helpful to know how long Sinister has been playing games with you," Hank said.
Kate and Nate shared a glance, and Kate bit her lip. "He was at the trial," she said. "I didn't think much of it at the time, but … he threw some encouragement my way after my testimony. I recognized his voice later."
"He was the proctor when Dad took James to Oxford, too," Nate said. "So he's been circling for a while. Not sure when it all started to really … get into everyone's face, but he approached Dad not long after the house arrest started."
Kate raised an eyebrow Nate's way, knowing that was one of the things they'd been forced not to talk about.
"I've been working on it in my spare time," he told Kate quietly.
"Clearly," Kate said. So hot, she projected to him, though she knew he didn't have the energy to respond much.
"Why don't you three go upstairs and find yourselves a bite to eat," Hank said. "I'm going to monitor your brother and try to get him to talk when he wakes up again."
"Good luck," Kate said, bouncing David as he started to wake up a bit. "Oh, no, no, no, baby, it's okay," she sang to him, already heading upstairs.
"Nate," Hank said before he could follow her up. "Anything you can tell me would be helpful, though I would understand if you didn't want to share much in front of Kate. Rachel is currently checking on your father via Cerebro."
"That's good." Nate took a deep breath and let it out, pushing against some of the gag orders as best he could when he was still worn out.
"Anything you can give me that I can use - or avoid when it comes to your brother …"
"I don't know what he used to threaten James, but it was big enough that James is back to studying under him," Nate admitted.
"What do you mean 'back' to studying under him?" Hank asked slowly.
"I mean he quit, and his stupid teacher dragged him back in kicking and screaming."
Hank held up one hand. "Teacher? What the blazes are you talking about?"
"Just what I said." Nate wiped his nose and glared at the blood there. "Sorry. I'm trying to tell you more, but that was a knock-down drag-out fight."
Hank guided Nate over to sit down. "I'm afraid I've missed out on far more than I anticipated."
"Yeah." Nate closed his eyes, but he couldn't break through the gag order about Apocalypse. So instead, he simply said, "I'm pretty sure he's going to make a play big enough you guys would've known about it anyway."
"For David? Or one of you?" Hank asked as he started cleaning up Nate.
Nate shook his head. "I've got David covered," he said.
"And I'm going to go out on a limb and guess that James is supposed to have you covered."
"Something like that," Nate agreed. "And Dad. We're trying to keep him safe, and it's not easy with this guy laser-focused like he is. I'm sure you know that much, anyway."
"He's always been a problem, yes," Hank agreed. He finished cleaning up Nate - then handed him some more gauze in case he needed it still. "If you don't mind my asking - we've tried for years to keep Sinister away from your father. How … or what have you three done to get him to slow down?"
"Couple things," Nate said, working his jaw as he found the right angles around the gag order. "Kate told you about the blackmail. That… if anything happens to David or anything permanent happens to Dad, that blackmail goes into effect. And trust me when I tell you it's nasty enough even Sinister has to think twice about crossing that line."
"May I ask what's at stake?" Hank said.
"The only thing Sinister cares about," Nate said significantly.
Hank was quiet for a long moment as he considered it. "It's not possible to … how would you even … the only thing he cares about is his work."
"Yep," Nate said, touching the side of his nose. "Got it in one. And it turns out Billy and James are vindictive when they put their heads together."
"So … magic," Hank said, frowning. "I guess I still don't understand."
"Yeah, I'm still working out how to be more specific, sorry," Nate said. He took a deep breath. "The other thing we've got going for us is, well, me." He gestured at his bloody face. "I guess when me and Rachel were kids, he was convinced we had a ton of potential, genetically? And he's, you know…" He trailed off. "Teaching me too."
"Teaching you. Too. I'm not sure the man has ever taught anyone a thing in his unnaturally long life."
"Yeah, it feels more like unfair fights when I least expect them, but better that he focus on me than David or Dad, right?" Nate pointed out. "James is thinking the same way, and I don't want him… he's already so much in the line of fire."
"If he's teaching you how to handle a telepathic ambush, what is it he thinks he's teaching your brother?"
Nate's nose bled a little more. "His work."
Hank frowned as he did what he could to stop the blood flow again. "I'll ask your brother when he wakes up. You're pushing too hard." He pressed Nate backward until he was flat on the gurney then brought over a blood pressure cuff to start working him over, already setting up the IV line before the blood pressure results came back. "How much blood have you lost?"
"I dunno," Nate said, trying to shrug out of Hank's attention, though in the mood Hank was in, Hank was having none of it.
"Nate, I don't know the full story, or even a reasonable facsimile of what is going on here, but I do know that you are not going to be capable of walking across the room, much less holding your son - much less doing anything to fight Mister Sinister if you don't ensure that your body is capable of maintaining you. That includes keeping the blood inside your body."
"In my defense, it was inside my body before Sinister picked a fight?"
"That's usually how it works," Hank said. "And I should clarify: the blood should be in your circulatory system, not simply inside your body. That was your brothers argument last time there was an incident of severe internal bleeding. It's still not funny."
"Sounds like him." Nate tipped his head at Hank. "You know we'd've told you if we thought we could, right? We're just trying to keep everyone safe."
Hank's shoulders dropped and he looked up at Nate with a sigh. "I thought you knew you could tell us anything." With a shake of his head, he started up the fluids for Nate. "I'll have someone bring you some food. I think you should stay here and keep an eye on your brother."
"Yeah." Nate leaned back. "Thanks, Dr. Blue."
"Don't thank me yet, I haven't decided if your father needs to hear about this incident or not."
Nate immediately sat up faster. "No, no, no," he said quickly. "No, are you kidding me? No! You tell him about this while he's still stuck there and he'll either break house arrest of die of a stroke!"
"Then you better hope your brother is feeling like sharing."
"You're playing dirty - and I thought you didn't want Dad in more trouble than he's already in!"
"I'll call Wanda before anyone else," Hank promised.
"Not sure that's better." Nate sighed and leaned back again.
Hank left for a moment, primarily to get more coffee and to warn Ororo of all that had happened in the lab - and while he was gone, Rachel came back in to check on her brothers.
"So. Dad's fine. No sign of trouble anywhere, so that's good," she said in a sigh. "I'm going to breathe for just a few minutes before I try to patch up James - do you need some reinforcements, too?"
"Yeah, probably," Nate said, running a hand down his face. He leaned toward Rachel. "He's using James's head as a way of hiding his plans from his boss. Help me make sure that doesn't hurt James any more than I already have - please."
"What do you mean than you already have?" Rachel said, frowning, though she simply pulled up a chair next to James to start searching.
"Sinister got in a good hit, and I hit back, but it wasn't directed, and there was a lot of collateral damage," Nate explained, visibly stressed.
Rachel was frowning deeper the more she looked around, halfway listening to Nate while she scanned James's mind. "Well," she said after a while. "It doesn't look like any real lasting damage. Except maybe for whatever happened with that barricade by the Madripoor incident … he bounces back pretty quickly, though … but I think even once his regular healing is working right, he'll have a nasty telepathic headache for a few days."
"And Sinister wants to keep pulling me in there to practice for the big fight," Nate said. He held his breath to try to calm down and then let it out again. "I almost wish we could just skip ahead to that fight; I hate this 'prep' work."
"Yeah, but .. as much as I hate to say it- even Dad agrees that no one knows how to fight the guy like him. I just hate that you two are sticking your necks out like this."
"We'll let you take the next big bad," Nate teased her lightly.
"I'll just torch them," she said in a wave.
"Exactly. Easy peasy, next bad guy, please."
"Things keep going the way they are and I may just skip ahead in line," Rachel said.
"I wouldn't complain. I told him outright I'd rather be helping Kate take care of David than deal with his version of training." Nate glanced toward the door and let his voice and shoulders drop. "She's trying to take on everything to clear my plate because of how rough it is when me and Sinister fight," he said.
"When you fight him long distance, you mean," Rachel said. "When he chooses the place, and pre-beats down your brother."
"Yeah, I… kind of have an in-person appointment to train with him," Nate admitted. "I'm hoping that'll make a difference, but at this point…"
"How is that supposed to work out?" Rachel asked with a frown.
"I don't know, but it's better than long-distance fighting in James's head, right?" Nate asked, looking to Rachel a lot like the little brother who had grown up looking for her approval.
"So … are you going to be fighting in each other's heads, or … if he's hiding his plans …" she glanced over to James. "He wouldn't agree, right?"
"The worst part is… I think he would. Because the damn vampire's right; no one would be able to see what we're doing behind James's mental shield."
"This is such a bad idea," Rachel said in a groan.
"I know," Nate said. "But I don't have any good ones."
When Hank returned, very little time passed before James started to wake up - and when he did, the first thing he did was to pull out his phone, scroll through the messages, and as Hank made his way over, he called Scott. "Hey," James said thickly. "Any uninvited guests?" He waited, and the others in the lab weren't privy to the other side of the phone call as James asked a few short questions, promised he was fine, and then promised to catch up with him later. He sighed heavily as he leaned back into his pillow and winced … the healing still wasn't working right and everything hurt.
"I could have told you your father was alright," Hank said. "We already checked in with him seeing as you and your brother have managed to run afoul of Mister Sinister without telling anyone."
"Yeah, that's … old news," James said, frowning deeply as he tried to balance well enough to do more than sit up balancing with both arms for support.
"What were you going to do if your father wasn't alright?" Hank asked, watching from the foot of the bed, but not blocking James's view of his brother.
James looked past Hank to Nate, then looked around the room. "Billy, Kate, and David okay?"
"They're fine as well," Hank said.
"Then I guess it's not a problem right now," James said.
"I've been hearing precious little today on how involved everyone is with Sinister," Hank said. "And I need you to tell me more, if you're able."
James met Hank's gaze and for too long, he simply stared at him. When Hank prompted him again, James cut him off. "I'm thinking it over."
"What's to think over?"
"The risks - for you and the rest of the team," James said before he started to shake his head. "No. I don't think so. I'd like to - but I know you'll just … over react." He slowly swung his legs over the edge of the bed and swayed as he tried to reorient. "Every time someone starts to figure things out, they get pulled in, screwed with, and they end up more frustrated than anyone ever should. I still don't know all the tactical angles, and the other stuff doesn't matter right now."
When Hank blocked his path and waited until James met his glare, James backed down - but only just. "I swear, I will tell you everything you want to know when there isn't a sword dangling over everyone's heads. I'll give you everything you never wanted to know and more."
"This isn't just about David, Nate, and Scott, then."
"No. It's definitely bigger than that," James agreed. "And the only logical reason that any of us would agree to be around him without murderous intent. Toward him. Specifically."
"You're not going home today," Hank decided. "You'll need to be cleared and healing again before I'll consider it."
"My place is protected," James said.
"And your sweetheart is half a world away," Hank said. "You've got a concussion and a host of other injuries. You'll stay here where we can keep an eye on your injuries and you can reconsider telling us more." with that, Hank left the Summers boys alone, and James watched him go before he turned to Nate.
"Think you'll be all healed up and ready to go again in like … five days?" James asked. "Or do you need a big hug from Tyler first?"
Nate was quiet for a long moment. "Five days, huh?"
"That's when he wants to do another session," James said. "I should be fine by then."
"Yeah, me too," Nate said, almost distantly. "Sorry, by the way."
"Nate, it's fine. I can take it."
"Yeah, but I still hate it. And it still hurts you. So… sorry."
"I thought I was the one that was half Canadian."
"Shut up. I'm allowed to feel bad that your head is being used like a punching bag for my training with this guy, okay?"
"If it helps you, I'm all for it," James said. "And no, that's not him talking."
"I know, which also doesn't help." Nate sighed.
"I have total faith in you, little brother. You'll kick the crap out of him."
"Yeah, probably gonna fight better when I'm not ambushed while sleep-deprived."
"About that," James said slowly. "I can help out there, too. If you need it."
"Let's just… see what happens." Nate took a deep breath and let it out. "Anyway. I should go see if Kate's okay. She's taking this whole thing to mean she needs to do as much parenting as she can to clear my plate, and I hate that."
"It won't be that intense," James said. "Kick the crap out of him once or twice and he'll have to regroup for a few weeks to figure out how to push you. That's how he is."
"Yeah, well, she'll believe that when it happens."
"Or … you can show her my memories of it when you're up to it. That is his pattern."
"It's not the pattern, James. She's just…" Nate sighed again. "We're way too young to be parents. She's back with her therapist; her anxiety's higher than Dad's right now. So this isn't helping things."
"You will win. You will. That's all there is to it. And the rest of us are going to back you up. And in the meantime, if you need help the rest of us are here to back you up. Take the help."
"Okay," Nate said, too tired to argue it.
"The fact that she's stressing and throwing herself deeper into it says she needs it more than she's going to admit to," James reasoned. "If she's not comfortable with me or Rachel - or anyone our age, there are a ton of old people that would be happy to play granny."
"Yeah, I know. I keep pointing her that way too," Nate promised. "It's just hard when he's so little and he needs her, you know?"
James nodded. "Still. An hour or two here and there … can't hurt."
"Yeah. And she needs the help; that's why I'm frustrated. I want to just be focused on her, not this idiot, you know?"
James smirked finally. "Oh. I've got your back."
"Thanks. And I've got yours."
"Mine is fine. You keep focused on what's important here. Your little family and destroying evil."
"The family motto," Nate said dryly.
"You know I called Dad to hear his voice," James said. "I woke up ready to pull the trigger."
"I came close to suggesting it too. But that'll kick off a whole other kind of fight."
"Yeah, well - that'll probably happen before it's over. But - that's my problem, not yours."
"What's that you said earlier about focusing on my family?"
"Yeah. You need to focus on your family. I'll heal."
"You're my family, so…" Nate gestured broadly.
"I said your little family. Not extended with riders."
"Brothers aren't extended family, you dork."
"Yeah, okay," James said -not in the mood to argue that point when he was dealing with the mess Sinister had made. "Go kiss your wife and try not to kick off number two, huh?"
"Geez, don't joke. It'll take me ages just to help Kate back to normal after number one. We're not ready for round two anytime soon."
"I hear what you're saying, but I'm also hearing that there are plans for more, so …"
"Yeah, go call your handsome prince who keeps projecting about heirs, why don't you."
"I'm not going to call him. He's taking family time. But, I did text him a photo of my mashed up face."
"Now that's a weird photo collection."
"Figured normal photos are probably getting boring. And he was asking how we were, so …figured I'd save myself a thousand words."
"You're so weird," Nate said with an affectionate laugh as he got to his feet. "C'mon, let's go find the girls."
"I think you're on your own for a while," James admitted as he shifted to lay down again. "My balance is still off, so I'll stay here and irritate Hank."
"Have fun," Nate said, smirking.
"You too," James called back, thankful that Nate was leaving so he could stop trying to hide how hurt he was. He didn't know why he did that, it was just … an instinct, he supposed. He should have known that they weren't going to leave him alone for long, though.
He had barely managed to shift himself onto his side a little when he heard the familiar rhythm of Storm's heels on the white tile. He opened a tired eye and sighed just before she pulled out a chair and sat down next to him. "Hi, Aunt Ro," James said softly, and she replied with a concerned smile as she brushed his hair out of his face.
"You know you're not fooling anyone when you try to pretend as if you're unhurt," she said.
"Yeah, I know," he agreed. "But if I let it show, Rachel and Nate panic, so … it's fine."
"I wish that were so," she said, and he knew the real interrogation was about to start. "Can you tell me anything now? Things seem to have escalated. If my estimation is correct, you've been with Sinister all night. What have you been up to, nephew?"
James sighed and then winced at the way his ribs shifted with the deep exhale. "The situation is more or less the same," he admitted. "Yes, I was with him all night - catching up on time that I should have been in the lab with him - but I have been with Nate and Kate instead."
"So he's making you make up time he feels belongs to him? What delusion is he under to believe such a thing?"
"Aunt Ro-"
"Please, just tell me," Ororo said. "We will not act unless it is imminent if you can convince me to wait. But if you do not tell me how deeply you are in trouble, I will be forced to act now."
James started to shake his head and tried to push himself upright, though Ororo stopped him from that and pushed him back prone. "If you move on anything before Dad's legally released from Genosha, Dad will blow it - or Essex will blow it for him. I can't protect him like I'm protecting the school and Nate's place, or my place - I tried. It didn't work - please don't-"
"Why does he think you owe him time, James?" Hank asked from the door and James looked past Ororo to watch him walk over with two cups of coffee in his hands. "How did you find yourself in this position and what does he actually expect out of you?"
"It's - its complicated, but not as much as it could be," James said, purposefully trying to be vague. "He's oddly territorial when he tries to stake a claim-"
"Yes, I've been around this idiocy on your father's behalf for years."
"It's not the same," James half-defended. "I don't think he cares about me like he does Dad. Different motivations entirely."
"What makes you think you understand his motivations?" Hank said, his eyes narrowing as he considered how casually James was trying to sound - and how indistinct the answers were.
"Uncle Hank, I really wanna tell you everything-"
"If you say you can't-"
"I won't. I want to, but I won't. Not yet. Not right now. Just … I know no one has any reason to give me any measure of trust-"
"That's just not true, James," Ororo said, frowning as deeply as Hank since there was no reason for them not to trust him, but clearly, James's outlook on himself was blemished or altered by the man in question.
James bit his lip and closed his eyes. "I've had Billy scry into all of the possible futures to see what would happen if I told Wanda - or you, or Tony … and so far, every option ends horribly for someone or another. At this point. I don't want to lose Dad or you or David … and Billy's drawing the line on anything that ends with me gone, so … please, just … prepare for the worst-case scenarios that you can come up with in regards to Dr. Essex-"
"It's Mister Sinister," Hank corrected.
"This is how I cope," James said. "Mister Sinister is the monster under Dad's bed or lurking in the closet. He's unstoppable and terrifying and the whole team couldn't beat him at their strongest while working together. That's what you told me, Uncle Hank. I can't think of him like that or I won't be able to see a way out."
"You can't reason with him, James," Hank said in a much gentler tone.
"I have been," James defended, then dropped Hank's gaze. "He's not studying my family for now, but if I break confidence, all bets are off. So I can't tell you anything."
Hank got it an instant before Ororo did, and he was so taken aback he couldn't express himself as quickly as he normally would have. Which was how Ororo beat him to the punch. "You're working for him to keep him away from your family," she said, sounding almost angry. "You - what makes you think he'll allow you - "
"At this point nothing," James said, cutting her off. "And I'm not working for him." He pushed himself upright again, ignoring Ororo's attempt to keep him flat. "I should go." He already had his phone in his hand, and as Hank and Ororo tried to find a way to fix this, James started to text Billy. "I'll make sure they know not to bring me back here if it gets like this again."
"That's not at all what we want," Ororo said, then took his phone out of his hands. "Clearly, you're under duress. Your healing isn't working right now either, so let us keep an eye on you until you're back to yourself. I'm sure we can get you back to your apartment without worrying Billy." And that was enough to get James to pause, just like Ororo knew it would. Once she saw that he was considering slowing down, she reached out to gently rest her hand on his arm. "James, we can't stand by while you continue to allow yourself to take every hit. Let us help. You're our family, and we love you, and we won't let him have you, do you understand me? I hear what you're saying about the situation on Genosha, but that is temporary, and we will not let this continue to the point that you are lost."
James had to stop himself from blurting out what was on his mind, so instead of saying "What makes you think I'm not lost already?" while thinking that protecting everyone was exactly what all of them had told him his power set was for. Instead, he looked away and gently nodded his head just before Hank handed him a cup of coffee.
Chapter 154: Different Kind of Classroom
Chapter Text
Everyone who had been outside of the circle of those who knew about Sinister was making it a point to share information, especially because so many of them felt like they were playing catch-up. The Bartons in particular were furious about how much pressure had been on Kate and David without them knowing about it , and they were determined to chase down whatever threads needed chasing to fight back against Sinister’s plans that the Summers family still couldn’t fully articulate.
They knew the players, though, and one of the biggest question marks was why Remy, who was apparently under Sinister’s influence, had been so focused on infiltrating Hydra. That organization was exactly opposed to Sinister’s professed aims of forwarding the progress of mutantkind, so there had to be something within Hydra that had caught Sinister’s attention.
Most of the Avengers were dealing with Hydra by hitting it head on, but when Lexi had found her mother preparing to leave with no official Avengers mission, she blocked the doorway. “I want to come with you,” she said.
“I’m going to the head of Hydra,” Natasha warned her, but Lexi stood her ground.
“You and Dad have been teaching us our whole lives how to deal with Hydra. I’m an Avenger now, too, and whatever’s going on, my nephew is in trouble. I want in.”
“This isn’t like the missions you’ve run with the Avengers,” Natasha warned her.
“I know.”
Natasha raised one eyebrow and took in the way her daughter was standing with her arms crossed and her chin raised, looking somehow like both of her parents at the same time in her defiance. “If I tell you the mission has gotten too hot, you leave ,” she said. “We don’t know enough about this new Lady Hydra - we only know she’s using what little Viper left behind that wasn’t destroyed. And that alone is enough to make me question the wisdom of anyone coming with me.”
“And you know my animals can get into places not even you can get,” Lexi argued. She stepped forward, clasping her hands in front of herself. “Please, Mom?”
Natasha sighed, wondering when she had gotten so easy to convince. “You promise you’ll leave if I tell you to?”
“I promise.”
Natasha sighed again but tossed some spare Bites to Lexi. “Then let’s not waste any more time,” she said - and Lexi tried hard not to show how excited she was to go. When her mom was in a mission mode like that, she needed to match that energy - or she’d get left behind.
“You sure you’re ready to go back?” James asked Nate when he got to Nate’s apartment. “Because … I don’t care if he wants to do this today, if you’re not up to it, I’ll tell him he can just play with himself.”
James had been careful to skip out from the duties Sinister had trumped up for him to handle that day knowing that if he showed up where he’d been told, Sinister would just attack him when he got tired of the usual nonsense. So he decided that he’d make him work for it a little bit. Especially after he spent so much time trashing him last go-round.
“I’m alright,” Nate said, shrugging both shoulders. “Better than the alternatives, right?”
“Yeah, I guess,” James agreed, then leaned sideways to look over at Kate and America. “You guys okay with him going? He needs permission, you know.”
“I mean, I’m not okay ,” Kate said. “But he’s got permission.”
“I don’t - why are you both like this,” Nate said, dragging his hand down his face.
“Do you want me to leave a credit card while I’m gone?” James asked, pushing Nate sideways. “Online shopping to pass the time?”
“Oh, I’m okay,” Kate started to say, but America covered her mouth.
“Please and thank you - I need me and David to have matching hoodies,” she declared, already making grabby hands.
James took a moment to pull out his wallet then threw a card toward her. “Have fun. And thanks for playing patty-cake with Kate.”
“Don’t break anything important!” America called back after him.
Nate shook his head as he fell into step with James. “I’m going to come home to a house full of America Chavez-inspired baby outfits.”
“He’ll look great ,” James said. “But I thought it would be good if we got ourselves there and back, you know? And you know America won’t let Kate mope too much.”
“Yeah, she and Billy have her covered,” Nate agreed.
The two of them hopped into the waiting car and James started them off with a winding path out of the city proper. “Do you need anything before we get there?”
“Three more years of training?” Nate offered with a quiet smirk.
“Nate, you’re the most powerful telepath on the planet - when you want to be. Don’t let him psyche you out. You can wipe the floor with him. He’s been purposely putting you at a disadvantage to make you work with him. Take him to school.”
“Yeah, I know that too, believe it or not. It’s the three years of training to not get psyched out,” Nate said, smirking lightly.
“You really are the best, little brother. You could lobotomize him if you wanted to without breaking a sweat. Remember - his telepathy is watered down from someone else.”
At that, Nate did break into a smile. “Watered down from someone else is right. You should hear Annie lately. She’s mentally such a snob about the telepathy thing - convinced he gave himself Emma’s.”
“I thought getting the silent spot with me was helping her to relax,” James said. “And he didn’t give himself Emma’s.”
“That’s what she’s decided,” Nate said. “And it’s how she’s coping with having my mom’s powers, so…”
James nodded slowly. “Well … you got what you got from your Mom along with a natural progression. He picked who he thought was the most advanced at the time. And he’s got a pretty snobbish outlook on anyone deeply entrenched with the Hellfire club.”
“For good reason.” Nate cracked his knuckles in front of himself. “Okay. I’ll go kick his ass. Bring popcorn.”
“It’s all you really have to do. I know he’s trying to find a way to finesse things, but … Apocalypse has never been a telepath. Not really. He does his work up close, so if you can hammer him from a distance - and I know you can - he won’t have a chance either.” He shrugged as they came up to the address Sinister had given them. “That’s what Essex wants to see anyhow. He thinks you’re being restrained and doesn’t know if you can tap into your full power. I know better .”
“I mean, he’s seen how much effort I’m putting in to keep everything small because we don’t want to scare people, so, you know, he’s not wrong.”
“Yeah, well - he thinks you and Rachel have the same throttling issues,” James said. “So he’s going to treat you both like you’re afraid to let loose to the point that you can’t let it out.”
“Great. Let’s just hope no one gets hurt if we do let loose,” Nate pointed out. “No one but Apocalypse anyway.”
“Yeah, so … in the meantime, I am gonna ask you to hold back a little bit ,” James said, then turned toward Nate. “If you destroy Essex, it’ll tip off Apocalypse, so … sorry, but don’t do that. Just… slap him around.”
“...okay, that puts a damper in some plans I had…”
“I know. But - if you can fix it? Have fun.”
“After everything is said and done with Apocalypse, I am gonna have some fun tearing his brain apart.”
“I know,” James climbed out of the car and turned to watch Nate do the same. “With holding back from number two. And maybe three. Who knows. Maybe twins run in her family somewhere?”
“Wow. That’s legitimately terrifying. You sure he’s not turning you to the side of evil?”
“Probably,” James deadpanned.
“Real reassuring.”
“Well I’m not gonna lie to you.”
“That part is reassuring,” Nate agreed. He sighed and set his shoulders. “Okay. Here we go, I guess.”
“You saw the pachyderms on the way through the gates,” James said quietly. “We just … follow the trail of pairs until we have to go through the doors. He wasn’t specific on where exactly to be…”
“Like the world’s stupidest video game quest. You can see the exclamation points over their heads, right?”
“Pretty sure they make that alarmed sound when you get too close, too,” James replied.
Nate smirked as they headed in together - and wasn’t surprised when, just like James had said, Sinister was waiting for the two of them at the end of the path of Marauders. “Got your message, and I’m here.”
“So I noticed,” Sinister replied, though he was glaring at both of them. “You’re late.”
“You’ll live through the disappointment,” James grumbled, then let out a breath that had his shoulders slumping. “What do you want me to do?”
Sinister gestured to an exam table and James paused. “Absolutely not,” James said. “You’re not cutting me up in front of my brother.”
“No kidding,” Nate said, his eyes already glowing blue. “Try anything like that and I’ll-”
“You’ll need to be lying down,” Sinister said in a bored tone. “You won’t be able to stand once we’re using your mind for your brother’s education. I thought it wiser to put you out before the fight began.” He smiled tightly, though there was no change in the hard glare in his eyes. “That is what you wanted, isn’t it? A gentler hand?”
James and Nate shared a look, and James took a few steps forward, though when Sinister reached for his head, he deflected the attempt without thinking about it. But that simply earned him a dry, raised eyebrow look from Sinister that made it clear to Nate that this … was sort of the norm. “You don’t get to touch my brother,” James warned. “Not one finger.”
“Same threat from me too,” Nate put in.
“You want him to know how to fight, you should be doing it on equal footing,” James added, then, before Nate or Sinister could open their mouths to say a word, James hauled off and punched Sinister square in the face. “If anything, you can demonstrate how to work through the pain.”
Nate let out a whoop without meaning to, and then, he made his cheering a little more purposeful.
But the next moment, the red diamond at the center of Sinister’s forehead began to glow when Sinister reached out to touch him- and James crumpled where he stood. “Time is of the essence,” Sinister said, his free hand at his mouth to clean up the blood.
“Yeah, I know,” Nate said - and then telepathically grabbed Sinister’s consciousness and dragged him into James’s, using the pain and slight element of surprise James had given him to make sure Sinister hit a few defenses on the way in and was already panting when they settled into James’s mind.
“That was a dirty little trick,” Sinister half-growled toward Nate as he took up his stance.
“Taking my cues from my teacher,” Nate pointed out, grinning crookedly.
Sinister couldn’t quite stop the smirk on hearing it, though. “Good. Take every advantage when you see it.”
At that, Sinister dove in to attack Nate, but Nate knew it was coming and planted his feet, anchoring himself to the ground to catch the energy Sinister threw at him like he was catching fish in a net. He turned that into something like a lacrosse stick and tossed it back at Sinister, who let it dissolve in front of him.
Sinister looked like he might say something snappy, but Nate dove in, working fast. He felt like he had more power when he wasn’t working with the disadvantage of distance, exhaustion, and surprise, and he wanted to come in hot and heavy, put Sinister on his back foot. He sent two waves of energy at Sinister in quick succession, but he also made sure that the waves were targeted.
Sinister actually stumbled back a step, but he retaliated with a spear of energy that Nate dodged and caught - but it scratched a long line across his face first. And the spear, once caught, sent waves of hurt into Nate’s form.
“Okay, good move,” Nate said through his teeth
The fight continued in that vein for a while, with neither of them making much headway at first. They were pretty well-matched if only because Nate was trying to keep the damage to James’s mind at a minimum. But Sinister could see that, and he kept trying to bait Nate into bigger attacks by putting James’s mind at risk.
But it was when Sinister targeted James’s memories of dealing with an Emma-controlled Scott that Nate truly lost his temper, throwing himself forward with an attack that Sinister had clearly anticipated - but he obviously hadn’t expected it to be as strong as it was. It not only set him back several steps, but it kept going , until they left James’s mindscape entirely and fell backward into Sinister’s own mind.
Nate gasped as he took the hit of Sinister’s mental defenses, but he had his hands around Sinister’s neck on the psychic plane, and he wasn’t going to let up.
At least, until he looked up and saw the memory he had tumbled back into. He saw Nathaniel Essex , not Sinister or anyone else but a man in Victorian clothes clutching to a woman that was very obviously limp… It took a long time for Nate to put together what James had told him about the guy and what his dad had said and what he was seeing. This must have been the moment he lost his wife and son.
God, it was devastating. And the whole memory was radiating pain.
Sinister let out a cry of anger and threw Nate off of himself. Nate knew he was off his balance, but he lashed out blindly, grabbing at Sinister before they both fell out into the real world.
When it was all over, the three of them found themselves back in their own bodies - all of which were on the floor of the lab - and all three of them were trying to catch their breath and reeling . Sinister wasn’t sure who to be more angry with, and for a long moment, he just looked between the two of them before he finally settled on Nate first. “You cannot let anything you see stop you from attacking once you’ve gotten an advantage.”
Nate nodded, honestly still shaken up because he hadn’t been expecting to be thrown into something like that , especially since he’d touched the emotions Sinister had been feeling at the moment. “Kicked your ass, though,” he said after a moment.
“You caught me off guard.”
“Sucks when it’s coming from the other side, does it?” James asked. “And that’s kind of the whole point , isn’t it? Not to go at him head first but to t-bone him?”
“You and I will be having a little chat about how you chose to help your brother tonight.”
“No we won’t,” James said. “ Twice now you’ve tried to kill me in one of your temper tantrums. You can suck it up like a big boy.”
“Besides, he was just applying what we learned from you . Or didn’t you notice I took the opening he gave me,” Nate pointed out. “I thought you wanted us to learn.”
Sinister took a moment, but nodded his agreement. “Then you’ll need to learn how to brace yourself against unexpected sympathy in your opponent’s mind.”
“Yeah.” Nate let the sentiment drop. “Yeah, so… any chance you know what I might see when I’m in his head?”
“If I were to give you what I know, it would have to be in training. Next time.”
“That means he can’t do it tonight,” James said.
“Yeah, I know.” Nate started to smile. “I took a souvenir when I left.”
“ Why ?” James asked as he carefully got to his feet.
“Because I thought he might like to see how it feels to lose his telepathy for a while,” Nate said, still smiling.
“I’ll let you know when we can meet again,” Sinister said, his back to the boys to hide his smirk. “James - we have mountains of work still to be finished. I expect you bright and early Monday morning.”
“Yeah, I know. Just don’t go after my brother unless you want him to hit you back,” James said, then offered Nate a hand up, too.
Nate took the hand, still smiling to himself as he got upright. “Well, that was fun,” he said under his breath to James as they headed off together.
“Told you you’d be great,” James said, matching his tone.
“Only doubted myself for a second,” he teased, though he did hold onto James a little tighter to steady himself; Sinister’s defenses had done a number on him, more than the fight had, honestly.
“So we’ll just make sure you’re all rested up going forward. You and Kate. America and I can come by whenever. She’s open and believe it or not, I’ve got permission to skip ‘class’ if you need the help.”
“Then yeah, I definitely need it,” Nate said. He straightened his shoulders and cleared his throat. “So, how much do you think the girls bought while we were gone?”
“Don’t know, but it’s covered,” James answered.
“I know that part. I’m more concerned about the merch that’ll be filling my house. Picture it now: Captain America diapers. The whole nine.”
“Well … you can always ask Billy to wish you up a pocket dimension for storage?”
“Like his interdimensional panic room?” Nate laughed.
“Exactly like that. Stocked with peanut butter cups.”
“I’ve mentioned that I love my future brother-in-law, right?” Nate said, still laughing.
“Not to me, but now you have.”
“Well, I totally approve. He’s already part of the family.”
“I’m really glad you guys are getting along,” James admitted.
“Yeah, we’ve kind of been drinking together when things get a little hairy,” Nate said.
“Lush .”
“Sure, sure,” Nate said, smirking. “But Billy can magic up the best drinks. Well, they taste really good when we’re drunk, but still.”
“As long as you’re doing good,” James said. “Sorry I’ve been distant.”
“I get it,” Nate said. “And you’ve been around for me as much as you can. Hell, you’ve helped me and Kate more than I can say. I get it .”
“Well golly, I was just doing what I’m supposed to. Shucks and all that.”
“My hero,” Nate said in an exaggerated high voice.
“Come on, we can grab a bite to eat on the way to your place. Give your better half a call and see if they managed to feed themselves during the retail therapy.”
“Oh, knowing Kate? Half the charges you’re gonna see are ice cream,” Nate teased, throwing his arm around James’s shoulders.
If Lexi was honest, she knew that the only reason she had been keeping up with her mother so far on this infiltration mission was that she was stretching her powers more than she ever had before, involving every kind of creature she could talk to in not only keeping track of Natasha’s position but warning her of incoming danger.
She still wasn’t entirely sure, even with all her spies in the rats and bugs in Madripoor, how Natasha was getting into the places she was. She’d always known growing up that her mom had a terrifying reputation, but… well, it was one thing to know that and rely on it to scare boys and another to try to keep up with her during a mission.
The nice part was that Natasha had taken all the vermin spying on her in stride and had even used them to ferry messages to Lexi. She couldn’t actually talk to the creatures, but Lexi had asked them to bring back anything her mom handed them. It was almost like passing notes, but more high stakes.
But lately, they seemed to be closing in on wherever this new Lady Hydra was holed up. This new woman was deeply hidden, probably because, from what Natasha and Lexi had been able to discover as they snuck around the hidey holes, more and more Hydra men were defecting to follow Vojteck lately.
But the closer they got to figuring out who was heading things up, the quieter Natasha got - and the more Lexi had to work to keep up without more instructions. She’d almost been caught a few times and had only been saved by a rat scurrying out at the right time to play distraction or a spider who bit a Hydra goon and sent him to the hospital.
At this point, she knew that she couldn’t back out without blowing everything, but wow, this was a big introduction to infiltration missions. It hadn’t scared her off, but it had certainly put into perspective how new she was at this.
And she was caught between being incredibly proud of herself for being able to keep up and also overwhelmed by how much she knew she still had to do before she would be in her parents’ leagues.
Natasha, for her part, had been a lot more angry than she’d allowed herself to let on from the start. She had been incredibly relieved back when the Summers boys had more or less gutted Madripoor of all things Hydra - and Scott killing Viper had done wonders to screw with the power balance - and how tolerant Madripoor was willing to be in regards to Hydra.
But while Tyger Tiger had graciously stepped in to cover Logan’s old holdings - and by default of death , Vipers holdings that were up in the air with Vojteck in prison until recently - for some reason, Hydra was once again gaining a foothold. And she had no idea why .
The island nation had been tolerant of Viper simply because she’d been involved with the ‘in crowd’ there longer than most people could remember. She had been close with all the right people well before she’d been taken into Hydra and rose through the ranks.
That was the only reason that Madripoor had tolerated her. They had no reason to do the same with a no-name psychopath. And by all accounts, it was a psychopath. That wasn’t exactly new. Neither was the attempts to take part or take over key places in Madripoor.
And already two of the warlords had fallen. Tyger was on the list, and for several reasons, Natasha had no desire to see Tyger take a fall. She was, by all accounts, the cleanest influence in Madripoor. And she pushed to keep drugs out of the mainstream. If she was no longer a power on the island - Madripoor would get a whole lot worse very quickly.
She’d wanted to dive in and hit the old bar - that was definitely the fast route to find out the newest gossip - but there was no way she was willing to take Lexi there unless she had no other option. So they started at the docks and warehouses - and they’d found one cache after another that were marked with Viper’s old symbols … sort of. They were slightly altered as if there had been a redesign, and on seeing the repeating marks, Natasha decided to back off just a little bit to check into some old contacts.
But, before they could leave the docks, Lexi pointed out a different looking crate with the same symbols. It looked brand new - and freshly sealed. Not like the others that looked as if the new symbol had been superimposed over the old ones.
“It’s probably more weapons,” Natasha told her at a whisper from high in the rafters of the open-ended warehouse. It was a tough position to hold with the breeze coming in off the ocean and blowing the smell of the dank water their way. “But I think we really need to crack it open.”
“Good thing Dad taught me how to get past locks,” Lexi said, nodding quietly as she lowered herself toward the crate, relying on her animals to warn her if they were in danger of being spotted.
“It may be rigged, so don’t stand in front of the door,” Natasha told her - though that wasn’t the first time on this trip that she’d mentioned it.
“You’re right,” Lexi said, making sure she was positioned correctly and pulling a few picks out of her boot, her tongue tucked into the corner of her mouth as she concentrated on what she was doing.
Natasha watched their backs, and inspected the crate a little more closely while they were up on it - and began to frown when she saw the ventilation considerations along the top of it - well out of reach from the ground. She started to look at the details that were blocked from the angle they’d been at - and by other containers around it.
“Ha,” Lexi said under her breath as she picked the lock - and stayed out of the way as the crate came open.
Even with the clues built into the crate, neither Lexi nor Natasha had expected to find a mobile lab - at least, not the kind of lab. Sure, there were vials and vials of what looked to be recently-mixed poisons, but for the most part, this seemed to be the lab used for extraction.
And it was absolutely filled with venomous and poisonous creatures.
“Oh, hello,” Lexi said, immediately slipping into the telepathic wavelength she always used when she talked to animals. Even though most of the creatures there wouldn’t think twice about attacking her, that wavelength had always kept animals from acting on those instincts.
It was honestly impressive to see how many different creatures were there. There were obviously plenty of snakes and spiders, and on an island, Lexi wasn’t surprised to see that there were several aquariums with everything from pufferfish and lionfish to a blue-ringed octopus and several jellyfish. And the insect collection was impressive, along with the smaller terrariums full of tropical frogs.
“Looks like we have a copycat,” Natasha said, reaching out to keep Lexi from touching anything inside.
“Or just someone who knows these animals are toxic,” Lexi pointed out.
“The layout is almost identical to Viper’s old labs,” Natasha replied. “I wouldn’t be surprised if there was something nasty allowed to roam free.”
Lexi frowned at that before she reached out to talk to the animals inside. Normally, she would speak out loud, but she was trying to be quiet, so she kept the conversation with the gaboon viper curled up on the floor of the mobile lab to a telepathic one, first and foremost thanking it for not biting her or her mother before she asked it what was going on.
To Natasha, it seemed like the viper had done nothing but watch them lazily, but she could see Lexi nodding or shaking her head a few times before, finally, she gave Natasha the quick overview.
“Obviously, they don’t know what a name is or anything like that, but they did say that whoever is taking care of them has been doing it for a long time. As long as some of them have been alive,” Lexi said. Even though the animals weren’t attacking, she kept her eye on them, because her mother didn’t have the same protection she did. “It sounds like whoever uses this lab has been doing it for years - and taking good care of these animals. They’re… well, if you can call them loyal, they’re the closest thing to it they can be, anyway.”
“That’s less than ideal,” she said. “I want a few samples - but the ones i want, you definitely shouldn’t be touching.”
“I’ll make sure nothing bites you if you want to grab what you want,” Lexi said. “They don’t want to help us or leave their benefactor, but they don’t mind ignoring us.”
“If you can do that, it might be good for everyone,” Natasha said - already taking pictures of everything.
“I promise we won’t hurt you,” Lexi told the viper. “We’re just here to look at your work and try it for ourselves.” She paused and then let out a tired laugh. “No, not like that. I know it’s dangerous; thanks for the warning.”
Natasha kept an eye on the loose viper, especially since instinctively, it hissed incredibly loudly as she passed it by. There were other creatures that looked like they were allowed to roam free as well - but none of them were going near the ground where the viper was. Still, she took photos of everything and put on a pair of very thick gloves that were still in their original wrappings to remove a few of the more troublesome looking vials and pack them into one of the stainless steel temperature controlled briefcases that were nearby. The ones that were locked up behind glass in stainless steel and glass containers were the ones she needed to test. She also took one vial of the one type that there seemed to be a massive quantity of, then walked around the far side of the lab to photograph not only the tools and equipment in play, but to take the time to photograph all of the specimens . Even if she didn’t have the right combinations of toxins used for each of the vials she stole - knowing at least the basis of where they had been created from could help their lab.
“Alright - you should ask how often their person comes to care for them - and when the last time they came by was,” Natasha said. “Just to see if they need anything now. Or tell them that.”
Lexi nodded and relayed the question, which was answered not by the viper, who was still regarding Natasha with suspicion, feeling like it should have attacked her but held back by Lexi’s influence, but by a jumpy-looking spider with its front legs pressed up against the glass.
Lexi frowned but nodded. “We must have just missed it; their person was here yesterday, probably while we were dealing with that storm washing out my hiding spot. Whoever it is usually comes when the weather is bad or under cover of night, this little guy says. Which makes sense, since a lot of them are nocturnal.”
“Well … we should probably get moving all the same. I don’t trust that we won’t run into trouble here.”
“Yeah, and I’m sure those samples are burning a hole in your pocket. Possibly literally,” Lexi said, already stepping back so that she could box up the lab again. Once it was closed, Lexi let out the breath she hadn’t realized she’d been holding. “I kept tabs on everything in there. Nothing got out,” she promised. “But I had to drop my hold on my scouts, so we don’t have my early warning system anymore.”
“I might be able to lift some prints from what I collected,” Natasha said. “Or at least narrow it down to who could manage a set up like this. Even here, the list has to be short.”
“No kidding.” Lexi wiped her forehead as she followed her mom back to their hiding spot. “I remember Kate said Viper took a few promising young kids in Hydra under her wing so they’d be loyal to her and not cause problems. Think this is one of those?”
“Almost all of those kids were killed inside of two years,” Natasha said. “They never lived long with her.”
“Yeah, but there were a few, like DuBois.”
“A few that made it longer than two years,” Natasha said. “I don’t know of any that made it past five that were actually in her circle.”
“But it’s a close enough replica of her setup that someone had to have at least at one point been in that circle,” Lexi reasoned.
“Yes,” Natasha said. “But seeing as Vojteck is missing, it may simply be her son.”
“I don’t know,” Lexi said. “Mia said her mom has been talking to Remy about this Hydra problem since before Vojteck got out. And it sure seems like he’s leading his own faction.” She tapped her fingers on her arm as she considered the angles, completely missing the proud look her mother was giving her as she guided her daughter through the investigation.
“Lets start by getting an analysis on these samples,” Natasha said. “It may simply look like Viper’s set up. I wouldn’t put it past someone that was trying to be like her to make it look good.”
“Good point.” Lexi nodded and pulled herself back up into the rafters, following her mother as they headed toward the roof. “Who do you think it is? You’ve got to have a theory or two.”
“I’d rather not speculate,” Natasha said.
Lexi frowned but knew better than to press. Instead, she simply fell in with her mom, following her moves closely as they slipped out of the warehouse and onto the streets back to their waiting Quinjet.
Lexi hadn’t realized how worn out she was from the mission until she woke up with a start as Natasha radioed ahead to Westchester that they were almost there. She blushed when she realized she’d slept through the whole flight and stretched, pushing her hair back and trying to look more presentable.
“Sorry I crashed,” she told her mom, who waved her off.
“Entirely understandable,” Natasha said. “It is a very long flight.”
“And I think I pushed my limits on my powers,” Lexi said, pulling a face as she went to grab something for a headache.
“Yes,” Natasha said with a nod. “When I go back, you cannot join that mission.”
“What? Why?” Lexi asked. “I thought I did alright!”
“Because where I need to go, you don’t.”
“I’m the one who kept that box of poison from hurting either of us,” Lexi pointed out.
“It’s too dangerous.” Natasha’s tone made it clear she wasn’t negotiating. “We got fairly close, but if we get closer, you don’t need to be in the line of fire with anyone trying to mimic Viper.”
Lexi frowned at that. “I’m part of the team now, Mom.”
“You are. But that doesn’t mean you need to take the most dangerous missions.”
Lexi watched her mom for a long time, but she knew by the look on her face that she’d get left at home unwillingly if she tried anything. So, she sighed, nodded, and tried to change the subject. “But not too shabby on my first big infiltration, right?”
“You’re very much like your father.”
“He gave all of us his sense of humor,” Lexi pointed out. “Hard not to when we’re exposed to it from Day One, right?”
“Before then.”
Lexi smirked. “Yeah, but I kept up okay, I think. I know I’m still green, but…”
Natasha smirked, then schooled her expression as they headed in to land. No matter what she said, Lexi would be ready to hype it up, and she didn’t want to discourage her - or get her too wound up.
Lexi sighed but settled in to help with the landing, glancing at her mother a few times but keeping her thoughts to herself, knowing this had been a more intense mission than her mom had probably wanted to take her on. “I’ll let Dr. Blue know you’re coming so we can keep your path clear,” Lexi said once they landed. “Or I’ll tell Rachel if I can find her that we just need a telepathic tunnel turning everyone away from our very toxic box of stuff.”
“We’re going straight to the lab,” Natasha said. “And I would hope that Hank had it taken care of already - from when I radioed in earlier.”
“Sorry; missed that part,” Lexi said, blushing lightly.
“You looked so angelic,” Natasha teased. “Drooling and everything.”
“Thanks, Mom. Really feeling the love today,” Lexi shot back dryly.
“I know you wore yourself out, sweetheart. And you did well enough for your first mission.”
Lexi broke into a brilliant smile and then quickly kissed her mom’s cheek. “Thanks, Mom.”
“But - it definitely was over your skill level - and we were lucky that we didn’t get into more trouble than we did.”
“Well, let’s hope our luck holds,” Lexi said. “Maybe Blue can tell us who’s playing Lady Hydra if he knows the mix.” She stepped aside so her mother could have a clear path to getting the toxins. “Maybe we just stole all the luck from the Summers family on accident,” she joked.
“I doubt that, somehow,” Natasha said as they walked through the empty halls.
“Yeah, good point. Nate did marry Kate, and that’s a lot of luck on his part,” Lexi agreed, smirking to herself and feeling much more like her usual self now that the mission was over. Even if she was a lot like her father, she’d inherited her mother’s habit of being so focused on a mission that she was almost a different person until it was over and the jokes came back out.
As Natasha had said, Hank was prepared for them and ushered them to a part of the lab that he had set aside and quarantined, with plenty of measures to decontaminate should anything go wrong. “Is there anything more I need to know about these other than what you have already sent ahead?” he asked, frowning at the measures Natasha was taking to avoid touching the vials as she unpacked.
“I have nothing new to tell you,” Natasha said. “But they were locked up even in the lab behind only steel and glass. No artificial materials to contain it.”
“Understood.” Hank got to work, though he cast a sidelong glance at Natasha. “As I understand it, Bobbi Morse would have more access in SHIELD’s labs to look into these matters than I had at my disposal.”
“After what SHIELD pulled with the kids, I’m not trusting them to test anything that might be new. Or to confirm anything derived of something old.”
Hank turned her way, smiled despite himself, and then went back to what he was doing. “It is nice to be trusted,” he said.
“Knowing what she used to use, if this person is copycatting the recipes, you may want to keep them in complete isolation.”
“Don’t worry,” Hank promised. “I will exercise the utmost care.”
Natasha nodded to herself and stepped back. “Any news on … any of it?”
Hank let his shoulders drop as he shook his head. “Nothing new, I’m afraid. More of the same, if anything. We are still considering our options and how best to get around the threats involved.”
“And no new help from those deepest involved?” she asked - hoping that there would be some kind of new tidbit from one of the Summers group.
“No.” Hank paused. “I do know that the boys went to face him recently and came away having won the fight - though not so completely that they could end him, just enough that the villain didn’t cause the damage he usually does.”
“That sounds like improvement all the same,” Natasha said.
“They were certainly in high spirits,” Hank said. Even though he was worried, it was easy enough for anyone to see both the relief and the pride he felt in telling that story, too. He quietly and efficiently put the rest of the samples away and then turned to Natasha and Lexi. “Now then,” he said, “I think I’d like to hear about how you were able to find all this.” He turned toward Lexi in particular. “This was your first mission away from the whole of the team, as I understand it.”
Lexi positively lit up as she nodded, already launching into telling Hank all about it - which seemed to be exactly what she needed while also freeing Natasha up to warn the other heroes and make plans to return to deal with Hydra without the younger heroes being involved.
Ever since Mia had asked Betsy to teach her Noh’s dialect of Kree, Noh had been giving Mia plenty of attention. And she was eating it up.
They were honestly building on each other’s energies, but the nice part about the older X-Men now being in the know about what was going on with Sinister was that they were a little more willing to look the other way when they got overly involved, because Mia leaned heavily into the idea that they needed something good after all the bad stuff happening lately.
And that was true for Noh in particular, because Hank had put together why Noh had come to the end of his healing recently. So, they were more than happy to take advantage of the older generation feeling protective of them so they could get away with a little more than usual.
And since it was the weekend, the two of them were spending their time curled up with each other, lazing away the morning. And they’d been soaking for so long that Mia honestly hadn’t expected it when Noh spoke up with a quiet, “I should thank you.”
“For what, being a good cuddler?” Mia teased, snuggling a little deeper into his side to make her point.
He laughed and kissed the top of her head before he shook his head. “No, I meant I should thank you for making Earth feel like home at last. I was just realizing this morning that it has been some time since I’ve felt homesick, despite how fraught my time on this planet has been.”
Mia blushed deeply, but she wrapped her tail around his leg all the same. “I’m glad you like it here,” she said softly.
“As am I,” Noh agreed. She traced patterns with the tips of his fingers on her back as the two of them lay there, still lazing around. “The people on this planet … they are unique. The longer I stay here, the more entranced I am.”
“So it’s not just me?” Mia teased.
Noh chuckled and pulled her into a kiss. “Would you prefer I told you I am so blinded by love that I have forgotten everything else and made you my entire personality?” he teased.
“Okay, when you say it like that, it sounds deranged.”
Noh smirked and pulled her into another, much longer kiss, and it wasn’t until they were starting to get wrapped up in each other that he whispered, “Of course, you are a large part of why I have left my homesickness behind.”
“Knew it,” she whispered back before she reversed their positions with a move James had taught her for getting out of pins. And when he looked delighted to be surprised like that, she kissed him into the pillows.
“I know you said to wait until she’s sixteen, but you should at least see what she can do,” Lexi said, following after Steve after the most recent Avengers team practice. Annie’s niece Leslie Ann was fast becoming one of her best friends in the world, and the two of them were impatient to be on the same team.
What’s more, Lexi knew that Steve had been thinking for some time about raising the age to eighteen. He’d been talking about it practically since the day the original crop of next-gen X-Men announced their debut; he’d never been comfortable with how young they all were.
Add to that the fact that everybody knew something was happening with Sinister and that Hydra was becoming a problem again, and Lexi was worried that her friend would end up getting locked out of being an Avenger with her just for being born a few months later than she was.
And so, Lexi was making it her mission to wear down her Uncle Steve - helped along by Kamala, who might have come in with her own team but was fast becoming part of that group of girls.
Sure enough, Steve smirked her way and said, “Your partner in crime has already been asking me about an evaluation.”
Lexi beamed. “What could it hurt?” she asked, fluttering her eyelashes. “Worst-case scenario, she’s got some stuff she needs to work on before she can join the team, and that’s helpful , isn’t it? She can get started on that now?”
Steve was still smirking as he shook his head. “You know that look stopped working on me when you were eight.”
“Lies.”
“If you say so.” Steve crossed his arms, tapping his fingers against his arms, which Lexi knew was a sure sign he was thinking things over. “You’re not going to let this drop, are you?”
“Not until she has an Avengers ID,” Lexi said without missing a beat.
“Sounds right.” He took a deep breath and let it out. “I tell you what, next weekend when you come for practice, bring her by. I’ve heard good things; no harm in letting her show off in a safe environment and see what it’s like outside of the cameras and positive press.”
Lexi broke into a huge grin and flung herself at Steve for a hug. “You’re my favorite Avenger!” she declared, and he laughed and caught her in a half-spin.
Chapter 155: Full of Anxiety
Chapter Text
Kate wanted to get back into the hero life now that David was starting to sleep through the night (sometimes). She knew it would still be a while before she was off of her leave entirely, but she wanted to at least take the first steps toward returning.
She'd already talked to her parents, but she knew that they were both trying to make sure she took her time. She wanted to talk to someone she wasn't related to, someone who would run her through a quick eval so she could see what she needed to work on to get back up to snuff.
But she still needed help with David, because Nate was supposed to be taking it easy too. He'd gone with the team on a follow-up Hydra mission and had taken a bad hit that he wouldn't admit was because he was still worn out from training with Sinister. Tyler had fixed him up, but he was supposed to be actually resting so that didn't happen again.
So, she had asked James to come with her. Everyone else was so busy, especially with half of them still trying to find ways to help with the Sinister problem and the other half trying to figure out who was heading up Hydra. And frankly, David was always well-behaved for James, and Kate didn't think she'd be able to focus on her eval if someone who didn't know him well had him.
Plus, if the eval went badly, James was good backup emotionally. She wasn't nearly as teary as she had been while she was pregnant, but she was tired and anxious like she couldn't believe, and she needed the help.
She knew that her anxiety wasn't exactly healthy, either, but she just wanted to get back to normal, so she was doing what she could. And what she could do was ask Steve to help.
And actually, despite how nervous she had been going in, she did alright for having been out of the game for so long. She was obviously rusty, and she ran out of steam much sooner than she usually would have, but she held her own in the spar with Steve - even if she knew he was holding back on her, testing her limits before he'd step it up.
She still had the muscle memory and the training; it just wasn't as easy as it used to be. It didn't flow the same way after months off the job. And that could only come back with practice, she knew.
"Thanks," she told Steve as she wiped her face and neck with a towel. "That leg sweep - you telegraphed that on purpose, though."
"Just working you back into it easy," Steve admitted.
"I know, and I appreciate it," Kate admitted, tossing the towel on the bench as she sat down and grabbed a water bottle.
"You're doing well, though," Steve said. "And if you're up to it … I could probably use your help in a little bit." He gestured toward the doors. "I told Leslie Ann she could step in for a low-pressure practice to see what it's like. I'm not okaying her to join up, but …"
"But Kamala and Lexi wore you down, huh?" Kate teased.
"To be honest, I was planning on letting them start training anyhow. Gotta give 'em a win to start."
"Lexi's over the moon about it. She and Leslie Ann are best friends at school at this point," Kate told him. "Gossiping about boys, the whole nine."
"I know. But they both really do need more time - yes, I know your mom worked with Lexi, but she halfway thinks she's a Black Widow herself."
"I blame Jimmy," Kate said with a smirk. "Ever since Jimmy got the easy-pass powers to spy on people, Lexi thinks she has to compete."
"I blame your dad. The way he talks up your mom, they all think they're inheriting her skills and way of thinking."
"Uncle Steve, are you suggesting my father talks up my mother to excess, sir?" Kate asked, one hand on her heart as she did her best impression of scandalized.
"I'm not suggesting it; I'm outright saying it, and you know it."
"He can't help it, just like I can't help bragging on Nate." She held up one hand. "You're right. Lexi's cocky. But I'll be honest: part of it is that Dad's so relieved she and Kamala's group haven't hit anything like we did that he's been talking her up too."
"Kate, are you suggesting that I was right about blaming your dad?" Steve teased.
"I'm suggesting you were right about who to blame, yes."
"That's all I needed to hear." Steve nodded and re-wrapped his hands. "Why don't you take a breather, get some water, and stick around?"
"Yeah, I need to feed David anyway, so I'll just take him up in the booth and watch the show."
"Why don't you see if you can talk James into playing with us for a round or two? If he's not going to be babysitting, that is."
"I'll talk to him, but I'm probably not the best messenger, seeing as I'm monopolizing as much of his free time as I can," Kate pointed out with a smirk.
"See, and I think you're wrong. He'll probably let you point him easier," Steve teased.
"Maybe. I'll talk to him," Kate promised and then got to her feet and skipped over to kiss Steve's cheek. "Thanks again. I've been in an anxiety spiral for weeks about getting back on the team, and I really needed this."
"Any time, Kate," Steve said before he started a little clean up while Kate headed off for David.
When Kate got up to the booth, she wasn't surprised to see that David was entranced with James. He loved to smile; he hadn't done a real belly laugh yet, but he was making happy sounds as he gnawed on part of James's shirt collar.
"Okay, how bad was I?" Kate asked, half wincing as she took David back and pulled out her nursing cover.
"Still better than Lexi in a few areas, so you didn't slip nearly as far as you thought," James answered, then stood up to stretch out. "And you could totally pull off fake injuries to ambush your opponents."
"True. I'm better at my acting every day," Kate said in a sigh as she sat down with her little guy, who was already trying to latch on. "Geez, you're impatient," she told David, laughing as the two of them got situated. "Should be an interesting next practice. Steve's gonna run the younger group through the paces," she said once she was comfortable, nodding toward the viewing area.
"He's a marshmallow," James said as he got her some water. "Taking on the youngest ones so he can give them the Captain America speech. Fifty bucks says he'll go full hands on his hips."
"That's easy money for you, so no thanks," Kate laughed. "He's worried about them both, you know. Lexi's getting cocky, and Leslie Ann… she actually has her head on straight because of her dad, but she's a lot like Kamala. She didn't grow up in this, and she gets caught up in the shiny newness of it all."
"She'll get over it," James said. "And he just won't let her move forward until she does. Lexi's going to have to get humble, though. I know he won't let cocky out in the field. He's got enough of that with others."
"Yeah, half the problem is that when she is in the field, she is ahead of the other new kids. You should see her when Sam gets in trouble at all ever. She's like me on the soccer field, but worse."
"Hmm," James turned toward the room. "I guess … if they ever want to join the X-Men, I'll get to be horrible, awful, and very bad to fix that."
"Oh, that reminds me. I promised Uncle Steve I'd ask you to rejoin the Avengers."
"Well you tried," James said.
"I did try to point out that your free time is at a premium right now," she said, smirking.
"It's not about free time, Hawkeye."
"I know, but that is a logistical hurdle even if you were considering it," Kate pointed out. "We barely see you for X-Men stuff as it is."
"I'm considering lobbing a hand grenade at Nick Fury's head, still."
"So's Mom. You know she didn't let SHIELD look at anything she and Lexi found, right?" Kate said, smiling crookedly.
"What did they find? I haven't had time to look into that yet. You know … between trying to be helpful and being forced into being helpful to the less than helpful."
"Oh, right." Kate turned toward him as much as she could with David still attached. "Someone's trying to be a Viper copycat. Lexi found a bunch of poisonous and venomous creatures. They obviously couldn't draw her a sketch or anything, but from what she got out of them, this new someone does at least know what they're doing."
James frowned at that. "Eew. Why?"
"Seems to be the only way to intimidate your way to the top of Hydra if you're not the Red Skull's son."
"Lame," he said quietly, though he was clearly thinking it over. "See … now I want to skip out on study duty with Essex …"
"Honestly, it's a big part of why I'm trying to get back into the swing of things," Kate admitted. "I mean, I've been thinking about it for a while, but I literally can't sleep thinking about Sinister and a Viper-wannabe out there."
James rested one hand over his heart. "On my life? He's focused elsewhere right now."
"I know. I just…" Kate let out all her breath in a puff. "Dr. Blue wants me to take some kind of psych eval for my next visit. I can't stop stressing out. I'd like to! Can't."
"Okay …." James said slowly. "When did that start? Would you say before or after you were legally a Summers?"
Kate laughed and reached over to shove him with one hand. "After I literally pushed a human out of my body, you goon."
"Oh, well that'd do it too. You already got a little of the stress out when you did that. I mean … imagine what Dad and Nate could do with that kind of option…"
Kate laughed. "You're hilarious," she said. "And I'm glad you're here."
"Honestly, sis, from what I remember reading, it's pretty damn normal to be anxious and depressed after you know … creating human life. It's kind of a big deal. If you don't want to talk to Blue, what about that shrink you liked?"
"Yeah, I've been thinking about going back to her," Kate admitted. "Blue's just giving me the pre-flight."
"Don't feel bad, he's been trying to give me the pre-lockup evaluation. I think he's biased."
"Probably." Kate shifted to switch sides with David and then nodded toward the observation deck. "Check out Lexi; she's showing off again. Steve'll knock her back a peg in a second."
"She's been showing off since they started the first sim," James said, which at least let Kate know he was paying attention to the younger crowd.
"She really likes Sam," Kate said. "And she wants him to look at her the way Dad looks at Mom."
"I know. He almost hit the wall when she smiled his way."
"They're adorable."
"They're going to get hurt."
"That's why Steve's doing what he's doing." Kate nodded toward the fight as Steve used Lexi's overconfidence to guide her into a trap in the sim, knocking her down flat.
James shook his head and glanced over his shoulder at her. "He was just spoiled by how good we were. That's what you're saying."
"I mean, to be fair, remember how bad me and Nate were when we first started having training together?" Kate pointed out.
James tapped the side of his head. "Nope. Some things … they disappeared forever and I don't have to think about them again."
Kate snorted but didn't call him out on it as they watched Steve put the kids through their paces. And like James had said, Steve wasn't letting Lexi get too cocky. He was clearly pushing her in particular, even if the others were getting their boundaries pushed too.
And Leslie Ann was hanging a bit to the edges of the fight, watching the way the others tackled everything head-on. She didn't have training outside of self-defense, so she was able to react when anything in the sim came toward her, but for the most part, she was taking her cues from Steve and simply following what he told her to do.
"Leslie Ann's got the opposite problem," Kate said as she got up to walk David around, patting his back. "I've seen her in Westchester. The girl's powerful as hell and scared of admitting it. Probably because she grew up watching her dad keep his secret so close, you know?"
"No," James said quietly because he had been watching Leslie Ann closely. "She's still spooked from when she looses control."
Kate raised both eyebrows. "You think?" she asked. She had been getting most of her intel on Leslie Ann from Lexi, since she'd been busy lately, but she wasn't going to turn down better intel from someone who wasn't best friends with her.
It took James a beat or two to come up with a reasonable response. "Well, yeah. First big use of her powers was traumatic. Jeep still has a patch of clover growing behind the backseat from when Dad pulled her out of her house and took her to the school. That level of freak out is going to leave a mark."
Kate nodded to herself and then headed to the control panel. "Hey, James, I want to add in a sim and let her have a jungle setting. Wanna help?"
"Sure, what do you want - exactly? Or do you want me to let him fall asleep on me while you do it?"
"Either works. I was just thinking if she's worried about letting loose, let's give her a playground without a fight where she can show off safely. Everyone deserves to feel like they're talented sometimes."
James worked his lower lip between his teeth for a moment. "Al-right," he said slowly, then slid over to start shifting the sim. "I'll start her out easy. The flip side is that if it's too green, too fast, she might just panic when it's suddenly a lot easier to manipulate." He didn't say as much, but that's exactly the trouble she'd been having at the institute in private lessons. But he didn't want her having a panic response at the tower, too, so instead of a full jungle, he just slowly started to shift the scenery from a Hydra-friendly city scape, to one that had a few more trees growing nearby. They were battered, damaged trees, but something she could draw from if she wanted to.
Leslie Ann had obviously noticed the improved scenery, and she glanced up at the booth for a moment before she edged forward, using the tree branches to keep the others safe from their opponents. And as she did that, more and more greenery started to seep through - which she used to wrap around Hydra soldiers' feet and lock them in place for the others … or to entangle weapons in bushes and branches to disarm them.
"I can still take him if you want to go give them a hand," James offered, though his tone was a little distant. He didn't say what he was thinking - that she could absolutely take it a lot further than she was. A lot further.
"I'm still a little sore from the spar," Kate said, watching James out of the corner of her eye. "She seems okay; she's not freaking out or anything."
"Yeah, still don't want to overwhelm her," James said - still in that soft, thoughtful tone.
"You can probably push her a little more," Kate said, coming to stand by him. "Steve won't ask her to show off; he's not Thor."
"No, that's not what I was thinking," James said.
"Share with the class, please," Kate said.
"No, I'd rather not."
Kate frowned at him but then handed him David and took over on the controls, since he was clearly in his head about something.
"Kate, go easy," James said - because now he was half concerned that a bigger level of green might throw off the level of control she had.
"I've seen her run drills with Bobby - well, not drills, but you know what I mean - in the forest by the school. She's okay."
"She wasn't nervous like this with Bobby."
"I'm not throwing a forest at her, James," Kate said, already keying in a bit more greenery. "I'm just sending them to a park. I'm not blind; I'm watching her too."
"Alright, alright, I'm not … nevermind," James said as he let David snuggle in and he automatically started shifting his weight to a rhythm that the kid liked.
Kate stood back and watched as Leslie Ann started to get more involved. She could see Steve glancing up at the booth and knew he had caught up to what they were up to. "I know you don't want to talk about it, but should I be protective of her for, you know, reasons?" Kate asked significantly.
"Not at this time," James said carefully, then turned toward Kate with a raised eyebrow.
"But she's powerful and young and anxious, so yeah, I see the worry about the draw," Kate said, nodding, though she was distracted a bit as Leslie Ann started to use the grass at the park to swirl under the bad guys' feet and turn them the wrong way when they were aiming at Lexi.
"There are plenty that are more powerful," James said in a soft, dark tone. "The problem, as always, will be the potential. Think bigger, Kate. Look past what's already there."
Kate was quiet for a while as she watched Leslie Ann with her powers. Now that she was doing well, Leslie Ann had crouched down to touch the grass, too. It almost looked like she was communing with the landscape - and James was right. That in itself could be more powerful if she tapped into it. She could see people coming, she could fight entire armies that way and they'd never see her coming. She just had to look through the nature around her and attack.
But then, Leslie Ann glanced up at Steve and saw him looking her way, and she blushed bright red and pulled back. The sim was won by that point anyway, but the rest of the team suddenly had to do more to bat cleanup in the final minutes as Leslie Ann all at once lost her concentration.
"It's a good thing your dad is almost done with his house arrest," Kate said quietly to James. "She needs to talk to someone who knows how traumatic it is to introduce yourself with wreckage."
"Yeah," he agreed in a whisper - because he'd finally really gotten a good handle on what Sinister looked for - and he could imagine the ways Leslie Ann's powers could be amplified, but also how they could be twisted. Well … some of that was from spending time with Sinister and learning how to do things his way. The other part of that was from studying the old files on who had been turned into horsemen and how they'd changed - almost all of them drastically.
He cleared his throat a moment after David let out a contented sigh. "To be fair, any one of the X-Men from the old team are great references for that. Dad … will be better to encourage her to be her best and to think of those around her … Summers motivational 12-2."
"Yeah, I just think he's got an advantage because he was there at the start and he's dating her aunt," Kate pointed out. "It's obvious she hero worships Annie, so he's got an in."
"Yep. that too."
Kate sighed and then reached out to thread her arm through his and rest her head on his shoulder for a moment before he needed to go back to bouncing. "Whatever's in your head right now, I'm here. Even if you can't talk about it, just… you're not alone, okay? You look like you're getting lost up there."
"Just overthinking, likely," James said. "Thinking ahead to what's next and what I know …"
"Yeah, I get that. I'm doing that way too much lately too and it's making me lose sleep. Don't let it do that to you, okay?"
"Don't get enough time to sleep to consider that as an option," James teased. "Billy's thankfully spending a lot of time home with his family - which I think keeps him out of trouble. So if I'm not with you guys, I'm … ah … working."
"That sucks." Kate sighed and watched as the sim ended and Steve started chatting with the younger group.
James ducked down and reached over to hit a few commands one handed - that dropped a water balloon on Steve's head just as James stepped away so it looked like Kate was the one at the controls.
"Nice one, Hawkeye!" Lexi called up, cackling.
"So disrespectful," James said, shaking his head as he smirked at Kate.
"Oh yeah. I'm a problem child," Kate said dryly, even as she gave Steve a cheeky, two-fingered salute. But she also saw the instant change in Leslie Ann, who stopped looking so anxious and was even laughing with her friends.
"You want that command?" James offered quietly.
"God yes."
"Thought so," James said, then scribbled it down for her left handed. "Hope you can read it. Still better than Nate's chicken scratch."
"True. His is impossible to read," she agreed as she scooped David back from him. "Thanks again, James. What would we do without you?"
"Probably find someone else to fill the gaps," James said without missing a beat.
"Lies." Kate smiled as she headed out. "Love you, James."
"Love you too," James shot back. "Text me with what time you want me to come by. I promised Tony that I'd spar with him before I leave."
"Oooh, have fun! I'd come watch the show, but Nate's taking his turn and promised me a solid eight hours of sleep tonight."
"Oh, okay. So I should look for Nate's text. Got it," James laughed.
"Yes, probably," Kate laughed. "He feels bad that he's gone all the time with his various 'obligations'." She put air quotes around that word.
"Yeah, sorry about that," James said. "His obligations are pretty convinced that he's actually got a shot now, though, so …"
"Well, that's something anyway. I mean, you and I always knew he could do it."
"Probably helps Nate's focus when I punch his obligations before he gets started."
"I love that," Kate said with a gleeful giggle. "Best brother-in-law ever."
"Yeah, yeah. You don't have any other options at this point, so I'm not holding out hope that I keep that title. You might decide Sam's way cooler."
Kate snorted laughing. "How did you keep a straight face saying that?"
"Um … by picturing the purely mortified expression on her face when I handed her a note that said Mrs. Sam Alexander."
Kate giggled harder. "Oh, yes. I know what I'm doing next time I need a pick-me-up." She blew him a kiss. "Love you, you beautiful troublemaker," she called over her shoulder as she headed out.
Miles had waited quite a while before he invited May Parker over to meet his family. It wasn't that he was hiding her from them … he was just … he didn't want to make a thing out of it if they weren't like … dating, dating. And seeing as things seemed to be moving along at what Miles thought was a normal pace - it was time.
He tried hard to ignore the little voice in the back of his head that was happy to point out that he had no idea what timelines on relationships looked like. And he tried not to think on it too hard when his mom had quietly asked him about the pretty girl at the tower after his parents had visited. May had been kind of low-key - for her- that day, so he didn't realize that his parents were paying that strict of attention to him.
But there she was, sitting at the dining room table with both of his parents. If she had been nervous, she hadn't shown it the whole time they were walking home together… but now? Now, he could see that she was nervous from the way she kept shifting in her seat.
Though, admittedly, if he'd been getting the business glare from his dad like that, he'd have been nervous too.
It wasn't like Miles hadn't tried to warn her, either. He'd told her about both of his parents. But no matter how much he begged his dad not to try to scare off this cute girl, and no matter how he tried to prepare May, there was absolutely no way he could have done anything but sit there and watch as his dad grilled May about how college was going for her, what her plans for her own future was, and so on.
May was doing well, which was good, at least. She'd probably already anticipated most of the questions. But that didn't make the whole thing any less mortifying.
On the other hand, it did feel like a little bit of karma, seeing as her dad had given him the speech about what would happen if he hurt his baby girl, and May had laughed when Miles had gone quiet and just sort of nodded and hoped to disappear into the floor.
Thankfully, his mom seemed to warm right up to May - probably because May complimented her cooking as soon as she dove into the food to try to avoid his dad's piercing gaze. But May was polite, and she ate every bite. And when his mom surprised her with a question out of the blue, May handled it well, too.
"What do you do on the job if he gets hurt?"
May had been dealing with questions about her intentions and her ambitions and that kind of thing, so it was obvious that the question threw her off her game for a moment. But then, she glanced at Miles, who was wide-eyed and probably no help, and nodded to herself. "Honestly, it throws me off my game a little bit," she said frankly. "I mean, we're supposed to be trained to be able to prioritize when stuff like that happens, and I'm getting better at making sure I stay focused in the moment. But, yeah, it's distracting, and I mostly want to get him to help, even if I know I have to focus on civilians first and keep myself safe in the meantime."
Miles glanced toward his mom, holding his breath. He didn't know what answer was the right one there, because he hadn't expected her to take that tactic in her questioning. But when he saw her nod and start to lightly smile, he let out all the breath he hadn't realized he was holding. "I'll go get dessert," he said quickly and got to his feet to go grab the pan from the kitchen.
By the time he got back, the vibe of the dining room had shifted, too. Now, May was talking more easily with his mom, who was asking about how missions worked and how May liked being a hero and what it was like to grow up with a father in such a dangerous profession.
And now, at least, Miles started to understand why his mom had asked what she had. He had grown up with two parents with important jobs, but his dad's was dangerous, too. And there had always been that worry, in the back of their minds, that something might happen, that one bad night could tear their family apart with no warning.
Miles watched from the doorway and couldn't help but smile. Thanks for looking out for me, Mom, he thought before he cleared his throat to announce his presence and twirled the pan for effect before setting it down so they could all dive in to some flan cake.
All of Scott's kids had spent their spare time preparing for Scott's birthday. They each had a part to play and something to bring to cheer their dad up, and the entire family and extended family was in on it. They were all in on the teasing, too - and Rachel was strangely teaming up with Alex on Alex's gag gifts. Alex's real present was the fact that he'd managed to get their dad to promise to show up, though he wasn't expecting Corsair to make it until late. Which was perfect, all things considered.
Being the end of June, those that had been in classes were free from their academic schedules, and for the first time in a while, even James had backed off of the college focus. He just didn't have enough time in the day to power through the doctorates he wanted to finish up in the super accelerated time frame he'd wanted, and with everything up in the air, he wasn't sure what to tell anyone in the family - or Billy. So the fact that Billy was in Genosha already with his family had given James a few minutes to think over what he wanted to do - or attempt to do once the madness with Sinister pushing had met it's end. That, or they were all screwed when Apocalypse finally showed up. He wasn't sure which was the more accurate read yet.
And the rest of the kids in college kind of had a similar outlook if they knew anything at all about what was going on. And because it was such a touchy subject, they'd all sort of agreed to try to avoid talking about it if at all possible.
Especially when they had David as a distraction. And Alex's kids were already bouncing around talking about being X-Men when they grew up a little more.
But even with all that, there was no way Scott could fail to notice James's new haircut. He almost didn't look like himself - though thankfully, he didn't look like Logan, either. His hair was short enough that it didn't peak, but it wasn't … it wasn't him.
"Oh, I like the new look," Annie said warmly as she hugged James hello. "It shows off your face."
"Is that a good thing?" James asked before he kissed her cheek.
"Of course." She hugged him a bit tighter and then stepped back to look at him and whispered: "Did you cut it so you didn't have the same hair style as the Boogeyman?"
James gently shook his head at her question. He didn't want to speak up and tell a half lie, when the truth was that Sinister was, in fact, the one who told him to cut it.
"Well, you look handsome." She smiled again and then gestured him further in. "Billy's already here. He was telling me he'll be around for most of the summer, anyway. Wanda's tickled to have him home for a few months, even if it's 'officially' for some royal nonsense and diplomatic training."
"It's overdue," James agreed, walking ahead as she urged him forward. "I brought everything you asked for, by the way." .
"Oh, you're the best," Annie said, beaming as she helped him bring in the dinner she'd asked him to order - from the nook where she and Scott had their first real date.
James stepped out of her way, then turned toward Scott - doing his best to ignore the look he was getting. "Happy Birthday, by the way."
"Not even a milestone; you really don't have to go all out," Scott teased, though it had a bit less light than usual.
"This?" James said, gesturing over his shoulder. "This isn't going all out. Not even close. That would be getting you a plane."
"Yeah, we're saving that for when you turn fifty in a few years," Kate called out, smirking.
"A few - I'm forty-five, Katherine," Scott said.
"And beautifully silver," Annie teased, sliding over to kiss his cheek as she set down the dinner. "And what's wrong with spoiling you for the one birthday you'll spend under arrest?"
"I'd rather have a bigger party in a few months when we're back in Westchester," Scott shot back, though he did steal a kiss while she was there.
"Done and done," James said as he leaned against the back of the couch.
"We'll have a blast," Kate agreed, sliding past James so she could see what food was there. "Oh, that looks great; I'm starving," she said, handing David off to Scott while Nate laughed.
"Watch out; he'll try to grab anything you put close to your mouth," he warned Scott. "He just wants to be involved."
"Which explains why Nate is still the way he is," James said - simply to rile his brother in an attempt to regain their usual brotherly back and forth.
"Yeah? What's your excuse?" Nate shot back.
"I have no excuse," James said.
"Sounds right."
Scott shook his head at the two of them as he sat down with David, who was probing his face with his hands. And since David kept trying to grab his nose, Scott decided to see what the little guy would do if he blinked and switched to let his eyes glow green.
When it happened, David stared in pure awe, and then, when Scott went back to normal, David positively beamed at him and fell into a laugh. Instantly, both Nate and Kate whirled around to see what had gotten David to laugh.
"He's never done that before!" Kate said, absolutely delighted.
"He never realized how funny looking his grandpa was before," Alex said from the doorway and his kids skirted around him to say hello.
"Oh, you're hilarious," Scott said immediately, though he was still smiling widely as he held David.
"Hey, you're the one that got him laughing," Alex said as he walked by Annie to give Nate a shove. "I'm surprised he wasn't laughing at you. Or your father in law. You're both hilarious, aren't you?"
"Oh, my dad's going to freak," Kate said, still beaming. "He's been trying so hard to get a laugh. But Mom actually got closer than he did; she's been getting the biggest smiles and high squeals pretty consistently."
"He'll just have to cope," James said.
"He'll be fine," Kate said. "But he'll be dramatic first."
Annie smiled as she sat down next to Scott, holding a plate for him but keeping it out of reach of David while she ate her own food. "I'll take him when I'm done, and we can trade off," she said over Scott's shoulder.
"I think I can handle it," Scott said, shifting David so that he couldn't reach his plate.
"Right, of course. You're all ridiculously tall," Annie laughed, though she was too happy to see Scott smiling that way to try to steal David anyway. So, she leaned over to rest against him and watched as everyone in their little home ate and laughed and teased each other.
Alex was just getting into picking at James when Lorna came in with Billy and Wanda to celebrate with them - and carrying a few extra treats for the group. When he saw Billy pause and stare, Alex had to speak up. "We found you a new boyfriend."
"Well, at least he's my type," Billy shot back, shoving his uncle as he passed him to go to James. "What, did you get hit in the head and have to shave it off? Phosphorous again?"
"No," James said, then stole a quick kiss. "I'll tell you about it later. Not a big deal."
"It's a little bit of a big deal because I like playing with it, but you look hot anyway, so…"
"If you hate it, I'll grow it out," James said. "Won't take long. Right Kate?"
Kate laughed. "It's my favorite power of yours."
"Grows faster when I'm healing," James said mostly to Billy. "But if I want to keep it short I have to stay on top of it."
"Huh." Billy tipped his head and then kissed him. "Well, I wasn't really looking at the hair most of the time anyway," he teased.
"Then I don't know what you're looking at," James said quietly as they found a spot to settle in.
"I'll show you later," Billy said, smirking hard enough to get James to return it.
"And off they go," Alex said, bumping into Rachel. "Are you two that bad, too?"
"Family condition," she said diplomatically. "Unless you're slacking, then … there isn't much I can tell you that'll help."
"She's got you there," said a new voice from the doorway, booming and laughing as Corsair announced himself. "Hey, Scott, someone told me you're having a jailbird birthday party."
Oh, your father… Annie projected, and Scott smirked and squeezed her knee before he got up to give his father a hug.
Before he could make the rounds, Nate pulled Kate out of the way to sit down with James and Billy - in an effort to keep out of the way as Alex's kids rushed toward the pirate.
We sure this was a good call? Dad's noticing his dad being around more and putting two and two together on the life expectancy of space pirates with bounties on their heads from the Shi'ar, Nate projected to his siblings and their significant others.
Rachel frowned and glanced toward Scott, who was watching his dad. And it didn't take much to hear from his surface thoughts that he was noticing how slowly his dad was moving lately. Yeah, but he's also thinking about how glad he is to have everyone here.
Just going to have to impress on Grandpa Space Pirate that his son will have a heart attack if he dies while Scott's still trapped here, America said. He responds better to being blunt, right?
I'll talk to him, Kate offered. He wants to hold David anyway. And I'm good at being blunt.
It took Corsair a while to realize that all of his older grandkids were gathered up with their significant others in the living room. They did it every time he came around, but this was the first time he'd noticed it, and once he saw it - he had to make his way over to the quiet snickers and obvious teasing already in play. And like any time he'd come up on his own kids when they were conspiring, all of them fell quiet at the same time and looked up at him with troublemaking looks to see what he had to say.
For a second, he wasn't sure how to proceed - especially when he could feel Alex and Scott watching the interaction behind him. He had his hands on his hips without thinking about it as he looked between all of them. "What's the joke?" he asked, then waited for one of them to say something smart assed.
He usually got some kind of reaction out of one of them. Rachel was most likely to try and put him in his place - and Nate was the one to toe the line the most. Especially when James seemed to attempt to just … not most of the time. But as he looked between them, he realized the quiet one looked like a stranger.
"What's with the haircut?" Corsair asked with a frown. He couldn't remember that kid ever looking like that. He looked grown - and Corsair hated it.
"Just doing my best not to look like pirate material," James said with a straight face.
"Mission accomplished," Corsair said as he reached over to rub the side of his head, smiling in spite of himself as he refrained from telling the kid that his current haircut wasn't too different from what Corsair used to wear when he was in the Air Force.
"Oh, hey, you haven't seen David in a hot minute," Kate said, seeing the look on James's face as well as the way Nate wrinkled his nose when he peeked at Corsair's surface thoughts.
Corsair grinned and slid over to Kate, scooping David up for himself and letting Kate lead him over somewhere else only because he was getting the baby time he wanted. "Looking more like you every day," he told her.
"Lucky kid," she said, sitting down next to him and watching as he bounced David on his knee. "You gonna try to be around more?" she asked. "I bet if you talk to Lorna, she'll see what she can do about her father-in-law getting a retirement place here."
Corsair whirled around to face her. "What."
Kate held his gaze. "You heard me. Don't think I haven't noticed you're favoring one side. And you're a great-grandfather now."
"Hey," Corsair said, pointing at her. "I had Scotty young. Scotty had Nate young. You're young. I'm not even seventy yet. Don't go burying me when I have plenty of years left."
"Just saying," Kate said. "I mean, I get it. I don't want to stop being a hero. I know what it's like to chase the adrenaline rush." She leaned forward, both eyebrows raised. "But, hey, at least admit you're old and start taking it easy and visiting more so your son with the stupid stress levels doesn't keel over, huh?"
Corsair narrowed his eyes at her, but when he looked toward Scott, it was obvious he could see the stress lines around Scott's eyes. "Yeah, okay, I know you're worried about him. But Scotty's hardier than you think he is."
"Yeah, but he shouldn't have to be," Kate said simply - and since Corsair didn't have a good response for that, he simply went back to playing with David.
Chapter 156: Things We Shouldn't Know
Notes:
(See the end of the chapter for notes.)
Chapter Text
Jimmy Barton had a few weeks before he started high school in Westchester, but he was spending a lot of time there already because he was determined to follow in his big sisters' footsteps and join a team once he was old enough. And their self-defense classes were second to none, even if he'd had plenty of training from his parents because bad guys would always be interested in grabbing a Barton for leverage.
He was getting really good with his powers, too. Even as young as he was, he'd had his powers long enough that he was starting to focus not just on how to use them but how to get more pointed about it. Sure, he could get people around him not to pay attention, but he was determined to figure out how to extend his powers to surveillance. He was almost good enough to get people to not look at their phone cameras if they caught him on those, but more active surveillance was hard.
But he also couldn't help but get into trouble because his sisters couldn't see him coming. And that particular morning, he was supposed to be weeding the gardens outside of Tony's old house by himself, by hand, instead of letting gardeners or landscapers do it, because he had gotten into Lexi's room unnoticed and stole her phone just to screw with her. And, yeah, he'd gotten the lecture about respecting people's privacy, but he'd managed to sneak in past Lucky, and he was pretty proud of that. Animals were harder to fool than people because of their better senses.
But when he saw a SHIELD agent heading his way, he stopped and straightened up, brushing dirt off on his pants so he could extend a hand when he realized she was headed for him. "Hey, you looking for someone in particular or did my mom send you to tell me I've got another garden to weed? Wouldn't put it past her to send an official intimidation when I'm in trouble."
"No, I'm looking for you, actually."
"Oh." Jimmy straightened up, trying hard not to grin - but that didn't work. He had two older sisters who were heroes in their own right, and it was hard not to feel like the overlooked baby brother sometimes. So it was nice to be looked for. "Sure, yeah, what's up?"
"Do you have time to find a quiet place to sit down and chat?"
"Yeah, I'm almost done weeding anyway," Jimmy said, gesturing toward some benches in the hedge maze. "You sure you're not looking for someone else in my family?"
"No, I definitely wanted to speak to you," she replied. "Your sisters have already signed up to be Avengers, and though I know they didn't put any thought into anything else, both of them spoke with someone about other options, should they want to be more consistently helpful." She entwined her fingers in front of her. "So. I suppose this is our first outreach with you - to see if you have considered something less … flashy when you get to be a little older."
"I mean," Jimmy said, gesturing out with both hands, "my powers aren't exactly flashy in the first place, so…"
She smiled crookedly. "Which is why I think you'd be a better fit with SHIELD than your sisters."
"Oh. Huh." Jimmy shifted where he was sitting, looking a lot more like his dad than usual, even though he was the one who looked most like his mother.
"I know, not nearly as glamorous as being an Avenger," she said easily. "But more consistent."
"No, it's not that," he assured her quickly. "It's just that my mom is still pretty pissed at Nick Fury, and I'm not fourteen until right before the semester starts, so…"
"We get that a lot," she said dryly. "Director Fury has a way of alienating people. But - I'm not trying to do anything right now. I just wanted to make sure you knew it was an option - touch base - and maybe, after you've considered it, we could show you what's possible when you're not going in as a fully trained super spy or assassin."
"Yeah, my parents definitely don't have the background to know what starting from the bottom looks like," Jimmy said, smirking. "Not at SHIELD, anyway." He shrugged. "So, what, are you looking at, like, coffee-grabbing internships or something?"
"Probably a little higher up than that," she admitted. "I know you're a mutant - so am I - and generally, going into SHIELD with powers developed or semi developed puts you a little bit ahead of a gopher."
"That's actually kind of a relief, because I don't think my sisters would stop teasing me if I was just playing fetch through an internship, even if it pays well - does it pay?" he asked.
"It does," she said, smiling again.
"That's super nice," Jimmy said. He shifted again. "Wow, um, I guess I didn't think I was on anyone's radar."
"I could explain that a few ways, but the most obvious is the fact that you are Romanoff's son."
Jimmy's expression fell a bit, though he nodded. "Yeah, that makes sense."
"We're always aware of up and comers," she said. "And yes, it's easier to find them when they're part of the extended family. But we also knew from the enrollment information at Xavier's."
"Oh! Yeah, I'm hoping they can help me figure out the camera problem," Jimmy said, nodding.
"Camera problem?" she asked, frowning slightly.
"Yeah." Jimmy gestured down at himself. "I'm functionally invisible, but, like, technology doesn't work on a psychic level like my powers do. So I'm working on figuring out how to make people ignore what they're seeing or… something, I guess."
"I think that's what tech is for," she teased with a smile.
"Yeah, but I'd like to beat it," Jimmy said, grinning a bit wider.
"Let me know if you do," she said as she handed him her business card. "Or if you'd like to talk about your options."
Jimmy took the card and tucked it into his pocket. "Thanks, seriously. Um… what was your name? I'm sorry; I didn't catch it."
"Agent Johnson," she said. "But you can call me Daisy."
"Thanks, Daisy," Jimmy said and got to his feet. "If it's okay with you, I'll think about this for a bit. I've got registration, and classes are starting soon, so I've kind of got a lot going on."
"Absolutely," she agreed. "You've got plenty of time ahead of you to think it over. No rush."
Jimmy smirked to himself as she left before he sighed and went back to weeding. It was nice to know he had some prospects - and that he wasn't getting totally overlooked.
Kate needed to get out of the house, and Nate knew it. She hadn't done well with the forced bed rest before David was born, but neither of them had been really prepared for how badly they would need some time just to themselves after he arrived. But now, David was finally old enough that he didn't need Kate every couple of hours - so Nate arranged for a dinner at one of her favorite places and asked Billy and James to watch the place while they were out.
And while Kate was excited to go, she was surprised at how anxious she was, too. She'd spent four straight months always being close by for when David needed her, and she was still giving instructions to Billy by the time Nate half-dragged her out of the apartment.
Come on, Katie. It's James and Billy. Whatever comes up, you know they can handle it.
Yeah, I know. Just feels weird leaving when the last five, six months have just been about taking care of him, Kate said.
And that right there? That's why we're getting you out of the house, Nate said, waving over his shoulder. "Have fun, guys!" he called out before he picked Kate up to carry her off.
"You're going to end up texting her pictures with every anxious 'hows it going', aren't you?" James asked Billy as he made his way over to grab some water.
"Probably," Billy said, already making faces at David to get him to giggle.
"She'll be okay, too," James said. "He's got his favorite peekaboo buddy."
"Feeling's mutual," Billy said, grinning when David started giggling again. "Seriously, why don't we babysit more?"
"Um … I am here way more than you are. It's just … timing. When you've been free, it's usually Clint that's here. You could show him up and take over some of that time. David likes your games better, I think."
"Well, obviously. I'm amazing," Billy said, playing with some magic to let David try to catch sparkles in his stubby hands.
"No arguments there. And you have magic, too."
"Exactly." Billy readjusted so that David was leaning against him and playing with the sparkles in the air and then glanced up at James, who was absently watching him. "Okay, what's that look?"
"Just watching when he's not crying," he said with a shrug. "And you're finally getting to play instead of tap his nose and try to get Kate back to Kate."
"Yeah," Billy said, his smile slipping a bit. "She's okay, right?"
"I think so," James said. "This whole thing has to be a trip for her, though. In a lot of ways. Orphan hang ups. It's a thing."
"Yeah, I know." Billy made more sparkles once David had smooshed all of the other ones. He was chewing on his lip and bouncing his foot, so James knew something was on his mind, but he still hadn't come out with it.
"Okay, what's that look for?" James had to ask, since turnabout was always fair play.
Billy glanced up at James and then blushed. "Um… so, I guess I was gonna… not now, obviously, but what's your stance on kids?"
"In regards to …"
"Well, you know…" Billy blew his breath out. "Like… our own? Eventually? After we get married?"
James tipped his head back and forth a couple of times. "I think it'd depend on the circumstances more than anything, but I'm not against it."
"Okay." Billy glanced back down at David, bouncing him with how much he was tapping his foot. "I don't mean, you know, because we have to or it's expected with the line of succession or anything. If you don't want kids, Tommy does. Which he won't admit, but, you know, he could- you know, heirs and all…"
James made his way over to sit down next to him. "I didn't say no," James said. "I'm just not entirely sure how that would work, and I don't know where that puts us, you know?"
"Yeah. We'd have to talk about it, I guess," Billy said. "And we have time!"
James smiled crookedly. "You're turning red talking about talking about it."
"I knoooooooow."
James leaned over to kiss his cheek. "So … tell me what you're thinking."
Billy turned for an actual kiss before he cleared his throat. "I mean… it's actually been hard not to get started, if you want the truth," he admitted. "Ever since Deadpool brought it up, I… it's like I can see the kids I could wish into being if I wanted to. Which has never happened before with a spell. And I don't know if it's Demiurge-adjacent or something I inherited from my mom or what, but…"
"Family history in play …" James shrugged. "Maybe both. But if that's the case, what's wrong with that?"
"Nothing, obviously," Billy said quickly. "I just, you know, don't want to jump the gun. And I want to wait until we're married. And I want you to be on board. And we'll have to work out the logistics. And I'd want to have my degree first. And… there's a lot involved."
"Well … maybe … you could work on a spell that … I mean, could work like the trigger you rigged up on the blackmail, right? Won't work until we're both on board?"
"Maybe?" Billy winced. "I think I could work up something that has conditions. We'd both have to be on board, we'd have to be married…"
"You need your degree," James said. "I have enough, thanks."
Billy chuckled at that. "Yeah, well, like I said, obviously, we're a couple years out. I just… I've never had to fight against a wish like this before."
"I'd say I was worried, but I'm not," James said. "I know that doesn't help you out, though."
"Yeah?"
"Obviously."
"Okay." Billy smiled and looked back down at David. "Just… so you know… there's… in the wish I keep seeing in my mind's eye, she's got black hair."
James smiled at that. "Well, I think the only problem we'd have is if she had purple hair. Kate would never forgive you. Betsy wouldn't leave her alone."
"You're not wrong," Billy said - and then laughed when David tried to reach for a sparkle and bumped his head on Billy's arm. "Woah, little guy, you're smaller than you think you are."
"That's just a lie," James said with a growl that made David halfway startle, then fall into a big belly laugh. "He's going to be Nate sized. Probably next week." He reached over to tickle David for a second, then got to his feet to get their dinner going while Billy played with David.
Billy and David were both laughing nearly to the point of being out of breath, and not long after that, David was getting tired. He was still trying to laugh and have a good time, but his eyes were starting to drift shut, and he was a little restless as he fought falling asleep. When he started whining, James came back to pick him up.
"Dinner's ready when you are," he said as David snuggled into his shoulder, and with a little wiggle, David found his comfy spot and let out a hitched sigh. "I've got him. This is kind of my whole job here, you know."
James headed over to what had become his usual spot to sit down with the little guy, and kicked his feet up as he settled in, leaving Billy to answer his texts and grab some food - and before long, James started to drift off with David, too.
And once both David and James were asleep, Billy snuck a picture of the two of them and sent it to the group chat he had with Kate and America that Kate had helpfully named "Support Group for Summers Enthusiasts"… and then started drawing some magic in the air, working first on making sure the restrictions to the spell were in place so he couldn't accidentally wish them into teenage parenthood. He hadn't ever done pre-casting before…
Yeah, he was going to need to talk to Doctor Strange. And his mom. Before he ended up joining Kate in stress-induced insomnia. Because as much as he was sure he wanted kids - because the wish wouldn't leave him alone - he was also sure he was too young for kids.
And for as much trouble as he and his friends and family were already in, it was probably best if he didn't add in any more trouble.
For the most part, the older Avengers weren't letting the second-generation kids anywhere near Madripoor after Lexi and Natasha had discovered what they had about the Viper copycat. But that didn't mean they weren't heavily involved in other missions against Hydra. There was no shortage of Hydra soldiers, and it seemed like the ones coalescing under Vojteck's command were concentrating in Eastern Europe instead of in Madripoor.
Billy and Tommy were in Genosha, Kate was still working on training to get back to a place where she was comfortable fighting out in the field, and James was overly busy with his "mentor." But everyone else on the team came out to deal with the intel that Hydra was trying to establish some kind of outpost in Belarus.
Rachel was heading up the mission, though whatever she was talking to Nate about wasn't happening in the psychic linkup that she had created for the group. He looked tired - and more than just because he had a baby at home.
Lexi frowned at him, wondering if it had been a good idea for him to come. She knew what he was dealing with - at least as much as everyone outside the circle had figured out. And there was a big part of her that wanted to tell him that he was being selfish, coming out here when he wasn't at his best. Because Lexi knew - she just knew - that he was well-aware of how much her big sister was struggling with her mental health. She'd been officially diagnosed with postpartum anxiety, and if Nate got caught or worse on a mission, it would wreck Kate.
Lexi nodded to herself, already deciding that she wasn't going to let that happen - though she was so caught up in coming to that conclusion that she didn't see Sam coming to sit by her until he was right there. She even jumped slightly - and blushed when he saw his pleased smile.
"Snuck up on you, huh?" he said, grinning as he made himself comfortable.
Lexi smirked and shoved him in the shoulder. "Don't let it go to your head."
"Too late."
"I knew it." Lexi couldn't hide her smile - and because she'd been thinking about how to protect her brother-in-law and hadn't been at all prepared for Sam, she also couldn't hide her blush.
"What's got you distracted?" Sam asked. "No way I sneak up on you when you're actually prepared."
Lexi smirked, glad to see that he still thought the world of her. She knew it wasn't exactly the heroic way to feel, but there was something thrilling about knowing the guy she was flirting with thought she was out of his league. There was something nice about knowing he had stars in his eyes.
She leaned toward him and bit her lip when she saw that they were both blushing. "I was just thinking I want to make sure my sister's husband gets home to her, you know?" she said in a whisper, indicating Nate with a tip of her head.
"You know we've got each other's backs," Sam said.
"Oh, always," she agreed without hesitation. "But I don't need to be able to read minds to know he's worn down - and we haven't even started the mission."
"Okay, but if that's the case, maybe don't get so distracted worrying about it that you get hurt too, huh?" When Lexi turned toward Sam, he grinned in a way that made her stomach flip. "I'm not just a pretty face. I have been paying attention in class and in practice."
She could feel their positions reversing, because she was grinning despite herself and losing track of what she was worried about in the first place. And so, she tried to put him on his back foot while she was swallowing butterflies. "You are a pretty face, though," she said.
Just as she'd hoped, Sam was instantly bright red and blushing. And that felt a lot better to Lexi.
Soon enough, Kamala called back from where she was copiloting for Mia to let them know that they were getting ready to land. Lexi glanced over at her brother-in-law, who was nodding to himself and visibly gearing up for the mission.
He's probably fine, Lexi told herself. He's got his super protective big sister looking out for him anyway.
Thankfully, they had plenty to do once they were on the ground. Hydra had already established a base, and there were enough soldiers that Lexi couldn't help but hope that they would run into Vojteck while they were there so she could make him answer for what he did to her big sister and Billy and James.
And that thought - the idea of revenge - was enough to get her distracted from worrying about Nate, especially when she saw that some of the Hydra soldiers that rushed out to meet them were higher rank than they'd normally find in a low-level place.
Lexi grinned and glanced over at Sam. Time to show off.
The nice part about a mission like this was that there was no shortage of soldiers to fight, which meant it was easy to get lost in the rhythm of a good battle. But it also meant that, to her disappointment, she couldn't look over at Sam to make sure he saw her, because she was focused and also knew he didn't need to be distracted.
Down, Lexi heard Rachel call out in her head, and she didn't hesitate to throw herself down, wincing as she heard the arc of electricity as something went over her head.
She looked back up to see that Rachel wasn't even looking her way but was already involved in another fight, trusting Lexi to have listened.
And Lexi suddenly remembered how much longer the older kids had been doing stuff like this - and felt a little bit embarrassed that she had thought she was so ahead of the game that Nate needed her to look out for him.
But, well, could anyone blame her? The Summerses were always in trouble.
Lexi shook her head and then doubled down on her fight, determined to be as good as she thought she was.
Hey, either of you two telepaths finding something weird? Amadeus asked through the bond. They're protecting the back exit.
What a time for our speedster not to be around, May said.
I can check it out, Nate said.
I'll come too, Lexi said and then tried to cover for her concern. The animals might know something if the people don't feel like sharing.
Lexi just knew that neither Summers sibling bought her excuse. But still, Nate said, Sure. Backup's always a good idea.
Lexi blushed as she felt, again, the fact that she was the youngest on the team. But she was glad she came all the same, because when she caught up with Nate, he looked tired.
"You okay?"
Nate smirked her way and reached out a hand so that she was flying next to him. "I'm fine. Promise," he said.
"You look like hell."
"Thanks."
She gave him a dry look. "You can't blame me for being worried."
"I can, but you've got my sister breathing down my neck for being worn down enough to be a distraction, so message received. I'll let your parents watch David for an afternoon and take a few hours to sleep, okay?"
"I'm just saying-"
"Look, as soon as it's feasible to take this problem down, I'm not standing in the way of anyone who wants to kill it dead, okay?" Nate told her frankly.
"Okay."
They were quiet for a while until Nate set them down behind the facility, but then, he dropped his shoulders and turned her way. "For the record," he said, "love you too. I'm still getting used to being an older brother and still having my sister- and brother-in-law trying to watch my back. I'd rather you and Jimmy know I've got yours."
"What's family for?" Lexi asked and turned toward the building. "Anything?" she asked, switching back into mission mode.
Nate's eyes were glowing and then narrowed. "Yeah," he said simply. "Vojteck was definitely here, but he's got that watch; I don't know if he's left or not."
"I'll ask around," Lexi said, already looking toward the forest.
"I'll make a quick sweep. And I'll call home and let them know; maybe someone else can pick up a trail if he slips past us."
"Good idea," Lexi said, smiling grimly to herself when she saw the look on his face. He wasn't about to let Kate's tormentor go any more than she was.
Lexi set her shoulders and headed for the outer edges of the forest - and frowned when she couldn't easily find an animal to talk to. Something had scared them away.
I wish Leslie Ann was here, she thought. I bet she could find the break in the plants if there's a secret tunnel or something.
She was so intent on looking for an animal to talk to that she wasn't paying attention to how far she'd gotten from the rest of the team. That is - until she heard a twig snap behind her, and she spun around just in time to see green before someone hit her hard enough that she was seeing stars.
She went sprawling, but before she could get back up, someone put a boot in her back to keep her down, and she heard the click of a radio as the soldier pushing her down radioed in that he had an Avenger.
And all at once, Lexi couldn't find her breath for how badly she was panicking. She knew she'd screwed up by focusing too much on her powers, and now, all she could think about was how horrible her big sister had looked when they finally rescued her from Hydra.
She was just working up into a solid panic when she heard a Hydra soldier let out a shout of surprise, and she could hear weapons being fired and the sounds of a scuffle. The next thing she knew, the pressure on her back had lifted, and she picked herself up to see Sam, chest heaving, his hand outstretched to offer to help her to her feet.
She took his hand with a quiet "thanks" and got upright, and the two of them headed back to where the others were.
And Lexi knew that other things happened between Sam coming to get her and when they got back to the tower. She knew she told Rachel she hadn't been able to find a back exit, and she knew everyone was upset that Vojteck had managed to escape their grasps again.
But all she could do was stare at Sam, a feeling brewing in the back of her throat as she realized things were unbalanced in his favor again.
So, she waited until the debrief was over and ambushed him in the hall, pushing him backward and kissing him hard until he was backed against the wall and had finally moved out of shock into reciprocating.
She pulled back just enough to see his expression, and when she saw surprised pleasure, she grinned and kissed him again.
At the start of August, Annie was starting to look ahead to moving to Westchester. Scott wasn't quite ready for that, because he was still in survival mode, trying to grit his teeth through the last month of his house arrest, but Annie was ready to get out of that house.
Not that it hadn't been incredibly nice spending an entire year with her fiance, truly getting to know him in every conceivable way, including walks together in their minds through memories that meant the world to each of them. But she missed being part of a big family and all that entailed, and Westchester was exactly that.
Plus, she missed teaching.
She was already mentally going over the lesson plans she wanted to implement in the fall when she heard a knock at the door and beamed, knowing Scott's kids were coming to visit him for dinner. He had a hearing with the judge in the morning - nothing notable, just the preliminary hearing to confirm that he hadn't broken the rules and was eligible to be released - and the kids were rallying to support him.
Seriously, she loved the family she was marrying into.
She wasn't surprised to see that Nate and Kate were the first to arrive, bringing David with them, who looked so much bigger every time Scott and Annie saw him. Annie knew it was killing Scott to be so far from his first grandchild, especially at an age when it was so visibly obvious that time was passing. And yet, every time they got to see David, she was glad she got to gush about his milestones.
"Oh, here, let me," she said, already grabbing David from Kate. "I need to get my snuggles in now, before your father sees him."
"You're not wrong," Nate said, smirking as he slipped into the house and set David's diaper bag down. "Rachel and America are right behind us; Uncle Alex just got caught up talking with Rachel about getting Chris and Suzy at the school."
"Oh, Suzy too?" Annie beamed. "When did that happen?"
"About half an hour ago," Nate said, matching her grin. "Which is why Alex is monopolizing Rachel's attention right now. She takes after her mom, and they're gushing."
"That's perfect," Annie said, already shifting how she was standing to balance David on her hip. He was doing much better at holding himself up, and he grabbed onto the string of her apron to keep his balance, giggling as she ruffled the little bit of hair he had on his head.
"Yeah, don't tell Dad yet. Alex wants to drop by after the hearing tomorrow and give him the good news himself - you know, something happy to cheer him up after all the crap that's happened?"
"I like that idea," Annie agreed immediately, leading the two of them into the house and immediately putting them to work setting the table. And when America and Rachel showed up, she set them to work as well.
Billy and James were the last to show, and they came with a few new gadgets for Scott to take with him for protection when he left the house. After his arrival had been so clearly compromised, James wasn't going to take a chance with anyone taking a free shot at his dad. Again. That first attempt had been too well planned, and proved how entrenched some of those faithful loyal were in positions of influence and power - still. Sure, Wanda had come after them - but James knew from a few encounters on Genosha himself that the worst of Magneto's Acolytes were still out there .
And Billy was careful on where he brought them in the house, too - and had helpfully taken them to Scott's vacant office.
By that time, Scott had stolen David from Annie, so he was sitting on the floor with the little guy and getting some solid belly laughs out of him. But Annie saw the two of them arrive and waved them into the kitchen, which smelled as amazing as ever. "Come on in; I'm just setting out the rolls and then we can dig in," she said, putting freshly-baked rolls into a big basket to put in the center of the table.
"Go ahead," James said to Billy before he stole a quick kiss. "I'll catch up." James let out a breath and headed for Scott and David, already holding up the tech he'd brought. "Hey Dad, I know you're busy, but I have something for you." He sat down with the two of them and automatically handed David his key fob - there was no harm when the car was across the globe after all.
"Yeah?" Scott looked up from playing with David, smiling easily. "Birthday was over a month ago."
"Figured you might want to avoid another repeat of the pre-trial," James said as he handed Scott the watch. "And I thought you liked what we got you for your birthday."
"I did, but here you are saying you've brought presents," Scott said, already putting the watch on, though he looked more serious now that James had explained it.
"Buzz is up again. I know you're tracking Hydra and other threats, but I didn't know how much attention you were paying on your own behalf," James said, giving him a raised eyebrow look.
Scott let out a long, slow breath. "Yeah, I've seen the buzz. Wanda has too."
"I figured she had. I also figured you've been focusing farther out." James took just a minute to explain how it worked - and made sure that he knew that it had genetic exemptions for the closest blood relatives and Annie and her family.
Scott was nodding along to James's explanation, and when it was finally through, he simply reached out to yank James into as much of a hug as he could when David was trying to eat one of the buttons on his shirt. "Thanks," he said into the hug.
"Should have done it sooner," James said.
"There's been a lot going on this year," Scott pointed out.
"Yeah, I noticed that, believe it or not."
"Hard not to, right?" Scott asked, smirking as he picked David up to rearrange him and kiss his cheek. "Come on; we should get some dinner before Annie thinks I'm shunning her cooking."
"She knows better. Especially when you have a baby with you," James pointed out.
"Still, I like her happy," Scott pointed out as he put out a hand and James helped him to his feet when he was at an awkward angle with David. "She's started talking to her sister about wedding planning now that we're almost out of this house."
"Kate can get ordained," James said with a straight face.
"Wanda beat you to the offer; she's here often enough that she and Annie get along great."
"Wanda offered to ordain Kate? That's perfect."
"Wanda offered to do the wedding herself," Scott laughed.
"Well, I suppose that's an option, too," he said with a shrug.
"Second choice is Toby," Scott told him. "He asked me to remind you he's available if you and Billy want, by the way."
"Yeah, I probably ought to drop by. On an off day. Sometime," James said, frowning to himself at the lack of possibility at the moment. He helped Scott get settled with David, then headed to the kitchen when it was clear everyone else was helping Annie to get everything to the table.
"Good to see you," Annie said, sidling over to kiss his cheek before she set the rolls down and squeezed Scott's hand to sit down beside her.
But before James could respond with anything close to his usual sass, he positively froze. It took him a few seconds to breathe again, and when he did, he took a step back away from everyone, turned on his heel and projected loudly for to his sister. Rachel, I need you to meet me in the next room. Now. Like … right the frik now.
When she realized he wasn't joking around, Rachel excused herself - and James - then rushed over to see what his problem was, only to find him pacing and shaking his hands out. I need you to wipe my memory of today right now, James told her. Wipe it and have America send me to the tower or something.
Okay, Rachel said, agreeing without hesitation because she'd never heard James like this before. Can you explain why first?
I don't mean lock it up, either. Get rid of it. James warned, half panicking as she started to focus so they could get down to it.
Okay. Rachel's eyes were already brighter. What happened? Before James could answer for himself, though, she was already taking his invitation to dive into his mind - and instantly saw the problem. Oh.
I can't know this, Rach.
No, you sure as hell can't, Rachel agreed, her eyes filled with fire as she got to work. I'll get right on this… you need to go. And I need to hide this in my head and theirs once she tells him.
I don't want to know, James said, more tense and on edge than she'd seen in a long time. Just get rid of the day and knock me out. I won't know what happened, right? Nothing from today. That's safer than just a cut off after I get here.
You won't know. I'm just thinking out loud while I work. It's a bad habit. You won't remember anything I'm saying, I swear, Rachel said, quickly cutting connections. I actually even have an excuse for you. Mia wanted your advice on giving Leslie Ann a confidence boost before she's old enough to join the team.
I shouldn't really be around Leslie Ann either, to be honest, James said - then projected to her what he knew already, what he suspected, and how he was trying to keep that from being an issue, too.
Rachel paused, her hair alight now in addition to her eyes - and then dove back in quickly, erasing everything about the day and then rendering him unconscious before she stepped back into the dining room. "Hey, gorgeous, I need you to express my brother home - or to the tower would probably be good, too," she told America, knowing she couldn't hide that she was fiery at the moment. She held up a hand Scott's way. "He's fine, but he needed psychic intervention, and he's got to sleep it off. I already fixed it."
Scott narrowed his eyes at Rachel. "Are you sure?"
"I promise: he's fine. He won't remember today, but that's on me."
"Rachel-"
"I'll tell you more when I can, Dad," Rachel swore, one hand over her heart. "You know I will."
Nate looked between Rachel and Scott as America headed off to deal with James. What gives? he projected to his sister.
Don't worry about it right now, Rachel projected back.
Kinda already worried about it, so I'm failing at that.
It wasn't an attack.
I'd have known if it was. Which is why I've gotta know.
Except that you can't, Rachel said.
Excuse me, Annie said, projecting to both of them in a mental voice that sounded polite and small as she tried to get their attention. She hadn't been able to eavesdrop, but she had heard James projecting loudly for Rachel. Should I… She trailed off, and both Rachel and Nate could see a dozen different questions that she didn't mean to project, none of which she was sure was the right one to ask when Scott needed to be somewhere in the morning.
Just keep doing what you were planning on doing, Rachel suggested.
Okay, Annie said, though Rachel saw that she already had her suspicions, considering what had happened with Kate as well as her own calendar. She looked pale, but thankfully, just then, David grabbed one of his toys and chucked it hard enough at Nate that it nailed him right in the forehead - and that was enough of a distraction to break the tension of the slowly-building realization. For the moment.
"Aww, he's got my aim," Kate said, cooing at the little guy.
"Yeah." Billy looked around the table and cleared his throat. "So. Um. Are we gonna… talk about… you know, not all of us are in on the mental back-and-forth…"
"Billy's right; this is rude behavior," Kate said, smirking. "And we are dining with a prince. We should be on our best behavior."
"Kate, why are you like this," Billy said, rolling his eyes up to the ceiling.
"I'm sorry, Your Highness; I can't help it." Kate gestured around the table. "If we could talk about it, obviously we would. It's been months, and we all know the score. But this is supposed to be a dinner to support our fearless leader, so if we could all make faces at my baby and pretend to not have crises every five minutes, that'd be great, thanks."
Annie let out her breath but gave Kate a warm smile. "You're right," she said gently and cleared her throat. "So," she said, "I heard you're getting back onto the team."
Kate nodded, positively latching onto the new topic of conversation - knowing the other topic wouldn't get anywhere. And sure, it wasn't quite the big, supportive dinner bash they'd been going for, but at least the evening had a decently happy focus after that, between Kate getting back on the team, David being adorable, and Annie admitting how excited she was about teaching in Westchester.
And Scott hardly said a word, the hearing long-forgotten, as he sat there and watched his family try to act like nothing was wrong.
Annie knew that there wasn't much that could have sent James into a panic like that, and she also knew that she was a bit late. She honestly hadn't thought much of it, because she was thirty-eight. Her big sister had told her about her own experience with menopause, and Annie had figured she was sliding that way herself. Evie had started skipping periods when she was thirty-nine.
But, no, instead, Annie was staring at a positive pregnancy test, trying to figure out what to say to Scott. At any other time in her life, she would have been thrilled, because she had always wanted to have a family of her own. But now?
Now, all she could think about was the look on James's face when he'd caught her scent. Now, all she could think about was Sinister, a man who wanted to study David.
And yet… she wanted this so badly.
They had to figure out how to make this work.
She closed her eyes, took a deep breath, and let it out again. Scott was due to be home from his hearing at any moment, and then… well, and then, they'd figure it out together.
She had paced a path around the entire house before Scott got back, appearing in a wash of red light as Wanda wished him directly home. He looked thoughtful, but when he saw her, he smiled and closed this distance to hug her. "I hope you haven't been waiting up for me too long," he said.
"How did it go?" she asked rather than admit that she had been pacing.
Scott shrugged. "It went about like we expected it would. I haven't broken the rules, so the judge said the end date is still the same."
Annie bit her lip and nodded, grabbing Scott's hand to guide him to the couch. And he didn't fight her, likely because he could see the look on her face and knew that she needed to talk to him.
Once they were seated, Annie turned toward him with her whole body, nearly holding her breath. "Scott," she said, slowly and quietly, "I'm pregnant."
Scott went perfectly still, the color draining from his face - though, encouragingly, she could see the corner of his mouth twitching up into a smile despite all of the implications of what she'd just told him. And she waited for him to process everything, holding onto both of his hands tighter than she meant to - but she needed to ground herself, or she'd start to worry into oblivion.
She didn't think Scott had done it on purpose, either, but he had clamped down on his mental defenses, so she didn't hear his initial response. Probably because he was flooded with anxiety and emotion.
And then, slowly, he started to nod. "It won't take long for Sinister to figure that out," he said.
"I know," she said. "I'm getting better at telepathic defense, but I'm nowhere near where I need to be."
"And even if you were, there's nothing stopping him from checking on your powers, and a blood test would show it anyway," Scott pointed out. He shifted to remove one hand from her grasp to brush her hair back from her face, and she could finally hear his thoughts again as, at the surface level, she could hear that he was determined not to let her blame herself for any negative outcomes from this news.
Annie leaned into his touch and closed her eyes, and the two of them sat in silence for some time before Annie whispered, "I've wanted a family as long as I can remember."
"Okay," Scott said, agreeing almost the second her sentence ended. And that, at least, had her dropping her shoulders.
"So, what do we do?"
Scott brushed his thumb over her cheek for a long time, weighing out their options. She could see the flash of several plans float through his mind, and she bit her lip, watching as he sorted through their options. It was sweet that his initial thought was to run away with her, though she didn't need to be a tactical genius to know that wasn't the best option.
Finally, she watched him come to a decision, and she knew it was the right one, because it had been the one that she'd been worried he would suggest.
"I only have to be here until the start of September," Scott said, holding onto her hand tighter as he said it.
She nodded, her heart in her throat. "I'll … I'll tell Ororo that I want to get our suite set up and to get a feel for the school before we start the semester."
"You can tell her the truth," Scott said. "She'll be discreet, and she won't be anywhere but the school this close to the semester starting. She won't tell anyone."
"Okay." Annie finally let her lower lip tremble, and she reached for him, folding into his arms as soon as he held them out to her, hanging onto him for support as he stroked her hair. "This isn't how I pictured this going."
"I know," he said quietly.
"I wish we could celebrate."
"I know."
"I wish you could come with me."
"I know." Scott took a deep breath and let it out. "But you have to be safe, Annie."
"I know."
They sat there in silence for a good, long time, simply holding onto each other. For the sake of each other's pride, both of them pretended not to know that the other was crying.
And then, at last, Annie felt like she had enough of a handle on her emotions to project to him: So, do you have any suggestions for baby names?
She felt his laugh underneath her ear bubbling through his chest. We'll come up with some together.
And we'll throw a party when you're safe in Westchester. He can't take away our happiness. I'll drag it back from him with my fingernails, Annie said, smiling softly against his chest.
I won't let him touch you, Scott told her, though she could hear the fear behind that statement.
I know you won't, she said, because she didn't know what else to say. She was quiet for a long time again before, carefully, she said, Will you help me pack?
Yeah. He didn't move from where he was sitting with his arms around her. Give me a minute. I'm not ready for you to go.
Okay. Annie closed her eyes and leaned into him, breathing in everything about the moment, trying to memorize it so she had something to hold onto while they were on opposite sides of the world.
This was not how she had pictured this when she was a little girl. And she hated that Sinister had managed to rob even this of its joy.
Mia was excited to go to Genosha and study robotics under Vision's tutelage, and she was practically bouncing as she got to her new apartment. Because she was an X-Man, Wanda had arranged for her to get her own place so that she wouldn't be swamped with attention, and she appreciated that.
She also suspected that Wanda had sent her mom apartment suggestions because she had once been dating Tommy and would have all sorts of press interest for that reason, but she wasn't going to bring that up.
She would still be part of the team, but while she was in college, she'd only be able to come to Westchester on the weekends for team practice, and she'd only be able to go on emergency missions. But she'd already talked to everyone on the team about that, and they were all on board. Most of the new X-Men were in college anyway; they were all working around those schedules.
And anytime there was an emergency during school hours, increasingly, Bobby or Remy or Warren or Betsy would be there to deal with the problem alongside the ones who weren't in school like Nate or Rachel or America.
Her friends had all shown up to help her move in, too, so her apartment was full of people chatting and laughing as she 'ported around, explaining where she wanted things to go and getting caught up in the excitement.
She 'ported into her room and saw James and Billy laughing about something or other while Kate and America took control of sorting Mia's closet. Nate and Rachel were handling the kitchen, simply floating things where they needed to be. Cassie and May were setting up the internet and getting her TV hooked up. Noh was moving furniture around while Lexi cackled and kept telling him to "try it this way" so he'd end up rearranging everything again.
And then, Mia spotted Tommy, who was putting books away on her bookshelf. He wasn't using his superspeed but seemed to be enjoying arranging everything just so - and she caught his gaze from across the room.
He grinned and went back to what he was doing, though she couldn't help but notice that he was putting her favorite comfort reads on the middle, most accessible shelf, the books she turned to when she just needed to curl up by herself and forget about the world for a while.
Mia felt herself blushing, but just then, she heard Noh, exasperated, say, "There is truly not enough space in this apartment to find a perfect arrangement," and she 'ported over to deal with Lexi's teasing.
But that left Tommy staring at the spot she'd just disappeared, a little too caught up in the blush he'd seen on her cheeks.
And then, he heard his boyfriend clear his throat, and he looked over his shoulder to see David frowning and watching him closely.
"Sorry," he said. "Got lost in my head for a minute."
"Uh-huh," David said, but he didn't say anything. Instead, he simply went back to helping Tommy put the books away and didn't offer to start any conversation for a good, long time.
When Annie had pictured moving into the institute, she had always pictured a more joyous occasion, not this… quiet move she was doing now.
She absolutely understood why she needed to be there, because she knew how dangerous things already were for David. But that didn't change the genuine loneliness as she brought her things into the suite Ororo had already set aside for her and Scott to use.
Rachel was already there to help, of course, telekinetically carrying everything in, though Annie wanted to do the kitchenette herself. It wasn't much, but Ororo had put in enough for them to have a breakfast nook or for Annie to play with recipes in peace. The rest of her kitchen supplies would go downstairs, but this little corner… this was where she would keep her mother's cookbook, among other things.
But even that felt a bit empty, because she'd hoped to do all of this with Scott. And here she was, moving herself in, lying to everyone by omission. Sure, it was true that she wanted to get used to the sprawling institute before she started her first semester teaching there, because she didn't want to get lost. And it was also true that she wanted to organize a homecoming for Scott in a few weeks. And she definitely wanted to be there to help Leslie Ann as she waited out the last few months before she was sixteen and could ask to be an Avenger. Those were all true things.
But they weren't the real reason she was here.
And despite her best attempts to keep up a brave face, she couldn't help but hate how unfair this all was. She loved Scott and his family, but nothing about this was normal.
Not to mention the fact that she knew Scott was an absolute mess, and she couldn't even be there for him. Neither of them had expected to get news like this; Annie was thirty-eight, and she'd figured she would be a stepmother and a teacher and leave her legacy that way. Now, she had a high-risk pregnancy with a man who was terrified that his family was going to be torn from him - with damn good reason.
Annie set down the apron she had been folding to put away and then leaned against the wall, taking a deep breath to let it out again. There was absolutely no sense in getting herself this worked up.
She heard a knock at the door and expected to see Rachel with the last few boxes of her things, but instead, she saw Ororo waiting to be invited in. So, putting on a smile, she headed over to wave Ororo in. "Thanks again for letting me - well, for all of this," Annie said, still a little emotional without meaning to be.
"You're family," Ororo said. "No need to thank me. We've just been waiting for you to consider staying here."
"But for that stupid house arrest," Annie said with a tired smile.
"That was a horrible chapter, yes," Ororo agreed. "But it gave you plenty of time with Scott."
"Yes, well, that's how this happened, isn't it?" Annie asked, gesturing down at herself with a wry smile.
Ororo smiled softly. "I don't believe that's actually a complaint."
Annie blushed, brushed a hand through her hair, and then gestured for Ororo to come join her on the couch. "Not really, no," 'she admitted. "I did always want this, you know. But I saw forty fast approachin' on the road and figured it wasn't in the Lord's plan for me."
"I'm sure Scott wasn't expecting it either."
Annie let her smile fall as she leaned back. "He says he's happy, and every once in a while, I catch him smiling my way and know he is. But…" She trailed off and gestured widely with both hands. She couldn't tell anyone about her telepathy, even with as much as had been revealed, so she didn't have a proper way to explain that she knew Scott was both excited and terrified, because she could hear his mental loop.
"There's no way that he's not entirely excited - even if there is a reasonable for him level of stress to go with it."
"And isn't it a damn shame that we've got such good reason to be stressed about this?" Annie asked in a sigh.
"Give it time," Ororo said. "With the players involved, I'm sure what we think is the usual problem will shift. There are some creative minds in action that we didn't have before."
"I know. And I have full faith in 'em. Lord knows I've seen 'em at work, and I know they'll go to any lengths to keep us safe," Annie said. She took a deep breath, let it out, and then cleared her throat. "At any rate, I never thought I'd be plannin' a shotgun wedding, but once Craig and Anton find out…"
"I'm sure Scott will find a way to manage that southern tradition."
Annie chuckled at that. "We genuinely considered just eloping - as much as we can while he's on house arrest. Just invite Wanda over and be done with it instead of trying to plan a big party when the monster in the closet is lurking all the time. But Alex told us in no uncertain terms that, and I quote, 'The vampire doesn't get to ruin my big brother's wedding,' so…"
"It's lucky, then, that we only have weeks to wait for him to leave Genosha - and that this place is perfectly protected. So far."
Annie nodded. "So, I was actually hoping to ask you - since you're the head of the school - if we could tell everyone I'm wedding planning. And then, you know, actually plan a wedding here. I'd love to get married in the snow, and I shouldn't be showing too much just a couple months out."
"Whenever you're ready, of course," Ororo agreed.
"Thanks." Annie tipped her head toward the kitchenette - and the second bedroom in the suite. "And thank you for all this, too.
"When I said to make yourself at home, I meant it, Annie," Ororo said. "No reason to be so … humble about it. Make yourself comfortable. Please."
"I will, I'm sure," Annie said. "It's just a big adjustment. And making it without Scott feels so wrong." She smiled tightly. "I know y'all welcomed me into the family, but it feel like livin' with the in-laws by my lonesome."
"We'll simply have to amend that," Ororo said. "Traditionally, that's done around here by taking Remy's credit cards and shopping until you feel more welcome."
"I think I like this tradition," Annie said, smiling to herself as she gestured to her stomach. "And I do need some new clothes."
"How lucky for you, then," Ororo said before she shifted her hand to show her four cards. "I came prepared. I had a feeling you might need some cheering."
Annie looked between the cards and Ororo before, surprising herself, she simply threw her arms around Ororo's neck in a hug, more emotional than she had expected to be but finding deep, needed comfort in the fact that all she could hear from Ororo mentally was a genuine welcome.
"Hey, Kitty, can I borrow you for a minute?" Bobby peeked his head into Kitty's office, looking a little more opaque than usual. He knew that she was watching some video footage from the team's last practice - and from some of the younger kids at the school who wanted to try to go out for the team soon - but he didn't know anyone better for advice, either.
Especially since the subject was him and Remy.
"Of course," Kitty said, looking up with a little smirk. "What's going on?"
Bobby let his shoulders drop and slipped the rest of the way into her office, closing the door behind him. "So, ah, I kinda figured if someone's gonna make a move, you know, between me and Remy, it's gotta be me, all things considered," he said, rubbing his hand over his neck as he came to sit down.
Kitty did a small double take. "Um … yeah, seems like … also what?"
Bobby winced. "Am I reading this totally wrong? You'd tell me if I was reading this totally wrong, right? I am, aren't I?"
"No, I don't think so, but I didn't know that you were that interested?" Kitty said. "I mean … I get it, it's Remy, after all… and he definitely gives you more leeway than he does to anyone else."
"Yeah." Bobby shrugged both shoulders up. "I mean, we've been… hanging out. And he really helped me figure myself out with the whole Johnny thing."
Kitty shifted seamlessly into best friend mode. "So when are you going to ask him?"
"Well, that's the other part where I need your advice," Bobby said. "Because I can't actually find him."
"Oh! Well … we'll have to do that first," Kitty decided. "Where did you leave him?"
"I mean, we were talking last night," Bobby admitted. He couldn't blush in his ice form - not like he would when he wasn't icy - but Kitty could tell that's what he was doing. "I just wanted to check on him. Ever since we figured out what was going on with Sinister, you know? But I can't find him anywhere in the house."
"Then maybe we need to talk to Betsy if she's not too busy," Kitty reasoned. "You know how he is - if he's not around, he could literally be anywhere." She bumped him with her hip. "And you know, I know my initial reaction was a little off? But you two would be really good together."
"Yeah?" Bobby grinned. "You don't think he's outta my league? My dating record is not great, you know?"
"Bobby, come on. Have you seen yourself?"
"Have you seen him?"
"Obviously," Kitty giggled.
Bobby grinned and gestured for her to join him sitting down. "I'm not totally off, though, right? I mean, if I'm reading into the way he says 'Rober', then that's just, you know, me not being able to think…?"
"Oh yeah. He definitely lingers on that," Kitty said, still smiling widely.
"Okay, that's what I thought." Bobby leaned back and ran his hand through his hair.
"Does he make you blush every time he does that?" Kitty asked. "Because if you're blushing and he knows it and he's still doing it? Totally a thing."
"Okay. Well, I guess I'll track him down sooner or later. Just a little disappointed that I finally worked up the nerve and he's vanished."
"Did you try texting him?"
"I did, actually," Bobby said. "That's what's got me second-guessing myself, you know? It seemed like maybe he was open to us getting together today. "
"Give him a chance to reply," Kitty said. "You know he might be in the middle of something."
"Yeah." Bobby shrugged. "I wouldn't be surprised if he's double-checking some stuff with Scott just about to get out of house arrest."
"I'd be surprised if he wasn't."
"Yeah. He's been worried about him - don't tell anyone I said so, though, or Rem'll kill me," Bobby said, smirking.
"Rem'll kiss you, more like. To get you to shut up about it."
"God, I hope so."
"Take the initiative, Rober'" Kitty said, butchering the cajun accent.
"Oh, it's horrible when you say it. Never do it again," Bobby laughed.
"I'll only do it again if you fail to ask out your swamp rat."
"I'll only fail if I can't freaking find him," Bobby laughed.
"Then I guess you need to either be patient or start looking," Kitty countered. "But you're getting to an age where you might want to consider just looking."
"Did you just call me old?" Bobby said, blinking at her in disbelief.
Kitty started to cackle. "You can't bank on those boyish good looks forever!"
"Lies. I got powers that let me age slower."
"Still have laugh lines."
"I have it on good Annie Hale authority that those are crinkles and are the best part of getting older."
"Are you trying to get Annie to kiss you, or a cajun? I mean … not all southerners are the same, I'll bet."
"What? No. I've just been checking on her because it's obvious she's depressed, you know?"
"Mmhmm. But you're putting faith in her opinion on your laugh lines," Kitty said. "And we were talking about how lucky you are that you're from Boston and not NYC - otherwise you'd have to see if botox had negative effects on cold things."
"You're hilarious," Bobby said, shoving her in the shoulder.
"I can't wait to hear the two of you just chatting together. You definitely got the better end of the deal," Kitty had to tease - since Bobby did need a little teasing.
"Yeah, yeah," Bobby said, smirking lightly. "You're just jealous we'll be the best-looking X-Men."
"Just don't offer to pahk the cah," Kitty said, then fell apart cackling.
"I don't sound like that!"
"You do when you're all worked up!" Kitty said.
"Still not as bad as Rem," he shot back. "He's unintelligible when that happens."
"That's because he throws in all that dirty French," Kitty said.
"It's hilarious." Bobby grinned and then got to his feet, offering Kitty a hand up. "Thanks. I needed to get out of my head, and I can always rely on you," he said, pulling her into a hug once he got her upright.
"Love you, popsicle," Kitty said as she snuggled in.
"Love you too, Shadowcat."
"So go find your cay-john and get all worked up."
"Don't think I won't," Bobby said, giving her one more squeeze before he headed out.
The laboratory was finally working peacefully: Sinister was able to get to work on the projects that were most pressing while James handled matters that Sinister himself was unable to focus on without getting some intense backlash for focusing on them.
It was apparent that Apocalypse was impatient this time around - and his projected demands to Sinister were taking up more and more of his focus to the point that he couldn't work on the things that needed to be done to combat Apocalypse. And there had been so many instances where he was very sure that he'd lost the backup he needed to have a prayer in this fight. He glanced over at James - pleased that he was keeping up on the short haircut that both made performing surgeries and experiments more manageable and kept his image just unrecognizable enough that his resemblance to his father wasn't nearly so striking right off the bat.
James didn't know it, but Sinister needed that edge to keep the boy out of Apocalypse's hands. Already, the master had voiced his distaste for those that had made the lists that Sinister had provided him to choose his horsemen from. Some of the mutants on the list had already been watched by Apocalypse from a distance to see if they were worthy enough to carry the mantle of Horseman. But he hadn't decided to move - yet.
"James," Sinister said quietly, then tapped on a note to his right before he got up and walked away from that bench.
James looked over and watched Sinister step away with a frown, then headed over to see what it was that Sinister wanted him to do now, only to frown at the directions to gather up materials and equipment to move vital formulas to another lab. James had never been told to do this much all at once, but one look at the expression Sinister was wearing made it clear that it wasn't a request, and it was urgent. He knew better than to ask too many questions when Sinister looked that deeply in pain, and instead, he simply started gathering what he knew Sinister kept closest to him for the formulations he wanted made. Most of the lab equipment would be in every other lab he had. And anything that was hyper specific was gathered up with the notes that Sinister seemed determined to turn his back to during the telepathic attacks.
As James worked, Sinister took the time he needed to focus on his next move. The migraine was growing far worse than it was for a simple telepathic projection … He'd need to hurry.
Then, out of the blue, Sinister was hit with such a hard telepathic intrusion that he dropped what he had in his hands and fell to his knees, clutching his head and gasping in pain.
Across the way, James set down all he'd gathered and rushed over to help Sinister up. That … that was not something Sinister had considered as a possibility. He cracked one eye open to look at James as James helped him first to his feet, and then to a stool by the nearest workbench.
"What do you need?" James asked, concern etched into the features of his face as Sinister tried to get his bearings.
"I need you to do as you're told," Sinister said, then paused with a sigh. "Thank you for the concern, my boy - but we have no time to waste." He gestured toward James's gathered items, and after a second, James grudgingly went back to his task.
It was hard to shore himself up against the mental onslaught, but there was nothing more to be done. He couldn't finish what he was working on - and if he tried to directly under apocalypse's nose, all would be lost. With great effort, Sinister pushed himself to finish his task.
He moved with an unusual quickness as he gathered up things not on the list that the boy would need to get started, then he shook his head trying to throw the thought, knowing that he couldn't focus on his assistant for too long. He needed to seem like he was simply another lackey in Sinister's mind, and to his immense relief, the harsh tone and short temper he was showing James was met not with questions and sass, but a quiet obedience that let Sinister know that James was well aware of something being wrong.
With a sneer on his lips, Sinister took the last few items and stormed toward James while his headache grew to such proportions that there was no way that his master was far off. He watched as James picked up the container with the list he'd requested he gather - then pushed the last few things into his arms, opened a portal, and shoved James through it as if he was going to teleport himself to one of his favorite, most secluded labs.
Before James could get his bearings on the other side of the portal, Sinister closed it - barely before a new portal opened up and a livid Apocalypse himself stepped into the lab Sinister was in.
He was out of time. They all were - and there was nothing Sinister could do now to stop it.
Notes:
The story will continue in "Billy Can't Look Away" ... this was just getting too long, even if I adored the title to itty bitty pieces. - CC